DESCRIPTION FROM AMAZON:
The world has long forgotten them, but their descendants live on, not wholly mortal or god, but something in between…
At the dawn of the sixth century, in the aftermath of her mother’s brutal execution, Mara Black is forced to flee the only life she has ever known.
Mara can tell she’s different, but isn’t sure why. After she encounters two mysterious strangers, she discovers her secret is but a drop in an ocean of many. She is a Dia, a descendant of ancient gods, and her mother sacrificed herself to protect Mara from their past.
Summoned by an uncle she didn’t know existed, Mara thinks she’s found the family she’s always wanted, and Corbin, a love she never thought possible. But not everything is as it seems. Her uncle has other motives for protecting her, and her mentor, Malcolm, becomes so jealous, he’ll do anything to get what he wants. When tragedy strikes, and the true darkness among them comes to light, Mara discovers that sometimes love can give you everything, and obsession can take it all away. With her powers gone, and destiny calling, she has to look deep within to find the courage to save herself. Mara, along with Corbin and her newfound family, must fight to get back what was taken, or die trying.
MY REVIEW:
This review was originally a guest post for The Bookie Monster.
Mara was a pretty tough cookie, considering she had no idea who she really was until her mother was killed - persecuted for being a witch. Mara is sent off into the forest all on her own to try to escape the villainous sheriff with only a dagger to protect herself. Luckily, her uncle sent men to locate her and bring her back to Valenia where she would be safe. But was there more danger inside the fortress than out?
There were a lot of plot twists but the characters' emotions weren't as moving as they could have been. For example, Mara didn't seem to have a very strong reaction to her mother being burned alive, but then went totally ballistic when confronting the person responsible and getting her revenge. There weren't many scenes in the book that struck deep chords, even though some terrible things occurred, but that isn't always a bad thing. It wasn't emotionally exhausting. It moved delicately over tragedy and despicable deeds but kept you engaged enough to continue reading. I wanted to find out what would happen to Malcolm- I loved to hate him.
The scenery described was beautiful, and I could picture Valenia in my mind. The setting was real and the powers of the light were fascinating. Either you controlled it, or it controlled you. I followed along and enjoyed the story waiting to find out if Malcolm would win or if Corbin and Mara would find a happy ending. Mara and Corbin think they finally have Malcolm under control, but do they?
I was drawn to the beautiful cover of this book. It is outside the realm of what I generally read but it held my attention. I was swaying a little bit over the rating but was won over with the ending - the reappearance of Malcolm's mother - and what she had to teach him makes you wonder what's next for the dias and so I give it four stars.
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