Genre
Horror Fiction Novel
Setting and Context
Set in 1990 in New Orleans
Narrator and Point of View
Third-person narrative
Tone and Mood
The tone is contemptuous, and the mood is ominous.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The central character is Dr. Rowan Mayfair.
Major Conflict
There is a major conflict between Dr. Rowan and Lasher. Dr. Rowan is the new family matriarch after her mother's death, and Lasher is the evil spirit that has haunted the family for many years.
Climax
The climax comes when Lasher manages to enter Dr. Rowan’s fetus and is born as a baby. He grows very first and starts accomplishing his mission of multiplying the number of Taltos in the human population.
Foreshadowing
The death of Dr. Rowan’s mother foreshadows the revelation of the dark history of the Mayfair family. Dr. Rowan is helped by the scholar Aaron to discover that she belongs to the Mayfair witches' lineage.
Understatement
Dr. Rowan undervalued the power of Lasher in seducing her. Later, Dr. Rowan finds she is pregnant and gives birth to Lasher in flesh and bones. Michael tries to kill Lasher while he is a baby without success. Lasher grows extraordinarily fast and becomes an adult.
Allusions
N/A
Imagery
The scene in which Dr. Rowan Mayfair uses her physical power to rescue Michael when he is almost drowning paints a clear picture in the reader's mind to see the unfolding events that led to their romance. Consequently, the romance between Dr. Rowan and Michael is better explained using sight imagery.
Paradox
The main paradox is that Dr. Rowan finds herself pregnant without having sexual intercourse with Lasher, who worked so hard to seduce her. Knowing she had given birth to an evil spirit, she could not eliminate Lasher.
Parallelism
N/A
Metonymy and Synecdoche
The name Lasher is a metonymy for the alien.
Personification
Aliens are personified as humans.
