DWELLERS by Eliza Victoria

Family Secrets.

The story started with these two cousins who can inhabit another person’s body. Their present hosts are brothers Louis and Jonah, bachelors living in an affluent village, both IT professionals.

These dwellers' abilities go back in history. They came from a well-off clan, very private, but were never reluctant to amassing their wealth and holdings. But in spite of their power, it was strictly prohibited among them to exercise their abilities without justification and always as a last resort. They set rules that they need to follow carefully.

This is Eliza Victoria’s latest book, and I am really glad to find it very easy to read and engaging. The pacing and the direction of the story are really good, driving the reader to make second guesses as to what’s ahead. It was really fun making “what if scenarios” as I read. And that, for me, is a good mystery. 

Victoria was careful not to focus on the whole magical system, but elements were divulged to make the background story of the clan enticing enough –incantations, symbols, rape, and incest. It took her less than 200 pages to make a very interesting read.

And to make this story more delicious, the mystery is not about the clan’s magical powers. It’s about the dead body the boys found in the basement.

Book details:

Title:  Dwellers

Author:  Eliza Victoria

Publisher:  Visprint, Inc.

Publication:  June 2014

Genre:  Fiction

Rating:   ★★★★

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F2F35 @Filipino Reader Conference,
Bayanihan Center.
Photo courtesy of Monique.

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Project 17 by Eliza Victoria

Girl X

     

I had the pleasure of receiving this from Lynai last Christmas. It’s a fast-paced Sci-fi mystery. Written in short chapters, it’s very easy to breeze through the book. The plot is imaginative, and it’s obvious that Ms. Victoria made good research. The dialogues fun and I totally dig the story setting, too.

The characters were interesting; I just hope that they were fleshed out more. It would be fun knowing the characters more than their contribution to the plot.

It was exciting reading about the futuristic Philippines, all those advanced science and technology is awesome to imagine, very believable. Some scenes probably felt flat or rushed, but the story was justly narrated. The reader in me just wishes for a protracted conclusion. On the whole, this is a read that will tweak your love for science and mystery.

“Justice can only be delivered by someone who doesn't care about how much he's paid, or where he is in the chain of command. Someone who's ego won't be inflated by grandeur or power. Someone who won’t be influenced by this guy's being a CEO of this or his being a Mayor of that. And let's face it: that someone couldn't be human.”

Book details:

Title:   Project 17

Author:  Eliza Victoria

Publisher:  Visprint, Inc.

Published:  September 7, 2013

Genre:  Science Fiction

Rating:  ★★★★

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