Elder Ascending: The Rise of Princess Alex by Jeff Koke

What worked:

The author quickly gets readers thinking and speculating in the opening pages. The prologue describes a woman being threatened by shapeshifters, telling them her baby is dead. Then, the opening chapter finds 12-year-old Alex writing in her journal about her dream of that same scene. She then goes to Tae Kwon Do class where her sparring partner, Derek, says that she’s more powerful than she knows. Alex is confused about this new student’s knowledge of her, and readers will wonder about his identity and abilities. Alex’s puzzlement will continue throughout the book as she finds herself caught between two factions of Elders. Someone is trying to sabotage Alex’s efforts to find her mother’s crown, and readers will be engaged as they try to figure out the character’s identity. It will be a surprise.

The Hyrands believe the immortals should live in harmony with humans and act as their guardians. However, the Vestrals believe humans should be their slaves, causing a rift with the other Elders. Malachon leads the Vestrals, he wants the rift to continue, and he’ll do anything to stop anyone opposing him. Alex learns that her parents came from the two different sides, and Malachon kills her mother in the book’s opening pages. He wants Alex dead, and she spends much of the story learning to defend herself and avoiding Malachon’s cronies. All the while, she’s trying to learn about the world of Elders and how to master her rapidly emerging abilities. Arthur and Dominic share information from the Hyrand’s point of view, while Derek is sharing contradictory ideas from the Vestrals.

Learning that she’s an Elder princess creates conflicts in Alex’s human life. She begins to clash with her mother, who doesn’t understand the pressures she’s facing. Alex can’t tell her best friend, Jenny, anything either, and this causes animosity and hurt feelings. Alex wants to tell her the truth, but she’s afraid it will endanger Jenny’s life. Alex dreads being around Jenny because she doesn’t know what to say to her friend. She still considers confiding in Jenny until Arthur shares a blunt truth. If any Elders discover Jenny knows the truth, one of them will kill her to protect the secret.

What didn’t work as well:

Being told you are immortal should come as a shock, but Alex takes it in stride. Also, epilogues usually tell readers what’s happening after the plot’s resolution, but this one clarifies something that happened during the story. The word epilogue creates expectations, so perhaps the title should have been left off the last chapter.

The final verdict:

Alex’s situation creates tension and suspense, as her thirteenth birthday becomes a countdown clock. The book has action, complicated character relationships, and mystery, so I highly recommend you try this book yourself.