Friday, September 11, 2015

The Secrets of Yashire: Emerging from the Shadows by Diamante Lavendar Review

"The Secrets of Yashire: Emerging From the Shadows is a young adult fantasy adventure that occurs within the framework of a young girl's subconscious mind. The main character, Brianna, finds herself thrown into a world called Yashire where she is forced to deal with circumstances that are threatening Yashire's existence. Against her will, she is sent on a journey to restore unconditional love back to the land while also contending with the evil force in the land, Zolan. Brianna is sent on her mission by Libban, Keeper of the Land. Along the way, Brianna travels with the mystical tiger, Angelos; a huge, whitish-tan tiger with thick black stripes who sings only the purest songs of love, and the wondrous little one-eyed bird named Abiba. During the journey, Brianna is also preparing to meet her soulmate-the one she longs to be with and the one who will bring complete healing back into her life. Together they travel through fantastic lands filled with magical creatures that could only exist in the wildest of imaginations. Through her treacherous brushes with danger and heartwarming experiences of love and acceptance, Brianna discovers many things. It is here, amidst the powers and phantasms of the mind that Brianna receives life lessons and virtues to help her. Will one of her greatest triumphs be achieved as she learns to believe in herself? For only then can she truly see all of the wondrous things that life has to offer."

NetGalley. Thanks for the copy. 

There are bad books, and then there is this. I can't even tell you how much I suffered while reading this book. I just want to smack myself in the head twenty thousand times for not giving up. Did I hope it was going to get better? Yeah, I did. Did it actually get better? Nooooo, it did not. 

What I really don't like about this...

One. Apparently, this is Young Adult. Young adults most certainly know some relatively large vocabulary words. It doesn't hurt to send people to the dictionary unless the author is using the thesaurus for every single f-ing adjective. (I'm so looking at you, Stephenie Meyer. Oh, what a nightmare that book is.) This is more fitting to be a Middle Grade novel. Hell, even younger than that. I guarantee a literate seven year old could read this. 

Two. The repetition. I nearly cried when I saw how many damn times a single detail is said over and over again. Over and over again! Internal thoughts of Brianna says this activity is fun. Dialogue of Brianna says this activity is fun. All on the same page. Get over it! 

Three. The goal of the character. I get that she has lost her memories (and maybe even her brain), but is she really looking for a bloody soulmate? Aye... I never really liked the books that go on adventures to look for a soulmate (love). I get that she is improving herself by gaining virtues, but... for real? I swear my IQ dropped ten points. (Show, not tell!) 

Four. The villain. Seriously underdeveloped and is not worthy of even being called a villain. Doesn't even appear. And honestly, I'm considering to write a fanfic to throw main character, Brianna, at him. Romantically. 

Five. Purple, big cats. I just don't like them. I prefer orange cats. 

Six. Let's see. I already mentioned the writing style, the character's wants, the oddity of the book itself (why is it even labeled YA?), and those darn purple cats. Oh, have I mentioned the pacing? So. Freaking. Slow. A snail is faster than this book. 

What I did like about this...

One thing only. The uniqueness is what brought me here in the first place. The world building has great promise, and I wish the author made the book shine... But, no. 

Overall, The Secrets of Yashire is NOT the book I like at all. Not reading it again. 

Rating: One out of Five

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