Review by Wondrous_Tales -- The Crystilleries of Echoland

[Wondrous_Tales]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Crystilleries of Echoland" by Dew Pellucid.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Will Cleary is a twelve year old boy desperate to find his abducted twin sister, Emmy. He and Emmy were both abducted at the age of two, and somehow, he was returned a week later in a curious fashion. He embarks upon a dangerous quest where he learns about the nature of people, uncovers dark truths, and makes lifelong friends. Will learns that there are two realms; his realm, and the Echoland. The people in his realm are known as Sounds, whereas the people in the Echoland are known as Echos. For each Sound, there is an Echo counterpart reflected in the other realm. Echos only live while their respective Sound remains alive. This adventure surrounds Will and his Echo counterpart on a journey to change the laws and ways of a realm.

The Crystilleries of Echoland is a novel by Dew Pellucid that clutches your attention early on and does not release it until the end. I keep thinking it’s a mix of Chronicles of Narnia meets Harry Potter. This is a fantasy, murder mystery with magic, royal conflict, and plot twists!

I loved the setting in Echoland. The imagery was my favorite part of the novel. The author did a wonderful job painting with words. It truly made you feel like you were there to smell the sweet tobacco smoke, to see Valerian’s long cheekbones, nose, and chin, bright green eyes, and warrior’s face, and to hear him speak in his soft, caressing voice. I loved the rising action to the climax of the story, but I was somewhat disappointed in the falling action. I felt there was something lacking and the story wrapped up really quickly after the falling action.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I read the kindle version and listened to the audible audiobook as well. The kindle version has great illustrations that add to the mystery of the story. The audible audiobook is narrated by B.J. Harrison and is phenomenal! He personifies each character and adds even more depth to the storyline with voice portrayals. This novel was well-edited and I found no errors. There was no explicit language and were no erotic scenes. The characters were well established and unique.

I would highly recommend this book to middle grade and young high school teens. I believe the conflict was complex enough to keep this audience fully engaged and intrigued. This novel is a good choice for Harry Potter fans hungry for more fantasy and magic!

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The Crystilleries of Echoland
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[Erin Painter Baker]

I also really enjoyed the audible version of this book. It was very well done. I agree with you about the way the story wound down after the climatic battle. I think some of that is because it looks like it was written with at least one sequel in mind, but I really would have loved to see the reunion between the parents and Emmy, and would have liked to see a bit of them all living as a family in the sound realm.