Those With Power Protect Those Without
So, what can authors do to make their Young Adult novels stand out from the crowd? Here are five tips:
- Don’t use tired clichés. If your novel features a Chosen One who doesn’t know they’re special, or a love interest/love triangle that is forbidden, or a McGuffin that holds the key to everything, it’s likely that you’re using a clichéd idea. Instead of relying on these tired ideas, come up with something new and exciting to set your novel apart from the others.
- Don’t rely on magic too much. While it can be an interesting plot device, too often Young Adult novels rely on magic as their main source of excitement and mystery. If you want to stand out from the crowd, try coming up with another way to intrigue your readers.
- Make your world unique. If all of the other Young Adult novels are featuring worlds that are very similar to ours, try creating something new and exciting for your readers to explore. Come up with a world full of magical creatures or an alternate history setting – anything that will make your novel different from the others on the market.
- Be sure to develop your characters well. If you want readers to invest in your characters and care about what happens to them, make sure you spend time developing them well before launching into the action-packed scenes in your novel. Give readers insight into their personalities and motivations so they can understand why they might act in certain ways during the story arc.
- Keep things suspenseful by keeping things fresh and unpredictable for your readers at all times – this will keep them guessing until the very end of the book! ..
The book is set in a world where the sun never sets, and where the flame of love burns as brightly as night. It follows a young girl, named Song of Silver, as she struggles to find her place in this strange new world. Along the way, she meets interesting characters and learns about their stories, all while trying to save her home from an evil empire. Song Of Silver is full of great worldbuilding and likable characters. The magic system is decent but not amazing, and it feels like it could use some more development. However, overall this book is a great addition to any fantasy reader’s library.
Haak’gong is a former Hin City that was invaded by Elantian colonizers when Lan was a child. As a result, Lan is forced to work, paying off a binding contract at the local teahouse. However, she’s haunted by memories of her past and secrets involving her mother, typified by a strange mark burned into her arm twelve years ago. ..
Lan meets Zen, a practitioner from the Last Kingdom, and they quickly become friends. Lan is aware of the mark on Zen’s arm and they set off on an adventure together. They are hunted by Elantian soldiers and begin to understand more about their past. Zen has some shocking truths about his own. ..
The first book in the series introduces readers to a group of characters who are struggling to survive in a world where the rules have changed. As the book progresses, new characters join them and their agendas and goals eventually collide in a shocking and pulsating final act. I won’t spoil what happens here, but suffice to say that everything is nicely paced and you’ll be anxious to find out where this story goes next when the epilogue closes out. ..
The magic system in this land is based off of Chinese culture and mythology. This mixture of both history and fantasy makes for a very unique and exciting world to explore. The worldbuilding is also very well done, making the reader feel like they’re right there in the middle of it all.
Lan and Zen are the two main characters in this novel. They are well-defined and have clear goals and motivations. The novel jumps back and forth between both characters, so you get to understand how they both feel about each other and the wider world around them. ..
This book is written in a whimsical and light-hearted style that keeps you engaged. While there are some strong and dark themes here, they’re not explored with any sort of visceral violence or nail-biting depth. Likewise, there’s not much in the way of swearing beyond the odd curse word here and there, and only during heightened bouts of tension. Instead, nicknames like “Horse face” are used much more frequently, to amusing effect.
This is a story of magic, of the power that can be used to create and destroy. It’s a story of qi, of the ways in which it can be used to heal and to kill. It’s a story of four demon gods, and of the limits to what they can do. And it’s a story of an author who has managed to make all these things work together so perfectly.
The novel’s typical YA beats are still in evidence, but Zhao takes an interesting turn near the beginning and end of the book. If you can make it past the halfway point though, Zhao takes the story in an interesting direction, leaving everything tantalizingly open for the second volume to follow. And by the time you finish that last page, you’ll be counting down the cycles until the next is released!
