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alexan13's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this book, but ultimately I do not think it is going to stick with me. Despite the promise of the premise, this book doesn't feel like it will be particularly memorable, which isn't necessarily the fault of the book itself, but more the fault of my own expectations and tastes.
The writing is good, the plot mysteries were intriguing enough to keep the reader reading (though the plot was very predictable, I don't fault it for its predictability, as I don't think that is an inherent flaw and did not hurt the reading experience here). I didn't particularly grow attached to the characters however, and while the protagonist's situation -- trying to navigate politics she does not understand, trying to assert herself as a leader and thus not relying on counsel or people that could help her, and naively trusting the intentions of those around her -- might have been compelling, my disconnect from her character made it difficult to care about these stakes. Overall, I liked the book and it certainly was not bad, I don't think it is something I will think about again.
The writing is good, the plot mysteries were intriguing enough to keep the reader reading (though the plot was very predictable, I don't fault it for its predictability, as I don't think that is an inherent flaw and did not hurt the reading experience here). I didn't particularly grow attached to the characters however, and while the protagonist's situation -- trying to navigate politics she does not understand, trying to assert herself as a leader and thus not relying on counsel or people that could help her, and naively trusting the intentions of those around her -- might have been compelling, my disconnect from her character made it difficult to care about these stakes. Overall, I liked the book and it certainly was not bad, I don't think it is something I will think about again.
cait_readsxox's review against another edition
4.0
This book was so much fun to read! The plot twists were super exciting and I loved the characters. Love that the setting of this book is a magical inn in the mountains and that it features different magical beings (shapeshifters and fey). Only took one star off because the main villain was predictable to me. Can’t wait to read the next book in the series when it is released.
willrefuge's review against another edition
3.0
3 / 5 ✪
Deep within the mountains of Colorado lies the Inn at Havenfall. Havenfall is a crossroads between worlds—and serves as a meeting place and sanctuary for the delegates from any number of worlds. Nowadays there are only two gates open: one to Fiordenkill, the other Byrn.
Maddie Morrow, the niece of the Innkeeper of Havenfall, has always spent her summers working at the Inn. She even has hopes of taking over for her Uncle, Marcus, someday. But soon after she arrives at the Inn for the summer of her 18th birthday, those dreams quickly become a reality.
Marcus has been attacked and survives in a coma. Maddie is in charge of the Inn. And the trouble doesn’t stop there.
For a being has slipped through one of the dormant gates—one to the world of Solaria. The Solarians are shapeshifting monsters that prey upon humans and have been banned from Earth for a generation. But now one is loose. And the Solarian door is stuck open.
Now Maddie, with little help and less clue of what to do, must take charge, run the Inn in place of her uncle, prevent any more Solarians from entering via the door while hunting down the one that has already come through. But it may already be too late.
So, at Colorado Mountain there is a door that opens to many worlds. This door is known as the Stargate, and through it… wait no. Um. Colorado, mountains, Havenfall. Right, right.
Havenfall is equal parts adventure, fantasy, romance, and mystery. While it’s a decent fantasy adventure, the romance within the story is actually what captured my interest. I mean, the fantasy is alright—an interesting enough premise and world-building, decent execution and plot, but with underwhelming extraplanar beings, magic system, and character development. The romance somehow drew my attention, which is usually not a good thing. But here it surprised me. Maddie is bi—having fallen in love with Fiorden soldier Brekken, whom she first met at the Inn, but also seasonal worker Taya, who is a mystery that Maddie just can’t seem to solve. Instead of the cringe-worthy, awkward teen romance I was expecting, Havenfall proves to be a soul-searching, confusing story of teenage attraction that—while still awkward—seemed more real than the faerie tale romance you’d expect. Now while Maddie isn’t the best gumshoe (we’ll get to that), she is young and naïve, but also skeptical, making her an excellent target for romance.
A detective, however, she is not. Maddie is young and (apparently) not very bright. She is continually pelted in the face by evidence that she somehow ignores. At first I chalked this up to her being young. Then not terribly smart. And at last… just because. Maddie doesn’t seem to learn from experience. Or make any deductive leaps. Or really even pay much attention to any kind of detail. Yeah, she’s 18, but throughout the story her character doesn’t develop and learn from experience. The mystery is rather basic, and it takes her over twelve hours of story-time to wrap her head around it.
TL;DR
Havenfall represents (in my opinion) awkward teenage romance done right. While there are faerie tale elements, it’s not a storybook romance, and actually feels somewhat real, not ridiculous and cringe-worthy, if still awkward. In terms of plot, world-building, and adventure, the story is your run-of-the-mill YA fantasy—with an interesting premise and decent execution, but little more. The mystery is just pathetic, honestly. And Maddie isn’t the best narrator, despite being intensely romanceable. Havenfall is a decent enough series debut—though I expect better from its sequel.
The series will continue with Phoenix Flame, out March 4th, 2021.
Deep within the mountains of Colorado lies the Inn at Havenfall. Havenfall is a crossroads between worlds—and serves as a meeting place and sanctuary for the delegates from any number of worlds. Nowadays there are only two gates open: one to Fiordenkill, the other Byrn.
Maddie Morrow, the niece of the Innkeeper of Havenfall, has always spent her summers working at the Inn. She even has hopes of taking over for her Uncle, Marcus, someday. But soon after she arrives at the Inn for the summer of her 18th birthday, those dreams quickly become a reality.
Marcus has been attacked and survives in a coma. Maddie is in charge of the Inn. And the trouble doesn’t stop there.
For a being has slipped through one of the dormant gates—one to the world of Solaria. The Solarians are shapeshifting monsters that prey upon humans and have been banned from Earth for a generation. But now one is loose. And the Solarian door is stuck open.
Now Maddie, with little help and less clue of what to do, must take charge, run the Inn in place of her uncle, prevent any more Solarians from entering via the door while hunting down the one that has already come through. But it may already be too late.
So, at Colorado Mountain there is a door that opens to many worlds. This door is known as the Stargate, and through it… wait no. Um. Colorado, mountains, Havenfall. Right, right.
Havenfall is equal parts adventure, fantasy, romance, and mystery. While it’s a decent fantasy adventure, the romance within the story is actually what captured my interest. I mean, the fantasy is alright—an interesting enough premise and world-building, decent execution and plot, but with underwhelming extraplanar beings, magic system, and character development. The romance somehow drew my attention, which is usually not a good thing. But here it surprised me. Maddie is bi—having fallen in love with Fiorden soldier Brekken, whom she first met at the Inn, but also seasonal worker Taya, who is a mystery that Maddie just can’t seem to solve. Instead of the cringe-worthy, awkward teen romance I was expecting, Havenfall proves to be a soul-searching, confusing story of teenage attraction that—while still awkward—seemed more real than the faerie tale romance you’d expect. Now while Maddie isn’t the best gumshoe (we’ll get to that), she is young and naïve, but also skeptical, making her an excellent target for romance.
A detective, however, she is not. Maddie is young and (apparently) not very bright. She is continually pelted in the face by evidence that she somehow ignores. At first I chalked this up to her being young. Then not terribly smart. And at last… just because. Maddie doesn’t seem to learn from experience. Or make any deductive leaps. Or really even pay much attention to any kind of detail. Yeah, she’s 18, but throughout the story her character doesn’t develop and learn from experience. The mystery is rather basic, and it takes her over twelve hours of story-time to wrap her head around it.
TL;DR
Havenfall represents (in my opinion) awkward teenage romance done right. While there are faerie tale elements, it’s not a storybook romance, and actually feels somewhat real, not ridiculous and cringe-worthy, if still awkward. In terms of plot, world-building, and adventure, the story is your run-of-the-mill YA fantasy—with an interesting premise and decent execution, but little more. The mystery is just pathetic, honestly. And Maddie isn’t the best narrator, despite being intensely romanceable. Havenfall is a decent enough series debut—though I expect better from its sequel.
The series will continue with Phoenix Flame, out March 4th, 2021.
rants_n_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
izzys_internet_bookshelf's review against another edition
5.0
5/5
Really enjoyed this book and its world building. I can't wait to read the second book and get more of this story!
Really enjoyed this book and its world building. I can't wait to read the second book and get more of this story!
ambeesbookishpages's review against another edition
4.0
The full review + more can be found at The Book Bratz
*Thank you so much to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review HAVENFALL. All thoughts and opinions are my own!*
I really enjoyed Sara's debut duology, Everless. So when I learned that she was going to be publishing another YA fantasy duology, I was super excited. Havenfall captivated me from page one and has me flipping the pages as fast as I could to see what was going to happen next.
All Maddie wants is to become the innkeeper of the Inn at Havenfall, the neutral space between three different realms. Summer after summer the Inn at Havenfall has been Maddie's escape from the reality of her mother facing death row, her brother's death but it's also been the only place she gets to spend the summer with Brekken, a Fiorden solider that Maddie is falling for. But Maddie's summer begins to fall apart the moment she arrives at Havenfall, the door to Solaria, a world that was closed off generations ago has opened, someone is dead, her uncle is gravely ill and unable to run the inn and Brekken is missing. With the help of Taya, one of the mortal helping hands at Havenfall, Maddie must become the innkeeper in her uncle's absence and make sure that this years summit doesn't fall apart. But, what happens when darker forces are at work?
I really enjoyed the world building in Havenfall. Sara used a contemporary backdrop to create a captivating and lush fantasy world, that comes alive in front of your eyes. Though I have many questions about the different worlds mentioned in Havenfall, Sara gave us enough world building to get and overall idea of the world and its culture and it's importance to the story line. But I am excited to learn more about Fiordenkill, Byrn and Solaria in the next book (and possibly even get to visit one of these worlds!) In her debut series, the world building was one of the aspects that I did have issues with and I am glad to see that in this series it isn't an issue.
I really enjoyed Maddie's character. A lot of the time in fantasy characters act older then there actual age. In Havenfall, Maddie actually felt like a seventeen year old to me. She made mistakes, she was overwhelmed and she looked to others for help. When she was a child, a Solarian broke into her house and killer her brother and her mother, trying to protect Havenfall took the blame. Through out the novel we see Maddie struggle with survivors guilt and how if she had called for help and didn't climb into the cabinet, how things might be different.
We learn pretty early on in the story that Maddie is Bi, so when Taya was introduced I suspected that there would be a love triangle. I want to say that there is a slight love triangle, it is nothing crazy and it isn't overwhelming in the slightest. I can see Maddie ended up with both Taya and Brekken. But, with how Havenfall ended I am intrigued to see how the romance aspect is going to play out.
Overall I really enjoyed Havenfall and I can't wait to see what book two is going to have in store for Maddie, Brekken, Taya and the rest of this cast. Sara's sophomore series is one that shouldn't be missed and has the potential to appeal to both fantasy and contemporary readers alike.
*Thank you so much to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review HAVENFALL. All thoughts and opinions are my own!*
I really enjoyed Sara's debut duology, Everless. So when I learned that she was going to be publishing another YA fantasy duology, I was super excited. Havenfall captivated me from page one and has me flipping the pages as fast as I could to see what was going to happen next.
All Maddie wants is to become the innkeeper of the Inn at Havenfall, the neutral space between three different realms. Summer after summer the Inn at Havenfall has been Maddie's escape from the reality of her mother facing death row, her brother's death but it's also been the only place she gets to spend the summer with Brekken, a Fiorden solider that Maddie is falling for. But Maddie's summer begins to fall apart the moment she arrives at Havenfall, the door to Solaria, a world that was closed off generations ago has opened, someone is dead, her uncle is gravely ill and unable to run the inn and Brekken is missing. With the help of Taya, one of the mortal helping hands at Havenfall, Maddie must become the innkeeper in her uncle's absence and make sure that this years summit doesn't fall apart. But, what happens when darker forces are at work?
I really enjoyed the world building in Havenfall. Sara used a contemporary backdrop to create a captivating and lush fantasy world, that comes alive in front of your eyes. Though I have many questions about the different worlds mentioned in Havenfall, Sara gave us enough world building to get and overall idea of the world and its culture and it's importance to the story line. But I am excited to learn more about Fiordenkill, Byrn and Solaria in the next book (and possibly even get to visit one of these worlds!) In her debut series, the world building was one of the aspects that I did have issues with and I am glad to see that in this series it isn't an issue.
I really enjoyed Maddie's character. A lot of the time in fantasy characters act older then there actual age. In Havenfall, Maddie actually felt like a seventeen year old to me. She made mistakes, she was overwhelmed and she looked to others for help. When she was a child, a Solarian broke into her house and killer her brother and her mother, trying to protect Havenfall took the blame. Through out the novel we see Maddie struggle with survivors guilt and how if she had called for help and didn't climb into the cabinet, how things might be different.
We learn pretty early on in the story that Maddie is Bi, so when Taya was introduced I suspected that there would be a love triangle. I want to say that there is a slight love triangle, it is nothing crazy and it isn't overwhelming in the slightest. I can see Maddie ended up with both Taya and Brekken. But, with how Havenfall ended I am intrigued to see how the romance aspect is going to play out.
Overall I really enjoyed Havenfall and I can't wait to see what book two is going to have in store for Maddie, Brekken, Taya and the rest of this cast. Sara's sophomore series is one that shouldn't be missed and has the potential to appeal to both fantasy and contemporary readers alike.
leschroniques_delea's review against another edition
2.0
2,75/5
J’ai été pas mal déçue par ce premier tome de la duologie. Le résumé était assez prometteur, l’univers également. On a même avant le début de l’histoire des explications sur les différents endroits évoqués.
Cependant, on finit par vite s’ennuyer, il ne se passe pas grand-chose, et l’intrigue avance trop lentement puis la fin est vraiment trop rapide et trop prévisible. Sur 300 pages, les 250 premières pages sont très lentes et très passives, on pourrait croire à un long prologue.
La protagoniste Maddie est assez insupportable, elle n’écoute pas les autres, n’en fait qu’a sa tête, ne réfléchis pas avant d’agir et elle est constamment sur la défensive dès qu’un des personnages la conseille. Je ne me suis absolument pas attachée à elle ni aux autres personnages malheureusement. Et vraiment l’intrigue était trop fade, on savait déjà qui était le coupable depuis le tiers du roman.
Je ne continuerai pas avec le tome 2, mais point positif l’anglais est assez abordable, y’a presque pas de moi compliqué si vous avez un niveau débutant/intermédiaire et si vous avez déjà lu quelques romans de fantasy.
J’ai été pas mal déçue par ce premier tome de la duologie. Le résumé était assez prometteur, l’univers également. On a même avant le début de l’histoire des explications sur les différents endroits évoqués.
Cependant, on finit par vite s’ennuyer, il ne se passe pas grand-chose, et l’intrigue avance trop lentement puis la fin est vraiment trop rapide et trop prévisible. Sur 300 pages, les 250 premières pages sont très lentes et très passives, on pourrait croire à un long prologue.
La protagoniste Maddie est assez insupportable, elle n’écoute pas les autres, n’en fait qu’a sa tête, ne réfléchis pas avant d’agir et elle est constamment sur la défensive dès qu’un des personnages la conseille. Je ne me suis absolument pas attachée à elle ni aux autres personnages malheureusement. Et vraiment l’intrigue était trop fade, on savait déjà qui était le coupable depuis le tiers du roman.
Je ne continuerai pas avec le tome 2, mais point positif l’anglais est assez abordable, y’a presque pas de moi compliqué si vous avez un niveau débutant/intermédiaire et si vous avez déjà lu quelques romans de fantasy.