This book was extremely unique and interesting. It was also a very well written. I really it for the most part. I did find some parts of the book quite slow and dull. I was extremely disappointed with the romance. I was expecting more, but it just didn't deliver.

Despite that it was a great read. ( )

This book managed to tick all of the boxes for the first few chapters (actually quite a few chapters because they're only short) and I was pleasantly surprised to find a young adult author that: a) doesn't think it's okay to be condescending when the audience is younger, and b) creates an atypical heroine who isn't all about drooling after her inevitable one true love. As a matter of fact, the author attempts to write quite prettily and sets the scene in the Sicilian countryside very well, you can practically hear the waves of the Mediterranean sloshing against the shore.

The protagonist - Rosa - immediately stands out against countless other young adult urban fantasy heroines. She's introduced as something of a kleptomaniac, she's snarky and upon meeting the novel's obvious love interest, rather than seeing cupids flying and hearing someone playing a violin, she turns away with a good dose of sarcasm as a goodbye present. It's no secret that they will clearly meet again and gradually Rosa's attitude towards him will change, but I was thankful for the lack of insta-love and sappy heroines.

So, I had the protagonist I've always longed for, the setting out of my wildest dreams... what was the problem? The lack of story. Or, at least, the lack of an engaging story. I kept reading and waiting for the moment when the author would use her heroine and her setting to create a novel that would blow my mind but it just never delivered. The big mystery of the book was easy to guess, even the author realised this and revealed it all pretty early on... but after that the story consisted of a lot of info-dumping about Greek mythology and the Italian mafia and the legendary island of Arcadia. I felt that the author set the kind of scene that had me anticipating something awesome but it was highly anticlimatic in the end.

I do wonder if this was done intentionally, because this book is the start of a trilogy and perhaps the author wanted to place emphasis on the setting and characters in book one so that you would actually care about them when the real story gets going in book two. It's possible but it isn't enough, if you're writing the first book in a series it's so important to make sure the readers are going to want to continue. I finished this book feeling like I had nothing to look forward to in the sequels.

Many thanks to the publisher for kindly providing an arc of this for review
( )

Review by Sliced Open Reviews

So, I really love it when I am surfing through GoodReads and come across a book that a couple of my friends have read and loved so I decide, with haste, to go purchase the book. Upon doing so I rapidly ignore my schedule because, hey “So-n-so said it was great” so therefore I need to ignore any part of the rational part of my brain and start reading. Yes, I do love it when this happens because it is usually when I find books like Arcadia Awakens. Because, if I had done any of my normal research once I found this title here is what would have happened. I would have fallen head over heels for the synopsis, oh wait, I did and that has yet to change. Ok, so after that I would have begun my digging into the author, his/her previous works and SHIT. I would have then stumbled upon the tid-bit of info that would have me dropping this like a bad habit. Kai Meyer is a German author, meaning his works are translated (into 27 other languages to be correct). No, I’m not against foreign work, in fact my feelings for this book should prove quite the opposite, but I have read some true epic failures in translating. But boys and girls, I am happy to let you know that this piece of literary heaven does not fall into that category! Nothing for me was lost in translation. Quite the contrary, I think that the vision of Meyer’s heritage brought some of what drew me so close to this read. He describes portions of this book with such intent knowledge that you get drawn in to these amazing aerial views of lush Sicily, that frankly; I was lost until I finished. HECK who am I kidding; I’m still lost since book two isn’t quite here yet!

I also have to give mention to the characters in this book. I was so confused with the first couple chapters of the book because I just could not figure out how I was supposed to like our MC Rosa. No, she’s not what I’m used to when it comes to female MCs cause she lies, cheats and steals within the first 100 pages of the book. Yea, I know, I totally didn’t get it. But as you start to learn more about her things start to piece together and you understand the how’s and why’s and things just clicked. She is far more “angst” than what I’ve read recently and I actually quite enjoyed that. Rosa isn’t the only complex character built within the story; I actually feel that each character was built with a sense of precision, giving each character a kaleidoscope of color and diversity that left me breathless at times. The dexterity in the writing of each character still floors me.

Another reason I loved this book comes in one word…Mafia. I have an inordinate fascination with mafia stories and Arcadia Awakens played into that like a Royal Flush in the middle of a losing streak. This mixed with a version of Mythology that is much lesser mainstream totally blended together to place excellence on the pages.

Ok, I’m shitting flowers and sunshine right now but I just cannot help it. This may wipe the floor with any series I’ve started this year…needless to say I will stalk GoodReads and B&N waiting for Arcadia Burns, Book Two in the Arkadien Series! ( )

I was so excited to pick up Arcadia Awakens by Kai Meyer for two reasons: I love Italy and I have been meaning to read his Darkest Reflections series. I certainly was not disappointed as Arcadia Awakens incorporated some of my favorite story elements.

The setting for Arcadia Awakens was Italy. How fabulous! If you’ve ever been to Italy, you know how amazing the food is and how cool all of the old ruins are. I highly recommend both Pompeii and Sorrento—and Capri! What a beautiful country. I have not been to Sicily, however, so I really enjoyed reading about it.

Our main character, Rosa, comes from an old mafia family and moves to Sicily to escape the memories of a personal tragedy. While Sicily does not erase her wounds, she does meet Alessandro—the very attractive and soon-to-be head of a rival mafia family. But what would a story be without a little forbidden romance, right? Alessandro and Rosa are caught in a Romeo and Juliet-esque situation, and oh, how I devoured it! There are so many road blocks in their way, but they just work well together, so you can’t help rooting for them!

Rosa was a fantastic main character—strong and stubborn. Two qualities I love to see in a heroine. I’ve never really enjoyed the damsel in distress, so Rosa’s kick-ass personality was perfect for me. There are so many secrets in Arcadia Awakens, and I know Rosa won’t stop until she figures them all out. We definitely don’t have all of the answers yet, and I am dying to read the next book. There is so much more to figure out!

Arcadia Awakens combines forbidden love, mystery, and a bit of violence to create a beautiful novel about discovering who you are and forgiving those around you. It is a wonderful, engrossing read that captivates the reader and will leave you reaching for the next novel. Fans of Romeo and Juliet will not want to miss this one! ( )

Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: Takes a while to get going, but it does have a creative story involving the mafia, mythology, and a gorgeous Sicilian setting.

Opening Sentence: “One day,” she said, “I’ll catch dreams like butterflies.”

The Review:

This book starts out slow. I found this really weird, because the chapters are short and the heroine, Rosa, was someone I wanted to get into. But while the writing of this novel was beautiful and poetic, it did hinder my ability to get into this book right off the bat. In the first few pages you’re introduced to Rosa as a klepto with an attitude. Her kleptomania is one of her many small acts of rebellion, one of the many ways she differentiates herself from other YA heroines. She’s snarky and more than a little rude. She’s strong, determined, and independent. From the very beginning, I knew she was going to be a character I liked, even if I wasn’t invested initially.

Since she employs this sarcasm on the obvious love interest, there’s not head-over-heels insta-love that I loathe in YAs these days. If nothing else this sarcasm shows Rosa as smart, if only street smart. She’s an entertaining and layered character and so is Alessandro Carnevare, but somehow I wasn’t always invested in their romance. Their spark, unfortunately, was not always tended into a flame and a lot of scenes in the story lacked the romantic tension they needed.

That being said, mafia and mythology are two of my favorite reads, mix them together and you’ve created a novel that’s everything I want. Maybe I set my expectations a little high because I’ve read Meyer’s other books. Unfortunately the mystery in this first installment has an obvious resolution. It’s revealed pretty early on and then the rest of the novel is left to info-dumping, a tactic I despise. While the mixture of mafia facts and mythology isn’t as seamless throughout as it maybe should be, it’s clearly very well researched and creative. I can say I’ve definitely never read a series like this one, which is hard to say for a young adult novel. I love the shapeshifting aspect of this book and the way it’s mixed in with the rest of the supernatural. The Carnevares are shifters who change into big cats, like lions; the Alcantara morph into snakes. So in addition to the mafia rivalry, you have to very different kinds of predators fighting.

It was fascinating to see the way Meyer wove Arcadia, a part of Greek myth, into the two rival mafia families. He’s constructed an incredibly complex world, and the mixing of all these aspects will, I think, carry the series somewhere the reader isn’t expecting. I say this because even though the mystery in the beginning was obvious, the rest of the novel is incredibly creative.

I’m trying to keep this review a little vague, because the way Meyer mixes the mafia, mythology and romantic elements together are really the only thing that carried me through the beginning of the book. While it definitely picks up speed later on, initially it’s not a very fast read. I’ll definitely be reading the other two books, because I can’t wait to see where Meyer takes his readers in Arcadia Burns.

Notable Scene:

Rosa whispered, “ ‘The after-dream of the reveller upon opium–the bitter lapse into everyday life…’ Maybe I should go take a closer look at the facade of this place, make sure there are no cracks in it.”

“What?”

“Edgar Allan Poe. the Fall of the House of Usher. The narrator compares his feelings when he first sees the Ushers’ house to the way an opium addict feels waking up. In the end the whole place falls apart….I read it in school. Don’t you know it, Zoe?”

Her sister’s brow wrinkled. “Well, there are no ghosts here, anyway.”

“Madeline Usher wasn’t a ghost. she seemed to be dead, so her brother buried her alive. Then she crawled out of her coffin again. Where’s the family vault?”

Zoe looked critically at Rosa’s black nail polish. “Still crazy about all that horror crap, I see.”

Rosa gently touched her hand. “Will you show me Dad’s grave?”

The Arkadien Trilogy:

1. Arcadia Awakens

2. Arcadia Burns

3. Arcadia Falls

FTC Advisory: Harper Teen provided me with a copy of Arcadia Awakens. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review. ( )