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4.26 AVERAGE
4.26 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
this was a solid sequel!
i would have loved for so many aspects from book one to be further expanded on here but most of them unfortunately weren’t. i think the plot is what let this one down a bit for me! it felt very filler and very middle book, not much really happened? and there weren’t plot twists, you knew what the plot twists were way before they happened so it wasn’t exactly twisty
but these characters and this world will always have me coming back and falling in love <3 im very excited to see what comes next, i just wish it follows the pace of book 1 a little more!
and honestly? could’ve been longer
i would have loved for so many aspects from book one to be further expanded on here but most of them unfortunately weren’t. i think the plot is what let this one down a bit for me! it felt very filler and very middle book, not much really happened? and there weren’t plot twists, you knew what the plot twists were way before they happened so it wasn’t exactly twisty
but these characters and this world will always have me coming back and falling in love <3 im very excited to see what comes next, i just wish it follows the pace of book 1 a little more!
and honestly? could’ve been longer
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Actual rating: 4.5/5 stars. This is the second in The Hollow Star Saga, the first of which I read & loved last year! Let’s get into it:
⚡️ This series is something like HOSAB, The Mortal Instruments and The Folk of the Air had a child ( + a dash of RPG game play), but make it filled to the brim with Queer rep!
⚡️ Arlo & Nausicaa, our two heroines, are SO lovable. Their chemistry is jumping off the page, and I swooned almost every time they had a romantic moment.
⚡️ Nausicaa is a wildly morally grey badass of a character. She's hilarious & frightening and unconcerned with other people's opinions of her. She also has a deeply heartbroken side that is so well portrayed & explored, even as she uses her humor to try to cover it up.
⚡️ Aurelian & Vehan. *sigh*. I LOVE these two just as much as the previously mentioned pair. Shuttleworth absolutely SHINES with relationship & character development.
⚡️ The plot of this is an absolute adventure. There is action left and right, & so many cool magic systems and hierarchies of power to explore.
⚡️ The world building makes me feel a bit conflicted. There is a LOT, like a LOT LOT, going on. We have titans and gods and furies and all manner of faerie folk and seelie and unseelie and sidhe and lesidhe fae and SHEESH (this was the short list). I do love the inclusion of all of this, and I never thought I'd see the day where I'd want less magical creatures in a book, but I do find myself wondering whether we could have benefitted from cleaning this up just a *little* bit, because its all incredibly hard to keep up with.
⚡️ Despite that, this plot is still truly remarkable & unique. The threat really built here in a very tangible way, & certain Easter eggs, reveals & plot twists had me physically needing to catch my breath. There are so many characters that you care about in this one, & so much danger for every one of them.
Overall, this was wonderful. Shuttleworth has created a world and a story that absolutely grips me, and I will 100% be coming back for more.
Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the eArc!
⚡️ This series is something like HOSAB, The Mortal Instruments and The Folk of the Air had a child ( + a dash of RPG game play), but make it filled to the brim with Queer rep!
⚡️ Arlo & Nausicaa, our two heroines, are SO lovable. Their chemistry is jumping off the page, and I swooned almost every time they had a romantic moment.
⚡️ Nausicaa is a wildly morally grey badass of a character. She's hilarious & frightening and unconcerned with other people's opinions of her. She also has a deeply heartbroken side that is so well portrayed & explored, even as she uses her humor to try to cover it up.
⚡️ Aurelian & Vehan. *sigh*. I LOVE these two just as much as the previously mentioned pair. Shuttleworth absolutely SHINES with relationship & character development.
⚡️ The plot of this is an absolute adventure. There is action left and right, & so many cool magic systems and hierarchies of power to explore.
⚡️ The world building makes me feel a bit conflicted. There is a LOT, like a LOT LOT, going on. We have titans and gods and furies and all manner of faerie folk and seelie and unseelie and sidhe and lesidhe fae and SHEESH (this was the short list). I do love the inclusion of all of this, and I never thought I'd see the day where I'd want less magical creatures in a book, but I do find myself wondering whether we could have benefitted from cleaning this up just a *little* bit, because its all incredibly hard to keep up with.
⚡️ Despite that, this plot is still truly remarkable & unique. The threat really built here in a very tangible way, & certain Easter eggs, reveals & plot twists had me physically needing to catch my breath. There are so many characters that you care about in this one, & so much danger for every one of them.
Overall, this was wonderful. Shuttleworth has created a world and a story that absolutely grips me, and I will 100% be coming back for more.
Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for the eArc!
The first book in this series was good, this one is excellent. Fast paced, riveting, a well plotted and gripping fantasy.
I was glad to catch up with the characters and the plot kept me hooked.
Great world building, good storytelling.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
I was glad to catch up with the characters and the plot kept me hooked.
Great world building, good storytelling.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
The fact that I need to wait at least a year for book 3 now is aphobic and I WON'T STAND FOR IT! Also Celadon is my everything and thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
(Real review coming soon ahh I need to gather my thoughts)
....
A Cruel and Fated Light, the sequel to the truly explosive queer YA urban fantasy novel, DELIVERED on ever front!
In this book we follow Arlo and her crew as they get more enmeshed in court politics - all culminating in the long-awaited solstice ball that could change the dynamics of the courts forever.
This book is less action based and heavier on the court intrigue which adds another layer of complexity to the story - and I loved that! We had our MCs dealing with court drama while also trying to untangle the secrets that followed them to this sequel from book one and I'm not gonna lie, I am SO SCARED of what book three will bring. Probably even more pain and bloodshed, since this book was far from meak, especially by the end of it.
My favourite part of this series remains the characters - our main five, Arlo, Nausica, Celadon, Vehan, and Aurelian. I would die for this group and I keep falling more and more in love with them with every installment. In A Cruel and Fated Light we watch their friendships deepen - with some romantic interludes that I was a BIG fan of (nothing like these kids getting their shit together and confessing their feelings and stuff, I STAN). Celadon shone like the brightest star in this book and I think it's safe to say he's making his way towards my "favourite" of the series. A ace fae who is questioning his gender identity and is simply drop dead gorgeous and amazing with a heart of gold? I have tears in my eyes just writing this down.
Anyway, I am getting sidetracked - A Cruel and Fated Light was the PERFECT sequel to A Dark and Hollow Star, full of court intrigue, painful yet beautiful love stories, and loads of unexpected plot twists that will keep you reeling. This book did NOT suffer the second book syndrome and I just adored it with my whole heart.
If queer fantasies are your go-to, picking up The Hollow Star Saga is a MUST! You'll be hooked in no time!!
(Real review coming soon ahh I need to gather my thoughts)
....
A Cruel and Fated Light, the sequel to the truly explosive queer YA urban fantasy novel, DELIVERED on ever front!
In this book we follow Arlo and her crew as they get more enmeshed in court politics - all culminating in the long-awaited solstice ball that could change the dynamics of the courts forever.
This book is less action based and heavier on the court intrigue which adds another layer of complexity to the story - and I loved that! We had our MCs dealing with court drama while also trying to untangle the secrets that followed them to this sequel from book one and I'm not gonna lie, I am SO SCARED of what book three will bring. Probably even more pain and bloodshed, since this book was far from meak, especially by the end of it.
My favourite part of this series remains the characters - our main five, Arlo, Nausica, Celadon, Vehan, and Aurelian. I would die for this group and I keep falling more and more in love with them with every installment. In A Cruel and Fated Light we watch their friendships deepen - with some romantic interludes that I was a BIG fan of (nothing like these kids getting their shit together and confessing their feelings and stuff, I STAN). Celadon shone like the brightest star in this book and I think it's safe to say he's making his way towards my "favourite" of the series. A ace fae who is questioning his gender identity and is simply drop dead gorgeous and amazing with a heart of gold? I have tears in my eyes just writing this down.
Anyway, I am getting sidetracked - A Cruel and Fated Light was the PERFECT sequel to A Dark and Hollow Star, full of court intrigue, painful yet beautiful love stories, and loads of unexpected plot twists that will keep you reeling. This book did NOT suffer the second book syndrome and I just adored it with my whole heart.
If queer fantasies are your go-to, picking up The Hollow Star Saga is a MUST! You'll be hooked in no time!!
ok so the first half of this book really dragged for me. IDK if it's because of the mood I was in or because there are multiple POVs that it took some time for things to pick up, but I was just not very engaged in the beginning of the book.
HOWEVER
That ending def got me, and the last 100 pages were GREAT and I still love our main characters SO I'm going with a 3.5 star rating and will def be continuing on whenever the next book comes out.
HOWEVER
That ending def got me, and the last 100 pages were GREAT and I still love our main characters SO I'm going with a 3.5 star rating and will def be continuing on whenever the next book comes out.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
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
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes