Malaki Mayhem

by Ashley Craig

DEBUT YA FANTASY NOVEL FULL OF MAGIC, MAYHEM, MYTHICAL CREATURES, AND ROMANCE! Ela awakens alone with complete amnesia in a magic-filled kingdom. Local fairies give her shelter, but soon a royal proclamation is issued banishing all non-fairies from the kingdom -- what can Ela possibly do? When Ela and her companions discover that Ela is actually Queen Ara and that an impostor sits in her place, they must do the convince King Phoenix that she is the real queen, recover her memories and powers, then uncover the mastermind behind this mass banishment and stop them for good. Challenging enough tasks, anyway, made even more difficult by her amnesia. Can this blue-haired former queen and her companions meet the challenge? Can her relationship with King Phoenix recover? Experience a wide variety of magical, mythical creatures in this unique fantasy realm!Contains strong language and PG-13 situations.

154 pages, Paperback

First published July 4, 2018

About the author

Ashley Craig is a fantasy adventure writer with a love for whimsy and all things fantastical. Ashley makes her home in the Appalachian Mountains, and loves to hear from her readers.

Check out this author spotlight from fellow author Nina Smith: https://www.ninasmithauthor.com.au/bl...

Reviews

[Crystal Poe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm usually on the fence about fantasy books but I really like this read. The relationship between the two main characters is really sweet and you cheer for them the whole way through as well as their friends. Overall it's a nice, easy read.

[Katrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a fun read and has a cool cast of characters. The action starts off with Ela, a woman who has lost her memories and was taken in by Woodland Fairies when she was found alone in the woods. Her actual identity is very quickly discovered after a royal proclamation goes out that essentially exiles all non-fairies. She is the true queen of the realm, Ara, and someone is impersonating her and fooling her husband, King Phoenix. Ela/Ara has so much spunk and is a great protagonist! She’s exactly what you would expect from a good queen, very regal and composed but has a fierce love for her kingdom and will do anything to protect it. King Phoenix is a great balance to her and I thoroughly enjoyed all the scenes between him and Ara, they have a really sweet relationship.

Overall, a great read for summer afternoon!

[Dani Clark - Clark Book Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading the blurb for this book, I couldn't wait to dive into it! After getting just 10% into it, I was disappointed. The concept for the book is amazing! However, it sadly fell short. I wanted so much more from this book. The overall plot was a great idea, but there just wasn't enough build up or suspense. When a problem arose, it was solved instantly. There was no 'oh no what's going to happen?' feels.

The characters were likable but I didn't have an emotional connection to any of them. I wanted more of Ela when she was with the Woodland faeries. I wanted more of what happened during the year she was gone. I wanted Bash's background story, the foxes background story. I would have loved more information on the Mother and Father Faeries.

I feel like if this book had more details it could have been amazing.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Judy Gittleson Hendrickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ara awakes without memories, alone in the forest, but soon woodland fairies find her and take her to their village. Many things happen in a year until she is finally back at the castle, with proof from Maddox (an aura reader) that she is the true Queen. A shapeshifter had taken her place with the King and stolen her memories from her. Ara and Phoenix are in many battles and on many hunts for each other, but still so in love for the past 700 years. New friends and old, like Bash, Nerina, Vale, Grandmother Aspen, Lynx and Chrysantha, aid in their adventures and trials in getting their kingdom back to normal and safe for all. The ending of the story was terrific and the book is well worth the read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Ken Finlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Malaki Mayhem" is an enjoyable fairytale adventure but perhaps a tad too knowing.
It gets off to a slow start and only really ignites towards the end.
It's billed as YA but I think that's too narrow a definition as there are definitely some adult issues involved.
And it does not take a rocket scientist to see that the story is based on WWII and the Nazis' determination to become the Master Race.
Naming a main character 'Phoenix' was a bad idea as it gives you a fair idea of where it is going.
A solid but not particularly memorable book - 2.5 Stars raised to 3 Stars because I did quite like the final battle.