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ferencb's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
starryorbit12's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
amcclung's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
jamice's review against another edition
5.0
Okay I somehow missed that this was a sequel, but I decided to try and read it anyway. I read through the first chapter and was like no I have to read the first one first because I had to know what horrors Janneke went through, it’s a good thing that I’m one of those rare people that love spoilers. So I bought the first book stayed up all night reading it and then binged on the sequel the next day. It’s a good thing it was the weekend and my hubby was home to help with the kids. Lol
The author has a gift with building worlds and developing characters that have you enthralled. This was an amazing sequel and one that maybe hints to a third book. I throughly enjoyed reading this.
The author has a gift with building worlds and developing characters that have you enthralled. This was an amazing sequel and one that maybe hints to a third book. I throughly enjoyed reading this.
libraryjen's review against another edition
3.0
I was excited to read this book since I enjoyed the first one in the series, White Stag. This one picks up the story a year after the cliffhanger ending of White Stag. I felt lost for awhile and ended up going back and rereading the last couple chapters of White Stag to remind myself what was happening. This may be a personal issue since I read so many novels, but I had a hard time remembering which character was which. At first I chalked it up to how long it's been since I read the first one (finished it in December 2018), but as I continued to read, nothing came back to me and, although I liked the characters, I still didn't recall who they were from the first book.
Still, this was a good follow up to the last story. I still enjoyed Janneke as a character, along with her friend Diaval. There was reality and tension and struggle and love in the relationship she had with Soren that felt realistic. The main conflict was tense and exciting. When Janneke discovers Lydian's motivations for her torture, she's torn. When she discovers the truth of what's coming, she and Soren have to find a way to save the world, but they can only do it with Lydian's help. Can Janneke survive bringing Lydian back? What are his real motivations for wanting to come back?
Sadly, I wasn't as into this book as I was White Stag. I always read several books at once and I found myself picking up the other ones instead of this one regularly. I was relieved to be done with this one because it just wasn't that compelling to me. I think I would have enjoyed it much more had I read it right after finishing the first one. Still, if you liked the first one, you'll probably like this one. If you are a fan of strong female protagonists or Norse mythology, give this one a try. But if you haven't read the first one, definitely start there! This is not a stand alone novel!
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Still, this was a good follow up to the last story. I still enjoyed Janneke as a character, along with her friend Diaval. There was reality and tension and struggle and love in the relationship she had with Soren that felt realistic. The main conflict was tense and exciting. When Janneke discovers Lydian's motivations for her torture, she's torn. When she discovers the truth of what's coming, she and Soren have to find a way to save the world, but they can only do it with Lydian's help. Can Janneke survive bringing Lydian back? What are his real motivations for wanting to come back?
Sadly, I wasn't as into this book as I was White Stag. I always read several books at once and I found myself picking up the other ones instead of this one regularly. I was relieved to be done with this one because it just wasn't that compelling to me. I think I would have enjoyed it much more had I read it right after finishing the first one. Still, if you liked the first one, you'll probably like this one. If you are a fan of strong female protagonists or Norse mythology, give this one a try. But if you haven't read the first one, definitely start there! This is not a stand alone novel!
Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
aprilsarah's review against another edition
3.0
*ARC received from Netgalley in return for an honest review*
Video Review: https://youtu.be/GAE1ZYyj-1k
I wanted so much for this book to blow me away. Maybe because I'm a little bit bias because of the title of this book but I want so much, so much that I only sort of got.
This book starts off a little while after Janneke has become the White Stag and Soren has become the Elking. In her role of being the White Stag, Janneke has started to have visions and it seems Lydian is not as gone as they hoped he would be. But she starts to have feelings and thoughts about the fact that the world may be ending. Now, this was hinted at in 'White Stag' when Lydian was constantly talking about "what happens when the snake stops eating itself". but Janneke who is new to her power, has to figure out how to stop the world from ending. So she and Soren and a couple of old and new characters, go on this quest to stop Ragnarok.
As you can tell just by the mention of Ragnarok, there is a lot of Norse mythology woven into this tale. This is more of a journey quest then the previous book was. You have a lot of traveling around and you have an ensemble of characters who are just trying to keep the world from ending.
Some of my issues start with the fact that we do have this ensemble. Apparently between the first book ending and when this book starts, Janneke has created a couple of friendship bonds that you never really get the whole feel of. A lot of this book is more telling than showing. That lost a lot of character depth for me. The fact that we are supposed to feel connections to all of these new characters that both Soren and Janneke have developed over the time frame we haven't seen, you don't feel it. You have this ensemble and then you have all these quests, you have this Norse lore that is forming their path and I at some point, started to lose interest.
It was also very interestingly paced. I found myself bored growing bored. I wanted to like this book so much because - Goblin King - and the fact that I just came off of 'White Stag' and I really enjoyed that read. But in this book, I lost the characters that I really enjoyed. A lot of the characters felt like they had changed somehow. They didn't feel quite as developed or refined or even the same as they did in the first book. Lydian is the biggest example of this. Lydian is a character that was the perfect villain. You hated him. He was crazy. But then in this book, you lose a lot of those harsh edges and it doesn't feel right.
It was also a lot of talking, a lot. This sometimes happens when couples have come together and we are trying to figure more story arcs. It's a little bit about the curfuffle of this relationship and learning to trust each other. Which these guys clearly do not. They kept holding secrets from each other. And then trying to have an underlying strong plot. It just, I didn't care about the relationship, and then at some point I didn't care if the world ended or not. Which I'm a little saddened about.
There are a lot of good bones in this story. It does round out nicely. It just felt flatter than the first book. It was a standard YA journey story.
So do I recommend this book? I guess if you want to know what happens. I think I would have been perfectly content to just stop at 'White Stag' and let them live out the rest of their lives may be having this underlying threat happen.
Video Review: https://youtu.be/GAE1ZYyj-1k
I wanted so much for this book to blow me away. Maybe because I'm a little bit bias because of the title of this book but I want so much, so much that I only sort of got.
This book starts off a little while after Janneke has become the White Stag and Soren has become the Elking. In her role of being the White Stag, Janneke has started to have visions and it seems Lydian is not as gone as they hoped he would be. But she starts to have feelings and thoughts about the fact that the world may be ending. Now, this was hinted at in 'White Stag' when Lydian was constantly talking about "what happens when the snake stops eating itself". but Janneke who is new to her power, has to figure out how to stop the world from ending. So she and Soren and a couple of old and new characters, go on this quest to stop Ragnarok.
As you can tell just by the mention of Ragnarok, there is a lot of Norse mythology woven into this tale. This is more of a journey quest then the previous book was. You have a lot of traveling around and you have an ensemble of characters who are just trying to keep the world from ending.
Some of my issues start with the fact that we do have this ensemble. Apparently between the first book ending and when this book starts, Janneke has created a couple of friendship bonds that you never really get the whole feel of. A lot of this book is more telling than showing. That lost a lot of character depth for me. The fact that we are supposed to feel connections to all of these new characters that both Soren and Janneke have developed over the time frame we haven't seen, you don't feel it. You have this ensemble and then you have all these quests, you have this Norse lore that is forming their path and I at some point, started to lose interest.
It was also very interestingly paced. I found myself bored growing bored. I wanted to like this book so much because - Goblin King - and the fact that I just came off of 'White Stag' and I really enjoyed that read. But in this book, I lost the characters that I really enjoyed. A lot of the characters felt like they had changed somehow. They didn't feel quite as developed or refined or even the same as they did in the first book. Lydian is the biggest example of this. Lydian is a character that was the perfect villain. You hated him. He was crazy. But then in this book, you lose a lot of those harsh edges and it doesn't feel right.
It was also a lot of talking, a lot. This sometimes happens when couples have come together and we are trying to figure more story arcs. It's a little bit about the curfuffle of this relationship and learning to trust each other. Which these guys clearly do not. They kept holding secrets from each other. And then trying to have an underlying strong plot. It just, I didn't care about the relationship, and then at some point I didn't care if the world ended or not. Which I'm a little saddened about.
There are a lot of good bones in this story. It does round out nicely. It just felt flatter than the first book. It was a standard YA journey story.
So do I recommend this book? I guess if you want to know what happens. I think I would have been perfectly content to just stop at 'White Stag' and let them live out the rest of their lives may be having this underlying threat happen.
jesssireads's review against another edition
3.0
This one was... alright. It felt like a chore to finish, which is never a fun thing. However, I still really enjoy the world and from the ending, it seems like the author is continuing on with it, which is super exciting. My favorite thing about this book is our two main characters, Janneke and Soren, and their relationship. I like how they interact with each other and that they are willing to do anything for the other. I loved Seppo as well and found his commentary to be the best. I also love the atmosphere. It is set in the frigid north, and I could definitely feel it whilst reading.
What I didn't enjoy as much was the writing. It was average and just... I don't know, I don't want to be mean, but came across as slightly juvenile. I also did not like the fact that it was hard to tell what time period we are meant to be in. Is it historical? Or a completely different world? The characters dialogue just seemed far too modern for the kind of world the author is trying to build.
However, I still really enjoyed this and would recommend it to others!
What I didn't enjoy as much was the writing. It was average and just... I don't know, I don't want to be mean, but came across as slightly juvenile. I also did not like the fact that it was hard to tell what time period we are meant to be in. Is it historical? Or a completely different world? The characters dialogue just seemed far too modern for the kind of world the author is trying to build.
However, I still really enjoyed this and would recommend it to others!
tiffysbookadventures's review against another edition
4.0
I started this book not realizing that it was the second one in the series. However, I had not trouble following along. This book was full of magic, sassiness and adventure and anyone who enjoys magical creatures and or Nordic lore will enjoy this story. I can’t wait to read more about these characters.
mollythegemini's review against another edition
3.0
So, I had no idea this was going to be a trilogy and I wish I would have known that before going into it. It was after I finished the book that I discovered it was a trilogy so my review is based on that.
I will say that my favorite thing in this book was the additional characters. They were interesting and quippy which kept the book from falling completely flat. This book was pretty boring compared to the first book. It's a journey quest where our characters go through a series of tasks to stop the end of the world (which they succeed at) yet at the end, there is still a waging war with a dead army? Why though? Also, they had to team up with ghost Lidian in order to succeed in this "stopping of the end of the world." Like, why bring back this horrific character that the rest of the group, Janneke included has to deal with on a semi-agreeable level? There was also a lot of Janneke and Soren going back and forth about telling each other things and being truthful and became repetitive. I don't think I'm going to pick up book 3.
I will say that my favorite thing in this book was the additional characters. They were interesting and quippy which kept the book from falling completely flat. This book was pretty boring compared to the first book. It's a journey quest where our characters go through a series of tasks to stop the end of the world (which they succeed at) yet at the end, there is still a waging war with a dead army? Why though? Also, they had to team up with ghost Lidian in order to succeed in this "stopping of the end of the world." Like, why bring back this horrific character that the rest of the group, Janneke included has to deal with on a semi-agreeable level? There was also a lot of Janneke and Soren going back and forth about telling each other things and being truthful and became repetitive. I don't think I'm going to pick up book 3.
leanettascott82's review against another edition
3.0
Very nice. It wasn’t my cup of tea but the plot was thought out and it had a great plot. I just couldn’t get into the story. I’m glad I had the chance to read it but it’s just not the story for me. The author did amazing job though for those who are into these type of fantasy novels.