Book Review: Inspire

Inspire

By: Cora Carmack

Published by: author

Release date: Dec. 15, 2014

Genre: New Adult magical realism

284 pages

Buy it at Amazon, Kobo, iTunes, or Barnes & Noble

Source: purchased by reviewer



Disclaimer: I am generally not a New Adult reader. I most enjoy YA, where it's mostly story with a little bit of steam sometimes, most of which is hinted at rather than explicitly described. I've read Carmack's stuff before and enjoyed it, and I thought that this concept was intriguing.

There are a lot of good things going on in this book. First, the idea of bringing a character from Greek mythology and plopping her in modern society, having to mask her abilities and dodge the constant threat of leaving a digital footprint- I love it. There is so much potential to do really cool things in this series- if the author can figure out how to spin the main character so the reader likes her.


Our main character, Kalli, was a little hard to like. I think most of this stems from the fact that her leading man, Wilder is so very, very easy to like. He is a stellar book boyfriend, the kind of man everyone wants and needs and deserves to find: artistic, kind, brilliant, devoted, and gorgeous. When Kalli wigs out because something wonky is going on with her magical abilities and the result is that she doesn't treat Wilder right- that makes it pretty tough to like her. I kind of wanted to shove her aside; Wilder deserves better than her messed-up self.

I was a little frustrated with the writing in this one. I found a few editing errors, which is an annoyance that can be overlooked. I had a tougher time overcoming the difference between scenes that focused on physical intimacy and those that didn't. It seemed that much more attention was given to getting those steamy scenes just right, while the pace lagged some between them.

I really enjoyed the plot twist: a character is revealed to be something/someone that is a surprise to everyone. I never saw that one coming, and it gave the storyline a bit more substance. I also really liked Kalli's new group of friends; I would like to have seen them interacting a little more with her and Wilder. And of course Wilder's baby sister is made of adorable.

Despite some grumbles, I still consider this a good read. It's quick to get through and priced very reasonably for the next few days; it would be a great vacation read for someone looking for a fun story to get lost in for a few hours.

Summary:

Kalliope lives with one purpose.

To inspire.

As an immortal muse, she doesn’t have any other choice. It’s part of how she was made. Musicians, artists, actors—they use her to advance their art, and she uses them to survive. She moves from one artist to the next, never staying long enough to get attached. But all she wants is a different life— a normal one. She’s spent thousands of years living lie after lie, and now she’s ready for something real.

Sweet, sexy, and steady, Wilder Bell feels more real than anything else in her long existence. And most importantly… he’s not an artist. He doesn’t want her for her ability. But she can’t turn off the way she influences people, not even to save a man she might love. Because in small doses, she can help make something beautiful, but her ability has just as much capacity to destroy as it does to create. The longer she stays, the more obsessed Wilder will become. It’s happened before, and it never turns out well for the mortal.

Her presence may inspire genius.

But it breeds madness, too.