Raven's Heart

by Jennifer Dunne

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0967197961
• ISBN13: 9780967197968
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: Speculation Press
• Length: 223 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.4" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

You can't judge a book by...

Jennifer Dunne, Raven's Heart (Speculation Press, 2000) Over the past few years, as my status as a reviewer has gained a bit of street cred (and believe me, since I know what you're saying to yourself-- no one is more surprised about that than I am!) and I've has a bunch of solicitations for reviews come in, I've developed an hypothesis regarding vanity-published and self-published books-- you can, in fact, judge a book by its cover. I haven't progressed far enough to know what it is about these covers that makes them different, though I have identified a number of small factors (use of clip-art and tired, cliched fonts is rampant in vanity-press book covers), but the short version of this is "I know a vanity-press book when I see it." Most of the time, anyway. When I saw the cover art for Jennifer Dunne's Raven's Heart, it screamed "vanity pub" at me. (Note: this is not a solicited review. I know JD from LiveJournal.) I looked up Speculation Press, and that seems to not be the case. So it's not 100%, but man, check this cover art. Seriously. (Thankfully, Cerridwen Press seems to have re-released it in 2007 under the title Fugitive Lovers-- the description on that one is exactly the same as the description on this one. Much better cover art.) In any case, once you've made it past the cover, the story: a future Earth was devastated by a cataclysm that saw, in its wake, the rise of extrasensory powers in some humans, now called Aurics. The Aurics simply want to be dealt with the same as other humans, but a strongly religious faction of the populace believe them to be the spawn of the devil, and think they should be exterminated. Unfortunately, a number of people who think this way are part of the ICP, the American police force. Our story opens with Raven Armistead, daughter of the founder of the Auric Rights League, in the process of sabotaging the computer system where the ICP has stored intelligence on the Aurics, as the league fears the ICP will use this information for a widespread roundup just before the Auric Rights Bill being debated in Congress is set for a vote. Something goes wrong with the sabotaging, of course, and Raven finds herself locked in a room with ICP officer Val Tarrant. Cue flying sparks. Armistead and Tarrant play a complex game of cat and dog while trying to figure out who's actually playing for what side while simultaneously fighting their feelings for one another. I don't think I need to tell you that this isn't the latest Ian McEwan novel or what have you; it's romance, albeit romance with a hefty dose of sci-fi thrown in for good measure. (Not hard sci-fi, though, so you technophobes can come out of hiding.) A good, solid genre romance can be an incredibly satisfying read, as long as you realize what you're getting; the formula remains the same (and thus the big plot twists will always twist in predictable ways), but it's what an author does with the formula that makes a romance work or not. Are the characters three-

Great futuristic-Earth action romance!

The polar ice caps have melted after an asteroid hit the planet. Unknown at the time, the asteroid contained particles of some unknown substance that reformed the human anatomy, creating a human hybrid. Dubbed the "Aurics" by the "normals" who feared their special abilities, only the Auric Rights League fights the Inter-Continental Police (ICP) who would destroy all of the Aurics. It is now the Earth year 2028 and Raven Armistead is devoted to her fathers' cause of bringing equal rights to the Aurics. But when the ICP is about to bring online a tracking program that would be able to locate anyone with Auric abilities, she volunteers to destroy the computer lab. Val Tarrant is a devoted ICP agent. He is determined to eradicate all the Aurics from Earth. However, when a new security guard saves his life when the ICP computer lab explodes, his life is turned upside down. When circumstances throw Raven and Val together, they must put aside their grudges that they each harbor the other in order to prevent a more dangerous situation than either of them could possibly imagine! Ms Dunne has written a very fast paced apocalyptic novel that kept me wondering what was truly going on until the end of the story. The people of Earth live in fear and seem truly brainwashed to fear what they don't understand. This so reminded me of the mass genocide of World War II, and the people that experienced mutations in X-Men. While Val and Raven are not fighting for the same side, they allow human compassion to show that they are still both mortal with the ability to aide each other while injured and save each other's lives. I was actually very amazed that even though there was the "instant" attraction between them, that our couple actually used this as a reason to not trust one another. It made for a very interesting and rocky relationship! I think that RAVEN'S HEART has a very well developed plot. The cause that ends up uniting them was a very realistic concern and therefore more believable to me. I also really appreciated the fact that both sides, the Normals and the Aurics, didn't instantly get along and that they worked through their fears rather than the sudden "Oh, well they get along so I guess we should too." But, what made the book for me, ...I can't say because it will give away the book! Awesome story! I highly recommend RAVEN'S HEART!

Outstanding blend of science fiction and romance

Raven's Heart is a fast paced thriller that combines well thought out science fiction with action and political intrigue. But the heart of the story is the relationship between the agent Val Tarrant, and the fugitive Raven Armistead. Even as he pursues Raven, Val finds himself attracted to the beautiful revolutionary. As events unfold they become reluctant allies, struggling to balance their mutual attraction against a system which forces them to be enemies. And in the end, Raven and Val must learn to trust each other, if they are to survive and defeat the forces that threaten to destroy them both. I first read the e-book edition of this story, and am delighted to see it finally available in paperback. This is an outstanding debut novel from a fresh new voice in science fiction. I loved this book and you will too.

Raven's Heart

This is an easy book to read about a time when the ICP enforces the law. This includes rules of morality. A couple trying to make love while obeying the law is truly funny. The basic story is predictable, but is well told and holds your interest. It is hard to put down once you start reading.There is a lot of action and the talents of the minority group is believable and well defined. All's well when the two groups learn to work together for a happy ending.I enjoyed it.

Outstanding blend of science fiction and romance

Raven's Heart is a fast paced thriller that combines well thought out science fiction with action and political intrigue. But the heart of the story is the relationship between the agent Val Tarrant, and the fugitive Raven Armistead. Even as he pursues Raven, Val finds himself attracted to the beautiful revolutionary. As events unfold they become reluctant allies, struggling to balance their mutual attraction against a system which forces them to be enemies. And in the end, Raven and Val must learn to trust each other, if they are to survive and defeat the forces that threaten to destroy them both. An outstanding debut novel from a fresh new voice in science fiction. I loved this book and you will too. Highly recommended.