When a sixteen-year-old wakes up in an unknown world and encounters dark forces that threaten the universe, only she can change its destiny.
Accessing portals to other realms, Ambrielle journeys across multiple worlds as she desperately tries to find her way home.
Sixteen-year-old Ambrielle has no memory of her life. In fact, she doesnât even know if her name is Ambrielle, the name her new alien friend gave her when she woke up mysteriously stranded in a desolate world with no humans. As she slowly cobbles together bits and pieces of her life, Ambrielle tries to fit in with the many alien species she encounters and settle their divisive conflicts, all while avoiding the dark forces of The Shadows and trying to return to Earth.
When a sixteen-year-old wakes up in an unknown world and encounters dark forces that threaten the universe, only she can change its destiny.
Accessing portals to other realms, Ambrielle journeys across multiple worlds as she desperately tries to find her way home.
Sixteen-year-old Ambrielle has no memory of her life. In fact, she doesnât even know if her name is Ambrielle, the name her new alien friend gave her when she woke up mysteriously stranded in a desolate world with no humans. As she slowly cobbles together bits and pieces of her life, Ambrielle tries to fit in with the many alien species she encounters and settle their divisive conflicts, all while avoiding the dark forces of The Shadows and trying to return to Earth.
Veiled monsters from the remnants of a dream gathered in the corners of her mind. Whispers that called to her, echoed through her soul. The image of a blue glow coming through a swirling vortex was burned into her brain. She sat in the orange-and-gray sand, unsure where these thoughts came from, for there was nothing in this lush oasis that resembled anything sinister. In fact, there was nothing living here except for some plants. Strange trees rose above her, their green-and-red spine fronds hanging low to the ground like weeping willows. They dangled in the gentle breeze coming off the waters of the crystal-blue spring.
Beyond this lush oasis lay miles and miles of barren desert. To her right there was a sea of windswept dunes; to her left the sand gave way to cliffs of crusted sand and rock. For what seemed like a week, she had been here, pondering who she was, unable to recall anything about herself or this deserted world of sand and dust.
Sitting in the orange-and-gray sand, the girl lifted her head from her hands as she rested her elbows on her knees. Cleaning the sediment out of her long, caramel-colored hair, there was little left to do but dwell on her predicament. She tried to remember what had happened, but her thoughts became a jumbled mess. Vague memories twisted together until they met and short-circuited inside her brain. There was an emptiness that weighed heavily on her. While there was no memory in her mind to accompany it, her heart had not forgotten. She dared not shine a light on this dark place, dreading the day she would have to turn and face it.
She feared that no one was here, which was possibly worse than any fear of unknown inhabitants. The good news was that she had water and a source of food. There were berries that were not poisonous. They didnât taste good, but that didnât matter. She was able to survive here, physically. Mentally, she was less certain.
There was little to keep her going. Loneliness was her enemy now. There had been no signs of any living creature on this planet, neither a tiny insect crawling on the ground nor a bird flying across the sky. The oasis was an anomaly on this dead planet. She figured that if there were animal life here, this place is where it would want to be.
Drawing pictures in the sand was her new pastime. She drew rough stick drawings of people, but she did not remember anyone else. Sometimes she would draw words, big words, right outside the oasis, hoping someone would find them. As she drew greetings like âhelloâ or âhelpâ in big, bubble letters, after a momentary flash, a memory surfaced of doodling on notebook paper. It wasnât much to go on.
Brushing back a clump of hair that fell over her mahogany eyes, she realized how oily and tangled it had become. It had not always been like this. She wished that she could wash it. The waters of the spring helped but did not get it as clean as she thought it should be.
This place was not home. She must have a home out there somewhere but did not know where to find it. Leaving the oasis was something she would have to do eventually if she wanted to get back, but this was her sanctuary, her haven in the unknown. For now, she decided that she would stay with the water and food to survive. Perhaps after she slept, sheâd have fewer reservations about taking that risk.
A gleam of yellow, orange, and red filled one side of the sky between the trees. It had been that way since she first recalled being here. She remembered a world where the light traveled across the sky until it splashed behind the horizon in streaks of glorious colors. The world would grow dark for a while as she slept, and then its sun would climb into the sky when she awoke. Not like here, where it was stuck forever between light and dark.
Moving over to a big, flat stone that had become her sitting spot, she overlooked the waters of the spring. The stone was smooth except for some cracks and scratches on the top. Another gust of wind passed through, animating the trees and disrupting the glassy surface of the water. The girl watched the ripples until they dissipated and the spring settled back into its solid form. When the dark waters were calm, they flattered the skies with their imitation. The red-outlined clouds that stretched for miles, the soft array of blazing colors, and the field of bright stars at its ceiling held a serene beauty that had only her to appreciate it.
Leaning forward, she interrupted its reflection with her shadow. The water was crystal clear. In the shallows, there were enormous stones at the bottom, while the deepest part of the spring radiated with a blue glow. It stimulated her curiosity, but not enough to swim down into the freezing water to inspect it.
The air in her mouth tasted horrid. Leaning down a little closer to the water, she stumbled off the stone. After she took a drink, something on the stone caught her eye. The scratchings from this angle were like letters. She could make out two Ls, a W, and an H. Inspecting the scratches, she tried to find more letters against the rest of the scrapes in the rock. She wondered if it was her mind attempting to find patterns in random markings, but there were more of them. Altogether, she found the letters T H E H O L L O W written on the rock.
If these truly were letters, it meant there had been someone here before her. Maybe they were still around somewhere. She could find only one way to decipher the combination of letters in the order presented. The Hollow, she thought, but what does that mean?Â
The longer she stared at the letters, the more they looked like random scratches. She turned back to the rock again, but the words did not appear in the way they had at first. Her excitement faded to disappointment. She was alone here. The girl remained perched on the stone, her throne in this vacant land, queen of this world by default.
She lifted a hand to the collar of her white sundress, and her fingers found the silver necklace, with its icy-blue jewel. She lifted it into view as it sparkled, even in this dim light. When she touched it, it made her feel comforted and happy most of the time, while also regretful and sad. She remembered being given the necklace as a gift but couldnât remember by who.Â
Her attention was drawn toward the dark horizon through the trees, but she turned away. Something out there made her uneasy. It was like she was being watched, even though there was nothing out there but dried, crusty sand and formations of rock. As silly as it may be, she knew she would never travel in that direction if she left to search for home.
She hoped for some movement in the glow of the other horizon, someone to rescue her from this lonely world. But as usual, there was no one. Only her and the trees. It made little sense for her to stay here and wait for something.Â
The thought of leaving her haven frightened her. What if nothing else was out there and she couldnât find her way back? But then, what if she stayed here? She imagined herself growing old and dying here, while the entire time a civilization was just over one of the dunes.
The first steps toward the unknown are always the most difficult. She had to make herself do it. There is no success without risk. She decided that she would rest once more, and then she would begin her quest. There was one advantage to this twilight; she wouldnât have the sun beating down on her as she crossed the desert. Making one last drawing in the sand, she wrote herself a reminder of her decision.
She lay down on a pile of sand that she had been using as a pillow, and the bright stars winked at her through the trees. As she counted them, the loneliness subsided a little. There could be someone else out there, far from home, gazing up at these same stars. She wished that she could talk to them and tell them they were not alone, that they should not give up and they would find what they were searching for. She wished someone would tell her that right now, as she drifted off to sleep.
***
After some time had passed, strands of her hair blew across her face, tickling her freckled nose. Waking from her light sleep, she saw the reminder she had written in the sand.
Start walking, the message said.
She got to her feet and stepped over to the spring, splashing the icy water on her hair, face, and body until she was wide awake.
It was time. She removed her shoes and socks, taking the socks and soaking them in the spring. She picked a handful of dark red berries and poured them into the socks. The girl stuffed her socks underneath the sash of her white floral-print sundress and put her shoes back on. A sense of dread came over her, as there was nothing left to do but start walking and begin her journey.Â
She set out toward the glowing light and away from the sanctuary of the oasis. The sand was softer out here and her feet sank into it. After she had walked down the first dune and up to the top of the second, she turned back once more to glimpse the oasis that had been her temporary home since she had been here. From this distance, it was out of place among the endless sand and rock.
She continued, facing whatever might lie ahead, with no sign of hope yet on the horizon. Slope after slope of dry sand awaited her. She told herself there was no turning back until she found something out here. Crossing over endless sand and dirt, she reached the top of the next dune and turned back again. There was no longer any sign of the oasis behind her.
She kept a steady paceâshe wanted to get as far as she could before needing food, water, or sleep. The socks under her dress were still damp. She wasnât sure how long that would last, so she squeezed some water into her mouth, being careful not to crush the berries inside.
With the spring out of sight, she hoped the hardest part was over with. She allowed herself to imagine the interesting places that must be out here that she would discover. There was the possibility that she may need to go back at some point, and she made sure that she maintained a straight path so she could find her way if she needed to.
As she trudged down another hill, she came to a formation of gray-colored rock at its base. The rock was between two dunes. Upon examination, the pockmarked stone had a symmetrical pattern to it, almost like honeycomb. Was this a natural formation or a sign that someone else had been here? She touched it, and a piece of it broke off easily in her hand. The outside of the rock was hard and crusty, but the inside was soft, like limestone. Was she getting close to water?
As she crossed over another dune, she began finding more rock formations peeking out of the sand. She didnât want to get too excited, but she was getting closer to something. The risk of leaving the oasis needed to be worth it.
The sand turned into a rock-covered landscape ahead. She speculated that perhaps a civilization would build in this area. Aside from the uneven surfaces, this was much faster terrain than the deep, silting sand. She was enjoying the sense of wonder and exploration.
She came across some cliffs and walked around to more sloping ground. She quickened her pace whenever she had the opportunity over sections of flat surfaces. Her legs were tired after all the resistance from the thick sand, but she pressed on.
Up ahead, the stone surface was ending as sand stretched over it. A bit farther she walked, until she saw something at the horizon. As she got a little closer, she could make out what it was. There was a patch of trees ahead. She couldnât believe it! There was more life here. There could be people here too.
Excited, she picked up her pace, eager for a new discovery. The trees did not stretch out far, but they gave her a sense of hope. As she hurried toward them, an odd rustle moved toward her. It came gently on the breeze. A voice filled with intangible words that she strained to decipher.
She stopped and turned toward the sound but saw nothing there. As she began moving, the noise appeared again. It was faint, but she was sure something was there. She paused again, focusing all attention on the sound. Scanning the dunes around her, she was filled with the creeping sense of someone watching.
The breathy wind grew louder, closer. It was so near, yet invisible. The voice drew ever closer, until it slithered its way into her mind, the words echoing in her soul as it spoke.
Youâre going the wrong way, it whispered.
Oddly, the creeping terror inside her was numbing with the calmness of the voice. She started walking again but was facing toward her recent footprints in the sand. This wasnât the direction she had been walking. This would lead her back to the oasis sheâd started in. How did she get turned around in the opposite direction? Her thoughts became fuzzy as her focus waned. The voices coiled around her in a tight but unwelcome embrace.
Let us guide you, it said.
Control over her own actions was slipping away, but she resisted. Her brain seemed to be shutting down, as if she were very drowsy. She couldnât sleep again, not now. No matter what these whispers spoke to her, she had to know what was ahead.
Thatâs it . . . Let it all slip away . . . We are here with you. Open your eyes and see.
A chill ran down her spine as her calm turned to fear. She could not bear to face the thing that was speaking to her. Panicked, she turned and ran as fast as she could toward the group of vegetation ahead. There were familiar trees with the red, drooping fronds here, and the whispers faded. Turning her head in all directions to make sure nothing was there, she began to relax a little. The voices had completely stopped now.
Moving ahead to explore this new discovery, she realized there was a spring here as well. It was the same size as the spring in her own oasis. Weaving through the trees and berry plants toward the water, she made it to the spring and realized that it was exactly like the one in her oasis.
She walked toward the new water source and noticed a smooth stone like the one she had used as a seat before. She sat on top of the stone; it was exactly the same in every way. The shape of the spring and the configuration of the surrounding trees. Everything about this was the same.
How could this be? There was a swelling inside her throat. She had been suppressing negative emotion and thoughts for as long as she could remember being here. She tried to hold it back now, but it kept coming, slow and steady, like a freight train, and she could not outrun it forever. She had no choice but to let it rush through her. She waited for it to subside, but it did not.
Panic and desperation hit her. She was on a deserted world, lost somewhere out in the universe. She couldnât breathe. Even though they were only vague images, somewhere out there were people she once knew and loved. She had to get back to them, had to find some way to talk to them again.Â
She tried to steady herself, gasping for air, but couldnât get anything. Her heartbeat accelerated, and her skin became wet with sweat. She focused on the spring. The waters made her calm and at peace. On the positive side, she was back in her haven, but there was no way she had walked in a circle. Sheâd made sure that she maintained a straight path. Finding her necklace, she cradled it in her fingers. As she began to settle down, she took a few deep breaths.
She walked over to the spot under the trees where she slept. There was no sand pillow, no words saying, âStart Walking.â This wasnât the same location but an exact duplicate of it. Did that mean there were copies of this same area all over this world? If that were true, then there really was no hope.
This must be a dream. Nothing about this place makes any sense.
She had experienced realistic dreams before, but nothing compared to this. She had been here too long to have been asleep. She remembered all the details of days of boredom, of staring at the spring. On the other hand, she couldnât remember how all this started. It didnât make any sense for her to be here and not remember how it happened. In dreams there is never an origin; they simply form into a random event. Not being able to trace events back to a reasonable beginning was a sign that it was a dream.
But there was something before this. Hazy memories, emotions that haunted her. She remembered a world where the landscape was varied. There was more than a place that kept repeating itself over and over. A world where the sun lit up the sky and . . . Earth! That was it! Her home was on a place called Earth. It wasnât a dream. Now she needed to remember how to get there.
Carved into the stone where she sat was the word HOLLOW again. The letters were unmistakable this time. As she excitedly traced over the markings, she made out even more letters than before. A R E THE HOLLOW; it wasnât making any more sense, but knowing that she wasnât the first being here gave her some comfort. It was the second sign of life here, but hopefully this had nothing to do with the Whisperers.
As she began to recognize the square style of the carved letters, they were getting easier to pick out from the random scratches. BEWARE THE HOLLOW is what she finally came up with. She wasnât sure what it could mean other than a warning.
After thinking on the words for a while, she began growing weary-eyed, and she decided to try to rest. She would come up with a new plan. She was pleased with this new mystery. She welcomed the challenge. Counting the stars at the top of the sky, she laid her head on the soft sand and drifted off to sleep.
***
A new sound nearby awakened her. She sat up, listening intently to it. There was someone crying. Her pulse quickened as she backed away. She calmed herself to keep from running. She needed to know who was there. Quietly, she moved toward the direction of the sound.
Creeping between the trees on the other side of the spring, she searched for the source of the noise. Curiosity and fear fought a battle inside her as she drew closer to the sobbing. To her own surprise, curiosity was winning.
When she reached the edge of the oasis, she saw a girl sitting on the stump of a tree, looking out at the desert wasteland before her. The girl did not appear completely human, as she had dark gray skin with magenta-and-red hair that pulsated and glowed like embers. Dark bruises covered her face and arms as though she had been beaten.
She stood there watching her for a moment, debating how she should approach the situation, until finally she got brave enough to speak.
âAre you okay?â she asked the girl.
The girl spun around and drew a two-pronged blade that resembled the forked tongue of a serpent. She was obviously ready to defend herself at any cost.
âSorry, I didnât mean to intrude,â she said. âIâve been alone for so long and was beginning to think there was no one else here.â
The girl studied her, as if trying to determine whether she should run or attack. After a few moments, she relaxed and put away her knife.
âWhere do you come from?â the girl said. âI havenât seen your kind before.â
âFrom what I remember, I come from a place called Earth,â she replied.
âI have never heard of such a place. I am Sidaire. What is your name?â
âUm . . . well, I donât know. It was something like . . . Ammm . . . I canât quite remember.â
Sidaire looked directly into her eyes. âNot long ago, I had lost who I was too. Only recently have I begun to recover.â
âThatâs good. Maybe I will, too, then.â
âYou may wish you hadnât.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âI lost myself . . . in The Hollow. It took everything I knew, my thoughts, feelings . . .â
âThe Hollow? Were you the one who wrote that message on the rock?â
âI donât remember writing a message.â
âWhat is The Hollow?â
Sidaire looked out in the distance. âDarkness . . . Oblivion. It consumed me . . . Left me with no control.â
âHow did you get out?â
âI donât even know.â Sidaire turned back, eyes focusing on her again. âIt was like something caught its attention, and its domination subsided for a moment. I donât yet remember anything more than that.â
âCaught whoâs attention?â
âThe monster.â
âMonster? Is that what the whispers came from?â
âThe whispers??â Sidaireâs eyes widened as she stood up to take a few steps back. âHave you heard them?!â
âYes, when I was walking over here . . . They seemed to beââ
âYou brought them here?!â Sidaire said with a mix of anger and fear.
âNo, theyâthey left when I got here . . .â
âGet in the water!â Sidaire commanded. âHurry! Iâm going to take a look around.â
Unsure of what else to do, she went back through the trees toward the spring. Hesitantly, she pulled off her tennis shoes and dipped her feet into the ice-cold water. The sensation was a shock at first, but as she got used to the temperature, it was quite refreshing.
As she began to submerge herself in the spring, she wondered if getting in with her sundress on was a bad idea. Based on Sidaireâs reaction, this was not the time to be concerned with that. Once she was out of the shallows, she quickly dunked her head under the water. Was she supposed to hide under the water of the spring? After taking another breath of air, she went under the surface again.
She was surprised at how deep the water was toward the center. If nothing else, it gave her a chance to investigate the blue glow at the bottom. It was coming from a large opening in the rock.
Bringing her head above the water again, she waited for any sign of Sidaire. Still nothing. She dove back under, swimming down a little farther to investigate the opening. There was a light coming out of the tunnel that shone momentarily and then vanished. It reminded her of the last image she could remember, the blue light coming out of a vortex.
She surfaced again. âThereâs something down here!â she yelled, hoping Sidaire would know something about it. There was no response.
She lunged forward and swam down toward the blue glow. Around the walls of the cavern, she noticed there was white stone with a honeycomb pattern. It was like the rock formations in between the dunes on her trek across the desert. Inside the cave, the light moved across again, illuminating the inside for a moment. She wanted to move in a little farther, but first she needed to breathe.
Taking a deep breath and holding it, she went back under, down to the cave. The mouth of the cave opened into a larger space inside the rock. There were three smaller tunnels ahead of her. The honeycomb-patterned stone covered the entire cavern. The light brightened again, coming from the tunnel on her right.
She went back out of the cave, surfacing again to get another full breath. This time when she reached the three tunnels, she swam through the one on the right. The tunnel remained tight, making it difficult to turn around. She should not have entered, but it was too late now. She went from cautiously moving through the passage to using her feet on the bottom to propel herself through faster.
She finally came to a wider opening, immediately turning around and going back through to get more oxygen. She had second thoughts about going back but decided to go a little farther, wanting to find the source of the light.
She went back through the smaller tunnel again and came to the larger opening. There were two more tunnels here, but one was too small to enter. The other was about the same size as the one she had come through.
The light was much brighter when it appeared again, and she decided to go through. This tunnel sloped upward at an angle. She used her hands and feet to propel herself as fast as she could through it. As her back began to scrape the ceiling of the tunnel, she realized that it had become smaller than it was when she first entered.
Holding her breath began to get uncomfortable now. She had to consciously resist inhaling. The tunnel kept stretching onward, and she began to panic. She tried to turn around in the small cave but could not do it. She clawed at the ceiling of the tunnel. Fear was setting in now but was a waste of energy. Trying to calm herself, she went back to propelling herself forward in the tunnel.
She was now at her limit. She couldnât hold her breath any longer. She involuntarily gasped for air, but nothing entered her lungs. It was as though her body no longer needed air. Suddenly her entire world flipped over. Her sense of equilibrium went haywire. The water disappeared, and she began to feel completely weightless. A thousand voices whispered in her mind. The girl struggled to decipher the words as they blended with each other in disarray. Her body was numb as she floated aimlessly through the void. There was a vastness to it that she had never experienced. It was as if it had no beginning or end. There was a sense of falling and hitting water again, and her bodyâs need for oxygen returned. The girl quickly held her breath as everything started spinning.
Once she had regained her balance, she realized that she was floating in a much larger space than the tunnel was she in. Above her, rays of light danced through the liquid medium. Was this the light sheâd been chasing? It must be really close now. She swam upward toward the surface, finally breaking through and getting some much-needed air.
She immediately closed her eyes. The light was intense. She squinted. It was all a white blur. Once her eyes dilated, details started coming into focus. What was there did not make any logical sense. This wasnât the spring in the oasis, or even the desert planet at all. It was an entirely different world.
Bewilderness is an easy-to-read young adult fantasy that just about anyone would enjoy. The author does an excellent job of keeping you guessing on what exactly is going on, which encourages you to keep reading.
There were a few things that I really enjoyed, including the world-building and the vast array of unique characters. The author is able to paint a very clear picture of the settings, including three different worlds. Every time the character found herself in a new world, I never struggled to imagine the landscape and visual elements of the new setting.
You are also introduced to a large number of characters in this book, but Cox seems to have a good understanding of how many characters is too much. I found all of the characters very unique; they each stood out in their own way and added depth to the story. They also contrasted the main character well.
That being said, there were also a few elements that held me back from fully enjoying the story. Even though the synopsis of the book claims that the protagonist is "desperate" to find her way home, I never felt that urgency. Sometimes she seemed a bit too nonchalant, which made the story drag in some places.
The dialogue also felt a bit forced, but this didn't bother me too much. However, Some actions of the main character confused me, such as how she curtsey's to people when she introduces herself. Unless she was royalty back on earth, it doesn't quite make sense.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and found it to be a light, fast and enjoyable read. It is obvious that the author has a vast imagination, and Cox did a great job of pulling the reader into this new universe.
The ending definitely felt abrupt and did not have a bow tie finish, but I think it was intentional. While I was left with even more questions, it made me want to read the second book even more!