A Review of Life Doesn’t Suck by Maria K

The appearance of succubi and incubi in some stories seems like a bit of a deus ex machina. They are there as a threat, a force to be opposed, hated and so on. There’s little time spent in telling about them, leaving them to be main cannon fodder for the moment when it arrives. That’s a bit disappointing because there’s a reason for everything. Not telling that leaves much story unresolved.

Not all things are good and not all things are bad. It is a matter of perspective, and it is that perspective that tends to point out where our failings are, if we are inclined to listen. But then sometimes perspective is forced into being what it is and in that moment there comes little choice otherwise.

• Title: Life Doesn’t Suck
• Author: Maria K
• Length: 25 Pages
• ASIN: B016TX1PKK
• Publishing Date: October 17, 2015
• This work at Amazon.com

The work tells the story of:

International Research Institute of Sleep (IRIS) is the last resort for patients seeking a good night’s sleep. When an odd sleep disorder epidemic flares up in multiple locations around the world, IRIS must call on its secret weapon – a group of sleep experts unafraid to look for answers beyond the boundaries of the ordinary.

Sleepers are being visited by succubi and incubi with dark intent. But they are also real, and need to be confronted. The battle is joined, but to what end becomes the question.

This work is the second in a series and it builds upon the first. The main theme is the invasion, really there’s no better way to explain it, of succubi and other beings onto the Earth, they feeding from humans, to their detriment. Against this, a group confronts them, pushes back, and the battle is joined.

It sounds like a good idea for a series, and it is. However, the story is a bit self absorbed with regards to the main characters. As events unfold there’s little time spent in explaining certain events, how things came together. The characters develop, to an extent, but the world around them seems to be a set piece having little depth or meaning. As I reader I felt like I was dropped into the middle of a conversation, to observe, but not really understand the minutia that the characters delve into. Nor really is it explained how they figured out certain actions and abilities. There’s a massive suspension of disbelief needed and I just couldn’t quite manage that.

There is reference made to succubi and incubi, of past encounters, but nothing really in depth which explains much. It’s a mystery, which is fine, but along the way there are flashes of insight which seem to be almost matter of fact which didn’t work for me.

This brings me to the succubus of this work who is spoken of, thought about and thinly explained. She appears for quite literally a fraction of a second in the story then never appears again. Her name is never known, her reason for being on Earth isn’t told. There’s no communication, only suggested ideas and possibilities about her. She’s question, right to her form, that is never dealt with.

The writing is a bit stiff, the dialogue seeming to be stilted and monotone at times. The characters are really interesting, I wanted to know more about them, but that’s not enough to overcome the feeling of being scattered, almost random at times, in the storytelling. The work is short, which means that every page matters. Some focus I think would help, some expansion of the story as well. A better idea might be to see the other side, that of the succubus, or succubi for that matter. Half a story is still half a story and in this series, considering how important the succubi and incubi are, it would be good to know the why, how and what.

Two and a half out of five pitchforks.

Really there isn’t much of a succubus story here as they are more of a reason for the characters to be together than anything else. There”s no meaning behind the single succubus that does appear and she’s less of a succubus than a evil spirit. This is more of a mystery-adventure with a side of succubus.

Perhaps things might have expanded further if the series continued, which at the time of this review it had not. If so, then the why of the demons being on Earth needed to be addressed. Characters to invest in are good, but a meaningful story is more so.

 

Tera