Book: Sophia Within
Author: Jordana Lizama
Page Numbers: 476 pages
Publication date: February 17th, 2013
Synopsis:
Only time will tell if Sophia, Alec and the world are ready to accept the mission that has been passed down for many generations. This is more than a story of reincarnation. This is a story that never ended following the reign of the Greek gods.
What has been hidden for thousands of years is about to surface in a small New England town. The impact on this rural village is ageless, but only the chosen time travelers know what is happening, the reason it is happening and how to control the outcome.
The Men of Ages have walked the Earth unnoticed since the time of Greek mythology and have kept their ancient war alive by transporting the lead warrior in a most unusual time machine. There is only one way to stop the cataclysmic demise of the human race and Sophia is the answer. But, Sophia is a teenage girl faced with many human and nonhuman desires that create a tortuous path from antiquity to the present day. Love conquers all; or, so it seems.
My Review:Only time will tell if Sophia, Alec and the world are ready to accept the mission that has been passed down for many generations. This is more than a story of reincarnation. This is a story that never ended following the reign of the Greek gods.
What has been hidden for thousands of years is about to surface in a small New England town. The impact on this rural village is ageless, but only the chosen time travelers know what is happening, the reason it is happening and how to control the outcome.
The Men of Ages have walked the Earth unnoticed since the time of Greek mythology and have kept their ancient war alive by transporting the lead warrior in a most unusual time machine. There is only one way to stop the cataclysmic demise of the human race and Sophia is the answer. But, Sophia is a teenage girl faced with many human and nonhuman desires that create a tortuous path from antiquity to the present day. Love conquers all; or, so it seems.
Despite being on my impossibly long hiatus, I continued to read books. I had so many books to choose from but one synopsis which really reeled me in was that of Sophia: Within. It tickled my paranormal, romantic and YA fancy, so I immediately decided to plunge into the story. Being on hiatus can sometimes make you forget the reasons why you blog or read... but once I got into this book I instantly remembered why I love reading and realized this story was right up my street!
The book starts off very mysterious, where we meet a little boy and girl in a strange and ominous surrounding. Despite them being in their child state, the reader quickly finds out that they are far too intelligent and mature for their age, and they seem to know each other from a different life time. The reader is left with intense curiosity and with a million question marks when the boy tells the girl that he needs to leave as she is not ready to take on the mission which is destined to be hers passed on from many generations. He promises to come back when the time is right and when she is ready to take on her role, power and mission. Sophia does not understand and is eventually left alone in her confusion and misery.
Time is sped up, and Sophia is now in her teen years, with no recollection of that one night with the boy she was with. She seems to be as normal as any teenage girl could be, with her own teenage issues, the only fact being that her father died when she was at a very young age. Her mother has never been the same, and it has always been her brother and herself trying to help their mother through these difficult times which seemed to enhance even more during Christmas time.
In school, unlike her brother, Sophia is not considered the popular or unique girl. She doesn't feel like she stands out from the crowd or is worthy of the attention from anybody, especially from a boy. Thankfully for her brother's popular and social status, Sophia is not taunted by her distant and unsocial behavior. She is left alone, a stranger to everyone and everyone a stranger to her, until one day she meets a boy named Alec. She feels this unearthly connection with him and feels like she has definitely met him before.
After this encounter, Sophie comes to the realization that she has indeed met Alec before and that his sudden appearance in her life is no coincidence. She learns more about who she is and that she is tied to the Greek gods and mythologies. She is far more crucial to the world than she could ever imagine to be and danger is right at her doorstep ready to to take her in, unless she comes to the realization who she really is and the powers which are hers for the taking.
She tapes in the powers which were always destined to be hers, trained and guided by Alec and his family who were destined to protect Sophia. Danger lurks in close corners, and Sophie realizes that she does not have much time to waste to learn her powers and her mission, as demonic figures and creatures stand at bay to stop her from completing her mission.
I truly did enjoy reading this book. I found the characters very likable and enjoyable to follow throughout the story. The author did such a good job at creating the setting of the story, knowing exactly how to transfer the mood of the story to something morbid and ominous, and then to something hopeful and emotional.
I do have to say it is kind of your typical YA paranormal romance book: girl doesn't know she’s special, finds out she’s special by meeting a very mysterious hunk, and fights evil to save herself, her loved ones and.. the world. But luckily... I am very into that type of story so of course I thoroughly enjoyed it through and through.
I must give this book kudos on its fantastic reading pace and originality on the type of characters and specific conflicts Sophia runs into. And I especially loved how the story was integrated with Greek mythology!
I therefore give this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars. The characters were amusing, very likable and addicting to follow throughout; the story line had a good pace and it continuously kept me on the edge of my seat, clinging to my kindle for dear life till the very end!
