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Saturday, March 12, 2016

Book Review: Phoenix Awakens (The Phoenix, #1) by Eliza Nolan

My Rating: 
Book: 
Phoenix Awakens (The Phoenix, #1) 
Author: Eliza Nolan
Pages: 298
Release date: October 12th 2015
Synopsis:
Julia never believed in magic.

Julia Long is starting her senior year with an extra dose of crazy. The dreams of cultish, bloody rituals are weird enough, but the victim in her lifelike dreams is her new classmate, Southern charmer Graham.

Graham admits he was a Phoenix — part of a centuries old secret society — but swears he left it all behind. As Julia works with Graham to figure out why she is dreaming about his past, she's discovering she has other abilities. She heals Graham’s migraines with a touch, and there’s her superhuman strength that comes and goes. Julia doesn’t know where her new talents come from, but there’s no denying that when Graham is near, her powers kick into overdrive.

But the Phoenix Society wants Graham back. They need his blood to awaken the magic they seek, and they’ll do whatever it takes to get it.

Can Julia uncover the truth behind her connection to Graham? How far will Julia go in order to save Graham and stop the Phoenixes from harnessing this powerful magic?

My Review:

I received a ARC from the author via Netgalley to read and review in return.


Phoenix Awakens was truly an enjoyable book to read! The book fits super snug in my genre preferences and I couldn't be happier with how the story twists and turns to its final pages. The book is brimming full with suspense, excitement, drama, romance and adventure. I was breezing through the pages like there was no tomorrow and that is definitely thanks to its great plot (the fantastic build up) and the characters!

Julia wasn't really one to fall for a magic trick, or even the notion, but when her nightmares that keep her awake all night become a little too realistic, and when she abnormally starts building up immense psychical strength and speed, she is starting to doubt whether this is all a coincidence. It is when she meets the new hottie, Graham, and his sister, Clara, at school who eventually help her put the puzzle pieces together. Julia's devious dreams are filled with young and old men performing rituals in a strange circle. Once she gets to know Graham and his sister a little better, they start appearing in her nightmares and it seems that the happenings in her dreams are not fictional. The closer Julia gets to the truth, the closer danger lurks around the corner. She feels like someone is watching her, and she is definitely brave and kick-ass enough to find out what the heck it is.

This story kept me on my toes! It seems that Julia's hot crush is not some ordinary boy, but he actually has something to do with these strange rituals and the nightmares she is having. One thing is for sure, Graham and his sister Clara's abrupt move to Julia's town is not a coincident, and there is something they are running and hiding from. The story wasn't the only enjoyable thing to follow throughout the book, but also our protagonist, Julia. She is a clever and brave girl, who would not let anybody just walk over her. I love these types of protagonists the most! Her accompanying characters were sizzling hot, humorous or either very creepy, which really set the mood in the entire story.

Ms. Nolan did an amazing job with the setting of the story. She has a great way of story telling, making it simple for the reader to follow and read at a quick and exciting pace. Her creativity seems to be endless, where some things seems to be confusing and scattered at first, but then perfectly comes together towards the end of the book.

Despite having some clarity towards the end as what everything actually means, and somewhat who Julia truly is and what she is capable of, the story ends with an opening, cleverly letting the reader know there is a sequel to come.

Truly, there is nothing I didn't like about this story and I can't wait to indulge in the rest of this series!