Title: The Beholder (The Beholder, #1)
Author: Anna Bright
Pages: 448 pages
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: 4th June 2019
Blurb from Goodreads:
Selah has waited her whole life
for a happily ever after. As the only daughter of the leader of
Potomac, she knows her duty is to find the perfect match, a partner
who will help secure the future of her people. Now that day has
finally come.
But after an excruciatingly public rejection from her closest childhood friend, Selah’s stepmother suggests an unthinkable solution: Selah must set sail across the Atlantic, where a series of potential suitors awaits—and if she doesn’t come home engaged, she shouldn’t come home at all.
From English castle gardens to the fjords of Norge, and under the eye of the dreaded Imperiya Yotne, Selah’s quest will be the journey of a lifetime. But her stepmother’s schemes aren’t the only secrets hiding belowdecks…and the stakes of her voyage may be higher than any happy ending.
My Review:
*I received an eARC of this book
in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to FFBC and HarperTeen*
Selah
is the only child of the leader of Potomac. She must find a partner
to ensure the future of Potomac is secure.
When
Selah is rejected in public by her closest friend, Selah’s
stepmother gives her a chance to find a fiancé abroad. So Selah
finds herself on the Beholder, crossing the Atlantic and on her way
to meet several potential suitors. However, Selah’s stepmother has
made it clear that Selah should only come back home if she is
engaged.
Determined
to return home to her ill father and her people, Selah must choose
her future husband from her stepmother’s list. But her stepmother
hasn’t made things easy for Selah.
Can
Selah beat her stepmother at her own game?
Will
she fall in love?
The
premise for The Beholder really
intrigued me, especially as it’s inspired
by The Odyssey.
The
cover is gorgeous, but, unfortunately, I don’t feel the same about
the rest of the book.
I
had mixed feelings about Selah. There were times when I liked her and
felt sorry for her, but there were others when she annoyed me.
None
of the characters particularly stood out for me.
The
mix of fairytales, myths/legends and the real world (albeit a
historical one with little technology) was interesting but there were
times when I found it a bit jarring.
The
plot was okay. Given the length of the novel not much happened, and I
found what did happen pretty predictable. I know that Selah was under
time constraints, but I would have liked her
to have met more of her
suitors.
I
wasn’t a big fan
of the romance.
The
writing style wasn’t one of my favourites, and I found some of the
conversations odd. There were also some actions that were repeated a
lot, like running hands
through hair.
I
feel like The Beholder
had a lot of potential, but, for me, it didn’t quite hit the mark.
I
am disappointed that I didn’t enjoy this more.
Overall
this was an okay, but disappointing read.
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