Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rating: 2.25/5
Thanks to NetGalley, Robert Gronewold, and Diamond Book Distributors for the opportunity of reading this book in exchange for an honest review. Initially, I thought it was a graphic novel (mostly because of the publisher, description, and cover), and was pretty annoyed to find it is a 400 page book that cannot be sent to my Kindle, so I had to sit and read it at my computer, meaning this took me forever to read.
Also, I just want to mention the beauty of the cover. It’s more comic-book or anime-like compared to many covers in the genre, which is one of the things that made it stand out to me. I love the simplicity of the colors and how it gives just enough detail without overshadowing my own image of the character.
In this creative (and sometimes not so creative) fantasy world, the Wellsprings give their light to the world (no sunshine here, folks). There are different types of magic users, like Doorwards and Turnkeys. And some evil Horrors lurking about. Technology and steampunk-esque robotic animals also have their place in this world
Felicity lives with her aunt, Lenora, and what happened to her parents is a bit of a vague mystery, hidden by her aunt. When some Turnkeys come knocking on the door one Sleep (night), Felicity’s sixteen-year-old existence is changed forever, and it’s about time she got to do something fun with magic. Not only does Felicity have new magical responsibilities, but she also has to juggle the trials of being a teenager–romance, friends–on top of that! And she has ti fight Horrors and return home.
So…this book
d r a g s!
It was fun for the first 60-100 pages or so, but then there is just too much explaining, telling and not showing, going on. And it’s like a completely different story. I do agree with some other reviewers that there is just too much information at times and some areas could be cut, but at the same time it’s a very light read. It just took too long and did not hold my attention well.
The world building is a combination of hit or miss. Sometimes it’s very interesting, and other times there is random German or Spanish being spoken by the enemies. So…why not make up a language with this world? I get a fantasy vibe from this. There are inferences that make this world feel like maybe it was actually Earth once, but it’s such a blend that it’s hard to figure out.
This also felt more like a middle grade novel. The character does not feel sixteen at all. Maybe eleven or twelve. I think this comes from the simplicity of the writing style. It’s too simple and boring. The writing has no draw to it. There are also more typos than I have ever seen in any proof I have read. Even if it’s just a proof, some kind of larger edit should have been done before dropping it to readers.
While this took a painstakingly long time to finish, it was okay (at best). I don’t think I’ll be following the series, but who knows. Curiosity might drive me to see if the second one is any better, but this was just a long read with no benefit to the reader.
Teresa Crider, Review Writer 