Benevolent by Erin A. Jensen - Book Tour & Review + Giveaway
Benevolent
by Erin A. Jensen
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GENRE: Fantasy
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BLURB:
A story about the purpose of life, the healing power of fandom, and the resilience of the human spirit.
Tormented by the in-crowd at school on a daily basis, there were two things that gave fifteen-year-old
Abigail Perkins the strength to keep going—her best friend, Danny Cobb; and her favorite television
show, Supernatural. But the night Danny’s mother calls to say that his battle with cancer is nearing
its end, and the doctors don’t expect him to live through the night, even Supernatural can’t dull the
ache in her heart.
Abigail Perkins the strength to keep going—her best friend, Danny Cobb; and her favorite television
show, Supernatural. But the night Danny’s mother calls to say that his battle with cancer is nearing
its end, and the doctors don’t expect him to live through the night, even Supernatural can’t dull the
ache in her heart.
Devastated by her impending loss and crushed that Danny’s mother won’t allow her to visit him
one last time, Abigail crawls into bed and cries herself to sleep that night; and she wakes to find
Supernatural’s most endearing angel standing at the foot of her bed.
one last time, Abigail crawls into bed and cries herself to sleep that night; and she wakes to find
Supernatural’s most endearing angel standing at the foot of her bed.
Told from Abigail’s perspective as she nears the end of her long life and revisits the moments that
defined it, this story was inspired by the deep connection that Supernatural fans feel with the show’s
beloved characters, and the show’s miraculous ability to help its fans through troubled times.
defined it, this story was inspired by the deep connection that Supernatural fans feel with the show’s
beloved characters, and the show’s miraculous ability to help its fans through troubled times.
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EXCERPT
I flashed him a sympathetic smile. “What are you thinking?”
“I have never understood why humans are so moved by music,” he muttered as his eyes searched
mine.
mine.
“Music is the closest thing that we have to magic,” I confided in a reverent whisper,
“because it has the power to anchor us to a moment in time.”
“because it has the power to anchor us to a moment in time.”
His half-smile conveyed a heartwarming mix of curiosity and affection. “How so?”
I felt my face flush a shade darker as I grinned at him. “When we hear a song from our past,
it conjures up all the old sensations that we felt when we first heard it.”
it conjures up all the old sensations that we felt when we first heard it.”
He eyed me with a perplexed frown as he took a step toward me. “How can a combination of
man-made instruments and human vocal chords wield that sort of power?”
man-made instruments and human vocal chords wield that sort of power?”
“I can’t explain it with words,” I whispered, “It’s something that you just have to feel.”
He stood there staring at me with that puzzled expression on his face as I stepped closer and
carefully inserted the earpiece in my hand into his left ear, so the music connected the two of us,
just as surely as the cord connected the earbuds in our ears. “Maybe you’d understand what I mean
if you danced to the music.”
carefully inserted the earpiece in my hand into his left ear, so the music connected the two of us,
just as surely as the cord connected the earbuds in our ears. “Maybe you’d understand what I mean
if you danced to the music.”
“I don’t dance,” he muttered as he watched me begin to sway to the beat.
I smiled at him as I took his hands in mine and moved his arms in time with the music,
like a puppeteer pulling a life-sized marionette’s strings. “Anyone can dance.
You just have to let go and let the music guide your movements.”
like a puppeteer pulling a life-sized marionette’s strings. “Anyone can dance.
You just have to let go and let the music guide your movements.”
A skeptical frown spread across his face as he watched me, but he let me direct his movements
nonetheless. He was stiff and awkward at first but as the music grew louder, he seemed to find the
rhythm. “These words are nonsense,” he muttered.
nonetheless. He was stiff and awkward at first but as the music grew louder, he seemed to find the
rhythm. “These words are nonsense,” he muttered.
“Shhh,” I whispered, “Don’t think. Just feel.”
He was a remarkably fast learner, but I suppose being on earth since the dawn of time had given him
plenty of opportunities to watch humans dance. Once he started to feel the music,
he moved with all the grace that you’d imagine an angel would.
plenty of opportunities to watch humans dance. Once he started to feel the music,
he moved with all the grace that you’d imagine an angel would.
“Hey Jude” gradually faded away until there was nothing but silence in our twin earpieces.
We stopped moving and stood there staring at each other while we waited for the next song to
guide our movements.
guide our movements.
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My Review
Benevolent is probably the most emotional book I've read all year.
Within minutes of starting the story, I was bawling like a baby. And it just keeps up throughout the rest of the book. It's so good.
Benevolent follows Abigail Perkins as she goes through life and discovers the true power of faith. The story mainly focuses on Abigail as an old woman preparing to leave the mortal realm, and it's told in flashbacks from her childhood up until the very end. It details her friendship with a boy named Danny and how he keeps her from being bullied. There's her grief when he passes, and she turns to Supernatural to comfort her. But the show brings more to her life than she ever could have expected.
I loved everything about this story. The emotional impact. The journey through Abigail's life, including all of her ups and downs. And how she learns to become everything to someone when the time comes to do so. In fact, it's that scene (where she realizes what she needs to do because she knows it will make a huge difference) that sort of broke me.
Abigail was a really in-depth character, with flaws and relatable moments. And, of course, there's everyone's favorite angel from Supernatural (although my favorite angel is Gabriel), who also adds another layer of enjoyability to the book. Fans of the show, and even non-fans, will love this version of Castiel, even though he's not quite the same.
As a fandom nerd who has been obsessed with Supernatural for about 7 years now (yes, I did come into the show a bit late), I absolutely 100% adored Benevolent. It just goes to show the power of fandom and how much one show can mean to someone.
I'm rating Benevolent 5 stars. Seriously, if you want a story that will make you cry, laugh, and have all the feels, you'll want to grab your copy of the book today. You won't regret it.
My Review
Benevolent is probably the most emotional book I've read all year.
Within minutes of starting the story, I was bawling like a baby. And it just keeps up throughout the rest of the book. It's so good.
Benevolent follows Abigail Perkins as she goes through life and discovers the true power of faith. The story mainly focuses on Abigail as an old woman preparing to leave the mortal realm, and it's told in flashbacks from her childhood up until the very end. It details her friendship with a boy named Danny and how he keeps her from being bullied. There's her grief when he passes, and she turns to Supernatural to comfort her. But the show brings more to her life than she ever could have expected.
I loved everything about this story. The emotional impact. The journey through Abigail's life, including all of her ups and downs. And how she learns to become everything to someone when the time comes to do so. In fact, it's that scene (where she realizes what she needs to do because she knows it will make a huge difference) that sort of broke me.
Abigail was a really in-depth character, with flaws and relatable moments. And, of course, there's everyone's favorite angel from Supernatural (although my favorite angel is Gabriel), who also adds another layer of enjoyability to the book. Fans of the show, and even non-fans, will love this version of Castiel, even though he's not quite the same.
As a fandom nerd who has been obsessed with Supernatural for about 7 years now (yes, I did come into the show a bit late), I absolutely 100% adored Benevolent. It just goes to show the power of fandom and how much one show can mean to someone.
I'm rating Benevolent 5 stars. Seriously, if you want a story that will make you cry, laugh, and have all the feels, you'll want to grab your copy of the book today. You won't regret it.
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Erin Jensen is the Amazon International bestselling author of The Dream Waters Series.
She was awarded the Bronze Medal for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Readers' Favorite international
book awards. She also received Honorable Mention for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Writer's Digest
self-published e-book awards. A part-time pharmacist and a full-time daydreamer,
she resides in upstate New York with her ridiculously supportive husband, two teenage sons--
who are both taller than her--and a Yorkshire terrier who thinks he's the family bodyguard.
She was awarded the Bronze Medal for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Readers' Favorite international
book awards. She also received Honorable Mention for fantasy fiction in the 2018 Writer's Digest
self-published e-book awards. A part-time pharmacist and a full-time daydreamer,
she resides in upstate New York with her ridiculously supportive husband, two teenage sons--
who are both taller than her--and a Yorkshire terrier who thinks he's the family bodyguard.
Website: Erinajensen.com
Blog: blog.erinajensen.com
Twitter: twitter.com/erinajensen?lang=en
Facebook: facebook.com/erin.jensen.756
Buy Links
Amazon: amazon.com/dp/B07NCFGFCV
Barnes & Noble: barnesandnoble.com/w/benevolent-erin-a-jensen/1132005681
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION
Erin A. Jensen will be awarding a $25 Amazon or B/N GC to a randomly drawn
winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
10 Comments
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome!
DeleteGreat cover
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nancy. My husband designs all of my book covers.
DeleteAnother great book to discover. Thanks so much for sharing this with us.
ReplyDeleteThanks for following the tour, James Robert.
DeleteThanks so much for hosting today’s stop on my tour! I’m glad you enjoyed the story!
ReplyDeleteYou're very welcome! :) Thanks for such an awesome book!
DeleteSounds like a great book.
ReplyDeleteWhich character from the book do you most relate to?
ReplyDeletePlease try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.