The Watchers by Jo Sisk-Purvis sees ships laden with Watchers pull into the harbor. The Matans take the entire population of Akila away to Paav to be sold as slaves. Only Alesea and local watcher Roni are left behind, wounded, and expected to die. Despite believing Roni betrayed the village, Alesea saves his life. The pair sets out together on a quest to retrieve her brother Konu and other family members. They must maintain their act as an engaged couple and remain undetected in the close confines of a ship. All the while, Alesea is struggling to manage her powers and accept her heritage. A commitment to the principles of the A’lodi obliges her to see the best in everyone.

The Watchers by Jo Sisk-Purvis is a young adult adventure full of danger and intrigue. I shivered with apprehension multiple times throughout the narrative as it seemed Alesea and Roni were sure to be caught by the cruel Paav. Along the journey, I enjoyed learning about Alesea’s parentage and read eagerly to see where her destiny would take her. It was intriguing to see the A’lodi in action, which seemed something like the principles of love. It could even be used to reform and defeat an enemy in a timely fashion! I was excited by the romance between Alesea and one of the crew and felt it was poetic for her first love to end in tears. I was also curious whether the prophecy of the Trekana would influence Alesea’s behavior. I can recommend The Watchers by Jo Sisk-Purvis to lovers of series fantasy.

The young adult fantasy adventure The Watchers by Jo Sisk-Purvis is the first book in The Trekana series. Readers are introduced to Alesea, who lives on a beautiful island with special trees. Alesea lives in a world of watchers, listeners, doubles, and knowers, although the latter was supposed to be extinct. They were often feared and hated and nobody expected that a knower would be the one who might just save them. Like her mother, Alesea has a great talent for music and could play an instrument and sing. She did not expect that her whole life would change because someone wanted access to the trees on her island, nor did she expect another talent to overshadow her musical abilities. She found herself in the middle of an adventure she would rather not have experienced.

I found The Watchers by Jo Sisk-Purvis to be an engaging novel. The characters were interesting and it was difficult to predict how the plot would develop. I would have preferred it if the idea of watchers, listeners, doubles, and their origin could have been explained much earlier in the novel, perhaps in some sort of prologue. I enjoyed the plot, the pacing, and the struggles of the characters, from Alesea having to learn how to trust someone she perceived as a traitor to a watcher having to deal with being surrounded by people who were different from him. It’s nice to see smaller plots woven into the bigger picture - it gives the whole story more substance and makes you curious about the outcome.