Review: Absolution by Jennifer Laurens

Title: Absolution
Author: Jennifer Laurens
Series: Heavenly
Publisher: Grove Creek
Publication Date: 11 October 2010

Huge thanks to Jennifer for sending me a copy. I completely adore this series.




Synopsis: From GoodReads
Zoe’s secret is out. And the powers of Hell are ravenous to claim her soul. Her brother, Luke, knows her secret: that she sees both good and evil spirits. Her boyfriend knows. At least Matthias is her guardian angel again. But now Hell’s most ruthless leader will stop at nothing to have her soul.

Albert, Matthias’ father, is relentless in his hunger for Zoe. He wants to destroy Matthias and will use Zoe to do so.
The battle between Heaven and Hell tests everything Zoe has. As she witnesses everyone important in her life suffering, she’s brought to the ultimate choice: will she sacrifice her soul to save the ones she loves?

Review:
I honestly don't know where to start with this one. For some reason I always find it really difficult to write reviews for Jennifer's Heavenly series. It made me think as to why I have such trouble expressing my opinion about these books. If you have read my reviews of Heavenly and Penitence, you will see that this series has touched me on a very personal level and I think that is the reason I stumble when I am writing the reviews. it makes me feel like I am exposing my 'soul' so to speak. I can relate to most of the characters in one way or another:

Mrs Dodd (Zoe's Mother): her internal struggle about putting her autistic daughter first and the effect it has on the other children. If you remember my oldest child is dyspraxic and she tends to be the one that gets the main focus of attention, which does make me worry about the emotional health of the other two girls. It is emotionally and physically draining at times. Adding to the strain on other relationships.

Zoe: following her epiphany in Heavenly, Zoe manages to alter the course of her life for the better. Gain inner strength, faith and contentment most of us strive our whole lives to achieve.  Her ability to find forgiveness and emotional restraint against all negative emotions is enviable.

Luke: (Zoe's Brother) tries to escape from the reality of his life by the use of drugs. Again I can relate, not with the drugs but in our family case alcohol is the poison of choice. I have witnessed the struggle and daily temptation that addiction can bring. Seeing Luke overcome his addiction with the strength that Zoe's belief in him provides.

Mr Dodd (Zoe's father) the strain both emotionally, physically and financially all take its toll. The way in which the family bonds are shown as a united entity is inspiring.

Absolution starts at the exact point that Penitence ended plunging the reader into the action from the start. This is a series that you have to read in order to fully appreciate the storyline. Although there is brilliant recapping of pivotal plot points skilfully interwoven into the current plot.

The darker side of life is shown in terrifying vividness with the ghastly black evil spirits so easy to conjure within the imagination and truly frightening. It is easy to picture them at times of intense negative emotions. Zoe's ability to control her emotions and negate negativity is truly awe inspiring. Something that is not easy to do yet is something that more of us should try to achieve (especially me).

The way in which friendship, family and love are portrayed, and their ability to enhance our lives for the better is beautiful. Daily life is not easy, and it is hard to remember to count the blessings we have no matter how small. This series always makes me do that, stand back and be grateful for the little things. No matter how tough things get, you have to have faith. As I have continually stated I am not overtly religious but the whole ethos of having faith in something and positive thinking while avoiding negativity is something I can appreciate.

The characters development throughout the narrative was wonderful, all of them progressed and developed as separate individuals yet remained as a core unit. Even Abria's development was a pleasure to witness. Most surprisingly for me was the way I felt about Weston through this book. Previously I resented him being with Zoe as I felt he was coming between her and Matthias.  However, through his development within this story I actually found myself appreciating the relationship he has with Zoe, not perfect being human and all, he really does strife to be like Zoe with his positivity and avoiding the negative.

As much as I wanted to make Mathias human or Zoe an angel so that they could be together. I have to say the ending was PERFECT just ab-sol-utely perfect. I cried my eyes out with big gulping sobs, so even J noticed. I couldn't speak for ages after closing the last page for fear of bursting into yet more tears but it was still PERFECT.

To round off I just want to say that for me this is a comfort read. It gives me hope like a ray of sunshine in my life. It came into my life at a crucial point and for that I will be eternally grateful to Jennifer. If you know me then you will realise I tend to say that 'reading is subjective' quite a lot, in fact I am going to make it my catchphrase [: D] That is how I view the Heavenly series for me they are completely personal, I relate to them from my own experiences, they have helped me come to terms with some things and for that I adore them and Jennifer for writing them and sharing them with me.

Absolution Trailer

Absolution by Jennifer Laurens due to be published in November. The final installment in the Heavenly series. I have to admit to be such a sap that I cried in the trailer. I just want Zoe to be with Mathias, can we somehow make Matthias human ;)

Enjoy.

Review: Penitence by Jennifer Laurens

Synopsis: Taken from the back of the book
Seeing good and evil spirits is a gift Zoe guards with her life.
Despite her guardian angel's disappearance, Zoe forces herself to accept that she still has a purpose - but how does she carry the weight of her brothers drug abuse, the hardship of living with an autistic sister, and a best friend who's obsessed with a guy who only wants Zoe?
She never felt more alone.
When a mysterious spirit appears, Zoe thinks she has a new guardian angel. Instead, her brothers addiction worsens, her parents are on the brink of separation, and her best friend tries to kill her. The spirit she thinks is her new guardian isn't there to protect her; hes out to destroy her family and seize Zoe's soul.....for hell.
Will Matthias' return mean that he's Zoe's guardian angel again/ Or is their love  the reason the jaws of Hell now gape open?

Review:
Where do I start, you all know how much I loved Heavenly and this sequel just adds to my adoration of Jennifer Laurens. Remember how I said I thought the book was written for me, well I realised for the first time that Zoe's surname is Dodd, you won't believe it but my maternal grandparents surname was DODD. How much of a coincidence is that.

Penitence starts at the exact point that Heavenly ends, there is a nice recap of the events within the first couple of chapters. Although I do think that you need to read Heavenly to fully appreciate the relationship dynamics and interactions, the recap is not overdone, refreshing the memory and emotions tied to it.
I have to say that the storyline didn't go the way I was thinking it would, *no spoilers* it is nevertheless a powerful, emotional and thought provoking book. The emotions were like a tidal wave from the very beginning.

Following on from Zoe's near death experience and time spent in paradise with Matthias. I could completely relate to how Zoe was feeling, the adage 'Death is easy it is living that is hard', popped into my head. Not only does Zoe have to cope with nearly dying, having some horrific injuries but also being dragged away from Matthias and paradise.  How awful must that feel, thrown back into a world of pain and confusion. Strangely, it brought to mind the episode of Buffy where her friends think she has been sent to hell and bring her back from the dead but really she has been in paradise (I know odd, I blame Wondrous Reads for an awesome Vampire Week)

As a parent myself, I could also relate to how Zoe's parents must have felt seeing their daughter lying on a hospital bed on the verge of death. Talk about my worst nightmare.

The idea that the spirits of loved ones are there waiting for us to cross-over when we die brought tears to my eyes. The writing is emotionally charged, I cry, laugh and despair right along with Zoe.

Zoe's return to health gives her a new appreciation for life. Her inner strength is something I envy. I found myself wondering whether Zoe herself gained some 'heavenly' (no pun intended) powers upon her return. Again the religious references are non-denominational and open to your own beliefs/faith. I think the most important ideal in this series is that having faith in something beyond ourselves can help us cope with whatever life throws at us. A karma sort of thing, everything happens for a reason.

Zoe's ability to forgive can only be described as 'divine' and again made me wonder if she had gained some sort of special powers. Forgiveness can be one of the hardest things to give, even if it is supposed to unshackle our souls, so to speak.

All of the characters develop further. I found my dislike for Britt increasing and seriously wondered how Zoe could be friends to someone so shallow, vapid and self-centred. Brady actually gave me chills. Abria, although autistic, brings such entertainment with her antics. The image of a naked 5 year old eating oreos is hysterical. I can just picture my nearly 5 year old getting up to the same things Abria does given half the chance, drawing on walls with a marker (she has done that) and making angel shapes in snack crumbs is just adorable.  The only one I couldn't understand was Luke, Zoe's brother, I honestly thought that after Heavenly, he was really going to give up doing drugs and couldn't quite understand why he has gone back to them or am I missing something about the nature of addiction here.

The realism within the writing makes the book so easy to relate to. Even, Matthias, a guardian angel has emotions such as jealousy that have to be dealt with and make him more accessible. The introduction of Albert, Matthias's father, added another element to the story.  Developing Matthias's background story and being truly terrifying in the process. I don't have a good relationship with my father and I found this quite difficult to read. Reading Heavenly and Penitence have been cathartic experiences for me.

I could really go on and on about this book but if I give anymore away, it might spoil your enjoyment of it and I wouldn't want to do that. There are a few shocks and surprises in store :) The last thing I will say is that the evil spirits just get more terrifying and every time I have an argument now I picture evil, black spirits crawling over me. It certainly puts an end to an argument quickly :)

I would recommend everyone to read this book as I have already said it is powerful, emotional and thought provoking. It really stays with you long after you have turned the last page. I can't wait for Absolution even though I am sure to cry buckets of tears again :)

Review: Heavenly by Jennifer Laurens

Synopsis: Taken from the back of the book.
I met someone who changed everything.
Matthias.
My autistic sister's guardian angel.
Honest. Inspiring. Funny.
Hot.
And immortal.
That was the problem.
What could I do?
I did what any other girl would do - I fell in love with him

***

Zoe's sister darts in front of cars. Her brother's a pothead. Her parents are so overwhelmed; they don't see Zoe's lost in her broken life. Zoe escapes the only way she knows how: partying.

Matthias, a guardian sent from Heaven, watches over Zoe's autistic sister. After Zoe is convinced he is legit, angel and lost girl come together in a love that changes destiny.

But Heaven on Earth can't last forever.

Review:

It has taken me a while to write this review as this book really touched me and I feel like I am about to bare my soul to the world in this review.

I have to say the synopsis leaves a lot to be desired and should not put you off reading this book. I am not going to gush as this goes far beyond gushing. I feel as if this book was written for me personally, that is how much it has enthralled me.

Written in first person narrative from Zoe's point of view. She is the oldest of 3 children, 17 years old, dealing with the traumatic diagnosis that her adorable little sister, Abria, age 5, has severe autism.   

The book shows the effect on the entire family having to cope with this disability. It is written with insight as the author, Jennifer Laurens, has an autistic child. I was able to relate completely as my oldest child has dyspraxia, although her physical skills are significantly improved to when she was diagnosed, the emotional aspect is a constant challenge and on occasion still hard to deal with. As in the book, Abria is the person  the family revolves around, so it is in my house with the oldest having the main focus of attention. It is not something that is intentional that is just how it happens. I sincerely hope that it is not disturbing the other girls emotionally or mentally.

The story deals with how the family cope with the added stress of having an impaired child in their lives. Zoe turns to alcohol while her brother, Luke, turns to drugs. The feeling of turning to any thing that will block out the reality of their stressful lives is something I can relate to. My own family (not the one with my children the one when I was a child) is completely dysfunctional and imploded on my mothers death. Believe me I would have done anything to get away from that reality if it wasn't for my children. However, the story goes on to show how these methods are just means of avoiding the problem and they generally add more problems than they solve. The best way to deal with problems is head on and with open honesty to the other people involved. it also brought to mind the therapies and developmental skills mentioned in Beautiful Dead: Arizona whose brother was also autistic.

Amazing use of the white space within the narrative adding impact and intensity to the storyline.
Although the theme of the books refers to God, Heaven and Angels, it is of a non-denominational nature, therefore open to your own interpretation/beliefs. Being of a non-overtly religious nature myself, I have my own beliefs which are just that my own, I found the ideals within the story easy to relate to. The idea of a life after death brings great comfort to anyone that has lost someone close to them.

The thought that each of us has a Guardian Angel trying to guide us and keep us safe is reassuring, although the idea that they are responsible for keeping us safe when we purposefully expose ourselves to danger/evil is quickly and powerfully dispelled within the narrative. The adage 'you can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink' comes to mind. The emphasis that Angels cannot enter a place that contains evil is powerful and we as people are responsible for the decision to enter the nefarious circles is thought provoking. The imagery used to describe evil spirits was chilling, giving me goose-bumps. The addition of alcohol/drugs lower your inhibitions and therefore making it easier for evil spirits to take over gave me shivers.

Instead of making the Guardian Angel into a virtuous, moral, pure, spotless person, Matthias has his own past to contemplate and in some aspects repent for. Making him human and easy to relate to. The use of 'cool' or 'slang' words from the modern era side by side with those of the 1920's was rather amusing but added depth to the storyline.

This book invoked such powerful emotions within me that I just did not want to let it go. Normally I pick up another book straight away if I get the chance, on this occasion I had a 2 hour time slot to fill while waiting for one of my children and I just could not bring myself to pick up another book as I did not want to lose the feeling I had when I finished this one. The ending was bitter-sweet but gripping.

This is one book that I would recommend the entire world to read. Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime. I am keeping it on my bookshelf and will be passing it down to my children when they are old enough to read it. It is the whole kit & caboodle....touching, inspiring, heart warming, thought provoking....do I need to go on ;)