The Reckoning
A Dark Storm series, Book 3
Paperback | Kindle
By Kris Greene
St. Martin’s Griffin
Release Date: November 12, 2019

I have not read the previous two books in this series. There, I got that out before I start reviewing The Reckoning. Also, I am quite aware that this is the third and final book in the Dark Storm series from Kris Greene. So what I have to say is based around all of these facts and my own personal opinion. Keep reading, if you dare.

I started this book thinking it was a young adult novel, based on a myriad of context clues. But, alas, I was wrong. A simplistic cover featuring a young man of indeterminate age holding a trident led me to believe I was in for a Percy Jackson-esqe tale. That and the writing level, with simplistic sentence structure and rudimentary vocabulary, is on par with a YA book. There is a decent amount of cursing within these pages, but still I thought it was a linguistic affection of the characters. It was when there was a gratuitous sex scene in the middle of the story that I realized I was definitely wrong on all fronts.

I actually liked the premise of the book, initially connecting in small ways with the characters in the first few chapters. As more and more were introduced, however, I found myself lost as there was little to no background given with regards to who and why they were there. So when there was a scene where one lost their life, it was actually underwhelming, as I had no connection with them in any way. Maybe this was the lack of knowledge from the two prior books, but I honestly do not believe that to be true.

The build up between action sequences was pitifully small every time. I read the book thinking it was like fight scene after fight scene. In fact, I remember feeling like this was an adaptation of a side scrolling video game, because there was a boss fight at the end. Let me rephrase that: at the extraordinarily anticlimactic ending. Seriously, the friendship, betrayals, deaths, and even the battles read like an elementary-level primer. I cannot convey how unexciting I found this novel.

I will not continue to bash the book, though. I feel like there was a decent plot with an investment from the author to create a wonderful story. However, I believe there is literally (and literarily) too much going on for the reader to feel invested or even to simply suspend disbelief. That this is the third book in a series both baffles and confounds me, as I wonder what editor failed to have the author flesh this out in a more suitable fashion. I see a twinkle of promise within the pages, but the end result here was disappointment.

I had never heard of this series or author prior to having been sent this book to review. I may in the future try her work again, but for now and the immediate future, I am going to pass on any more coming my way. I cannot with any conviction recommend this book to anyone. If the language was cleaned up and the sex scene deleted, it might make a basic young adult dark fantasy novel, but as is, I am just going to have to tell you to pass on this one. Good luck to Kris Greene in the future.

A young man discovers that it’s his destiny to lead the war against the Darkness.

Not much is left of Gabriel’s life ever since he discovered his true destiny as a warrior knight in the final battle against darkness. His life has been rife with soul-sucking demons and creatures straight out of the books he studied in college. His life is no longer ordinary. As a warrior, he has no choice but to fight for good. And if he screws up, the world is toast”¦

The war between good and evil has just been kicked up a notch for Gabriel Redfeather and his partner, the half Valkyrie, De Mona Sanchez. Gabriel is the only one who can stem the tide of darkness creeping across the land. But will he be able to do it without falling into darkness himself?

208 pages