After absolutely falling in love with Sarah Ainslee and her debut novel, I decided to sign up for the ARC team of her publisher, Bow’s Bookshelf. The first book they sent over was another debut, Samara Katharine’s THE LIGHT IS DIMMER.
Lucky Barlowe has not had an easy life, but when he catches the eye of the god Lord Siren, he believes his luck has changed. That is, until he receives a blessing from the god that is more trouble than blessing. As Lucky navigates his newfound powers and the memories that aren’t his own, he discovers that things are more sinister than meets the eye.
I absolutely hate to say it, especially about a debut, but this book just did not hold my interest. I got about halfway through and still felt like nothing was happening. I felt no connection to any of the characters nor did I really care what happened to them. Additionally, there were moments where it is unclear who is speaking which caused a lot of confusion for me.
It feels like the author attempts to address the problem of abusive relationships and the trauma that comes with it, but it feels a little bit more like it glorifies and excuses them. Though an attempt is made to discuss the trauma from an abusive relationship as well as the intrusive thoughts that can come from them, it never really feels like any of the underlying issues are addressed.
Katharine's writing shows a lot of potential and I expect that she will develop beautifully as she writes more.
THE LIGHT IS DIMMER by Samara Katharine is available now and you can pick up a copy for yourself here.
Disclaimer: I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher for free and have voluntarily written this review. If you purchase a copy using my Bookshop affiliate link above, not only will I receive a small commission (which will fuel my coffee and tea addiction and help to keep me up all night reading more books to recommend to you), but you will be supporting indie bookstores as well! If you prefer Amazon, visit my Amazon storefront and click on the list titled "2023 Book Recommendations."
