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booksandlemonsquash's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this! The world building in particular is very well done. And I always enjoy superpowers.
I found the way the powers were set up and the kind of powers included to be fantastic. I found Vesper’s power and the implications of that to be fascinating and the good and bad were incredibly well shown through the book.
Vesper is quite close of which made getting to know the secondary characters quite hard, but I did really like Vesper herself. I didn’t much connect with any of the others, and didn’t necessarily care too much about the romance.
I did love the politics of the ring and the society, they were fascinating. I could see a couple of the “reveals” but not all which is always good!
A really good and easy read :)
I found the way the powers were set up and the kind of powers included to be fantastic. I found Vesper’s power and the implications of that to be fascinating and the good and bad were incredibly well shown through the book.
Vesper is quite close of which made getting to know the secondary characters quite hard, but I did really like Vesper herself. I didn’t much connect with any of the others, and didn’t necessarily care too much about the romance.
I did love the politics of the ring and the society, they were fascinating. I could see a couple of the “reveals” but not all which is always good!
A really good and easy read :)
wdonnie3's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
_carmen01_'s review against another edition
3.0
3.5 ⭐'s....... It was good but it could have been better.
malikam's review against another edition
4.0
Beautiful coming of age story, as well as a raw and realistic depiction of dealing with guilt, trauma, and self-forgiveness. Of course, dashes of romance, action-packed power battle sequences were also present! Loved it.
amarylissw's review against another edition
4.0
While this book offers nothing particularly new, I still really enjoyed it. The characters were all pretty fleshed out, and despite some slow pacing, the overall story is interesting. I wasn’t sure if this was a series or not, since it can very much read as a stand-alone, but Goodreads has a sequel listed. It makes me wonder if it’ll be the same characters or different ones?
katmystery's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
I appreciate that this book was not another X-Men ripoff, like so many teens-with-superpowers novels nowadays!
An interesting concept that was not quite pulled off. While I enjoyed the story, characters, and world and laughed and cheered for the heroes, I did not find anything particularly extraordinary about this book. A highly predictable plot-line disguised as something more, including a magic system that was both too complex and too simple to be believable, supported by a cast of sufficiently good characters. The character motivations felt unrealistic to me. The "dark past" hinted at on the back cover didn't seem dark enough to merit the main character's story-driving regret. I feel that the story could have been told in half the number of pages.
But if you like superpower stories and Rocky, I do recommend this! It's a solid book- I just didn't find it fantastic.
I appreciate that this book was not another X-Men ripoff, like so many teens-with-superpowers novels nowadays!
An interesting concept that was not quite pulled off. While I enjoyed the story, characters, and world and laughed and cheered for the heroes, I did not find anything particularly extraordinary about this book. A highly predictable plot-line disguised as something more, including a magic system that was both too complex and too simple to be believable, supported by a cast of sufficiently good characters. The character motivations felt unrealistic to me. The "dark past" hinted at on the back cover didn't seem dark enough to merit the main character's story-driving regret. I feel that the story could have been told in half the number of pages.
But if you like superpower stories and Rocky, I do recommend this! It's a solid book- I just didn't find it fantastic.
chroniclesofabookreader's review against another edition
5.0
**4.5 Stars**
The Beckoning Shadow was an intriguing fantasy that sucked me in from the first page. With its character-focused storyline, Blair crafted a hero's journey with a paranormal flair that, when paired with the entire cast of characters and their elements, held me under its spell until I finished. And somehow, through all of that, it held its structure and pace and kept me coming back for more.
Though the worldbuilding wasn't the greatest, what made up for it in spades was Vesper's individual transformation within the story. I loved her tenacity and how she felt down-to-earth in a world that held pieces that weren't natural. She kept her personality among her trials and she was all too easy to root for; the self-sacrificing with the wounded soul who still managed to maintain her drive. But of course she was flawed, too, and I could forgive the worldbuilding simply because of how well she was crafted. And the subtle sweetness to hers and Sam's connection was wonderfully done—a true feat to pair it so well where it never negated her own journey. Sam's presence was essential and I adored everything he brought to the table.
I cannot wait to continue in this world and see where else Blair plans to take these characters—both main and secondary. The storytelling was impressive and, as such, I know there's so much more goodness to come. I cannot wait to read more.
**Received an early copy via Edelweiss; this had no bearing on my opinions**
The Beckoning Shadow was an intriguing fantasy that sucked me in from the first page. With its character-focused storyline, Blair crafted a hero's journey with a paranormal flair that, when paired with the entire cast of characters and their elements, held me under its spell until I finished. And somehow, through all of that, it held its structure and pace and kept me coming back for more.
Though the worldbuilding wasn't the greatest, what made up for it in spades was Vesper's individual transformation within the story. I loved her tenacity and how she felt down-to-earth in a world that held pieces that weren't natural. She kept her personality among her trials and she was all too easy to root for; the self-sacrificing with the wounded soul who still managed to maintain her drive. But of course she was flawed, too, and I could forgive the worldbuilding simply because of how well she was crafted. And the subtle sweetness to hers and Sam's connection was wonderfully done—a true feat to pair it so well where it never negated her own journey. Sam's presence was essential and I adored everything he brought to the table.
I cannot wait to continue in this world and see where else Blair plans to take these characters—both main and secondary. The storytelling was impressive and, as such, I know there's so much more goodness to come. I cannot wait to read more.
**Received an early copy via Edelweiss; this had no bearing on my opinions**