This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Auralia’s Colors (WaterBrook Press September 4, 2007) by Jeffrey Overstreet.I am almost done with this book. I will have more to say about it for a later blog tour since I’m not quite to the end yet. What I do want to point out is that this book is the most unique piece of fiction that I have read in my 1 1/2 years of actively reading/reviewing novels.

The description of this book before I received it was that it was a beautifully done literary work, with language that paints a vibrant a picture as Auralia’s Colors do in the story. Jeffrey takes time painting with words a very vivid description, full of metaphor and using the power of language in a formidable, haunting tale. In the recent Novel Journey interview with Dean Koontz, the famous author described the importance of using rich figures of speech in such a way – I would suggest that this book is what he had in mind when he talked about it.

The book takes a little more effort to read – it is suspenseful, but not in a way that zings the reader along. It takes a little more effort to mine the riches here. Sometimes the book suffers in the way it changes point of view characters in chapters – I got a little lost at times with the overall “where is this going?” Still, I am highly enjoying this story, and am looking forward to completing this particular thread.ABOUT THE BOOK:
As a baby, she was found in a footprint.

As a girl, she was raised by thieves in a wilderness where savages lurk.

As a young woman, she will risk her life to save the world with the only secret she knows.

When thieves find an abandoned child lying in a monster’s footprint, they have no idea that their wilderness discovery will change the course of history.

Cloaked in mystery, Auralia grows up among criminals outside the walls of House Abascar, where vicious beastmen lurk in shadow. There, she discovers an unsettling–and forbidden–talent for crafting colors that enchant all who behold them, including Abascar’s hard-hearted king, an exiled wizard, and a prince who keeps dangerous secrets.

Auralia’s gift opens doors from the palace to the dungeons, setting the stage for violent and miraculous change in the great houses of the Expanse.

Auralia’s Colors weaves literary fantasy together with poetic prose, a suspenseful plot, adrenaline-rush action, and unpredictable characters sure to enthrall ambitious imaginations.

Visit the Website especially created for the book, Auralia’s Colors. On the site, you can read the first chapter and listen to Jeffrey’s introduction of the book, plus a lot more!