Alisiyad

Alisiyad by Sarah Suleski

Summary: Two young adults, Russ and Liseli, are transported to a magical world of Alisiya. After drinking water from a mysterious river, they are thought to be a part of a prophesy. Russ and Liseli get tangled in a web of lies and deceit, as well as keeping secrets from each other that will haunt them for the rest of their lives.

Likes: What I liked most about this story were the characters. They aren’t remarkable nor are they perfect. They are flawed and driven by emotions. They are real and relatable. They are ordinary people dropped into an extraordinary situation. The author lets the characters be themselves, flaws and all and its refreshing to see that they aren’t one dimensional. The plot was well-written with twists at every turn. The author has a good grasp of language and uses it to the stories advantages, knowing when to tell and when to show. She doesn't waste space on unnecessary details. It feels as if each word was purposely put on the page, without regards to filling up the chapters. The chapters were of reasonable length and I found them to be just the right size, not pandering for a specific word length. When the author had finished telling everything else she wanted the reader to know, she moved on to the next chapter. The romance between Russ and Liseli is tragic, but beautiful. They aren't the perfect people and they know that. Only when they realize to accept themselves, they accept each other. Yet despite this, they still keep secrets from each other, like real people tend to do to the ones they love.

Dislikes: The story is that the chapters are broken in parts. I felt like I was stuck on one chapter for a long time. This is just a personal preference and it didn't detract from the actual story itself.

Overall: I found this story enjoyable. It was a little hard for me to get into at the beginning, but once the action comes through, it's non stop and well written. Even if the plot were completely boring, the author is wonderful with characterization.