Book Reviews by Ehlen Administration

Afterlife by Aaron Burdett My rating: 4 of 5 stars Amber Blackwood has tried to put her past behind her, but the anniversary of her brother’s death always puts her in a foul mood. Especially this year, when all of her family members have left her alone with her grief. She thinks she might be crazy when she hears Toby calling her, but when she finds the present he left her - 10 years after he died - and she is chased into Afterlife by a horrifying masked man, she knows she must find him to save herself. Afterlife starts with a somewhat typical high school girl sucked into a dark, paranormal world that resembles purgatory, but ends up spanning more dimensions than the murky space between heaven and hell. I found this to be a fascinating and fast paced read, with a not totally shocking twist at the end but a good one nonetheless. I really enjoyed the interplay between the realms of the living and the dead, and found myself following the spiritual politics easier than I thought it w...

Ripped Apart: Quantum Twins - Adventures On Two Worlds by Geoffrey Arnold My rating: 4 of 5 stars Tullia and Qwelby are twins, but not just any old twins. They are quantum twins, meaning they are genetically identical twins but are a boy/girl pair. This has only ever happened once before on Vertazia, and it didn’t end well. When they interfere with an experiment they are hurled through space/time to Earth, which severs their telepathic connection. Will they be able to reconnect and find their way home? And why are their people fighting their return? Do you like to nitpick science fiction? If so this is the read for you. I was totally fascinated by the science involved, as I’ve been interested in the concept of the multiverse and higher dimensions ever since I saw the TNG episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise” as a child. Although a little lengthy, I thought the storyline was interesting and it didn’t delve too sciency for those who don’t want the nitty gritty. I’m hoping the next book...

Lilith: Eden's Planetary Princess by C.E. Robinson My rating: 4 of 5 stars 35,000 years ago a war in heaven is just starting to heat up. King Joshua is desperate to save his Angels, who are being harvested and reconfigured into Nephilim, fighting for the Overlords. While he is distracted by this, a devastating political parlay is going down on Eden, as unexpectedly Lilith is taking shape as the newest, and fiercely dangerous planetary princess. I love a good origin story, and and it doesn’t get more original than Lilith in Eden. I liked that this story put a twist on what we generally think of for Earth’s origin, and all the characters were fascinating. You find most major religions and philosophies duking it out in several realms, often interacting in a way you would not expect. While in general I liked the story, I think that it was rather long and overly detailed. I understand this might be necessary to the series, but there were portions that I think could have been edi...