Books for Christian Girls: "Emerald Illusion" by J. Rodes

About this book:

“Abrielle used to dream of a different life. Adventure. Romance. Hope. Not of Kansas.

Now, after the loss of her mother and a move she didn't want to make, she's lost the will to dream anymore, let alone believe in her father's Somedays. But a swirling wind, a wall of leaves, and a blinding darkness transform her world.

She and both of her brothers, Brogan and Matteaus, are swept from Kansas to someplace beyond--to a desert in which everything is watery brown, including the sky and the light of the weak sun. Abrielle finds herself in the middle of a realm everyone had heard of but no one believed existed. Except this version is run-down and broken, void of color and hope. Not much different from her view of life in Kansas.

When she gathers her bearings, she discovers her youngest brother is missing, lost in a land that is foreign and dying. Finding Matteaus becomes her sole focus, but when she and Brogan meet a boy named Levi, who only adds more mystery to this world that shouldn't exist, she finds out this kingdom is much more perilous than the children's book ever told.

Matteaus is in great danger.

There is nothing safe about Oz.”

Series: As of now, no.

Spiritual Content- Scriptures are remembered & referenced (said to be from the Great Story); Prayers; Blessings on others; God in Oz is referred to as Ma’ohr; Hearing a voice (God/Ma’ohr); Asking Ma’ohr to see or for help and Him doing so; *Spoiler* Seeing Ma’ohr, talking to Him, & being full of joy in His presence in a lovely garden/mountain *End of Spoiler*; Many talks about the King (called Ma’ohr to those who claim Him), being sent by Him, having the choice to follow Him, the Kingdom (Heaven), The Royal Law (to love others, kindness and compassion), making sure to see the Light (follow Ma’ohr), & Light seekers; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to the King; Mentions of the King/Ma’ohr & thanking Him; Mentions of the Kingdom that “is and is to come”; Mentions of having a hope (referring to Heaven); Mentions of prayers & praying; A couple mentions of a Savior (referring to Christ); A couple mentions of blessings; Two Scriptures are in the ending notes;

*Note: The Illusion and the powers of the Darkness is the evil in Oz; Seeing a cloud of darkness (called the ‘Darkness’ which it’s intent is “to kill, destroy, and devour”); Mentions of the Darkness; Mentions of curses & an evil witch; Mentions of evil people & evil looks; Mentions of witches from the original story of Oz, them putting curses on other, & a princess being part fairy, having magic, and putting a spell on everyone (we do not see any of this, but are told about it); Mentions of Abrielle wondering if they going to be a ritualistic sacrifice to a pagan god (they are not); A mention of that the Darkness can’t be defeated by a mere mortal.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘dang it’, a ‘dumb’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘what the heck’, two forms of ‘wimp’, and nine forms of ‘stupid’s; Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Fighting, Blood/Bleeding, Injuries, Pain, Being drugged, & Passing out (up to semi-detailed); Going through a tornado-like event & a sand-storm (up to semi-detailed); Imagining deaths & thinking someone is trying to kill you (up to semi-detailed); Being threatened & held at knife-point (up to semi-detailed); Abrielle & her family are grieving the loss of her mother (who disappeared and then “turned up dead”); Many mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deception; Mentions of murders; Mentions of thieves that steal children & the children being stolen from their families; Mentions of fighting, battles, & weapons (when given weapons, the group is told that “a life is a life, bestowed with love and purpose—never disregard that.”); Mentions of fighting, blood/bleeding, injuries, pain, & weapons (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of kidnappings & being drugged; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of hatred; A few mentions of murderers & criminals; A few mentions of violence (such as fires, inquisitions, & executions); A couple mentions of the smell of decay; A couple mentions of rumors;

*Note: A few mentions of car brands; A few mentions of book, authors, & fictional characters (Don Quixote & Tolkien); A mention of Disney World.

Sexual Content- An almost kiss, a forehead kiss, and a barely-above-not-detailed kiss; Remembering a kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Nearness, Embraces, Dancing, & Warmth (barely-above-not-detailed); Blushes; Noticing, Staring, & Electricity (barely-above-not-detailed); Brotherly teasing about a boy; A man looks at Abrielle’s form in a way that makes her uncomfortable; Mentions of kisses & looking at someone’s lips; Mentions of seducing someone; Mentions of jealousy; A few mentions of Abrielle not having her first boyfriend or kiss yet; A couple mentions of crushes; A mention of a wink; Attraction and some of the emotions;

*Note: Mentions of a man wanting a woman from another place because the women in his city can’t bear children (it’s assumed because they are sterile, think it’s beneath them, or something else) & he wanted a seed of his own; A mention of almost landing a very painful hit to a guy (near his hip).

-Abrielle, age 17

1^st person P.O.V. of Abrielle

313 pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

I have so many thoughts, but I have no idea how to put them into words.

The Wizard of Oz. A story most of us know well. But this take on the classic story is set many years after Dorothy visited the green city and it’s now lost all its color and hope. Which gives this book a dystopian feel.

There were a few moments that I wasn’t big fan of, parts I felt more neutral about, and then a quite a few parts I really liked. I think, for me as a usually non-fantasy fan reader, the most difficult part was getting into the world, which the author gave a lot of descriptions about that helped, but I did still struggle with the writing style. After finishing this book, I still have some questions on different things…and I would really like to see an epilogue novella after that tease at the end!

I am also not a big allegory fan, which this novel definitely had that style—not completely, but many elements reminded me of past allegories I’ve read.

I’m giving this book a personal rating of 3 stars because I did enjoy and like it. It’s one I’ll keep on my shelves to reread in a few years in hope that I’ll be able to share my thoughts on it more then. 😉 It was overall really clean and interestingly done, I haven’t seen too many of my book friends talk about this book, so if it sounds interesting to you, I would say to give it a try. :)

See y’all on Friday with a new review!