Raven’s Ladder, by Jefferey Overstreet

Raven’s Ladder, by Jefferey Overstreet is the third book in his Auralia’s Thread series.

Cal-Raven leads the exodus of his people as they search for a land of legend in which to build their new home.  This sounds like a well-known Bible story so I expected to be in very familiar territory.  I was pleasantly surprised to find myself elsewhere.  Cal-Raven’s story has some parallels to the book of Exodus, but I would not consider it an allegory.

Raven’s Ladder is extremely well-written.  The author’s attention to detail is notable.  He writes vividly and crisply.  Because of this, I have ordered the first two books in what I believe will be an outstanding series.  However, I cannot recommend Raven’s Ladder as a stand-alone read.  While reading I was often pulled out of the story by references to previous happenings I was not privy to since I had not read the first two books.

I feel confident in recommending this book to my readers on the strength of the quality of the writing, but with the caveat that they begin the series with book one, which has been twice-nominated for a Christy Award.  You can read more about Jefferey Overstreet and order this series from Random House.

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Multnomah Press. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”