The Last Necromancer
by C.J. Archer
The Ministry of Curiosities #1Publish date: August 11, 2015
Genre: Fantasy, Historical, Young Adult
Rating: 4/5
Goodreads summary
People are now hunting Charlie all over London, but only one man succeeds in capturing her.
Lincoln Fitzroy is the mysterious head of a secret organization on the trail of a madman who needs a necromancer to control his newly “made” creatures. There was only one known necromancer in the world – Charlotte – but now there appears to be two. Lincoln captures the willful Charlie in the hopes the boy will lead him to Charlotte. But what happens when he discovers the boy is in fact the young woman he’s been searching for all along? And will she agree to work for the man who held her against her will, and for an organization she doesn’t trust?
Because Lincoln and his ministry might be just as dangerous as the madman they’re hunting.
My thoughts
I love all things fantasy and paranormal. Give me magic, werewolves, demons, vampires and everything in between all day, every day. But for some reason things like necromancy and zombies just don't do it for me. I don't even like The Walking Dead (I hear you all gasping, but it just doesn't do it for me).
However, for whatever reason, when I read the blurb for The Last Necromancer by C.J. Archer my first response was, "Gimme, gimme, gimme." I always love the idea of strong heroine who manages to survive on her own. Which is exactly what Charlie did for the first five years after being thrown out of her father's house for accidentally bringing her dead mother to life.
Whatever I thought about this book in the beginning, my expectations were taken and thrown out the window. Since I don't want to spoil anything for anyone, I'll just say that C.J. Archer manages to tie in an old, classic story that's I've always been fascinated with. Imagine my delight when it popped up completely unexpected.
Now, on to the review technicals.
What I liked. The characters. Charlie is the type of person we would expect her to be. She strong, a bit hard headed and does trust people very easily. She's also scared to death of her necromancy powers and tries her hardest to never use them. These are the kind of heroines I love to read about. They're tough, yet they doubt themselves from time to time. They try to make the best of bad situations, but in the end they're really good at heart.
Lincoln was an enigma and kept me guessing at every turn. Once the book ended I found myself wanting to know more about him and what he does. We only scratch the surface of his character in this first book. I want to know more about his past and what makes him tick.
The writing is absolutely fantastic. It's descriptive and does an excellent job of showing, not telling, the reader what's happening. It's pretty obvious she's no novice writer. After I did some Internet stalking, I found out she's got a bunch of other books that I will be adding to my TBR list.
What I thought could be improved. I really would have liked to see the relationship between Charlie and Lincoln develop a little bit more. To me, it's not much of a romance (and maybe it's not supposed to be yet). From the synopsis, I was expecting there to be some romance. It was really more about one character's fascination/obsession with the other.
The big reveal about Charlie's past was a bit obvious. I guessed it well before we were supposed to find out. And I was totally OK with that. I like to guess about certain things sometimes and I sometimes I turn out to be right.
Overall. This was definitely one of my favorite books so far this year. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars because I loved the characters and they kept me guessing from page to page. Don't make me wait too long for book two, C.J.!
** I was provided a copy of this book in return for an honest review
Get it here
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About C.J. Archer
She has at various times worked as a librarian, IT support person and technical writer but in her heart has always been a fiction writer. She has won and placed in romance writing contests including winning RWAustralia’s Emerald Award in 2008 for the manuscript that went on to be released under the title HONOR BOUND. C.J. spent her early childhood in the dramatic beauty of outback Queensland, Australia, but now lives in suburban Melbourne with her husband and two children.
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Author links:
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Giveaway
Thanks to Ms. Archer and Xpresso book tours, I'm able to giveaway one (1) paperback copy of The Last Necromancer for residents of the United States and Canada OR one (1) ebook copy for international readers. The winner will receive their copy through the tour hosts, not through Book Nerd Paradise.
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