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A review by lindsaypopolizio
A Step Past Darkness by Vera Kurian
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
This started out intriguing. I liked the 90s nostalgia and all the characters, especially Jia (starting out and ending with her perspective was perfect). It's marketed as a supernatural thriller, but it rides that line of horror, too. Either way, it was quite the slowburn. I think the book was overwritten by 100ish pages, to the point it almost felt like the author didn't know where she wanted to take the story and wrote until she found her way.
It's unclear to me whether or not this book's a representation of the author's opinions of religion. It doesn't matter to me either way, but where Kurian's beliefs would be important is the middle. If this is a treatise on a church's potential for brainwashing, cult-like behavior, and false idols instead of human greed and power manifested within a church-centered town, then the drawn-out middle part of the book would make more sense considering Maddy's downward spiral post-brainwashed-golden-child-turned-exile—she's nothing without the church. Otherwise, Maddy's life post-teenager didn't need to be mentioned. I would have preferred more of the pastor, especially his origin story, what he is, and his powers, as well, but again, if this book is more about the church, then it wouldn't matter because the way they used the pastor matters more than going in-depth with who and what he is. In that case, he's just a means to an end (a "thing" and not a character), and they would have used anyone or anything else in his place to get what they wanted.
I liked it but didn't love it. Slowburns aren't my jam, and with it being marketed as thriller instead of horror, people will expect it to be faster-paced and more dramatic. However, considering I'm seeing "slowburn" come up the most with ARC reviews, and I think someone's enjoyment in this novel would ultimately come down to if they like slowburns or not, I think it's going to be easy for someone to decide if they want to buy it. Since ARC readers have less info before reading, I'm expecting this book to have steady sales and a nice following after the ARC reviewing period is over and only people who bought the book/borrowed it from the library submit their reviews.
It's unclear to me whether or not this book's a representation of the author's opinions of religion. It doesn't matter to me either way, but where Kurian's beliefs would be important is the middle. If this is a treatise on a church's potential for brainwashing, cult-like behavior, and false idols instead of human greed and power manifested within a church-centered town, then the drawn-out middle part of the book would make more sense considering Maddy's downward spiral post-brainwashed-golden-child-turned-exile—she's nothing without the church. Otherwise, Maddy's life post-teenager didn't need to be mentioned. I would have preferred more of the pastor, especially his origin story, what he is, and his powers, as well, but again, if this book is more about the church, then it wouldn't matter because the way they used the pastor matters more than going in-depth with who and what he is. In that case, he's just a means to an end (a "thing" and not a character), and they would have used anyone or anything else in his place to get what they wanted.
I liked it but didn't love it. Slowburns aren't my jam, and with it being marketed as thriller instead of horror, people will expect it to be faster-paced and more dramatic. However, considering I'm seeing "slowburn" come up the most with ARC reviews, and I think someone's enjoyment in this novel would ultimately come down to if they like slowburns or not, I think it's going to be easy for someone to decide if they want to buy it. Since ARC readers have less info before reading, I'm expecting this book to have steady sales and a nice following after the ARC reviewing period is over and only people who bought the book/borrowed it from the library submit their reviews.