Review: Dead Radiance by T.G. Ayer

Title: Dead Radiance
Author: T.G. Ayer
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Publish Date: February 25, 2012
Source: I received a copy from the author; however, this did not affect my review.

Why You're Reading This Book:

• You're a young adult fiction fan.
• You're a mythology fan.

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "Bryn Halbrook had always seen the glow. But it is only when her best friend dies that she discovers the meaning of those beautiful golden auras — Death. Alone, lost in the foster system, she struggles to understand who she is and why she was cursed with the ability to see the soon-to-be-dead.

The new foster kid, Aidan, isn’t helping any. Mr. Perfect seems to fit in no matter what, making her feel even more pathetic. But when his affections turn to her, Bryn finds him hard to resist. Impossible actually. A mystery himself, Aidan disappears, leaving behind a broken heart and a mysterious book that suggests Bryn might not be entirely human.

Bryn stands at the threshold of a journey of discovery. Will destiny help her find herself, find her purpose and her place in a world in which she’d never belonged?"

My Two Cents:

To me, the perfect summer book needs to have a couple features. First, there must be good characters. Second, there must be a great story line. Third, it should be light but entertaining. Fourth, it should have fast-paced story line that will keep me reading. Fifth, it should be a book that you keep saying that you'll only read one more page and then you end up reading a bunch more. Dead Radiance checks all of those boxes for me. I read this book in two sittings. It was a little slow starting out but picked up quickly.

The story is great. As the title of the series states, it's about Valkyries. I loved all of the Norse mythology in the book. I don't know much about Norse mythology but this book definitely gave me a good flavor. I loved when Bryn, the main character, was in Asgard, the city of Odin. I loved how much mythology there was in this book. It was really a good primer to me. I also liked the little bit of mystery in the book as well as the journey that Bryn and Aidan go on. They even have a stop in Rockville, MD, which is where I used to live, which is very cool to me.

Bryn is a great character. I really thought that she was well-rounded. You feel her insecurity at first and then are totally invested in how she evolves into a really powerful character. The love story in the book was definitely a case of insta-love at first between Bryn and Aidan but it definitely grew on me quite a bit throughout the book.

I was not ready for this book to end. I was getting sadder and sadder as I saw the percentage on my Kindle going up. You know a book is good when you don't want it to end and aren't ready to leave the characters. The fact that there is a major cliffhanger at the end of the book did not help at all. I'm sad that I have to wait until August for the next book. May the rest of July pass quickly!

Bottom line: This is a great read for mythology lovers and those looking for a book with a gripping story line!