A Dawn of Onyx: The Sacred Stones Book 1

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I’m usually not the most interested in world building, but I’m very curious to learn more about the stones and what other magical creatures we’ll find as the story progresses. Nonetheless, aspects of the book such as the writing, especially the dialogue, come off as cheesy and mediocre. There were definitely some instances where I kind of rolled my eyes and thought she was being a bit illogical, but I think it fit her character because she was very sheltered up until now. I'd been terrified for the 'captive romance' aspect of the book (I am NOT a fan, usually) but I really appreciated the way that Arwen and Kane's relationship was written, and I loved that they actually got to know one another and bond throughout the story.Taken by the Onyx King, a vicious leader with a vile reputation, Arwen is forced to work as a healer for his people. I personally wasn’t surprised by any of the revelations and plot twists, but I’m sure there will be readers out there that won’t see it coming. Soon, amidst enemies, she will have to find her inner strength to survive, using her enigmatic power. For example, the only reason there was abuse was so that the hero could have a "who did this to you" moment, which is super contrived and shallow! I was dying to know what was going on in Kane’s head, but at the same time, us not knowing allowed the author to give Kane a hidden agenda that wasn’t revealed until the end.

Plus, Arwen is a prisoner in the Onyx kingdom at first so it makes perfect sense that she wouldn’t be allowed to see a lot of it. But, as I have previously alluded to, this whole thing made Arwen’s character arguably more frustrating. After living without them for so long, Arwen, her mother, and her sister have formed a self-sufficient group. Still, even though this is pegged as a fantasy book I think the romance between the two MCs definitely outweighed the rest of the story and took a front seat. I was especially intrigued by the way that the kingdoms seemed to reflect the traits and even physical descriptions of the stones (gems?Reproduction, duplication and/or republication of ANY CONTENT from this blog WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION are PROHIBITED. I think now that many of the secrets were revealed and the basics of the plot line are established, the reader will get more information and things will be put in a new context and make even more sense.