This book will appeal to YA readers that enjoy Dystopian-Fantasy books. The people of Aeredia are divided into four sectors. The four sectors are kept apart and walled in. The people are given little, with the lion's share going to those near the capital in sector 1. (I hear echoes of the Hunger Games setup.)

The people are told that elementals (those that control the elements) no longer exist. Every year youth are "tested," and some never return. A wise old woman shares the forbidden history, stories about a rebel force, and a prophecy of the Aether that would save the country (One who would control all the elements.) When the guards catch them during a lesson, Natalia escapes to the forest when her brother (Vale) sends her ahead of him but doesn't follow. There she meets a boy from three (Damian) and later,.. twins from two (Ren and LaVelle), and a girl from one (Aurum). They form a friendship and a plan to seek and join the rebels. (But not anytime soon cuz they hang around for six years.)

When they reach their testing at 18, the rebels attack the testing center and take all but Damian and LaVelle. Natalia and the rest of the team learn of their powers and begin to train with a plan to return for their friends. Damian is brainwashed into working for the bad guys against his friends.
To me, the "family" of the main group of friends felt forced. It barely made sense throughout their friendship and only gelled during the last battle.

This was not a horrible book at all. It just didn't feel new or exciting. The story had promise, but the execution was lacking. The writing made it feel recycled from other stories like The Hunger Games, last Airbender, and other dystopian fantasy tropes.
There was a lot of fluff and repetition. At 60% finished, I commented that Natalia has said, "wish Vale was here" I swear it was no less than 75x’s if she's said it once. 🙄 I can only hope that he didn't die SIX YEARS AGO when he left her at the wall. But Sheesh!
And the description of the glowing eyes EVERY FREAKING time they use their powers?! Why even? Was there not an editor involved? Sometimes less is more. The reader doesn't need to be reminded every time! Say they glowed, but the colors and combinations were overly repetitive, especially during the fight scenes. Oh, and the fight scenes were confusing at times. I got the jist of it, which was all I needed, but I am sure it wasn't fully as the author intended.

And if we are going to get grumpy Frasier for 90% of the book, at least reference what made her this way earlier. There are a couple of casual mentions, but a response of, "Don't talk about my story," ends any mild interest from the reader. It made me feel no empathy or positive emotions for this bitchy sidekick of the good guy.

The end felt tacked on because the Author didn’t’ want to be finished with her characters. Honestly, if it had been a while, and I happened to run across it, I would probably pick up the next in the series but is not one that will garner any enthusiasm or anticipation from me.

**The publisher provided an electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review**

The concept sounds cool but the writing style was not for me. I think I would have enjoyed this more if it was told in duel POV. It’s told in 3rd person POV, which I think can only be done effectively if there are a lot of descriptors and unfortunately the writing is very juvenile. There’s not a lot of world building. You’re given a very vague idea of what the environment is so it reads more like a draft than a completed novel.

You’re also given an info dump to the magic system right out the gate which I found disengaging. Everything about the world and how it operates reminded me of the Hunger Games. Nothing about the world felt original. Even the name of the world sounds ripped off. Valgaris sound a lot like Velaris from ACOTAR.

DNF @ page 27

I don’t even know what to say.... I guess hold on and enjoy the crazy rollercoaster ride AJ Wolfe takes you on!! I can only say she is an evil little genius!!! Enjoy the ride!!!.