Book Review: "The Eternity Road" by Lana Melyan

The Eternity Road (The Eternity Road Trilogy, Book 1) by [Melyan, Lana]

The Eternity Road by Lana Melyan

Image result for picture of five yellow stars

5 out 5 STARS

Oh. My. Gosh.

WOW! WOW! WOW!

Seriously, when my review starts like this. You know it’s about to get good. So, pull up a chair and get ready for my thoughts on The Eternity Road because I’m about to go in and give you a real look.

Beware, SPOILERS are a part of this review’s breakdown.

I don’t even know where to begin. I think this is one of the first books this summer that BLEW MY MIND. Categorized as YA Paranormal, Sci-Fi/Fantasy with vampire and werewolves, I have to tell you, my first thought was, “What am I getting into?”

Don’t get me wrong. I like Paranormal books, and I enjoy a good Sci-fi or Fantasy novel. YA has a plethora of choices for you to dive into should you choose. I was interested in the storyline, but I feared Twilight might be unfolding before my eyes once again.

Side-note: Don’t get me wrong. I liked Twilight when I first read it. Before the craze and epic bad movies. However, I grew out of them, like any normal human being should, and I wasn’t looking forward to a possible remake special.

Dude. Wasn’t even close.

Lana Melyan took a completely different route. The Eternity Road is what Twilight wishes it could be. Trust me. She spun her magic, sucked you in, and basically made you read the whole book in about 48 hours.

No. Literally. I read the book in two days. The only reason it ended up being two days is because I had to sleep and eat and work. Life is so unfair.

Let me drop the synopsis from Amazon here to give you the proper introduction:

“When her best friend’s brother tells her that two strange men are following her, Amanda thinks that Craig is just being overprotective. Amanda has nursed a secret crush on Craig for years, but he’s never seemed to notice or care about her before.

But Craig’s warning coincides with a strange dream, and Amanda starts to get the sense that nothing in her life is what it seems to be—and that perhaps nothing in her life will ever be the same again.

Then Hanna and Craig start acting really strange. They forbid Amanda from going anywhere without them and insist that she’s in danger.

What Amanda doesn’t know is that Craig and Hanna are Hunters. And their job is to protect Amanda from the vampires chasing her so that she can fulfill her mission. The only catch is that Amanda has no clue she even has a mission to fulfill…”

The summary is intriguing. It doesn’t sound like Twilight. I’m captivated. I want to know more. Thus, begins my happy journey to read one of the best books of my summer.

Here are so many of the reasons that I LOVE this book:

When the story first opens, Amanda has gone to bed and ends up having a dream. The dream is vague but sets the story up for what is to come. Her birthday, relationship to her father and their housekeeper, Melinda, and those of her friends help the plot to build and take shape.

I enjoyed the friendship between Amanda and her friends, Hanna and Kimberly. Their jokes and laughter showed their knowledge of one another and added to the comedic relief of the story. I like how well they get along and how normal their part of the story is, at first.

When things began to change, I am amazed at how their friendship grew and progressed. Even when crazy crap was happening, and no one got the answers they wanted, each hung in there and didn’t give up on the others. The beauty of true friendship shined through and made this book even better.

I loved the timeline. It’s nice going from present to the past and seeing how the others joined the Hunters and their backgrounds. It kept the story engaging and relevant. Some might not like going into the past, but I loved it.

It was nice to have both character perspectives, Amanda’s and Craig’s, in the story. I always like when there are dual viewpoints. The audience gets to experience so much more with the characters and their own feelings and plot points of the storyline. Readers also get the opportunity to connect with more than one character and really have the chance to explore more than one vantage point.

I liked having a bit of Hanna’s point of view as well. It felt pertinent and added to the overall piece. Hearing about her background and how she joined the Hunters made me feel more connected to her character. Also, I felt more of the bond between her, Craig, and the others.

Craig’s background ensnared me. I enjoyed the author giving us information and understanding of who and what Craig was, as well as what happened to him. The entire back and forth between him and Amanda, and how he seemed to know her before, was mysterious. I loved their sense of friendship even before we find out their circumstances.

Eleanor’s part in Craig’s story was both sad and disastrous. I loved their makeshift explanation of her changes when she became one of them. Sadly, her part was tragic in many ways. The correlation between her and Amanda was an exciting and absorbing part of the story. Especially since they have a huge connection that the audience finds out as the plot continues.

I think my favorite part may have been one of the saddest in its own way. We get a glimpse into the lives of the Hunters, the group Craig and Hanna are a part of, and the reader is shown a brief part of Ruben’s past and how he became a Hunter.

Craig asked him why he “killed himself” when he had a choice, when he could have let his horse go instead of holding on, and Ruben told him, “I was a cavalryman. My horse was my friend.”

I wanted to cry. He wanted to save his horse and wouldn’t let go when he could have. I don’t know how you all will take that, but it broke my heart and gave me a special look at Ruben’s character.

I think this is my favorite part of the whole story despite its heartbreaking end. Of course, Samson (the First One of the Hunters) found him and turned him into one of them.

Good choice, Samson. Good choice.

Each of the Hunters’ narratives brought so much depth, insight, and beauty to the whole context. I loved how each association linked together and brought the story full-circle. I was impressed with how the entire tale is slowly revealed and each relationship is tied together into the bigger picture.

Fray’s storyline was subtle and subversive, and as a conspiracy within the whole-- being slowly revealed, was magnificent. It took me completely by surprise! The revelation of this Hunter’s true desires was intense. It was a huge shocker!

The fight Gabriella, another hunter, had was crushing. I won’t tell you who with because you need to read it to find out! I think I held my breath through most of it. I completely teared up after I finished reading the chapter. This scene tore my heart out.

Please don’t even get me started on Alec. Read. The. Story.

When Samson explains to Eleanor what she must do and how it will work toward their future, my mouth dropped open, and I was struck by the brilliance of the plot and how it all worked together.

I am in amazement. It had the most incomparable ending reveal ever. Oh. My. Gosh. I completely cried. This is the very best ending in the whole entire world, and I’m astonished. THIS IS BRILLIANT!!!

Kudos, Lana Melyan!!! This story was unexpected and a sheer pleasure!!

The overall plot, individual storylines, and the characters were a great read. Their interactions, the action itself, and the unveiling of the story piece by piece were engrossing. The whole book was enchanting.

I am SO pleased I had the opportunity to read this book. The entire plot is layered, fast-paced, and delightful. As I said, it’s been a while since I was so overtaken by a storyline and read to the end as fast as I could.

I LOVED all of it!!!

As always, I noticed the grammatical and convention errors, the paragraph issues, and other minor mistakes. I think the book would definitely be even better with their corrections. However, they didn’t take over the story. They didn’t overshadow the brilliance of the plot and the characters. I was so lost in the scenarios and action, I didn’t feel as overwhelmed by the editorial slip ups.

Of course, there is a Book Two, and I’m going to read it! I can’t wait to find out what’s next in this continued story and how everything will end for the Hunters.

Do yourself a favor and READ THIS BOOK!!!

You can find your copy at one of these booksellers:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Goodreads
Half-Price Books

You can find my/this review here:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/review/RL2GB59B0ZM8L?ref_=glimp_1rv_cl

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2052305648

For more summer reads check out my blog post Summer Book Love.

Be aware, I feel this book is for an older audience with some of its content.

The Eternity Road: The Return (The Eternity Road Trilogy, Book 2) by [Melyan, Lana]

Lana Melyan was kind enough to answer 3 follow-up questions about The Eternity Road series:

1. Why did you decide to make The Eternity Road into a trilogy instead of just one book?

In the beginning, I had outlined the story for one book. But as I started writing, it expanded and the titles for two more parts just popped into my head. So I decided to divide it.

2. Will we hear more of Ruben's story in the sequel?

Ruben has a bigger part in the second book, but there won’t be more backstories, only a few memories from Samson’s journal.

3. Without revealing too much, will Amanda's story in the present be reconciled with her story in the past?

It’s hard to explain without spoiling it for the ones who haven’t read the first book yet.

I don’t think there's a choice. The past was with her all the time, and it should be a relief to finally understand where all these inexplicable feelings were coming from. All I can say is that the past and present will coexist for some time until the strongest half takes over.

Thanks to the author, Lana Melyan, for sending me a free copy of The Eternity Road for a fair and honest review.