Synopsis:
What if our lives were mapped out before birth? Does anyone have the power to change their destiny? Ella hates London. She misses her old life in Spain and is struggling to get over her past—until she meets Zac. He’s always loved her but isn’t meant to be part of her story. Not this time. Not ever. Little does she know that his secret is the one thing that will tear them apart and force her to live in a world that no longer makes sense. A world full of danger, lies and magic. The Path Keeper is a passionate tale of first loves, second chances and the invisible threads that bind us. Can love ever be stronger than fate?
My Review
The Path Keepers does have a trigger warning at the start, I will post it below. Nothing is too explicit but baring in mind the intended audience I do think it needs to be there.
Oh where to start. This book threw me for a loop several times. At first I was so frustrated with it, I couldn’t for the life of me work out what was going on. Once I settled in though and all was revealed it really had me gripped.
The Characters:
NJ Simmonds has written a great cast of characters. What I really liked about this book is the age range of the characters. I find in a lot of YA books the focus is solely on the young characters. Every age group is well represented and beautifully written.
I loved Ella’s character, unlike a lot of YA fiction, Ella is worldly wise. She is strong and confident. She’s been through a lot and she swears like a sailor – I can totally get behind that. Yes she falls madly in love, but again that felt so right. It wasn’t pandering or sickly. It was real and raw, just like first love. But crucially she retains who she is. Such a plus point for me.
Zac was a total enigma to me at first, but that’s because I couldn’t work out what he was and it drove me nuts. There is so much to discover about him, so much depth to his character. That’s the same with all them. The characters are multi faceted. I just love that, it makes a book so much more readable.
Time Jumps
For the most part we are following Ella and Zac’s growing relationship. However, in order to fully understand it, we jump back in time. I must admit at first I wondered why we were taken there, but as you read it all starts to make sense.
The timelines are easy to follow and at no point are you confused as to which timeline you are in.
The Writing
NJ Simmonds has such a beautiful writing style. Some of the descriptions have such a dream like quality to them, especially the scenes that take place in the snow. You can really visualise what is going on, it’s almost intricate. Just gorgeous, it really draws you through the story.
Final Thoughts
I have struggled with this review, as I do not want to give anything away! It’s one of those books that slowly reveals itself as you travel through the story. Once you have a handle on things you won’t be able to put this down. I am highly anticipating what book two has in store for us, because that ending, wow!
Many thanks to Anne for inviting me onto the blog tour and to NJ Simmonds for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Author Bio:
Natali Drake, who writes under the pen name of N.J. Simmonds, has written articles for various UK newspapers and online publications. In 2015 she cofounded the online magazine The Glass House Girls and is a regular contributor. Originally from north London, she now divides her time between her two homes in the Netherlands and Spain with her husband and two daughters.
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