Lost Tides: Elemental Seekers Series by H.M. Sandlin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
It really takes a lot for me to get into anything YA, but this one totally pulled me in. I fell into this world of elementals and discovered that I enjoyed the starting mythology/creation story the author constructed. The youth in this series have some aspect(s) of elemental power, and they do attend a special academy to learn to control it.
This story focuses on one such girl, Sally, who accidentally used some water elemental powers. Doing so kicks off an ‘alarm’ of sorts, that wraps her up in an ancient battle between warring factions that split off into good & evil sides. While there is a definite prophesy aspect to this story, it’s not all about Sally. She shares plenty of page time with some fun characters who become her friends – there are even some hints of a future romance. I felt like two of her friends, Richard and Tider, were particularly compelling characters brought to life with their own unique personalities.
As someone who enjoys mythology, I loved the fact that the author made her own starting point while also including some familiar concepts such as elementals and water sprites, and elemental magic. From the preview, it looks like the next in the series will include Sylphs, which sounds like great fun! If you were a fan of Harry Potter or Percy Jackson, definitely start this series, because it definitely belongs on the shelf with them.
