Book Review: Almana (Almana #1)
Almana by Julayn Adams
Synopsis:
Hidden deep inside the forest, a community of people have created a safe haven despite the terror that lies not far from their border walls. World War III has destroyed most of the world population, and the ruthless dictator, Equis, is quickly gaining control over the majority of the U.S. population. Heaven has turned its back on humanity; the angels have deserted their posts and are awaiting the end - all but one. Through visions, Almana comes to believe that one last chance for the world’s redemption lies in a girl who lives in this small community. The only problem is the future of seventeen-year-old Alexa is grim, but without her, the end is imminent. Though Almana will be banished from her home until the world’s last day, she chooses to join Alexa in hopes of not only saving humanity, but heaven as well. Bound by a supernatural connection with Alexa and her family, Almana is gifted a new home. And despite the inability of angels being able to fall in love, Almana finds herself in a dilemma she hadn’t expected.
~SPOILER ALERT~
This is actually a reread for me and I don't reread often. However, the book was updated since I had last read it and the sequel Visions was released today on Amazon! I was lucky enough to receive an early copy so I tried to read through this as quickly as I could.
I love the connection that Alexa and Ali have, and that it extends to the rest of her family. Alexa is obviously going to be a great leader but I'm sort of afraid to find out what she has to endure to get there, especially because of Ali's dream.
While I'm not typically a fan of romance in dystopia (despite the fact that it is always present) I also love the bond between Ali and Cam. I still believe that it is a bit misplaced because it's literally the end of the world and Almana has a job to do, but I still kind of like it. I like that they can sense each other and that Ali smells cinnamon while Cam smells vanilla. Their relationship overall has raised some questions for me, but I'll get to those in a minute.
Even though she was only in the story for a short period of time, Miss Sally is by far one of my favorite characters. I mean, seriously, you can't not love her. I love that she knew who Ali was and was able to remind her of the good that her brother did before he lost faith.
Now that it's been uncovered that both Tammy and Timmy are murderers, I wonder how their stories will play out in the end. I'm assuming that both of them will die in order for there to be a happily ever after but I guess we'll have to wait and see. I'm not sure if Ali revealed herself to everyone when Cam died or how that whole scene worked out but hopefully I'll find out soon enough. It seems like they don't know, but I can't say that for sure.
I'm not really sure what to expect in book two but I do have a few questions that I hope will get answered:
What exactly happened to Ali when Cam died?
How did Ali and Patrick end up reuniting?
Was Cam with Ali when she returned at the end? If so, why can't Alexa see him?
Why did Ali and Cam's relationship happen the way it did? If angels typically don't fall in love, why was this different?
Way to end on cliffhanger!
4.5 stars
