Review: Spirits Rising, by Krista D. Ball

Spirits Rising by Krista D. Ball
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Spirits Rising, by Krista D. Ball, has all the elements to make it an entertaining Canadian paranormal novel. Alas, for this reader, it fell far short of the mark.

Ostensibly a story about a resurrection spell gone awry in the hands of a novice, the novel chronicles a mainlander's attempt to return the arisen hoards back to their rest.

While the setting is engaging for any lover of Canadian literature, (St. Anthony, Newfoundland, the home of the UNESCO Heritage Site L'Anse aux Meadows), there is little by way of environmental description to illustrate this haunting landscape. In fact, there is little by way of any description to engage the reader, whether environmental, character or emotional landscape. The entire novel seemed hurried, perhaps as a device to create tension, but alas failed.

There are some moments of delightfully sharp Newfoundland dialogue. The majority, however, tends to cliché, as do many of the characters. The arisen spirits of Vikings and Beothuk, which play an integral element in the story, are left almost entirely undeveloped and almost cut directly from the erroneous and stereotypical. The villains are villainous, the heroes heroic. And the story ends. Abruptly.

I believe Spirits Rising is an excellent first draft which requires the touch of a developmental editor and a considered revision. Certainly there is much potential here. But for this reader the potential of the novel isn't realized.

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