Review by tony-paul

3 stars

ANCIENT AWAKENINGS

Answering a vandalism call in the local cemetery,
Melanie Petersen, former MP and now Rhodes End police officer, ends up finding
a body, blood-drained and mutilated. When other bodies turn up, killed in the
same way, and her suspicions are ignored by her chauvinistic boss, Mel goes off
on her own to investigate. Enter Steve Zoriak, her new neighbor, a research
scientist who accidentally contracted a potentially deadly disease when he
destroyed his research rather than allow it to become a military weapon. Hiding
out in Rhodes End, Steve hopes to find a cure but he soon has other problems to
worry about; besides being suspected of being a killer by the woman with whom
he falls in love, his lab is broken into, equipment stolen or destroyed, and
men from his former employer, BioTech, keep harassing him, making it plain they
don’t intend to accept his refusal to return to work.

Determined to prove Steve innocent, Mel concentrates
on another suspect—Mason, the owner of the vandalized mausoleum. Rude, given to
violence and ravings bordering on lunacy, Mason is dying and believes a broken
antique funeral box now residing in the evidence locker in the police station
holds the secret of immortality. He’s willing to sacrifice anyone and anything
to have it once more in his possession.

Reluctantly taking Mason up on his offer of help with
his research in return for analyzing any remains found in the box, Mel and
Steve uncover clues leading them, against their better judgments, to believe
there might actually be an evil from the ancient past loose in the small town,
an evil which was housed in the box and escaped when it was opened. On more
than one occasion, the killer is sighted, a sense of being watched hovers in
the air, and there’s every indication Mel is the next target. With the help
Sammy, the cemetary’s loquacious and sardonic caretaker, Steve sets out to trap
the killer—using the woman he loves as bait.

What happens next is a shock, causing them to refute
all their beliefs.

My Opinion: Barbara Edwards’ Ancient Awakenings is like one of those old 1950’s
horror movies. Scary and filled with familiar characters which give it a
comfortable, nostalgic feeling while the tension and fear increases from
page-to-page. Even the setting, Rhodes End–a small New England town where
everyone knows everyone’s business and strangers have to live there generations
before being accepted—is right out of an old black-and-white movie. This isn’t
to say the story is cliché-ridden or formulaic. There are plenty of thrills and
suspense to keep that from happening, along with a love story which may or may
not be futile, as an ancient evil awakens in the quiet little town and begins
killing off the inhabitants. Mel and Steve’s love, the recognition of their
passion, and their inability and refusal to consummate it because of the
possibility Steve’s condition is not only hereditary but transmittable, adds an
extra tension to the story, as well as a slightly refreshing aspect since the
hero and the heroine do not have sex though they desire each other.

Ancient Awakenings is the first story about the happenings in Rhodes
End, and is an intriguing introduction to the series. As other volumes continue
Mel and Steve’s story, and other characters and events are introduced, this
appears to be a set of stories I’ll look forward to reading.

RATING:

(The copy
of this novel was supplied by the author and no remuneration for the review was
involved.)

Archive, Wednesday April 14, 2010

3 stars rating

On Fri, 4/16/10, Tony-Paul de Vissage <tpvissage@neb.rr.com>
wrote:

From: Tony-Paul de Vissage <tpvissage@neb.rr.com>

Subject: Review of Ancient Awakenings

To: “Edwards Barbara” <barbara.edwards2@yahoo.com>

Date: Friday, April 16, 2010, 11:22 AM

The review of Ancient
Awakenings is online. Merci for allowing me to read your book. I
enjoyed it. Here is the link for promo:

http://www.tony-paul.com/

Tony-Paul de Vissage