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Reviewed by David Jaggart for Readers' Favorite
The Everling and the Balefire Monster by J. Christie follows Chezzy Nithercot as he attempts to solve a terrifying kidnapping inside his school. Already isolated by his unique genetic status as the last living everling, Chezzy’s thrown into total turmoil when a classmate is snatched by a mysterious beast. To find the missing student, he must use a crown-like device to travel through alternate timelines, uncovering disturbing visions of a future he is desperate to stop. With school authorities acting distant and his friendships fracturing under the pressure, Chezzy’s forced to make alliances he never expected while unlocking his latent fire-generation abilities. The investigation leads him deep into the hidden corners of the academy, where genetic secrets threaten everyone. Will he find a way to guide his friends to safety and piece together the unstable realities before his own timeline is destroyed?
J. Christie’s The Everling and the Balefire Monster is a gripping YA sci-fi fantasy tale that delivers an inventive growing-up story wrapped inside a dark, temporal puzzle. Christie’s clever use of parallel memory exploration changes how clues are gathered, keeping the reader fully invested in how the alternate timelines will line up. There’s a beautiful sense of character growth as Chezzy slowly changes from a solitary outsider into a leader willing to make difficult choices for the safety of his peers. It is truly refreshing to see how authentic friendships and imaginative elements like quantum chocolates work to dilute the unrelenting stress hanging over the students. The story really shines when specific faculty members become like surrogate parents for the teens, weaving a thread of pure heart straight through the chaos. It’s the perfect read for anyone looking for a fresh spin on the academy subgenre.
