Review: Destruction by Sharon Bayliss (modern fantasy)

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destruction book coverBook: Destruction (The December People Book 1)

Author: Sharon Bayliss

Genre: Modern Fantasy

Source: Free from author

Readability Rating: 4 stars

Morality Rating: R for violence, sexual content, and language

Target Audience: Any modern fantasy lover or thriller lover

Buy it: Amazon

Destruction Book Summary (from the author)

David Vandergraff wants to be a good man. He goes to church every Sunday, keeps his lawn trim and green, and loves his wife and kids more than anything. Unfortunately, being a dark wizard isn’t a choice.
Eleven years ago, David’s secret second family went missing. When his two lost children are finally found, he learns they suffered years of unthinkable abuse. Ready to make things right, David brings the kids home even though it could mean losing the wife he can’t imagine living without.
Keeping his life together becomes harder when the new children claim to be dark wizards. David believes they use this fantasy to cope with their trauma. Until, David’s wife admits a secret of her own—she is a dark wizard too, as is David, and all of their children.

Now, David must parent two hurting children from a dark world he doesn’t understand and keep his family from falling apart. All while dealing with the realization that everyone he loves, including himself, may be evil.

Quick Review

This book is a clever, adult version of what real witchcraft might look in the modern world, if wizards and witchcraft were not inherently evil. Although some of the phrasings and basic ideas seemed similar to The Mortal Instruments or Harry Potter, the execution was different and exciting, and definitely not a child’s book.

Extended Review

Plot: David has two children by another woman that are released into his custody. They were abused, and the social worker says they are using pretend magical abilities as a coping mechanism. When David gets home with his two surprise children, his wife and other children are angry and surprised. It only goes from bad to worse from there. I was surprised by how the elements of the plot unfolded and found that I really wanted to know how the story was going to unfold. I will definitely be looking forward to the next books!
Characters: Most of the characters are witches or wizards, and their degree of magic is based on the calendar year. Most of David’s family are winter wizards, which means their magic is destructive in nature. The book says that magic isn’t inherently evil, but unpredictable, particularly for winter wizards. I liked how the degree of “darkness” that each character had sort of defined their actions and the type of magic they tried to do.
Setting: This book is set in Texas, where I live. They live in Houston, but much of the book’s adventures take place in either Austin or West Texas. I thought that the mention of Texas-themed places, roads, and weather was just enough to remind you that it was Texas, but not so much that it detracted from the story. Aside from the Texas stuff, the rest of the story had a focused, mysterious feel that made you want to keep reading.

Writing: The writing in this story is excellent. It is fast-paced enough so that you don’t get bogged down, but the writing is never something I really “noticed.” The writing fit the tone of the story and was able to perfectly describe the feelings and events of the characters in a realistic way.

Overall Thoughts

I think Destruction is one of the best examples of realistic-feeling modern fantasy that I have ever read. I could see how wizards might behave in that manner. Magic was less about mythical creatures or wands, but more of like a sort of focused prayer that could affect the world in physical ways right before your eyes.

In the book, David’s family is also Christian, which was a kind of weird contrast with the events in the book. This is not like any other Christian book I have ever read. There is swearing, abuse, adultery, and pretty much everything else ordinarily left out of a Christian book. However, the mix of Christianity and wizard lore worked together better than I imagined it could, which was quite interesting.

Who Should Read This Book: If you have sort of been yearning to have more adventures in the Harry Potter universe as an adult, then you will really like this book. You will probably also like this book if you love more realistic fantasy, like I do. 🙂

About The Author

Sharon Bayliss is the author of The December People Series and The Charge. When she’s not writing, she enjoys living happily-ever-after with her husband and two young sons. She can be found eating Tex-Mex on patios, wearing flip-flops, and playing in the mud (which she calls gardening). She only practices magic in emergencies.

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