Unblemished by Sara Ella

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson (October 11, 2016)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0718081013
• ISBN-13: 978-0718081010

About the Book:

Eliyana can’t bear to look at her own reflection. But what if that were only one Reflection—one world? What if another world exists where her blemish could become her strength?

Eliyana is used to the shadows. With a 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 like he does: 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?

My Thoughts:

I shouldn't do this to you.  I really shouldn't.  But I have to.  I just cannot hold it in any longer!  Sara's book won't release until October, which doesn't seem like very long....but you haven't read my review yet!  So buckle up...

"Unblemished" is a carefully crafted work of magic and wonder that I believe will set the young adult literary world on fire.  Sara introduces us to Eliyana Ember, a normal teen with a desire for an everyday life.  One problem: El has a crimson birthmark that covers the right side of her face, swirling and creeping like vines along her profile.

Kids today are just flat mean.  The taunting and teasing is endless, and it's created a self-consciousness for El that holds her back in life.  Then there's Joshua, her next door neighbor and her current heart crush.  El thinks he has feelings for her, but he goes hot then cold, and she cannot get a clear read on their relationship.

Soon Eliyana realizes that the world she's lived in isn't all there is, and she is drawn into an existence she's unprepared for and unwilling to participate in.  (Except for Joshua.  For him, she'd go anywhere and attempt anything.  Been there myself!)  It's a world of differences and similarities, a world of danger and of wonder.  A world of unique abilities, and two dueling forces: the Verity and the Void.

A world where kisses have meaning, and love can last a lifetime.  So can hate.  A world that, like ours, needs a savior.  I found myself lost within the pages of "Unblemished", transfixed and mesmerized.  Every chapter brought a new delightful detail to the surface, and when all of the pieces began to merge together near the end...

...I almost passed out for holding my breath.  No, literally.  I stopped breathing, and had to remember how.  With as many books as I have on my TBR pile, I rarely have the chance to re-read something I've enjoyed.  For "Unblemished", I will make time.  As I said, you will be able to get a copy in October, but I urge you to place your order now.

"Unblemished" has to get the attention it deserves.  For me, this book is "One For The Ages", right up their with L'Engle, Lewis, and Tolkien.  Today's general market YA fiction writers could learn a few things from Sara Ella.  And the literary world would be a much better place for readers.  Until then,

Mark Your Place,

Deena