It was with high hopes that I requested Vigilante from Bethany House as my next book to review. I didn't expect them to send me an advanced readers copy within the week. Having loved Robin Parrish's earlier works, especially the Dominion Trilogy and Nightmare, I anticipated something spectacular. Spectacular it was—but I'm not so sure it was such a good thing.
Robin's novels are written in an extremely cinematic writing style, much like a movie in book form, focusing on visual, action, and pacing. In Vigilante, Robin steps it up a bit more, taking it to an almost cartoonish level. Which—don't get me wrong—makes for a quick, exciting, and interesting read. If that's all you're looking for, then Vigilante is a good choice. I think the part that disappointed me the most about Vigilante was the apparent lack of original ideas. The comic book, super-hero feel that Parrish was going for came across, and came across well. But throughout the whole book I felt as if I'd been here before or seen this before, and was waiting for the characteristic Robin Parrish aspect. The Dominion Trilogy was full of twists and surprises and spiritual themes, as was Nightmare; there was less of that in Vigilante, and what there was felt forced. I liked the characters for the most part, but the ones I really enjoyed were given very little “screen time” and very little back-story.
To be fair, I read this book over a month ago and have finally found the time to sit down to write a review for it. It is a good book...but it could have been so much more, and that's the disappointing part. Robin Parrish is a fine author and I'm still looking forward to whatever he has coming next. He definitely deserves more readers; however, I don't think this is the book that will give him more. I honestly think his earlier works should have done that for him, so if you're reading this, check them out.
In all, Vigilante is like the Avatar of Christian fiction: lots of flash, lots of bang, but in the end, there isn't much new ground covered here.
3.5 out of 5
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
