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Book Review: The Crystal Tree

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the crystal tree book review by wit and travestyHey, writers and readers!

It’s not a good month without an indie novel or two. Today I’ll be reviewing The Crystal Tree by Imogen Elvis. As an officially published author, it’s an honor to review Elvis’s debut novel! I’m excited to talk about this gem. Check out the review below and make sure to give your two cents in the comments section if you’ve already read the book, too!

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis

Briar has finally managed to rebuild her life after losing her parents to the fire that destroyed her entire village. But when the magic-wielding Nameless Ones kidnap her sister, Briar leaves the safety of her new home to save her.

With the help of some travelers on a mission of their own, and her own magic, Briar chases after the Nameless Ones, only to find that her sister’s capture is just a small part in a dark plot that threatens the safety of the entire country.

A dark magician has risen, and the legendary Crystal Tree might be the only thing that can save them now.

What I Enjoyed

I know I sound like a bit of a downer when I say this, but I enjoyed the fact that Kade and Briar are just friends. Kade is one of those travelers that Briar comes across. For a while they travel alone until they come across some of his friends. I half assumed that since you have a boy and a girl forced to travel together, there would be a lot of action and inner dialog where Briar can’t focus or do anything because she has feelings for Kade. I instead enjoyed their brimming friendship throughout the novel. I’m sure that maybe something will develop in the next novel, but for now, I think their friendship developed naturally and realistically.

I also liked the worldbuilding. Elvis unfolds the rules of the story bit by bit so you feel properly introduced as you go along. I really enjoyed the descriptions for how Briar heals others by using their life song. It’s very beautiful and fascinating.

Elvis’s writing is beautiful in general. I just got the overwhelming feeling that despite the magic and fantasy elements, everything felt natural, realistic, and real. It felt like you were on Briar’s journey with her.

What I Didn’t Enjoy

So, for much of the novel, you don’t really know what’s going on with Kade. And my main issue with that is that Briar didn’t really try hard enough to get more information out of him. You do eventually figure out his story (and boy was it worth the wait), but I felt like there were some natural places within the narrative that we could’ve gotten more hints as to who Kade was so we could trust him.

I understand the point of waiting until the right time to reveal the plot twists, but the pacing was somewhat slow until we got those details. Then it was a quick ride to the finish. I bet this works for a lot of other readers, but I could’ve used bread crumb trail throughout the book.

My Final Thoughts

Overall, this is very clean fiction for readers of all ages. Briar was a very realistic and delightful character, and I can’t wait to see how she grows and matures in the next novel. She’s realistic because she isn’t unnecessarily dramatic and doesn’t fall prey to tropes or Mary Sue tendencies. Fair warning, this novel is definitely set up for a sequel, so hang onto your hats for that!

I hope I shared enough to still pique your curiosity without giving too much away. If you’d like to learn more about Imogen Elvis and her work, you can catch up with her via social media:

Have you read this novel? Share with me in the comments! You can also see all of my other book reviews by checking our the Book Reviews tab.

Book Review: Blood of the Empire

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blood of the empire book review via wit and travestyHey, writers and readers!

It’s not a good month without an indie novel or two. Today I’ll be reviewing Blood of Empire by Christina Ochs. This is the last book in her series and HOLY OH MY DAYS. Check out the review below and make sure to give your two cents in the comments section if you’ve already read the book, too!

Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis:

The final battle approaches—but the champion of light is dead. Though weakened by madness and imprisonment, Teodora is learning to control her demons. It’s time to gather the forces of darkness, and destroy those who stand in her way. Including her own daughter.

Caught between her mother and the brutal general Mattila, Elektra feels powerless to stop the evil forces surrounding her. Love makes her vulnerable and stronger than ever. Shaken by King Lennart’s death, the allies struggle to regroup. Will they be able to stop Teodora before she destroys everything? You’re in for a real trip as you open this conclusion to the epic Desolate Empire series.

What I Enjoyed:

As you could see from the introduction, I couldn’t believe that I finally finished this series. I mean, these are monolithic books and this book is #6. Och’s main strength is building up tension in each novel on different levels: the overall tension is “When is the evil Teodora gonna die?” Because she would rather die before surrendering, let’s just say that. But, in each book, there was a few smaller conflicts that had you guessing the whole time. For me, I was wondering this whole time if a) Elektra was going to survive long enough to be a hero, and b) if Maryna will get her wish and marry Anton.

Even though the war itself is so long, she steadily had me wondering and guessing what would happen throughout the novel. There were loose ends to wrap up even up until the final chapter. Some might call that torture, but Och is totally a Sheherazade in the way she paces her plot.

My Final Thoughts

If you’re a major fan of a full cast of well-developed characters, historical fiction, and Game of Thrones without as much violence or nudity, then you have to read this book. Likely, you’ll need to start from the very beginning, though. It’s worth the ride!

I hope I shared enough to still pique your curiosity without giving too much away. If you’d like to learn more about Christina Ochs and her work, you can catch up with her via social media:

Have you read this novel? Share with me in the comments! You can also see all of my other book reviews by checking our the Book Reviews tab.

Book Review: Princess of Ceshela

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princess of ceshela by teralyn mitchell book review via wit and travestyHey, writers and readers!

It’s not a good month without an indie novel or two. Today I’ll be reviewing Princess of Ceshela by Teralyn Mitchell. Check out the review below and make sure to give your two cents in the comments section if you’ve already read the book, too!

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

Orphaned at the age of four, Elizabeth has always been haunted by a feeling of loss and loneliness and the unwavering desire to belong.

Her life is turned upside down when she’s face to face with two strangers claiming to be her parents. Elizabeth quickly realizes that the last 14 years of her life have been a lie–not only are her parents alive: they are the king and queen of Ceshela. Suddenly this teenager goes from an orphan to a princess who is next in line for the throne.

Elizabeth begrudgingly returns to Ceshela with little awareness of the dangers that are stalking her, and is quickly swept up in a world she never dreamed of. This world happens to include an overbearing captain of the guard named Nicholas who annoys her however possible.

Will the Princess of Ceshela find her place in her new kingdom, or is she doomed to a life of duty with no true happiness?

What I Enjoyed:

Introverted readers rejoice: we now have a realistic introverted princess! Elizabeth is cool, shows a quiet confidence, and regularly seeks solitude. I’m kind of obsessed with this because being royalty often have to play the extrovert game and be at all the parties and be super talkative and social. Elizabeth is an introvert through and through; this didn’t change because she went from a village girl to a princess.

I also loved the whole cast. You’ll notice from the cover that Elizabeth is black; her whole family is black and other characters, like Nicholas, are black, too. I’m not sure how many novels about European-style royalty include so many characters of color without making a huge deal out of it. The other characters don’t find it weird and they live in a world where this is perfectly acceptable. I’m not sure if Mitchell intended anything further with this, but she doesn’t use white skin as the default color and doesn’t pretend there is anything wildly special about skin color. Thus, we see black characters lead happy and interesting lives that don’t involve racial hardship and strife—something that I think would be beneficial for young readers.

This novel also covers certain wrinkles that I don’t see in other novels. When Elizabeth learns she’s a princess, she isn’t worried as much about adopting a new lifestyle; if anything, she’s re-learning how to interact with her “new” parents. She was raised by her aunt and uncle and then suddenly realized her parents are actually alive and well. So rather than glossing over this, Mitchell shows this character arc throughout the novel, giving us opportunities to see Elizabeth get to know her parents.

What I Didn’t Enjoy:

I think the only major complaint I had was when the two POVs overlap. We get Elizabeth’s POV in first person and Nicholas’s POV in third-person, so it’s cute and fun to see what they think of each other throughout the novel. However, some scenes felt overly drawn out and overlapped because we got Elizabeth’s take and then a recap of the same scene from Nicholas. It took a bit of the mystery away of how they felt, too. I tend to prefer romances/relationships where you know where one character stands and you need to see the story until the end to learn if the other character has similar feelings.

My Final Thoughts

This novel is very family-friendly; not just the language or the content, but this book is full of happy, healthy families. Elizabeth and Nicholas both have extended family that we get to meet. You can tell that family is very important throughout this novel and I found this heart-warming and refreshing. Even though I know not every family is perfect, it’s nice to show characters who know, love, and interact with extended family and how they benefit from that.

I hope I shared enough to still pique your curiosity without giving too much away. If you’d like to learn more about Teralyn Mitchell and her work, you can catch up with her via social media:

Have you read this novel? Share with me in the comments! You can also see all of my other book reviews by checking our the Book Reviews tab.

TESTIMONIALS

I won a contest via Wit & Travesty in the summer of 2017. The prize was a professional edit of the first 100 pages of a WIP. My middle grade fantasy was only 90 pages, so she read the entire manuscript. She was communicative and positive about the project. Her edits markedly polished up my manuscript and were easy to understand.
Rachel Barnard
Whitney helped me with two short projects written for children, and she was very pleasant to work with. She has an eye for detail, helping me with small grammar errors as well as insights about adding scenes that would enhance my story. Her turnaround time was extremely quick, which I really appreciated when on a deadline!
Brittany Olsen
Whitney McGruder has created a vast and imaginative world in Destiny Seeker with surprises to delight the reader at every turn. Readers can settle in to devour the diverse and ingenious magic Destiny Seeker has to offer. I highly recommend it.
Jessica Frazier
Whitney and I worked together in a writing feedback group some years ago and have remained in touch since then. From the beginning, I was struck by her absolute responsibility as an editor. Even in the capacity of a group member, not even being employed or contracted by me to edit my work, Whitney was unerringly punctual, thorough, and accurate with her feedback. Her advice is genuinely insightful and I believe the marketability of my work was noticeably increased due to her guidance. I so value her skills that I still turn to her as a resource after three years of working with her in-person have passed.
Jonathan Baker
Whitney did a copy-edit on my third novel, Checkmate. She was a pleasure to work with, and helped me give my novel that final polish that it needed before publication. Put her on your list for editors that help your work shine!
Angelika Offenwanger
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