Book: Coexist by Julia Crane

Published by Valknut Press

Purchased for my Nook (151 pages)

Genre: YA: Fantasy

Find out more: Goodreads~Barnes And Noble~Amazon~Julia Crane

Goodreads Summary: Sixteen-year-old Keegan is struggling to keep her huge secret from her friends–she’s an elf, descended from a long line of elves that live in secrecy alongside humans. 

In elfin society, mates are predetermined but not allowed to meet until they are eighteen. Against tradition, Keegan’s brother Thaddeus told her Rourk’s name because his visions warned him she’d need Rourk’s protection, especially since Keegan will play a key role in the coming war between the dark and light elves.

Rourk finds himself drawn to Keegan’s side every time she thinks his name. He wants to talk to her but remains in the shadows, silently guarding her every time she mentally beckons him. A twist of fate thrusts the two of them together when Rourk is forced to step up his protection and make his presence known.

An ancient prophecy deeply entwines Keegan’s family and the future of their society. Somehow they must find a way to thwart fate and win the battle…without losing Keegan. With war brewing, and dark forces aligning, will Keegan and Rourk ever have the life together that they both desire?

I liked that Coexist is about elves who are living alongside humans.  I like that they all have different gifts.  And the fact that they don’t meet their soulmate until they’re both 18 is a really interesting idea- one I can envision elves sticking to.  I loved what she did with elves, and it was nice to see them take center stage for once.

But there were a few things that didn’t work for me.  Like, all of her friends knew she was an elf, but didn’t say anything until the battle?  That’s awfully convenient.  And she could sense a dark elf, but couldn’t sense her friends weren’t completely human?  It doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, and I wish it was explained more.  Plus, anything we learned about the characters came out of nowhere, and only when we needed to know it.

The Great Battle was pretty lame, and it seemed like it was going to be a really  big deal.  Only it wasn’t.  All of that build-up, and it turned out to be pretty boring.

Let’s see…characters!  Keegan was annoying, especially when she found out she wasn’t the only non-human.  I get wanting to be special, but at the same time, wouldn’t it be nice to know you’re not the only one?  I thought Rourke was boring as well.

But Keegan’s brother Thaddeus was really interesting.  He had a lot on his shoulders, and I think I would have preferred him as the narrator because he seemed a lot more interesting than any of the other characters.

I also wasn’t a fan of the ending- it ended pretty abruptly.  Almost like Crane forgot to end the book.

Overall, it was just okay.  It’s an interesting idea, but a lot of it didn’t work for me.  It gets a 2 out of 5.