Nicole Seitz
Author, Illustrator, Contributor, Editor (anthology), Service Provider
The Firstborn (House of Heaventree #1)
Young Adult; Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror; (Market)
They must leave home now. They were told it's time--that they're finally ready.
After the Great Storms, communications were down for a year and a half, and society was crippled. So when the G.O.D. (Global Operational Datalink) switch was finally turned on, the world was starved for electronic devices and ripe for what would happen next. It was the beginning of the end. Anyone who didn't receive the mark of the Global Union was an outsider, shunned--which made Flare and Cornelius Flanagan about as unpopular as two teens could be.
Fourteen-year old Cornelius and 15-year-old Flare must suddenly leave home for a secret boarding school. Will it prepare and protect them as their parents hope it will, or could the school be a trap instead--prepared by the enemy?
The Firstborn is Book 1 in the House of Heaventree series and award-winning novelist Nicole Seitz' first YA endeavor. Informed by Scripture and fascinated by prophecy, Seitz explores the perseverance and endurance that young people of faith will be called to...someday soon.
Plot/Idea: 9 out of 10
Originality: 8 out of 10
Prose: 8 out of 10
Character/Execution: 8 out of 10
Overall: 8.25 out of 10
Assessment:
Plot/Idea: Concise and intense with religious scripture woven into the story, this novel is both suspenseful and engaging. Seitz creates a realistic and frightening story full of finely articulated ideas.
Prose: The author conveys the plot through the dialogue and actions of the characters. This young adult Christian novel uses scripture throughout the novel in a manner that feels integral to the development of the story.
Originality: The author presents a rich and original work that is prophetic in nature.
Character Development/Execution: The interactions between the characters reveal the broader societal structure. The adults are intense and it is unclear whether they should be trusted, which adds to the suspense. The young adults are clever and questioning, but their reactions to some situations feel somewhat rushed.
Date Submitted: July 09, 2022
