Title: Escala’s Wish (Tales of Valla 1)
Author: David James
Publisher: Trash Panda Publishing
ISBN: 979-8999979926
Pages: 662
Genre: Fantasy
Reviewer: Alyssa Avina
Pacific Book Review
One of the most sought-after book genres currently is Romantasy, mostly because of its incredible capability to blend beautiful stories of love with wonderful tales of magic and worlds beyond ours in a fantastical nature. It is no wonder they are some of the most-read novels of this modern era, but it still takes a lot to write an original Romantasy plot full of excellent character development and a descriptive world that makes you feel as though you have dove head first into their realm. That is exactly what you get, and so much more in Escala’s Wish (Tales of Valla 1) by David James.
In his story, we meet Escala Winter, a faerie known for her mischievous nature and the fact she was born with mortal blood. It gave her a curiosity that differed from her more cautious fellows. She always was very different from the rest in the starlit Court of Dreams but as she got older, those differences only became greater and more apparent as each day passed. In this land, she was always treated as an unfortunate mistake for being too curious about a world which is unlike her own, for being too human, and for being too much of a liability to her own kind.
It is when, on a whim, she decides to try to understand human love that she ultimately is banished from her world as she’s always known it for breaking the most sacred law of the fey and shattering the balance between realms because of her actions. Stripped of her wings, title, and fey form, she is banished to the mortal world of Valla and that is where her journey and potentially doomed and forbidden love story fully begins.
While James wrote a classic fantasy novel with real Romantasy at the heart of it, he also was able to create a unique and engaging character and story arc unlike any other before. The emotional depth added so much to an already beautiful character-driven tale with a wit and humor that seamlessly balanced the overall tone of the story. The way the romance develops between Escala and Roedyn is deep, meaningful and happens all at a perfect pace. This was a fun and exciting read and was a truly refreshing take on the Romantasy genre.
Escala’s Wish (Tales of Valla 1) by David James is a stand out in its genre and a wonderful start to what I’m sure will be a series readers will come back to for years to come. Pick up your copy today!
