Accession - Review

Title: Accession
Author: Terah Edun
Series: Serath Web #1

Synopsis: “Sixteen-year-old Katherine Thompson wasn’t trained to rule a coven. That was her sister – perfect, beautiful Rose. But when a mysterious plane crash kills off the heir presumptive of the Sandersville coven she has no choice.
 “After stepping in to fill her sister’s shoes, Katherine realizes she didn’t have a clue – faery wars, depressed trolls and angry unicorns are just the beginning.
 “For centuries, her family has served the high Queens on both sides of the Atlantic but it is a well-known rule that mid-level witches stay away from high-level Queens.
 “But when Katherine’s youngest cousin vanishes without a trace in the Atlanta court and no one wants to investigate, Katherine decides to step into the darkness on her own. She will soon discover that nothing, especially in a queen's court, is as it seems.”



Review: I have no idea how I managed to read this whole novel. Was it strength of will? Was it great determination? Or was I punishing myself for something? I really have no idea. When you learn to write creative pieces in grade school you are taught to show, not tell. Based on this novel I would say that perhaps the author was absent the days they went over that in class. This novel could have used an editor or two, it's full of mistakes. For example: “Katherine narrowed her eyes. She didn’t want to debate lineage with her mother now. Although she was very much aware that the queen’s mother and her sister’s mother were different individuals. It was why the younger sister was Queen of Sandersville and the older one was not.” (ch. 25 Loc. 2907) There is so much wrong here. It’s all telling, no showing. This is an info dump (a lot of info crammed into a short narration), and there is a sentence fragment in there. The line that starts with although needs more. Although they were different individuals they had a lot in common? Although they were different individuals they were still very much the same? Although they were different individuals what? Finish the thought please! The entire novel is full of mistakes like this and then it doesn’t end. That’s right; the novel just abruptly cuts off. Each novel in a series should have its own plot that has a beginning, a middle, and an end. Even if there is a larger storyline that continues into the next novel the current one must have some sort of fulfillment or your reader will feel cheated and be ticked off. Accession does not have a plot that ends (I really had trouble finding any type of plot at all). There is no ending.  And as a reader I do feel cheated and ticked off. At this point I don’t really care, but I would like to ask the author what exactly the plot was because I couldn’t find it. Don’t read this one, you’ll regret it like I do.
 **I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review via NetGalley.**

Publisher: All Night Reads

Skip this book and try one of these instead:

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Enchantment Emporium by Tanya Huff