Saturday, April 20, 2013

Review: Enchantment's Deception by Amber Averay

Synopsis: Above a planet called Bartral, two alien races battle; but unbeknown to them, a witch on Zircondia watches and listens. This witch is Sigrid, a notorious troublemaker by reputation. Sigrid has long heard old stories regarding her fellow witches vanishing, never to be seen again; She decides to look deeper and finds that not all is as it should be; witches are still disappearing. In trying to protect her two older siblings from the repercussions of shattered rules she will break in her pursuit of the truth, something unforeseen happens that could bring down the wrath of the Stone Head Elders and keep the three close siblings apart forever... 

Review:
Enchantment's Deception is a novel that begins with two different stories, that seem mostly unrelated. (Though, I promise, they do connect well.)

Plot A, which is the main plot of the story, involves Sigrid Medusa, a witch who lives on the planet of Zircondia - a place of magic that is the home of everything we believe to be mythical, from elves, trolls, unicorns to dragons and minotaurs. Sigrid is a troublemaker, who loves to go against the rules of her Elders and be her own person - which is very admirable. Although she does not know why, Sigrid is victim to very vivid visions (ooh, check out that alliteration) of a battle in space, which brings us to

Plot B, the galactic battle between the "Red Aliens" and the "Blue Aliens". Very early on we are introduced to Boston, a member of the Blue Aliens who has a very intriguing personality. As a reader, you are very eager to see how this alien war connects to Sigrid, which is a great way to jump start the interest in the novel. However, this plot, although well-written, is not exactly my cup of tea. Whenever I hear of aliens with "tentacles", it slightly turns me off. (Why does everyone seem to insist that extraterrestrial life would either look exactly like humans or be part octopus?) Still, I did not let this cloud my judgement, because as I said before, I found the novel to be interesting and well written.

The more that I read of Enchantment's Deception, the more that I opened up to it and thoroughly enjoyed the read.

Some things that I really liked:

1) The Characters: I thought that many of the characters were extremely realistic and easy to connect to. I can't think of one character that I did not enjoy. Sigrid is a wonderful protagonist, and an inspiration. I loved that she has an internal battle with good and evil, and good doesn't always win. (That fight is not something you see in female characters too much anymore.) Another one of my favorites was Pendle, the dragon. If anything, I wish I could have seen more of him.

2) The Themes: Enchantment's Deception had some absolutely excellent themes. Through Sigrid's character alone, it is demonstrated that one should always stay true to themselves, no matter what expectations are placed on them by others. That, sometimes, you have to stop asking for permission and act for yourself. The sexism and discrimination on Zircondia also brought up very important topics. I especially liked the major themes developed toward the end of the novel, but I will refrain from going into those, as I do not want to ruin anything.

3) The Mystery Aspect: I have to say, there were quite a few turns in the plot that I did not see coming. One could not say that this novel was entirely predictable, and that is refreshing. It really kept you reading, which is why I am typing this out instead of getting ready for bed.

4)The Translations: This is just a little note, but it is fair to mention that I enjoyed the footnote translations. Considering I read this as an ebook, it really saved my time and anguish not having to go to the end and look for a glossary!

Really, there was only one disappointment that I had. Because the plot was so unique, interesting, and had a lot going on, there are certain parts that I felt the reader does not see enough of, or wrapped a little too quickly. Certain topics I felt a bit unsatisfied on. Of course, this is not exactly a bad thing! It just means that I liked the characters and story enough to want to see more!

All in all, I believe that Averay did an excellent job with the novel, and fans of fantasy and/or science fiction will find a great story they can thoroughly enjoy!
 

No comments:

Post a Comment