Review: The Emerald Talisman

Title: The Emerald Talisman
Author: Brenda Pandos
Rate: 4/5
Source: Ebook, Bought
Goodreads: To be normal, sixteen-year-old Julia Parker would shed her empathic gift in a second. Life has been difficult since her mother's mysterious disappearance ten years earlier - an event she witnessed, but can't remember. Julia's situation becomes more complicated after a near death experience from a blood thirsty stalker. As high school students go missing it is clear there is a connection to her own experience--past and present. Someone has to stop the madness and a chance encounter with a creepy psychic foretells that only Julia is the key to stopping the madness, but it may require the life of the one she loves.

This was a surprisingly great read. I was genuinely surprised at how much I enjoyed this book.


I found myself really caring for all the characters, even the minor ones. Within Julia's Group of friends they all have their own unique personality and I enjoyed getting to know more about them (especially Cameron the math geek <3) The main girl, Julia, is strong and caring. She genuinely cares for those around her and this made me like her more because in young adult books now, the authors tend to make the heroine a bit selfish. 


This book is a case of something a lot of young adult books are suffering from: insta-love. But surprisingly it didn't bother me in this case. I'm sure I would have suffered from insta-love for either of her love interests. This leads me to the love triangle in The Emerald Talisman. Some people may think I'm crazy when I say this but...I seriously could not choose between Nicholas and Phil. Many people might not like that feeling but I think it's genius when the author doesn't create one PERFECT guy and makes it obvious that he will get the girl in the end. I enjoy doubting my choice of the "right" guy in books because that makes me relate more to the main character and her difficulty choosing. Brenda Pandos did just that for me and I loved it.


Overall I enjoyed this book and loved that I did not know what was going to happen. It kept me guessing all the way through. I read this book on a car ride and could not stop it until I reached the last page and when I did, I found I was at the edge of my seat. Go pick up a copy and step into Julia's newly jolted world.


Come stop by tomorrow for a review of the second book in the series: The Sapphire Talisman