The Dryad's Sacrifice

Sylvan Cycle #1

by Alycia Christine

The fiercest courage is conceived through the greatest trials…

Centuries before Katja Escari and her packmates ever discover the secrets hidden within the sacred Keystones, a pair of dryads find themselves the unwitting guardians of one of these legendary gems. Thus begins the tale of how two sisters’ love was tested against the might of one of the most powerful deadwalkers in Sylvan history.

113 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 25, 2015

About the author

Alycia Christine grew up near the dusty cotton fields of Lubbock, Texas. She fell in love with fantasy and science fiction stories when her father first read Gordon R. Dickson’s THE DRAGON AND THE GEORGE and Robert A. Heinlein’s HAVE SPACESUIT—WILL TRAVEL to her at age ten. Her love-affair with fiction deepened when Alycia took a creative writing course while attending Texas A&M University. After that class, she was hooked as a writer for life. Her subsequent B.S. degree in agricultural journalism not only helped to hone Alycia’s skills with a pen, but also with a camera. Today she uses her skills as a photographer to capture the beauty of the world around her and add additional perspective to her fiction and nonfiction writing. Find her at AlyciaChristine.com.

Reviews

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come shortly

[Kimberly Vanderbloom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I fell in love with Sylvan when reading Skinshifter and Dreamdrifter. I was thrilled to go back to that world in the prelude. I found it to be fast paced and new characters that you can fall in love with. We have some old players that show up to tell the story of Second War of Ages. It gets everything going and ready for what happens in Skinshifter. It is like if these things didn't happen than the story I read won't have happened. It was strongly written and completely character driven. I felt like I was transported back to Sylvan on old stomping grounds. I would recommend reading this prelude after at least reading Skinshifter. It will be easier to understand the importance behind these events.

My favorite character was Ella. She was a young dryad who was strong, sweet, loving, and selfless. She gets herself right in the middle of everything for the greater good. She ends up going on a adventure that will change the course of history. She was easy to love even from the beginning. Her slip ups when talking and her ignorance of other races was a pleasure to read about her transformation.

My favorite moment is going to be hard to describe without giving away spoilers. It was the moment when Unuca evokes the Crawhmongue. It was a touching moment and it brought tears to my eyes. I'm not going to tell you what Crawhmongue is because it will ruin it but make sure you grab a tissue when they mention it. Another moment that made me cry was what Eliza was willing to sacrifice to keep Ella safe. Ok seriously just grab a box of tissues of while you read this because you are going to need it randomly throughout the story. In between amazing fights, I was sobbing like a child who had their toy taken away.

I would recommend this to anyone who is a fan of fast paced fantasy that is ready to go for the ride of your life. It is a world and characters that easily won't be forgotten.

[BooksBooksandmoreBooks69 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review:

Skinshifter by Alycia Christine is the first book in this promising Sylvan Cycle series. (It does have a novella as an introduction to the series). It’s a great read, and it has all the elements a YA needs to keep them interested. It is an amazing adventure, well written and very descriptive. The world once I stepped into it, kept me hooked.

Katja Escari, our heroine, is an great character; she is tough, brave, a hardy female, and a werecat. But she has a secret that not only endangers her, but those around her as well. When the other members of her Feliconas Clan are ruthlessly murdered by the greatly feared Asheken deadwalkers, Katja flees determined to survive and seek vengeance for her clan. (Asheken deadwalkers are vampires, they can create zombies, no redeeming qualities. They want to rule the entire world.).

Princess Lauraisha is also a character on the run for her life from the evil deeds of her wicked father. The two females, although quite different in some ways, soon learn just how similar they are and they eventually develop a friendship so deep, it is like they are sisters.

After agreeing to help each other achieve their goals against the predominant evils in their lives, their direction is unexpectedly altered by a plea for help from a surprising source that sends them running into the adventure of a lifetime to save the Sylvans from the coming Asheken hordes. With danger at every turn, they join forces with other Sylvans in a race against time.

I enjoyed Skinshifter. Author Alycia Christine developed an entertaining story, full of fantasy, moments of tense action, and has lots of intriguing characters. This book is a great introduction to the series. Skinshifter was a worthwhile read and I look forward to the next in the series.