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4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
DNF at 22%
Unfortunately this one is just a little too unpolished. I love the idea, but am struggling with the execution.
The details of this world are poorly explained, the character relationships and dynamics and weak, and maybe I'm just a little slow and missing some hints but not much is making sense about what is happening or why Brida is going through these trials. What is her motivation? Is it political so she can help form the laws of the land? Is she trying to help her father get medicine? What's actually wrong with him? It's unclear.
Also, why is every single person's hair color mentioned in excruciating detail and should I be taking notes on that? It seems important because Brida was apparently shunned in her hometown because of her hair color (did I get that right?) but the reader has no idea why (as of 22%) that's the case.
There is a LOT of telling vs showing and ultimately that ends up making for a bit boring of a read.
Unfortunately this one is just a little too unpolished. I love the idea, but am struggling with the execution.
The details of this world are poorly explained, the character relationships and dynamics and weak, and maybe I'm just a little slow and missing some hints but not much is making sense about what is happening or why Brida is going through these trials. What is her motivation? Is it political so she can help form the laws of the land? Is she trying to help her father get medicine? What's actually wrong with him? It's unclear.
Also, why is every single person's hair color mentioned in excruciating detail and should I be taking notes on that? It seems important because Brida was apparently shunned in her hometown because of her hair color (did I get that right?) but the reader has no idea why (as of 22%) that's the case.
There is a LOT of telling vs showing and ultimately that ends up making for a bit boring of a read.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
This was such an excellent debut! It was a fun read with a captivating story and wide range of characters. I feel like there are still so many secrets to uncover in this series!
Brida lies her way into competing in the Courting, a competition where select individuals from among the smaller towns get picked to join the different magical courts. Along the way, she makes a variety of friends, finds herself in a bit of a love triangle, and accidentally captures the attention of the dark shadow prince.
I had suspected one of the plot twists would happen but that ending still had me on the edge of my seat! I cannot wait for book 2!
Thank you to Laura for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!
Brida lies her way into competing in the Courting, a competition where select individuals from among the smaller towns get picked to join the different magical courts. Along the way, she makes a variety of friends, finds herself in a bit of a love triangle, and accidentally captures the attention of the dark shadow prince.
I had suspected one of the plot twists would happen but that ending still had me on the edge of my seat! I cannot wait for book 2!
Thank you to Laura for an ARC in exchange for my honest review!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The Forgotten Dawn was an amazing book for my 2025 lineup! We meet Brida Larrow, a book lover like the rest of us, who enters a Courting Trial event with her BFF Kaidan, our golden retriever rep 😉, to determine what court she may or may not be accepted by. With mental health representation, court intrigue, morally gray characters and personal growth/found family, this book was a whirlwind of a story. I will admit, I have lots of unanswered questions that I NEED answered, but I have faith they will be with the next book! I highly recommend if you enjoy trials, the intricacies of courts, and elemental magic.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
The Forgotten Dawn was such a great read. But that ending just about tore me apart. What an emotional ride! There are many reasons you should consider this book: A fierce yet wildly anxious and super relatable FMC, a mysterious, highly intriguing, shadow wielding prince. A slooooow burn. Unique magic systems and good world building. Not to mention lovable side characters, love triangles, political intrigue, a ton of twists and turns, heart break, and a bazillion unanswered questions leaving you desperate for the next book. This one definitely kept me on my toes. Whenever I would think I had something figured out, a new twist would come. There is so much more I am dying to find out! Thank you to Laura for the eARC. It was a pleasure to read. I will be grabbing the audio version when it releases to experience it all over again ❤️
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧; 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙄 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚."
First, I just want to say thank you to Laura A. Blake for the ARC of The Forgotten Dawn in exchange for my honest review! This book pulled me out of my reading slump.
The Forgotten Dawn follows Brida, a fierce girl who lies her way into the Fae Trials—challenges where the winners gain a place in one of the fae courts. She joins hoping to find a way to save her father, but ends up involved with things she didn't expect.
This book checked all my boxes:
✅ Badass FMC
✅ Shadow daddy prince
✅ Realistic, platonic male/female friendship
✅ Incredible world-building that makes me want to run away to Azmeer
✅ Trials (bonus points for Fae trials)
✅ Found family
✅ Magic
✅ Slow-burn
The pacing starts off a bit slow (or maybe that was just my slump), but once it started to pick up, I couldn't put the book down. Laura Blake does an incredible job letting the story unfold naturally and giving us just enough to piece things together. The Forgotten Dawn feels like a fresh, unique addition to the romantasy genre.
Now, for the characters. Brida is fierce and willing to do whatever she can for her loved ones. I adored her relationship with Kadian, her best friend/brother. This completely platonic friendship was everything I never knew I needed. Her friendship with Prince Alvar was one that did surprise me, but it felt like the type of friendship they both needed. I especially loved Dainan. The slow-burn tension between him and Brida?! And that kitchen scene? I didn't need a new shadow daddy, but here we are.
Overall, this was an enjoyable start to The Shattered Sky saga. I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting a new romantasy to sink their teeth into. The Forgotten Dawn comes out on June 5th!
First, I just want to say thank you to Laura A. Blake for the ARC of The Forgotten Dawn in exchange for my honest review! This book pulled me out of my reading slump.
The Forgotten Dawn follows Brida, a fierce girl who lies her way into the Fae Trials—challenges where the winners gain a place in one of the fae courts. She joins hoping to find a way to save her father, but ends up involved with things she didn't expect.
This book checked all my boxes:
✅ Badass FMC
✅ Shadow daddy prince
✅ Realistic, platonic male/female friendship
✅ Incredible world-building that makes me want to run away to Azmeer
✅ Trials (bonus points for Fae trials)
✅ Found family
✅ Magic
✅ Slow-burn
The pacing starts off a bit slow (or maybe that was just my slump), but once it started to pick up, I couldn't put the book down. Laura Blake does an incredible job letting the story unfold naturally and giving us just enough to piece things together. The Forgotten Dawn feels like a fresh, unique addition to the romantasy genre.
Now, for the characters. Brida is fierce and willing to do whatever she can for her loved ones. I adored her relationship with Kadian, her best friend/brother. This completely platonic friendship was everything I never knew I needed. Her friendship with Prince Alvar was one that did surprise me, but it felt like the type of friendship they both needed. I especially loved Dainan. The slow-burn tension between him and Brida?! And that kitchen scene? I didn't need a new shadow daddy, but here we are.
Overall, this was an enjoyable start to The Shattered Sky saga. I highly recommend this book for anyone wanting a new romantasy to sink their teeth into. The Forgotten Dawn comes out on June 5th!
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
How is this a debut?! If I could give this 6🌟 I absolutely would. The world, the magic, the FOUND FAMILY, the trials, the political intrigue. I DEVOURED this book and loved every minute. That cliffhanger though, WOOH, definitely need book 2 ASAP ❤️
Absolutely zero chemistry for me between characters, and honestly felt too bored. Kept trying to make excuses to start other books.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Polish version below!
Thank you to the author – Laura A. Blake – for providing the ARC ebook for review.
I’ll admit I had high expectations for The Forgotten Dawn – the synopsis sounded incredibly intriguing, so I was excited to be among the selected reviewers. Unfortunately, what I read didn’t quite live up to those expectations.
But let me start from the beginning…
In the email notifying me that I’d been selected as a reviewer, it was stated – and I quote:
"This will be an uncorrected proof of The Forgotten Dawn, which means there may still be some typos/errors here and there as it is not in its final-edited form."
I won’t say that thrilled me, but fair enough. I was prepared to overlook minor typos or errors, especially since, while I’m comfortable with English, it’s not my everyday language.
However, I didn’t actually notice those minor errors. Unfortunately, I found a different issue – the book I read still needs a lot – and I mean a lot – of editing.
From a purely narrative standpoint, this was most evident in moments where something was mentioned but not explained, leaving the reader to guess its meaning from context (which wasn’t always possible), or when it felt like an entire introductory section – whether for a plot element or a character – was simply missing. I often found myself thinking, “Did I miss something?!” And I’m a careful, detail-oriented reader – I read every word. While some things were lacking, others were unnecessarily repeated – for example, one paragraph might end with a certain sentence, and the next paragraph or chapter would open with a nearly identical or slightly reworded version of that same sentence. That kind of repetition pulls me out of the reading flow instantly. I’d find myself going back, checking whether I misunderstood something.
But I’m afraid that even if we accept that the issues mentioned above fall within the realm of an “uncorrected proof,” that’s not the end of my concerns.
Every story is made by its characters and the relationships they form. And that’s something The Forgotten Dawn sorely lacks. While I could accept the childhood friends and their dynamic – which at least suggested some kind of existing bond – the new relationships formed during the selection process didn’t convince me at all. If the author claims that the main character is an outcast in her own town, I need to see what makes her connect with these new people. Saying they trained together and became friends just isn’t enough. I couldn’t shake the feeling that all the character interactions were incredibly forced.
Then there’s her love interest. From the moment they first lay eyes on each other, to “talking,” to kissing on the dance floor – so much development is missing. I kept wondering where their attraction even came from – did I miss something again? I won’t even get into the complete lack of chemistry…
Characters aside, we also need to consider their motivations. And it felt like the main female character’s motivation was tacked on after the fact – it just didn’t fit naturally. As for the resolution of her major issue? Let’s just say it was pure Deus Ex Machina.
Now let’s talk about the narration itself. Yes, I’m going to nitpick that too! The beginning felt very choppy – absolutely nothing happened between the elimination rounds. Those scenes should have been used to show the characters bonding, but that was missing. The sparse fragments we did get were far too little – at least for me. The second half does pick up a bit, only to hit the reader with a shocking ending that comes completely out of nowhere. For the record, I was looking throughout the book for some overarching theme or a broader plot hinting at a saga, but I only got that in the final moments – and even then, several threads mentioned earlier were left unresolved.
What hurts the most is how exhausting this book was to read. Due to all the issues mentioned – especially the forced character dynamics – I simply couldn’t immerse myself in the world the author tried to create. I admit she had a few great ideas – like the courts and the selection process – but they got lost in a poorly executed story. You can tell it’s a debut, and that the author lacks experience. Honestly, if this hadn’t been an ARC, I probably would’ve DNFed it before reaching page 100. But because I am who I am, I felt obligated to finish it in order to provide a thorough review. And while a justified DNF would’ve been a review in itself, I kept pushing through, giving The Forgotten Dawn chance after chance. Yes, I finished it – but it took me over two weeks, and it completely killed my desire to read anything else during that time…
Polska wersja:
Dziękuję autorce – Laurze A Blake – za ebooka (eARC) do recenzji.
Przyznaję, że miałam wielkie oczekiwania co do „The Forgotten Dawn” – opis brzmiał mega ciekawie, więc się ucieszyłam, że dołączę do grona recenzentów. Obawiam się jednak, że to co przeczytałam nijak się ma do moich oczekiwań.
Ale po kolei…
W mailu informującym mnie o załapaniu się do grona recenzentów był zapis, że cytuję
This will be an uncorrected proof of The Forgotten Dawn, which means there may still be some typos/errors here and there as it is not in its final-edited form.
I nie powiem, żeby mnie to cieszyło, ale ok. Przymknę oko na drobne literówki czy błędy, tym bardziej, ze choć nie mam problemów z językiem angielskim to nie posługuję się nim na co dzień.
Wspomnianych wcześniej drobnych błędów nie znalazłam. Niestety zauważyłam inny problem – książka, którą przeczytałam wymaga jeszcze bardzo, bardzo, ale to BARDZO dużo edycji.
Z takiego czysto narracyjnego punktu widzenia było to najbardziej widoczne w momentach gdy coś jest wspomniane, ale nie wytłumaczone i trzeba próbować wyciągnąć z kontekstu znaczenie (co niestety też nie zawsze było możliwe) lub gdy człowiek ma wrażenie, że w ogóle brakło całego fragmentu wprowadzającego jakiś element lub osobę – złapałam się o wiele razy za dużo na myśli „czy ja coś przeoczyłam?!”, a jestem uważnym i czepialskim czytelnikiem – czytam od deski do deski, każdą literkę. I jak pewnych rzeczy brakowało, tak niestety pojawiło się też trochę powtórzeń, gdy np. jeden akapit kończył się pewnym zdaniem, które potem odrobinę zmienione lub niemal wcale! otwierało następny akapit lub rozdział. Mnie takie coś kosmicznie irytuje, bo natychmiastowo wybija mnie z flow czytania – czuję potrzebę sprawdzenia, czy ja coś źle zrozumiałam i się wracam.
Obawiam się jednak, że nawet jeśli założymy, że problemy wspomniane we wcześniejszym akapicie mieszczą się w „uncorrected proof”, to nie jest to koniec moich uwag.
Każdą historię tworzą jej bohaterowie i nawiązywane przez nich relacje. I to jest coś czego w „The Forgotten Dawn” brakuje. Jak akceptuję przyjaciół z dzieciństwa, których wzajemne zachowania faktycznie sugerują jakąś tam przyjaźń, tak tych znajomości nawiązancyh w trakcie selekcji nie. Jeśli autor twierdzi, że główna bohaterka jest wyrzutkiem we własnym miasteczku to musi mi pokazać co sprawia, że zaprzyjaźnia się z nowymi osobami. Poćwiczyliśmy razem i zostali przyjaciółmi to zwyczajnie za mało. Nie mogłam się oprzeć wrażeniu, ze wszelkie interakcje bohaterów były mega sztuczne.
Mamy jeszcze obiekt jej zainteresowań – pomiędzy zobaczyli się pierwszy raz, „porozmawiali”, a zaczęli całować na parkiecie brakuje całej masy rozwoju tej ich relacji. Non stop zachodziłam w głowę, skąd tam się w ogóle wzięło jakieś ich przyciąganie – znów coś przeoczyłam? Już tutaj pominę kwestie nieistniejącej chemii….
Są bohaterowie, a więc są też jakieś ich motywacje. I nie da się oprzeć wrażeniu, że motywacja do działania MFC zostało dodana po fakcie, bo zwyczajnie odstaje. A samo zakończenie jej wielkiego problemu? Napiszę tylko Deus Ex Machina.
Zostaje nam jeszcze sama narracja. Tak! Tu też się będę czepiać! Początek jest strasznie rwany – pomiędzy kolejnymi rundami eliminacji nie dzieje się absolutnie nic – tutaj powinno być pokazane właśnie jak bohaterowie tworzą więzi między sobą, ale tego brakuje. Te szczątkowe fragmenty to o wiele za mało – przynajmniej jak dla mnie. Dopiero druga połowa jako tako się rozkręca, żeby walnąć szokującym zakończeniem, na które nic nie wskazywało. Swoja drogą, szukałam w czasie lektury jakiegoś motywu przewodniego serii, wiecie, jakiegoś większego tła fabularnego, które zapowiada sagę, ale dostałam to dopiero w samej końcówce, a i to bez zaadresowania kilku innych rzuconych tu czy tam wątków.
Najbardziej boli mnie fakt, że tak strasznie wymęczyłam tą książkę. Przez wszystkie wspomniane wcześniej problemy, w szczególności sztuczność bohaterów nie mogłam się wciągnąć w stworzony przez autorkę świat. Przyznaję, że miała kilka fajnych pomysłów – jak same dwory i eliminacje, ale niestety zgubiło się to w słabo napisanej książce. Tutaj czuć, że to debiut, i że autorka nie ma doświadczenia. Ja osobiście, gdyby nie fakt, że to ARC, walnęłabym DNFa jeszcze zanim dotarłabym do 100 strony, ale że ja to ja, to czułam się zobowiązana przeczytać całość, żeby móc ja rzetelnie ocenić. A choć uzasadniony DNF sam w sobie byłby oceną to zmuszałam się, żeby dać „The Forgotten Dawn” szansę za szansą. Doczytałam ją, owszem, ale męczyłam ponad dwa tygodnie i jednocześnie zabiła we mnie chęć do czytania czegokolwiek innego w tym czasie….
[WSPÓŁPRACA REKLAMOWA]
Thank you to the author – Laura A. Blake – for providing the ARC ebook for review.
I’ll admit I had high expectations for The Forgotten Dawn – the synopsis sounded incredibly intriguing, so I was excited to be among the selected reviewers. Unfortunately, what I read didn’t quite live up to those expectations.
But let me start from the beginning…
In the email notifying me that I’d been selected as a reviewer, it was stated – and I quote:
"This will be an uncorrected proof of The Forgotten Dawn, which means there may still be some typos/errors here and there as it is not in its final-edited form."
I won’t say that thrilled me, but fair enough. I was prepared to overlook minor typos or errors, especially since, while I’m comfortable with English, it’s not my everyday language.
However, I didn’t actually notice those minor errors. Unfortunately, I found a different issue – the book I read still needs a lot – and I mean a lot – of editing.
From a purely narrative standpoint, this was most evident in moments where something was mentioned but not explained, leaving the reader to guess its meaning from context (which wasn’t always possible), or when it felt like an entire introductory section – whether for a plot element or a character – was simply missing. I often found myself thinking, “Did I miss something?!” And I’m a careful, detail-oriented reader – I read every word. While some things were lacking, others were unnecessarily repeated – for example, one paragraph might end with a certain sentence, and the next paragraph or chapter would open with a nearly identical or slightly reworded version of that same sentence. That kind of repetition pulls me out of the reading flow instantly. I’d find myself going back, checking whether I misunderstood something.
But I’m afraid that even if we accept that the issues mentioned above fall within the realm of an “uncorrected proof,” that’s not the end of my concerns.
Every story is made by its characters and the relationships they form. And that’s something The Forgotten Dawn sorely lacks. While I could accept the childhood friends and their dynamic – which at least suggested some kind of existing bond – the new relationships formed during the selection process didn’t convince me at all. If the author claims that the main character is an outcast in her own town, I need to see what makes her connect with these new people. Saying they trained together and became friends just isn’t enough. I couldn’t shake the feeling that all the character interactions were incredibly forced.
Then there’s her love interest. From the moment they first lay eyes on each other, to “talking,” to kissing on the dance floor – so much development is missing. I kept wondering where their attraction even came from – did I miss something again? I won’t even get into the complete lack of chemistry…
Characters aside, we also need to consider their motivations. And it felt like the main female character’s motivation was tacked on after the fact – it just didn’t fit naturally. As for the resolution of her major issue? Let’s just say it was pure Deus Ex Machina.
Now let’s talk about the narration itself. Yes, I’m going to nitpick that too! The beginning felt very choppy – absolutely nothing happened between the elimination rounds. Those scenes should have been used to show the characters bonding, but that was missing. The sparse fragments we did get were far too little – at least for me. The second half does pick up a bit, only to hit the reader with a shocking ending that comes completely out of nowhere. For the record, I was looking throughout the book for some overarching theme or a broader plot hinting at a saga, but I only got that in the final moments – and even then, several threads mentioned earlier were left unresolved.
What hurts the most is how exhausting this book was to read. Due to all the issues mentioned – especially the forced character dynamics – I simply couldn’t immerse myself in the world the author tried to create. I admit she had a few great ideas – like the courts and the selection process – but they got lost in a poorly executed story. You can tell it’s a debut, and that the author lacks experience. Honestly, if this hadn’t been an ARC, I probably would’ve DNFed it before reaching page 100. But because I am who I am, I felt obligated to finish it in order to provide a thorough review. And while a justified DNF would’ve been a review in itself, I kept pushing through, giving The Forgotten Dawn chance after chance. Yes, I finished it – but it took me over two weeks, and it completely killed my desire to read anything else during that time…
Polska wersja:
Dziękuję autorce – Laurze A Blake – za ebooka (eARC) do recenzji.
Przyznaję, że miałam wielkie oczekiwania co do „The Forgotten Dawn” – opis brzmiał mega ciekawie, więc się ucieszyłam, że dołączę do grona recenzentów. Obawiam się jednak, że to co przeczytałam nijak się ma do moich oczekiwań.
Ale po kolei…
W mailu informującym mnie o załapaniu się do grona recenzentów był zapis, że cytuję
This will be an uncorrected proof of The Forgotten Dawn, which means there may still be some typos/errors here and there as it is not in its final-edited form.
I nie powiem, żeby mnie to cieszyło, ale ok. Przymknę oko na drobne literówki czy błędy, tym bardziej, ze choć nie mam problemów z językiem angielskim to nie posługuję się nim na co dzień.
Wspomnianych wcześniej drobnych błędów nie znalazłam. Niestety zauważyłam inny problem – książka, którą przeczytałam wymaga jeszcze bardzo, bardzo, ale to BARDZO dużo edycji.
Z takiego czysto narracyjnego punktu widzenia było to najbardziej widoczne w momentach gdy coś jest wspomniane, ale nie wytłumaczone i trzeba próbować wyciągnąć z kontekstu znaczenie (co niestety też nie zawsze było możliwe) lub gdy człowiek ma wrażenie, że w ogóle brakło całego fragmentu wprowadzającego jakiś element lub osobę – złapałam się o wiele razy za dużo na myśli „czy ja coś przeoczyłam?!”, a jestem uważnym i czepialskim czytelnikiem – czytam od deski do deski, każdą literkę. I jak pewnych rzeczy brakowało, tak niestety pojawiło się też trochę powtórzeń, gdy np. jeden akapit kończył się pewnym zdaniem, które potem odrobinę zmienione lub niemal wcale! otwierało następny akapit lub rozdział. Mnie takie coś kosmicznie irytuje, bo natychmiastowo wybija mnie z flow czytania – czuję potrzebę sprawdzenia, czy ja coś źle zrozumiałam i się wracam.
Obawiam się jednak, że nawet jeśli założymy, że problemy wspomniane we wcześniejszym akapicie mieszczą się w „uncorrected proof”, to nie jest to koniec moich uwag.
Każdą historię tworzą jej bohaterowie i nawiązywane przez nich relacje. I to jest coś czego w „The Forgotten Dawn” brakuje. Jak akceptuję przyjaciół z dzieciństwa, których wzajemne zachowania faktycznie sugerują jakąś tam przyjaźń, tak tych znajomości nawiązancyh w trakcie selekcji nie. Jeśli autor twierdzi, że główna bohaterka jest wyrzutkiem we własnym miasteczku to musi mi pokazać co sprawia, że zaprzyjaźnia się z nowymi osobami. Poćwiczyliśmy razem i zostali przyjaciółmi to zwyczajnie za mało. Nie mogłam się oprzeć wrażeniu, ze wszelkie interakcje bohaterów były mega sztuczne.
Mamy jeszcze obiekt jej zainteresowań – pomiędzy zobaczyli się pierwszy raz, „porozmawiali”, a zaczęli całować na parkiecie brakuje całej masy rozwoju tej ich relacji. Non stop zachodziłam w głowę, skąd tam się w ogóle wzięło jakieś ich przyciąganie – znów coś przeoczyłam? Już tutaj pominę kwestie nieistniejącej chemii….
Są bohaterowie, a więc są też jakieś ich motywacje. I nie da się oprzeć wrażeniu, że motywacja do działania MFC zostało dodana po fakcie, bo zwyczajnie odstaje. A samo zakończenie jej wielkiego problemu? Napiszę tylko Deus Ex Machina.
Zostaje nam jeszcze sama narracja. Tak! Tu też się będę czepiać! Początek jest strasznie rwany – pomiędzy kolejnymi rundami eliminacji nie dzieje się absolutnie nic – tutaj powinno być pokazane właśnie jak bohaterowie tworzą więzi między sobą, ale tego brakuje. Te szczątkowe fragmenty to o wiele za mało – przynajmniej jak dla mnie. Dopiero druga połowa jako tako się rozkręca, żeby walnąć szokującym zakończeniem, na które nic nie wskazywało. Swoja drogą, szukałam w czasie lektury jakiegoś motywu przewodniego serii, wiecie, jakiegoś większego tła fabularnego, które zapowiada sagę, ale dostałam to dopiero w samej końcówce, a i to bez zaadresowania kilku innych rzuconych tu czy tam wątków.
Najbardziej boli mnie fakt, że tak strasznie wymęczyłam tą książkę. Przez wszystkie wspomniane wcześniej problemy, w szczególności sztuczność bohaterów nie mogłam się wciągnąć w stworzony przez autorkę świat. Przyznaję, że miała kilka fajnych pomysłów – jak same dwory i eliminacje, ale niestety zgubiło się to w słabo napisanej książce. Tutaj czuć, że to debiut, i że autorka nie ma doświadczenia. Ja osobiście, gdyby nie fakt, że to ARC, walnęłabym DNFa jeszcze zanim dotarłabym do 100 strony, ale że ja to ja, to czułam się zobowiązana przeczytać całość, żeby móc ja rzetelnie ocenić. A choć uzasadniony DNF sam w sobie byłby oceną to zmuszałam się, żeby dać „The Forgotten Dawn” szansę za szansą. Doczytałam ją, owszem, ale męczyłam ponad dwa tygodnie i jednocześnie zabiła we mnie chęć do czytania czegokolwiek innego w tym czasie….
[WSPÓŁPRACA REKLAMOWA]
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
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:
No
This book was SO GOOD! Laura really hit this out of the park!
This book is like Fourth Wing meets Divergent! This was a slow burn for sure and I was on the edge of my seat wanting to know what would happen next! So many questions I have that I hope will be answered in the sequel! I’m sure they will!
The characters are wonderful: Brida, our badass FMC who does what it takes to be with her family & friends and to keep them safe! Kaden, her best friend who she literally follows so he won’t be alone. Such a great cast of characters and minor ones truly stand out!
Definitely recommend reading!
This book is like Fourth Wing meets Divergent! This was a slow burn for sure and I was on the edge of my seat wanting to know what would happen next! So many questions I have that I hope will be answered in the sequel! I’m sure they will!
The characters are wonderful: Brida, our badass FMC who does what it takes to be with her family & friends and to keep them safe! Kaden, her best friend who she literally follows so he won’t be alone. Such a great cast of characters and minor ones truly stand out!
Definitely recommend reading!