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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I love the real-ness of each character and richness of the universe. It was great to learn more about the world and explore new cliffhangers.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I started to like Kelsea less and less in this book. I thought the way her self-injuring was depicted glamorizes it and is very dangerous in a book aimed at teens.
I was frankly disgusted that her magic changed her appearance. Can we not for once have a plain, round faced, chubby heroine and just keep her? This book probably makes bigger girls feel really shitty about themselves with the way it depicts Kelsea losing weight so dramatically and everyone thinking she’s sexy all of a sudden.
And seriously, this book really needs trigger warnings. There is a brutal rape scene that I had to skip over and then several more references to violent rape. She put gratuitous and loving detail into the rape scene and zero details into Kelsea banging her bodyguard. Yes, the rapist gets what he deserves, no, you didn’t need to describe it in such gory detail.
Interesting plot overall, highly problematic execution.
I was frankly disgusted that her magic changed her appearance. Can we not for once have a plain, round faced, chubby heroine and just keep her? This book probably makes bigger girls feel really shitty about themselves with the way it depicts Kelsea losing weight so dramatically and everyone thinking she’s sexy all of a sudden.
And seriously, this book really needs trigger warnings. There is a brutal rape scene that I had to skip over and then several more references to violent rape. She put gratuitous and loving detail into the rape scene and zero details into Kelsea banging her bodyguard. Yes, the rapist gets what he deserves, no, you didn’t need to describe it in such gory detail.
Interesting plot overall, highly problematic execution.
3.25 Stars!
There were so many great things about this book, but something was just keeping me from enjoying it was much as I could have.
The pacing on this second book was pretty similar to the first one - not super fast paced, but steady enough so as not to get boring.
The thing that made this book stand out for me was the vision/time travel element. No spoilers, but it added something that I could never have expected and gave a good insight into the world. The issue was that at some points, I much preferred reading about Lily than I did about Kelsea. I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, because although it did take attention away from the main plot, it also provided a refreshing break from the pretty standard war/siege storyline that we had going on elsewhere.
In terms of the main plot, like I said, it’s pretty average, and in some ways I felt that it lacked development. That’s not to say that the characters didn’t grow - Kelsea has come a long way since book one - but it’s just that certain traits and facts seemed to come out of nowhere, and didn’t always entirely make sense. What I do admire, though, is Johansen’s ability to write flawed characters. This was most prevalent in Kelsea during this story (things got pretty scary at some points), but it’s definitely present throughout. On the flip side, I also think that she writes great villains as well as morally grey characters - there’s always a strong temptation to write in black-and-white, and she doesn’t succumb to that.
Something else that didn’t always make sense was that the Lily/Kelsea narrative got really blurred towards the end, and maybe that was intentional to reflect Kelsea’s state of mind, but it was rather disorienting and detracted a little from what was otherwise a great and tense finale.
Erika Johansen has done really well to set up some new characters as well as leaving a few plot threads hanging. I’m really looking forward to seeing where they go, and am planning on jumping on straight into The Fate of the Tearling tomorrow!
Overall: An average sequel that does, however, introduce some exciting and original elements.
There were so many great things about this book, but something was just keeping me from enjoying it was much as I could have.
The pacing on this second book was pretty similar to the first one - not super fast paced, but steady enough so as not to get boring.
The thing that made this book stand out for me was the vision/time travel element. No spoilers, but it added something that I could never have expected and gave a good insight into the world. The issue was that at some points, I much preferred reading about Lily than I did about Kelsea. I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing, because although it did take attention away from the main plot, it also provided a refreshing break from the pretty standard war/siege storyline that we had going on elsewhere.
In terms of the main plot, like I said, it’s pretty average, and in some ways I felt that it lacked development. That’s not to say that the characters didn’t grow - Kelsea has come a long way since book one - but it’s just that certain traits and facts seemed to come out of nowhere, and didn’t always entirely make sense. What I do admire, though, is Johansen’s ability to write flawed characters. This was most prevalent in Kelsea during this story (things got pretty scary at some points), but it’s definitely present throughout. On the flip side, I also think that she writes great villains as well as morally grey characters - there’s always a strong temptation to write in black-and-white, and she doesn’t succumb to that.
Something else that didn’t always make sense was that the Lily/Kelsea narrative got really blurred towards the end, and maybe that was intentional to reflect Kelsea’s state of mind, but it was rather disorienting and detracted a little from what was otherwise a great and tense finale.
Erika Johansen has done really well to set up some new characters as well as leaving a few plot threads hanging. I’m really looking forward to seeing where they go, and am planning on jumping on straight into The Fate of the Tearling tomorrow!
Overall: An average sequel that does, however, introduce some exciting and original elements.
Life got busy so it took me way too much time to read this. It was fab though. Usually I get disappointed by second books in a series when I've loved the first one. This time I was not. I was a little bit confused by the Lily story at first but I ended up enjoying her bits. Kelsea is still badass. Characters are all great. Loving the plot twists, the background building, the flawed and very real characters, the political intrigue, the soft fantastical side. This series is one of the best I've read. Cannot wait for the last book to be in my possession.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Far and away one of the best books I have read. The first book was very good as well, though admittedly the slow pacing made it a little hard to get through. However, this second installment was full to the brim with important and relevant scenes. One of the book's greatest strengths is that of Kelsea's character arc, in that she not only grows physically but emotionally into the queen the Tearling were in desperate need of. It was apparent in the first book that Kelsea was opinionated and not afraid to stand her ground when her beliefs were challenged. This book seems to bring that point home because she is stronger than ever both with her newfound magical abilities and her role as queen over a kingdom falling apart. Speaking of which, she finds out more about her heritage, and the history of the island, which was absolutely wonderful to learn, experience, and piece together as the reader. Overall, I would highly recommend for anyone looking for a book to dive deep, deep into.
Maybe a 5-star rating is overkill because there were definitely things that could have been improved upon. However, I felt that the second book in this series really ramped things up and made the world-building infinitely more interesting.
My negatives were the lack of substantial plot events and the excessive length. However, the writing style, the world building and the added complexity from book one to book two was really something to see.
I think it should also be noted that the changes in the world-building are not conventional. We really see a blending of genres and tropes here in terms of the world itself, so if that bothers you (and I know it's a pet-peeve for some of you readers out there) you will not like the turn that the second book in the series takes.
My negatives were the lack of substantial plot events and the excessive length. However, the writing style, the world building and the added complexity from book one to book two was really something to see.
I think it should also be noted that the changes in the world-building are not conventional. We really see a blending of genres and tropes here in terms of the world itself, so if that bothers you (and I know it's a pet-peeve for some of you readers out there) you will not like the turn that the second book in the series takes.
Oct 10, 2019
4/5 stars
PEN ALCOTT, MARRY ME
July 9, 2017
4.5/5 stars
4/5 stars
PEN ALCOTT, MARRY ME
July 9, 2017
4.5/5 stars