The Last Prince of Atlantis Chronicles

The Last Prince of Atlantis Chronicles #1

by Leonard Clifton, Kevin Carter

Allen King is an unassuming Black teenager living in a blue-collar family in Miami, Florida. After finding a magical crystal necklace he discovers that he's actually an Atlantean prince. Suddenly things change for the gawky teenager. He gains the powers of telepathy, teleportation through a rainbow wormhole, and he is able to communicate with sea animals. Along with a beautiful Greek Goddess, his orphan best friends, and zany uncle, Allen keeps the Earth safe as they fight against his mortal enemies in an attempt to restore his kingdom, the lost city of Atlantis.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

464 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 18, 2018

About the author

Leonard Clifton loves writing, supporting his favorite charities, traveling the world, and is always seeking new adventures. He was the first author to have a Barnes & Noble book signing for Black History month at The Grove in Los Angeles. He has given lectures around the world about his book series and how it relates to Afrofuturism at California State University, Northridge. Leonard has has lectured to international students at UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Reviews

[Leonard Clifton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hello everyone. I am honored and humbled by the zoom lecture I had for The Last Prince of Atlantis Chronicles. I talk about my experience traveling around the world for the book series and what I learned about different cultures I added in the book series. The YouTube video is on this post. It was very inspiring. Thanks for the support. "Hail Atlantis!" https://youtu.be/814YTwJ35cw


https://shoptlpa.com/

[Ruby Is Reading · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book.😍📚


Athena declares, “You are the true heir… you’re the last Prince of Atlantis!”

And Allen almost gets shot by a tranquilliser dart, Fortunately Athena teleports him and saved his life.

It's a story of 15 year old African American boy named Allen King, who apparently is a descendant of Alien Elders from another planet called Zion west.

As Allen keeps on learning about himself, his history and ancestors his resolve gets strengthened to restore his legacy afterall it is his birthright to be a king.

NO SPOILERS HERE...!

I suggest you to get this book asap, feel the world of Allen king yourself cuz you won't regret it. Brace yourself for the upcoming adventurous ride with Allen and his friends.

TBH, I am crazy over Greek Mythology, and this book had brought me exactly what i was looking for. It is full of action, magic, mythological creatures and Characters. As a fan of percy jackson series i would say that, this book was another great opportunity for me to dive into the world of Greek Gods again.

The Plot basically targets teenagers and also young adults if they are into Fantasy-Fiction. Gods, Teleportation, Magic, Telepathy, Adventure, action name anything and you have got it here.

I couldn't find anything negative in here to comment on, so i have to admit i loved Leonard's work.

[Miah D · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could rate this lower than one star, I would. The writing is, at best, poor. The style is very juvenile--and not in the young adult literature kind of way. The author rarely varies the sentence structure from simple and compound, and instead of painting vivid imagery with his words, falls into the trap of adjective stacking. The point of view changes arbitrarily from third person limited to second person, which is very frustrating for the reader to navigate. The dialogue is trite. Additionally, as a reader of YA lit, I feel like Richard Riordan may have a case for plagarism against his Percy Jackson series, except such a case would give The Last Prince of Atlantis more credibility than it is worth.

This makes Twilight look like it is of the same literary finesse as The Grapes of Wrath.

This novel is written so poorly, I have a strong, sinking suspicion that the other reviewers are friends, family, or being held hostage by the author in exchange for a good review.

[Rogelio Abelard · Rating 1 out of 5]

When i read what this book was about i thought finally, a book that features diversity as well as a lead male person of color but boy was i in for a surprise.

This is book was nothing short of a disaster and that's pretty generous.

First off the book is maaaaaaaad hard to read. It doesn't even look like an editor touched it. There are mad mistakes, misusage of words, cheesy dialogue and a poor set up of plot. It made me wonder how this book even got published??Then i researched it, it was self published and then it all came very clear, a vanity publishing house just ran away with this author's money!I'm not college educated but I do know how to read and catch mistakes,and this one had way too many to get lost in the story.

What bothers me the most about this book is that everything happened so fast. It's like one minute he's a loser and next chapter he's a warrior without having any doubts. There has been no character in a book that i've read and loved that just accepted that he was this great hero, he didn't struggle with anything.

His friends were just plain corny and stupid. Many times i just skimmed the pages because i couldn't stand reading their campy dialogue. I hated the basketball references, i wish he would have left all that out.

It says that Allen is mixed, which made me read the book in the first place. I'm Bi Racial(Latino and Afro-Caribbean) so i thought that maybe i could relate to this book but for some reason the author seemed to favor mixed raced people that looked more european. Which i just couldn't get into. I would have rather Allen just be like full black, and just make him Haitian or something, ya know since he's from Miami. That would have been fire! As a bi racial man

The descriptions in this book are kind of lucid, i just couldn't see what the author was trying to make me see because this wasn't good story telling. All these reviews up here have to be bogus because no one has friggin mentioned how poorly written this book is. Nothing at all saves this story. It's waaaaay too long for someone's first book.It could have gone through some intense editing and got cut down to like 330 pages and still been understood without all the extra unnecessary stuff he mentions. A lot of the book has such unnecessary dialogue that don't got ish to do with the story. There are so many i can't highlight just one.

The villain was just unrealistic and whack as hell.I couldn't imagine them, reptiles, gargoyles? Yo aren't gargoyles supposed to protect???

Athena is prolly the only character that's likable but she is just another damsel in distress who expects a man to save her. To women in books, BE YOUR OWN HERO!

Anyone who looks and sees me may not think that i'm bi racial because i'm rather pale for someone who has a black father but I didn't really know what the kid was mixed with, all i know is that he looked black with bluish greenish hazel eyes. First of all is it, blue, green or hazel, The author needs to find stronger words to describe something so that he can cut descriptions down to one word.When describing colors a strong word cancels out the need to describe something with three colors. Just a suggestion. I didn't have a problem with him being bi racial like a said, i'm bi racial, but in my head he appeared odd looking. Maybe if he was described to look like Jesse Williams a known mixed race actor who has light colored eyes and has a complexion to match his features i would have left this paragraph out. But i just didn't connect, he coulda been a white guy for all i cared. My favorite Bi racial character in a comic is Miles Morales aka Spider Man, I was hoping this story would be better than that, but it's safe to say that it wasn't.

I bought this book hoping that one day I could read it to my son who loves to read, but I don't know I think i better just stick to Spider Man.

[Brooke McLeod · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rating: 0.8 stars out of 5 stars

Hey y'all! I heard about TLPoA from a Facebook group I'm a part of and decided to give it a shot because it sounded REALLY cool. It seemed like a YA novel with an interesting concept and aspects of fantasy I enjoy (Greek myths, POC, etc.). I made the decision to not read any reviews of it besides a quick glance at the star rating on Goodreads and Amazon (~3.82 and ~4.6, respectively). So I was like, this must be a pretty good novel, right? (Side note, I got my copy on Kindle.)

Nope. Calling it subpar would be a compliment.

You're probably curious why. And I have the answers. About why I scored it 0.8/5 stars overall. I've tried to make my review a little entertaining(prob not) and honest. I've based it on different criteria I expect from a decent YA novel. The categories are (drumroll please...): Writing, Characters, Plot, Dialogue, and Expectations! Here we go!!!

***SIDE NOTE: I'm trying to be as thorough as I can be without spoiling TOO much!!! Also, I hope you like keyboard faces, cuz I <3 :)***


WRITING: The good news is the author can construct sentences. The problem? They're all terrible. I can't tell you how many times I've counted errors. There were SO many grammatical errors and just flat out errors that it was just hard to read. In fact, I bookmarked every problem I ran into. Unfortunately, I gave up because there were so many errors on one page. Actually, I think there was only one page without a HUGE problem. Don't believe me? Read this excerpt (this isn't the worst):

"The African gene was the most dominant human gene, and the alien gene was the most superior. The Atlanteans had dark skin and light skin complexion and different facial features being mixed with all three races..."

First off: I was confused what the heck it meant by Atlanteans having "dark...and light skin complexion". Does that mean they are half-dark and half-light? Is it either/or type of thing? Is it a mix? Like, maybe I don't get it. But that...I don't even know. I read that and was like "WTF?". And, having 'different facial features being mixed' is called GENETICS. I wouldn't expect the Atlanteans to be cloned. Also, what's with capitalizing "Blacks" every single time? I'm sure it's fine to say "the black man", or am I wrong? And also--there's random capitalization of certain words when describing things, like a character's long "Ebony" legs. WHY IS EBONY CAPITALIZED? It's a color! It's a description!

(╯°□°)╯︵

*takes a breath* Sorry guys. I'm back on track. Another thing that annoyed me was the fact that Mr. Clifton didn't actually show me anything. He was telling me everything that was happening to the characters. WHY??? It's like rule #1: SHOW DON'T TELL! And I believe that it's partially because this story seems to be told in a confusing manner. From what I understand (and theorize), TLPoA is actually told from the perspective of Zeus. And that was really weird. When I started reading it, I was confused. I thought the story would be Allen's POV because...he's what the story revolves around. But, ZEUS is seemingly telling the reader what is going on in the story.
Which is so stupid. Note to present and future authors: don't use this tactic unless the omnipotent narrator SHOWS the plot instead of TELLING it.

Conclusion: WRITING gets a 0.8 out of 5 stars or 16%.

CHARACTERS: I think the major problem I had with the characters was the fact they didn't seem to have their own voice. As I touched on earlier, it was ZEUS telling the story instead of Allen, Athena, Francisco, Jake, and maybe Josh. It took away from them as relatable and/or believable. Throughout the story, whenever the group 'Atlantean Something Ballers' got together, they [the characters] would ALL do the SAME. EXACT. THINGS. It got old, real fast. Also, why Ballers? I think that was the most cringe-inducing, eye roll causing moments of the novel. Well, that and the fact they all ended up having nicknames and being the Teen Warriors? Sorry, maybe those names were cringey. Like Athena's was something like Glamour Girl Warrior Princess. What. (Of all the nicknames, I think the Wonder Twins were the best nickname.) I digress, back to the characters. (&SPOILER FREE!)

ALLEN KING: Our protagonist of this tale. He had an interesting backstory, y'know being biracial and all. As someone of multiethnic (Basically: black, white, Asian, and Latina) descent, I was happy to see diversity in the YA novel. But, it kinda got...muddy. And if you decide to read the book, maybe you'll understand what I'm talking about. the whole LEROY/ALICIA business. Anyway, Allen isn't a character that's even REMOTELY relatable. I mean, he goes from zero to hero in like a chapter. Um, hello? Who are you? There wasn't much of a hero's journey. All-Might (oops, Zeus) tells us that this kid is "special"...but does he really accomplish his goal to defeat the head of the Gargoyles...what was his name, Zarkon? No. It was Destroyer. And yes, you read that right. (Sorry guys, no Voltron or real superheroes in Atlantis.) Anyway, Allen takes his lineage/heritage with stride. Like, it's been a JOURNEY for me to accept who I am. And he's like "I'm THE Atlantean prince? COOL! I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread" Is that a line from the book? I can't say for sure, but...I'm sure it's in there somewhere. I guess that I can appreciate the fact he underwent a dilemma (to kill the guy/s who tried to kill you MULTIPLE times or nah) and maybe it made him more 'relatable'. But, that's a stretch. A pet peeve of mine was when he was called "handsome" TOO many times for it to be comfortable. And he gets and is able to use his powers without much effort, like on the first try. (He got *slightly* tired once, and fought and DEFEATED two guys like seconds later.)

ATHENA DANIOS or something, Idk: So, this POWERFUL heroine falls in love with the protagonist (a strong man) within seconds. And that's when I knew: I couldn't root for her fully. She seems like a Mary Sue with her looks and is just perfect. Boy, I wish I was her. Anyway, Athena is a junior Greek Goddess...yeah. I actually have NO idea what that even means. But, it doesn't matter because she becomes a Greek Goddess for reals this time. And yes, she's the niece (or something) of the actual Athena. I wish Mr. Clifton chose a different name for her, it would be better. It wasn't like she was ABSOLUTELY brilliant or something. Athena...oh Athena. Mr. Clifton gave her a choice to give up on Allen (which she doesn't because LOVE INTEREST!) or give up on immortality (she shouldn't). Why? Greek Gods and Atlanteans can't have kids.

(-_-)

Uh. I mean, there are some things you can brainstorm to have both things. It's a problem that I can't really remember anything ELSE about Athena...

DAMIAN AND DROGAN: I was just confused about them. Their motivations literally crumble and they are still TEAM EVIL! Also, I hate how Mr. Clifton describes them, he describes them as (I don't actually have the novel next to me, so I'm paraphrasing): "albino skin with red hair". Um. Albinos don't have RED hair. They have white or light blond hair. Human albinos don't have red eyes. It might LOOK like that, but...they don't. I get that they're the "Hybrids" but, say they have GHOSTLY PALE SKIN instead of albino. It gives the reader a completely different idea of the characters. Freakin' say they have "white" skin. The only reason I *kinda* like them is that Drogon is a dragon from GoT.

FRANCISCO AND JAKE: The Wonder Twins. Orphans. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum. At first, they were...mediocrely decent comic relief. But...that dropped. They got really annoying, fast. They soon became this kid: (If you know who it is, plz lmk...idk. I was looking for something along the lines of an annoying kid jumping, etc.)

And when I thought their characters couldn't get ANY worse: they're bullies. You read that right. BULLIES! WHAT???? If they weren't able to be relatable, they've SUNK to a NEW LEVEL! After learning this, anything with these...characters was unbearable. I don't care if they've had "redemption" by being kind to Allen&Co. and the book is literally like: "They're nicer." NICER? ARE YOU KIDDING ME! THEY ARE STILL BULLIES! And I was just done with them. For orphans, they don't seem to be suffering, they are CAUSING the suffering. And getting 'rewarded'? With GIRLS AND JEWELS? It was basically this that made the Character section go from a maybe 2 to a straight 0.

BUT!!!!

AOKI: She's my favorite character. She's the reason the character section has a 2o% instead of less. Why? 1)she isn't annoying and 2) she loves Zudok for being Zudok. Because of ONLY Aoki, the rating for characters is 1/5 or 20%!!!

Conclusion: Aoki should be the hero. Zeus should talk about her instead.

PLOT: This is short, I promise. I had minimal to no idea what was going on. Like, there was a scavenger hunt for the regalia of Atlantis? But, Allen and Da Ballers also had to defeat Destroyer. And I guess there were character arcs...but they weren't really because the characters didn't seem to grow...at all.
Generally, the plot seemed to be like a kid at the carnival because-it's just chaotic and jumpy. Also, I don't care about the main antagonist (or the antagonists) unless they are Cersei Lannister. It seemed like they were just PLOTTING instead of acting...Also...the ending...wasn't a good enough ending as a cliffhanger. It was just...bad.

Conclusion: 0.5 out of 5 stars or 10%???

DIALOGUE: It wasn't clever. It wasn't funny. It wasn't romantic.
Everyone seems to SAY the same exact thing as each other simultaneously more times that I'm willing to count. The dialogue was BORING and frankly, stupid at times. Like, tell me something I NEED and don't already KNOW! Also, there's like three parts where a character infodumps exposition (which be shown through story instead of dialogue) onto Allen. Sure, it's 'interesting' but, I can't tell you anything I remember about it. And frankly, I only remembered what it said until the next infodump or next page.

CONCLUSION: Ծ_Ծ <"0.7 out of 5 stars or 14%")

EXPECTATIONS: I've read and seen it advertised as the next "Harry Potter" or "Hunger Games". And is it? No. It's not good enough to even claim that. I was very disappointed that it doesn't even hold a candle to those stories. There wasn't anything that stuck out to me for it to be a GREAT story. I'm genuinely sorry Mr. Leo Clifton, I just can't support that claim. I feel like this could be SO MUCH MORE if it has an editor. In the acknowledgments, it says that Ms. Suzanne Potts edited this...but, it doesn't seem like it.

Because I was let down, this has a 1 out of 5 stars. Or 20%.

Thank you for reading this. And if you decide to read it, don't take what I say completely. You may LOVE the book. I'm just offering up my honest opinion.

[Niaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

“This book is highly recommended for everyone to read- all ages. The writer used an excellent engine for creating imagination which grasped the reader’s connection with the character. The book is fiction where a African American teenager gains the power of teleportation and the power of being able to communicate with sea animals. The writer was able to produce a sensory imagery which really made me feel that I was in the book itself. I did not want to put this book down and was sad to finish it so quickly. This book definitely connects to the real life of teenagers today.”

[yael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I predict The Last Prince of Atlantis will be the next phenomenon like Harry Potter and Twilight. My parents even love the book and what is also cool about it. You can visualize the story down to the music they listen to like Rhianna and Justin Bieber and the stylish clothes and cars they drive. This is the novel of our generation. With a diversity of Blacks, Latinos, Asian's and whites. it's the fantasy melting pot for today. I love it <3

[Susan James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great YA book series with a Black protagonist hero. Allen King finds his true calling after meeting the Greek Goddess, Athena and discovering the crystal necklace he have can give him many powers. Jake and Francisco are very cool bad boys slash suddenly they are superheroes and living a lavish lifestyle thanks to Allen and Athena. Zeus narrates the story which is very cool. I give this story 5 stars. I can’t wait to read book 2 whenever it is available this year.

[Summerly Iverson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fun, entertaining, and imaginative read!
It’s a creative concept and a great step forward for more diversity in YA lit!
Could be polished a little more, but is otherwise enjoyable!

[Idris Elba · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books I’ve read in 2019! The author has an extraordinary imagination and the narrative is well put together. It’s a good read for all ages and if you’re looking for a phenomenal book that will have you wanting to read more then this is the one for you!

[Aiman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Last Prince of Atlantis is a tale about a 15-year old African American teen named Allen. Ever since he was young, Allen has always lived with his blue collared family in Miami, and never once did he suspect that he was anything more than an average teen. Of course there was nothing really so different about him from other teens his age (or so he thought), except his shyness(which I admit, I also suffer from time to time too), and his Uncle Zadok's crazy mumblings about Atlantis. Never once did he think that his Uncle Zadok was right, and that he was actually a prince of the lost city of Atlantis. In this tale you see Allen go through an amazing journey where he experiences and learns about things that he never even dreamt about.

Allen is our butt-kicking main character. Allen goes through an amazing character change while at the same time kicking reptilian butt. In the beginning of the book, Allen suffers from extreme shyness, but as the story progresses, Allen slowly grows a backbone of steel. And boy does that ever help with all the things he goes through. Not only does Allen have a backbone of steel, he also turns out to be a romantic. His sugar-coated words could be a bit too much at times, but for the most part his honeyed words made him even more likeable.

Now onto two of my favourite characters, Francisco and Jake. One of their best characteristics would be their loyalty and undying friendship to Allen. They never failed to help out Allen in his time of need and Allen did the same to them. Not only are they great friends, they are those two characters that always make you laugh. Their hilarious conversations and verbal rallies were something that I looked forward to very much. With the help of Uncle Zadok, Francisco and Jake added the humour that most fantasy novels need.

Athena is the butt kicking heroine that proves again and again that she's not your average socialite. Athena didn't grow on me as much as most of the other characters but I still like her just fine. She was a vital part of the book and without her Allen would probably be lost by now. She brings out the best in Allen. She helps him gather his courage and unveils the hidden romantic. Not only does she have a sense of style, she can kick butt like no other.

The ending frustrated me to no end. It wasn't the frustration you get after someone brings their hamster over to your house and lets it poop on you bed (and yes, it has happened to me before), it's more of the cliffhanger frustration. But then again cliffhanger frustrations are the best. They keep you from falling asleep (probably not a good thing) and keep you busy with made-up stories you make up to finish the cliffhanger.

At first I was able to ignore some of the major grammar mistakes but towards the end, the story was harder to follow because of the mistakes. At times, I was able to ignore the mistakes but sometimes I just couldn't stand it. But for someone who has edited their own writing, it was well done. I like how I was able visualize every scene of the book and sometimes even the music. I gave The Last Prince three stars mainly because of all the grammar mistakes. But the writing style was refreshing and unique, so it made up for most of the mistakes.

[Nancy The book junkie · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, thank you to Leonard Clifton for offering me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was eager to enjoy this book when I first read the storyline. I’m a huge fan of Greek mythology and adding the Atlantian twist in it definitely got my attention. The story itself was a gem, these days it’s very hard and rare to find a unique and original storyline but Leonard did an outstanding job with it. Unfortunately was offset by things that really detracted from my ability to focus and enjoy the story which is the reason why I only gave the book a 3 stars rating.
I had a difficult time with the sentence structure and it was told from a passive voice that kept switching between first, third and second person. I also got stuck by the fact that there was a lot of repetition. Sometimes a character name could be told 4-5 times in only a couple of short sentences. The descriptions were detailed to the teens' clothes and possessions but got vague about action and characterization, a lot of time the characters were mostly described through their ethnicity which started to get old after some time. I loved the fact this book had characters for multiple ethnic background but the author put too much emphasis about that sometimes. The characters were in need of refining, but they were unique and likeable at their core. Despite these minor problems the writing style was refreshing and unique, so it made up for most of the mistakes.
Overall I think that this author is showing a lot of potential and for a self-published first novel it was great. I have no doubt that with a good editor this story has possibility and could be brought to a whole new level. I’m definitely going to keep my eyes open to check what he will write in the future.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Last Prince of Atlantis has an original concept and plot. I first noticed this on a giveaway on Goodreads and I entered it but didn't win it. About six months ago, the author contacted me and asked if I wanted to read it and I said yes. It wasn't until April I read this book. Honestly I wasn't amazing but I did enjoy it.

There are some grammar mistakes and at first I just ignored them but as the story progressed, it got kinda annoying but being a self published book, kudos to you Leonard Clifton. The writing style is hard getting used to but other than that it's okay.

This is very different from what I usually read character wise. Most books I read have characters that are mostly whites or English. This has African Americans, Asians, Latinos, and whites.

When I hear this book described as the next Harry Potter or Twilight or The Hunger Games, I say no. I'm not trying to be mean but practical. Those three books has million-billions of fans and TLPOA has maybe 100. This is nothing like Twilight with vampires or werewolves. It doesn't have 24 kids fighting for the death. It doesn't have a boy who discovers he's a wizard. Instead, it has an African American teenage boy who finds out he's some sort of prince who has these amazing powers and is helped by friends and a beautiful goddess.

Overall, I liked it but the writing style just wasn't for me.


E-book provided by the author


More reviews at http://www.bookyareviews.blogspot.com

[Jonel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clifton has developed a very imaginative storyline for this captivating tale with some extremely unique concepts. He has also presented a well-developed history and premise for the story. The story itself also has a smooth forward flow that keeps you entertained and fully immersed in the action. At the same time, the pace of the story differs based on the action/events at the time. It really highlights certain elements of the novel and plays with emotions nicely. The chapter titles instead of numbers also really set the mood and tone for each chapter.

I love the character names in this novel. Clifton walks the line between unique fantasy character names and easy to remember (and pronounce) names. It’s the perfect mix. His characters are also well-developed and approachable. Clifton turns a multicultural mix of characters into an interplanetary cast of characters. That said, the cast complements each other creating a well-rounded whole for the story. It is quite a large cast but each individual remains autonomous throughout. Also, the main character is thrust into situations that he could never have imagined and does a good job of growing into his role. Clifton also does an amazing job of portraying this growth in a natural light.

Overall, this is a well thought out and put together story that kept my attention and imagination peaked.

Please note that I received this novel free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Ellis *a girl with kaleidoscope eyes* · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very different from other books out there. But that, I think, is what makes it so amazing. The plot line is pacey and interesting and it is all written in an extraordinarily unusual way. The main character is an African-American teenage boy who is actually descendant from a lost city, Atlantis, of warriors that ride sea creatures such as dolphins and sharks! His new-found love interest is a stunning, beautiful Australian-Greek socialite. The lead character does start off as a rather puny, weak willed boy who is picked on, but as he learns of his heritage he becomes a strong leader and, with the aid of his orphaned friends, wins the girl and defeats both his inner demons and his immortal enemies. The description of each and every detail is so superb that nothing needs be left to the imagination. This book is empowering, diverse and sure to be one of the next best YA books ever.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not the kind of book I would usually go for, but the author very kindly sent me a free copy so I have read it in between book club reads. Leonard's writing style took me a while to get used to, if I'm honest, but I did get in to it. The story is an interesting concept, not something I have come across before and there are some good characters. I do think it would appeal to the teenage audience it's aimed for.

[Althea *Go wolves and dragons!*(Coach Hedge) Inigo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, this was a very fun and creative read:)I couldn't help bursting out laughs at the hilarious scenes he put in. The characters where interesting and creative and made me laugh. Keep up the good work! Can't wait to see Athena kicking butt!

"Hail Atlantis!"

[allycatblue *percy jackson is my husband · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was really good! very interesting. my only problem was that towards the end it was kinda hard to follow

[Elaine White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really original idea, concept and characters. The whole discovery thing was done well as was the link between real world and Atlantian.

[Shadira · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writting style is different from what I'm used to!!Not bad for a first time author in the YA genre!!
Author did a good job of character development.

[Will B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a Leonard Clifton fan for life. This book did not fail to impress! It's another story-within-a-story and it's amazing. Read it!

[Kassandra Patti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good, different writing style but I enjoyed it easy read!

[Emilee Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

After countless hours of binging both the print media and silver screen, Percy Jackson was a phenomenal idol of my childhood fantasies, to say the least, and I have always been admiring the heroics of the greek deities and demigods. So a book that depicts that and a lot more to go is certainly something I will pick up. To be honest I had picked up this book because of Atlantis. The world of Atlantis has always allured my conscious and subconscious mind since I had seen the wonderful Disney movie on The lost City of Atlantis. A race of people different from everybody, whose entire land has been submerged and lost to the ocean for unknown reasons. Mystery has always been a part of my strict bookish diet and the mysteries of Atlantis are some of the biggest to ever yield a result. The times I had spent thinking about the same makes things even more worthwhile while reading this book.

A boy unaware of his ancestral heritage and unknowing the rage of his powers is thrust upon a journey that will reveal a lot of things to this teenager and eventually bring him closer to his reality and perhaps far away to the truth he called his life. After all, knowing that you are the last of the Atlantean Prince makes you change perspective right? The arsenal of this gawky teenager packs some serious punch with the likes of teleportation, telepathy and Athena knows what more to come. With his guardian deity and his few friends our protagonist, Allen King is up for a life-changing adventure.

I am sure that the few short words above have already made an impact on your bookworm mind but here is more to gauge if you really need this book haunting your subconscious mind. This is an eerily familiar adventure that calls out to your thrilling instincts to grasp before everything is gone. It is a wonderful and well-written script that keeps you engaged. The Characters are written with a certain flair and have their fair share of development and Ohh yes how could I forget? All the greek gods and heroes are descendants of a race from a planet not known.

[Jan Per · Rating 5 out of 5]

This awesome book presents a well developed plot in which Allen King discovers he is an Atlantean Prince with great powers. The historical references and fantasy portrayed in this book makes it very interesting. What a delight to read a positive story with believable characters. A perfect blend of real life characters, historical references and fantasy.

The best part of this book is the realism of the narrative. Leonard Clifton did an amazing job with his research. Throughout the story I kept on reminding myself that this is a work of fiction. It helped me learn a lot about Greek mythology and history.

A good read to inspire multi-cultural youth. This story transcends race and represents diversity and positivity. I cannot wait to read the sequel.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the literary embrace we all need! I enjoyed every moment of this epic and original story. I experienced genuine appreciation for this creatively weaved tale of unbridled characters, whom I found to not only be heroes, but serve as role-models. The delivery of such character development and diverse representation is refreshing and long-overdue. Clifton exceeds expectations of the Young Adult Fantasy genre, blasting its audience with a heartfelt, poignant and imaginative story that’s hard to put down. It contains all the captivating qualities of classic adventures and flawlessly incorporates social and cultural influences to engage the modern reader in further depth. This is truly a timeless series unfolding before our eyes!

[Sophia · Rating 2 out of 5]

When the author shared about his book, I was thrilled because I love stories that blend Greek mythology with contemporary times. I was intrigued by the idea of a teen boy being the lost heir to the lost civilization of Atlantis. And even better, I was so pleased to see that the book offered up some ethnic diversity in its main players and in the world-building.

Allen King is an ordinary teen boy living in Miami going to school and working down on the docks for his dad during the summer. He has run-ins with the school bully and plays pick-up basketball with his best buds. Average life, right? But all that changes when he encounters a lovely Australian socialite and then when one of his friends steals an unusual crystal necklace from the albino lizard-looking men they work for on the docks. Allen's life has been a complete cover-up. He's really a descendant of an alien race who came to earth, inter-mingled with the Zulu tribe in Africa and created the Atlantian civilization on earth. Unfortunately, his people weren't the only ones who found their way to earth. Another alien race who wished to conquer Allen's people on their home world tried and are trying to do the same thing on earth. To stop them and to save everyone, Allen must embrace his heritage, search out the other powerful crystals and stop the gargoyles and their earthly descendants. Allen is not alone. He has his Uncle Zadok who knew the truth all along and protected him, his best friends Jake and Francisco and the lovely Aussie girl, Athena who is also more than she seems.
Allen accepts all that he is told and accepts the challenge. Now that he has the crystal pendant, his body reverts to its Atlantian appearance and his powers are unlocked. He goes on his quest for crystal ring and is successful, but then he learns that the Gargoyle Destroyer and the evil lizard brothers are wrecking havoc back in Miami. He and his trusty band of friends race off to the rescue. The fight isn't that simple and the Destroyer is a worthy adversary. He knows how to exploit and insinuate himself. Danger lurks in unlikely places even while Allen and his friends settle down in Miami after the last big confrontation getting ready for what is to come even as they make their way through a drama-packed school year. Then the return to the quest commences for all the marbles.

As I said before, I was eager to enjoy this book and certain aspects were good stuff, but this was offset by things that really detracted from my ability to focus and enjoy the story.
Not too far into the story I was struck by the issue of grammar. I am one that is in general rather laid-back about grammar usage and I can tolerate slang, local dialect and minor infractions, but I had to struggle with the tense and the sentence structuring. It was passive voice (show me don't tell me) that flipped between first, third and second person. If that didn't cause a big enough distraction, the rough scene transitions that yanked me around were tough to read. There was also the plot and background/world-building which started out pretty tight and interesting before it lost its way and I wasn't sure what happened. The story of a young man learning the truth about himself and his race and being presented with a quest to locate his race's powerful artifacts and prevent the baddies degenerated into Glam Life of a gang of teen superheroes and villains. The descriptions were detailed to the teens' clothes and possessions and got vague about action and characterization. If this story would have just stuck to its original course, it could have been so impressive. The characters were in need of refining, but they were unique and likeable at their core. I think I was most impressed by the growth arc that the 'Wonder Twins' took during the story going from teen thugs to worthy hero material. With me, the whole 'band of brothers' concept will always be a draw.

As to my cautions, younger teens can read it though violence and sex are mentioned, but not graphic.

So in conclusion, I think the word that comes to mind when it comes to this book is 'potential'. I see, with the help of a good editor and team of beta readers, this story has possibility. This author's creative story is like a diamond in the rough that just needs the right cuts to reveal the dazzling gem hidden inside. I recommend this one to lovers of stories involving paranormal and mythology both Young Adult and Adult alike.

Thank you to Leonard Clifton for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Renee · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars
I would have given it 4 stars except for the grammar and punctuation mistakes.

I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book at first because I don’t read many YA books. I was not used to Clifton’s writing style, and the beginning was a little confusing. But, after I got passed the first few chapters, I started to like this book. Allen is such a loveable main character who starts off getting bullied a lot by the kids in his school. His life quickly changes when he discovers that he is from Atlantis and is the last prince. You see him start to mature and take the steps needed to re-establish his kingdom. And you gotta love the former teen orphans Jake and Francisco. They are a hoot.

[LibraryFairy™ · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing style was very different from what I usually read, so it was a little hard to get used to at first but the book was very creative so one extra star for the creativity, the plot was interesting and it took me a little wile to finish but it was different. There were a few errors in the the book and sometimes I got a little confused as to what was going on but on a whole it was an ok book :) 2 and 3/4 stars

[Ben Christian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hail Atlantis! From the moment I opened the book and began reading, I knew that I was in for a thrill ride. The first thing that I noticed was the authors' unique writing style that I thoroughly enjoyed throughout the story. Following a young boy by the name of Allen, you will meet a group of very diverse characters and a story lined filled with action throughout. This is truly a hidden gem in the YA genre that will go down as a classic! Looking forward to reading book 2!

[Misty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this 3.5 stars. The Story line is good. I really liked the concept of this book. The writing style is different and it took me a little while to get use to it.

But there are alot of grammar, punctuation, mistakes in it.