Review: Time Untime

Reviewed by Jen
 

Time Untime is sort-of a companion piece to Retribution.  If you enjoyed that one, you'll probably like this one.  The thing is, Retribution was one of my least favorite books in the Dark Hunter series.  I think I have reached maximum capacity on large-scale additional mythology in this already complicated universe.  I felt very disconnected to the Native American elements featured so heavily in that book and I knew that same thread would continue into this one.

Some of the problems I had with Retribution did pop up again here. But not all of them. The Native American mythology is central to the story, but the familiar Greek pantheon is woven in.  Add to that a healthy dose of familiar favorites, like Acheron, Nick, Uriel, Sundown and Sasha, and it made it much more palatable.

The hero of the story is Ren, who we got to know during Sundown's book.  He is one of those trademark Kenyon tortured heroes.  Descended from a goddess and thrust into the care of the father who never wanted him, Ren was an outcast among his people. He was ridiculed and ostracized for his lineage, his stutter, and anything else that made him different.  His back story was very reminiscent of Acheron's.  The degree of torture was nowhere near the same, but they were both rejected for the circumstances of their birth, while their over-entitled brothers were groomed as princes.

When a woman finally showed Ren some attention, she turned out to be an agent for evil, leading him down the wrong path.  He made Bad Choices and while possessed by The Grizzly Spirit, he was an evil and deadly weapon.  Now, thousands of years later, he is still trying to right the wrongs of his past. Made immortal by Artemis, he's had plenty of time to try, but he has lived a solitary existence focused on his duties as a Dark Hunter.  All of that changes when he meets Kateri.

The latest in a line of Native American women with mystical powers, Teri is tasked with keeping closed a portal between humanity and hell dimensions.  She never really believed the fanciful stories her grandmother told her as a child, but once a slew of bad guys started coming for her, she realized just how wrong she was to disbelieve.  Thankfully, Ren and a handful of other Dark Hunters come to her aid, both to protect her and help her with her mission.  That's when she recognizes Ren as the man she has had visions of since her childhood.

The visions of Ren continue as she gets to know him better, giving her a keen insight into his past and his true character.  She falls for him quickly, wanting to right the wrongs done to him his whole life.  This is where the story really gets that old, familiar feel.  The one where the hero is shocked that someone so good and pure and beautiful could ever love someone as wretched as him. Where he is stunned when she looks at him like he mattered.  Kenyon fans know what I'm talking about.  On one hand, it's a little overdone. On the other, it's what Kenyon does best.   It's hard not to root for such a underdog... to want to witness him learning his own worth.

In the end, it was a mixed bag of the old and the new.  I liked it better than Retribution.  It's kind of like an old, warm sweater you pull out of your closet every autumn.  Not pulse pounding or flashy, but familiar and comfortable.  

Rating: B-

*ARC Provided by St Martin's Press

Click to purchase: Amazon

Time Untime

by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Release Date: August 7, 2012

Publisher: St Martin's Press