From the TBR Pile: Blog Tour: Love is Red by Sophie Jaff

Author: Sophie Jaff

Publisher: Harper

Date of publication: May 2015

This electrifying, addictive, and hypnotically beautiful debut spins suspense and literary fantasy into a stunning epic—the first volume in the Night Song Trilogy—ablaze with fear, mystery, and possibility.

Katherine Emerson was born to fulfill a dark prophecy centuries in the making, but she isn’t aware that this future awaits. However, there is one man who knows the truth: A killer stalking the women of New York, a monster the media dubs the “Sickle Man” because of the way he turns his victims into canvasses for his mesmerizing, twisted art.

Unleashed upon Manhattan after lying dormant for centuries, the Sickle Man kills to harvest the precious hues of his victims. As his palette grows, so too does his power. Every death brings him closer to the one color, and the one woman, he must possess at any cost.

While the city hunts the Sickle Man, Katherine must decide what to do about two men who have unexpectedly entered her life: handsome and personable David, and alluring yet aloof Sael. Though she’s becoming increasingly torn between them, how well does she really know them? And why is she suddenly plagued by disturbing visions?

Have you ever read a book and when you finished it you said to yourself, "What did I just read?"? Yeah that was me at the end of this book. I'm still not sure I can say whether or not I liked it. It was just strange. In Love is Red, there is a serial killer on the loose in NYC and he kills women and uses a sickle to carve symbols into their body. The book goes back and forth between the killer's musings and Katherine telling her story.

I was actually enjoying the book for the most part. The killer seemed very deranged and it added to his mystique. I did figure out who the killer was pretty early one but that was OK. So, I liked the first about 75% of the book. The mystery was cool and I was looking forward to the resolution. But then it got very strange. It was like I was reading a thriller then all of a sudden the characters seem to go into a fantasy world or on an LSD trip maybe. I'm not even sure I can say what was going on in the end. That brought the book down a point or two for me.

This is supposed to be the first in a trilogy. So I do want to read the next book with the hope it clears up some things for me. While I do like some abstraction in my literature, I don't want to have to work too hard at understanding what the heck is going on. I'm going to leave this one as a read it for yourself and see what you think type of book.

About Sophie Jaff

A native of South Africa, Sophie Jaff is an alumna of the Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program at Tisch School of the Arts, New York University, and a fellow of the Dramatists Guild of America. Her work has been performed at Symphony Space, Lincoln Center, the Duplex, the Gershwin, and Goodspeed Musicals. She lives in New York City.

Find out more about Sophie at her website and connect with her on Facebook.

Purchase Links

Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

Sophie’s Tour Stops

Monday, May 11th: My Bookish Ways

Tuesday, May 12th: No More Grumpy Bookseller

Wednesday, May 13th: A Bookish Way of Life

Thursday, May 14th: Spiced Latte Reads

Friday, May 15th: Kahakai Kitchen

Wednesday, May 20th: Doing Dewey