Review: Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder - Farah

Title: Touch of Power (Healer #1)

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Publication date: December 20th, 2011

Genre(s): Young Adult (Fantasy)

Publisher: Mira

Source: NetGally E-Arc

Pages: 394

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos.

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life....

When I first started reading "Touch of Power", it wasn't that of an attractive story to me. I didn't get what the story was about, I didn't understand the concept, and I didn't even know where the story happened, and in what year. After reading more, I got to understand a bit more about what was going on. I extremely loved the magic in it, and i loved how the story was filled with creativity, love, and sadness. The story might have struck me as boring at first, but towards the middle and end, I enjoyed it tremendously.

The story revolves around Avry. Avry is the only healer alive from the 15 realms, and some people want her dead. Healers can heal anyone they want. When Avry heals someone, with scars for example, the person no longer has the scars, but Avry gets them instead of him. The only advantage is that, being a healer means the scars on her will heal much faster. 

Avry is a very interesting character. She is very strong, very kind-hearted, and does what she sets her mind to do. She didn't let any guy or man boss her around, and she never showed that she needed any help from anyone. She has always wanted to heal people, but due to the bounty on her head, she couldn't heal people but in the end have them chase her.

Kerrick, the leader of the group, and one who wanted Avry to heal someone for him, started off as an annoying person. I don't know how old he is, and that was one of the major things that annoyed me in this book, but I'm guessing he's old. He was constantly rude to Avry, even though HE needed HER. However I loved the other guys, especially Flea. I loved how the characters were so diverse and fun, and how exciting it was to read about their adventures.

In the end, I never thought I would have liked Touch of Power as much as I did. The ending was great and so unexpected. I am really looking forward to reading the second book and finding more about what happens with Avry!

Happy Reading!

An awesome beat, keep on drummin'