Alvor
by Laura Bingham
Release date: May 15th, 2009
Publisher: Cedar Fort
Adarae jolted as the feeling surged through her. She looked carefully at not one, but two little faces and felt the warm power within them. No one suspected it could be two, but the strength pulsing from them was undeniable. They stared back into her eyes.
Fifteen-year-old Erin and her twin brother, Bain, had never seen the secluded cabin in the woods by their home. Upon entering, they discover a magical world where pegasi, dragons and fairies are a reality.
The siblings soon find themselves with super-human powers, being taught the art of magic and swordplay by mystical beings. It isn't long before they are struck with a realization—they are training to become elves.
Faced with the decision to leave the life they have always known for a world of fantasy, Erin and Bain confront certain demons that threaten to tear them apart.
Älvor is a spellbinding blend of magic and mystery, enchantment and fairy tale, that asks the age-old question: Do you believe in magic?
~Thoughts~
I’m thankful that this is the book that was given to me. I never expect Alvor could be such a remarkable and interesting story. At first, the cover caught my eye, but the story is more notable than the cover. The characters were pretty ingenious as well as the story is well written. There are three important things I would like to highlight. First are the characters. Bain is a strong character; he is the silver-tongued between him and Erin. He likes to handle challenges but then still softhearted especially when it comes to her twin sister. While Erin is the vulnerable one, she doesn’t want to hurt people but she will do anything for her brother even if it cost her life. The minor characters also add up to the flavor of the story: Ella, the fairy Godmother, Adarae, and Pulsar—the very powerful dragon of Erin, Joel, and also Carbonell who became the spice for the story. Without them the story will not came out picturesque.
The second important thing is how the story came. The concept of magical world and fairies is pretty clever especially nowadays authors also came up with fairies. But Laura Bingham made a great escape on making the story neat and extraordinary. I love the part where Erin and Bain are given superhuman abilities in speed, hearing, sight, strength and etc. Then Erin finds her other half, Pulsar, a dragon who always with her because of their connection through mind, which is very interesting. Carbonell came and the story became more exhilarating for his the one who will be the barricade for Bain and Erin’s happiness in becoming an elf. I also REALLY LOVED the part were Joel showed up even if he just had a small role on the latter part of the pages. He became the companion of Erin when Bain left and became the love interest of Erin ;)) the romance is built up beautifully, and out of the blue. Reading Alvor was a bit like in a fairy tale, living in a forest, a place where elves and fairies and dragons live. It’s like I’m one of them, Ms. Bingham knows how to absorb a person in a story's setting. The writing style is gorgeous with turns of phrase that will have you transmitted in to the story.
The third and last part is the relationship of Erin and Bain. They are widely divergent, Erin is the soft one while Bain is the tough one but these things make them love each other. As they discover their talents and fate things became tricky with them. Bain embrace their fortune while Erin isn’t sure if she should take the step of becoming an elf. But Erin fined herself doing what Bain wants, to became an elf and be part of their world. Still trials came when Bain feels that Erin’s better at magic than him, especially when Erin met Pulsar. Bain decided to leave her and find his self. Because of this Erin didn’t know how to even face the life again, without Bain she’s nothing. But this thing is why Erin became fierce and faces everything for her brother. She finds him and fight with the blackhearted ones together. These things shows that even Erin and Bain faces unpleasant incidents they will still fight together even if it means their death. Erin shows being fearless, that even Bain wants her to be out of his life she will do anything for him. Both established that they could find safe haven on one another and be with them in times of hardship.
It's not full of love-for-the-perfect-boy story, suspense-filled sort of book, but it's packed with tension, inquisitiveness, love for one self and your relationship with your brother/sister and understanding. ALVOR is more than just a novel. It's a quest for forgiveness and acceptance of a reality that cannot be tainted.
