BOOK REVIEW: "The Beholder" by Ivan Amberlake

Around the world, people die under mysterious circumstances. Each branded with an arcane sign, they are pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. When more people are missing, with similar signs appearing in and around their homes, Jason, an average New Yorker, realizes the victims are a riddle addressed to him. 
He is the final piece. 
Emily appears, the most beautiful woman with extraordinary powers and startling amber eyes, and tells Jason that powers dormant within him are about to wake. In the world of Light- and Darksighted, he is the only person who can prevent Darkness from enslaving the world. He is the Beholder whose advent has been awaited for many years. 
Setting out on a journey with Emily, Jason discovers many improbable things like Sight, Soulfusion, the Hall of Refuge, but the greatest surprise arrives the moment he realizes he has fallen in love with Emily.

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

In the many stories out there (literature, film and TV) about good vs. evil, it can be hard to find one that stands out as much as The Beholder did for me.
Starting out with a very normal man thrust into very unnatural circumstances, we get to see the awakening, so to speak, of greatness. I wouldn't exactly call this book horror, but it is in the occult genre, delving into thrillers and mysteries as well. Despite the genre-bending, it is not hard to follow at all.
Emily is a character I liked and wanted to slap at the same time, the kind you used to find in 90's fiction, who are painfully obvious about their hidden knowledge but unwilling to share with the class. I liked seeing someone like her back in literature, as it added both simplicity of the past and the complexity of mystique.
The plot kept me reading, and Mr. Amberlake's style of writing is refreshingly simple but elegant. I am very interested in reading the next book in the series!

4/5--dark, adventurous and engaging.

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