Review: Overall a really unique book!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 18, 2011
***May contain spoilers***When I first started reading this book and learning of the world of Elementals I couldn't help but be overwhelmed by its cuteness (sylphids, faerie-like creatures, flying about day in and day out, making clouds, rainbows, and the likes of)- there were countless times I literally "Awwww"ed out loud while reading the book. But then I was quite taken aback by something that happened in the book. Sex.Now don't get me wrong, I am not a prude when it comes to sex in books whatsoever- I think that there is a time and place for it/ for it to be successfully done but I don't think that it was entirely successful in this book and I think that it didn't fit the overall feel of the book. The cutesy-ness/ innocence of the book and its characters- elements which had completely defined the first bit of the book were gone, replaced by a borderline obsessive feel (basically Alice, as a sylphid, stumbles across Daniel, the boy that she falls in love with, having sex with his girlfriend. Being invisible Alice is able to watch the entire dealio and is able to position herself in a way that she feels/ thinks she is the one having sex with Daniel and not his girlfriend. I just found it all to be very awkward and borderline voyeuristic).*I should make note that the sex in the book wasn't overly graphic, like you would find in an adult PNR/ UF book, but I personally felt that it was more graphic than the large majority of YA books that do contain sex- ie. "Desires of the Dead" by Kimberly Derting or the "Vampire Academy" series by Richelle Mead AND I should make note that I am in no means getting involved in the 'should there be sex in YA books?' debate.*Somewhat awkward sex scene set aside, I did quite enjoy the book overall because of it originality (it was unlike anything I have ever read before) and its characters. Alice was generally a very sweet, albeit naive, character, while Daniel was a true knight in shining armor- putting her safety before his own in every single instance. Furthermore, Dante, Wren, and Shane were the most well developed and likeable secondary characters I have ever had the pleasure of reading before.