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Descent into Darkness #1
La Lumière qui nous aveugle
When consumed by shadow, even the faintest light can be blinding...
After a childhood haunted by disturbing hallucinations of the Shadow Man, Alexis Michaels’s only comfort is the blue amulet he’s had since before he can remember. Now, the visions have gone, and Alexis craves a normal life.
But when a trip to Stonehenge unites him with three other teens carrying similar gems, normality is abandoned when they are plunged into a hidden world of power-wielding Elementals, and told they are the chosen ones, destined to save the world from an eternal night. Trained by legends and guided by heroes, Alexis and his companions must venture on a perilous quest, facing tests of love, loss, and loyalty.
But a dark past plagues Alexis as they prepare to defeat an adversary more ominous than they could imagine, and a looming secret sets to corrupt the mission, their lives, and his mind.
A high-stakes, speculative romance, which masterfully weaves themes of mental health, psychosis, and found family.
After a childhood haunted by disturbing hallucinations of the Shadow Man, Alexis Michaels’s only comfort is the blue amulet he’s had since before he can remember. Now, the visions have gone, and Alexis craves a normal life.
But when a trip to Stonehenge unites him with three other teens carrying similar gems, normality is abandoned when they are plunged into a hidden world of power-wielding Elementals, and told they are the chosen ones, destined to save the world from an eternal night. Trained by legends and guided by heroes, Alexis and his companions must venture on a perilous quest, facing tests of love, loss, and loyalty.
But a dark past plagues Alexis as they prepare to defeat an adversary more ominous than they could imagine, and a looming secret sets to corrupt the mission, their lives, and his mind.
A high-stakes, speculative romance, which masterfully weaves themes of mental health, psychosis, and found family.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published April 25, 2024
262 people are currently reading
12195 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 504 reviews
April 4, 2024
Such a brilliant, flavourful debut.
Andy has created such a lush world, full of stakes, life, and tension. It feels nostalgic and fresh all at once, blending the best elements of Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Fantastic Four, spawning a unique YA fantasy story. Truly enjoyed every single page.
Andy has created such a lush world, full of stakes, life, and tension. It feels nostalgic and fresh all at once, blending the best elements of Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Fantastic Four, spawning a unique YA fantasy story. Truly enjoyed every single page.
May 1, 2024
I think this book deserves 5⭐️ for the YA audience
(4⭐️ for me as a adult reader)
When I was 13-17 this is exactly the type of book I would pick up from the library!
Its the perfect YA magical adventure story! It was very nostalgic for me and reminded me why I fell in love with the fantasy genre to begin with!
I also think if you’re new to fantasy this is the perfect entry level as its elemental magic so easy to understand, fast paced quests, 4 main characters so not overwhelming, easy to picture magical beasts like dragon, phoenix etc
Banter, found family, romance, quests everything we love in YA fantasy!
(4⭐️ for me as a adult reader)
When I was 13-17 this is exactly the type of book I would pick up from the library!
Its the perfect YA magical adventure story! It was very nostalgic for me and reminded me why I fell in love with the fantasy genre to begin with!
I also think if you’re new to fantasy this is the perfect entry level as its elemental magic so easy to understand, fast paced quests, 4 main characters so not overwhelming, easy to picture magical beasts like dragon, phoenix etc
Banter, found family, romance, quests everything we love in YA fantasy!
October 24, 2024
I’ve followed the author’s journey on socials, and I really really wanted to love this book, but it was just so painfully boring and a bit amateurish? I did like the chapter titles, very academia core, so it gets a star for that.
Or maybe I’m just looking for any excuse not to give it a 1 star rating.
Or maybe I’m just looking for any excuse not to give it a 1 star rating.
October 28, 2024
⭑ ⭑ ⭒ ⭒ ⭒
1.5 generous stars
♰ Oh my god, can we literally talk about how TikTok authors exaggerate their books so much to the point that it becomes absurd? 💀💀
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ If you follow this author on TikTok you see them quote some things or say some things about this book,and I just thought “Oh my god, this book is probably one of the best things to ever exist.” Just for you to come and read the book, and then it’s like, “what the hell is this?”😭
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ I saw the same thing with Ann Liang’s A Song to drown Rivers. She posted a TikTok and said some toe-curling things about the book. But I came and read it, and I’m not getting the same thing at all. Like it literally wasn’t anything like what she said 💀
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ I don’t understand why this is being done—because if you set expectations for your book so high, and then readers come and don’t get what you promised, we’re going to hate it. Like, why would you set yourself up like that?😐
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ This book was so childish. It read like something a 9-, 10-, 11-, or probably 12-year-old would enjoy. I’m actually so disappointed, I literally rushed to read it immediately I saw his TikTok , just to get this juvenile, childish content.
But kudos to the author. Congratulations on writing their first book, I guess—just that it wasn’t for me.
1.5 generous stars
♰ Oh my god, can we literally talk about how TikTok authors exaggerate their books so much to the point that it becomes absurd? 💀💀
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ If you follow this author on TikTok you see them quote some things or say some things about this book,and I just thought “Oh my god, this book is probably one of the best things to ever exist.” Just for you to come and read the book, and then it’s like, “what the hell is this?”😭
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ I saw the same thing with Ann Liang’s A Song to drown Rivers. She posted a TikTok and said some toe-curling things about the book. But I came and read it, and I’m not getting the same thing at all. Like it literally wasn’t anything like what she said 💀
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ I don’t understand why this is being done—because if you set expectations for your book so high, and then readers come and don’t get what you promised, we’re going to hate it. Like, why would you set yourself up like that?😐
⋆⁺₊⋆ ☾⋆⁺₊⋆ This book was so childish. It read like something a 9-, 10-, 11-, or probably 12-year-old would enjoy. I’m actually so disappointed, I literally rushed to read it immediately I saw his TikTok , just to get this juvenile, childish content.
But kudos to the author. Congratulations on writing their first book, I guess—just that it wasn’t for me.
April 6, 2024
Fate leads four teenagers to Stonehenge to transport them to a world where magic is real. To fulfil the Prophecy of Light and Darkness as the Children of the Elements: the four of them, with their Elemental powers are destined to destroy Mortem and the Darkness. Water, fire, wind, earth.
Together, they must quest to find the four lost gems.
’Isn't this the part in the movie where you scream at the characters to not go down the hallway that likely leads to hell?"And then they go anyway, don't they?' Alexis replied with a shrug. 'There's no other option.'
Whilst the start read a lot older and I was impressed with the insight, language, and knowledge, after the prologue, the book reads younger.
It is very reminiscent of younger YA quest-type stories and I think it will gain a lot of traction in school libraries!
I did love the definitions of words at the start of each chapter. Such beautiful words I had no awareness of that perfectly explains something and foreshadows the forthcoming chapter.
I also loved the character illustrations- they are gorgeous!
It reminded me of Akarnae by Lynette Noni, and I think it would find fans amongst readers of Percy Jackson!
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
Bookstagram
Together, they must quest to find the four lost gems.
’Isn't this the part in the movie where you scream at the characters to not go down the hallway that likely leads to hell?"And then they go anyway, don't they?' Alexis replied with a shrug. 'There's no other option.'
Whilst the start read a lot older and I was impressed with the insight, language, and knowledge, after the prologue, the book reads younger.
It is very reminiscent of younger YA quest-type stories and I think it will gain a lot of traction in school libraries!
I did love the definitions of words at the start of each chapter. Such beautiful words I had no awareness of that perfectly explains something and foreshadows the forthcoming chapter.
I also loved the character illustrations- they are gorgeous!
It reminded me of Akarnae by Lynette Noni, and I think it would find fans amongst readers of Percy Jackson!
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
Bookstagram
June 9, 2024
I feel like 12 year old me might have loved this, 22 year old me wasn’t so sure what to think…
(I feel like I’d have enjoyed this book far more if I hadn’t read the second half as an audiobook)
also they only trained for one week for an epic quest??? from being normal teenagers to suddenly fully trained for a huge quest felt quite ridiculous
(I feel like I’d have enjoyed this book far more if I hadn’t read the second half as an audiobook)
also they only trained for one week for an epic quest??? from being normal teenagers to suddenly fully trained for a huge quest felt quite ridiculous
May 5, 2024
I wanted to love this book; I follow the author on Instagram. This was all description action and it was very boring. It felt very juvenile. That’s about all I’ll say. Sorry, Andy :(
May 28, 2024
The plot was good but it was so poorly executed it was so so bad like I was getting bored but the plot had potential it was written for children fr not really YA I’d say like 10-12 years
July 12, 2024
i'm probably one of the few people here who are actually in the target audience this book is meant for......but uh, can't say i loved it. young me(>13yo) loved fantasy and quests and percy jackson was my holy grail, but now i'm older(<15yo) i'm a lot more cynical (or picky??) about these.
this is a classic ya. questing, magic, friendships, light romance. which is why i picked it up. caeli's complaints are real af, okay?? and the bickering XD istg that's one thing the author did right. my fave was when they were going through a portal and alexis goes "is the portal stable" and caeli replies "as stable as your mental health" 💀💀
but on the other hand. the language. nobody speaks like that. who tf says "i'll burn brightly" or "i'm a book written in a language you can't understand". WHO. and the timing??? what happened there. please. time skip 4 weeks of training in which they started from zilch, managed to disarm highly trained persons then spent like 2 - 3 days questing.
and legit the quest was SO EASY they didn't even need to work hard finding those gems. they knew the locations. it went: follow magical artifact → get gem → fight enemies. and the fact that the mc's found the gems consecutively, and didn't even rest?? do y'all know what death from exhaustion is???
and the thing is, it's classic ya. which means that the plot is pretty much predictable. wayyy less fun; i expected the plot twists bruh.
i did note how the location of the gems corresponded to the ethnicity of the characters. also, a question about valentina bc i've never heard of a surname lì before? a more common one would be lǐ(李), in a different tone. dk if it's deliberate or a mistake?
this is a classic ya. questing, magic, friendships, light romance. which is why i picked it up. caeli's complaints are real af, okay?? and the bickering XD istg that's one thing the author did right. my fave was when they were going through a portal and alexis goes "is the portal stable" and caeli replies "as stable as your mental health" 💀💀
but on the other hand. the language. nobody speaks like that. who tf says "i'll burn brightly" or "i'm a book written in a language you can't understand". WHO. and the timing??? what happened there. please. time skip 4 weeks of training in which they started from zilch, managed to disarm highly trained persons then spent like 2 - 3 days questing.
and legit the quest was SO EASY they didn't even need to work hard finding those gems. they knew the locations. it went: follow magical artifact → get gem → fight enemies. and the fact that the mc's found the gems consecutively, and didn't even rest?? do y'all know what death from exhaustion is???
and the thing is, it's classic ya. which means that the plot is pretty much predictable. wayyy less fun; i expected the plot twists bruh.
i did note how the location of the gems corresponded to the ethnicity of the characters. also, a question about valentina bc i've never heard of a surname lì before? a more common one would be lǐ(李), in a different tone. dk if it's deliberate or a mistake?
May 15, 2024
This was an amazing read! One of the best YAs out there. If I was a teenager this would definitely be a 5 ⭐️ for me!
The only reason this is not a 5⭐️ for me it’s because I was expecting a huge twist at the end that did not happen, maybe in the next book?
I am still very excited for the next book and to see how this epic adventure will end💙
The only reason this is not a 5⭐️ for me it’s because I was expecting a huge twist at the end that did not happen, maybe in the next book?
I am still very excited for the next book and to see how this epic adventure will end💙
July 9, 2024
ꕀ﹒🌊 〈3 stars 〉𖦹 ya fantasy
now playing —— the prophecy by taylor swift ↻
⌗ After a childhood haunted by the hallucinations of the Shadow Man, Alexis now only finds comfort in the blue amulet he wears. That is not until a school trip to Stonehenge where he unites with 3 other teens who wears similar amulets, do they dragged with him to the hidden world of the Elementals and gets told that they are The Chosen Ones. After being trained with their powers, they get sent onto a quest where they must fight Creatures to retrieve gems to defeat an adversary more ominous than they could imagine.
⌗ this is for : the ones who love found family, elemental magic, quests and themes of mental health in books! 🫶🏻
i started this book because i needed to fill the void that is me missing pjo and this looked like the perfect book to read! this book had such a strong start, you get right into the premise of Alexis as a kid, trying to drown his therapist. with that opening line you just have to know what led for that to happen.
but weirdly in this book, i thought that it gripped my attention in the beginning, but then it fell very flat as it goes on. all the relationships felt very instant and there weren’t enough building for stuff such as learning about powers or the relationships between characters; i loved reading about alexis’s and demi’s relationship at the start but then as it goes on, i just didn’t feel the chemistry anymore. same goes for the friendships too, like there was a part where it said that these 2 characters are best friends, and i just thought ‘are they really though?’ i just didn’t see enough moments of them to the point where i would say that they really ARE best friends.
this would have been alot better if it wasn’t a ‘romantasy’ and solely focused on the adventure and platonic relationships these characters have, like for example the way rick riordan wrote percy jackson; focusing on the friendships, adventure, and coming of age aspect to it. i feel that that is the foundation of a good found family for these type of books.
i thought that the main character alexis is not really an interesting character, i can’t really see anything that stands out in his personality; he felt more of an observer in the many parts of this book, rather than taking part in the conversations/actions.
and it’s a fast paced book, but it’s fast paced in a way where you feel like you didn’t have the time to get attached to the characters, i could see that the author tried to make us attached to them, but i just didn’t really feel anything. also, i found some lines a bit cringe/cheesy and the fact that the 4 main characters are called ‘the alpha team’ please😭. but i love the settings in this book! and the way that they have to fight creatures to retrieve the gems, i feel like that’s such a fun premise and the plot of this book would be something that would be so fun to write, and i loved the art of the characters in the beginning!
i wanted to say that i admire the author’s passion for this book so much, the fact that he’s been writing this for give or take 10 years is craazyyy. and as an aspiring psych major (🤭) i like the way he slipped in some things he learned from being an assistant psychologist in this book with the mental health themes! i can definitely tell he loves these characters with his whole heart, but unfortunately i think the way he conveyed the story still needs to be improved to deliver the heart and soul that he has for these characters to us readers :) i would still recommend this book, i think the plot is something alot of people who love ya fantasy books would enjoy 🤍
彡🌊 finished 7/7/24 𖦹 .. ��
now playing —— the prophecy by taylor swift ↻
⌗ After a childhood haunted by the hallucinations of the Shadow Man, Alexis now only finds comfort in the blue amulet he wears. That is not until a school trip to Stonehenge where he unites with 3 other teens who wears similar amulets, do they dragged with him to the hidden world of the Elementals and gets told that they are The Chosen Ones. After being trained with their powers, they get sent onto a quest where they must fight Creatures to retrieve gems to defeat an adversary more ominous than they could imagine.
⌗ this is for : the ones who love found family, elemental magic, quests and themes of mental health in books! 🫶🏻
❛ It had taken him years, but he now knew with certainty that he was more than his past and greater than his pain. ❜
i started this book because i needed to fill the void that is me missing pjo and this looked like the perfect book to read! this book had such a strong start, you get right into the premise of Alexis as a kid, trying to drown his therapist. with that opening line you just have to know what led for that to happen.
❛ I didn’t come this far just to come this far❜
but weirdly in this book, i thought that it gripped my attention in the beginning, but then it fell very flat as it goes on. all the relationships felt very instant and there weren’t enough building for stuff such as learning about powers or the relationships between characters; i loved reading about alexis’s and demi’s relationship at the start but then as it goes on, i just didn’t feel the chemistry anymore. same goes for the friendships too, like there was a part where it said that these 2 characters are best friends, and i just thought ‘are they really though?’ i just didn’t see enough moments of them to the point where i would say that they really ARE best friends.
this would have been alot better if it wasn’t a ‘romantasy’ and solely focused on the adventure and platonic relationships these characters have, like for example the way rick riordan wrote percy jackson; focusing on the friendships, adventure, and coming of age aspect to it. i feel that that is the foundation of a good found family for these type of books.
❛ Alexis realised, for the first time in his life, that even the darkness of his nightmare would be swept away by the rising light. That it always had, he had just failed to appreciate it.❜
i thought that the main character alexis is not really an interesting character, i can’t really see anything that stands out in his personality; he felt more of an observer in the many parts of this book, rather than taking part in the conversations/actions.
and it’s a fast paced book, but it’s fast paced in a way where you feel like you didn’t have the time to get attached to the characters, i could see that the author tried to make us attached to them, but i just didn’t really feel anything. also, i found some lines a bit cringe/cheesy and the fact that the 4 main characters are called ‘the alpha team’ please😭. but i love the settings in this book! and the way that they have to fight creatures to retrieve the gems, i feel like that’s such a fun premise and the plot of this book would be something that would be so fun to write, and i loved the art of the characters in the beginning!
❛ For 13-year-old me. We did it.❜
i wanted to say that i admire the author’s passion for this book so much, the fact that he’s been writing this for give or take 10 years is craazyyy. and as an aspiring psych major (🤭) i like the way he slipped in some things he learned from being an assistant psychologist in this book with the mental health themes! i can definitely tell he loves these characters with his whole heart, but unfortunately i think the way he conveyed the story still needs to be improved to deliver the heart and soul that he has for these characters to us readers :) i would still recommend this book, i think the plot is something alot of people who love ya fantasy books would enjoy 🤍
彡🌊 finished 7/7/24 𖦹 .. ��
April 26, 2024
4.5 stars
I was so lucky to receive an Arc of this.
In this YA fantasy we follow Alexis, a kid who struggled with hallucinations for most of his life. While on a school trip Alexis and his best friend Demi meet 2 other teens with similar amulets to their own. Together they uncover a secret haven where they’ll train to complete a quest. This book is broken up into 4 parts and each part is better than the last. There was so much action and adventure. There were funny scenes and emotional ones. We get some very beautiful quotes sprinkled throughout. Some tropes would include: found family(the best), slow burn, friends to lovers(almost 👀), “touch her and die(different wording, same vibe), epic quest, chosen one, and elemental magic.
I was so lucky to receive an Arc of this.
In this YA fantasy we follow Alexis, a kid who struggled with hallucinations for most of his life. While on a school trip Alexis and his best friend Demi meet 2 other teens with similar amulets to their own. Together they uncover a secret haven where they’ll train to complete a quest. This book is broken up into 4 parts and each part is better than the last. There was so much action and adventure. There were funny scenes and emotional ones. We get some very beautiful quotes sprinkled throughout. Some tropes would include: found family(the best), slow burn, friends to lovers(almost 👀), “touch her and die(different wording, same vibe), epic quest, chosen one, and elemental magic.
May 6, 2024
I’m really surprised by this book. I didn’t expect to like it as much as I did and thought it would be a bit of a slow burner. There was so much action and it was well paced. I loved the magical systems that were in this and I liked all of the main characters.
January 18, 2023
*Provided copy as a beta reader in exchange for an honest review.
I would rate this 4.5 overall, because there is still room for improvement before the book is published.
But this book deserves to be read by everyone. I am obsessed with this book already, and I can't wait for this book to come out! So excited for the rest of the world to read this epic story!
—-------------------------------
Characters
I am attached to every single one of the 4 main characters. Love the diversity of the personalities.
I like that the book focuses not just on the group as a whole but also on individuals and their growth throughout the journey. I also love the different relationships the author portrays between the four. The subtle undertone of love and different friendship dynamics between different pairs in the group adds the perfect amount of complexity. From the little intimate moments to the random dumb jokes that make my eyes roll, loved it all. The characters’ conversations are so real, and the dialogue just emphasizes their varying personalities. Definitely a strong group of friends that are ride or die till the end.
—-------------------------------
PLOT
The plot was very well written and thought out.
The Begining
From the character development to the world-building. Readers are quickly drawn into Alexis’ world in the beginning. The prologue and first few chapters did really well on setting the groundwork of who Alexis is as a character, while simultaneously introducing new characters and this new world of Elementals. I love how the readers learn alongside the characters about the Elemental world. The author does an amazing job of answering all possible questions a reader may have, either through the characters themselves asking the questions, author descriptions, or characters explaining things that might have been on the reader's mind. Usually, world-building can be boring and hard to get through. But this book was very well-written, in that the beginning was clearly written, fast-paced, and dives right into the world with beautiful descriptions that every reader can envision.
It was fast-paced without sacrificing the clarity and quality of the writing. The story was very clear and easy to comprehend.
—-------------------------------
The Journey
Each chapter was clearly VERY thought out, every chapter had a purpose.
Loved the gradual increase in action from the beginning, to the training phase, to the quests.
The chapters where they are training was clever in that the reader was learning along with the characters about their powers, the Elemental world, and the mission, while still having enough action to keep the reader’s attention.
The chapters where the Elementals were on their individual quests were my favorite part! The detailed descriptions of the locations, The Woman, The Creatures, and even the death of the Creatures were beautiful and captivating. So much character development with each quest, physically with their powers but also mentally. I loved it!
There was also really well-written foreshadowing. Loved the creativity of the different ways their powers could be used and of course the world-play with each elemental power.
There were little twists at every quest that kept the quests interesting at a whole other level. Definitely an emotional rollercoaster, but I love rollercoasters haha, and would definitely read this again.
I can't wait for the next book!
I would rate this 4.5 overall, because there is still room for improvement before the book is published.
But this book deserves to be read by everyone. I am obsessed with this book already, and I can't wait for this book to come out! So excited for the rest of the world to read this epic story!
—-------------------------------
Characters
I am attached to every single one of the 4 main characters. Love the diversity of the personalities.
I like that the book focuses not just on the group as a whole but also on individuals and their growth throughout the journey. I also love the different relationships the author portrays between the four. The subtle undertone of love and different friendship dynamics between different pairs in the group adds the perfect amount of complexity. From the little intimate moments to the random dumb jokes that make my eyes roll, loved it all. The characters’ conversations are so real, and the dialogue just emphasizes their varying personalities. Definitely a strong group of friends that are ride or die till the end.
—-------------------------------
PLOT
The plot was very well written and thought out.
The Begining
From the character development to the world-building. Readers are quickly drawn into Alexis’ world in the beginning. The prologue and first few chapters did really well on setting the groundwork of who Alexis is as a character, while simultaneously introducing new characters and this new world of Elementals. I love how the readers learn alongside the characters about the Elemental world. The author does an amazing job of answering all possible questions a reader may have, either through the characters themselves asking the questions, author descriptions, or characters explaining things that might have been on the reader's mind. Usually, world-building can be boring and hard to get through. But this book was very well-written, in that the beginning was clearly written, fast-paced, and dives right into the world with beautiful descriptions that every reader can envision.
It was fast-paced without sacrificing the clarity and quality of the writing. The story was very clear and easy to comprehend.
—-------------------------------
The Journey
Each chapter was clearly VERY thought out, every chapter had a purpose.
Loved the gradual increase in action from the beginning, to the training phase, to the quests.
The chapters where they are training was clever in that the reader was learning along with the characters about their powers, the Elemental world, and the mission, while still having enough action to keep the reader’s attention.
The chapters where the Elementals were on their individual quests were my favorite part! The detailed descriptions of the locations, The Woman, The Creatures, and even the death of the Creatures were beautiful and captivating. So much character development with each quest, physically with their powers but also mentally. I loved it!
There was also really well-written foreshadowing. Loved the creativity of the different ways their powers could be used and of course the world-play with each elemental power.
There were little twists at every quest that kept the quests interesting at a whole other level. Definitely an emotional rollercoaster, but I love rollercoasters haha, and would definitely read this again.
I can't wait for the next book!
May 4, 2024
Unfortunately this book was not for me - if I had been younger, then possibly.
The first 20-30% of the book was good. The character art was beautiful and the backstory for Alexis was really good. However, I found the other characters to be bland, we didnt get to hear a backstory from them and so I felt I couldn’t connect with them at all.
Some of the book was entirely unbelievable which made me roll my eyes at times - for example, the low amount of training the elementals got before going off in search of the gems.
I also found this book to be quite rushed and although others may see it as adventure packed, it was too fast for me.
The first 20-30% of the book was good. The character art was beautiful and the backstory for Alexis was really good. However, I found the other characters to be bland, we didnt get to hear a backstory from them and so I felt I couldn’t connect with them at all.
Some of the book was entirely unbelievable which made me roll my eyes at times - for example, the low amount of training the elementals got before going off in search of the gems.
I also found this book to be quite rushed and although others may see it as adventure packed, it was too fast for me.
April 8, 2024
3.5 ⭐️
I’ll start this review off by saying if I was thirteen, I would have absolutely adored this and ate it up!
I really enjoyed the first 50% of the book – getting to know the characters and the worldbuilding. I thought it was written excellently and a part of me wishes the whole book could have been set in the Haven because it was just so fascinating to me and it felt like such a great place for a book to be set. Unfortunately, I found the second half of the book really rushed through the story and I found myself drifting a little whilst I was reading, because everything just happened so quickly and I couldn’t keep up.
The writing was fantastic though, and I think this book will go down excellently with the target audience. I think it has the potential to become a beloved series by the younger side of the young adult genre (ages 12-14). I genuinely think Andy Darcy Theo has something great on his hands and I hope the rest of the series lives up to this first book!
I’ll start this review off by saying if I was thirteen, I would have absolutely adored this and ate it up!
I really enjoyed the first 50% of the book – getting to know the characters and the worldbuilding. I thought it was written excellently and a part of me wishes the whole book could have been set in the Haven because it was just so fascinating to me and it felt like such a great place for a book to be set. Unfortunately, I found the second half of the book really rushed through the story and I found myself drifting a little whilst I was reading, because everything just happened so quickly and I couldn’t keep up.
The writing was fantastic though, and I think this book will go down excellently with the target audience. I think it has the potential to become a beloved series by the younger side of the young adult genre (ages 12-14). I genuinely think Andy Darcy Theo has something great on his hands and I hope the rest of the series lives up to this first book!
June 21, 2024
I don’t ever write reviews, but I just want to say this felt like book written by a teenager trying to sound mature. It was one of the slowest reads I ever had 🥲
The only reason I finished it was because I am troubled and can’t leave a book unfinished.
The only reason I finished it was because I am troubled and can’t leave a book unfinished.
December 28, 2024
Толкова, ТОЛКОВА много ми хареса тази книга, че ми става истински тъжно да я приключа и да опитам да изляза от този вълшебен и завладяващ свят! Не знам какво ще правя до април, докато излезе втората (или по-късно? Асеневци?) ...
December 11, 2024
3⭐️
It was an addictive read, the characters were endearing.
BUT the whole book was too simple. The quest was resolved in a snap. The plot twists were predictable.
The exchanges between the characters are very childish.
My review of this book is very mixed, since I enjoyed following the characters but was bored at the same time.
It was an addictive read, the characters were endearing.
BUT the whole book was too simple. The quest was resolved in a snap. The plot twists were predictable.
The exchanges between the characters are very childish.
My review of this book is very mixed, since I enjoyed following the characters but was bored at the same time.
June 11, 2024
I'm surprised to see this book getting such good reviews. I bought it as I liked the premise and then realised I knew the author from Instagram.
The book reads like the author decided on certain quotes to build the book around, like "you don't know me, I'm like a book in a language you can't read", or "I'll drown you in your own blood". The plot was so incoherent, even the MC forgot about his adoptive parents and all of them were fine just never seeing their families?
I will say that there was a lot of potential in conversations that were written, but every time something could have been revealed, there would be a distraction or a diversion and it was incredibly frustrating.
I felt very little towards the characters and so many of the decisions from the "adults" made little to no sense. There was not enough world building, but the dialogue was so cringe inducing, I'm amazed I finished it.
I can see a younger audience enjoying this, but it's not YA.
It also borrowed incessantly from other books/media-
such as imprinting being the imperious curse from Harry Potter and Haven Academy/auras - straight out of RWBY. There were so many tropes it became annoying.
The motto, "I didn't come this far just to come this far" had potential, but he consistently forgot about his actual family who taught him that, and in my copy of the book, when he says it at the climax, it's even got a word missing.
I'm quite disappointed as I really wanted to like it, I've always enjoyed the chosen one stuff with elemental magic and with the addition of Stonehenge also, but this was not written well.
The book reads like the author decided on certain quotes to build the book around, like "you don't know me, I'm like a book in a language you can't read", or "I'll drown you in your own blood". The plot was so incoherent, even the MC forgot about his adoptive parents and all of them were fine just never seeing their families?
I will say that there was a lot of potential in conversations that were written, but every time something could have been revealed, there would be a distraction or a diversion and it was incredibly frustrating.
I felt very little towards the characters and so many of the decisions from the "adults" made little to no sense. There was not enough world building, but the dialogue was so cringe inducing, I'm amazed I finished it.
I can see a younger audience enjoying this, but it's not YA.
It also borrowed incessantly from other books/media-
such as imprinting being the imperious curse from Harry Potter and Haven Academy/auras - straight out of RWBY. There were so many tropes it became annoying.
The motto, "I didn't come this far just to come this far" had potential, but he consistently forgot about his actual family who taught him that, and in my copy of the book, when he says it at the climax, it's even got a word missing.
I'm quite disappointed as I really wanted to like it, I've always enjoyed the chosen one stuff with elemental magic and with the addition of Stonehenge also, but this was not written well.
August 18, 2024
DNF
I honestly couldnt get through the book at all and im not really a DNF person, but this crossed my boundaries. The story felt incredibly fast paced and the 4 of them became friends so quickly?? All I really liked was the magical elements and how they came to be.
Most of the writing felt off, perhaps its not my style
If it wasnt tagged as YA, I'd reccomend it to tweens.
I honestly couldnt get through the book at all and im not really a DNF person, but this crossed my boundaries. The story felt incredibly fast paced and the 4 of them became friends so quickly?? All I really liked was the magical elements and how they came to be.
Most of the writing felt off, perhaps its not my style
If it wasnt tagged as YA, I'd reccomend it to tweens.
May 25, 2024
4.5 ⭐️
Fate brings four teenagers to Stonehenge.
Together they get transported to a place where magic exists and soon they learn that they are in fact the Children of the Elements: water, fire, wind and earth.
Together they embark on a quest to find the four lost gems that’ll give them full access to their elemental powers and will help them to fulfil the Prophecy of Light and Darkness.
“ If we spend our whole lives obsessed with what other people think of us, we’ll be too scared to do anything. I’m not living like that. I’ll burn brightly, whether they are there to see it or not. “
“ I didn’t come this far just to come this far. “
33 year old me loved this adventure as much as 14/15 year old me would have.
This book is the perfect YA adventure, a perfect starting point if you’re looking into start reading fantasy. Not too overwhelming, easy world building and characters, not many magical creatures.
I love how at the beginning of each chapter the author gives us a single world with its origin and meaning that somehow is related to what you’re about to read.
I’m usually not a big fan of cliffhanger endings but on this occasion I’ll pardon the author as it leaves the story open to what I think will be a massive plot twist.
I cannot wait to continue this adventure.
Thank you Andy Darcy Theo (and 13 year old you) for reminding me of why I fell in love with fantasy in the first place. You definitely did it 💙
Fate brings four teenagers to Stonehenge.
Together they get transported to a place where magic exists and soon they learn that they are in fact the Children of the Elements: water, fire, wind and earth.
Together they embark on a quest to find the four lost gems that’ll give them full access to their elemental powers and will help them to fulfil the Prophecy of Light and Darkness.
“ If we spend our whole lives obsessed with what other people think of us, we’ll be too scared to do anything. I’m not living like that. I’ll burn brightly, whether they are there to see it or not. “
“ I didn’t come this far just to come this far. “
33 year old me loved this adventure as much as 14/15 year old me would have.
This book is the perfect YA adventure, a perfect starting point if you’re looking into start reading fantasy. Not too overwhelming, easy world building and characters, not many magical creatures.
I love how at the beginning of each chapter the author gives us a single world with its origin and meaning that somehow is related to what you’re about to read.
I’m usually not a big fan of cliffhanger endings but on this occasion I’ll pardon the author as it leaves the story open to what I think will be a massive plot twist.
I cannot wait to continue this adventure.
Thank you Andy Darcy Theo (and 13 year old you) for reminding me of why I fell in love with fantasy in the first place. You definitely did it 💙
April 25, 2024
✨ NetGalley ARC Review ✨
Release Date: 25th April 2024
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.5 / 5
📚 The Light That Blinds Us is Percy Jackson meets the Fantastic Four. Alexis Childhood is haunted by hallucinations of the Shadow Man the only thing that brings him comfort is a blue amulet he's had since before he could remember. His visions are now gone.
But a school trip to Stonehenge changes everything. He is united with three other teens who have similar amulets and they are plunged into a hidden world of powerful elementals. There is more to Alexis dark past as they venture on a quest to save the world facing tests of love, loss and loyalty.
📖 Review:
I absolutely loved this, I enjoyed every second and I wish I had had this book growing up. This is a fast-paced rollercoaster of a book and I didn't wanna get off.
Firstly I adore how mental-health is weaved throughout this book. It was handled with care and respect, you can tell Andy has put alot into this representation. And it was done so well.
I loved the characters, they were well-freshed out. Each character felt like individuals and they had fantastic chemistry and banter.
The world building was excellent and I had a real sense of where we were and the plot was so twisty and fun. I was hooked from the prologue. It's exactly the kind of YA I love. There was something so nostalgic in reading this. I can't wait to read the next book.
Release Date: 25th April 2024
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.5 / 5
📚 The Light That Blinds Us is Percy Jackson meets the Fantastic Four. Alexis Childhood is haunted by hallucinations of the Shadow Man the only thing that brings him comfort is a blue amulet he's had since before he could remember. His visions are now gone.
But a school trip to Stonehenge changes everything. He is united with three other teens who have similar amulets and they are plunged into a hidden world of powerful elementals. There is more to Alexis dark past as they venture on a quest to save the world facing tests of love, loss and loyalty.
📖 Review:
I absolutely loved this, I enjoyed every second and I wish I had had this book growing up. This is a fast-paced rollercoaster of a book and I didn't wanna get off.
Firstly I adore how mental-health is weaved throughout this book. It was handled with care and respect, you can tell Andy has put alot into this representation. And it was done so well.
I loved the characters, they were well-freshed out. Each character felt like individuals and they had fantastic chemistry and banter.
The world building was excellent and I had a real sense of where we were and the plot was so twisty and fun. I was hooked from the prologue. It's exactly the kind of YA I love. There was something so nostalgic in reading this. I can't wait to read the next book.
October 14, 2024
I wanted to love this one, I really did. I’d been following the author’s journey of writing the book for a while now, and was really excited to be given the ARC for it, but it just fell flat somehow. Maybe my issue is that I’m starting to find lots of young adult fantasy reads to be trite due to my bulk consumption of them, but this one felt even more predictable than usual.
Firstly the things I enjoyed about the book; the fast moving pace, and the mental health representation (something that needs to be featured far more frequently in fantasy novels).
And then the things I didn’t enjoy; the world building that was somehow overly convenient, whilst still having a remarkable amount of holes in it. (The main characters all clone themselves to have their clone live their normal life, while they run off and save the world with about a month's worth of training, and that is somehow deemed totally plausible?) For a book marketed as YA it felt more like a middle grade read, and I feel like I would’ve enjoyed it more if it had been marketed as such, because then some of the formulaic plot and childish dialogue would have felt justifiable.
Ultimately a fun read, that could have been a lot better with some more consistent worldbuilding and less plot armour.
A big thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Firstly the things I enjoyed about the book; the fast moving pace, and the mental health representation (something that needs to be featured far more frequently in fantasy novels).
And then the things I didn’t enjoy; the world building that was somehow overly convenient, whilst still having a remarkable amount of holes in it. (The main characters all clone themselves to have their clone live their normal life, while they run off and save the world with about a month's worth of training, and that is somehow deemed totally plausible?) For a book marketed as YA it felt more like a middle grade read, and I feel like I would’ve enjoyed it more if it had been marketed as such, because then some of the formulaic plot and childish dialogue would have felt justifiable.
Ultimately a fun read, that could have been a lot better with some more consistent worldbuilding and less plot armour.
A big thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
April 28, 2024
Four teenagers come together by fate and are transported to a haven where they train for a quest to defeat the darkness threatening the world.
I was really excited for this, followed the journey of the book being released. I was confused by the editing, felt it let it down.
There were some plot holes that felt unnecessary, and too obviously just setting up a series rather than tying up book one.
The overall plot had some in my opinion glaring holes, they have a week to train to go on a quest, and at the end of the week there is a celebration because they are now trained and ready!?
The constant ‘I will tell you everything’ and then absolutely nothing is revealed.
I liked the psychology, it gave the characters more depth and meaning, and felt more relatable.
I was really excited for this, followed the journey of the book being released. I was confused by the editing, felt it let it down.
There were some plot holes that felt unnecessary, and too obviously just setting up a series rather than tying up book one.
The overall plot had some in my opinion glaring holes, they have a week to train to go on a quest, and at the end of the week there is a celebration because they are now trained and ready!?
The constant ‘I will tell you everything’ and then absolutely nothing is revealed.
I liked the psychology, it gave the characters more depth and meaning, and felt more relatable.
February 22, 2025
Took a while to get through this one, mainly because I was in a slump when I started it but really enjoyed it and I liked the characters. I think at times the characters felt a little immature but i suppose it is a YA book. The plot was predictable for me at times but again still enjoyed it. I think it set up well for the next book so can’t wait to read it and have high hopes! I just wish this would have been published when i was 13; I would have loved it.
December 19, 2024
Omg what an emotional rollercoaster absolutely love this book and can’t wait to meet the author in November. All I will say is get this book and read it now
March 23, 2024
*✩‧˚ 𝟰 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀 ੈ✩‧₊˚
"𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿｡"
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.
I have followed this authors journey for some time now and I have been highly anticipating the release of this book! I already have my special edition on pre-order so I was stoked to get the chance to read this before the release date!
I was immediately sucked in to this story the minute I started reading. It is quite fast paced and we are very quickly thrust into the main plot after getting a glimpse of our protagonists backstory. That would be Alexis, or Lexi for short.
𝗽𝗼𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀
╰➤ chosen one (or four)
╰➤ morally grey MMC
╰➤ found family
╰➤ fantasy adventure
╰➤ elemental magic
╰➤ high stakes quests
𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧
Lexi has grown up being plagued by not only the hallucinations of the Shadow Man, but an element of control this figure has had over him - creepy AF not gonna lie 🫣. But his visions have subsided and he craves the normal life of a teenager - that is until he literally falls through Stonehenge into an elemental world with his BFF and two strangers while out on a trip. Our four main characters soon find out they were destined to meet, that they are the children of the elements, each with a unique elemental power, and that they are to go on a quest together to find the elemental stones that will release each of their magic to it’s fullest potential so they can save the world from an eternal darkness (and breathe!) - a lot for a teenager to take in, no? 🤣
The world-building was amazing and so very well written, I love how we learn everything at the same time as these kids so it is very east to keep up with the story. The authors writing is honestly beautiful, I have never really been one for visualising what I am reading but I found myself feeling like I was watching the events of this book through my own two eyes. Also, some of the quotes I highlighted in this book!! I felt like the author was talking to my very soul, honestly felt like I was in bloody therapy in places 🥹
"𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
"𝗜𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝘀, 𝘄𝗲'𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
"𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 ｡｡ 𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱｡"
𝘉𝘙𝘉 𝘊𝘙𝘠𝘐𝘕𝘎 😭😭😭
𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦
I love how the author gradually introduced the characters at pivotal moments throughout the book, it never felt info dumpy, which I appreciated. We meet Lexi, his family and his best friend Demi first, then we meet Blaise and Caeli at a time when the story really takes off. It is found family at its finest and I particularly loved the verbal sparring between our four main characters.
🌊 𝗟𝗲𝘅𝗶 - hello morally grey! My god this boy is as mysterious as they get. I don’t think we have even scratched the surface with this character and I am so eager to know more about him, his father, his dreams, Nero, Incantus, the shadow man - good gods - I feel like there has been some major foreshadowing in this book!
🍃 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗶 - love her as Lexi’s best friend, she is so loyal, really just sees the best in everyone and much like her element is so very down to earth.
🔥 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 - his ‘lad’ energy is epic and his confidence bounces off the page. The way he instigates a bunch of the verbal sparring makes him such a fun character, but he has such a big heart deep down.
🌪️ 𝗖𝗮𝗲𝗹𝗶 - it took me longer to warm to this character but I really grew to like her, she puts up a front that comes off a bit cold in places but she is so sensitive deep down, feeling the need to prove herself constantly.
Special mention to 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘂𝘀 too! Incantus to Lexi was like Dumbledore to Harry Potter, like Gandalf to Frodo, I loved him as his mentor but as his friend too. I still think there is so much more there to uncover though and I can’t even with my anticipation for the next book!!
𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀｡
This wasn’t quite a five star read for me for a couple of reasons. Our main characters go through some vigorous training together when they first learn of their quest .. mission .. thing! (LOTR fans know what I did there!) While we got to see some of the training I felt like there was more telling than showing in parts. I wanted to really feel like I was learning with these kids, what they can do, what their elemental magic means to them, watch them fail and learn from one another. I believe this whole part of the book spans over a few weeks but it all felt very quick to me on the page.
The next was the way this “fantasy” world runs alongside the “real” world. Things are done so that the real world are oblivious to the goings on in our story and at times it took me away from the fantasy. I want to enjoy my book without worrying about what Janice and Bob think who just so happen to be walking up the same mountain as me while we fight some elemental creature (that totally doesn’t happen in this book but I hope you get my drift), I want to be fully immersed without worrying about the real world.
Finally the romance, while it was there, and when it was there IT HIT! I just wanted a bit more. What we got was cute and adorable and yes I was kicking my feet at times, but I thought I would get more romance going in to this so I do hope there is more in the next book. That isn’t to say I didn’t love what we got though, because 𝗜 𝗟𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗗 𝗜𝗧 𝗨𝗣!
"𝗪𝗲'𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿｡ 𝗨𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
In the grand scheme of things, all of the above are very minor issues that I could easily look over to still rate this very highly because I had so much fun reading it. All in all this was a blooming cracking debut and I thoroughly enjoyed my reading experience. I loved the characters, I loved the plot, there were some shock twists and a damn cliffhanger that we all hate to love 😆
“𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗺𝘀” - unforgivable, this was UN.FOR.GIVE.ABLE - that is ALL!
I cannot wait to have this book on my shelf, as I sit eagerly waiting for the next book to be released!
"𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗿｡"
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸.
I have followed this authors journey for some time now and I have been highly anticipating the release of this book! I already have my special edition on pre-order so I was stoked to get the chance to read this before the release date!
I was immediately sucked in to this story the minute I started reading. It is quite fast paced and we are very quickly thrust into the main plot after getting a glimpse of our protagonists backstory. That would be Alexis, or Lexi for short.
𝗽𝗼𝗽𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀
╰➤ chosen one (or four)
╰➤ morally grey MMC
╰➤ found family
╰➤ fantasy adventure
╰➤ elemental magic
╰➤ high stakes quests
𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧
Lexi has grown up being plagued by not only the hallucinations of the Shadow Man, but an element of control this figure has had over him - creepy AF not gonna lie 🫣. But his visions have subsided and he craves the normal life of a teenager - that is until he literally falls through Stonehenge into an elemental world with his BFF and two strangers while out on a trip. Our four main characters soon find out they were destined to meet, that they are the children of the elements, each with a unique elemental power, and that they are to go on a quest together to find the elemental stones that will release each of their magic to it’s fullest potential so they can save the world from an eternal darkness (and breathe!) - a lot for a teenager to take in, no? 🤣
The world-building was amazing and so very well written, I love how we learn everything at the same time as these kids so it is very east to keep up with the story. The authors writing is honestly beautiful, I have never really been one for visualising what I am reading but I found myself feeling like I was watching the events of this book through my own two eyes. Also, some of the quotes I highlighted in this book!! I felt like the author was talking to my very soul, honestly felt like I was in bloody therapy in places 🥹
"𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
"𝗜𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝘀, 𝘄𝗲'𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
"𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿 ｡｡ 𝗡𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱｡"
𝘉𝘙𝘉 𝘊𝘙𝘠𝘐𝘕𝘎 😭😭😭
𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦
I love how the author gradually introduced the characters at pivotal moments throughout the book, it never felt info dumpy, which I appreciated. We meet Lexi, his family and his best friend Demi first, then we meet Blaise and Caeli at a time when the story really takes off. It is found family at its finest and I particularly loved the verbal sparring between our four main characters.
🌊 𝗟𝗲𝘅𝗶 - hello morally grey! My god this boy is as mysterious as they get. I don’t think we have even scratched the surface with this character and I am so eager to know more about him, his father, his dreams, Nero, Incantus, the shadow man - good gods - I feel like there has been some major foreshadowing in this book!
🍃 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗶 - love her as Lexi’s best friend, she is so loyal, really just sees the best in everyone and much like her element is so very down to earth.
🔥 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗶𝘀𝗲 - his ‘lad’ energy is epic and his confidence bounces off the page. The way he instigates a bunch of the verbal sparring makes him such a fun character, but he has such a big heart deep down.
🌪️ 𝗖𝗮𝗲𝗹𝗶 - it took me longer to warm to this character but I really grew to like her, she puts up a front that comes off a bit cold in places but she is so sensitive deep down, feeling the need to prove herself constantly.
Special mention to 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘂𝘀 too! Incantus to Lexi was like Dumbledore to Harry Potter, like Gandalf to Frodo, I loved him as his mentor but as his friend too. I still think there is so much more there to uncover though and I can’t even with my anticipation for the next book!!
𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗜 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻'𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝟱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘀｡
This wasn’t quite a five star read for me for a couple of reasons. Our main characters go through some vigorous training together when they first learn of their quest .. mission .. thing! (LOTR fans know what I did there!) While we got to see some of the training I felt like there was more telling than showing in parts. I wanted to really feel like I was learning with these kids, what they can do, what their elemental magic means to them, watch them fail and learn from one another. I believe this whole part of the book spans over a few weeks but it all felt very quick to me on the page.
The next was the way this “fantasy” world runs alongside the “real” world. Things are done so that the real world are oblivious to the goings on in our story and at times it took me away from the fantasy. I want to enjoy my book without worrying about what Janice and Bob think who just so happen to be walking up the same mountain as me while we fight some elemental creature (that totally doesn’t happen in this book but I hope you get my drift), I want to be fully immersed without worrying about the real world.
Finally the romance, while it was there, and when it was there IT HIT! I just wanted a bit more. What we got was cute and adorable and yes I was kicking my feet at times, but I thought I would get more romance going in to this so I do hope there is more in the next book. That isn’t to say I didn’t love what we got though, because 𝗜 𝗟𝗔𝗣𝗣𝗘𝗗 𝗜𝗧 𝗨𝗣!
"𝗪𝗲'𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿｡ 𝗨𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴｡"
𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦
In the grand scheme of things, all of the above are very minor issues that I could easily look over to still rate this very highly because I had so much fun reading it. All in all this was a blooming cracking debut and I thoroughly enjoyed my reading experience. I loved the characters, I loved the plot, there were some shock twists and a damn cliffhanger that we all hate to love 😆
“𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗺𝘀” - unforgivable, this was UN.FOR.GIVE.ABLE - that is ALL!
I cannot wait to have this book on my shelf, as I sit eagerly waiting for the next book to be released!
April 28, 2024
This was so much fun and gripped me from the first page. It’s a new YA urban fantasy about four teenagers born with elemental magic who must embark on a quest to fulfil a prophecy and save the world from darkness. One of the four, the main character Alexis, is haunted by malevolent visions of a shadow man. The book respectfully and sensitively explores themes of psychosis and mental health. It has wonderful found family themes along with a friends to lovers sub-plot that is introduced and I assume will develop over the course of the series.
Aesthetically this book is gorgeous, there is stunning character art running through the book. I loved that the chapter titles have dictionary definitions. Always a good bonus to learn something new every chapter!
The only criticism I have isn’t specifically to do with the book but with the marketing. I have seen it promoted on social media as a romantasy, however there is little romance in this first book. I can’t speak for the rest of the series and how it will develop. If you are looking for a romance heavy plot it might fall short of your expectations.
Really loved this and I cant wait to see what happens next in this series!
Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Aesthetically this book is gorgeous, there is stunning character art running through the book. I loved that the chapter titles have dictionary definitions. Always a good bonus to learn something new every chapter!
The only criticism I have isn’t specifically to do with the book but with the marketing. I have seen it promoted on social media as a romantasy, however there is little romance in this first book. I can’t speak for the rest of the series and how it will develop. If you are looking for a romance heavy plot it might fall short of your expectations.
Really loved this and I cant wait to see what happens next in this series!
Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
November 12, 2025
⭐⭐⭐⭐.25
The Light That Blinds Us by Andy Darcy Theo is a book I’ve been wanting to dive into ever since I discovered his page on Instagram. The cover immediately piqued my interest, and after reading the blurb, I was hooked right away.
The narrator, Joe Jameson, does a fantastic job bringing Andy Darcy Theo’s debut to life. He captures the emotion and flow of the dialogue beautifully, allowing the characters’ relationships and struggles to really shine throughout the story. That said, there were a few moments when the voices of the female characters were a little difficult to distinguish from one another, but overall his performance added a lot to the listening experience.
All in all, I highly recommend this audiobook. It’s a fantastic way to experience Andy Darcy Theo’s debut — an engaging and immersive listen, especially if you follow along with the physical copy. I’m really excited to continue the series and see where Andy takes the crew in book two!
The Light That Blinds Us by Andy Darcy Theo is a book I’ve been wanting to dive into ever since I discovered his page on Instagram. The cover immediately piqued my interest, and after reading the blurb, I was hooked right away.
The narrator, Joe Jameson, does a fantastic job bringing Andy Darcy Theo’s debut to life. He captures the emotion and flow of the dialogue beautifully, allowing the characters’ relationships and struggles to really shine throughout the story. That said, there were a few moments when the voices of the female characters were a little difficult to distinguish from one another, but overall his performance added a lot to the listening experience.
All in all, I highly recommend this audiobook. It’s a fantastic way to experience Andy Darcy Theo’s debut — an engaging and immersive listen, especially if you follow along with the physical copy. I’m really excited to continue the series and see where Andy takes the crew in book two!
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