Dana A. Alexander

Thank you, Thomas. Happy to meet you on GR. :)

Thanks for becoming a GR friend! Congrats and good luck with your books. :)

I'm humbled to receive this lovely, detailed review for Beyond A Darkened Sky, the prequel to the series, and wanted to share:

The Three Keys Series seems like it will be a truly epic adventure; that much is obvious right off the bat. Not only is the premise vast and sweeping, but it manages not to seem completely ridiculous. The writing is mature, and takes itself seriously, and the depth of planning and outlining of the story makes it seem like a fleshed out concept supported by skilled prose. If you looked at the bare bones outline of the story, it sounds a bit wild, but once you're immersed in the characters and the quest....it ceases to seem anything but brilliant. Alexander really nailed the balance of dark and light, terror and romance, and reality and fantasy in this first book of the series, and I am intrigued to see how she maintains that throughout the rest of the books. There were a few moments where the writing veered off the tracks a bit, both in terms of being too verbose or wordy to the point where it seemed a bit out of place, particularly in the context of that specific character, as well as occasionally jumping and leaving a small gap or an almost unbelievably coincidental occurrence as the only real plot connector. I don't mean to criticize, as this type of book is massively complex and difficult to keep flowing perfectly throughout. Overall, Alexander did an excellent job making this world real and tangible for the reader, as well as very entertaining to explore with the characters. I will definitely keep my eyes open for the rest of these books, and I look forward to seeing whether these three medallions, three keys, and two long-lost lovers will end up saving the world!