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The Order of Elysium
“I didn't know they existed until recently.
They've been hiding right under our noses all over the world.
They are even here in Salem, hunting in the shadows removing all evidence of their presence as they go. The thing is though, they're on our side. We need them. The Order of Elysium is the only thing keeping those same shadows from swallowing us up. I've studied demons all my life, getting too close for comfort on more than one occasion, but the Wardens of the Order fight them every chance they get to keep us safe.
Today I found out they used to be regular humans once, but each one of them died and were deemed worthy to be brought back by the angels to serve. To help fight a war against the darkness. A war they are losing… Now I’ve found myself right in the middle of it, and the lines between the dark and light are getting harder to see.”
Excerpt from Adley Black's personal memoirs.
They've been hiding right under our noses all over the world.
They are even here in Salem, hunting in the shadows removing all evidence of their presence as they go. The thing is though, they're on our side. We need them. The Order of Elysium is the only thing keeping those same shadows from swallowing us up. I've studied demons all my life, getting too close for comfort on more than one occasion, but the Wardens of the Order fight them every chance they get to keep us safe.
Today I found out they used to be regular humans once, but each one of them died and were deemed worthy to be brought back by the angels to serve. To help fight a war against the darkness. A war they are losing… Now I’ve found myself right in the middle of it, and the lines between the dark and light are getting harder to see.”
Excerpt from Adley Black's personal memoirs.
385 pages, Paperback
Published January 14, 2020
1 person is currently reading
7 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
April 8, 2020
I really enjoyed this book, the author keeps a steady pace growing the story line and revealing more of his characters throughout. His writing style is easy to read making this book suitable for young adults and up. The battle scenes are not overly graphic but well described and human relationships are important without devolving into soppy romance so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend to both male and female readers with even the slightest interest in supernatural stories. A brilliant new author, I look forward to reading the rest of this trilogy as they come out.
June 2, 2020
Congratulations Dean in a wonderful debut novel.
The Order of Elysium is a wonderful roller coaster of action and emotion.
The multi layered main characters are revealed slowly throughout the story, with various backgrounds revealed piece by piece. This allows the reader to learn certain characters without and abundance if overwhelming initial information.
The setting, although fictional, could be any city any where in the world, with the good and bad of human nature being exploited.
I look forward to reading more offerings from this author.
In particular I am excited for the next chapter in The Order.
The Order of Elysium is a wonderful roller coaster of action and emotion.
The multi layered main characters are revealed slowly throughout the story, with various backgrounds revealed piece by piece. This allows the reader to learn certain characters without and abundance if overwhelming initial information.
The setting, although fictional, could be any city any where in the world, with the good and bad of human nature being exploited.
I look forward to reading more offerings from this author.
In particular I am excited for the next chapter in The Order.
January 14, 2021
A great sci-fi story that has a decent helping of political intrigue. Fantastic storytelling and world building with dynamic characters that relate to each other and the world around them in very lifelike ways. A little heavy on exposition, but that's to be expected of a progenitor title. It's also commendable for being a YA title without some torrid romance plot, like most of the books in its genre.
All in all a great read from a promising new author. I'm really looking forward to seeing the next and many other works in the future.
All in all a great read from a promising new author. I'm really looking forward to seeing the next and many other works in the future.
September 18, 2022
So proud of Dean for writing such a fantastic book. I'm not usually a fantasy reader but really enjoyed it. Great world building and strong characters. If you are a fantasy reader get yourself a copy!
March 7, 2020
Okay so to start off with I'm gonna go on about the negatives. What I really didn't like about this book was how it started, I actually almost gave up on it several times because I was just arrrrgh on things.
In my honest opinion, it's a good book I just would of structured it differently. You're introduced to this world in the first chapter through too many characters you don't really care about doing things you don't really understand, and not in the good mysterious way that opens you up to questions about what's going on here.
Chapter 3 is a sludge fest that's just chocka full of lore and exposition dumps and it's really going to be the crucial point for most readers on whether they continue the story or not. In my opinion if you don't have an interesting way to give us exposition, you shouldn't dump it on that heavily.
I seem to recall when we finally get to chapter 4, it started getting good. You're put into the perspective on one character on a secret mission and it's full of mystery, and because it's grounded in the one character it's much easier to follow and care about. I really think that the opening chapter should have been chapter 4, it would have done a better job at getting people invested
So essentially, my biggest problem with this is it's a really, really slow burner. But, it does get better, a lot better.
As you move through the story you do start to care and get to know all of the characters and they're fine enough, there were a couple which stood out to me and I liked.
My other biggest problem with this is probably just personal preference, I'm more slanted towards science fiction and epic fantasy so this urban type fantasy which has a heavy focus on angels and demons and no other mythology made the world feel really... small, super small actually, like there really wasn't much for me to explore here. I think the author should consider doing some more expansive world building on his next one and introducing other elements to this world to keep it interesting, but if you're really into angel and demon mythology this should be enough for you.
So, what did I like? The narrative and plot, the twist and turns, the buildup, the way the characters react when facing problems and so one, it's an interesting read once you get past the first three chapters. I'm giving it four stars because I really liked the twists and knife digging the author did. I can't really say much about what I did like without giving away spoilers so it's a hard one to review, but rest assured it does pick up.
In my honest opinion, it's a good book I just would of structured it differently. You're introduced to this world in the first chapter through too many characters you don't really care about doing things you don't really understand, and not in the good mysterious way that opens you up to questions about what's going on here.
Chapter 3 is a sludge fest that's just chocka full of lore and exposition dumps and it's really going to be the crucial point for most readers on whether they continue the story or not. In my opinion if you don't have an interesting way to give us exposition, you shouldn't dump it on that heavily.
I seem to recall when we finally get to chapter 4, it started getting good. You're put into the perspective on one character on a secret mission and it's full of mystery, and because it's grounded in the one character it's much easier to follow and care about. I really think that the opening chapter should have been chapter 4, it would have done a better job at getting people invested
So essentially, my biggest problem with this is it's a really, really slow burner. But, it does get better, a lot better.
As you move through the story you do start to care and get to know all of the characters and they're fine enough, there were a couple which stood out to me and I liked.
My other biggest problem with this is probably just personal preference, I'm more slanted towards science fiction and epic fantasy so this urban type fantasy which has a heavy focus on angels and demons and no other mythology made the world feel really... small, super small actually, like there really wasn't much for me to explore here. I think the author should consider doing some more expansive world building on his next one and introducing other elements to this world to keep it interesting, but if you're really into angel and demon mythology this should be enough for you.
So, what did I like? The narrative and plot, the twist and turns, the buildup, the way the characters react when facing problems and so one, it's an interesting read once you get past the first three chapters. I'm giving it four stars because I really liked the twists and knife digging the author did. I can't really say much about what I did like without giving away spoilers so it's a hard one to review, but rest assured it does pick up.
February 5, 2020
an amazing read, loved every word. the storyline grips you and i didnt want to put it down. cant wait for the next one.
July 1, 2020
A fantastic and enjoyable read. Filled with awesome characters and twists. A great pick up for readers of fantasy!!
March 1, 2020
In the epilogue of this his first book, Dean writes "To have even finished this book is a great personal achievement to me—one that I am immensely proud of". Well, he should be, because it is a really good book. I liked the way that different chapters depict different areas of the action happening at the same time, and the way that the plot-line is multi-faceted. Dean has the ability to describe his characters vividly, and to bring their personalities to life in a way that the reader can quickly empathise with them. This enriches the book, as it blends well into an action-packed story. There were a few places where it wasn't absolutely clear how one section of the story followed from another, but this didn't matter too much in the overall context, as I've explained above. I'm sure that this is a great building block on which to base the next two books in the trilogy, and I look forwards to having the pleasure of reading them.
January 26, 2020
The Order Of Elysium is an exciting, fast-paced urban fantasy with plenty of action and plot twists. The story is a gripping rollercoaster of emotions that doesn’t focus on a tedious, predictable romantic subplot, which is quite refreshing. The characters are deep and relatable, which gives the plot a rounded, three-dimensional feel and allows the reader to connect to the characters in a more meaningful way. The multiple perspectives of these characters provide the reader with a wider view of the events within the story. The world encompasses an interesting mashup of several mythologies (mainly Christian and Norse), and shares some elements of other fantasy worlds like Supernatural and Mortal Instruments.
Overall, it was a fantastic read that I definitely recommend to anyone with an interest in all kinds of fantasy, not just the urban variety.
Overall, it was a fantastic read that I definitely recommend to anyone with an interest in all kinds of fantasy, not just the urban variety.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews