Listen to the leaves rustling. Hear the wind building. These could the
first signs that Gideon Berlander has found you. They could be the last
sounds you hear. Gideon hasn’t been the same since that terrifying night
in the cave, the night he changed forever - the night he became a wind
caller. But the power to call upon and control the unimaginable force of
the wind it all its fury has warped him, twisted his mind, and
unleashed a virtually unstoppable monster. Those who oppose Gideon are
destroyed … horribly. No one can escape the wind. And no one - not even
Gideon - knows what nightmarish secrets wait in its swirling grasp.
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The Wind Caller has an interesting idea. The Wind…as a killer. At first when I began reading the book I couldn’t figure out how it could be done without looking hokey or cheesy. Thankfully Cacek did inject some intelligence into her story.
The book tells the story of two “brothers” of sorts, both granted with a power, both joined in odd mystical ways. One is Joseph, an Indian, and another is Gideon, a white man who is angry and also protective of his land. Their granddaughter, Sky, is caught in the middle of a real estate deal gone sour between Gideon and another man, but is basically clueless on anything else.
I don’t want to give much more of the plot away, but I will say that it’s pretty clever and the ending shocked me in ways I didn’t think it could. The atmosphere wasn’t anything that was enhanced. The plot worked but nothing was exceptional about the atmosphere.
Gideon appeared like an ignorant and unbending sort of guy. He worked for the part if he wasn’t a bit too much of a villain. Joseph was a great guy and came off as someone with a genuine love for old Indian lore, children, his family, and the truth. I enjoyed reading about him but sometimes he seemed a bit whipped for my tastes, including some scenes with his daughter-in law. Sky was a strong woman and probably my favorite of the characters. She rang true to me and made sense with her actions, her thoughts, her beliefs. Sam Reynolds was my second favorite. He didn’t make any apologies for being who he was and made interesting reading.
The pace was pretty even. Things started from the start and didn’t slow down until the end. It wasn’t rush or suspense filled, but it was a smooth road. Cacek’s style is simple but also written well. It makes easy, light reading with some great play on words.
While The Wind Caller may not stand out in my mind a year from now, it was still an entertaining book to go through. The idea was original, the characters worthy, and the ending shocking. Go ahead and pick it up - not the most memorable thing but you’ve never read anything quite like it, either.
