Confronting Destiny is a fantasy novel by self-published author A.L. Tesh following the story of two young cousins, Kaleen, Melena as they learn to hone their respective skills and prepare for an upcoming battle against the Karogs, a rival Kingdom.

Like all good characters in a fantasy novel, the girls each have their own special abilities; both are remarkable fencers,  Melena is part elf, giving her extra agility and fine-tuned senses, and Kaleen has an inborn ability to control the aether, a force much like that in Star Wars. Kaleen also happens to be a reluctant future Queen, struggling with the decision to rule her realm or keep her freedom.

Pros: I thought that the story line was a decent one, and I enjoyed the combat scenes and the general plot. There were a rich variety of characters and scenery and I particularly appreciated the headstrong quality of the two female leads.

Cons: Sometimes the story-line is vague and hard to follow, probably due to the author’s use of language; sometimes grammar and syntax leave something to be desire, and redundancies are frequent. The author could also work a little on character building as one character tends to feel the same as the next, making it difficult to remember who is in which role.

All in all I would give Confronting Destiny kudos for content, but not so much for the organization and execution of the the book as a whole. Once I got past it’s downfalls, however, I DID find myself engaged in the story-line. With some solid editing, I feel that this is an epic well worth the read and I hope that A.L. Tesh does not give up on writing any time soon!

3 Stars

This guest review was contributed by MetaPhysicalPen. This blogger posts short stories, book excerpts, writing advice, and book reviews for different genres.