I really struggled with what to do for this ARC. Initially, I was very excited - the title and book description are very intriguing. I like fantasy reads and I love a romance storyline where the characters are trying to overcome and find each other. However, this really fell flat for me. I was 26% into it and the world building still felt rough. I didn't enjoy the translator or music stuff. The memory loss and timeline jumps were a struggle for me, normally it would grip me and make me need to keep turning the pages but I just didn't feel that for this story.

Just wasn't a book for me.

Awakening by Elexis Bell
The Regonia Chronicles #1

Thought provoking look at ethical issues involving humans and aliens that at times felt in parallel with human interactions taking place on this planet. In this first book of the series the stage is set, we are introduced to significant characters and given background information. I am not sure if music will play a part throughout the series or not – I found myself skipping over the song titles while reading.

What I liked:
* Reginald: loving human father, protective, willing to sacrifice himself for his wife and daughter – wondering if he and Rone (alien Drennar) might find solace in one another in the future – felt he had the toughest situation to deal with of all the characters
* Ricardo: human military guard, seeks to not stand out, abused as a child, protective, intelligent, believes in doing what is right, drawn to Olivia, see potential for him in the future
* Olivia: bright, abandoned by her father Reginald and left to her own devices by her mother Eva, computer genius, depends on alcohol for escape, has potential to grow in the series
* Krona: alien from Regonia, of the Daen tribe, warrior king, kidnapped, dealing with false memories, believes his wife is still alive and wants to find her, strong, fierce, has a moral compass
* Tenna: alien from Regonia, of the Daen tribe, warrior queen, kidnapped, dealing with amnesia, overwhelmed with sorrow but not sure why
* The plot, pacing, and setting – introduction to the characters, their origins, and history was minimal but enough to get the basics and easy to build on in future books
* That the bad guys were routed out and arrested although they did a LOT of evil – hope they are tried and dealt with and do not escape
* Thinking about where this story will go and if the humans will be left behind as Tenna and Krona work to reestablish their tribe and people

What I didn’t like:
* Who and what I was meant not to like
* Thinking about why people feel justified in doing horrible things to others – in this book and in this day and age to real people

Did I enjoy this book? It was okay
Would I read more in this series? Maybe – I’d like to see what direction the next book will go

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars

Awakening by Elexis Bell is a science fiction novel that explores the themes of identity, memory, and the power of love. The novel follows the story of Krona, an alien who has been tortured by his captors and implanted with false memories. When he escapes, he sets out on a journey to find his partner, Tenna, who he believes is still alive. Tenna, meanwhile, has been living among humans on a space station, having lost her memories of her past. When she meets Krona, she begins to question everything she thought she knew. Together, they must work together to uncover the truth about their past and save themselves and their people. Awakening is a well-written and exciting novel that kept me guessing until the very end. Bell does an excellent job of creating a believable and immersive world, and her characters are well-developed and relatable. I highly recommend this novel to fans of science fiction and anyone who enjoys a good story about love, loss, and redemption.

I accepted this arc through Netgalley. I unfortunately couldn’t get into the book. I do love reading sci-fi. It most likely is me and the story is fine but I wasn’t interested in continuing. I do like the multiple POVs and the general confusion of what is going on. Maybe one day I’ll revisit the book to see what happened. One thing that threw me off was when The Host by Stephanie Meyer was brought up. I won’t lie and say that kind of made me put the book down for a while. It’s nothing against Stephanie just more that it threw me off in a way because I was in the story not expecting any ties to our reality. So that was my bad for that expectation. Overall, I’m grateful that I was sent the arc but sorry I couldn’t get through all of it.