Azlana is half-elf and half-human, though she has been raised entirely among humans, with her heritage hidden from her until such time as it must be revealed. Though she has already passed the age of Awakening for young elves, the age when they gain all the knowledge of their ancestors, the elves are still placing immense pressure upon her to lead them into battle against the dark ones, because she is to be their queen. However, unbeknownst to any of them, Azlana has a stowaway in her mind, a spirit who whispers dark things to her and preys upon her insecurities – Anhedonia: The Bringer of Sorrow. Will she be able to rise up and meet her destiny or will she succumb to the whispers and fall to Darkness?
This was a really good book. The beginning of a trilogy, this book introduces us to all the main characters and establishes who’s who, while also engaging in some wonderful world-building. Because this is the first book of the series and there are many things to establish, it does take a few chapters to really get into the story, but before long it has grabbed ahold of you and you don’t want to put it down. The author weaves together the story through chapters that alternate between Azlana and her mother, Kala – each chapter is told from the first-person perspective but it is easy to keep them separate.
The narrator, Brenda Scott Wazlo, does a masterful job with the narration. Her voice is soothing and easy to listen to. This is the second book of hers that I have listened to and the only real issue is that she reads more slowly than I would. However, that is so subjective that it’s hard to please everyone. For me, having the playback on 1.25 was perfect for me.
I look forward to reading/listening to the next book in the series, especially with the cliffhanger that this book ended on. (It’s a trilogy, there’re going to be cliffhangers. If you don’t like cliffhangers at the end of a book, read a standalone novel.)