Black Inked Pearl: A Girl’s Quest by Ruth Finnegan is a romance story following a young Irish woman, Kate who falls in love with a mysterious man. However, in a fit of panic and fear she quickly rejects him. She spends time reflecting on her upbringing, educational background and her successes in life. While doing so, she has a life changing epiphany that she had deeply loved the man she rejected years ago. Her search for this man takes her on a wild journey through the kingdom of Beast, Eden, and Hell where she struggles to rescue the man she unconditionally loves. After saving him from the depths of Hell, the two lovers walk toward Heaven, but as he walks past her through the gates they close behind him, leaving her. Now it is his turn to search for her, upon their way back to Heaven, the two find themselves in situations where Kate must again save her love. Once they reach the gates of Heaven, Kate finally comes to realize that her quest was not for the man she loved, but to find who she truly was.

Within this book Ruth Finnegan flawlessly blends poetry with prose that brings beauty and intrigue to the story. It takes rare and exceptional talent to blend the two genres together in a way that doesn’t disrupt the story and Finnegan found that perfect balance. Finnegan expertly brings forth all of Kate’s emotions throughout the story, it is almost unbelievable that this is her first novel. She has a writing style that is truly unique and cannot be compared to anything else I have read. Black Inked Pearl: A Girl’s Quest does have a few Christian elements to its story although it didn’t come across as overwhelming.

The novel is about love and romance, but it is also about life experiences that shape and mold the person we become. Finnegan presents this in a way that expands the mind; it makes the reader ponder their own life experiences and how those experiences affected their lives. One major theme is finding how to define yourself through yourself and not in terms of other people. While Kate may be rescuing her love throughout the novel, in reality she is actually beginning to save herself.

There are a few moments when Finnegan creates new words for her story, but they are easy to understand and read because she roots them in traditional Greek and Latin, much like actual words. Others have described the book as dream-like, and I would have to agree, she creates a story that has the atmosphere and tone of a dream-like state. In fact I was almost waiting for Kate to wake up and realize her journey was a dream. This novel is like no other novel in theme or writing style. Finnegan has successfully created something that is truly unique and a real treasure to read.

Pages: 322 | ISBN: 1942146175