
Set following World War III, humanity is struggling to survive in North America, especially on the West Coast and Los Angeles. The city is ruled by an evil overlord, Equis, who commands obedience through fear and terror. Scattered around the surrounding countryside are small enclaves of survivors who are determined to rebuild civilisation and live happy and productive lives despite the horrors that have been bequeathed them.
Into one of these enclaves, the Angel Almana has been sent. Heaven and Angels, it appears, have almost given up on humanity. They tried desperately to stop the conflict before it began, but man's evil nature won out in the end. Almana's specific task is to protect a young girl, Alexa, who is destined to be the one who will save the world and humanity.
The story has the feel of the old west, with good, upright citizens trying their best to live fruitful and productive lives, whilst surrounded by violence and terror. When Almana arrives in this tiny settlement, she meets and falls in love with Alexa's brother. The story is full of the usual issues and petty jealousies that one would find in any small, self-sufficient community. I particularly liked the way the author was able to weave in a real humanity into Almana's character, who is, of course, a supernatural being. The romance, I felt, was especially well done.
I enjoyed this story much more than I expected. As the first book in what is clearly to be a series, I must congratulate the author on hooking the reader to await the next episode of this captivating tale. If dystopian, young-adult fiction is your thing, I am confident you will love Almana. An excellent beginning to this new series and I'm happy to award a very solid four stars to Almana by Julayn Adams. Good job!
You can check out Julayn Adams' Amazon Page here: http://amzn.to/1UqCF69