The Claiming Words
by Tricia Drammeh
Summary: The Alexanders have always kept their secrets hidden…
When sixteen-year-old Jace Alexander moves to the small town of Oaktree, Georgia, he attracts the attention of every girl in school. Shy, introverted Alisa Cole immediately casts Jace in the leading role of her latest fantasy, but she assumes he’ll never return her interest. After she saves Jace from a Hunter, everything changes. Her accidental discovery of Jace’s secret propels her into a world of magic and danger. Alisa’s newfound courage is put to the test when Jace introduces her to his intimidating older brother, Bryce, and she decides she would rather battle a Hunter than endure another moment under Bryce’s intense scrutiny.
Jace and Bryce aren’t the only ones with secrets…
Rachel Stevens is the girl who has it all. She’s beautiful, popular, and in possession of an ancient power which endangers not only her, but those sent to protect her. Jace is drawn to Rachel—and he isn’t the only one. The Demon Re’Vel will do anything to claim her—even if it means waging a war with the entire Alexander family. As layers of secrets are peeled away, revealing the truth of her heritage and her family’s betrayal, Rachel struggles to resist an immortal suitor who stalks her in her dreams. With the Alexanders fighting to protect her, can Rachel escape the power of the Demon and his Claiming Words?
Source: I received a copy of this book for a blog tour in exchange for an honest review and participation.
Review:
I enjoyed The Claiming Words quite a bit. The story was fascinating and I thought it was interesting to have the points of view of Alisa and Rachel when neither were quite close to each other. I suppose I’m used to dual narratives involved love interests or friends and it was different to see Alisa’s and Rachel’s story overlap one another the way they did. Both characters were completely different and held a tiny bit of animosity towards each other in the beginning.
The Claiming Words was a story about witches and demons and magic. The Alexander family were witches and they fought off Hunters and Demons frequently. Alisa became a part of the family because of her courage and strength and Rachel was eventually part of the family later on because of another, more unique situation.
I loved the conflict in the novel, thought it took awhile for Rachel’s character to grow on me because I connected to Alisa early on in the book. I loved Alisa because she was shy and unsure of herself, but possessed strength she didn’t even know about and eventually grew into herself. I always appreciate character growth like that and I loved her. Rachel was the kind of girl who was sure of herself, but as she found out more about herself, she ended up being the one who was weaker. It was interesting to see the characters sort of trade places as far as self esteem went because of the conflicts in their lives.
Without giving much away, I loved Jace and Bryce and I loved how the romance between all of the characters worked out because it was exactly how I wanted it to be. I love when a YA romance focuses on how being in love with the right person makes you a better you and The Claiming Words definitely had that. Alisa just shined and it was such a contrast from her early on in the novel. I thought it was absolutely wonderful.
There were a few errors in my copy. For some reason, I had some formatting errors that spaced everything far apart and switched up the order of some lines. For example, my copy read in this order occasionally and I had to backtrack and fit the lines together:
123 789 456 I’m not sure if this was just an error in converting it to read on my Kindle or not. I only mention it because even though I had to work to get the story to flow, I still liked it enough to give it 4 stars and I think that says something. The spelling/grammatical errors were few and far between that I noticed and weren’t distracting, but I always try to mention it when I notice it because I know it bothers some readers.
As much as I loved the story and the characters, I have to admit that I strongly dislike the cover. I would have never read this book had I seen the cover first. Fortunately, I was introduced to the synopsis and didn’t see the cover until I was already interested in the book. It’s a shame because I really loved the story and I know other readers will overlook the book because of it. Fortunately, according to author’s blog post, a new, improved cover may be on the way.
Overall, The Claiming Words was a fantastic paranormal YA romance full of magic, diversity, love, and strength. I fell in love with the Alexander family, Alisa, and Rachel and I definitely recommend this book to others.
About the Author:
Tricia Drammeh is a wife and a mother of four children. Although she currently lives in Missouri, she has called many places home, including Georgia, Ohio, and California. She’s worked in retail, customer service, sales, and accounting, but writing has always been her dream career. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys reading, drinking vast amounts of coffee, and spending time with her family and the multitude of animals who have taken over her home. Tricia is currently working on her sixth novel.
Tricia Drammeh’s Website Tricia Drammeh’s Blog Facebook Fan Page Twitter: @triciadrammeh Goodreads Book Page The Claiming Words Website
Where to Buy: Amazon
Blog Tour Hosted by Megan @ Reading Away the Days a YA review blog
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