Crystal in Bookland : BLOG TOUR: The Prophecy by Erin Albert

I am SO excited to be a part of this blog tour. If you pay attention to my blog you already know that I have been DYING for this book. I was super excited when I finally got my hands on it and am equally excited to finally get to share my thoughts about THE PROPHECY with you. But first here is a little info on the book and Erin Albert. Make sure to go to the very bottom for an awesome giveaway provided by Erin also.

Author:

Erin Albert is an author and fitness trainer. Since she picked up Morris the Moose Goes to School at age four, she has been infatuated with the written word. She went on to work as a grammar and writing tutor in college and is still teased by her family and friends for being a member of the "Grammar Police." In her free time, Erin enjoys acting, running, kickboxing, and, of course, reading and writing.

Find me online:

Preorder Link: https://museituppublishing.com/bookstore/index.php/our-authors/50-our-authors/authors-a/381-erin-albert

Twitter: @ErinAlbertBooks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Erin-Albert-Books/182769448541270

Website: www.erinalbertbooks.com

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18160774-the-prophecy

The Prophecy (The Fulfillment #1)

Back Cover:

Growing up on a small farm in the kingdom of Vanguard, seventeen-year-old Layla Givens lives a deceptively tranquil existence. But her carefully constructed life quickly falls apart when she’s abducted by a religious zealot who proclaims her The Fulfillment of an ancient peace prophecy and whisks her away to marry her greatest enemy.

Wilhelm, Prince of the Ethereals, is reluctant to meet his new bride. He's grown up believing Vanguards are evil, an enemy to fight and fear...not love. Can he set aside his prejudices and work alongside Layla to bring lasting peace after centuries of war?

Nash, a loner who has never fit in, carries a huge secret, one big enough to destroy both kingdoms. When he accidently meets Layla, he’s no longer content to live in the shadows, but he must resist his growing attraction—for her safety and for the longevity of the two kingdoms.

When Nash's secret is revealed, a firestorm sweeps through both realms, with Layla at the center. Now she must choose between duty and desire while the fate of two nations hangs in the balance.

Excerpt:

Even though she had no chance to escape now, Layla shoved the Elder with all her might. The blow sent him flying into the baker’s door, which splintered under the force, and she darted forward. The Vanguard soldiers moved to block her.

“We are all Vanguards,” she pleaded. “Please let me go.”

For a moment, they hesitated. Layla used the opening to slip around them. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her, but they proved to be too slow. Within moments, the soldiers leapt upon her, knocking her to the ground. Wrenching Layla up by her hair, they dragged her back to the Elder, whose face now bled from his encounter with the baker’s door.

“I see you’re going to be trouble.” He brushed the dirt off his robes. “You can’t escape your destiny, girl.”

My Thoughts:

IT'S FINALLY HERE!!! THE PROPHECY'S RELEASE DAY IS HERE!!!!! I have been waiting to read this book since April and it did NOT disappoint. THE PROPHECY met every expectation I had and more. From the first sentence I was captivated and I devoured this book quickly. It is definitely a "one sitting read".

For ALL the love I have for this book this has got to be one of the hardest reviews that I have had to write. I have gone back and forth writing it for a week and nothing ever seems to be good enough, or explain well enough why I think you should read it, or why I loved it. But I will give it a try. I feel that the description about does a pretty good job telling you about the plot so I'm just going to dive right in to what I loved about the book.

The characters were some of the best written ones I have come across in a debut novel. Erin really seemed to truly know her characters. They all had very distinct personalities to back each of them up. Layla was a fierce female lead. Even though she was thrown into a really messed up situation as being claimed as the fulfillment, she did what she had to do to keep her family and friends safe.

Along the way she meets Nash; mysterious, sweet Nash. (I love him by the way, I stake claim on him....just wanted all you ladies to know ♥) There is a wonderful attraction between these two that feels very real. I was very happy not to have a sudden "I love you" type relationship between them. Even though there are so many things that come up that make their relationship pretty much impossible I can't help but root for them.

One complication is Wil. WAIT WAIT WAIT....no I'm not leading you into a love triangle. While on the surface and without giving spoilers it may come across that this book will take you into a love triangle, but it really doesn’t. As part of being the fulfillment Layla is betrothed to Wil, it is practically her duty to marry him. I can't really say more than that because I don't want to spoil anything, but seriously it didn't get all “typical love triangle” on me. BUT I will tell you that you will want it to....yes you will. While I LOVE Nash, Wil is....ahhhh he's wonderful. Both guys are equally swoony and my guess is that ladies will be fighting over who they think Layla should be with no matter where her heart lays.

Some other characters that I really adored were Vespa, Grant, and Samson. While we don't get to see Samson a lot in this book I know he will be a big player later on in the series. Grant is just another amazing guy living in THE PROPHECY world, and Vespa is someone I would want to have as a best friend.

Of course with all the wonderful characters, there must be some evil ones. I'm not going to go through who those are, mainly because I feel like it will take away from the story some for you when reading. But just know that there are some REAL evil people and you will want them to die a brutal death when it is all said and done.

The world building is also beautiful and executed well. While the book is set mainly in the Ethereal kingdom, I felt like I was really there with Layla. My favorite part was the maze that kept the kingdom guarded. I also was intrigued by the Vanguards super strength, and the Ethereal’s powers to mess with others minds.

If you follow me on twitter you might have seen that I pretty much live tweeted the entire time I read this book. It gave me SO many feels it was unreal. I was happy, conflicted, sad, MAD, devastated, swoony, flailing, you name it....I was doing it. Anytime my emotions are tapped into that way it's a sign of an amazing book. As if the book as a whole wasn't wonderful and emotion provoking enough, Erin left us with a MAJOR cliffhanger. I have a love/hate relationship with those things. I love them because they make me want more NOW, I hate them....well because they make me want more NOW and I can't have it now. Erin leaves two MAJOR things happening at the very end that I'm still thinking about what it means for everyone, especially Layla. I definitely can't wait to get my hands on the next book.

I definitely recommend any fans of YA Fantasy, fast reads, and swoony guys read this book. I really don't think you will be disappointed. This is without a doubt one of my favorite reads of 2013.

My Rating:

♥♥♥♥♥