Mortal Coils by Eric Nylund

Nothing interesting ever happened to fifteen-year-old orphans Eliot and Fiona while they’ve lived in the strict, oppressive household of their grandmother. A chance visit, however, reveals that there is much more to the twins. They are the offspring of a goddess and Lucifer, Prince of Darkness.

Now, to settle the epic custody battle between these two families, the fallen angels create three diabolical temptations, and the gods fashion three heroic trials to test Eliot and Fiona. More than ever they need to stick together to survive and to learn how to use their budding supernatural abilities . . . for family allegiances are ever-shifting in the ancient, secret world they have entered.

Title: Mortal Coils {Mortal Coils, book 1} 

Author: Eric Nylund

Publication: 03rd February 2009

Publisher: Tor Books

608 pages

This book is the first one of a series. I read the French translation.

My review

After reading the summary of Mortal Coils, I really wanted to read this novel. I must say that I'm not disappointed at all and I spent a great time with this book.

This first instalment nicely sets up the series and it enables us to meet the different characters and the universe created by Eric Nylund. If the beginning of the book is relatively slow, it is nevertheless interesting and kept me spellbound. As for the second part, it is more action-packed, with twists and this second half of the book totally captivated me. The third-person narration allows the author to follow several characters. If the point of view is mostly focused on Eliot, we sometimes follow Fiona and, finally, some passages allow us to further meet other characters.

The twins are enthralling and their characters are rather uncommon in young-adult novels. Indeed, they are educated at home under the strict supervision of their grandmother, they are very erudite and have grown almost deprived of their liberty, with no other option, but to study and work in a pizzeria during the day. They are rather naive and, despite their cultural knowledge, they don't really know the outside world because they live behind closed doors, with their grandmother and great grandmother.

I preferred the young boy, Eliot, because Fiona seems a little more arrogant, but it was really pleasant to follow them in their discovery. They are both nice and especially full of resources. The second part of the book, when the mythology is fully developed, totally captivated me. I was really curious to see how the twins would cope.

Mortal Coils is full of twists, action, mysteries and surprises. The mythology developed by Eric Nylund is extremely pleasant. I totally enjoyed this aspect and the plot is full of magic, old myths, terrifying creatures and ancient warfare. The confrontation between the two clans is really fascinating, although many questions remain on hold at the end of this first instalment.

To sum up, if you want a novel that combines an original mythology, engaging characters, action and suspense, then you should check out this book. It ends on a small cliffhanger and I'm now really looking forward to reading the second instalment. I'm waiting for it with great impatience to know the answers to my questions and the rest of the story.