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The Aura Of Love
Kathy Marsh
BlackDiva Publishing
ISBN: 0977495000

Reviewed By Taylor Perry

Racial prejudice, animosity, conflicts, violent confrontations, enslavement - sounds like American History, right?

Short answer: yes. Long answer: not exactly.

In The Aura Of Love, standout debut author Kathy J Marsh presents an amazing microcosm of all the great and terrible things humans have come to be known for - only not by using humans.

The Auralites, dark-skinned beings resembling humans, were the original inhabitants of the North American continent. Drawing their name from the luminescent energy fields surrounding them, they retreated to an area known as The Island as explorers and settlers began to populate the New World. The reason: with their mystical ability to disappear from sight at will, they feared that their powers would be discovered by the humans and that, in turn, they would be destroyed.

As time progressed, though, the Auralites learned to maintain the secret nature of their powers while at the same time infiltrating every level of human society. This freedom of movement also gave them the freedom to influence human affairs for their benefit.

Every race of creatures has its inherent societal problems, though, and the case is no different with the Auralites: they are divided into two distinct classes, the blues & the purples, and over time a natural friction develops between the two groups that ultimately becomes an all-out violent conflict. After countless battles, the gruesome slaying of innocents, and increasingly higher body counts, the two sides reach a new peace - but tensions still linger throughout the years.

This tension suddenly flares as a result of a burgeoning love affair between Jace Williams, a blue Auralite, and Remy Renee, a purple. Refusing to kowtow to the rules of conformity, Jace and Remy embrace their mutual affection for one another, causing their respective clans to unite in defiance of the mixed coventry of inter-Auralite bonding. What follows is the typical story of race/class war - but with a secret twist that threatens to shatter the stability of the de facto order.

The Aura Of Love is an enjoyable debut. Kathy J Marsh has done a commendable job of masking clever commentary on human nature within the construct of seemingly unrelated fantasy. Both her keen insight and masterful use of dialogue frame the timeless debate of equality for the benefit of a post-civil rights generation that may have lost sight of its true value. An outstanding first effort, and one that leaves the reader in not-so-sweet anticipation of what's yet to come from this impressive young talent.

 

Check out the first six chapters of The Aura of Love by clicking on My Blogs!