Monday, September 10, 2012

Elemental / Tiffany Dominguez


Reviewed by: Christina O'Neil

Genre: Paranormal Romance/ YA

Approximate word count: 95,000- 100,000

Availability    
Kindle  US: YES  UK: YES  Nook: YES  Smashwords: YES  Paper: NO
Click on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords store

Author:

Tiffany Dominguez is an author of Paranormal Romance and Young adult fiction. She currently only has one book out, Elemental, but has another book coming out soon and also one she is working on. She has a blog with information about her upcoming books.  

Description:

A private school trains students born with the Elemental powers of Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. Luke Huntington, an Earth Elemental, is not in control of his growing powers, and seems to be the bad boy of the school. He especially can't control these powers around Eva Sarantos. An Air Elemental and a grade A student, she has trained for years for the chance to prove herself to everyone, even Luke. These two high school seniors are paired together on a covert mission for the ruling body of the Elemental world. The two students fly to Italy, pursued by an army of mysterious men in black cloaks. In Italy, they discover Luke’s ancient legacy, and many secrets, and try to overcome their tricky past to team up against a secret society.

Appraisal:

Elemental is an adventure with lots of paranormal aspects, and a love story. It's the classic opposites attract setting. The book is in third person, with each chapter alternating between Luke and Eva's point of view. It was an interesting way to do it, as you get both perspectives. Who doesn't love two enemies forced together? There are plenty of fights, supernatural and verbal, and it was amusing at times, but at other times, it seemed a little ridiculous. The reason for their fighting seemed a little silly to me, and a little overboard but it still made for good tension.

You really get to see Eva and Luke's relationship change from hatred, to dislike, to a grudging friendship and then finally more. It seems very natural. Luke and Eva are both likeable characters, and Eva is definitely no Damsel. There are a lot of Mission Impossible style gadgets, with a supernatural twist, of course. It was an exciting part of the story when these two first get their mission from their advisors.

There was a lot of action in this story, especially when the two have a fight that nearly ends in death and narrowly escape by Eva's Air elemental abilities, as she can pilot a plane. They both have assets in each of their fields, and you find out more about them later on. While in Italy, Luke also discovers about his heritage, and more about the elusive Lux Crystal that everyone in the secret society are after. The story wraps up very well, with a little left open for more stories later. I found many parts of the story interesting and enjoyable, but I think a lot of the story could have benefited from editing out the unnecessary parts that seem to slow the story down.

I think the story is well written and different., It is geared more towards teenagers, but also suitable for adults. With some editing and a little bit of faster pace, I would have enjoyed it more, though it is still an enjoyable read, and you really develop connections with the characters.

Format/Typo Issues:

Very few, that doesn't take away the enjoyment of reading it.

Rating: **** Four stars

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