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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
2.5/5
Jestem autentycznie zawiedziona, spodziewałam się czegoś lepszego. Jak pierwszy tom naprawdę mi się podobał to ten był po prostu słaby
Jestem autentycznie zawiedziona, spodziewałam się czegoś lepszego. Jak pierwszy tom naprawdę mi się podobał to ten był po prostu słaby
A Sleeping Beauty retelling, told from the point of view of the Villain? With the added twist of it being Sapphic? Um, Yes please! With Malice being the first in this duology and the authors debut novel, I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into. Upon finishing the first book, I was more than happy that I took the leap with this series, I was in love with this retelling and immediately needed to read Misrule. Revenge, Love, Morally gray character, war and powerful female MC's, what more could you ask?
Misrule jumps right in where Malice left off and is most definitely not a slow read, I was immediately transported back to the Kingdom of Briar. With twists and turns around every corner, I was keep on the edge of my seat. this is an absolutely amazing book and an even greater series, I cannot recommend reading this anymore than I am. And I cannot wait to see what's next from Heather Walter in the future!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Misrule jumps right in where Malice left off and is most definitely not a slow read, I was immediately transported back to the Kingdom of Briar. With twists and turns around every corner, I was keep on the edge of my seat. this is an absolutely amazing book and an even greater series, I cannot recommend reading this anymore than I am. And I cannot wait to see what's next from Heather Walter in the future!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
read this in just over 24 hours - absolutely amazing sequel and conclusion to the Malice duology
Buddy read with my dear Ashley!
umm. what was this??
i signed up for a corruption arc: mass murder, destruction galore, a sprinkling of torture, and no conscience whatsoever. so what was this? why was my beautifully villianous Alyce feeling GUILTY and keeping ANNOYING LITTLE SHITS CALLED DEREK alive??? i was ready to see the goblins tear Derek apart within the first 3 paragraphs of meeting him... making him do chores is not a punishment, Nimara, it's life for most people. and don't even get me started on keeping Rose alive.
anyway. basically i hated Derek. i disliked Aurora. i was disappointed in Alyce/Nimara. all-round, i'm fairly disappointed, but i didn't hate this, and it was a vaguely entertaining read. meh.
umm. what was this??
i signed up for a corruption arc: mass murder, destruction galore, a sprinkling of torture, and no conscience whatsoever. so what was this? why was my beautifully villianous Alyce feeling GUILTY and keeping ANNOYING LITTLE SHITS CALLED DEREK alive??? i was ready to see the goblins tear Derek apart within the first 3 paragraphs of meeting him... making him do chores is not a punishment, Nimara, it's life for most people. and don't even get me started on keeping Rose alive.
anyway. basically i hated Derek. i disliked Aurora. i was disappointed in Alyce/Nimara. all-round, i'm fairly disappointed, but i didn't hate this, and it was a vaguely entertaining read. meh.
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. Not what I expected at all; and more than I expected at the same time. Not your typical HEA, but happy in its own fashion.
Look out, Theodora — you may have a rival for my affections! 😍
Look out, Theodora — you may have a rival for my affections! 😍
I was legitimately at a loss for words when I finished this book. It continues the story from the first one very well. I loved the direction things went. The author does a really good job of forcing us to confront the duality of right and wrong and where that line is. I loved not understanding my own feelings about the events that were happening and that had been happening for the past 100 years in the story. I could not predict any of the events or where the story was going at any point. This led to a very interesting ending that was emotional but very appropriate for the characters.
In the acknowledgements at the very end of the book, the author states quite plainly (and I'm paraphrasing here): you don't have to like the direction that I went to finish this story.
Frankly, I put off reading this sequel for quite a long time because I wasn't sure how I could possibly enjoy what was going to come next. The first novel in the series is such a beautifully told, tragic love story. And part of me was completely content to stop there and not come back at all. But I have a very healthy curiosity when it comes to romance and I loved the portrayal of Alyce and Aurora too much to just let it be.
And y'all, I am so satisfied and fulfilled and pleased with how it turned out. I jammed it all into my brain in one weekend and it was so worth it. I don't think everyone will. But for me, awesome read.
My apprehension came from the fear that the story would be too easy, that the love interests would find their way back to each other so quickly because "true love" couldn't possibly be held at a distance even with so much trauma and pain. But that never came to pass.
Frankly, I put off reading this sequel for quite a long time because I wasn't sure how I could possibly enjoy what was going to come next. The first novel in the series is such a beautifully told, tragic love story. And part of me was completely content to stop there and not come back at all. But I have a very healthy curiosity when it comes to romance and I loved the portrayal of Alyce and Aurora too much to just let it be.
And y'all, I am so satisfied and fulfilled and pleased with how it turned out. I jammed it all into my brain in one weekend and it was so worth it. I don't think everyone will. But for me, awesome read.
Spoiler
The tropes that the first book played with and then blatantly gave a middle-finger to are back. Look, it's a romance people. Not necessarily HEA. But a romance nonetheless. Not only that but one based on a fairy tale. "Love conquers all" is a quintessential foundation of any fairy tale romance and if you don't like it? What were you doing reading this in the first place? And while some might criticize a small part of this as being cheesy, insert eyeroll here, the author set everything up perfectly, down to the moment where a "true love" spell was used to conquer the greatest of adversities. That's awesome and no one can convince me otherwise.My apprehension came from the fear that the story would be too easy, that the love interests would find their way back to each other so quickly because "true love" couldn't possibly be held at a distance even with so much trauma and pain. But that never came to pass.
Right, obviously this is a very different rating than I have the first one. I really loved the first, but found this one lacking. A main criticism I always have with a lot of recent fantasy is that the protagonists are thrust in situations where they’re far too young to handle them and yet move through them with the wisdom, grace and decorum of a fully grown adult. However, in this book, we have someone who has lived a further hundred years or so since first one and still acts like an 18-year-old. Her love for aurora was sweet in the first book and applaudable at first in this one, however, seeing her betray, ignore and go back on the companions that she’s made over the past hundred years felt awful as a reader. I love a good romance and I think Regan could’ve given the opportunity in this book for that - and we could’ve had a moment of betrayal and catharsis with Aurora where she realises that whatever curses put on Aurora has stuck. She is not the same person Alyce knew, and we could’ve seen her grow as an individual rather than it focusing on growing as a relationship. I found the end of the book did redeem the middle, however, it was so soppy, and almost a little, too sickly-sweet with the conjoining of the magics, and the trees coming back to life et cetera. I think that could’ve happened without the book focusing on the love and ignoring Alyce’s growth as an individual. I’m glad that the book didn’t end with those two riding off into the sunset, but I found her naivete throughout the book to be too frustrating to fully enjoy.
I also found her racism towards the shifters to be a very uncomfortable theme in the book. Whilst she does apologise towards the end, throughout the book we see the evidence that she is correct through the shifters actions. It feels like someone who has been through that kind of trauma and grief as a youngster being treated terribly, inviting literally every race into her court to give them the love and kindness they were missing, wouldn’t maintain a strange grudge based on one shifter that she met. Especially after so many years have passed. I’ve spoken to friends who have read the book who had very similar thoughts, so I know this one isn’t just me, but it felt uncomfortable. If they wanted to have it as a character flaw for Alyce. I wish they just leaned into her love of destruction and evil tendencies more because that would’ve been badass.
I also found her racism towards the shifters to be a very uncomfortable theme in the book. Whilst she does apologise towards the end, throughout the book we see the evidence that she is correct through the shifters actions. It feels like someone who has been through that kind of trauma and grief as a youngster being treated terribly, inviting literally every race into her court to give them the love and kindness they were missing, wouldn’t maintain a strange grudge based on one shifter that she met. Especially after so many years have passed. I’ve spoken to friends who have read the book who had very similar thoughts, so I know this one isn’t just me, but it felt uncomfortable. If they wanted to have it as a character flaw for Alyce. I wish they just leaned into her love of destruction and evil tendencies more because that would’ve been badass.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced