UNWILLING - UNWILLING (1 DVD)

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I need to call my wife.” French dialed the phone and watched emotions play across his partner’s face. Sadness. Worry. Anger. “She’s not answering.” The Unwilling is epic fantasy in its purest form. Kelly Braffet’s worldbuilding is striking - switching from the vivid to the austere effortlessly. But it’s her characters, particularly the female ones, that shine the brightest. But here's the deal, by the halfway mark, The Unwilling became, shall we say, a little silly and a lot implausible. I was willing to (mostly) overlook this, as the writing was skilled, and the plot kept my attention. Just be aware, the book does take a major left turn - it may not bother you as much as it bothered me, but it is something to consider. John Hart writes about violence with frightening passion and vivid description. At the same time he masterfully lets you see inside a powerful family dynamic. His villain will be in anyone’s top 2.” —John Sandford, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Prey Series He considered the young people first. They sprawled on a bench, drunk and loud, but that wasn’t the problem. The families and the hippies came next, then the old men and the pregnant woman and the soldiers in uniform. Beyond the glass, the two fifteen from Raleigh idled in the bay as a dozen people waited for suitcases, old Mac sweating in the heat as he hauled them out and lined them up. Daniel had known a thousand days like it, small-city South in a country tired of war. Inevitably, his eyes found the pretty girl in the yellow dress. She was eighteen, maybe, with a shabby suitcase and leather shoes starting to split. He’d watched her, on and off, for an hour: the small walks from one wall to the next, little turns, the tilted head. At the moment, she stood unmoving, lips slightly parted.

Detective French and his wife had three sons. The twins, Robert and Jason, were the oldest and Gibby was younger. Robert died in Viet Nam. He had been his mother's favourite, and Jason overheard his shattered mother saying she wished it had been Jason who was killed instead of Robert. Jason immediately enlisted and spent three years on active duty in Viet Nam where he was honoured for heroism and was a decorated soldier- until he wasn't. He was sent home with a dishonourable discharge. Hardened and bitter, he became involved with heroin and gun-running bikers. He was incarcerated for almost three years in the notorious Lanseworth Prison for hardened criminals. People who read predominantly fantasy novels may not like this as much, but I, as a person who also loves to read literary fiction — those slow-burning, character-driven stories with abstract endings — didn’t mind all these things. It was new and interesting to read a literary, speculative book, but “this time with magic.” Then we have "The Children." Gavin is the heir to Highfall. His father Elban is the depraved ruler who takes great delight in torturing those around him both mentally and physically. I think sadist is a great descriptor for him. If you were to make a list of the most horrifying ways to harm a human, he's done every single thing and then schemed to come up with more. I can't tell you how long I was impatiently waiting for someone to take this evil waste of space out of existence. But I digress. The rest of the children are Theron, Elly, and Judah. Theron is the second born son, Elly is Gavin's chosen bride, and Judah is the foundling who was raised in the palace with them all. Admittedly, these four do seem to genuinely care for one another and they do try to make the best out of the cesspool they're trying to survive in. It's hard to retain values, morals, and honesty when you're constantly abused and put in life altering situations.The action and dread escalate to a pulse-pounding conclusion. Detective French and also Gibby discover what happened to Jason in Viet Nam. What they learn is highly disturbing and based on a real-life, historic military coverup. We learn what happened to Tyra and Sara and why, and the fate of Jason in prison. A closing scene takes place outside the prison where a crowd has gathered to cheer or protest the execution of the evil billionaire inmate on the day he is to die in the gas chamber. If Judah felt something, so did Gavin. If Gavin was injured, Judah experienced the pain right along with him. They communicated wordlessly through scratches on their arms and to them, it was as normal as breathing. And Lord Elban would do anything in his power to destroy it.

That is seriously just the basics, folks. I found the characters to be engaging, and had a degree of sympathy for almost all of them (okay, Lord Elban really was just a sadistic asshole). One of the most important things for me with any fantasy book is the ability to actually imagine the world the author has set up. While I'm not entirely confident in saying I sort of get what the Work was, I think that was also part of the point. The Work was a mystery, and could never be fully explained even if it was real, if that makes any sense. There is a father, devastated by the loss of his eldest son, compelled to alienate his next son because of his job in law enforcement, and endeavoring to keep his youngest son away from his brother. The girl who started life with no name and no history will soon uncover more to her story than ever imagined.” 3.5 stars. This book also has at least two serial killers. It is the character of X, living in a suite of cells below death row, running the world with his connections and billions of dollars, that is so over the top and so overpowered that it throws parts of the story into comic book super supervillain territory. So this story left the realm of real life for me and became something else. I cared so much for the characters of the family and their friends but not so much at all for the ugly underworld that had taken over Jason's life. The Unwilling follows a foundling named Judah, who shares a supernatural bond with Gavin, son of and future Lord of the City. Whenever Gavin gets injured, Judah feels it. Whenever Judah bleeds, Gavin bleeds too. When Lord Elban, current Lord of the City and general Giant Asshole, tries to get Gavin to kill his younger brother (reasons still unclear), Judah will do anything to protect the only family she's ever known. She tells Elban how she and Gavin have developed a mode of communication through pain (which, how did this guy not figure?). Her idea is to essentially trade this info for Theron's safety. Elban proposes that he'll use this information (and Judah & Gavin) as communication tools in the next war campaign.

About Me

The Unwilling is a raw yet exciting heart-pounding, emotionally deep and entertaining crime story that explores the dynamics between a family shattered by the past, war, prison, loss and the scars left behind. Marion called. She saw him at the square. His hair was longer, but she knew him. She said he was pale, that prison cost him twenty pounds.” Judah and Gavin were born on the same night and have a connection that cannot be explained but they live very different lives. Lord Elban, Gavin's father, is a deeply cruel and vicious man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants, and Judah is the perfect pawn. Outside the castle walls, there is someone searching for Judah and the power that she does not know she has, as she is the centre of everything and could bring about change like no other. From the beginning we know that the adopted Judah, hated by everyone in Lord Elban’s castle and the upper nobility because she looks different and therefore is probably a witch, has a magical twin-like connection to the Lord’s heir, Gavin. Judah also has some sort of power, unknown to her or the reader, that an entire tribe has worked five generations to do…I have no idea what. Gavin is narcissistic, selfish and a total jerk. Elban is a cruel and manipulating creature that is written as psychotic to nth degree. Gavin’s brother, Theron, is a minor, very minor, character that builds things and hides from his father and is eventually used as a sympathetic tool with a couple of deus ex machina moments. Gavin’s betrothed, Elly, is probably the only character I liked but not until the last painful third of the book.

After the death of an elderly rich man (Lance Henriksen), his relatives gather at a secluded house to go over his will, which is interrupted by the arrival of a cursed book. I can’t really say much about Henriksen’s performance here, because he probably only had around one-hundred seconds of screen time, if that. I guess he must have charged by the hour, but when you have such a prolific actor as one of your key selling points, the best thing to do would be to use him. It's hard to know where to even begin with this doorstopper: the absurdly over the top violence? (Woman in labor eaten alive by dogs and her child cut out of her womb as she breathes her last? The methodical torture of children, described in great detail? Actual torture of protagonists "on screen", frequently? Constant references to rape, sexual abuse, and incestuous child abuse? I guess this is the kind of thing that make a fantasy novel "serious" and "adult" but it was honestly hard for me to imagine how anyone not a teenager would take it seriously, and not just roll their eyes.) One thing which The Unwilling did particularly well was create a sense of claustrophobia. The entire film takes place almost entirely within the house, although the house doesn’t exactly stay in the same place, so to speak. Firstly, it seems like it’s somehow transported to another plane of existence (where the stars don’t shine), before a concrete-like substance begins to form around the walls. And, as will happen in any situation when people who aren’t necessarily friends are placed in close proximity to one another for an extended period, they’re soon at each other’s throats. Literally, in one case. Kelly is a magnificent writer – she really captures the brutal atmosphere and complexity of the characters personalities and relationships. I enjoyed reading about court life, the courtiers, and politics and how Judah and the other three managed to survive it. The magic was interesting and I loved the unsettling relationship between Judah and Gavin as they explored there unnatural bond. I did wish that Hart had explained the mother more. We know Robert was her favorite, but she was like a thread left hanging.The Unwilling is crime fiction at its absolute best. An impeccable story teller, John Hart weaves an intricate tale of family, war, prison, and murder into a thoroughly thought provoking and enjoyable read that I absolutely could not put down." —Mark Greaney, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Minute Out