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stella_starstruck's review
5.0
I really enjoyed this book. Middle parts of trilogies are difficult because they have to continue the story and set up for the finale book, without being boring. I was never bored in this book and loved the way the characters grew as people. I was glad to see some romantic relationships blossom and some characters learn about themselves and their capabilities.
I'm on my way to search out and download the third part!
I'm on my way to search out and download the third part!
aoifeleah's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
chelsea_not_chels's review against another edition
3.0
More reviews available at my blog, Beauty and the Bookworm.
Several years ago, I read the first book in this trilogy, Cobweb Bride. The story revolved around several fictional European kingdoms and a world where death suddenly stopped occurring, with horrible consequences--and Death himself will not set the world aright until he is brought his "Cobweb Bride." Persephone "Percy" Ayren sets out in hopes of either being the Cobweb Bride or finding her so that she can help her grandmother, who is trapped on the verge of death but is unable to die. With many adventures and various kingdoms in political upheaval along the way, Percy finally finds her way to Death's keep and learns that she is not the Cobweb Bride--but Death makes her his Champion and sends her out to find the Bride in the world beyond.
This book picks up shortly after the end of the first, with Percy and her traveling companions, including the Black Knight, aka Beltain of Chidair, who Percy inadvertently kidnapped when she whopped him over the head with a skillet when he and his men tried to stop her from reaching Death's Keep. But now they're traveling in easy companionship, more or less, and dropping off the other girls that Percy fell in with along the way. Upon arrival at Percy's hometown, they find out what her being Death's Champion really means--it means that she is the only one who is able to put the dead truly to rest when death itself seems to have stopped. With that newfound knowledge, Percy continues south, in search of the Cobweb Bride. Meanwhile, we encounter the mysterious Sovereign of the Domain, the lands south of the Realm, which is actually composed of a bunch of realms, I guess? The political entanglements and geography here are kind of confusing. But in any case, this Sovereign is up to no good, and is clearly planning on starting a war and it seems might be immortal. Whaaaat? And then there's a few other minor story lines floating about as well, dealing with imprisoned nobles and spies and so on. And numerous little scenes that don't have anything to do with the central characters or plot but seem to serve only to illustrate things that we've already learned about in the main narrative.
This is the second book in a trilogy, which means that it is The Walking Book. This is the volume of a trilogy in which the main characters mostly spend a lot of time walking from place to place, in pursuit of a plot that won't really pick up until the third book. And indeed, Percy and Beltain do a lot of walking--and more precisely, a lot of riding while avoiding looking at each other. The Sovereign spends a lot of time listening to reports and scheming. The imprisoned nobles spend a lot of time pining for freedom and then a bit more interesting time escaping, though it doesn't really get them anywhere in the end. But ultimately, the growing attraction between Percy and Beltain, while painfully awkward and stilted, was the most interesting part of this book, and it's not really a riveting romance and is resolved quite quickly with brash declarations of "I love you!" after a flurry of kisses. Meh.
Additionally, this book has some editing problems. There are words that are misspelled, missing, or very occasionally misused. And then there are the commas--something that Nazarian doesn't seem to know how to use, being as they're sprinkled about. The commas and the ellipses! It briefly occurred to me to count the number of times Nazarian ended a sentence with an ellipsis, but I quickly found that the endeavor would be futile, because there are just so many of them; and this is coming from someone who really likes the ellipsis as a punctuation mark.
Overall, I wasn't terribly impressed with this. I might continue on with the third book, but at this point I'm unsure. The plot seems to be getting far-fetched instead of fantastical, and the constant sidetracking from the main plot to talk about this vanished field or that island got old quickly. And logic seems to be going missing along with proper pacing; why would an immortal being have a death shadow, after all, if immortals can (obviously) never die? Hm... We'll see.
2.5 stars out of 5.
Several years ago, I read the first book in this trilogy, Cobweb Bride. The story revolved around several fictional European kingdoms and a world where death suddenly stopped occurring, with horrible consequences--and Death himself will not set the world aright until he is brought his "Cobweb Bride." Persephone "Percy" Ayren sets out in hopes of either being the Cobweb Bride or finding her so that she can help her grandmother, who is trapped on the verge of death but is unable to die. With many adventures and various kingdoms in political upheaval along the way, Percy finally finds her way to Death's keep and learns that she is not the Cobweb Bride--but Death makes her his Champion and sends her out to find the Bride in the world beyond.
This book picks up shortly after the end of the first, with Percy and her traveling companions, including the Black Knight, aka Beltain of Chidair, who Percy inadvertently kidnapped when she whopped him over the head with a skillet when he and his men tried to stop her from reaching Death's Keep. But now they're traveling in easy companionship, more or less, and dropping off the other girls that Percy fell in with along the way. Upon arrival at Percy's hometown, they find out what her being Death's Champion really means--it means that she is the only one who is able to put the dead truly to rest when death itself seems to have stopped. With that newfound knowledge, Percy continues south, in search of the Cobweb Bride. Meanwhile, we encounter the mysterious Sovereign of the Domain, the lands south of the Realm, which is actually composed of a bunch of realms, I guess? The political entanglements and geography here are kind of confusing. But in any case, this Sovereign is up to no good, and is clearly planning on starting a war and it seems might be immortal. Whaaaat? And then there's a few other minor story lines floating about as well, dealing with imprisoned nobles and spies and so on. And numerous little scenes that don't have anything to do with the central characters or plot but seem to serve only to illustrate things that we've already learned about in the main narrative.
This is the second book in a trilogy, which means that it is The Walking Book. This is the volume of a trilogy in which the main characters mostly spend a lot of time walking from place to place, in pursuit of a plot that won't really pick up until the third book. And indeed, Percy and Beltain do a lot of walking--and more precisely, a lot of riding while avoiding looking at each other. The Sovereign spends a lot of time listening to reports and scheming. The imprisoned nobles spend a lot of time pining for freedom and then a bit more interesting time escaping, though it doesn't really get them anywhere in the end. But ultimately, the growing attraction between Percy and Beltain, while painfully awkward and stilted, was the most interesting part of this book, and it's not really a riveting romance and is resolved quite quickly with brash declarations of "I love you!" after a flurry of kisses. Meh.
Additionally, this book has some editing problems. There are words that are misspelled, missing, or very occasionally misused. And then there are the commas--something that Nazarian doesn't seem to know how to use, being as they're sprinkled about. The commas and the ellipses! It briefly occurred to me to count the number of times Nazarian ended a sentence with an ellipsis, but I quickly found that the endeavor would be futile, because there are just so many of them; and this is coming from someone who really likes the ellipsis as a punctuation mark.
Overall, I wasn't terribly impressed with this. I might continue on with the third book, but at this point I'm unsure. The plot seems to be getting far-fetched instead of fantastical, and the constant sidetracking from the main plot to talk about this vanished field or that island got old quickly. And logic seems to be going missing along with proper pacing; why would an immortal being have a death shadow, after all, if immortals can (obviously) never die? Hm... We'll see.
2.5 stars out of 5.
daniellelouise's review against another edition
4.0
This was more engaging than the first book - a bit more action! And the writing was BEAUTIFUL. I kept having to stop and send random sentences to friends, saying, "This sentence is so good!"
(However, I did notice more typos in this book than in the first.)
(However, I did notice more typos in this book than in the first.)
thefatflatcat's review against another edition
5.0
Gripping book! By far more engaging than the first book of the series (although I don't mean to say that it was bad, just this one was better!). I really loved the entwining of the storylines and am stil again and again blown away by Vera Nazarian's skill to weave such a grand story. I can't wait to pick up the next one and keep recommending this series to many friends! It was a delight to read and hard to put it down.
dreamywench's review against another edition
4.0
This was a great second installment to the series! Such drama! :)
book_grinch's review against another edition
4.0
Taking place soon after the events of Cobweb Bride, this volume is once again a magnificent tribute to the art of fine writing, showcasing the author's unparalleled imagination.
Taking place on a grander scale that the one presented in Cobweb Bride, its characters are drawn in such a whimsical and rich way, that can only add more colour to the rich environment in which the story takes place.
In a mixture of occidental with oriental, with frontiers blurred and later on simply gone without a trace, Cobweb Empire manages to tell a familiar tale, of long lost traditions and mythology, but in its peculiar and very original voice.
In the first book, we were introduced to a number of characters, and I confess that I especially loved Percy and the Black Knight. Although Claere _The doomed Infanta _ and Vlau, the Marquis, managed to leave me quite engrossed in their story.
Not only that, but the characters felt alive _ not an easy feat, since one of them was already dead! _, they had a fire to them!!
And I'm not only referring to the moment when Percy makes uses of a skillet... on the Black Night's head!
So yes, I was really looking forward to reading this second volume!
And if the plot and world building are most likely worthy of a five star rating, the characters _for me _ in this volume weren't...
There's this phrase in the book that pretty much sums the thing that made it impossible for me to fully connect with the characters and love them as I did in the first volume:
“This is all the stuff of poetry and minstrel song”
No one can deny, _least of all me _ that the way the characters are portrayed in this story couldn't be more in "agreement" with the tone of the story.
The thing is, I wanted more from them!
More feeling! More emotion!! It was like the characters were distanced from one another... and stiff... as beautiful ice statues... or yes, as a minstrel song that touches only the surface...
Regarding the relationship between Percy and the Black Knight, and although being aware of their social positions, I disliked the way Percy faded in comparison to the way she had been portrayed in the first book.
Then I missed Claere and Vlau... I really, really did!!
Truth is, all the other characters _although crucial to the story _ for all their peculiarities, felt almost all the same and not that interesting.
Even so, this was a masterful story, and after the way it ended I'm quite curious to see what is going to happen in the last volume.
kurenai's review
4.0
What to say about the second installment of Cobweb Bride that hasn't already been mentioned in other reviews?
It is a good, solid read that picks up right where the first book left off. But what is great about this book - as all of Ms. Nazarian's books that I've read - is her propensity to surprise the reader with great plot-twists, wit, charm, and beautifully verbose language (or is that just me that is always happily surprised?). I am never quite sure where the story will take me and though I make conjecture I am not always right. I like that about her stories. I like following the journey not knowing where we will end up once the tale is concluded.
With that said, I want to add that I thoroughly enjoyed following Percy around on her adventures and am looking forward to the last book in this trilogy. To read for sure!
It is a good, solid read that picks up right where the first book left off. But what is great about this book - as all of Ms. Nazarian's books that I've read - is her propensity to surprise the reader with great plot-twists, wit, charm, and beautifully verbose language (or is that just me that is always happily surprised?). I am never quite sure where the story will take me and though I make conjecture I am not always right. I like that about her stories. I like following the journey not knowing where we will end up once the tale is concluded.
With that said, I want to add that I thoroughly enjoyed following Percy around on her adventures and am looking forward to the last book in this trilogy. To read for sure!
isalavinia's review
5.0
WIN AN EBOOK COPY OF COBWEB EMPIRE (see end of post)
Do you ever regret giving 5 stars to the first book of a series, not because it doesn't deserve it, but because the second book is even better and you have no way to make the rating reflect that?
Because that's the case here.
I absolutely LOVED Cobweb Bride, I think I ended up making myself somewhat of a nuisance and recommending it to my entire friends' list on Goodreads because I couldn't bear the thought that someone somewhere was not, as I was, still trapped in that book's universe and willingly searching for Death's Keep in the Northern Forest. No, they were just going on with their lives...
Cobweb Empire picks up right where Cobweb Bride left off - I can't say where, and how, exactly, because that would just spoil the whole first book for those who haven't read it, but let's just say that Percy is a girl on a mission, appointed by Death himself (this is still weird for me, by the way - in Portuguese Death is a woman...) and the whole troupe is there with her.
But things are getting progressively worse in the world. It's not just the fact that people have ceased dying - places are disappearing at dusk, going missing into the shadows and sometimes, when light returns, they do not come back.
So Percy's mission, which she undertakes accompanied by the Black Knight Beltain, must be completed with the utmost urgency.
Still, Percy has some trouble dealing with her new "status", shall we say...
We revisit the delightful Lady Amaryllis and Lord Nathan of Morphea, who are still prisoners and have the most imaginative escape I've ever read! I love these two so much! I really hope we'll get to see more of them!
We are introduced to some new characters - I'll let everyone discover them on their own when they read the book, with one exception: the Sovereign of the Sapphire Court, Rumanar Avalais. I could spend the rest of my life writing about my fascination and, dare I say it, love for evil ladies. For instance, Princess Aurora is so dull, all she does is sleep and sing, but Maleficent? That's a lady with a plan, an awesome name, an amazing wardrobe, a clever pet, and the ability to turn into a dragon. Also, Izma, and Ursula, and all the awesome poisoners, schemers, power hungry women in every story ever. Evil ladies, what can I say? Role models, really.
Her Brilliance (a title I shall claim if my plans to rule the world come to fruition) Rumanar Avalais entered right away into this pantheon. She has the most amazing beauty routine, which consists of draining the life out of beautiful young girls and keeping herself forever young. Right there I was quite taken - but she did all this while ruling her own kingdom and being the very definition of "all shall love me and despair". Plus, she's quite the trickster as we come to find out in the very last page...
I shall say no more but that Rumanar Avalais is probably my second favourite character of this series.
The first being, of course, the undead Infanta Claere Liguon who though admittedly lacking in evil ways makes up for it by being a very frail lady who suddenly finds herself empowered by her death (...or undeath) at the hands of her murderer turned... what? Yes, that's the only downside to this book. I was really looking forward to Claere and Vlau and their complex relationship. Because really, what do you do when you kill someone and then fall in love with them?
Still, I loved this book so, so much! I'm still suffering from an absolutely soul crushing book hangover because of it. Send help. In the form of the third book, preferably.
Join me on this book hangover and enter our:
COBWEB EMPIRE EBOOK GIVEAWAY
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