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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
YYYAAASSSSS!!! I needed this book. I felt like I was in such a drought, and I stumbled upon this Oasis of awesome!!! I loved the characters, I loved the tease, I loved the story, I loved it all. I am looking for more of Grace's work bc she has me hooked. It was just a well written, witty story that had me falling for each character, including the smelly mage finding hound.
This is a truly wonderful book. I haven't read pure fantasy, as opposed to urban fantasy, for years, but I was drawn in by the serial Radiance on the author's blog. Ms. Draven's writing is beautiful and descriptive and the characters are compelling. With some books you get the sense of a switch flipped and the characters popped into being for the purpose of being in the story. Not here. All the characters, including incidental ones, seem to have existed forever.
emotional
hopeful
tense
I really enjoyed this book. It was a vivid, charming love story with a happy ending and enough angst/mystery to make it interesting but not enough to break my heart. A cozy read I ate up in a day. The writing reminded me of epic fantasy books I read as a child, but obviously with more adult content. Martise and Silhara's relationship made up for any shortcomings in the character development. I also loved Gurn, Cael, and Anya! If you're looking for a fierce, headstrong, darkly independent fmc this isn't for you (don't get me wrong, I love those characters too!), but I enjoyed Martise's quiet strength, endurance, and openness to love. She was uncomplicated, but not without wit and sharp intelligence. After reading a number of contemporary fantasy romance fashioned after ACOTAR and FBAA, I appreciated the gentleness of this story. I also appreciated that both Matrise and Silhara were described as being pretty normal-looking people. It was refreshing in a genre so often obsessed with beauty. Also, can we take a moment to appreciate how lovely those names are?
It was so easy to get swept up in this world, and I can't wait to dive into everything else Draven has dreamt up. This is a fantastical tale, romantic in every sense of the word, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It was so easy to get swept up in this world, and I can't wait to dive into everything else Draven has dreamt up. This is a fantastical tale, romantic in every sense of the word, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I finally started caring about the plot at 76%, but I still didn’t care about Martise or anything that happened to her. Dunno if this is actually true or if it’s just how I perceive characters like her, but in my mind Martise is basically a Mary Sue. Like she kiiiiind of has a personality, but her personality is generic and boring.
I felt this way about the female protagonist in the other Grace Draven book I read (Idilko? Ildiko? Ilkido?), so I think it might just be the way she writes characters. They’re technically well-rounded characters, but they just fall flat. Like they have their flaws, but the flaws don’t have any bearing on anything that happens in the story. Or like they’ll demonstrate a sense of humor, but when you read the jokes they make, they’re not actually that funny.
Also thinking that maybe I just don’t jive with the way the author writes, in general. The prose is pretty, but the flowery language means I have to spend a lot of time intellectualizing the story, and imo it gets in the way of emotional connection. At times I felt like I was reading a nonfiction book - my attention would wander and I’d have to bring it back and focus on reading comprehension instead of just experiencing what was happening. I love a beautiful sentence here and there, but I feel like the balance is off in the Grace Draven books I’ve read thus far.
Tis a shame because I found the plot compelling once I hit that three quarter mark, but by then I was neither invested nor immersed - simply reading to check off the boxes and confirm what happens at the end. OH WELL. Her books are just not for me!
I felt this way about the female protagonist in the other Grace Draven book I read (Idilko? Ildiko? Ilkido?), so I think it might just be the way she writes characters. They’re technically well-rounded characters, but they just fall flat. Like they have their flaws, but the flaws don’t have any bearing on anything that happens in the story. Or like they’ll demonstrate a sense of humor, but when you read the jokes they make, they’re not actually that funny.
Also thinking that maybe I just don’t jive with the way the author writes, in general. The prose is pretty, but the flowery language means I have to spend a lot of time intellectualizing the story, and imo it gets in the way of emotional connection. At times I felt like I was reading a nonfiction book - my attention would wander and I’d have to bring it back and focus on reading comprehension instead of just experiencing what was happening. I love a beautiful sentence here and there, but I feel like the balance is off in the Grace Draven books I’ve read thus far.
Tis a shame because I found the plot compelling once I hit that three quarter mark, but by then I was neither invested nor immersed - simply reading to check off the boxes and confirm what happens at the end. OH WELL. Her books are just not for me!
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No