The Last Prince of Tulizia

The Last Prince of Tulizia is an incredibly dense and detailed work of science fiction. The fantasy world and the characters created by author Malela Werner are built slowly but surely, allowing the reader to settle in to the plot without confusion.

The story opens with the tale of a mythical alien kingdom which mirrors our own galaxy, and the Tulizians inhabiting the planet. The story of the royal family no doubt pulls from Werner’s own Congolese heritage and the Biblical story of Joseph, and her inventiveness is engrossing. Unfortunately, when the story switches to Earth to tell of the orphaned Destiny, the narrative grinds to a halt. Destiny is an interesting character but she comes across as aimless and formless until she realizes her destiny is entwined with a mysterious man from Tulizia.

The book picks up when Destiny is older, and the chapters switch between her coming of age and the politics and wars on Tulizia. However, the very density that makes the world-building extraordinary bogs down the action and character growth. Both settings suffer from unnecessary description and dialogue that makes the characters fall flat. Despite the flaws therein, The Last Prince of Tulizia is an interesting read and Werner is a very capable writer.