UNHOLY TESTAMENT: Full Circle
By Carole Gill
BLURB:
Rose and her children are still held captive on a ship staffed by vampires, overseen by the demon Eco. There are more blood-drenched confessions to read as Rose has no choice but to finish reading Eco’s journal. Eco, mad and as unpredictable as ever, can snap at any time. But will he?
The rest of the journal tells of the sick and twisted obsession Eco has had for Blackstone House’s former mistress, evil and debauched Eve Darton. There are aristocratic devil rites, both in England and France, including satanic sacrifices. There is the Great Fire of London 1666, plagues, vampire destroyers, witch hunts and resurrection men who supply a necrophile doctor.
The novel comes full circle as all the hideous secrets of Blackstone House are revealed, as are the reasons Rose’s father killed himself and his family.
Dracula is introduced, as is a child cruelly orphaned by the vampires. Dracula, the child’s dying mother says, has cursed her daughter and pleads with Rose to take her. Rose does, but what hope can the hopeless have?
MY REVIEW:
This is the third book in a series, and the only one I’ve read so far. Not knowing the background of the characters may have influenced my review, but I feel this story does well as a standalone book.
The story starts with Rose being held hostage on a ship bound for America by the evil, immortal being called Eco. Trying to win her love, he wrote a journal about his life and how he ended up the terrible evil creature that she knows. The majority of the book is from his POV, through his journal.
This is a well-written, Gothic style of writing. The settings and events are well-defined, along with the characters. As the journal unfolds, you can’t help understanding Eco and how he became the mad creature as known by Rose. I even felt sorry for him. But that all comes to a crashing halt at the end, when the story goes back to Rose and what transpires afterwards. Not having read the first book, I didn’t develop an affinity towards Rose that I probably should have. That familiarity would have put more UMPH into the ending, I’m sure. What happened to Edmund and Daniel, the true victims in this tale, affected me more.
I really enjoyed Carole Gill’s personification of Satan and Death. Louis I saw as a self-righteous twit, with a God complex, turning people into the undead to justify his own existence. I thought the children were too weak for being vampires, probably due to be being smothered by Eve. And poor Eve, who was condemned to a life of evil from almost her mortal birth, because of Satan’s lust for her. I’m sure my perception of them will change once I read the first book. The author did a great job getting me to identify with each them.
The only complaint I have is the length of the book and the never ending sin and debauchery. There’s only so much a girl can take. It all started sounding the same, over and over. Halfway through, I found myself looking at the percentage read, thinking, are we there yet?
If you love dark, vampire, Gothic tales, this one’s for you. After I read the first book, I might have to update my review on this one. I give it 4 feathers.
Another great book for Halloween. Clock on the cover to grab your copy today.
