Orenda
By Ruth Silver
Genre: YA/MG Fantasy
Published By: Patchwork Press
Join forces with a parallel universe.
Dark forces, magical creatures, and the world Lil thought she knew collide when a dream transports her to the strange world of Orenda. Stunned and terrified, Lil comes face to face with her doppelganger, Willow, who possesses the ability to travel between the two worlds. Everything Lil knows logically says that Orenda can’t exist, but a small clue may be proof that it was more than an ordinary dream. With the threat of her sister in danger, Lil crosses dimensions but it may cost her even more than she bargained for.
A sword wielding girl, the eternal suit, and a parallel universe come together in this action-packed Young Adult fantasy adventure that will keep readers of all ages turning the pages. Orenda is the first novel in the Orenda series.
Excerpt
She stepped toward the stone door and bent down to examine the keyhole. “Of course, it's made of dead pixies!”
Bray watched, but refused to approach her after what she'd done to him. “Dead pixies? As in fairies?” he asked, walking to the side window. He glanced outside to see the pink sun gradually setting.
“When silver touches pixies, they die. Their remains, in the form of dust, become a weapon that shields us from using our power. To answer your question earlier, no, pixies are not the same as fairies. It would do you well to learn that, should you ever come across one.”
Review - 3 Stars!
I'm going to start with the absolute beauty of the cover of Orenda. Can you believe it! It is absolutely freaking amazing! I cannot praise the artist and concept enough. That cover really, really, really fit the story. It is perfect. Absolutely perfect.
Now, for the actual story!
Overall concept is great. The parallel universe with nearly identical people and being fantastical in nature? Amazing! That concept - and the cover - were what drew me to want to review this novel. I'll admit the fact that it's more middle grade than YA threw me a bit but honestly, it's a brilliant idea. I do honestly wish this were more mature as the concept was definitely more, but unfortunately, it is what it is.
As for the characters, Lil was my favorite of course. I also liked Hudson and Bray. Willow was intriguing. The villain was definitely an evil that needed to be vanquished in this quest. The whole cast of characters had spunk and personality. I do wish that that characterization was a bit more in depth and advanced, because it was quite simplistic, but for middle grade, it wasn't bad at all. I simply thought nearly all the characters could have been better developed. The idea was there, the groundwork was laid out, but the follow-through was lacking.
As for the story itself, there were some jumps in plot and scenes that didn't necessarily belong, but the overall plot was well done. The storyline throughout the book kept one interested despite any negatives along the way. The actual story is what kept me reading.
The writing however, I felt was simplistic. Hence the idea it was middle grade more than YA. The whole classification confusion is understandable by the end of the book. The writing style is definitely middle grade. The whole story written as it was should have had younger characters. However, the ideas and concepts had more mature ideas - like romance - which leads us to the YA classification. So yeah. Also dialog - which is one of my major concerns in books - was a bit... how to phrase... formal in some places, overly fantastical (if that makes sense) in others, and just too young for 16 in some. So I'm a bit disappointed there.
So my rating overall? Because of the idea, setting, cover, and story itself, I DID like the book. I'm not the target audience, but it was a good read and makes me curious about the next book in the series. However, because of the confusion on classification, the actual writing, and lack of characterization, it wasn't as good as it should have been. So I'll give it 3 stars!
About the Author-
Ruth Silver is the best-selling author of ABERRANT, a young adult dystopian adventure series published by Patchwork Press and Lazy Day Publishing, in 2013. Author, YA Blogger, and Book Manager with Booktrope Publishing, Ruth keeps busy with writing, updating her book blogs Write Away Bliss and YA Book Deals, and promoting authors.
With a passion for reading, photography, and traveling Ruth has plenty of stories and experiences to share. She loves dystopian, paranormal, and fantasy young adult novels most of all. Ruth has been actively writing since she was a teenager. She currently resides in Plainfield, Illinois.
Links-
Giveaway Info-
1 signed paperback of Orenda (US only)
5 eBooks of Orenda (Intl)
1 eBook of Jacob, King of Portalia (Intl)
1 eBook of Spirit Warriors: The Scarring (Intl)
1 eBook of Fractured Dream (Intl)
1 eBook of Dead Girl Walking (Intl)
1 eBook of Eyes of the Enemy (Intl)
