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milabeille's review against another edition
4.0
I can't put this down!
I've read 2 books so far, but they both felt unfinished. The end of the books are about the "resolution" of the romantic intrigue whether positively or not, but even then it feels uncertain and leaves me kind of unsatisfied.
All that said, I really enjoy reading this serie. We found ourselves at the beginning of a war, different people with different motivations are making alliances to get rid of the king.
In the first book, the group investigated where the unrest was coming from and its reason.
In the second book, they were protecting the princess and the regent from any assassination attempts.
I can't say there is no action, the characters find themselves in position where they are in danger and they have to defend themselves but these books are more character driven. So far, we always found the same group of characters but with different POVs. In the 1st book, the POVs are Senneth and Tayse, the 2nd book Kirra, the 3rd Justin and the 4th Cammon (I checked).
I really like all of them, even if I didn't agree with some of Kirra's choices in this book. I can't wait to find out what Cammon can do and see Justin fall in love (it's bound to happen and it'll be quite fun to watch).
Anyway, I'm not sure this serie is for everyone because it feels slow sometimes but I like it enough so far :)
I've read 2 books so far, but they both felt unfinished. The end of the books are about the "resolution" of the romantic intrigue whether positively or not, but even then it feels uncertain and leaves me kind of unsatisfied.
All that said, I really enjoy reading this serie. We found ourselves at the beginning of a war, different people with different motivations are making alliances to get rid of the king.
In the first book, the group investigated where the unrest was coming from and its reason.
In the second book, they were protecting the princess and the regent from any assassination attempts.
I can't say there is no action, the characters find themselves in position where they are in danger and they have to defend themselves but these books are more character driven. So far, we always found the same group of characters but with different POVs. In the 1st book, the POVs are Senneth and Tayse, the 2nd book Kirra, the 3rd Justin and the 4th Cammon (I checked).
I really like all of them, even if I didn't agree with some of Kirra's choices in this book. I can't wait to find out what Cammon can do and see Justin fall in love (it's bound to happen and it'll be quite fun to watch).
Anyway, I'm not sure this serie is for everyone because it feels slow sometimes but I like it enough so far :)
blueshadow's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars, rounded up
A rarity indeed - book #2 in the series that I enjoyed as much as the first, DESPITE the fact that I strongly disliked one of the plot lines and couldn't relate well to the main character.
Kirra as the main character is portrayed as rather wild and impulsive, and I really couldn't relate to her. But it would be in her character to have a crazy affair with a married man, which, while a plot line I didn't really enjoy, was handled in an unexpected and rather nice way toward the end of the story. I didn't care a whole lot about the major plotline either, a social tour through several noble houses.
However, as always, the writing was good and the characters and the varied relationships between them were excellent. Lots of friendship and banter, and it was neat to see the queen and princess quite a bit in this story. The plot had a few twists and turns along the way, which was also fun. These things did a lot to keep the book fun and entertaining along the way.
A rarity indeed - book #2 in the series that I enjoyed as much as the first, DESPITE the fact that I strongly disliked one of the plot lines and couldn't relate well to the main character.
Kirra as the main character is portrayed as rather wild and impulsive, and I really couldn't relate to her. But it would be in her character to have a crazy affair with a married man, which, while a plot line I didn't really enjoy, was handled in an unexpected and rather nice way toward the end of the story. I didn't care a whole lot about the major plotline either, a social tour through several noble houses.
However, as always, the writing was good and the characters and the varied relationships between them were excellent. Lots of friendship and banter, and it was neat to see the queen and princess quite a bit in this story. The plot had a few twists and turns along the way, which was also fun. These things did a lot to keep the book fun and entertaining along the way.
eososray's review against another edition
3.0
With the focus of this second book in the series being on Kirra, I didn't enjoy it as much as the first. That being said I love the writing style and I find these books very enjoyable and absorbing. This story is written with the characters lives being the main story and what's happening within the kingdom is written as more of a background that is affecting our characters. It gives these books a change in focus from the usual that I quite like.
greenwoodspicers's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sambret's review against another edition
1.0
Could not sympathise at all with the main character because of the affair with a married man. Just annoyed me, which is a shame, because the first book in the series was amazing, and the follow ups were great too. This one was a real let down, just left me feeling yuck. Won’t read again.
endiamon's review against another edition
2.0
A profoundly unsympathetic protagonist, a deeply unlikable love interest, and a deus ex machina of an unsatisfying climax add up to an extremely disappointing follow-up to the wonderful Mystic and Rider and a rare miss for Sharon Shinn. The supporting cast are the only saving grace and the only reason I didn't drop this book 1/3 in.
kitschykatey's review against another edition
5.0
I was both pleasantly surprised and blown to bits by the second installment of the Twelve Houses series. I had heard mixed reviews about this particular book, but I have to say I loved it and loved Kirra more and more as the story evolved. These six characters are just too perfect, and I have already snatched up book three.
katleap's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars.
The first time I read this book I was very very harsh in my thinking. I've changed my mind. I love Mystic and Rider. Senneth and Tayse are my favorites and then Justin. I like Kirra but I have a hard time in this book.
Kirra makes some choices that I think are stupid and down right selfish. However they are learning points for her. The consequences have to be harsh because its the only way she really learns. Her station and her father have cushioned her and in this book most of that gets stripped away. Its about Kirra finally growing up and doing something for someone besides herself.
The end is the hardest part of this book and also my favorite. The first time I read it, I absorbed that she had an affair with a married man (knowingly and also knowing that he would never leave his wife for her). That was the biggest think I remember. However there are lots of other things going on. Justin and Cammon both start to come into their own. There is lots of Senneth and Tayse. It was worth the reread and I'll reread it again.
6/30/2015
I think that Romar shades the whole book. I dislike him from the moment we are introduced to him and his taint really stops me from loving the whole story. In actuality Kirra's affair is only the last 1/3 of the book. Not the whole thing even though it feels like it.
The first time I read this book I was very very harsh in my thinking. I've changed my mind. I love Mystic and Rider. Senneth and Tayse are my favorites and then Justin. I like Kirra but I have a hard time in this book.
Kirra makes some choices that I think are stupid and down right selfish. However they are learning points for her. The consequences have to be harsh because its the only way she really learns. Her station and her father have cushioned her and in this book most of that gets stripped away. Its about Kirra finally growing up and doing something for someone besides herself.
The end is the hardest part of this book and also my favorite. The first time I read it, I absorbed that she had an affair with a married man (knowingly and also knowing that he would never leave his wife for her). That was the biggest think I remember. However there are lots of other things going on. Justin and Cammon both start to come into their own. There is lots of Senneth and Tayse. It was worth the reread and I'll reread it again.
6/30/2015
I think that Romar shades the whole book. I dislike him from the moment we are introduced to him and his taint really stops me from loving the whole story. In actuality Kirra's affair is only the last 1/3 of the book. Not the whole thing even though it feels like it.
aamccartan's review against another edition
I can't mark this book totally down because I still love all the characters so much. However, Kirra's choices makes it much less enjoyable than Mystic & Rider.
waterfairy's review against another edition
2.0
SO, this is a cheating book. Kirra, the MC was one of my favorite characters from the first book which I loved too. I hate cheating so I was really hesitant about picking this one up. But I really wanted to continue the series (as in progress to book 3) so I picked up this book.
The main cheater was Romar Brendy, acting Regent for the princess. He's married to a sweet lady but she doesn't "understand" him. The cheating part was horrible. I couldn't buy into any of the so-called justification by either Romar or Kierra. The worst thing was the treatment of Donnal. It just showed how selfish Kierra was. I still don't and will never get behind cheating. Kierra in the process hurt 4 people including her. Oh, her friends tried to tell her but she was too far gone to listen. Ugh. The end of the book resolves the cheating (obv) but it was very unsatisfactory. Donnal was treated as a consolation price. He deserved better than this. Way better.
Moving on to the best part of the book, the world. There's political unrest building against the king with a religious fanatic plotting against the king and mystics in particular. The book fairly flowed; I was completely engrossed whenever I started reading. If the cheating couple was a tertiary couple, I definitely would have given a higher rating. As it is, that part really bought the book down.
The main cheater was Romar Brendy, acting Regent for the princess. He's married to a sweet lady but she doesn't "understand" him. The cheating part was horrible. I couldn't buy into any of the so-called justification by either Romar or Kierra. The worst thing was the treatment of Donnal. It just showed how selfish Kierra was. I still don't and will never get behind cheating. Kierra in the process hurt 4 people including her. Oh, her friends tried to tell her but she was too far gone to listen. Ugh. The end of the book resolves the cheating (obv) but it was very unsatisfactory. Donnal was treated as a consolation price. He deserved better than this. Way better.
Moving on to the best part of the book, the world. There's political unrest building against the king with a religious fanatic plotting against the king and mystics in particular. The book fairly flowed; I was completely engrossed whenever I started reading. If the cheating couple was a tertiary couple, I definitely would have given a higher rating. As it is, that part really bought the book down.