Ron Shaw

Echoes of Reckoning is a very different book from what I expected, but in a good way. This is a story about an average man who lives an average life, but his story and life was so compelling, and his character so relatable, that I found myself unable to put down the book. I think that being told in the first person helped with this as you can't help but be sucked into the story.

The story has quite a slow burn to it, but it was so engrossing that I enjoyed the backstory we were given to Clay's life and his relationship with Ava. Normally, this would not have appealed to me at all as I prefer to discover this information as I read about the main conflict, but again, I found the storytelling engaging and interesting. Being written in the first person connects you to him so when he suffered the biggest loss of his life, I suffered right along with him, shocked at how brutally everything changed even though I was expecting it. While I would like to say my favourite part was when he was in Purgatory, it wasn't as I appreciated both parts of the book for different reasons. However, I did really enjoy the atmosphere of Purgatory as well as the creativity of the setting; it certainly made me think about my own life and the choices I've made throughout the years and how they could affect my own afterlife.

Clay was an enjoyable character and I enjoyed his development quite a bit. I was happy to learn more about Ava as the story progressed as I didn't feel like I really knew her until she landed in Purgatory; the part about how they finally connected was fascinating and it gave me some food for thought when thinking about my own relationships. I particularly enjoyed Grayson and would have liked to learn more about him as he was such an intriguing character.

Verdict
Echoes of Reckoning was a slow-burn type of novel that definitely drew you into the setting, the characters, and the story. Even though there wasn't a lot of action, the author had a way of connecting you to the story and the characters which made it very compelling and hard to put down. And that ending caught me completely off guard. I am hoping there will be another book after this because I need to know what happens to my buddy Clay next. Highly recommend this book!!… (altro)