"Riveting, claustrophobia, heart-pounding"
Somehow I missed O'Shea's debut book, and I am sorry it
took me so long to find it. Her first novel is sheer
claustrophobic dynamite. This novel is amazing.
There is such great talent in the Futuristic Romance genre,
Robin D. Owen, C.J. Barry, Grant, but these new voices such
as Robin T. Popp and Patti O'Shea are sounding they are a
force that is here to stay. It's a strong story with such
great female characters, but the male is just as vividly
created, formed with such insight and emotion. The main story centers on Ravyn Vedier. She is the
communication expert on a team of 20 CAT specials. They go
in and investigate if a planet is uninhabitable or so
they believe. They were sent to Jarved Nine, which is
strangely like Earth in terrain, air etc. The only thing
keeping this planet from being labeled a prime target for
human habitation is the Old City. A town built for about
20,000 to 50,000 people, perfect in every way, but no
people. When Ravyn visited the Old City, she found it in
pristine condition, just as if the people walked off. The
intriguing riddle soon takes second place in her mind as
she faces mind-bending horror. She is down in the
subbasement of the CAT facility, no more than 45 minutes,
and returns to find her 19 CAT mates slaughter in a
gruesome fashion and grotesquely arranged in the pattern of
a flower. Damon Brody and his team of six Special Ops force are on
the other side of the Jarved Nine when the distress call
comes from the CAT team. They arrive,
discover the
slaughter, and fear all are dead. Damon finds a terrified
Ravyn covered in blood and hiding under her bed. He sets
his men to secure to building while he tries to get answers
out of Ravyn. Damon makes her a cup of tea and finally gets
a few shaky replies from her immediately going on alert
when Ravyn insists she did not set off the emergency
distress beacon. They rush to find his men, and come upon
what Damon fears. His team is slaughtered in the same
fashion as the other 19, this time arranged like a
lightning bolt. Grabbing what they can carry to survive,
they are left on there for three weeks until a military
rescue mission is launched to find them. The only place
left for protection is the Old City. They have to get there
before the killer stalking them runs them to ground. It's
their growing to trust of the other which makes the
grueling pace bearable. Colonel Alex Sullivan is Ravyn's stepbrother. He raised her
after their parents were killed. He knows something is bad
wrong on Jarved Nine and he is determined to lead a team
into rescue his sister...if she is still alive. He is
satisfied with the members of his team, except the
communications expert. Stacey is a CAT member like his
sister; in fact, she is Ravyn's best friend. Alex sees
Stacey as a liability to his team. She is non-military. His
gut tells him something terrible has occurred on this
distant planet and Stacey is not trained to follow orders,
not trained to defend herself, so he is going to push her
during the weeks long voyage to Jarved Nine, trying to see
she stays alive. Stacey has been in love with Alex since
she met him at Ravyn's and her graduation years before, so
working under the harsh taskmaster is disturbing in more
ways that one. The secondary story of Alex and Stacey could make a novel
on its own, but under the skillful talent of O'Shea, she
weaves both tales into a breathtaking pace. The world of
Jarved Nine is vividly created, the characters achingly
real. You will care for Damon and Ravyn, and the secondary
Alex and Stacey. She starts with the first couple running
for their lives and the second desperately rushing to their
rescue, in a breakneck pace for the reader that never lags,
never fails to mesmerize. Be warned, this is a book once you pick you won't be able
to put down. I was looking forward to THE POWER OF TWO
before I read RAVYN'S FLIGHT. Now I desperately looking
forward to it!
Reviewed by DeborahAnne MacGillivray
Posted September 29, 2004
RAVYN'S FLIGHT will be reissued in August 2006, concurrent
to the spin-off ETERNAL NIGHTS.
SummaryRavyn Verdier is on a mission to test the habitability of
Jarved Nine. Damon Brody is sent to rescue her when the
rest of her team is mysteriously killed. Trapped on a
planet that harbors an unimaginable evil, they have only
each other.
An abandoned city holds the key to their survival, but what
they find behind its ancient walls defies all their
preconceived notions and tests the limits of the bond that
has formed between them. To succeed, they will have to cast
aside their doubts and listen to their hearts. For only
when they are linked body and soul—when they realize love
is their greatest weapon—will they be able to defeat the
force bent on destroying all life.
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