NOVEL REVIEW: THE RUNAWAY PRINCESS BY DYNNA ZAIN (PLUS FAN CAST)

Eiyo Fadneiras,

Welcome back to Fadima Mooneira. How's July treating you guys so far? I hope you guys are doing good with whatever you're doing right now. Just keep on swimming ok ^_^

Today, I will share a review of a fantasy novel I finished reading last two weeks. The novel is titled Orakel Dewata. And it is written by Yuda Areni. Now let's begin this review with the author's bio...

ABOUT YUDA ARENI

Me (red) with Yuna Areni (yellow) at the Kuala Lumpur International Book Fair 2023 last month ^_^

Yuda Areni was born in Kuala Belait, Brunei Darussalam. He grew up in Bintulu, Sarawak, and now resides in Putrajaya. Besides writing and reading, this imaginative author also enjoys playing video games, traveling, and watching fantasy TV shows and films. Orakel Dewata is Yuda Areni's first novel. If you're interested in Yuda's work, please feel free to check out his Instagram account @yudaareni.

ABOUT ORAKEL DEWATA

Orakel Dewata tells the story of Benua Mithra. Benua Mithra is a fantasy world created by the author. The story begins at Nusa Mintaka with Rumi and Juli's wedding. Rumi is the son of Nusa Mintaka's Land Commander. And Juli is the daughter of Nusa Mintaka's Sea Commander.

The wedding ceremony becomes a disaster when the bride and groom got kidnapped by a group of evil sorcerers. The sorcerers want to be in power again by bringing back an ancient force called Firael. They sacrifice Rumi and Juli. Later, they bring the two corpses back to life and put a curse on them. The curse is called Sihir Bokor.

Juli returns home alone with disgusting black scales on her body. Everyone is shocked. Especially Juli's mother. And so the curse begins at Nusa Mintaka. Everyone that touches Juli got affected by the curse. They also got disgusting black scales on their body. Nusa Mintak declares an emergency. Everyone is forced to stay indoors.

Benua Mithra map by Yuda Areni ^_^

Meanwhile, at Nusa Alnitak, Princess Ariana observes her father's death right in front of her eyes. The king is murdered brutally. Ariana becomes the ruler of Nusa Alnitak and she is forced to marry Wizurai Wazir from Nusa Alnizam. Ariana refuses to marry Wizurai Wazir. After all, Wizurai Wazir is a married man with kids. So the young queen fled her kingdom with a revenge plan in her hands.

Later in the story, a slave boy named Aryan is chased away from his hometown at Nusa Alnizam. Aryan is accused of a crime he did not do. Together with his best friend, Elfarish, Aryan runs to an elf village called Dwipohon. 

At Dwipohon, Aryan and Elfarish meet Queen Ariana and her babysitter, Mak Inang. They also meet a beautiful elf girl named Elfiara. To Aryan's surprise, Elfarish and Elfiara are twins. Aryan did not know that his best friend is an elf all this while. Elfiara and Elfarish invite Aryan, Queen Ariana, and Mak Inang to their home at Dwipohon. The three humans are welcome by the elf twins' father, Elfathur. Elfathur is also the ruler of Dwipohon. 

In Elfathur's house, Aryan reunites with his grandmother, Nek Yan. Elfathur apologizes to his guests that his wife, Melur is not able to greet them. Melur is not feeling well because she is affected by the Bokor curse after visiting Nusa Mintaka. Melur is now in quarantine. 

Elfathur also tells everyone that Melur needs to be cured. But the cure can only be found at Varuna Island. To save his precious mother, Elfarish volunteers himself. Aryan also volunteers to accompany his best friend. He can't let Elfarish go on the quest alone. Nek Yan is impressed by the two brave young men. So the wise woman also volunteers to join them.

Together, Nek Yan, Aryan, and Elfarish went on a voyage to Varuna Island. They have one important mission to accomplish. But will the three of them be able to find the cure, return to Dwipohon in time, and save Melur from the Bokor curse? This mission is not going to be an easy one for them... 

MY REVIEW OF ORAKEL DEWATA

First of all, I have to salute Yuda Areni for his awesome imagination. The world-building, the characters, and the scenes in this story are just awesome. This novel is definitely a work of art. Reading this novel gives me the "Oh Wow!" expression. Orakel Dewata also gives me Eragon, Chronicles Of Narnia, and Lord Of The Rings déjà vu. Plus, I can also relate some of the incidents in this story to real-life events. Especially the Bokor curse. It reminds me of Covid-19. When the whole Nusa Mintaka got infected with the Bokor curse, everyone is forced to stay isolated. And those who got infected must be quarantined. Uhuu...

For a person who has not read fantasy novels for quite a long time, I have to admit that Orakel Dewata succeeds in bringing me back to this genre. Yep, when I was back in high school and college, fantasy used to be my favorite genre. But as I grow older my taste changed. Umm... just sharing some old stories. Ok, let's get back to the review ^_^

Orakel Dewata is also a fast-read novel. It is definitely a page-turner indeed. This story has a very exciting and intriguing plot and storyline. It makes you want to know what happened next. I also like Yuda's writing style for this story. His writing style is artsy but also simple. It makes the story very enjoyable to read. It also makes it easy for me to visualize every scene in the story. 

Taadaa!!! My fan art of Ishtar. She's the pretty and sassy mermaid in Orakel Dewata. She's my favorite character in the story ^_^ (Image: My Artstagram @fmooneira_art)

Orakel Dewata has a cliffhanger ending. Like most fantasy novels, Orakel Dewata is also going to have a second book. And I'm definitely looking forward to the second book. I want to know what will happen to Benua Mithra. And since the story is very enjoyable, I do hope that Orakel Dewata will be adapted into a movie or a webtoon series in the future. Insya-Allah ^_^

Overall, I rate this novel 10/10. I highly recommend my fellow bookworms to read Orakel Dewata. Especially those who are into and want to try the fantasy genre. Trust me, guys, you'll be amazed by Yuda Areni's work. Plus, this novel is a must-not-miss ^_^

Ok, so this is my review of Orakel Dewata. Before I end this post, I want to ask my readers one question. Are you guys into the fantasy genre? If yes, can you guys please recommend me at least one fantasy novel to read. Thank you in advance. Hehehe ^_^

Ok, this is all for now. Insya-Allah, I'll see you guys in my next post. Khungang haseyo ^_^

XoXo,

Fadima Mooneira ^_^

(Authorpreneur, Content Creator, Blogger & Illustrator)

PS: I'm going to take a one-week break from blogging starting tomorrow, the 26th of July 2023. I'll be away from my hometown for a while. I'll be back on the 1st of August. See ya ^_^

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