Definitely not a book you want to read before bedtime! A page turner, cannot put it down until the end type of story. I hope to read more from this author!

Featured presentation: Forbidden (Forlorn IV) by Gina Detwiler

Love will give you a voice even if your song is forbidden…

Cast: Grace Fortune, a woman who wields Song like a weapon. Jared Lorn, an angel/human hybrid on a mission to protect Earth from the fallen angels called the Watchers.

The Plot: We meet Grace and Jared as they escape imprisonment only to have to enter the spiritual realm, The Other Side to prevent the Watchers to escape. Meanwhile, Jared’s Watcher father, Azazel, has escaped the Abyss and is implementing his plans to capture Earth under his spell. “The Forbidden” are everybody that resists his reign…

The blazing: I love how powerful Song is depicted. This is often referred to in the Bible, but it gives a different meaning to it when Song is shown to have healing properties (for half-angel Jared) and can be used as a weapon against demons. The use of Song’s power in The Other Side was exceptional! Azazel also outlaws most music in his new world order, the United Earth, as it provokes rebellion.

A big topic in the second half of the book is ‘safety’ versus ‘freedom’. The majority of people chose to give up their freedom for safety. But of what use is that safety if it turns you into a drone, just towing the party line to stay alive but never living…

One big thing that separates humans from angels is our free will. Grace executes her free will and sacrifices her safety to try and save Jared. Her choice is met with resistance until Elohim (God) steps in and grants it – immediately and without question.

The bright: The narrative shifts between Grace and Jared, both told in the first person. This leaves little wiggle room for anything happening without one of them being present. Ms Detwiler successfully circumvents being narrowed down by introducing various archangels as well as Grace’s guardian angel to fill in. This is done absolutely seamlessly and the change in perspective gives us insight into the role of angels as well as their relationship to humans and God.

We are dropped into the action from the very first scene where we are introduced to Azazel and the Watchers as observed by Gabriel. Even though the pace slows down a bit at times, it never feels like the story is dragging and everything happens for a reason.

The majority of the characters are human, as in flawed, everyday people, which makes their struggles highly relatable. Whether they chose to adhere to the new world order or to defy it, their fears mirror our own.

The Forbidden themselves! I like how they are portrayed and how they operate under dire circumstances.

The bleak: This is the fourth book in the Forlorn series and I was unaware of that fact. Ms Detwiler does an excellent job of filling in any possible gaps, but I would’ve loved to have the full back story prior to reading “Forbidden”. One of the great aspects of any well-written series is that the characters become familiar to you, almost like friends and I missed out on that connection here.

The burned-to-ashes: Nothing.

And then The Plot Thickens into an action-packed tale of survival and what we will risk for that survival. “Forbidden” reads like dystopian urban fantasy with its roots in Christianity instead of magic. This could’ve been a grim tale, but there are many lighter, tender and even humorous moments sprinkled in to balance the darkness. I’ve been wondering about a fantasy book based on the Bible for years and Ms Detwiler has truly delivered!

Studio: Vinspire Publishing

Closing credits: I willingly leave this review based on an eARC copy graciously granted to me by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op.