A Human Element

A Human Element is written by Donna Galenti and is the first book in the Element Trilogy. The book revolves around 3 main characters, Laura Armstrong an adopted girl who exhibits amazing healing abilities, Ben Fieldstone, a boy whose past links to the site of her birth, and X-10 or Charlie who has a darkness within and has been fueled to anger and an obsession with Laura that has turned to black hatred as he is forced to watch her from afar.

A Human Element covers a span of time periods as we watch the characters grow and develop into whom they are, shaped by forces around them. Each of these characters knows loss in a painful way. Donna was not afraid to face painful and REAL issues head on. There are definitely some areas that graphically deal with encounters such as rape, addiction/depression and death that seem to follow each character. If you are overly sensitive to any of these issues you may find some parts are painful to read.

Galenti did an amazing job of bringing each character to life, whether ancillary or main, they will all be as if before your eyes. I also must commend her on adding in the realism and “humanity” aspect so that no character is 100% perfect or 100% evil.

This book is one of many dark twists and turns and leaving you with many questions that cause you to pass through the pages wanting to know more. Galenti is a superb storyteller and is one that we will see more from in the future. She has the gift of bringing her story to live, the visualization and attention to detail in both character and setting make her rise above many other independent authors that do not devote the time to show a true love for their story as it is transformed into the written form.

Overall, I award this book 4/5 stars. This is an amazing story in the stages of development, although it could definitely be cleaned up a bit (at least on the Kindle copy that I read). This would help eliminate any break in flow. Otherwise, the story was really great and definitely worth the read. This is definitely a story unlike any you have read before. If you are into sci-fi, fantasy, mystery, suspense, romance, fiction, young adult, etc you will definitely want to check this one out!

*I received this book for free in exchange for a fair and honest review.

If you are interested in viewing the author spotlight that I wrote on the fabulous Donna Galenti, check it out here: Spotlight on Donna Galenti