Title: The Making of Michael Bishop
Author: Kathleen Collins
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Book Blurb:
Keep your distance. Don't look him in the eye. Feed him and leave.
Michael D'Augustino is a priest in the time of the Inquisition. Marked as weak for his refusal to torture those charged with sorcery, heresy, devil worship or worse, he's given another task. Feed the prisoner in the cell in the darkest corner of the dungeon. With the edict comes a set of instructions.
Ever obedient, Michael does exactly as he is told. Until the night his charge doesn't eat and Michael has to enter the cell to find out why. Instead of the beast he believes to be imprisoned there, he finds a man. A broken, tormented man who asks for help.
But all is not as it seems and, before the night is through, Michael will be changed forever.
Review:
I will admit upfront: The cover was what caught my attention and prompted me to sign up for this tour...I loved the color scheme, the photography was eye catching and the colors kind of match the whole "autumn" season thing. Okay, getting off track here *mentally steers brain back on topic*
I think it should be mentioned that this is a short story, clocking in at about 17 pages. Sometimes I think that it's harder to write a short story, because the author must convey so much--has to get the readers to connect with the character, involved in the plot, etc--in such a short amount of time/pages.
The Making of Michael Bishop was well done, with a clear beginning, middle and end. There was quite a bit of description, but only to set up the ambiance. I enjoyed the short background given about Michael, the main character, since I have not read the other books in this series, so this gave me a chance to familiarize with the MC. Michael's not your typical hero--he's considered weak and as a result, shunned by his father. But things take on an unexpected turn when he's asked to care for a prisoner who isn't quite human...
I found some of the dialogue to be awkward/forced, particularly towards the end of the story. I don't know if it's because I'm not used to the writing style or what--the conversations simply seemed choppy.
The ending was semi-conclusive, with Michael having solved one problem, but with another set of challenges already rising up for him to face. I think if given the chance, I would be interested with reading the first book of the Realm Walker series.
Overall thoughts: There was a lot of action to take in for a 17 page story; making the story slightly longer (say, 30 pages) would've allowed some of the scenes to sink in more and provide for a greater impact later on. But then again, that's part of the challenge of crafting a short story. The plot kept me on my toes and Michael seems like an interesting character to know better.
Rating:
About the Author
Kathleen Collins has been writing since Kindergarten. And while her ability has drastically improved, her stories are still about monsters and the people who play with them.
The rare instances that she actually finds some spare time, she spends it playing with her two boys. Three if you count her husband.
She is currently hard at work on her next book.
Follow her on Twitter: @kathy_collins
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