This was a great premise and while I struggled to connect to the main character I enjoyed the overall story.

*I received this e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Alternative worlds, magical portals, gods, unicorns, adventures and prophecies. This book is every fantasy lover's dream. Ekata is an utopian like world, where its members have supernatural powers like empathy, telekenesis, and telepathy. Asher, our main protagonist, has the gift of empathy and prophetic dreams. Upon coming of age, he finally sets out to fulfill his destiny to help put an end to warring factions. He travels to Earth along with his friend, Daivat to find Alexis, the Chosen One. Together, they help her navigate her powers and this new world Ekata, training her for the fight to save humanity.

This is a brilliant fantasy book and I read this so fast. I just had to know what happened next. This book includes multiple worlds, portal technology and prophecies and it executes them well. This can be quite a dark book at times but it was balanced well so that it wasn’t all doom and gloom. I’m really glad I finally got to it💛

I gave this a 3.5 / 5 star rating.

Ekata is a utopian world where violence is unimaginable to the people. But there is a boy named Asher and he sees visions of violence and prophecies of world-ending threats. Alexis is thrown in the way of a prophecy and is thrown into an adventure with Asher.

Alexis and Asher are both lovely characters even if they felt a bit stereotypical. The characters felt just as trope-y as the general plot. The angsty teen, the chosen one trope, the cute but heroic love interest. To say this felt unoriginal and so full of tropes that I felt like I'd already read this book and these characters so many times.

It took a while to get into the action of the story, and the ending ended up falling a bit flat even if there were some exciting moments.

The best thing about this book was the fantastic world-building and great writing. Ekata was so well thought out and it really was well done. The writing was good and really drew me in.

The world was great and even if the story was a bit trope-filled, I still enjoyed it and found it entertaining.

A strong start to a new coming of age trilogy. I thought the dual POV between Asher and Alexis worked well in this book. It lets the reader in and gain a better understanding for both the characters and the world the author created.
I do wish there was more detail about the world and cultures, but I suspect the author will delve into that a little deeper in the subsequent books.

It's hard to describe my feelings for this book when they're so contradictive. There were times when I was so immersed that I couldn't put it down and then there were times when I was even a bit annoyed, lol.

So there's a lot of potential, let me start by saying that. I loved the world of Ekata and I thought the author did a really great job of world-building. This planet was so very interesting to read about!

The plot of the story was really interesting but I do have to point out that it all felt a bit rushed to me at times. There's still a really intense and enthralling build-up present which makes you want to read the second book right away.

The characters were likable, especially Asher. He's your typical YA hero that you end up falling in love with so easy hihi.. Alexis is our typical YA hero, 'the chosen one'. Often I don't mind those 'chosen ones' but more often than not I feel like... here we go again, you know? It's sometimes just a bit too much of the same when it comes to books like these. And reading about Alexis made me feel that way as well unfortunately because I often didn't like her behavior. Sure, some things are excusable given the situation she's living, but at one point or another I want to see some progress in the character development and for them to 'snap out of it' and transform into 'something more', you know? I really hope her character development in the next book will receive some better progress.

Despite not being a big fan of Alexis and her being the main character, I did enjoy this book, overall. It has a great world-building, an interesting plot and there's so much potential present. I'm really curious to see what'll happen to the story and the characters and their developments in the next book.

This is a book that I'd recommend it for anyone who loves alternate world fantasies and hero quest tales. It's a great first book in a new series that has definitely potential to become an epic one even!

Talk about a well developed, constructed world! The first book in this series uses some cliches for sure, but there is also a lot of original ideas, content and plot twists. However, it lost the fifth star with that weak end. Come on, you cannot build so much tension and torture a character so much that revenge is so, so simple. I refuse to accept it just like that. I will still wait for the next book to come, nonetheless.

I did a video review on this book: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1lvZr_LrJ8

(Need to enable automatic English subtitles)

I don’t think there is any way I can particularly dress up this review. I am, after all, in the business of being honest so I’ll just come out with it.

Overall, I didn’t like this book at all. I’ll start with what redeeming qualities the book did have, which brought my rating of the book up from a 1 star to a 2 star review.

I liked the concept of the world of Ekata – a world without violence. The main point of conflict within the story is a man’s desire to prevent violence on Earth… but to do so he would remove the free-will of all people. I like how the morality of such an action is called into question and how this drives the resistance party.

The tale was also well written; even if I didn’t think all that much of the content of the story all the time, what was on the page was outlined clearly so that the story was easy to follow. This also proved useful because I found myself picking it up and putting it down quite regularly, but I wasn’t hindered by this at all. I also quite enjoyed the descriptions of nature and the world-building.

Inevitably, we were going to get to the parts I didn’t like… fairly quickly, unfortunately.

This book features so many unoriginal fantasy tropes that it is not even funny. I feel like I talk about this a lot, but is it too much to ask for a little originality? This book has the classic Good vs Evil, the inexperienced young one(s) exploring their Coming of Age to face-off against the veteran… and a quest to fulfil a prophecy in order to achieve all this, tied in a neat little package with a double bow. Oh, and there’s a host of magic and a unicorn to boot! Hooray!

To say I didn’t know that some of these elements were going to play a part would be a lie; I knew it was a prophesised ‘coming-of-age’ type tale. For me though, the straw that broke the camel’ back was the budding relationship between our two MC’s.

Now, I’m a girl and I’ve been a teenager, I know how all this raging-hormone stuff works. You break out in a ridiculous amount of spots (always on the worst day imaginable) and have more mood swings than hot dinners. I can hand on heart say that if a complete stranger arrived on my doorstep, turned my world on its head and was claiming that the fate of another world rested on my shoulders, I would slam the door, bolt it and call the police I would not even remotely consider how attractive he was. Call me frigid, soulless, or even a liar if you like, but I wouldn’t… given that this is pretty much the first thought that pops into our second MC’s head from the moment we meet her, I didn’t like or relate to Alexis at all.

Unfortunately, whilst a lot of the personality traits Alexis shows in the book are indeed present in young, angsty teenage girls, the only depth of character to this tempest of emotion is a love of horses… and there is just something about girls that love horses that just smacks of “spoilt brat”. There is a quote by Terry Pratchett that I aptly read only recently, which I think sums up the whole situation entirely:-

“There is a type of girl who, while incapable of cleaning her bedroom even at knife point, will fight for the privilege of being allowed to spend the day shovelling manure in a stable.”
-Terry Pratchett, Soul Music

Asher was more tolerable than Alexis, although nothing particularly grabbed me about his personality either. I wanted to read his chapter POV’s instead of Alexis’ because I didn’t hate his, not because I was looking forward to them.

My final bugbear about the book is, as chronology would suggest, the ending. Given the whole prophecy and the weight resting on Asher and Alexis’ shoulders, you would expect something to happen, right? It has so obviously been set up for a sequel, but it felt like I endured 400 pages for nothing of consequence to happen. I was left sorely disappointed.

So, ladies and gentlemen, to summarise – if you like reading about moody, insecure and overly-hormonal teenagers, spending every free moment not training to save the world fawning over each other, then this book is definitely for you! I have no problem with negative emotions in books, if it is written well and you are truly immersed with the character. If, however, you find yourself carrying their emotional baggage like an albatross around your neck, or find them just plain bad company like the last party guest that just won’t leave, it makes for very difficult reading.

This book was not my cup of tea at all, which is a shame.

I really enjoyed this book, and I absolutely loved the character Alexis. I found the storyline well developed and constructed. This book gets a huge yes from me because this debut was so enjoyable! Thank you, Bad Poodle.

The premise sounded super interesting and promising, but unfortunately I don't care much for the story or the characters. I am not interested in writing a review.

I really loved the concept of this book but I really couldn't get through it. It took forever to get the boys started on their journey. But it seems like it takes much too long for the story to start.

By the time I finished the book I was glad I read it. Although, there was a while there I wasn't sure I was going to finish because it was slow paced and I really struggle with that as a reader. I look forward to the next installment.

<i>I received Ekata for free through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.</i>

I'd honestly rate this more 3.5 stars than 4, but I rounded up because I don't think it would be fair to give a 3 which is less than it deserves.

Asher and Alexis were meant to save the worlds, Ekata and Earth. Bound by a prophecy with the aid of a multitude of friends, they face unimaginable evil together to restore peace. Tied by fate in numerous ways, their lives change forever on this turning point.

I am really interested in the world of Ekata; this novel barely scratched the surface of the customs, lands, and peoples and makes you want to know more and see more and do more. It draws you in once you get past the bumpier beginnings and before you know it, you're falling headlong into Ash and Lexi's adventure! I find it very hard to stop myself from gushing about plot points to describe the greatness held within this novel!

I'm going to be honest though (as promised), I struggled through this book until nearly the very end. It wasn't that the story was awful, the characters weren't static, but until about 55-60% of the way through, I had a hard time getting into the atmosphere of the book. It felt very passive and "info-dumpy" while it trying to inform the reader of what was going on and give them knowledge of Ekata and the characters. Rather than being woven in, it's more being told to the reader through passive information. This gave it a forced feel like things were being purposefully omitted or put down more as fact instead of being woven in - which could be due to the publisher or editor's preference and not necessarily the author's.

I did also feel more of the author's voice and style in the last half of the book or so which made everything feel much more put together and allowed me to get invested in what was happening!

Furthermore, I felt certain parts of the plot lacked a natural progression but I can't divulge without going into the plot a bit. Here comes some spoilers:

<spoiler>There is a sincere lack of resistance or conflict in the progression of the main character's evolution. When Asher arrives on Earth, he just happens to be close enough to find Alexis quickly. When he does, her adoptive mother Rose puts up no resistance at all to Asher whisking her away and just accepts Alexis's fate. Alexis automatically has intuitive/empathic abilities like Asher with absolutely no training whatsoever to begin with and only needs to try one time to learn something new from Asher or other characters. When they arrive on the Chinmaya islands for training, there isn't anything they can't learn to do and no expressed importance on why what they are learning is essential to their quest.

Additionally, the two days they spent together travelling before Chinmaya was enough for Asher and Alexis to fall in love. It felt very lackluster and unrefined and unrealistic. On top of that, Alexis is the princess in need of saving to everyone - everyone in this novel. For someone who is hyped up so much as being so important to the restoration of peace in the worlds, she's an extraordinarily weak character. She is not allowed in the action, she's constantly in need of saving, everyone tiptoes around her and treats her like a tiny child. She's over-emotional and incapable of independent thought. Maybe it's just the feminist in me - but it really grates on my nerves that she never - ever helps herself or finds out any information firsthand and authentically.</spoiler>

Regardless of my petty annoyances - I clearly enjoyed this book well enough to not just finish it but actually really like it <i>and</i> want to read the next two books. I think this is the start of a great series! All things considered, I will be recommending this book to friends and family who are into fantasy/dystopian/urban genres.

This book was a huge, huge, yes for me! I adored Alexis! This book just kept me wanting more and more!

This book was a great start to a trilogy that Law is writing. Wishing that the fight scenes were drawn out a bit more since I felt that the end was a bit rushed. I do like how the characters not only communicate one on one in person but in mind as well. Can't wait for the second book!

Asher dreams of destruction, the end of the world. Alexis is the one to save it. Issue, they are on two separate planets/worlds. Well, that's one way to have to over come obstacles in your relationships. Parts of this are slow, some down right dull, interspersed with interring things that kept me reading. I wanted to see how it ended. It's a series, so lots of things aren't answered, and yet, it was up and down enough that I'm mixed about reading the next installment or not.

My copy came from Net Galley. My thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is left of my own free volition.

...

*deep breath*

...

*long exhale*

This book. It's hard to describe my feelings for this book. They are very hot and cold. There were times when I was so immersed that I couldn't put it down! And then there were times were every other sentence I read made my eyes roll so hard I gave myself a headache. Hint hint: That's usually when Alexis was talking.

The premise of this book is classic, but still interesting. A boy (Asher) with visions of doom is destined to team up with a girl (Alexis) from a prophecy to save the world. It's complicated by the fact that the boy lives on a completely different planet from the girl. I really loved the world of Ekata. I thought the author did a great job of describing this planet that was so similar and yet so different from our own. I liked the plot, though at times it did feel a little bit rushed. I feel like the author was trying to build something epic, but also wanted to keep it under 400 pages. I get it, but it definitely detracted from the story.

And then there was our heroine. Alexis was ever so slightly insufferable. I mean, at first I understood her constant moodiness and the way she shut out anyone and everyone that was trying to help her. Being "The Chosen One" is a lot to handle. But at some point she needed to suck it up and just... stop! And don't even get me started on the insta-love. GUH, the insta-love! I feel like this book would have been vastly improved if the relationship between Asher and Alexis had been given time to naturally develop. I mean, there's going to be a sequel! There's time to let them get to know each other which would make their "Tuwe Wove" at least a little bit more believable. And the level of miscommunication on a planet filled with people who can LITERALLY READ MINDS is... well... mind-boggling. I get that they can shield from one another, but when the fate of not one world, but two could possibly be messed up because you don't feel like letting people know what you're thinking? Just come on!

*deep breath*

*long exhale*

My slightly coherent rant aside, this book was, overall, enjoyable and I feel like the author has some real potential. Just... maybe don't rush things quite as much. And maybe give your characters time to develop individually before they are completely wrapped up in each other.

Asher grew up on Ekata, a utopian world of peace and spiritual purity. He always had visions of death and destruction, which is unheard of in his world, and he was ostracized for it. He learned of the prophecy regarding Ekata and Earth, and had to find Alexis, who grew up in New Zealand feeling as though she didn't belong. Together they had to learn how to hone their psychic gifts and save both worlds.

I found it really difficult to get attached to the main characters of the story. I had no real drive to complete the book, as a matter of fact, and didn't really have a lot of concern about the fate of the worlds. In fact, the character I liked best was Daiviat, who was sent off about a third of the way through the book.

It's not that the characters are poorly described; we're in their heads and see all of the conflicts that they have. There's little depth to the characters, and I just didn't find them very compelling.

The "teens with special gifts that have to save the world" trope doesn't feel redone in a new way here. It is listed as the first book in the Ekata trilogy, but I'm honestly not very interested in reading more about these characters or the world they live in.

This was a really interesting read. It covered the concept of more than one world and portal travel nicely. It seemed to be set in present time with a present day Earth, but in the alternate world the people live simple, peaceful, clean lifestyles but they have unlocked advanced technology within nature and themselves. The people from the alternate world, Ekata, possess "powers" such as empathy, telekenesis, telepathy and other things that we would consider magical or fantastical abilities. For those on Ekata, those gifts are normal for people to have and regularly taught subjects in school. Where the book becomes a fantasy is the addition of the Pure Ones, unicorn like creatures who have powers and knowledge above and beyond what humans possess. The Pure Ones are major players in the plot.

Ekata follows our two main characters, Asher who was raised on Ekata, and Alexis who is native to Ekata but was raised on Earth for her protection. Asher has been having horrible visions for years, and he has be ostracized from his community because of them. He finds out on the day of his graduation that his visions prove that he is meant to help the chosen one end the war that has been going on for years and save not only his world but Earth as well. Asher is part of a prophecy but unlike most YA books, he isn't the chosen one, he has a major part to play in assisting the chosen one succeed in saving humanity. Alexis or Lexi, is actually the chosen one, daughter of two high priests of Ekata, is meant to stop the war her power hungry father has started. She has been hidden away since her birth on Earth so her father can't find her.

The world building was excellent. The description of the environment made me feel like I was there. I do feel like the details of the story could have been a little more flushed out. There were times where there weren't enough details and the characters just either accepted what happened without explanation or just knew what happened and never explained why. Other times things were repeated or over explained.

Overall, I'm anxious to see where the next part of the story is headed. There is a ton of potential and plenty of places for the author to take us with this creative world and plot. If you like fantasy give this a try.

Unfortunately I did not enjoy this first part of the Ekata series. The characters were too simplistic in their motivations, dialogue was stilted and one-dimensional, and there was too much straight description to enjoy the actual action taking place. The worldbuilding in particular just gets dumped onto the reader. I kept waiting for it to improve and pick-up but I ended up losing patience with it and did not finish the last bit. I hate to leave bad reviews such as this though and I hope that I'm an outlier in not enjoying it.