Friday, April 25, 2014

The Poe Consequence Book Review



Synopsis:
In a section of Los Angeles near Dodger Stadium, two rival gangs rule the streets. For the Alvarado Street Diablos, it's been a year since the murder of one of their closest members at the hands of their sworn enemy, the North Rampart Lobos. A drive-by killing in his honor is planned, but things go wrong and an innocent bystander is the victim. Several hours later the one who pulled the trigger suffers a horrifying death, caused by something never before seen in its uniqueness. Many more such cases follow, all involving only these two gangs among the hundreds throughout the city. And each death occurs at the same time of day. The exact same time of day. What can these two enemies do to survive against an unstoppable power intent on their mutual destruction? How is a gang-hating young boy's attempt to save the life of a gang member tied into preventing a loved one's soul from eternal damnation? What does a mysterious psychic's prophecy conveyed earlier in New Orleans have to do with all of this? Exploring both the darkness and hope that define our emotions, The Poe Consequence integrates social and ethnic divisions through acts of fate and supernatural horror for the reader to observe and imagine.



Review:
This is quite a unique and creative thriller/action novel with threads of horror inspired by the great Edgar Allen Poe, woven into a contemporary perspective of gang violence, culture and economic differences and how these various factors can shape each individual’s definition of revenge.  Alright, so the focus of this book is an emotionally packed story of how tragic events lead to the loss of a man’s life, leaving behind his young son and brother, now unprepared guardian to his nephew, struggling to find answers to the senseless violence and how to heal from their loss.  However, author, Keith Steinbaum, touches upon multiple social concerns and thought provoking questions of what “existence” awaits us after death.  Each reader will surely connect with one, and quite possibly more, of the multi-layered subjects that Steinbaum has brilliantly intertwined into this tale. 
I was surprised by how quickly I became emotionally invested in the characters and their individual lives, although, I actually would have liked to see more of the storyline devoted to Warren and his perspective of events after his death.  Overall, I enjoyed this book and would certainly make time to read more books written by Keith Steinbaum. 
4 stars  ~Kathy





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