Review: Fire & Water Combined, a Sizzling Serial Story (just the beginning)
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 01 21, 2013
Two Moons of Sera, a Serial Story by Pavarti K. Tyler ~ A girl born of water and a boy born of fire; ensorcelled by the aspects of the land and a war neither of them understand. ~"All the Fun of YA written for Adults." There you go, the synopsis says right up front Two Moons of Sera is written in the style of a young adult tale but with concepts and ideas adult in nature. It is not because of gratuitous sex scenes or mindless acts of violence, although there are some pretty epic and violent moments which are a pivotal part of the tale. The concepts are a bit over an average teens head.In this serialized tale, Pavarti has blended the fantasy of youth, young love, living wild and free then being forced to deal with sociological and cultural struggles tasting of dystopic desperation. Two Moons of Sera picks up each question and answers it by skipping across the surface.. one... two...three...what happens next?In Two Moons of Sera, Serafay is the child of a Saulwet (creature of the sea) and an Erlander (creature of the land). She is hidden away from both worlds by her mother. A world embroiled in a war which the author mirrors many conflicts our own history shares and continue too. Neither culture understands nor will they take the time to understand the different aspects and because of this Serafay's mother Nerafay ends up being trapped (actually netted) while on land and impregnated in a Mengele-ian like fashion.Though Serafay's mother manages to escape and give birth to Sera she and her daughter are no longer accepted. Trapped between both worlds she does her best to raise Sera in a beautiful isolated cove. But Sera suffers for it, though she does not realize it. Her personality is rich with color and her mother's still mimics her the Saulwet's, cold and detached. Her mother loves her feircly and tried to protect her but the concept of attachment, and bonding physically is not something her culture does. Getting cuddled and hugged is something Sera has never known.She finds peace beneath the waves, though she only has the ability to be under a bit longer than a normal Erlander unlike her mother, so she spends much of her time on land exploring the forest. But she also cannot be out of the elements or her skin will dry out.Her mother forages for their food and clothing and other essentials from ship wrecks because of the war. Sera is obsessed with things that are Erlandian in nature. Yes it is told a little like that fairy tale. One of the items Sera craves are the books from the wrecks, she dries the pages on the beach and reads them over and over. Because of this obsession and her natural curiosity, when she is suddenly faced with a boy who appears to be Erlandian, instead of running as she has been raised, she is drawn and pulled towards him.Growing up she is taught how evil the Erlanders are and to never wander to far in the forest. But she is 16 and of course is going to stretch and test her apron strings so as fairy tales go here she is  face to face with a boy and the draw of the land grows even heavier.When her mother is killed because of the fighting between the two warring nations, Sera must make decisions about her life. What will she do? How will this end? In her mind she is a monster, and this boy, Tor seems like a prince, despite the dirty hair and lack of in=depth conversations.The rising heat of a new life despite the unknown draws her out of the safety of her cove to face a new life with him.With life settling into a routine neither of them were prepared for what was to come next, their world of nature being walled in and controlled by people who have no clue who and what either of them are. Living in constant fear and surrounded by daily threats. Their growing love and acceptance of each others anomalies are the only solace in a very sterile and rigid world. Just when things seem to be OK, when they think once again will make it ...But wait you are going to have to wait till Part 2 because I cannot give you anymore, I have already given enough hints of spoilers that you should be knocking on Amazon's doors demanding these books! I have not even talked about what happens in Part 2 and 3, how the monstrosities end up being less about Sera and Tor and more about the evil that power brings. But no matter what, even the most evil of groups have someone they are afraid of...Pavarti is jumping on the bandwagon and introducing a story in an age old format, that of the "serial". A few authors have done it successfully before the advent of ereaders during the 20th century, but as with novella's and short stories, ebooks have opened up not only a new world and market, but also dusted off the original story telling concepts such as the serial that can be traced back as far as Shaharazad, the legendary Persian queen and story teller of One Thousand and One Nights.While many groups and writing circles are following the tradition of One Thousand and One Nights to the letter with many authors stories being combined under one serial, many, such as Pavarti K. Tyler have taken up the natural progression such as the tales dating back to the 19th century by the greats like Charles Dickens and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who wrote serials for newspapers just to make ends meet. Stephen King did it with The Green Mile in the mid 90′s and so when I saw it was back with a vengeance I have been following quite a few. Amazon's update system allows authors to offer each serial as it comes out for individual purchase but it also allows you to purchase a promised set of serials where you are alerted by Amazon to their updatesOver all I was enraptured with this beautifully wrought piece. The allegories are being expertly stitched into this ever growing tapestry that when done will adorn a wall in the great hall of my brain. I could see the glint in Tor's eye and feel the dryness of Sera's skin. I caught myself biting the inside of my cheek more than once and wanting to curb stomp a few characters. I have read part 2 and 3 and in the end I felt a little like I had been thrown into the middle of THX-1183 with teenagers, mermaids and firestarters. With part four out, I can only imagine what is to come!