The Penitent

The Penitent

by A. Keith Carreiro

published by Copper Beech Press

2016

ISBN 978-0-9973827-0-9

The Penitent, Part One of A. Keith Carreiro's The Immortality Wars, has the feel of a medieval morality tale but with more fantastical elements.  

Pall, who was born with a pall over his face (hence the spelling of his name) and has always had a rough life because of it, has been injured and finds he now has gaps in his memory.  The archer Savage finds him and saves him, but a band of depraved soldiers discover the injured Pall and start to torture him.  This starts to release some memories that do not seem feasible to Pall, such as turning into a fish.  Luckily, a gruesome monster, The Unger, is nearby to further save Pall.  However, Pall and his ragtag crew are never safe for long as there always seems to be a new enemy just around the bend.

I really wanted to like The Penitent, but I had the hardest time following what was happening.  I found myself rereading constantly and still coming away with only a foggy notion of what was happening.  I also felt like there were some leaps in the story, but that could have just been a result of my confusion.

I can see what A. Keith Carreiro was aiming for with The Penitent, but I, personally, just had trouble getting there.

Rating: 1/5