Echoes: Lucifer and the Dark Goddess by Nikki Broadwell – Review by Francis O’Sullivan

Echoes– by Nikki Broadwell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Echoes is the first book in Nikki Broadwell’s Lucifer and the Dark Goddess series. It is a paranormal dystopian adventure set in a world where the divide between rich and poor is huge, mechanical half-humans do all of the work no one else wants to do and a deadly virus threatens to wipe out the population of the city of Elysium.
Feirin is a fascinating protagonist. She remembers little of her past but somehow has managed to avoid detection from the authorities who would exile an undocumented person like her. Used to her particular version of normal, she doesn’t even notice that she has unusual powers and assumes that everyone can read each other’s thoughts.
This is a story of survival and resistance. Feirin, and the mismatched group who become her family, have to make tough choices and stand up for each other. There is hope, particularly as Feirin learns more about her powers, but there are also often times when it feels like the characters are just delaying the inevitable.
Elena is one of my favourite characters. She’s observant and down-to-earth, a reliable and stable point in Feirin’s unpredictable world. I’m also fond of Cat, Feirin’s loyal cat.
For me, this is a five-star book. I’m looking forward to reading more of the series! This book does have explicit sex and violence, so wouldn’t be appropriate for younger readers, but is great for new adult readers. It will appeal to fans of post-apocalyptic and dystopian fiction who like characters who look after each other, even the ill or vulnerable. In that sense, it’s a very optimistic story! I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series…

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