Kiera's Quest: Awakenings by Kristy Brown REVIEW

Title: Awakenings
Author:  Kristy Brown
Release date: October 19th, 2011
Rating: 4.5/5
Publisher: MuseItUp
Book Summary:  

Meet Kiera, a pretty, intelligent, and talented girl, brought up by her uncle, and abandoned by her parents. Life is as normal as she believes it to be, apart from the deep ache inside her, telling her she’s different. For years, Kiera had dreams where she ventures into a different reality. She’s not alone; a presence is always there, keeping her safe, yet she feels vulnerable, and hunted.
Zakk, Prince of Zantar, is under the Witch Queen’s spell as she tries to take over his world.He crosses paths with Kiera, and their fates are entwined.
As their journey unravels, she learns that she is not the only one affected by this prince. Who is on her side? Will she find out why she has been chosen? How can someone so young, defeatsuch evil? Will she find the strength to save the ones closest to her? Will this be Kiera’s only Quest?

Review:

Thanks to Kristy Brown's event on her Facebook page I was able to request, read, and now review Awakenings the first book in her, as of right now, trilogy.  If you like evil witches, princes, quests, and magic then this is the book for you. I promise.

I read the book's synopsis and I immediately wanted to snatch it up, curl up on my couch, and read. And once I started, I couldn't stop. I literally read the whole book in one day and when it ended I wanted more of Kiera and Zakk. Brown's imagery was vivid and flowed so beautifully.  Personification brought the scenes to life: "Zakk knew his only response would be that of his own echoes chasing each other round the stone cave walls." And that was only in Chapter One. I read this in one day because I didn't even realize how many pages I had read until I was done. I was so immersed in Kiera's world and her thought process.


However, the reason why I didn't give it a 5 is because I felt that certain things happened too quickly. I can't think of the exact scene when I thought that, but I felt things were kind of sped up. I also have to take into consideration that the time span of the novel was a few days, though I still felt certain things should have taken their time. For example, traveling across the gorge full of spikes. Also, certain lines felt a little cliché. 

Brown's character's were really, really great, though. I could really relate to Kiera. The way she was handling her situation and getting paranoid with the people around her was probably how I would have been. Saving a prince's life and an entire world was on her shoulders and it was her fault if everything was destroyed. She had also come to like the prince that she was trying to help and she wouldn't have been happy with herself if she didn't succeed.

The Witch Queen was a really cool character. Honestly, I wouldn't want to run into her in a dark alley. She knew what she wanted and when she wanted it. It wasn't her fault that her henchman Googe couldn't deliver. (Also, as a side note, I read Googe as Google the first time and I had to re-read it cause I was so confused. Though, it was really funny.) The things she did to Zakk (most of which were just revealed) in the first Chapter in order to rise to the throne was completely insane and wonderful. She was powerful and yet she was vulnerable which is probably why I liked her so much. I hated her so much I loved her!

Joe is probably the most adorable thing ever. I have a friend named Joe and for some reason both his personality and the personality of the Joe in the book really fit. I don't know. Haha. I guess it really made my connection with Joe a little stronger, because he was so similar to my friend in real life, which is a very good thing. Her character was well rounded and exhibited qualities and quirks and personality traits that are seen in normal humans. Joe jumped off the page for me. He was lovestruck and faithful, but he also had his dorky qualities which were super duper adorable.

I fell in love with Daz at the end, and since that was the case, you'll have to read Kiera's Quest: Awakenings.  You'll also have to read it to find out why the ending killed me. (Trust me. You won't be disappointed reading this book.) 

I would definitely love to pick up the remaining book sometime in the near future. Thank you again Kristy Brown and I hope to hear more from you soon!