Review by cyn_333 -- Herai by Aaron D Key

[cyn_333]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Herai" by Aaron D Key.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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What I enjoyed the most about Herai is the importance the author, Aaron D Key, gives to all the details regarding both the world building and the characters' personalities. My rating for this book is 4 out of 4 because it is a book easy to enjoy if you like fantasy, as well as topics regarding love, mystery and power. After reading the book it is obvious that it was professionally edited so there is none to minimal errors.

The book follows two different time-lines regarding two outcomes of a city. The reader is guided by two characters that are learning about these two times as well as revealing glimpses of what is happening next. The story takes place in an underground city with rooms carved into stone as to facilitate the daily activities of the people that live there. As the story progresses the main characters get involved in situations where the trust they have for others is tested, as well as their own interests and ideas.

The Outside is a major element in both time-lines as it represents the forbidden and the dangerous, and it gives the characters different imagery depending on their perspectives and the situation in which they go to The Outside. In The Better Place, for example, it is a way of healing and feeling reconnected with himself for Herai.

There is no audience in particular that should refrain from reading this book, but there is violence happening on the first chapters so in case someone is sensitive to such topics it would be ideal for them to read with caution. There are also same-sex couples but this topic is not necessarily a main focus of the story.

Given that it is a fantasy novel there are major elements that differ from our reality but it is easy to understand the way the world works in the story given that there are elements that we are used to, such as the government's general structure and the idea of power and a person's job to make them have different expectations and privileges. There are other aspects that are not a reality but are easy to understand given the circumstances of the story for example, the need to protect a city from an external danger, or human civilization on the underground.

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Herai
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