Hello friends!
It’s time to catch up with my reviews again, as I slowly get back into reading and writing again now after my concussion. I missed my spot on the blog tour for this very special urban fantasy, but I still have to express my thoughts and feelings for it, because… well… read on for the full review but let’s just say…I LOVED IT!!! Big thanks to Dave at TheWriteReads for having me on the tour, and to the author for my paperback copy! Very much appreciated!!!
Now before we get into my review and talk about the whos and wheres and whys, let’s first find out what the book is about!
The Synopsis
Guthrie was a good place to be from, but it wasn’t a great place to live, not when you were like Adam, in all the ways Adam was like Adam.
Adam Binder hasn’t spoken to his brother in years, not since Bobby had him committed to a psych ward for hearing voices. When a murderous spirit possesses Bobby’s wife and disrupts the perfect life he’s built away from Oklahoma, he’s forced to ask for his little brother’s help. Adam is happy to escape the trailer park and get the chance to say I told you so, but he arrives in Denver to find the local magicians dead.
It isn’t long before Adam is the spirit’s next target. To survive the confrontation, he’ll have to risk bargaining with powers he’d rather avoid, including his first love, the elf who broke his heart.
The Binder brothers don’t realize that they’re unwitting pawns in a game played by immortals. Death herself wants the spirit’s head, and she’s willing to destroy their family to reap it.
My Review
I will be honest. When I first heard the title of this book I thought ‘…hummmmm, not sure if I’ll like that’. But now that I read it I can happily say that I really, truly did. Well, not only did I like it, but I LOVED it! And that again shows that you should be open-minded, and sometimes even branch out of your comfort zone a bit!
Adam Lee Binder lives in a trailer park, and he can see things and do things other people cannot. Growing up, he obviously had a hard time with everyone around him thinking he was crazy. It made me incredibly sad to read about his past and to learn that even his very own family – the people who should have been there for him – instead chose to give him up. Even though Adam swore to never go back there, when they need him, he doesn’t turn them down. Only one other reason that made me love Adam’s character so much!
Haunted by his past, the bad experiences and awful memories of his childhood, Adam still has become an incredible young man. The author did a wonderful job painting each and every character in a unique and interesting way. There are other important characters of course, but I don’t want to give too much away. One thing I have to say though is that I also loved how Bobby’s – Adam’s brother’s – wife is depicted. Bobby calls for Adam’s help, as he thinks she’s possessed, keeping her drugged for most of the time. Is there something Adam can do to help with his magical powers? The depiction of mental illness(es) was another great touch the author added to this story, making it even more special than it already is.
I loved the trips to the ‘other’ world, the fantastical spirit world that we got to go to, and the creatures we got to see. The vivid writing style added a great touch to it and I could picture all this before my very eyes. Something I also really loved was the wide range of emotions we get, and the way it is written with such a depth that makes each feeling almost palpable. We get fear, sadness, pain, but also love, lust, hope, happiness, and so much more. The unique magic system and spirit world added only more to it all.
If you are looking for an urban fantasy featuring a whole lot of action, a great LGBTQ+ and Latino representation, lots of magic and otherworldly creatures, awesome plot twists you don’t see coming, and a wide range of interesting characters, White Trash Warlock is the book for you!
5 stars from me, and I still can’t quite believe this is a debut novel!!!! Very well done, David R. Slayton!
Thank you all so much for reading!
xoxo
Noly
