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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
Is Gemma Ripley a princess or spy or both? This story follows Gemma as she tries to figure out who is stealing her country's tearstone and why. During her investigations, Gemma encounters her mortal enemy - Prince Leonidas. Prince Leonidas gets himself into a bit of trouble due to his complicated family life and Gemma finds herself saving his life. Then Gemma gets into some trouble of her own and Leonidas comes to the rescue. They end up working together to solve the mystery of the missing tearstone, but can Gemma really trust Leonidas? This book is full of intrigue, magic, friendship, and betrayal.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I haven't read any of the author's other books but I know it's in the same world, so I'm definitely going to be checking them out. I'm a sucker for a good fantasy world so this was right up my alley. Highly recommend!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
I really enjoyed reading this book. I haven't read any of the author's other books but I know it's in the same world, so I'm definitely going to be checking them out. I'm a sucker for a good fantasy world so this was right up my alley. Highly recommend!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not nearly as fun as the first trilogy. I just don't feel like Gemma is a distinct enough voice from Evie, nor did I like the pushiness of her love interest at the end. We'll see what I think of the next book.
2.5 stars
I really want to like these books more than I do. The first series started strong with an interesting premise, world, and characters. Unfortunately it fizzled out towards the end, though still remained moderately enjoyable. This book, despite having some interesting concepts, was a struggle.
Mainly, I cannot get over how the main character, a CROWN PRINCESS, is supposed to be a spy. I can get behind her acting as "Gliztma" the spoiled, idiotic princess who's secretly using her powers to read the thoughts of high profile people. What I can't get over is her disguising herself to enter a dangerous mine to uncover a plot directed by there most dangerous enemies. And then going into said enemy territory with the most pitiful disguise, not expecting anyone to recognize her. To be fair to the author.
But it's not just the MC. There's another character bragging about how she's going to be the "greatest spy ever". Like, she wants the recognition for it? And I think if you are being applauded for being a spy then you are a shit spy!
But, let us not forget the enemy. The enemy who infiltrates their foreign countries to wreck political havoc while wearing the colors and uniforms of their country! So much of this book was centered around spying and it was all terrible.
I also didn't care for the main villain who was just overly cruel and basically a younger copy of the last series villain.
There were a few other annoyances but it wasn't all bad. I do like the romance - I'm a sucker for an enemy's to lovers, especially with outside forces at play. I also still like Maeven's character, though think there has been missed opportunities to make her more complex. There is enough interest in the world, magic, and romance (less so the actual story) that keeps me interested in continuing and bumping my overall rating to 3 stars. Though as I write this I'm questioning those decisions.
I really want to like these books more than I do. The first series started strong with an interesting premise, world, and characters. Unfortunately it fizzled out towards the end, though still remained moderately enjoyable. This book, despite having some interesting concepts, was a struggle.
Mainly, I cannot get over how the main character, a CROWN PRINCESS, is supposed to be a spy. I can get behind her acting as "Gliztma" the spoiled, idiotic princess who's secretly using her powers to read the thoughts of high profile people. What I can't get over is her disguising herself to enter a dangerous mine to uncover a plot directed by there most dangerous enemies. And then going into said enemy territory with the most pitiful disguise, not expecting anyone to recognize her. To be fair to the author
Spoiler
makes it so her disguise doesn't fool anyone and her attempts at spying were mostly planned by the enemy. But while I appreciate these stupid attempts were seemingly called out by the author, it just goes to show she is a shit spyBut it's not just the MC. There's another character bragging about how she's going to be the "greatest spy ever". Like, she wants the recognition for it? And I think if you are being applauded for being a spy then you are a shit spy!
But, let us not forget the enemy. The enemy who infiltrates their foreign countries to wreck political havoc while wearing the colors and uniforms of their country! So much of this book was centered around spying and it was all terrible.
I also didn't care for the main villain who was just overly cruel and basically a younger copy of the last series villain.
There were a few other annoyances but it wasn't all bad. I do like the romance - I'm a sucker for an enemy's to lovers, especially with outside forces at play. I also still like Maeven's character, though think there has been missed opportunities to make her more complex. There is enough interest in the world, magic, and romance (less so the actual story) that keeps me interested in continuing and bumping my overall rating to 3 stars. Though as I write this I'm questioning those decisions.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is the second series in this universe, and I'm not as impressed as I was by the first one. The main characters do things that are childish and immature, some of the world building feels clumsily done, and the only way for the plot to succeed is for characters to do criminally dumb things. (Which would be fine if they were supposed to be dumb, but they should be the best and the brightest.) In the first series, the spirit of adventure really kept the plot going. There was some sneaking around and some scheming, but the conflict was generally much more direct. In this, many of the characters are spies and/or masters of intrigue, but it is hard to suspend my disbelief due to the dumb moves they keep making. I'm disappointed because the first series was a great escape for me.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
I was hoping for this one to be good because, well, gargoyles (!) and I was not disappointed. It was a bit repetitive here and there, like if the Seven Spire Massacre had been mentioned only half as much it would still have been plenty. I liked the MC being a spying princess and I thought that the world the author has created was well thought through and intriguing. The only complaint I have is that the relationships and some characters lack depth and of course I would have wanted gargoyles to play a bigger role but maybe I will get that in the next part. I am looking forward to reading it/listening to it anyway so the future will tell. Ah, and I have not read the Crown of Shards series but that didn't affect my understanding of this story, at least I am not aware of it.
This was a quick easy read, but personally, I didn't think it offered anything special. I did enjoy it, and I liked our main protagonists, Gemma and Leo, but that's kind of it. The plot was okay, but it felt a little slow and it took me about 100ish pages to really get into it. What I really appreciated was the grey morality found in the characters, especially Meaven and Leo.
Overall, not bad, but I'm unsure if I would check out the sequel.
Overall, not bad, but I'm unsure if I would check out the sequel.