Review: Unblemished

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Title: Unblemished
Author: Sara Ella
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publication Date: October 11, 2016
Publisher: Thomas Nelson / Harper Collins
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Eliyana has always recoiled from her own reflection in the mirror. But what if that were only one Reflection—one world? What if another world existed where her blemish could become her strength?

Eliyana is used to the shadows. With a hideous birthmark covering half her face, she just hopes to graduate high school unscathed. That is, until Joshua hops a fence and changes her perspective. No one, aside from her mother, has ever treated her as normal. Maybe even beautiful. Because of Joshua, Eliyana finally begins to believe she could be loved.

But one night her mother doesn’t come home, and that’s when everything gets weird.

Now Joshua is her new, and rather reluctant, legal Guardian. Add a hooded stalker and a Central Park battle to the mix and you’ve gone from weird to otherworldly.

Eliyana soon finds herself in a world much larger and more complicated than she’s ever known. A world enslaved by a powerful and vile man. And Eliyana holds the answer to defeating him. How can an ordinary girl, a blemished girl, become a savior when she can’t even save herself?

Waaah!! Oh my goodness! To be honest, I didn’t know what to expect from this one, but I just don’t know what to feel right now. My thoughts are muddled, and Unblemished continued to affect me even if it was already a few days after since I’ve read it.

Eliyana’s narration was very distinctive, and the way she speaks sometimes even feels like poetry, which I greatly appreciate. The way she was portrayed was amazing, and I truly love her transformation from someone  who is ashamed and naive into someone strong and even more beautiful. She is fierce, yet gentle; strong, yet vulnerable. She feels so much and loves so much, which makes me feel even more attached to her character. Despite her many insecurities, I find myself easily connecting to her as I can see myself in the decisions she makes, in her actions, and in her, in general.

Also, the world building is just beautiful. It doesn’t cease to amaze me on how strong the image came onto me, so much that I felt like I was living in it. While I found myself having an information-overload at some point, the overwhelming feeling I felt slowly went as I eased myself in to the story. I became greedy for more (I pulled up an almost all-nighter for this) because I just couldn’t put this down! There were so many things happening, but it did not really feel rushed to me. Although, there were instances where it felt like there were jumps and the time line just suddenly shifted. However, there were also a lot of references to pop culture and music, which made things interesting and beautiful.

The romance - oh my goodness. Everything was just so painful and so raw that I could not just fathom how Eliyana will choose between Joshua and Ky, but the love is unconditional and just beautiful. Although, I found some parts of the romance to be disconnected, since I didn’t feel much of the development or build up. There were some where it felt forced, or suddenly appeared out of nowhere (especially for Joshua) because he’s hot and cold.

Lastly, the ending was beautiful! It had a lot of twists, and taking me off-guard, but I JUST NEED MORE!!! That cliffhanger really threw me off the hook (in a good way), and I am just very interested to know what’s going to happen next. I really can’t wait for the next instalment! A great story of love, drama, fantasy and action, Unblemished is surely a must-read!

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Once upon a time, SARA ELLA dreamed she would marry a prince (just call her Mrs. Charming) and live in a castle (aka The Plaza Hotel). Though her fairy tale didn’t quite turn out as planned, she did work for Disney—that was an enchanted moment of its own. Now she spends her days throwing living room dance parties for her two princesses and conquering realms of her own imaginings. She believes “Happily Ever After is Never Far Away” for those who put their faith in the King of kings.