Forbidden by Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee

Review by Jill Williamson

Rom–an obedient member of society–becomes an instant outlaw when he comes to possess a vial of blood and ancient letter, given to him by an old man his father knew. In a society devoid of all emotion by fear, Rom is scared of being killed. He flees to his friend, Avra, but she is afraid as well. Rom replays the words of the old man over and over in his mind, and seeing no other way, drinks a portion of blood from the vial. And becomes human again, fully feeling all things. Avra takes some blood as well, as do three others, until the blood is gone. This is enough to spread a kernel of truth, that life in Byzantium is not the way it was meant to be, which is enough to start a rebellion.

Liked it! The storyworld and history were well-thought out and unique. The plot was engaging with plenty of mystery revealed in bits to keep me guessing. There were some shocking surprises, and I look forward to discovering how those are worked out. I enjoyed Rom’s character and Feyn too. The bad guy has a lot of sensual, violence in his point of view scenes, so that is a caution for younger readers. Dekker and Lee have crafted a wonderful start to this series. I can’t wait to read more of this tale.

AgeRange: 16 and up
Genre: dystopian
Part of a Series: The Books of Mortals, book one
Pages: 376
Publisher:Center Street
Released: 2011
 

One Response to “Forbidden by Ted Dekker and Tosca Lee”

1. Mama Lusco says:

   February 23, 2012 at 12:27 pm

   I’m still reading this one and am really enjoying it! I love a good dystopian tale and am looking forward to reading more. Dekker & Lee are good together.

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