Talisman of EL (Review)

Title: Talisman of EL
Author(s): Alecia Stone
Edition: Hardcover, 364 pages
Publisher: Centrinian Publishing Ltd
Publication Date: May 20, 2012
Source: Received from DAC ARC Tour
Buy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble

The Summary

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WHAT IF YOUR WHOLE LIFE WAS A LIE?

One Planet.

Two Worlds.

Population: Human ... 7 billion.

Others ... unknown.

When 14-year-old Char­lie Blake wakes up sweat­ing and gasp­ing for air in the mid­dle of the night, he knows it is hap­pen­ing again. This time he wit­nesses a bru­tal mur­der. He's afraid to tell any­one. No one would believe him ... because it was a dream. Just like the one he had four years ago - the day before his dad died.

Char­lie doesn't know why this is hap­pen­ing. He would give any­thing to have an ordi­nary life. The prob­lem: he doesn't belong in the world he knows as home.
He belongs with the others.

(Goodreads)

My Opinion

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I got Talisman of EL through the Debut Author Challenge ARC Tour, which was really awesome!  When I read the synopsis for the book, I was really intrigued.  I liked that the protagonist, Charlie, was more than he knew, and I wanted to know who these "Others" were.  Unfortunately, the book didn't hold up to my expectations.

Most of the time when I get reading if I'm hooked into a character then I am golden.  And this is where the book fell short for me.  I couldn't connect with any of the characters.  Charlie, Alex, and Richmond were the three main kids with Derkein acting as the their stand in parental figure.  Each one never really acted the way I believe a person would.  Their decisions, conversations, and actions were always abrupt and often lacked explanation.  I didn't think the story flowed logically, creating discrepancies within the structure.

The plot of the book was really ambitious, combining elements of fantasy, mythology, and adventure.  Sometimes I couldn't tell what was going on, which is fine when there is later an explanation, but none was forthcoming.  The length of the book didn't help either; it was too long and too drawn out.

Talisman of EL just wasn't for me.  Many people have really loved it, so if you want to, go pick up a copy and check it out for yourself.  Just because I didn't like it, doesn't mean that you won't.  I may revisit the book once the nest one in the series comes out to see if it gets better.  I try never to abandon books completely, but try again a couple years later!

Extras

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Book Trailer

Final Rating

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Book Cover: 3/5
Book Title: 4/5
Plot: 8/10
Characters: 8/10
Writing: 7/10
Ending: 7/10
Overall: 37/50: C

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