We just finished reading The Mirror of N’de at our house. It’s a young adult book about a thirteen year old girl named Hadley. She lives in a world that is beautiful. However, her people are treated as underlings and slaves, making all their days extremely difficult. While their world is cruel, it’s a bedtime story, passed through the generations, about a beautiful city their people once lived in, that keeps them going.

 

 

Hadley begins having dreams about a creature calling to her. Then things really change when a mysterious emperor frees her people. Hadley and her friend, Nomish, are called upon to serve the emperor. In her service, Hadley understands that there is more to the emperor than what she thinks and his tower of secrets could change everything!

We enjoyed the book, and my kiddos thought the fantasy of it was awesome. We thought the story captured the traditional fantasy theme and wove them with unique things, making it an original and fun story.

The author, L.K. Malone, does an outstanding job of writing in detail, allowing Hadley’s world to come to life. The character development is good, with Hadley being blessed with many talents and also flawed. One of the underlying themes is the desire for revenge. Certainly it would exist in Hadley’s world with people being treated so poorly. There is great suffering; it would only be natural for Hadley to brew this feeling.

We enjoyed reading and discussing what we thought might happen. Malone does an excellent job in making things never what they seem. The story line twists and turns and kept us all wanting more.

 

In the mythical city of N’de lives thirteen-year-old Hadlay and her people, the Ramash. Scorned and abused by the unloving and absent Emperor, the Ramash are poor people, placed second to the ruling class of the Oresed. Young but bold, Hadlay rages against the injustice in her city. When she is chosen for the honor of serving the Prince in the Tower, she hopes to find a way to right the wrong… but soon discovers that things are worse than she believed.While Hadlay works to better her people’s condition, she struggles to abide with the abusive Oresed and understand the meaning of her dreams in which a fantastical white horse appears to her and speaks in riddles. When Hadlay stumbles into one of the Tower’s secret rooms, she discovers a hidden mirror that doesn’t just show her reflection, but reveals much more: the horse’s name is Sirach and he has a plan to save the children of N’de, if only Hadlay can bring them to the mirror. Hiding her knowledge of Sirach from the Prince, Hadlay sets out to do Sirach’s bidding. But when Sirach’s presence is revealed, Hadley’s life is in danger and the only way to save her is for Sirach to give up his own.

Crafting powerful narrative and creative characters, author L. K. Malone spins a compelling tale that combines exciting entertainment and the Christian story. In The Mirror of N’de, readers will empathize with the desires of an oppressed people, will anger at the affliction of a cruel adversary, and ultimately rejoice with the revelation of a Savior.

 

L. K. Malone is an insatiable reader who devours nearly a book daily when she isn’t writing. Favorite genres include political thrillers, historical fiction, romance, and fantasy. Some of her favorite reads include the Hunger Games series and the Harry Potter books, which inspired her to try her hand at fantasy with a Judeo-Christian twist. Malone is a Colorado native with a large extended family, which includes two lovely young women who graciously let her mentor them through the Denver Kids program and a handsome menagerie of pets.Blog Tour Schedule