Review of Earth's Touch
Posted: 07 Dec 2022, 17:37
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Earth's Touch" by Ivy Jack.]
She opened her eyes and felt the cold air and a slight breeze on her skin, sensations she shouldn't feel if she were in her bed. The feel of the dry leaves under her feet was enough for her to know she was far away from the castle she lived. She did sleepwalk in the past, but she had never ventured outside the castle's walls. Someone must have lulled her to the forest. Who was it, and what did they want?
Earth's Touch by Ivy Jack is a fantasy romance novel set in a world of magic. The story is premised on the age-long battle between good and evil, and the author explores this concept through characters with magical abilities to control the elements: earth, fire, air, water, and a fifth element. As the first book in the series, Earth's Touch is a teaser narrated through the first-person perspective of Avani and Flint.
Avani embodies qualities that I appreciate in a fictional character. She is self-assured, competent, and assertive. Her wit and courage saw her through many challenging situations, and I love how she mostly employed logic to solve most of her problems. She understandably needed help sometimes, but the fact that she wasn't a constant damsel in distress is endearing.
Earth's Touch is set in the era of sword-wielding warriors and horse-drawn carriages, but some dialogues read like a scene out of a novel set in the twenty-first century. I really wasn't expecting to see words like sh*t and ass—in the context they were used—in a novel set in the time of sovereign kings. As a result, the words seemed alien against the novel's backdrop. Again, most of the unsavory language used in the story felt inauthentic and unnecessary.
I understand that Avani is Flint and his brothers' fated mate, and they need to be connected for her powers to function optimally. Still, I think the level of eroticism in the novel could use some improvement. Ivy relied so heavily on lust to portray their love that it overshadowed the book's main plot. Besides a few instances, there was barely any interaction between Avani and Flint without salacious undertones and acts. Lust is not love; hence, I hope the author balances the book's main plot and the main characters' feelings in the next book. Considering that this is the first book in the "Her Elementals" series, I look forward to seeing a more tasteful depiction of love and romance in subsequent installments.
The book's premise is promising, but its wanton eroticism outshines the plot. Therefore, my rating is 3 out of 5 stars. The editing is impeccable, but the execution could be better.
Readers with a penchant for fantasy and erotic romance novels with dominant female characters will find the story worthwhile. However, it's heavy on gore and eroticism, making it unsuitable for sensitive and younger readers.
******
Earth's Touch
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
She opened her eyes and felt the cold air and a slight breeze on her skin, sensations she shouldn't feel if she were in her bed. The feel of the dry leaves under her feet was enough for her to know she was far away from the castle she lived. She did sleepwalk in the past, but she had never ventured outside the castle's walls. Someone must have lulled her to the forest. Who was it, and what did they want?
Earth's Touch by Ivy Jack is a fantasy romance novel set in a world of magic. The story is premised on the age-long battle between good and evil, and the author explores this concept through characters with magical abilities to control the elements: earth, fire, air, water, and a fifth element. As the first book in the series, Earth's Touch is a teaser narrated through the first-person perspective of Avani and Flint.
Avani embodies qualities that I appreciate in a fictional character. She is self-assured, competent, and assertive. Her wit and courage saw her through many challenging situations, and I love how she mostly employed logic to solve most of her problems. She understandably needed help sometimes, but the fact that she wasn't a constant damsel in distress is endearing.
Earth's Touch is set in the era of sword-wielding warriors and horse-drawn carriages, but some dialogues read like a scene out of a novel set in the twenty-first century. I really wasn't expecting to see words like sh*t and ass—in the context they were used—in a novel set in the time of sovereign kings. As a result, the words seemed alien against the novel's backdrop. Again, most of the unsavory language used in the story felt inauthentic and unnecessary.
I understand that Avani is Flint and his brothers' fated mate, and they need to be connected for her powers to function optimally. Still, I think the level of eroticism in the novel could use some improvement. Ivy relied so heavily on lust to portray their love that it overshadowed the book's main plot. Besides a few instances, there was barely any interaction between Avani and Flint without salacious undertones and acts. Lust is not love; hence, I hope the author balances the book's main plot and the main characters' feelings in the next book. Considering that this is the first book in the "Her Elementals" series, I look forward to seeing a more tasteful depiction of love and romance in subsequent installments.
The book's premise is promising, but its wanton eroticism outshines the plot. Therefore, my rating is 3 out of 5 stars. The editing is impeccable, but the execution could be better.
Readers with a penchant for fantasy and erotic romance novels with dominant female characters will find the story worthwhile. However, it's heavy on gore and eroticism, making it unsuitable for sensitive and younger readers.
******
Earth's Touch
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
