The Queendom of Evlantis (The Unfallen Series, Book 1) by Juliet Y. Mark BOOK REVIEW

The Queendom of Evlantis 
by Juliet Y. Mark

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite 

We've all heard the story of Adam and Eve and their fall from grace, but what if the story was changed. What would the world be like is Adam didn't give in and only Eve was tempted? If only Eve was banished from the garden? Juliet Y. Mark tackles those thoughts and ideas in the book The Queendom of Evlantis (The Unfallen Series Book 1). We find that Eve has been cast out of the garden on her own, and over the ages the story has gotten twisted just a little to where women look down on men. In fact women rule everything, men are mere slaves thought of by some women as nothing more than animals! It's not a perfect place, and there are troubles. Another young girl, a daughter of Adam, Ava is tempted a lead out of the garden. She is given the task to help the other people of the world realize the mistakes they are making, yet she is so innocent she has no idea what she is doing. Entwined in it all is love and hope, is evil and corruption and in the end, what will be the course of the world.

The Queendom of Evlantis at first reads like a great feminist novel. Women rule the world, they keep the men under their boots, but as you go along you realize that this is not the way the world was meant to be and that it is not working out well for these people. There are major problems. Although the author, Juliet Y. Mark never comes out and specifically says that this is the retelling of Adam and Eve, you get enough hints along the way to realize it and to understand the purpose and reason behind the retelling. I found the story compelling and well written. It pulled me along all throughout wanting me to know more and to find the answers, to only realize that there is still more to learn even after the book ends. It is a wonderful read for men and women alike, as well and adults and teens.

View all my reviews

The Belgrave Daughter (The Belgrave Legacy, #1) by Zara Hoffman BOOK REVIEW

The Belgrave Daughter 
The Belgrave Legacy, Book One
by Zara Hoffman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite 

Fawn and her twin brother Alec are turning sixteen. They come from a long line of witches but only Fawn will become a witch. She is the seventh generation, and there is a prophecy that she will save the world. Of course you know this means that Lucifer wants her, so he approaches God with a bargain, if I can turn her bad she's mine. God see a way to save someone else's soul in the process and agrees. Enter Caleb, an angel of Lucifer that is assigned to seduce Fawn, but nothing goes according to plan. The Belgrave Daughter is the story of family and love, of trust and redemption, of sacrifice and faith. Lucifer may be the great trickster, but he is up against more than he bargained for in the Belgrave family, because when you attack the daughter, you get the whole family. Zara Hoffman does an amazing job of conveying the emotions and feelings of the characters in a true sense, making them feel like something you or a friend might have actually experienced.

The Belgrave Daughter is set to be the first is a series called the Belgrave Legacy, so there is the promise of seeing these characters again in future books. The characters easily and quickly become part of you and you want to help them, to hold their hands and tell them what to do. I know that I cried right along with Fawn throughout the book. Zara Hoffman writes like she has been there and that these are her own experiences, so they feel real. You can relate to the characters. This is a young adult novel, and I felt it was perfectly suited for teens and young adults. I feel adults would even enjoy the novel as I did. I have no problem passing this book on to my own teenage daughter to read.

View all my reviews