Girl of Myth and Legend (The Chosen Saga #1) by Giselle SimlettAuthor Website Amazon (UK) Amazon.com I got this ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. WWS Publishing Ltd (ebook), Expected publication date 29 December 2015
363 Pages
A girl with a past she tries to forget, and a future she can't even imagine.
Leonie Woodville wants to live an unremarkable life. She wants routine, she wants repetition, and she wants predictability. So when she explodes in a blaze of light one morning on the way to her college, it's enough to put a real crimp in her day.
And things only get weirder...
Leonie learns from her father that she is last of the Pulsar, a phenomenally powerful member of a magical species called the Chosen. It will be her sole duty to protect the Imperium, a governing hierarchy, from all enemies, and to exceed the reputation of the Pulsar before her. So - no pressure there, then.
Leonie is swept away from her rigorous normality and taken to a world of magic. There, she is forced into a ceremony to join her soul to a guardian, Korren, who is both incredibly handsome and intensely troubled; a relationship for which 'it's complicated' just really doesn't cut it.
But Leonie is soon to learn that this ancient world is no paradise. With violent dissident's intent to overthrow the Imperium, and dark entities with their own agenda, she and Korren find themselves caught in a war where they will have to overcome their differences if they are to survive.
Dare to dream. Dare to hope. Dare to be a legend.
Book One in The Chosen Saga.
I am not extraordinary, nor is my life, and that's how it has to be if I'm going to survive. I live within the jurisdiction of routine, the same continuous cycle of activity, day after day. It might not be what you call stimulating or inspiring, but I'm not looking for the Great Purpose that so many my age are chasing. I'm just trying to get by.
I really enjoyed Girl of Myth and Legend. I didn't love it but I can't say that I didn't enjoy it. The second half of the novel is much better than the first. I loved the concept of the Chosen and the world the author creates. The first half of the novel develops slowly with Leonie suddenly thrust into this world after awakening and having to deal with revelation after revelation. She copes as well as you would except of a teenage girl suddenly yanked out of the safe but dull life she knows. I found her irritating at times. She whines a lot for someone who's suddenly learned she's a powerful being. Her rebellion and attitude towards the people she meets in Duwyn got on my nerves. I'm not saying she should have got down on her knees and worshipped everyone but her attitude was annoying at times - interestingly enough, her attitude is similar to the attitudes of young people I've seen around me where they have no respect for anyone. It just bothered me. I was also bothered by the iffy behaviour of her father, a powerful seer whose reasons for hiding Leonie never quite added up. Girl of Myth and Legend was a lot of fun to read especially when the Rebels turn up and things go a little crazy.
Girl of Myth and Legend does a good job of laying the foundations for a new YA series and I would be happy to read more of Leonie's adventures.
