Book Review: Black Amaranth By Sasha Hibbs

Black Amaranth 

By Sasha Hibbs

Eighteen-year-old Ally Watson arrives home from high school graduation, more than a little annoyed that her Uncle Argyle—Ally’s legal guardian and only surviving relative—didn’t even bother showing up. But instead of berating him for his forgetfulness, Ally finds him in a life-or-death battle with a monster. Argyle manages to kill the creature, and gives Ally a parcel containing a destiny she never knew existed.

Ally, along with her best friends Michael, Jessica, and David, hurry to Georgia to uncover the truth of Uncle Argyle’s secrets, and the meaning of the mysterious marks that Ally bears. Are the marks related to the blacksmith mythology of her ancestors? Who are these heavenly warriors who show up in the oddest of places? And will an ancient gypsy curse destroy the very things Ally fights to save?

Black Amaranth: a simple flower, a symbol with an ancient legacy, a conduit for prophecy…while faith and hope are essential to the journey, Ally soon discovers that love is the most powerful force of all.

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Check Out The Other Books In This Series:

(Linked to my review)

My Review:

* I received a free eCopy of this book from the author in exchange of an honest review.
*I used Grammarly's Plagiarism Detect feature.

This was an amazing story. It felt like the author really did her research and planned the back story VERY well for this novel. The eCopy I got, when I looked over my notes for the book, seem as I was editing the book instead of reading it. I had to highlight so many details and make side notes to understand and keep up with the overall story line that it's pretty funny when I think about it.

Even though I loved the novel as a whole I had trouble connecting with the story until the 30% line. I don't know what happened, but I just didn't like the beginning. As the story progressed, I got used to the writing style and actually picked the WRONG team...That should tell you something about me. Then again, pshhh Normal is Over Rated.

Right from page one we were introduced to A LOT of characters, so I got a little lost on appearances and names and everything in between from there. After that the heroine, Ally (I just *heart* that name!), gets the proverbial slap in the face and we meet even more people. To say I got lost was putting it lightly.

After ALL that the story gets good. Why, you ask? Well, the mystery in a prophecy involving said heroine becomes the main focus. I was getting antsy when 60% into the book and Ally had learned basically nothing. The author held CRUCIAL pieces back that were making me crazy by the end (when, of course, everything blows up in Ally's (and my) face).

I can't really comment on the villain in this novel or I'll give the whole story and a crazy plot twist away. I'll just say he's VERY every bad thing you can think of: manipulative, arrogant, murderer, evil-incarnate. You get the picture, right?

I still don't see the appeal Michael had on Ally. I was expecting for him to have this huge epiphany in the middle of the story, yet that only happened On. The. Last. Page. Literally. Of. Said. Book. To say I want to maim something is putting it mildly.

That ending. I'm still speechless. I'd had to suffer through A LOT of mean endings, but to have it literally start and end on the LAST PAGE of a book, I can say that this is a first. Thanks to that, so called ending (which seems suspiciously like a cliffhanger - I don't like what you're doing there Mrs. Hibbs), I will totally be looking forward to the sequel.

Also let me mention a few other things:

*I loved Dave's wise cracks, even though I saw him as an annoying character in the beginning he grew on me over time.

* Jessica went from BBForever to go-dig-yourself-a-hole-because-you-are-now-dead-to-me in a few pages. Awkward...


* Even though Brandi had the past to explain away her attitude/b*tchiness toward the world, that doesn't mean she has the right to take it out on everyone.

Favorite Quotes:

"Michael was like the calm yin to her very enraged yang."

"I say you just zap her ass. Brandi's needed an electric collar since about first grade."

"Loyalty is not defined by words but actions, and an action such as self-sacrifice is the ultimate definition of love."

My Rating: