This book was reviewed for Xpresso Book Tours
Seasons Within by Lee Iturrioz is a classic tale of the balance between life and death, growth and entropy, of resurrection and rebirth. G was abandoned as a young child, with only a locket with the letter ‘G’ on it. She has no clear memory of who she is or where she came from. Nightmares of war plague her, as do ferocious migraines. She is an usual girl, with an affinity for working with animals, and an ingrained love of nature.
When a new teacher arrives at the school G attends, her life turns a great deal stranger. She thinks there’s more to Mr Blau than meets the eye and becomes certain he knows more about her past. She tries to pry the information from him, but makes no real headway until the day when Synthia, G’s school tormentor, rips the locket from her neck. The consequences of that ill-fated action are many, resulting, among other things, with G being rescued by Blau and needing to run for her life. On the bright side, she has best friend Priyam along. Both are orphans with no real future in the small town of Truckee. Now, with an enemy close to hand, and another stalking her, G must trust these people to keep her safe.
I really enjoyed this story and its potential, for all that the theme is a fairly common one among fantasy. I loved the group Blau takes G to. Most of them seem like people I’d enjoy hanging out with, Willow and Edan being the exception. The world G inhabits, the mundane technological Earth, balances nicely with the magick laced the sacred.
A more thorough proofing is needed. There are several spelling/grammar errors, though most were homophones, and are easy to skim over. It is my guess, based on these errors, that English is the author’s secondary or tertiary language.
Iturrioz has woven a wonderful story that kept me engaged, and I’m looking forward to the next one. It’s very easy for me to overlook technical errors, so long as the soul is poured into a work. Iturrioz has much prose, and I’m interested to see this author author grow as a crafter of tales.
