January 18, 2010
White's debut is a trippy urban fantasy, an esoteric battle between myth and science told in floods of evocative prose. Olivia, a fallen angel cursed to eternity without pain or pleasure, feeds on the blood of those who desire or fear her. Dominic is her polar opposite, a skeptical scientist explaining away the paranormal as mental illness. He immerses himself in neuroscience to seek a cure through selective memory removal; haunted by images of his past lives, he begins experimenting on himself. Looking for research subjects, Dominic finds Olivia. She longs to be set free by love and returned to heaven, but at what price? Reeking of blood and sex, the swaths of atmospheric text sometimes overwhelm the story. Despite the story's enormous plot holes, longtime paranormal fans will appreciate White's willingness to take chances and try something new.
Starred review from March 15, 2010
Neuroscientist Dominic O'Shaughnessy seeks in science a rational means of "curing" his memories of past lives, while Olivia, a vampiric fallen angel of desire, seeks a way to return to a state of grace. Both turn to L'Otel Matillide, a strange asylum located beneath the city of Cashel, in Ireland and to the ministrations of its proprietor, the seemingly ageless Gaehod, for a cure that will bring them either salvation or utter damnation. VERDICT The author's fluid style and ability to alternate convincingly between his two protagonists creates an affinity in the reader for both Olivia and Dominic. Strong storytelling and an unusual interpretation of vampires should attract fans of supernatural fiction and urban fantasy to this outstanding debut.
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