When Shirakaya discovers a protostar, an essential source of her magical powers, she thinks her dreams are coming true. But when koth’vurians, a group of aliens that had been exiled years before, attack the ship, everything changes. Then, Shirakaya’s magical abilities begin to weaken; she begins to worry she’ll no longer be able to protect anyone she cares about. So Shirakaya embarks on a mission to defeat the koth’vurians once and for all, hoping that along the way, she’ll save those she loves and get her magical powers back. As she encounters friendly and not-so-friendly beings throughout the novel, she must learn to trust herself and decide how far she’s willing to go to protect those she loves from the koth’vurians.

Paul L. Centeno is excellent at writing intriguing battle scenes that move quickly yet give enough details for readers to really get to know how each character thinks. In addition, the action pulls readers into the story, making them feel as if they’re part of the battle themselves. Along with this, the pacing in this novel is fantastic. Even though the battle scenes are at a ripping pace, there are still enough calmer scenes that allow readers to catch their breath and feel like they’re back on their feet with the novel.

Centeno has an excellent feel for when readers need to pause and when they need the action to pick back up. At first, I got a little lost with all the new information I was expected to know for this novel, such as what each creature was or what some of the technical terms of weapons and things of that sort were. Luckily, however, I discovered a glossary at the end of the novel that helps readers understand a bit more what some of those terms mean. If I’d known about this from the beginning, it probably would have helped a lot more with my understanding of the universe and how certain things worked together.

It’s a great first novel to the series and really introduces the universe’s conflicts really well. At the same time, it ends well enough that readers who aren’t as interested in series can read the first book, knowing they’ll get a satisfying ending without reading through all the books. All in all, Centeno did a great job creating a new world that will intrigue and capture readers’ attention.

Maz’hura: Book One of the Twelve Dimensions will captivate readers with an exciting new space opera story. The characters are memorable, and the action moves quickly. Fans of fast moving young adults and teen fiction stories will enjoy this new epic fantasy series.

Pages: 301 | ASIN : B07QG7N221