Blog Tour: Wings Of Arian by Devri Walls (Review)

Genre:	Young Adult, Fantasy
Publication.Date	April 24th 2012
Pages:	462
Published By:	Stonehouse Ink |
Website	Devri Walls |
	Wings Of Arian - Goodreads
My review copy:	An eARC from the author via blog tour organized by The Bookish Brunette.

Where to get:

Kiora thought she had never heard a lie until she was sixteen. But she was wrong. Her entire existence was based on nothing but. She thought that evil did not exist. Lie. That magic was not real. Lie. And that the land of Meros was all there was. One more lie.

With Aleric telling her that evil is knocking on the door and that she is the only one who can stop them she has a choice to make. Refuse, or start the wildest most painful ride of her life. 

She reluctantly dips her toe into her new existence of magic and threads, dragons and shapeshifters, and the person who wants to take control of it all: the evil Dralazar. 

However, this journey was never meant to be hers alone. She will be accompanied by a Protector. To her disbelief, and utter irritation they name the hotheaded, stubborn, non -magical, (albeit gorgeous) Prince Emane. They will have to trust each other with their lives, but right now Kiora would settle for a non hostile conversation. 

And now it comes down to this, If you had never heard a lie, would you know when you heard one? Is knowing good from evil innate? Kiora finds herself having to decide who lives and who dies on those very questions.

(Goodreads)

“If I don’t want to talk, you will stop me. If I say something a dragon doesn’t like, he almost sets me on fire. If I get too close to Kiora on an off day, she blows me up. I can’t compete with this magic!”

The dragons were on their way, and would provide more than enough firepower to distract Eleana during the attack. Then Dralazar would be free to do what he needed to do— rid himself of the Solus.

     Devri Walls' debut YA fantasy novel is a richly imagined tale of destiny, lies and promises, epic quests, pain, heartbreak and finding your own place in the world. It's a high fantasy novel, and a really good one at that. With an interesting premise and unique approach to the concept of good and evil, it's a novel that really stands out; a memorable and enjoyable addition to the genre. 

     The world envisioned in this story is beautiful, enthralling and fascinating. It's full of breath-taking places and fantastic creatures (including dragons and shape-shifters). Wings of Arian has everything a good fantasy novel should have: solid, well-thought-out plot line, characters that you actually want to read about, beautifully depicted settings, some decent action, sweeping romance (with a great build-up!), tension, magic, and ancient prophecies. What else could you possibly ask for? The lead character, Kiora, learns that she is the Solus.The faith of the entire world lies in her hands. She is the only one who has the power to face and defeat the evil Dralazar. All she has to do is learn how to use magic. The only problem is.. up until now Kiora had no idea that magic even existed.. 

     As much as I enjoyed the entrancing world building and the deliciously magical aspects of the story, I also thought that the character development was somewhat lacking. It didn't affect my enjoyment in a negative way (not much, at least), and I did like both of the main characters a lot, but I would definitely love to learn more about Kiora, where she came from, and how exactly did she end up being the Solus. I guess you don't necessarily need to know all that, you can just take it at face value and have fun following Kiora's adventures, but - in my opinion - the more backdrop details we get, and the more we learn about character's past, the better we can understand the motives behind their actions. I do, however, have to admit that at 462 pages long Wings of Arian is quite a hefty book and adding even more plot threats (especially flashbacks), would have made the end product heavy and hard to digest. Not to mention potentially confusing. At the same time, though, I'd definitely be delighted if Devri decided to write an e-novella (or even a full-blown novel) about Kiora's past - I'd love to get to know her a little better! 

     I really enjoyed the romance part of the book. I liked Kiora and Emane as a couple, I thought they were great together (and long before they themselves realized that, too!). I appreciated that the love story wasn't rushed - if there's one thing I really hate in YA novels, it's the instant-love theme that seems to be oh-so-very-popular these days. Emane and Kiora took time getting to know - and like - each other. And they didn't always get along, which, too, was fun to watch. They had a great chemistry, though, and seeing their relationship slowly develop and grew stronger with every passing day was both moving and entertaining. 

     The writing was good for a debut novel. Devri writes with exceptional clarity and grace, making it easy for the reader to immerse themselves in the story and visualize all the settings, characters and events. The book is evenly paced, although it's not exactly what I'd call a page-turner, more like a read you slowly sip and savour. 

    Overall, Wings Of Arian was a really good novel. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and am definitely looking forward to the next book in the series!

❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

For full blog tour schedule and a chance to win one of two $100 AMAZON GIFT CARDS, please visit the tour host: The Bookish Brunette.

About the author: 

Devri Walls: lives in Kuna Idaho with her husband and two kids. She has worked as music teacher and currently, a preschool teacher. She majored in theater and her love of a story still drives her today. Thankfully, she has finally found an outlet for all the voices in her head. Her first novel, Wings of Arian, will be released on Amazon May of 2012.

Connect with Devri on-line:
Devri Walls | Twitter | FB | Goodreads 

❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤ ❤

About the Author

Evie is the Blogger behind Bookish. She enjoys reading many different genres, especially YA, Paranormal, Contemporary Fiction and Fantasy.

She loves talking to authors and is always happy to welcome them for interviews, and guest posts. She also likes spreading the love for awesome books and  chatting with fellow book-worms.

You can find Evie here: Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Shelfari | The Library Thing