Vampires are fiction, but the Rakum are real. Author Beth Rider must die.When the young author’s novel series hits number one, her fictitious plot puts her in the crosshairs of an ancient race of vampiric beings known as the Rakum. Spreading evil among mankind for thousands of years, the leadership of this bloodthirsty race now has a singular focus: catch Beth Rider. With her life in mortal … singular focus: catch Beth Rider.
With her life in mortal jeopardy, she goes on the run, a rabbit desperate to escape the worst of predators. In the climactic melee, it is a race to the death, or if Beth has her way, a race to the life, of every Rakum who makes the choice.
Rabbit: Chasing Beth Rider is Book One of Six in the Rabbit Saga.
Rabbit Legacy /Book Two
Rabbit Redemption / Book Three
Anomaly: Beyond the Rabbit / Book Four
Conundrum: The Lost Rabbit / Book Five
The Vestige: The Final Chapter / Book Six
This novel contains PG-13-level Violence, Language, and Sexual Situations, and is written from a Biblical Worldview.
Author’s Bio
Raised on Bram Stoker and Stephen King, Ellen read Frank Peretti’s “This Present Darkness” in 2000 and has never been the same. Now she takes the horror / paranormal / vampire genre directly into the heart of spiritual matters, pitting good against evil within the confines of biblical truth. With writing as her passion and her main hobby, Ellen lives in Alabama with her family and does NOT have holes in her neck.
Note from Publisher: This is the Special Anniversary Edition (March 2019), which includes a new chapter as well small updates for all loyal Rabbit Chasers. Rabbit: Chasing Beth Rider is Book One of an eventual Six in the saga/series. Enjoy your trip down the rabbit hole!
“MAZE’S STORYTELLING IS FAST AND FUN, overflowing with ideas and spiritual insight.” ~ Eric Wilson, Fireproof & Facing the Giants
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As I have said a few times, I do not like vampires or stories about them. Why is this an exception? I do not really know except that this story is so well written, a compelling and action-packed story and a thriller feel that will hold you to the book until you finish. So, I loved this book and cannot wait for the next book.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
A Christian View of Vampires
Rabbit: Chasing Beth Rider is an entertaining Christian paranormal romance. It does incorporate a strong Christian framework that may make it more entertaining to Christians than other readers.
The Opening
The opening of this paranormal romance is flawless. It successfully introduces the protagonist in considerable detail while at the same time containing clear conflict and a considerable hook.
The Characters
Beth Rider is a well-rounded character who is instantly sympathetic due to her treatment by Jack Dawn. I liked her strength and courage but was disappointed that the lack of any other significant female characters prevented her from passing the Bechdel-Wallace Test.
I felt that she would easily have passed the test if provided with the opportunity. Really, this story needed more significant female characters. The only other significant female characters were Selene and Dae Lee. Selene doesn’t appear until the very end of the story, and Dae Lee is long dead before the events of this tale.
Michael Stone is a wonderful character. I liked that he didn’t jump on the same bandwagon as most of the other characters in this novel. He retained his independence and reserved his judgement yet still made the right calls and protected the innocent despite the personal sacrifices he was forced to make.
Jack Dawn is a great antagonist, but I wish he had some kind of redeeming characteristic to make him more rounded. He felt a bit too simplistic.
The Plot
The main plot line is well thought through and interesting. The resolution of the story, though, felt a little too Deus ex machina. While I understand why God had to play a big role, I would have preferred to see Beth as more of a Moses character. I would have preferred it if God had delegated some powers to Beth rather than sent an entity to provide outside agency.
Beth was a strong enough character to end the story by herself. She had considerable magical powers given to her as the result of her becoming a rabbit, and her faith enabled her to endure and march forward. She just needed more authority and power delegating to her to enable her to resolve this story.
The relationship plot wasn’t as well developed as the main action plot. While Michael’s attraction for Beth was continuously shown, it was more a protective feeling in response to her innocence and faith. I never felt that he found her particularly attractive in a romantic way.
Similarly, Beth was interested in Michael, but it felt more like concern for a brother rather than someone she felt a romantic attraction toward. When the story came to an end, it felt as though the romantic subplot jumped ahead without any catalyst or reason sometime hidden between the final chapter and the epilogue. I would have liked to have seen more spark between these two key characters and more evidence of their growing attraction before the ending.
Also, we never saw the moment when Michael embraced Christianity. Even toward the end of the story, his faith was in Beth and not in God. Yet he appears to be a Christian in the epilogue. When did this conversion occur?
A less important flaw in the storytelling occurred in the first few chapters. Jack Stone became aware of a problem regarding Michael Stone before it was actually shown in the story. The chronology would have flowed much better if we had seen Michael’s actions first and then only later saw Jack reacting to said actions.
There was a strong emphasis on Beth’s books turning vampires into Christians in the opening chapters. I felt that if this had been toned down in the beginning of the novel and then slowly introduced as a shown element then this book would have become more accessible to non-Christians.
The Setting
The physical and cultural settings were both well developed. I loved the way these vampires and their abilities were introduced and explained within the framework of the Bible.
The Prose
This story was successfully shown rather than told. The prose is flawless and well edited.
My Opinion
This is an entertaining paranormal romance with strong Christian principles of morality and faith. I enjoyed reading it but felt it could have had a stronger ending. Therefore, I am going to rate it as 4 out of 5.