Scan barcode
visubooks's review against another edition
5.0
What a fun new and exciting world! I loved the plot for this book I thought it was a really great idea for a book and was really well executed! The writing is so descriptive and it helped you see the world and the characters really clearly. All the characters were so fun and witty and they really made the story come alive! I love books with magic and I’m so glad that I picked this one up! The ending was so good I can’t wait to pick up the next book!
nevafromtheswamp's review against another edition
3.0
A fantasy for the lover of the Earth - and a fantasy with guns in it. The Waking Land had a very interesting premise, which it filled well enough. The study of a young woman having to unlearn the hatred for her roots and acceptance for the role she was born for but never wanted was wonderful. For me, the romance and the pacing left something to be desired, for I found the romance to lack depth and the pace to get jumpy towards the end and a little slow near the middle. But it was an overall enjoyable read that works as a standalone - so I am not very thrilled by the added preview of the next book in the series in the back of it. It seems unecessary, and I don't think I will be reading what there is to come - some stories are better left on the pages of a single book.
llythia's review against another edition
2.0
I was so disappointed in this book. I might have been slightly less disappointed had I gone in expecting it to be YA (it was shelved with adult fantasy), but even still. The concept was great. The magic system intriguing. But the writing was mediocre, and I swear it got worse as it went along, and the characters were mostly flat and unbelievable. I almost dropped this on the DNF pile. Really wish it could've lived up to its cover art...
sandstar08's review against another edition
2.0
I was actually pleasantly surprised by this book repeatedly. There's maybe 2 chapters in the late middle that are slow but nothing terrible. really do bore the crap out of me, magical or otherwise. Probably won't read the rest of the series though.
Spoiler
Battle sceneshanxanth's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I realized I had left this book sitting by my bed with about 60 pages left, and had forgotten about it as I proceeded to read and finish about 10 other books. That's how invested I was in this story. I picked it up because I was really looking for some magic that was nature-based/druidic and the blurb on this story seemed to hit the mark. And the beginning started off strong, getting me invested in the characters and the politics.
But about half way through, things started to go down hill. The book actively reminds us of El's title (as if we could forget) and how she has to 'wake the land'. We know. It's the title of the book. Also the plot seemed to jump around a lot, literally, as we're quickly rushed from place to place without much in-between. This book definitely suffers from the author telling, rather than showing, what's happening. El's character development was also weirdly fast and I didn't buy it. We could have also used a lot more development of the magic system as some of it was just so vague it didn't make sense. And I won't get into the 'wedding the land' thing which was ridiculous. The ending was also ridiculous.She summons this massive ghost army, AND awakens the land to get it to move, but then everything ends without fighting. I get it, bloodless victory is nice, but we didn't need both the land awakening AND the ghost army to get that to happen. Just one of those plot devices would have served the purpose.
So, it started off good, got really jumpy and confusing, and I ended up forgetting to finish it until today. I will not be picking up the next one.
But about half way through, things started to go down hill. The book actively reminds us of El's title (as if we could forget) and how she has to 'wake the land'. We know. It's the title of the book. Also the plot seemed to jump around a lot, literally, as we're quickly rushed from place to place without much in-between. This book definitely suffers from the author telling, rather than showing, what's happening. El's character development was also weirdly fast and I didn't buy it. We could have also used a lot more development of the magic system as some of it was just so vague it didn't make sense. And I won't get into the 'wedding the land' thing which was ridiculous. The ending was also ridiculous.
So, it started off good, got really jumpy and confusing, and I ended up forgetting to finish it until today. I will not be picking up the next one.
liesljrowe's review against another edition
3.0
There's a lot to like in this book. The level of Stockholm Syndrome brainwashing that Elanna has gone through during her time away as hostage feels scarily accurate, and it was fantastic watching her character evolve as she realised that so much of what she had been told about her homeland were lies. Also I loved how the book explored the issues of a conquered land struggling to hold onto their culture: can't help but wonder how much of the situation was inspired by Jacobite Scotland, the "king across the water" situation felt a bit too familiar.
I'm a sucker for a good magic origins story too, and Elanna's magic connected to the land had some really unusual elements to it which I liked a lot.
The main thing that stops me scoring the book higher, though, is pacing. A lot of the opening of the book felt like scene-setting as Elanna would run away from danger, nearly get captured, then run away again. I was fairly surprised to notice I was about 70% through the book when the real business of rebellion began in earnest. That being said, it was still a fantastic read and I'd wholeheartedly recommend.
Thank you Netgalley for giving me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!
I'm a sucker for a good magic origins story too, and Elanna's magic connected to the land had some really unusual elements to it which I liked a lot.
The main thing that stops me scoring the book higher, though, is pacing. A lot of the opening of the book felt like scene-setting as Elanna would run away from danger, nearly get captured, then run away again. I was fairly surprised to notice I was about 70% through the book when the real business of rebellion began in earnest. That being said, it was still a fantastic read and I'd wholeheartedly recommend.
Thank you Netgalley for giving me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review!
gloriatraveler's review against another edition
3.0
The author put a lot of effort into world building and character development, so much so that I was certain that it would take at least two novels to finish out the current story. At over 3/4 of the way through, there was simply no way to finish telling the story at the same pace the rest of the book had been set without expanding into a series.
Unfortunately, the author did finish the story, but they did so by rushing the ending. I don't know if she was on a deadline or board with the story and wanted to end it, but it was way too fast. I can still recommend this to anyone who enjoys magical fantasy stories that revolve around nature and the land, but if you are a slave to structure and style the change of pacing at the end may be too much to handle.
Unfortunately, the author did finish the story, but they did so by rushing the ending. I don't know if she was on a deadline or board with the story and wanted to end it, but it was way too fast. I can still recommend this to anyone who enjoys magical fantasy stories that revolve around nature and the land, but if you are a slave to structure and style the change of pacing at the end may be too much to handle.
hecateherself's review
2.0
I‘m really sorry but nothing about this was remoteny interesting to me. Maybe it‘s because I‘ve read countless books with similar plots and characters.
This is not to say this story wasn‘t well paced or plotted or anything, it wasn‘t offensive or bad — it was just so dreadfully boring to me. Perhaps I should have read it way back, when I bought it.
This is not to say this story wasn‘t well paced or plotted or anything, it wasn‘t offensive or bad — it was just so dreadfully boring to me. Perhaps I should have read it way back, when I bought it.
abeorning's review against another edition
2.0
Meh. Repetitive, cheesy diction. Characters and plot feel ungrounded, hardly established or rooted. (Get it? Earth puns?) First person narration from an unlikeable Mary Sue. A magic system so soft any source of conflict is miraculously solved within a page. It seems too much was trying to be done which resulted in fantasy YA lite. Will not be continuing the series.
faerietears's review against another edition
5.0
Full Review on The Blog
www.carolineandrus.com/blog
This book has: Epically cool nature/earth magic, a handsome and heroic love interest, a super kick ass heroine, a twisty-turny plot with a LOT going on!
Long story short: fans of YA fantasy tales with really cool and unique magic systems and a swoon worthy love interest will enjoy this story
www.carolineandrus.com/blog
This book has: Epically cool nature/earth magic, a handsome and heroic love interest, a super kick ass heroine, a twisty-turny plot with a LOT going on!
Long story short: fans of YA fantasy tales with really cool and unique magic systems and a swoon worthy love interest will enjoy this story