Review of The Crystilleries of Echoland by Dew Pellucid and Tal Boldo

A young hero must join forces with his alter ego in an elaborate parallel dimension to save his sister and save his own life.

Will Cleary and his twin sister, Emmy, were only two years old when they mysteriously disappeared without a trace. Their disappearances were recorded in a tome known as the "gravestone book." However, Will was able to return a week later accompanied by Deá and Damian, a wolf and a falcon. Damian and Deá, two Echoes, have continued to secretly protect him as his pets for the past ten years. At twelve years old, Will, along with Damian and Deá, goes on a perilous journey. He finds terrible truths and forms lasting companions. As he discovers that there are two realms: his own and the Echoland. In Echoland, is where everyone's transparent counterpart, an "Echo" is found. An "Echo" can only exist if its earthly counterpart is still alive. Will's doppelgänger, the Prince of Echoland, is destined to rule the kingdom at thirteen. Still, the Prince of Echoland has dangerous enemies that plan to murder Will. To prevent this from happening, Will must navigate the perils of the Echoland to assist the Prince before the Fate Sealers murder them both.

I loved The Crystilleries Of Echoland, written by Dew Pellucid, is the vivid descriptions of both the world and the characters' emotions, such as when the expression of eyes "glowered." Also, the use of figures of speech such as words like "fist of loneliness closing on his heart" helped the readers understand and feel how the world and its character's expressions looked. Another is the idea of parallel worlds and the twist and secrets that Will discovers throughout the book. Some unexpected enemies and friendships are constantly tested throughout the book.

In listening to the audiobook of B.J. Harrison, although I personally am not a fan of audiobooks and prefer reading the book. I was captivated by the changing tones and characters filled with emotions. Furthermore, the narration and pacing were excellent and easy to follow.

While some of the negative aspects are that the booked was too draggy, especially at the rising action. It took longer to reach the climax, which can cause some boredom. There were times when I had to take a break from reading the book because some parts were boring. While the falling action till the end was wrapped up too quickly. Another negative aspect was there are times when the use of descriptions and figures of speech to describe an emotion such as anger or sadness was unnecessary and too much that a simple description would do. Overall, the book is a compelling fantasy coming-of-age story, though at times blue and puzzling book.

I would rate the book 4 out of 5 stars since certain parts of the book at the beginning bored me, and certain parts were too face-paced. This book is highly recommended for middle school children who like fantasy-adventure books like Harry Potter or Rick Riordan. This book had no explicit language or erotic scenes, but it did have graphic action scenes. No errors were seen grammatically, and it was a well-edited book. Also, it has no religious content as well.