What a tour de force. This is the prequel to A Land of Fire and Ash (ALOFA), and after reading this book, OMG, ALOFA becomes an even better storyline. I highly recommend reading this one first because the story here gives context to ALOFA. In The Dandelion Tree, we meet the sisters, Kharis and Saya. Kharis is the keeper of a fire demon imprisoned inside her body, and Saya is the protector (won't spoil this part).

All appears to be well until the sisters turn 12 and something terrible happens. I won't spoil this, but the event happens rather quickly in the book, setting up the stage for what the main character, Kharis, will face. Then, we fast forward, and Kharis is now 20 years old.

Due to the demon, Kharis holds extraordinary magical power, except everyone is afraid of it, doesn't understand what it is (I mean, it comes from a demon). The sisters love each other, and A.S.R. Gelpi does such an awesome job displaying this relationship. It's sweet, funny, and annoying. It was my favorite part.

The character development is outstanding. The author really delves into the psychology of trauma to create relatable, real characters. The pacing was great. The plot is well fleshed out. This book kept me reading. I just had to know what happened next. The secondary characters blew my mind, especially Master Aravani. My only complaint is that I wished to see/read more of him. He was such an enigmatic character. The ending signals that more is coming, and I just have to know.

This epic fantasy book DELIVERS. Its take is fresh and unexpected, and yet, universal. This author hit it on the nail. I was very pleased, at the edge of my seat at times, loved the sisters, hated the villain, and wondered about Aravani. Great main characters. Great secondary characters. This was an awesome book. Loved every minute of it.

This was a great prequel to the The Dandelion Chronicles series, it does what I was hoping for in a beginning entry. The story was what I was hoping for and I was invested in what was going on in the story. A.S.R. Gelpi has a great writing style and it worked perfectly for the fantasy genre. The characters were what I was expecting and I really enjoyed getting to know them and go on this adventure with them.

“Watching a tree is not enough to make one a gardener,” Hillal said. “The work needed to grow one is the training: tending to the seeds, the roots, watering, pruning, harvesting its fruit. Even making a hole in the ground is gardening, for the soil must be right. Spiritual growth is similar."