The Angel of Elydria (Book 1 of The Dawn Mirror Chronicles)

FANTASY/STEAMPUNK:  Penelope Fairfax is a college student from Oregon, who has been scared as a mouse since a strange being attacked her a decade earlier. Years later, she begins to have recurring nightmares about a masked specter who wants her dead. After a horrific attack in her mother’s shop, Penny’s odd college professor, Professor Arlington, arrives to transport them both into a strange world called Elydria, one of three worlds ruled by three angels. Fantastical animals, goblins, and humans are all a normal part of society in Elydria. Penny and the professor, along with a two-bit magician, an actress, and a genuine maker of magic are all thrown together with a singular purpose . . . to save the land of Elydria, and hopefully, their own lives.

This enjoyable fantasy is quasi-comparable to The Land of Oz, with good and evil angels replacing witches. The author does a beautiful job of painting a detailed picture of the world of Elydria and its inhabitants, but the build-up for the storyline moved slowly at times. This reader didn’t really get involved until the last quarter of the book. There were minor typos and Penny’s inability to begin a sentence without “Erm” grew annoying. Despite that, readers of Sci-fi/Fantasy/Steampunk will find this a delightful couple of days of reading. The satisfying ending leaves an opening for book two. Well done!

Lori Leger