Broken Forest by Eliza Tilton

Book Description:

Hopeless he'll never be more than the boy who didn't save his brother, 17-year-old Avikar accepts his life as the family stable boy, trying to forget the past. But when his sister, Jeslyn, is kidnapped, the thought of losing another sibling catapults him on a desperate quest. With his best friend by his side, and using the tracking skills he learned from his father, he discovers Jeslyn has been taken, kidnapped by one Lucino, the young lord of Daath, a mystical place thought only to exist in fables.

And Lucino has plans for Jeslyn.

His shape-shifting brethren feed off the auras of humans, and Jeslyn's golden hue is exactly what Lucino needs to increase his power. The longer it takes Avikar to reach her, the more entranced she becomes with Lucino's world, and the harder it will be for Avikar to set her free.
He failed his family once. He won't fail again.
My Thoughts:
This was a good book.  Avikar is a simple farm boy who loves to fight.  Or he did before his little brother drowned while he was watching him.  Since he didn't save his brother, he is determined to find and save his sister, Jeslyn, when she is kidnapped.  His best friend/sister's boyfriend is with him in the search, along with an interesting mix of men.  Daath was thought to be a myth but when it turns out that it's ruler, Lucino is who has taken Jeslyn, he knows he must follow.  As he learns more about the land and it's ruler, Avikar becomes more and more afraid for his sister and that he might not reach her in time.
I really liked the author's writing style.  Each chapter is written from a different person's point of view.  That way you know what they are thinking and the story still flows smoothly.  I got annoyed at Avikar for his reactions sometimes, he seemed to be self-centered but almost like martyr at the same time.  The secondary characters were great and helped the story progress.  I wasn't sure about Jeslyn toward the end, but didn't like Lucino at all throughout.  Each time I would think he was having a 'good' moment, he did something else and I wound up disliking him again.
I rate this a 4/5.  Good start to a series.

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy of this book (via netgalley).  I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.