Catalyst by Marc Johnson

Catalyst by Marc Johnson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Catalyst Goodreads Summary
For centuries, the kingdom of Alexandria has protected Northern Shala from the monstrous creatures lurking in the Wastelands. Now, a dark force threatens that fragile peace.

Far from home, Alexandria’s princess is abducted. When a young villager named Hellsfire stumbles upon her and her captors, he rushes in to rescue her, alone and unarmed. His fear and fury unleash an uncontrollable magical force that grants him the power to save the princess—and change the world.

Hellsfire has never craved nor dreamed of power. But such magic as he now possesses has not been seen in Northern Shala for a thousand years, since the devastation of the War of the Wizards and the creation of the Wastelands.

Now Hellsfire must leave all he’s ever known, and make a dangerous journey to learn to master this wild, ferocious power—power he knows he is not ready to wield. More difficult still, he needs to master his emotions. If he can’t, the power will consume him, Alexandria will fall, and darkness will eclipse the land, destroying everyone he loves.

In the dead of cold, the spark shall burn...


My Review
While this book is different from what I normally read, I enjoyed it. I must say that I never completely got used to the main characters name, Hellsfire, but I could get past it (thankfully it's not like what it at first sounds).

The world and characters were very well created. I enjoyed reading about the magic, wizards, elves, and dwarves. I really enjoyed the details and information about the magic in this book. Each character added more to the journey, and provided something essential to the book as a whole.

The journey that Hellsfire went through was filled with magic, adventure, learning, meeting new friends, and danger. He went from a boy being bullied, to the wizard that he had become by the end of the book. Master Stradus was a very good teacher and friend to him, and he really helped Hellsfire become the best wizard that he could be. Hellsfire's struggle to control his emotions was very intriguing and something that I can relate to (though not completely to that extent, I mean fire doesn't come out of my hands). I really liked his determination and courage to do the right thing even when it put him and, sometimes those he loved, in danger.

Krystal was a very strong character. I loved her determination and ability to stay strong even when all the odds were against her, to protect her kingdom, her people, and her father.

Overall this book had a lot of action, details, and good characters that were willing to risk everything for the greater good. It ended as a cliff hanger, though, and leaves readers wanting more

I received this for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect opinion in any way.



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