Advance Reader Reviews--THE TOUCH OF TWILIGHT

Thanks to everyone who volunteered to read Vicki Pettersson's THE TOUCH OF TWILIGHT.  Check out what other readers are saying about the Third Sign of the Zodiac. 

The signs of the Zodiac series is a dark series with a comic book, Frank Miller feel. The rules of the world are many, and there is a lot for the reader to accept, but I think that once you do, you have a gritty and compelling story that's enjoyable to read, if you can handle an angsty tale.

I would not recommend reading any of the books in this series out of order because the world and plot is quite complex. Actions that happen in earlier books have consequences two books down, so someone reading the series in the middle will find themselves lost.  

The Touch of Twilight continues the story of Joanna Archer, new member of the Las Vegas Zodiac Troop on the side of Light. She's found out that she's a superhero but she's come into the knowledge much later than her peers. This means she's constantly learning about the supernatural world and making a lot of mistakes. And with a bloodline of both the Light and Shadow, Joanna is being courted by the Shadow troop who believe that the third sign of the Zodiac is the rise of her Shadow side. Meanwhile, Joanna is still dealing with the manipulations of Shadow member Regan, and the repercussions of her decisions in book 2. Thrown into all of this is the sudden appearance of an otherworldly entity that is after Joanna and who scares even the Tulpa, leader of the Shadows.

As I've said before this is a dark urban fantasy series - it often pulls me emotionally when I read these books, because there is a lot of death and loss involved. I think it speaks volumes about the writer that these books can affect me emotionally it is as much the development as Joanna's character as the writing.

Joanna Archer is an imperfect heroine who does a lot of unlikeable things and makes decisions that I felt were wrong. It's the fact that she keeps trying to make up for her mistakes and her ultimate goal is to do good that keeps me reading. I want there to be a good resolution to her story, but it's a dark story, so I'm not sure if that's going to happen, but in book 3, I felt like Joanna is slowly making progress. She's more comfortable with the world of the Zodiac and all the rules involved with her new powers and she's learned from some of her earlier mistakes. For instance this time she stops trying to hide things from her troop, which was the cause of a lot of distrust and problems before. As with earlier books Joanna's past is also a huge part of her life - a traumatic event when she was a teenager makes it understandable why she can't let go of certain people in her past. Her childhood sweetheart, her sister's memory, her missing mother, her emotionally distant "father" are all people who have an influence on Joanna even during their absence. So I think that because I felt Joanna start to move forward from this past in book 3 (even though it is slow), that I found The Touch of Twilight to be my favorite Zodiac book so far. Not to say that everything is resolved and to my satisfaction - but some things do start to fall in place. I'd like to see Joanna at a point where she can move on from her past and I think it's happening. There is also some interesting developments on the ongoing love triangle (I know who I'm rooting for, but I don't expect Joanna to make a decision soon). I can't wait to read book four, but I'm not sure when it will be out! Next year I suspect.

--Janice

 

Touch of Twilight was released today. I finished my advanced copy late last week and have had a chance to contemplate it. I'd classify this as dark urban fantasy with a touch of romantic angst. I hadn't read the prior books, so it took a while to piece together the rules, but along the way there was quite a bit to keep my interest.

Pettersson takes a bunch of the standard tropes you find in super hero comic books and weaves them into the real world, making comic books themselves an integral part of the mix. I would VERY much recommend starting the series from the first book, as the rules are rather complex. Don't read too much into the astrology, be open to ANYTHING that you could see in a comic book and hang on for the ride.

I used the phrase "romantic angst" because almost every decision the main character makes is weighed against her feelings for the men in her life. This humanizes an otherwise drastically superhuman character, and may very well offer plenty for the reader that's more into the romance genre.

As far as the action goes, there's a ton and it's written well, but many sequence just seem to end. Much of this feeling comes from the average bad guy being a bit less expendable than you'd expect in this genre. The violence is high, the body count is low, but every character, shadow and light, that enters the spotlight gets fleshed out well.

This is not quite my genre of choice, but I seriously admire the risks that Pettersson takes creating such a unique world. I wish more of the grit and flash of Vegas made its way into the book, but otherwise I quite enjoyed the book. On the strength of this book alone, I'd consider reading one of the first two before passing judgment on the series. If you've read and enjoyed the previous books, there's a lot here that should keep you interested.

--Steven

 

This book hits the ground running and really doesn’t stop. Joanna is becoming comfortable in her position as the Archer of the Light in the

Las Vegas

troop. The only thing hanging over her head is the third sign of the zodiac prophecy is coming to pass and fixing some accidental damage she has done to other people in the previous book. What I liked about the prophecy is of course it isn’t what everyone thinks it is even though it seems so straightforward. Also certain plot lines are finished in this book and new threads are developing by the end of the book. The series is really getting great and I am eagerly awaiting the next one.

 

--Glennis

 

 

Comments

[M_eHart]

Not pouting because I didn't get an advance copy of this... really ...