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Ink

by S.J. Davis (Goodreads Author)

3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 · rating details · 75 ratings · 42 reviews

“It’s a good day to die.”
My mother holds my arm fiercely.
“But as you grieve for me, listen for
the voices.
Then, you must get the ink.”

Sparrow stumbles between two worlds,
light and dark, love and hate, what is real
and what is in her mind.

When her mother dies on the Reservation,
Sparrow’s world is shadowed with anger
and narrowed by pain. The voices arrive,
but are they...more

Paperback, 85 pages

Published October 22nd 2011 by Vamptasy Publishing

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Nov 17, 2012 Lissa & Alexa The Novel Lasses rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Ages 12 and up

Shelves: 3stars_i_was_really_into_it, new_ya

I find myself spent after reading this story. Not that it was overly emotional. It is the review that is getting to me. I enjoyed the fictitious tale of the “Blackfoot” people as my daughter through her father’s heritage has ties to the “Blackfoot” people.

I felt that the history and location was poorly researched. Not that I am an expert; far from it actually. However, I can recall with clarity the far away gleam in my exes’ eye when he often spoke of his people. What Davis describes seems an oc...more

9 likes · like · see review

Sep 30, 2011 Twinklesmile rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

INK is a story about an 18 year old girl,Sparrow.Her mother died in a car accident.After that accident, she started to hear a peculiar disturbing voice.
First of all when I saw the cover,I immediately fell in love with it.It is just plain GORGEOUS ! When I started reading it,it held me captive from the very first page(which trust me,rarely happens). The appearance of Sparrow's mysterious guardian,made the story all the more interesting.The story got an intriguing twist,when Layne,entered Sparrow...more

5 likes · like · see review

Mar 21, 2012 Gin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Gin by: R2R Program

This was an engaging and unique story that I did not want to put down, but was also very difficult for me to rate.

We follow Sparrow on her journey of self discovery as she learns about the strength of her people as well as herself. I think the author does a wonderful job of capturing the emotions of a teenager dealing with difficult issues such as PTSD and self-mutilation, all while creating a fantasy world to cope with them in. I also loved the idea behind the significance of the ink used for...more

2 likes · like · see review

Nov 09, 2011 Monique James rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First let me start out by saying you can't even appreciate the cover unless you see it in person, it's perfect for the story and beautiful. Sparrow the main character is unique in her heritage and in the obstacles she must over come to become who she was meant to be, but at the same time, she is every girl who is coming of age. S.J. did a wonderful job pulling me into a world that I know nothing about and making me ache for the pains suffered by her heroine.

I literally read the book in about tw...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 31, 2013 Andrea at Reading Lark rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 3-stars, fantasy, kindle, native-american, novella, paranormal, read-in-2011, young-adult

Review Posted on Reading Lark 10/1/11: http://readinglark.blogspot.com/2011/...

Ink drew my attention because of the gorgeous cover and the mixture of paranormal and Native American mythology. There aren't a ton of books out there for Native American teens within the paranormal genre. As someone who teaches at a school with a significant Native American population I am always on the lookout for books that will appeal to my students. Who doesn't want to see characters like themselves reflected in...more Review Posted on Reading Lark 10/1/11: http://readinglark.blogspot.com/2011/...

Ink drew my attention because of the gorgeous cover and the mixture of paranormal and Native American mythology. There aren't a ton of books out there for Native American teens within the paranormal genre. As someone who teaches at a school with a significant Native American population I am always on the lookout for books that will appeal to my students. Who doesn't want to see characters like themselves reflected in literature?

S.J. Davis has a lot of potential as a writer and I was impressed with her ability to capture emotion in such moving ways. The opening scenes of the novella deal with the death of Sparrow's mother in a car wreck. I was blown away be the writing in this section and was disappointed to see that not everything in the novella was written in the same manner. There were so many segments that felt rushed to me. For example, the relationship between Sparrow and Layne just happened all of a sudden without much build up. I wanted more explanation and more world building.

The Native American aspects of the story and the inking process fascinated me. Those elements make this something truly special and worth the time. I did have a moment where the tattoo process made me think of Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr and the She Smells the Dead series by E.J. Stevens. Both of those stories deal with special inks for tattooing. Davis does truly take things in a direction all her own in spite of my connections to other works. The symbolism between Sparrow and the plight of Native Americans throughout history intrigued me.

This novella was really hard for me to rate. The writing was solid and I loved the creativity of the story, but I just felt like it was too short. There is so much potential lurking within these pages. I wish Davis would take this and expand it into a 300-400 page novel. The shortness of this one causes the middle and end to jump around in a way that was confusing and left so many things undeveloped. I also found myself wanting to know more about the myth of the White Buffalo. I think explaining this more to readers would have made Sparrow's journey more powerful for readers.

One Last Gripe: I don't feel like Sparrow's cutting was every fully addressed. This was such a huge aspect of the character that I would have liked to see more about why she was doing it and to feel like the issue was truly resolved for her.

My Favorite Thing About This Book: The story behind the ink

First Sentence: The icy sadness of winter bled the color from my life.

Favorite Character: Sparrow

Least Favorite Character: I didn't have one this time
(less)

1 like · like · see review

Nov 06, 2011 Lissette rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Still suffering from the effects of the car accident with her mother, Sparrow resigns herself to living with her Aunt. She feels her mother's loss more and more as each day goes by, always wondering if she'll ever come terms to with what's occurred. Her confusion grows as she tries to understand what her mother meant when she said to listen to the voices and that she needed to get the ink.

While adjusting to a new town has been somewhat difficult, it's been tolerable with the help of her new frie...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 18, 2011 W.h. (Lovetiggi) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own, s-j-davis, next-book-i-read-is, arc-for-review

ARC for Review. What an awesome bookcover, when I first saw this mini-back, I thought, ‘How cute, it is so small.” What’s that old adage? “Dynamite comes in small packages.” In this case it does, WOW! And here we go…….

This is quite an interesting read, it looks at the aftermath of Sparrow’s mom’s death and how it has affected Sparrow’s life, the anger, the guilt and belief she was responsible for her mom’s death, and the fear of the unknown. I can relate with this this, my mom died when I was...more

1 like · like · see review

Nov 09, 2011 Katandra Jackson rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone and everyone

Shelves: read-own-author-autographed-editi, read-own

INK has left quite the impressionable tattoo...

I am the proud barer of a lot of tattoos. 13 to be exact and although i've given deep thought to the selction of each and each does have a special meaning, i've never considered their design or location as a form of protection. The events that have unfolded in INK have me reconsidering what now seems to have been the choices of an orderlying subconcious. In short, why the phoenix, why my arm, and why during such a trying time. S.J Davis has me exami...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 29, 2012 Rebekah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal

Sparrow stumbles between two worlds,
light and dark, love and hate, what is real
and what is in her mind.

When her mother dies on the Reservation,
Sparrow’s world is shadowed with anger
and narrowed by pain. The voices arrive,
but are they real? And how can a tattoo
make her stronger?

Ink by S.J. Davis was actually a good read but there were some issues I had with it. Davis uses the idea of the native american religion for the basis of her book. Spirit guides and native prophecies passed down t...more Sparrow stumbles between two worlds,
light and dark, love and hate, what is real
and what is in her mind.

When her mother dies on the Reservation,
Sparrow’s world is shadowed with anger
and narrowed by pain. The voices arrive,
but are they real? And how can a tattoo
make her stronger?

Ink by S.J. Davis was actually a good read but there were some issues I had with it. Davis uses the idea of the native american religion for the basis of her book. Spirit guides and native prophecies passed down through generations give this book a very interesting plot and world.

I feel like there is never enough novels based off of native american traditions and things like that. So I was extremely excited for the chance to read this. The description of the book sounded great and like something I wouldn't want to miss out on. I still feel this way even though throughout the whole book I felt lost until the end then it all became clear.

Instead of me breaking down the main character like I usually do I'm going to lump all the characters together. They were to me... Unfinished. Now why do they seem that way to me? I felt like the book jump straight into the story and didn't explain who people were and I was left in the dark with personalities and relationships. There was a couple of points where I felt like I missed weeks of interactions between characters because of how relationships jumped within the book. I felt like these characters could have been expanded and I could have loved them but I didn't feel a connection to any of them. These characters had the potential to be great but instead I was more excited about the plot which I also had issues with.

Now lets get to the plot...I LOVED the idea behind this book. It was great and creative. And I do want to read more. I am sad to say that the execution of the plot wasn't in my opinion...The best... Now don't get me wrong I enjoyed this book but I felt like a lot of things were left out and I literally felt lost throughout the book. I had to stop reading and pick it back up later several times. It jumped frequently and there were things in the book that were confusing. Everything is eventually explained towards the end but it doesn't lessen the confusion felt earlier in the book. It was more like "Why wasn't I told this before to prevent my headache?"

Now let me explain why I like this book. This book has the potential to be great..No scratch that..Fantastic. I feel like the author didn't take full advantage of such a wonderful story. But there is just something about this book that makes me want to read more despite all that it's lacking. It might be the hot spirit guide or just the idea of a magical tattoo. Or even just because it seems like it could be truly worth reading the rest of it later on. Who knows? But something grabbed my attention. I can at least give the book that much credit.

This book is very short only 80 pages long, but I think if you have time to waste and want a quick read you should pull this book out.(less)

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Mar 23, 2012 Emma rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, ya-pnr, ya-uf, angsty-m-f

Hum... where to start? First, I liked the concept of the "White Buffalo" and that itself was something fresh and new to the paranormal ya genre. Second, I loved the spirit guide. Mateo was a very good character and I really liked how he became more "alive" the more she needed him. Third, the ink. To carry all the pain and tears of your people. Just WOW! Forth, Winona I didn't see what was evolving with this character and it really took me by surprise.

Now the not so good parts for me. I didn't m...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 14, 2012 ⚝ Ŧáẅņá ⚝ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am giving this book four stars, but I am also not happy with it as well.

The Story
This is about a native american girl whose mother died in a car accident and now she's seeing things and hearing voices. The ink is something her mother told her to get when she was dying, but she didn't really understand what that meant. There's a boy Layne and a boy Mateo and they are both trying to help her.

Likes
The story. I thought it was a concept that I had not read before and it was very interesting.

The wr...more

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Sep 20, 2011 Carly Wallace rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hi y'all Anne yet again today. Well I was given this novella to review and I'm certainly glad I had this chance. Davis has a brilliant story here I can only hope and encourage her to continue this story full force. The story is captivating and exciting, and original because I must say I can't recall any books I have read so far that have Native American cultures and legends as the main focus of the story. This is a one of a kind novella for that reason. The characters are lovely and passionate o...more

2 likes · like · see review

Sep 15, 2011 Annette M Guerriero Nishimoto rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Today's review is on Ink by S. J. Davis

Ink is the only book by Davis that I have read, and though I found it enjoyable I also found it to be a bit muddled and to short.

While driving her daughter to school one morning, Sparrow and her mother are the victim's of a terrible car accident. Knowing that she is about to die her mother leaves her with one last message. “It’s a good day to die." She tells Sparrow, "but as you grieve for me, listen for the voices. Then, you must get the ink.”

Guilt ridden,...more

1 like · like · see review

Mar 16, 2012 Lauren rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: r2r, 2012-reads, 2012-march, folklore-mythology, urban-fantasy

Sparrow's mother is killed in a car crash on a Blackfoot reservation. Sparrow is cut loose with only the knowledge that there's apparently something important about her mother's tattoos and she'll need her own someday. She moves off the reservation to Washington D.C. to be with her aunt and trouble follows her there in the form of a threatening voice and an icy dead girl only she can hear.

This book feels incomplete to me. It's written in the present tense, which is a difficult tense for even ski...more Sparrow's mother is killed in a car crash on a Blackfoot reservation. Sparrow is cut loose with only the knowledge that there's apparently something important about her mother's tattoos and she'll need her own someday. She moves off the reservation to Washington D.C. to be with her aunt and trouble follows her there in the form of a threatening voice and an icy dead girl only she can hear.

This book feels incomplete to me. It's written in the present tense, which is a difficult tense for even skilled authors. There are a few areas in the beginning where past and present tense are mixed together but otherwise the tense is fairly well maintained. I do actually think the present tense can add to the right book with the right author but I didn't enjoy it here and felt a past tense would have been less jarring and made the rest of the language easier to follow. My biggest complaint is that most authors "tell, don't show" and you get three paragraphs telling you he's blonde, 6'2", buff, but not too buff, etc., etc. You catch my drift. The writing in this book is the exact opposite. It's very "show, don't tell" but the writing overall is almost to flowy and stream of conscious. It's very pretty but I was confused by scene changes, never really got to know any of the characters as they just seemed to exist and we were just expected to accept them even as they passed more like shadows then fully filled out individuals. Mateo is Sparrow's spirit guide and Layne is her boyfriend, who we meet for all of three seconds before they're going steady. I wasn't sure what they saw in each other. It's just all very float-y and hard to pin down.

Some Blackfoot mythology is brought into it and I enjoyed the American Indian aspect of it, but it felt barely touched on. Most of the book is spent worrying about the voice threatening to kill her and everyone around her, stressing about when she'll be ready for the tattoo and repeat. Tattoos have no place in folklore/mythology used as a basis of the story that I'm aware of so it really could have had any background. I would have liked the reservation and Blackfoot background to show a little better. Reservation life never seems to show up in "Native American" fantasy/UF even though it's a big fact of life for most, whether they themselves or some part of their family are there.

It's a short book, more a novella, which is probably a good thing considering there's not enough touched on or revealed for a full book. Overall the book needs a little less stream of consciousness and mores solid building, or to be shortened and have a bit more wittling out of unnecessary characters and action if it's going to go truly short story, which might fit it a little better with the tone of the book.

There's promise here, based on the way the author can build a beautiful image but there's work to be done.(less)

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Oct 29, 2011 Beverly rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

My thoughts:
This is a whole lot of book in not a lot of pages. The story is short, 80 pages, but is PACKED with powerful ideas, emotions, and images. It questions the meaning of life. I finished the story wishing it had been longer and hoping for the sequel.

The story tells of Sparrow's struggle, a struggle many people live every day. The struggle with your inner demon. That voice that tells you that you aren't quite as much as you could or should be. The expectations of life and the people in i...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 29, 2011 Bonnie Colvert rated it 4 of 5 stars

I jumped right into this read to review novella head first and didn't look back. What an interesting take on the Native American spirit and how they guide this young girl Sparrow through her guilt of surviving a terrible tragedy. A special magical tattoo and great a great storyline. I wish there was more. . . .

1 like · like · see review

Mar 25, 2012 Diana (Mrs. Barrons) rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Diana (Mrs. Barrons) by: R2R

Shelves: fiction

This might actually be my shortest review yet. There’s not much to say. I don’t even know where to begin. This book is only 75 pages long. The build up was good. Sparrow’s mother dies in front of her in a car crash with the parting words of “It’s a good day to die”, so she’s left to live with her aunt. In her sadness and guilt she starts cutting herself, and becomes haunted with voices in her head.

To get to the “point” the book kind of jumps around. Its disorienting and hard to focus on the char...more

2 likes · like · see review

Mar 18, 2012 Sarah rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: r2r-complete, read-2012

(I was given this book for free on a read-to-review basis.)
Sparrow has been through a traumatic car accident in which her mother died. Now she cuts herself in order to release her grief and anger.

Before she died Sparrow’s mother told her watch for voices, and to find istowun-eh’pata (Mateo), and get ink. (Thanks Mom)

Now Sparrow is hearing strange threatening voices, and being followed by Mateo. He wants her to get this tattoo that her mother was referring to but worries if she will be able to de...more

2 likes · like · see review

Mar 07, 2012 Anino rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: native-american-elements, ya-fiction, paranormal-mystery-suspense

When I finished this Read2Review book @ 12 Midnight, I wasn't really sure what to make of this book... All I knew is that I had to finish it. The background about her mother's death and Sparrow's period of grief and personal discovery, I could understand. But, what left me wanting was not having a thorough picture of exactly why Sparrow and her Mother were chosen. Honestly, I wish that I could have had more info (view spoiler)...more

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Mar 23, 2012 Vanya D. rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012, paranormal-urban-fantasy

I requested this book from the R2R event in one of the Goodreads groups where I'm a member.

What can I say? I saw lots of negative reviews for it, and thought that I'd give it a good review. But guess what - there was nothing even remotely good to base such a review on.

I'm really sorry to say this, since I know how much time and effort it takes to write a story, but this one was really not good. The whole time my eyebrows were raised at the absurdity of it all. There was absolutely no detail. W...more

3 likes · like · see review

Mar 13, 2012 Delaney Burton rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: paranormal, r2r, read-in-2012, ya

I got this book through a read-2-review. I was very excited to read it, since it was about an Indian girl and that was a new twist for me. However, I was not expecting it to be so short and I think things were rushed and not explained well enough for the story to flow nicely. I was confused throughout the story as you went from one thing to the next with no explanation in between. Sparrow was great and I loved what she was actually fighting but I am not sure how the ink and the white buffalo was...more

1 like · like · see review

Sep 26, 2011 Tracey (YA Book Addict) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Let me start by saying how much I LOVED this novella!! As soon as I saw the cover I knew that I had to read it. I'm such a sucker for a pretty cover and this one is gorgeous!!

I hadn't read anything quite like this before. It was really well written and drew me in right from the start.

I don't want to give too much away because you all need to go and read this, but I really loved how the relationships between 'Sparrow', her boyfriend Layne and her guide Mateo developed as Sparrow faced and dealt w...more

1 like · like · see review

Dec 08, 2011 Mindy/fangedmom rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I received a review copy of this book from the Author. Although it is short in nature, Author S J Davis packed one hell of a story in few pages. I fell TOTALLY in love with this book. After I read it, I had to send her a message on FB GUSHING about her book BEGGING her to tell me that she is going to write a sequal....SHE IS! I almost cried I was so happy. Native American blood runs in my veins, as it did my ancestors on both my mother and fathers sides. Native lore is one of my favorite fantasi...more

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Mar 10, 2012 Lara rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-in-2012, r2r

This is an interesting novella that deals with one's self-recrimination made physical. Sparrow is a Blackfoot teen who loses her mother in a car crash. She moves to live with her aunt and is left to deal with hearing threatening voices and the magical appearance of a young man on her own.

While she seemed likable I never got much of a feel for her or the other characters, including her best friend and boyfriend. Situations that she had been dealing with for a while would take me by surprise as t...more

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Feb 13, 2012 Paranormal Reads rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ink is a short story but it grabbed me from the start. With a story line that is unique and beautifully written SJ pulls you into Native American culture and legends.

Sparrow has lost everything and has to try and figure her self out and what her destiny is. Although she is broken and scarred inside she has to find the courage to fight the forces that are trying to keep from taking her rightful place among her people.

There is a love triangle but it’s not your typical kind. The two guys are fighti...more

1 like · like · see review

Feb 28, 2012 Azeza rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A few notes to explain my rating:
- That whole thing about the Blackfoot tribe was very confusing. Al of a sudden there was a war and Sparrow (the name makes me think of Jack Sparrow, that guy from Pirates of the Carribian, so when someone calls her by name, I always see Jack instead of her, so the name is not really helping) was the one who could hear the cries of the people who died in that war. And from a tattoo she gets the strength of that tribe to do what? Like I said, confusing
- Chapters w...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 21, 2011 Brooke Moss rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Um.....yah. Awesome Dark. Troubling. Native American characters. There is a love triangle, which is key for me. I am thinking about exploring a triangle in the future, they are so much fun. This book features a very fractured heroine that I really fell for. I love stories that succeed in proving that there is life after you've been damaged. I loved the folklore that Ms. Davis wove into INK. Beautifully. Seamlessly. Well done, my friend. My ONLY complaint...It ended too soon. I want more. But I t...more

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Oct 24, 2011 Sapphyria rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Sparrow is involved in a serious car accident that claims the life of her mother, leaving her alone in Texas. Right before dying, her mother’s last breath involves a cryptic message involving ink. After healing, Sparrow moves to Washington DC to live with her aunt. All the while, Sparrow hears voices and sees people in the shadows. These spirits, or spirit guides, are here to either harm her or help her and she’s unsure who is who through most of the story. I really liked the plot line and knew...more

1 like · like · see review

Oct 26, 2011 Shari rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, ya-paranormal, read-in-2011

I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to join the INK blog tour. INK is such a captivating short story with an original idea and intense, fascinating characters. I was quickly drawn into Sparrow's life, her pain, her visions, and the idea of a mystical tattoo. My only complaint with INK is that it was short. I know, I know it's a short story so it's very nature is that it's short. Usually I'm okay with that, but this time I really wanted so much more of these wonderful characters and the story...more

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Sep 19, 2011 Rue Volley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I absolutely love S.J. Davis and her writing:) Not only is she a great storyteller but an amazing person who supports other artists every chance she gets. INK had me hooked with the first page, drawing me into the story, so I snatched it up and read it and although it may be a short story it was well worth the read.I think it was an original story and I connected to the characters easily, plus I am Blackfoot Indian and so enjoyed that aspect of the story too:) I am excited to read more of her wo...more

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About S.J. Davis

SJ Davis recently opened an independent press called Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing YA/crossover Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy. Please visit our website at www.crushingheartsandblackbutterfly.com

SJ launched Hot Ink Press for adult romance in August 2012 and acquired Vamptasy Publishing in January 2012. Check us out at
www.hotinkbooks.com and www.vamptasy.com

In Spring of 2013,...more

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