My overall thought on this collection of short stories is that they were interesting and intriguing to read, however, there were other things that made it difficult to read. The writing style bothered me through each story. The way that the author writes, with the words misspelled in a unique way just did not make my reading experience enjoyable. I understand that it's a style but it is not for everyone. There is a way to do it in a way that you can get the point across and the reader won't even notice it, however, this was not the case in this book.

I am usually into fantasy and magic and because of that I was excited to take a chance on this author. However, in this book I just couldn't get into it and I was disappointed.

Overall it was a good book, but just not for me.

I received this from Library Thing Member Giveaway ( )

Redemption's Lament

The Redemption Revelations

by Carlyle Clark

with stories by Nescher Psycher

Make Luck Press, Amazon Digital Services, Inc., 2012

"He thought of his life and how not one person cared for him. He thought of Redemption and how not one person wasn't cared for."

- Redemption's Lament

Redemption's Lament, by Carlyle Clark, is a collection of five short stories by Clark and another author, Nescher Pyscher, located in Redemption, Arkansas. They evoke Leslie Marmon Silko's Ceremony and Cisnero's Woman Hollering Creek. Clark works kachina magic, incorporating all gods and demons outside of indigenous borders. Men fight and love with gods and temporal ideas.

The first two stories, "Redemption, Junior Walker, and Me," and "Witchblood Blues," both by Clark, use the cadence of myth translated from Native American legend into American English. Spare and vibrant in voice, they speak outside the page. They sound less like new fiction, and more like legends we already know, and should not forget. Cosmic eternal deities duke it out with an amped up oversized human and reflect the universal in the common.

The second two stories, "The Storm" and "Cold Night at Bludgate," by Nescher Pyscher, suffer by their placement. It is unclear if they would be well-enjoyed on their own, but on the tails of Clark's opening, they sound over-written, over-studied, and unnaturally exerted. The verb tenses stutter and the adjectives are implausible. They ask too much of the reader with jagged shifts in point of view. Unfortunately, they also don't seem to add to the story arc created by the first two and sewed up by the final story in the collection. They involve some of the same characters, but this anthology on its own does not explain why these two stories are needed in the canopy story of the man who fought death.

"Redemption's Lament" is the final story in the collection. Clark's prose falters occasionally in this piece, but the imagery and symbolism compensate adequately.

To discuss them more would be to write spoilers... For the fan of borderland fiction, the first two stories alone are well worth the time.

This review was first published on irevuo.com ( )

I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
I found it interesting how the author portrayed life in the South, but not being a native English speaker it was a bit difficult for me to keep up with the language sometimes.
I must warn other potential readers though... I can get really scary... ( )

Truly enjoy this author's ability to tell a story. Fast paced and completely absorbs you into the story. ( )

I received this e-book complimentary from www.Librarythings.com in exchange for review.
I found it to be an interesting story, and done so through a chronological timeline. This was my first reading by this author, and it most certainly wont be my last. Well done! ( )