Book Review: Beloved Sacrifice by Lorraine Carey

Last Updated: 16 May 2024

AD* | A dark family secret is about to unleash itself. An old gypsy curse was cast long ago and is about to rear its ugly head when Faith Bennett, a descendant from the D’Amici family, learns she is to give birth to the seventh daughter in the family. Faith’s child will be born with a heightened sixth sense and regarded as the ‘enlightened one’. A vengeful tribe of the Romani Cult has been waiting hundreds of years for this event. Diabolical plans have been made that include kidnapping the child and attempted murder.

Danger lies at every turn as this young mother-to-be finds herself holding the key to a power she never knew lay deep within her. Unseen forces take root as she embarks on a perilous journey of deceit and entrapment when an unknown enemy emerges while trying to save her marriage, her life and that of her child. Faith will be forced to perform a dangerous ritual on sacred grounds. This Paranormal tale will take you from the small town of Pacentro, Italy, hidden deep in the Apennine Mountains in the early 1900s to modern-day, Orange County, California, with its racy lifestyle. In this tale of betrayal and sacrifice, curses know no boundaries.

I was really looking forward to reading this book. From the blurb, the book sounded great, right up my street with the supernatural and historical elements. Unfortunately, though, it didn't manage to live up to my expectations.

I found it really difficult to get into the book. The jumping around between past and present was confusing and disorientating, and I never really managed to fully immerse myself in the story. I also felt that it moved far too fast - one event was never really dealt with before the next one started. This made the whole book seem rushed, as though too many things were trying to be crammed into a comparatively short book.

I have to admit that I didn't bond with the characters at all, either. I wasn't invested in them or their lives, so it didn't hook me perhaps as much as it should have done. I found Faith to be a rather irritating main character if I'm honest, she seemed to lack that crucial spark that would have really made her come to life.

The twists were predictable and the (mostly) happy ending didn't come as a surprise. It was formulaic, which is fine if you just want a quick, light read, as Beloved Sacrifice is. This book is the perfect story for a quick, easy-going read if you want something a little different to read that doesn't really require much thought.

I really wanted to like this book, so it's a shame that it didn't work out!

Rating: 2 stars

Beloved Sacrifice is available to buy now (paid link; commission earned).

If you like the sound of this book, you might also enjoy...

* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!