Review: The White Oak by Kim White

The White Oak (Imperfect Darkness #1) 
by Kim White

Published: April 9th 2012 

Publisher: Story Machine Studio

Purchase: Amazon 

*eCopy received from publisher for an honest review.

Synopsis via Goodreads:

Cora Alexander is pulled through a sinkhole and enters the underworld still alive. Her living presence threatens the tyrannical rule of Minos and the Infernal Judges who have hijacked the afterlife and rebuilt it, trapping human souls in a mechanical, computer-controlled city that lies at the core of the earth. To survive, Cora must rely on her untrustworthy guide, Minotaur, an artificial intelligence. She is helped by a mysterious voice, and by Sybil, underworld librarian and author of each person’s book of life. When Cora’s own book is destroyed, Sybil gives her a golden pen and sends her into the City to begin writing her own destiny. Along the way, she reunites with the ghost of her dead brother, Lucas, a genius programmer who alone is capable of finding the chink in Minos armor. This fast-paced adventure begins, and ends, in the middle of the action; introducing the characters, themes, and mysteries that find their resolution later in the series.

~My Review~

Spectacular writing, dramatic descriptions, and exceptional otherworldly characters. The White Oak takes you on a journey where technology meets paranormal. A combination that's not often attempted but intriguing when it is.

The story started off pretty fast. Cora and her brother, Lucas, were burying their father but then suddenly they're the ones being buried alive. Fate just happened to keep Cora alive but take her brother. The main character finds herself in a world she knew within herself always existed but is still fascinated by her discovery. The other beings she meets along the way are quite interesting as well, especially when their part in the story becomes clear. 

It seems that in the underworld and in life power is always desired, and you'll read a lot about that fact throughout the book. Lucas turned out to be quite smart in technology and his knowledge is obviously useful in death as well. I wasn't too fond of his character, though nothing's wrong with him. I just didn't feel that connected. One thing I did feel super excited about was the voice in Cora's head. As she went on I was anxiously waiting for her to locate the person behind the voice, and by the end I was satisfied with the results. 

The details were pretty well thought out. I really took my time going through line by line in order to fully envision every scene passing by. And I'm deeply appreciative of such wonderful style of writing. I think the author did a good job in creating a story that's not only interesting but believable. But while I do love the journey, it did take a while to get to any destination. Not that it's boring, only that it took a while before a rising action came about. 

Again, The White Oak is a good read if you're into technology like myself, and also a fan of paranormal. The mixture was quite electrifying and I do recommend getting this novel and indulging yourself.

About the Author

Kim White is the author of a collection of poetry, Scratching for Something, and the novels The White Oak: Imperfect Darkness, Book One, and the forthcoming Sword of Souls: Imperfect Darkness, Book Two. She graduated from the University of Michigan and holds MFAs in creative writing from Columbia University (fiction) and Hunter College (poetry).

Kim is the recipient of the Academy of American Poets Prize at Hunter College, The Catalina Paez and Seumas MacManus Award, the Shuster Award for an outstanding Master’s degree thesis, a Bingham Writing Fellowship from Columbia University, and a Forbes Foundation Grant. Her electronic poem, The Minotaur Project, was shortlisted for a 2001 Electronic Literature Award.

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