Étude (Book One of the Birthright Legacy)
Print Edition
JUVENILE FICTION : Horror & Ghost Stories [Young Adult]
978-1-60065-010-9 • Melinda R. Morgan • Paperback • 478pp • $11.95 • 02 APR 2012The cold rain drummed the memory of the horrible crash into my mind—mom dead, my hand ruined. Then a year later, coming out of a coma to realize my full-ride scholarship was gone and I'd never play the piano again. But the worst of it was nobody believed me—the voices, someone holding me in the mangled car, mom being ripped away from me.So here I am in Anderson, Wyoming, living with Uncle Connor while Dad's on assignment in Europe. School started and I met Jonathan, amazingly handsome Jonathan. He made me feel like life was beginning again—until I discovered that mom's death wasn't an accident, that a supernatural realm was trying to draw me into a coterie hundreds of years old, and that my friend Eric wanted to destroy me. Not the easiest way to begin my senior year….
Author  Melinda Morgan is a native-born Californian who feels a profoundly spiritual connection with the mountains of northwestern United States, particularly those of eastern Idaho and Wyoming. It is no wonder that the Teton Mountain Range became the setting for her first novel, Étude. Melinda lived in Idaho in 1980–81 and enjoyed exploring the grandeur of the Tetons, whether hiking, horseback riding, or snow skiing. She has held a fondness for the area ever since. In 1997, upon finding herself a displaced homemaker and single mother of four small children, Melinda went back to school and in 1998, she received her BA in Liberal Studies from California Baptist University. She went on to earn a Master's Degree in Education and Administration from Azusa Pacific Un … The world as we know it can be quickly shattered and changed. Étude is a novel following Beth Arrington, a high school senior preparing to face the real world, as she moves to a small Wyoming town. As she begins enraptured with romance and music, her happiness seems short lived as the reaper circles overhead and brings truth about her life to her. Étude is the first entry into the supernatural Birthright Legacy series for young adults, and proves to be an intriguing and recommended read. View reader comments at GoodReads.com. I just finished Étude, and it was incredible. I really hope I won't have too wait too long to find out what happens to Beth and Jonathan! The story was richer than I remembered it. For those who compared it to Twilight, yes, it does have supernatural elements and a young girl moving to a small town and falling in love with a young man who plays piano, but your story was richer and more thought provoking than Twilight. While I enjoyed reading all of the Twilight novels, they were light, fun reads. Étude kept me thinking, wondering, considering the scientific and spiritual possibilities mentioned in the story. I spent two evenings reading the book until 3 AM and even then I fell asleep thinking about the characters and the complexity of the story. I also feel that while both Twilight and Étude feature a piano song that is central to the main character's relationship, the use of music was more background in Twilight, while in Étude it is an extremely important part of the bond between Jonathan and Beth. I was genuinely interested in the musical terminology and history that was interwoven in the story. I have my copy proudly displayed on our bookshelf with my other favorite books. I look forward to discussing the novel with my friends. I have never read a book which combined so effectively the complexities of loss, music as power to heal, the deep questions of why we age and die or not, finite versus infinite treatment of experiencing time with the age-old battle of good versus evil and a great love story. Cannot wait to read the next in the series. Good work, Ms. Morgan! | 
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