Title: The Breath of Aoles
Author: Alan Spade
Series: Ardalia #1
Genre: YA Fantasy
Genre: YA Fantasy
Publisher: Self-published
Publication Date: February 27th, 2014
Page count: 337 pages
Format: eBook
Source: From author in exchange for an honest review. (Thank you!)
Book Summary:
Pelmen hates being a tanner, but that’s all he would ever be, thanks to the rigid caste system amongst his people, the hevelens. Then he meets Master Galn Boisencroix and his family. The master carpenter opens up the world of archery to young Pelmen, who excels at his newfound skill. But Pelmen’s intractable father would have none of it, and tries to force Pelmen to stay in the tannery.One day, however, Pelmen’s best friend and Master Galn’s son, Teleg, disappears. Lured away by the prospect of untold riches through mining amberrock, the most precious substance in the world, Teleg finds himself a prisoner of the Nylevs, fierce fire-wielding worshippers of the god of destruction.
Now Pelmen must leave all he knows behind, overcome his fears and travel across the land, in search of his childhood friend. Along the way, he will ally himself with strange and fantastic beings: a shaman who controls the Breath of Aoles, or the power of the wind, a krongos, a creature of the mineral realm who can become living rock, and a malian, adept at water magic.
*The Reader’s Review*
My rating: 4/5 stars
I’m really satisfied with this book. It gave me adventure, magic, a whole new world to explore, and interesting characters that made this ride be a good one. I loved immersing myself inside the life of young hevelen, Pelmen, who wants nothing more than to leave his life as a tanner behind and become a good archer and hunter. And so his adventure begins.
Pelmen is such a great character. He is smart, loyal, and knows how to appreciate the opportunities given to him. He values friendship a lot and for the people he loves he would do anything. Risk everything. His persistence is absolutely admirable and I liked how he pushed himself to become better, to master skills knowing fully well that they would come in handy later on.
The world of Ardalia is filled by so many fantastic creatures that I can hardly keep count, but one thing is for sure: they aren’t humans. The hevelens look like humans except that they have a third nostril, so you bet they have an acute sense of smell. Actually, they rely on their sense of smell almost all the time because they trust the smells the wind, or known here as Breath of Aoles, carries everywhere. As warning, to find their way or to use as an advantage.
By the end of the book the story was getting more and more complicated, and although they have a small victory worth celebrating for, it’s apparent the adventure has just begun. So many things can and will go wrong in the next book because I know the enemy will stop at nothing to get what he wants. He’s evil in the I’m-not-so-sure flesh. Well, at least I think it’s a him.
Anyway, I’m very curious to find out what happens next. I became too attached to Pelmen that I won’t rest until I see him safely out of this. It’s a good book, very well written although a bit long in my opinion. But if you like trying out new worlds with different creatures, then you should definitely check this one out.
It would be awesome if you could check it out, Olivia!