Katy's Reviews > Foretold

Three stars for first half. Five stars for second half.

Let me start off by saying I was looking forward to this book for one reason and one reason only - Denver Beck. But I have to say, it was pretty much everything else that won me over at the end.

I was a bit disappointed with the first half of the book. I know this book was supposed to be about Beck, and it was meant to give us insight on his troubled past, and I understand that it explained why he is the way he is. BUT for some reason, I just didn't feel the same about Beck as I did in the first three books. I can't really say, "He's not the same guy," because duh, obviously, he's not, but I was expecting this insight would just make me say "awww" and totally melt for him. But it didn't.

I felt the first half was a bit out-of-place in this series. The whole series was full of action and drama as Riley and Beck discovered who they were as find their place in the demon trapping business in a complicated world of angel politics. But the first half took us to the country with depressing parent issues and a murder mystery. Yes, in the end, it did have a stretched tie-in to the paranormal world, but like I said, it's out of place. Perhaps this would have been better if it had been written as a prequel. I know the story would be a bit different, and it won't be about Beck having closure. But still, I think I would have enjoyed it more if all his history was packaged and presented differently, while the last book focused more on the rest of it.

It started getting really good after Beck had what would be as much closure as he would have when he tearily spoke those words to his mother and as everyone headed back to Atlanta. The the story continued building to pure awesomeness. I can't even put into words what an amazing job Oliver did with ending this series.

The second half had everything that the first half lacked that I loved so much about the whole series - kick-ass action battling demons, an intriguing complex world of angel politics (though it took me a while to remember all the details) that totally sucks you in, the involvement of the Grand Masters and others in demon trapping, the uncertainty that leaves you guessing what people's true intentions are and what side they were actually on, and of course, that chemistry between not only Riley and Beck but that connection with all the other characters that are involved in their lives.

I think the best written character in this book was Ori. First of all, Beck had me from Chapter 2 of Book 1, and I never strayed from him throughout the whole series. I never trusted Ori when he innocently came into the picture, and I did not swoon over him while everyone was lost by his charming personality. However, I did always believe that he had feelings for Riley, which made him make some of the decisions he did. I think Oliver did an AMAZING job with Ori's character, and I cannot even begin to put in words how moved I was with the last scene with the sunrise. It really tied everything about his whole presence in this series together.

What really made this book PURE AWESOMENESS for me was the way Oliver handled the series end. Too often these days, authors write a book that is supposed to be a stand-alone, somehow manage to make it a series, stretch it out where it can't go any further and produce a disappointing flop at the end. The first half of this book didn't do it for me, but the second half was everything but that.

This book had a lot of character development on already strongly built characters, a plot that managed to stay enact and intriguing throughout the whole series, and the best part, and end that not only ties everything together but comes full circle. I can't write this part without spoiling the book, but the memory of Paul Blackthorne, the scene in hell, the gargoyle, the Grand Master offer, even Riley's library scene - everything was packaged neatly from the first page of the first book. An incredible job on Oliver's part, and I am SO sad to see an end to such a great series.