Elixir by Hilary Duff

Elixir by Hilary Duff

Release Date : October 12th, 2010

Publisher : Simon and Schuster

Pages : 327

Series : Book 1

Rating : 5/5

"A soulmate for life...or death.

Seventeen-year old Clea Raymond has felt the glare of the spotlight her entire life.  The daughter of a renowned surgeon and a prominent politician, she has become a talented photojournalist who takes refuge in a world that allows her to travel to many exotic places.  But after Clea's father disappears while on a humanitarian mission, Clea begins to notice eerie, shadowy images in her photos of a strange and beautiful young man - a man she has never seen before.

When fate brings Clea and this man together, she is stunned by the immediate and powerful connection she feels with him.  As they grow closer, they are drawn deep into the mystery behind her father's disappearance, and they discover the centuries-old truth behind their intense bond.  Torn by a dangerous love triangle and haunted by a powerful secret that holds their fates, together they race against time to unravel their pasts in order to save their lives-and their futures."

Now, the first thing I have to say is that I LOVED Hilary Duff as a child.  I idolized her and wanted to look and be her, so when I found out she had written a book I HAD to have it.  After I bought it I put off reading it for months because I didn’t want to be disappointed by it.  But I finally picked it up and LOVED IT!  I loved the characters and how it was able to be, in a sense, paranormal without any paranormal monsters.  I also loved the idea of the two groups fighting for control over the elixir of life.

Clea, the main character, is a strong teen who can’t get over her father’s death.  Her father is the one who introduced her to photography, which quickly became her career choice.  Clea is driven to find out everything she can about her father’s disappearance.  She is also very stubborn and once she has an idea it is difficult to put it out.

Ben and Rayna, Clea’s best friends, are adorable.  Rayna is infatuated with the idea of a soul mate.  Whenever she meets a new guy she falls head over heels for him and believes he is her soul mate.  Ben is the sweetest guy in the world.  He is, of course, in love with Clea who can only see Sage in her field of vision.  There are so many times in this book when I just want to give Ben a HUGE bear hug.

Sage, I never trusted.  He’s introduced as a dark, creepy man who shows up in Clea’s pictures and I never really got over it.  At the end of the book, I did have a great deal of respect for him, but I never wanted Clea and Sage to become a couple.

All in all, I thought the plot was a reveal of old ideas, succubus and the elixir of life, presented in exciting new ways.  I’m thoroughly impressed with Hilary’s debut novel and I’m looking forward to the upcoming sequel.

This book is part of my "Off The Shelf" book challenge.