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3.79 AVERAGE
3.79 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I preferred the 1st book better. I had a harder time connecting with Carmen’s character in the beginning of the book. It wasn’t until the end of the book that I finally couldn’t put it down. Still a decent ending though.
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
*adds this to a long list of series where the first book is absolutely incredible, thrilling, well written and well thought out book and the second book is a major letdown*
Review copy: purchased
I was excited to return to the world of Medio after reading Tehlor Kay Mejia’s debut, WE SET THE DARK ON FIRE. This time around, we get to see the world from Carmen’s point-of-view, and what a world it is. Carmen’s return to La Voz took us deeper into the heart of the resistance, and all was not well there.
The driving force in WE UNLEASH THE MERCILESS STORM is Carmen’s love for Dani, and the decisions she makes when that love is potentially at odds with the resistance she’s dedicated her life to. This tests the depths of her conviction on both sides, and it raises the stakes for their romance. I truly enjoyed seeing Carmen and Dani’s relationship take shape after Carmen’s true identity was revealed. It was immensely satisfying to see their relationship unfold once they finally start interacting again.
Carmen’s point-of-view was a great way to add depth to Medio as Carmen has been working toward dismantling the power structure since her childhood. We were able to get a better glimpse of the bigger picture from Carmen than we had from Dani, and the time Carmen spent with La Voz made the resistance seem wider reaching than it had during FIRE. It was also fun seeing familiar characters through her eyes rather than Dani, especially Sota.
That said, the plot for STORM feels much thinner and less complex in comparison to FIRE. Carmen quickly realizes that something is wrong with La Voz, correctly identifies who the problem is, and then her suspicions are easily proven correct by the end of the book. I kept waiting for there to be some kind of significant twist or for additional layers to be revealed, but nothing terribly interesting happened with La Voz in the end. I had really enjoyed the complexity of the plot in FIRE and thus felt disappointed in STORM’s comparative simplicity.
Recommendation: Get it soon. While I was hoping for a more complicated plot, WE UNLEASH THE MERCILESS STORM is a worthy ending to this duology. Carmen’s love for Dani is front and center in this book, and if you enjoyed that in the previous book, you’ll love their relationship through Carmen’s eyes. After this duology, I am very much looking forward to Mejia’s next YA book, which is a collaboration with Anna-Marie McLemore (MISS METEOR).
I was excited to return to the world of Medio after reading Tehlor Kay Mejia’s debut, WE SET THE DARK ON FIRE. This time around, we get to see the world from Carmen’s point-of-view, and what a world it is. Carmen’s return to La Voz took us deeper into the heart of the resistance, and all was not well there.
The driving force in WE UNLEASH THE MERCILESS STORM is Carmen’s love for Dani, and the decisions she makes when that love is potentially at odds with the resistance she’s dedicated her life to. This tests the depths of her conviction on both sides, and it raises the stakes for their romance. I truly enjoyed seeing Carmen and Dani’s relationship take shape after Carmen’s true identity was revealed. It was immensely satisfying to see their relationship unfold once they finally start interacting again.
Carmen’s point-of-view was a great way to add depth to Medio as Carmen has been working toward dismantling the power structure since her childhood. We were able to get a better glimpse of the bigger picture from Carmen than we had from Dani, and the time Carmen spent with La Voz made the resistance seem wider reaching than it had during FIRE. It was also fun seeing familiar characters through her eyes rather than Dani, especially Sota.
That said, the plot for STORM feels much thinner and less complex in comparison to FIRE. Carmen quickly realizes that something is wrong with La Voz, correctly identifies who the problem is, and then her suspicions are easily proven correct by the end of the book. I kept waiting for there to be some kind of significant twist or for additional layers to be revealed, but nothing terribly interesting happened with La Voz in the end. I had really enjoyed the complexity of the plot in FIRE and thus felt disappointed in STORM’s comparative simplicity.
Recommendation: Get it soon. While I was hoping for a more complicated plot, WE UNLEASH THE MERCILESS STORM is a worthy ending to this duology. Carmen’s love for Dani is front and center in this book, and if you enjoyed that in the previous book, you’ll love their relationship through Carmen’s eyes. After this duology, I am very much looking forward to Mejia’s next YA book, which is a collaboration with Anna-Marie McLemore (MISS METEOR).
I'd give this book 3.5 stars. I love so much about the world Mejia created and the themes she explores in this series, but this book amplified some issues I had with the first entry, while introducing new problems all its own.
**warning: spoilers below**
First, what I enjoyed: a love story between two Latinx young women who are both nuanced. They both have beliefs they hold dear, and it's those beliefs that ultimately bring them together. Similarly, the story's thematic focus on social inequity and oppression feels important and relevant to 2020. Reading these books, I was sad to find out the series was ending and excited to look for fan art, fanfiction, and other ways the universe might live on.
That being said, this sequel and the duology didn't quite live up to the hopes I had for them when reading the first book. I understand the decision to have one book from each protagonist' s POV. It's a nice conceptual choice. However, Carmen's POV causes issues throughout the story. For 50 - 75% of the novel, she questions whether she can trust Dani, whether Dani might have turned against La Voz, etc. However, it's clear in the first book that Dani was committed to the cause regardless of her relationship with Carmen, so this didn't ring true for me. Then, once she and Dani are finally together, Carmen repeatedly tries to sabotage their relationship despite it clearly being something she wants. I understand this is due to her guilt over her own rash actions, but it didn't feel authentic and seemed more like a way to continue separating the love interests so that we don't get a sense of resolution until the end of the story.
Personally, I was also frustrated by the central conflict between love and rebellion/fighting for a cause, as I don't see them as mutually exclusive and have difficulty understanding where Carmen got this belief. Do members of La Voz not have relationships? Do they not love each other? What drives a cause other than love and devotion to a shared vision of the future? The Mari and Lu subplot was an interesting way to explore this and I loved the additional lgbt representation, but the philosophical question underneath never resonated with me.
Along those lines, I was puzzled by the hierarchy, mythology, and decision-making processes of the rebellion. Why would they only have one leader? How is the leadervulture chosen? What is the role of the crow? Was there a crow before Carmen? What did it mean when Alex stomped on the mask at the end? Was she saying goodbye to the hierarchy of the past? Or was it just a symbolic gesture saying La Voz didn't need to hide anymore (although their battle strategy is still to hide in the shadows)?
Additionally, an issue from the first book came up again here: the repetitive nature of the protagonist's internal monologue. While it's helpful to hear some of Carmen's worries, hopes, etc., she isn't given a very rich inner life. She rarely thinks of her time at school, and while her relationships with three members of La Voz are established, we only get a very vague picture of what her life was like in the past. Instead we get many flashbacks to her time with Dani and Mateo, which we already experienced from Dani's perspective. Combined with the fact that I never truly believed Dani would be hurt or killed, Carmen's repetitive and backward-facing inner thoughts sapped some of the urgency from the story.
Ultimately, my biggest compliments and criticisms regarding this book revolve around the fact that I was immediately drawn in by the story and characters. I honestly just wish this series was many more books long and that we got more time with both Dani and Carmen, as well as the political and social structures of Medio. Mejia's ideas are so rich and there's so much to be explored that it was sad for me to come to the end of this series.
**warning: spoilers below**
First, what I enjoyed: a love story between two Latinx young women who are both nuanced. They both have beliefs they hold dear, and it's those beliefs that ultimately bring them together. Similarly, the story's thematic focus on social inequity and oppression feels important and relevant to 2020. Reading these books, I was sad to find out the series was ending and excited to look for fan art, fanfiction, and other ways the universe might live on.
That being said, this sequel and the duology didn't quite live up to the hopes I had for them when reading the first book. I understand the decision to have one book from each protagonist' s POV. It's a nice conceptual choice. However, Carmen's POV causes issues throughout the story. For 50 - 75% of the novel, she questions whether she can trust Dani, whether Dani might have turned against La Voz, etc. However, it's clear in the first book that Dani was committed to the cause regardless of her relationship with Carmen, so this didn't ring true for me. Then, once she and Dani are finally together, Carmen repeatedly tries to sabotage their relationship despite it clearly being something she wants. I understand this is due to her guilt over her own rash actions, but it didn't feel authentic and seemed more like a way to continue separating the love interests so that we don't get a sense of resolution until the end of the story.
Personally, I was also frustrated by the central conflict between love and rebellion/fighting for a cause, as I don't see them as mutually exclusive and have difficulty understanding where Carmen got this belief. Do members of La Voz not have relationships? Do they not love each other? What drives a cause other than love and devotion to a shared vision of the future? The Mari and Lu subplot was an interesting way to explore this and I loved the additional lgbt representation, but the philosophical question underneath never resonated with me.
Along those lines, I was puzzled by the hierarchy, mythology, and decision-making processes of the rebellion. Why would they only have one leader? How is the leadervulture chosen? What is the role of the crow? Was there a crow before Carmen? What did it mean when Alex stomped on the mask at the end? Was she saying goodbye to the hierarchy of the past? Or was it just a symbolic gesture saying La Voz didn't need to hide anymore (although their battle strategy is still to hide in the shadows)?
Additionally, an issue from the first book came up again here: the repetitive nature of the protagonist's internal monologue. While it's helpful to hear some of Carmen's worries, hopes, etc., she isn't given a very rich inner life. She rarely thinks of her time at school, and while her relationships with three members of La Voz are established, we only get a very vague picture of what her life was like in the past. Instead we get many flashbacks to her time with Dani and Mateo, which we already experienced from Dani's perspective. Combined with the fact that I never truly believed Dani would be hurt or killed, Carmen's repetitive and backward-facing inner thoughts sapped some of the urgency from the story.
Ultimately, my biggest compliments and criticisms regarding this book revolve around the fact that I was immediately drawn in by the story and characters. I honestly just wish this series was many more books long and that we got more time with both Dani and Carmen, as well as the political and social structures of Medio. Mejia's ideas are so rich and there's so much to be explored that it was sad for me to come to the end of this series.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-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:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If I’m being honest, I preferred the first book. I went with a 4 for this one if only to congratulate Mejia on writing a sequel and not the next in a series. Because, I believe it could have been a much stronger single, large volume.
But, I love that the story centers on strong women/girls. Almost without exception. And I enjoyed the created world in which the stories unfold quite a lot. The nod to the horrific immigration policies of our own current administration needing to be dismantled is also welcome.
But, I love that the story centers on strong women/girls. Almost without exception. And I enjoyed the created world in which the stories unfold quite a lot. The nod to the horrific immigration policies of our own current administration needing to be dismantled is also welcome.
One issue I had with the first one EXPLODED in this one: repetition repetition repetition, as well as excessive (annoyingly unneeded) over explanation (9/10 times in the form of repeating the same explanation over and over and over throughout the book)
Also the arc is luchluster
Also the arc is luchluster