Nyx Locke

This book is a great tale of adventure, intrigue, betrayal, and coming of age, as the protagonists Terrin and Elurra search to find meaning behind the chaos corrupting their land. Set in a richly developed fantasy world called Incari, the author takes the reader on a journey with Princess Elurra, who is driven out of her homeland after her parents are murdered by her vengeful aunt. Together with an unlikely crew of side characters, including a band of pirates, the protagonists learn the secrets behind magic in a race against the clock to save Elurra's kingdom. Some of my favorite elements in this indie novel are the fairytale undertones, as the author weaves references of Snow White into her book, and I'm such a sucker for good re-written fairytales like the Lunar Chronicle series. I also really enjoyed watching Terrin and Elurra's character development during the novel, as they begin the story as social outcasts, but grow throughout the book to become leaders and explore what it means to grow up. Although I would say this book would be best for the 14 to 25ish age range demographic of young adult readers, the author does a good job of avoiding overtly sexual content and cursing, so younger readers can also enjoy this book if they have a higher reading comprehension. I always enjoy seeing this in books because I know I was reading at a high school level by the fifth grade, but as a kid it was hard to find things that weren't way too graphic for my developmental stage. As for characters, I would have to say Terrin is one of my favorites, as he and Elurra work as kind of a yen and yang in the novel, and I enjoyed reading the scenes where they played off each other's strengths. I also adored Rowan, as he was an awesome side character with a lot of...well, character! Funny, cute, corny, and a loveable counterpart to the tale. I also enjoyed the main villain. The author did a great job with Nitiri, Elurra's evil aunt, as she starts out feeling like a two dimensional generic villainess looking for power, but as the story progresses she really gets fleshed out well, and her backstory brings her current motivations into focus. I love villainess tales like Maleficent, so I absolutely adore when a book really dives into the "big bad" and shows their motivations and corrupters. I also thought Nitiri's redemption arch near the end of the book was awesome and a powerful element. Overall, I highly recommend this book! It's by an obscure author, but you can tell a lot of work was put into editing, or the author used a professional editor, which is not the case with many indie publications. I could tell as I was reading that the author put a lot of time and consideration into her story, and I wish more people would discover this fun and exciting fantasy novel!