Blog Tour: The Last Arakad Book 1 by Guillaume Wolf – Book Review

Today is my stop for The last Arakad blog tour and I’m doing a book review.

Release date: April 20, 2012
Publisher: Createspace
Format: ebook (provided to me in exchange for an honest review)
Age Group: Young Adults
Pages: 262 (238, not counting the title page, etc)
Source for Synopsis: Goodreads
Challenge: (personal) 2012 Reading Challenge

Do you believe in destiny? When sensitive Maya moves with her brother Thomas from Los Angeles to Paris hoping for a better life, she has no idea that everything is about to dramatically change. What starts as an initiation into the age-old Arakad magical tradition takes an unexpected turn when a wave of brutal murders shatters her world. Caught up in an ancient prophecy, she finds herself at the center of a ruthless battle between good and evil in which humanity’s future is at stake. When all hope is lost and she becomes the final target of a sinister clan, will Maya learn to trust herself and her own power? Or will her own fears prevail?

Some Quotes

I forgot to look for and write some when I was reading this book, and since it’s an ebook, I don’t feel like skimming through it. So, this time, like a few other times, there are no quotes to share here.

Gore: No
Magic: yes
Romance: No (this is the second book that I read in a while where there was no romance in, this part is kind of refreshing after reading so many paranormal romances).

Action: 4 stars
Pacing: 4.5 stars
Plot: 4.5 stars

This is going to be a little shorter than I planned and than my usual reviews for full length novels, for two reasons: one because, I was on vacation with my family (it was a long car ride) and we just came back a few hours ago, and the second is because I finished this book during the trip and then after putting the tablet away, I was so tired that I fell asleep right away and I still can’t remember the book fully, that’s why I always try to write reviews right after finishing the book so that everything is fresh in my mind, but since I was on vacation, I couldn’t do that. So I hope that this review is ok at least.

The story starts with a girl named Maya and her brother in a plane that is going to Paris, France. After their dad died, their mom started drinking excessively, and then she ended up having cancer, they then got a call from a mysterious man who calls himself Uncle D., he offered to help them and so he sent their mom to a hospital in Switzerland to get treated, while the siblings stayed at his house.

This book was so good that right from the start, I couldn’t put it down, I just wanted to continue reading it.

The characters were realistic, I quickly became attached to them, especially Maya and Uncle D., whenever something bad happened to them, I would get sad, whenever something good did, I would be happy. I like Maya, but I just wish that she was a little…I can’t think of a word to describe it (I wish that she was a little like Rose from Vampire Academy, Rosette from Chrono Crusade, the girl from Night World: Book 5 Chosen, I forget her name, basically her attitude), other than that, I like her.

Many things happened in Paris: strikes, Maya and Thomas learning about the Arakad, a huge scam that’s about to become a global product, etc.

There are many things that I like about this book: the concept, the characters and their development, that there is magic, there are so many interesting secrets hidden all over the world and in Uncle D’s home, theis book has depth, etc.

What annoyed me was Thomas’ attitude (Thomas is Maya’s 16 year old brother), he whines a lot, he believed a stranger so quickly and started changing a lot, at least Maya used her brain, she actually thought that something bad was going on and that things aren’t what they seem, it’s hard to explain without spoiling it. I hope that in the next book he sees how stupid and wrong he was about everything, I just wanted to punch him, I’m so glad that he wasn’t the main character in this book. But I can deal with him being like that, since it’s necessary for the story.
I’m really curious about what’s going to happen to the characters next, especially Maya.

This book was well written, enjoyable, and fast-paced. I loved it so much, I really want to read the next book now, I can’t wait, I don’t even know when it’s going to release, so far all I know about it is the title, which is below. When I signed up for this blog tour, i had no idea that this book would be so good, it surprised me in a good way.
I recommend this book to those who like supernatural thrillers.

So far there is only one book in this series so far, I know that there are going to be more, I just don’t know how many yet:

-The Last Arakad (published April 20, 2012)
-The Dark Haze (Release date: ?)

I rated this book: 4.5 stars, (I didn’t make any half star pictures yet, but I might soon).

About the Author

Born in Africa (Sénégal), raised in Paris, France, and currently living in Los Angeles, California, Guillaume Wolf “Prof G.” embodies the spirit of the 21st Century “global village.”

Guillaume has spent decades exploring the transformative power of symbols, archetypes, and creativity (and their relationship with the everyday world); and this passion inspires his writing.

Guillaume’s background includes among others: creative director; branding consultant; and teacher of communication design at the prestigious Art Center College of Design in Pasadena.

He is the author of reDESIGN: reCREATE, a book about reinvention and creativity. The Last Arakad is his first novel.

Guillaume lives with his wife and daughter in Los Angeles, California.

To learn more about Guillaume Wolf’s books and discover additional content, collectibles, and behind-the-scenes bonuses, visit www.Arakad.com

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If you read this book, then tell me what you thought about it in the comments section.