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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
If I'm being honest, this book was better back when I read it for the first time back when it came out. I loved it back then, but I couldn't stand it now. The only thing that it had going for it was the fact that I knew the big plot twist/what the two characters were to each other. But that wasn't even from rereading it. I just figured it out, because it was so easy.
I also only ever found the one POV interesting. The other was just bland, and I wanted to know what was happening in the other one at all times. I'll leave you to guess which one I preferred. Hint: There is a review saying they liked the one that I disliked.
2/5 stars.
I also only ever found the one POV interesting. The other was just bland, and I wanted to know what was happening in the other one at all times. I'll leave you to guess which one I preferred. Hint: There is a review saying they liked the one that I disliked.
2/5 stars.
this book was...... incredible. claire legrand's worldbuilding was so addictive i couldnt put the book down. also eliana ferracora hmu
as soon as i read the synopsis of furyborn, i was immediately drawn in. the premise sounded so interesting to me, and while it wasn't exactly what i was expecting, i was still really enjoyed it.
"I fear no darkness
I fear no night
I ask the shadows
To aid my fight"
right off the bat, the story gripped me. the prologue provided just enough action, suspense, and intrigue to make me want to read on. the book follows two main characters in alternating time lines, one thousand years apart. the different time lines were done very well, making me equally invested in both of them. they contained just the right amount of differences so it didn't get repetitive, and just the right amount of similarities so you could make connections between the two.
"She was night itself reborn on earth, a queen swathed in shadows."
the writing was very good, and i personally enjoyed the little headers at each of the chapters. some weren't super vital to the story, and more served as a small addition, and others really helped bring the story to life. the world building could have been developed a little more, but i have hopes that it will be something that is developed more in future books. one of my complaints about the writing would probably be the fight scenes, where i found some to be a little confusing. the book is jam packed with fight scenes, and while a lot were done very well and were very easy to follow, others were a little confusing and i found it hard to picture them in my head.
"People like us don’t fight for our own hope,” he said quietly. “We fight for everyone else’s."
as mentioned earlier, i really loved the plot. the prophecy of the sun queen and the blood queen was super intriguing for me, and i loved learning more about it. none of the twists really surprised me, but that isn't really because of my amazing detective skills and more due to the fact that we are told from the start about these twists. i don't really know how i feel about that? a part of me likes that we are told that rielle is the blood queen from the start, because it makes for an interesting read as we try to figure out how she got there. but, another part of me wishes it were more of a surprise. all our characters are shocked to discover these twists, but then the reader already knows so it kind of disconnects us from the characters and the story.
"Dread,” he murmured, his breath caressing her cheek, “is only a feeling, easily squashed. But wolves, my dear, have teeth."
as for the characters, we have rielle and eliana as our protagonists. however, i definitely preferred eliana's character and storyline to rielle's. for the first fifty pages or so, it was pretty even and i enjoyed both characters equally. but as i read on, i grew way more attached to eliana's character than rielle's.
eliana is an assassin for the empire, and is known to all as the dread of orline ((i love it when characters get badass nicknames in books)). she is ruthless, emotionless, and willing to do whatever it takes in order to survive. eliana is the definition of a morally grey character, even bordering on black for a large portion of the book. she was such an interesting character, and i loved being inside of her head. had we not have gotten her pov and she was just a side character, i feel like she would be an extremely confusing character. she puts on masks and different faces, and manipulates everyone around her in order to only let them see what she wants them to see. simon said it best once, when he called her a monster wearing masks. she was super fascinating to read about. as the book went on, eliana's character developed into someone who actually feels remorse. this may sound horrible, but i definitely preferred her when she was just plain ruthless. i'm all for character development, but i just feel like her arc was quite rushed. she went from being cold-hearted and merciless, to suddenly feeling guilt and remorse. idk, i just wish she either stayed heartless or at least had a slower transition into good.
"We live in a world where good kings die and those foolish enough to hope for something better are killed where they stand."
rielle on the other hand, is the opposite to eliana. she starts off seeming quite good and pure, but eventually starts transitioning into something darker. rielle's story is almost a villain origin story, and it was super interesting to read about her slowly becoming a grey character. as much as i love characters who are bad-ass and dark from the start, i also love reading about characters who slowly descend into darkness. reading about the corrupt and scandalous thoughts invading her mind and seeing her almost become insane was really cool. however, i don't feel like i have as good an understanding of rielle's character as i do eliana's. which is odd considering that eliana is the far more unpredictable and reckless one of the two, and rielle is pretty predictable. i just feel i don't know her all that well, which might be because rielle doesn't really know herself all that well either.
"We all have darkness inside us, Rielle,” he said, his voice rough. “That is what it means to be human."
the side characters were pretty good. eliana's younger brother, remy, was so precious omg. i loved him and their relationship so much. simon was pretty cool and i was really intrigued by him. but towards the end his character shifted largely and confused me a little. i was pretty suspicious of navi at first and i thought she was going to be evil, but after finishing the book, i greatly apologise for thinking such a thing ((also there were some definite gay vibes between her and eliana)). corien was super intriguing and i really liked him as a character. he was creepy, but fun to read about.
"Perhaps if nothing else, what’s happened has taught you that there is more to life - and even to war - than simply staying alive."
the romances were meh. i didn't really care for either of them. i wasn't against them, but i definitely wasn't shipping them either. i usually love romances that go from friends to lovers, but i found i didn't really care about the romance between rielle and audric. it was fine, but i just didn't really care if they ended up together or not. i could have potentially shipped eliana and simon, had it not seemed so rushed in the end. i was kind of rooting for them to eventually get together back when they hated and wanted to murder each other, but then both of their demeanours changed so fast i almost got whip lash. they went from constantly wanting to fight one another, to then becoming sweet and doting with one another. it just didn't feel like a natural transition and at all and i wished for something more gradual.
"I am your doom."
all in all, it was a pretty solid book. it held my attention and had me wanting to know what happened next at the end of each chapter. it was by no means perfect, but my enjoyment of the book was greater than the flaws of the book. i read it in one sitting and stayed up until the middle of the night to finish it, which is always i good sign. there are a lot of questions i want answered (why were humans and angels at war? why did rielle kill audric?? how tf do the stories take place 1000 years apart???), but i assume the future instalments in the trilogy will answer those questions.
4/5 stars!
"I fear no darkness
I fear no night
I ask the shadows
To aid my fight"
right off the bat, the story gripped me. the prologue provided just enough action, suspense, and intrigue to make me want to read on. the book follows two main characters in alternating time lines, one thousand years apart. the different time lines were done very well, making me equally invested in both of them. they contained just the right amount of differences so it didn't get repetitive, and just the right amount of similarities so you could make connections between the two.
"She was night itself reborn on earth, a queen swathed in shadows."
the writing was very good, and i personally enjoyed the little headers at each of the chapters. some weren't super vital to the story, and more served as a small addition, and others really helped bring the story to life. the world building could have been developed a little more, but i have hopes that it will be something that is developed more in future books. one of my complaints about the writing would probably be the fight scenes, where i found some to be a little confusing. the book is jam packed with fight scenes, and while a lot were done very well and were very easy to follow, others were a little confusing and i found it hard to picture them in my head.
"People like us don’t fight for our own hope,” he said quietly. “We fight for everyone else’s."
as mentioned earlier, i really loved the plot. the prophecy of the sun queen and the blood queen was super intriguing for me, and i loved learning more about it. none of the twists really surprised me, but that isn't really because of my amazing detective skills and more due to the fact that we are told from the start about these twists. i don't really know how i feel about that? a part of me likes that we are told that rielle is the blood queen from the start, because it makes for an interesting read as we try to figure out how she got there. but, another part of me wishes it were more of a surprise. all our characters are shocked to discover these twists, but then the reader already knows so it kind of disconnects us from the characters and the story.
"Dread,” he murmured, his breath caressing her cheek, “is only a feeling, easily squashed. But wolves, my dear, have teeth."
as for the characters, we have rielle and eliana as our protagonists. however, i definitely preferred eliana's character and storyline to rielle's. for the first fifty pages or so, it was pretty even and i enjoyed both characters equally. but as i read on, i grew way more attached to eliana's character than rielle's.
eliana is an assassin for the empire, and is known to all as the dread of orline ((i love it when characters get badass nicknames in books)). she is ruthless, emotionless, and willing to do whatever it takes in order to survive. eliana is the definition of a morally grey character, even bordering on black for a large portion of the book. she was such an interesting character, and i loved being inside of her head. had we not have gotten her pov and she was just a side character, i feel like she would be an extremely confusing character. she puts on masks and different faces, and manipulates everyone around her in order to only let them see what she wants them to see. simon said it best once, when he called her a monster wearing masks. she was super fascinating to read about. as the book went on, eliana's character developed into someone who actually feels remorse. this may sound horrible, but i definitely preferred her when she was just plain ruthless. i'm all for character development, but i just feel like her arc was quite rushed. she went from being cold-hearted and merciless, to suddenly feeling guilt and remorse. idk, i just wish she either stayed heartless or at least had a slower transition into good.
"We live in a world where good kings die and those foolish enough to hope for something better are killed where they stand."
rielle on the other hand, is the opposite to eliana. she starts off seeming quite good and pure, but eventually starts transitioning into something darker. rielle's story is almost a villain origin story, and it was super interesting to read about her slowly becoming a grey character. as much as i love characters who are bad-ass and dark from the start, i also love reading about characters who slowly descend into darkness. reading about the corrupt and scandalous thoughts invading her mind and seeing her almost become insane was really cool. however, i don't feel like i have as good an understanding of rielle's character as i do eliana's. which is odd considering that eliana is the far more unpredictable and reckless one of the two, and rielle is pretty predictable. i just feel i don't know her all that well, which might be because rielle doesn't really know herself all that well either.
"We all have darkness inside us, Rielle,” he said, his voice rough. “That is what it means to be human."
the side characters were pretty good. eliana's younger brother, remy, was so precious omg. i loved him and their relationship so much. simon was pretty cool and i was really intrigued by him. but towards the end his character shifted largely and confused me a little. i was pretty suspicious of navi at first and i thought she was going to be evil, but after finishing the book, i greatly apologise for thinking such a thing ((also there were some definite gay vibes between her and eliana)). corien was super intriguing and i really liked him as a character. he was creepy, but fun to read about.
"Perhaps if nothing else, what’s happened has taught you that there is more to life - and even to war - than simply staying alive."
the romances were meh. i didn't really care for either of them. i wasn't against them, but i definitely wasn't shipping them either. i usually love romances that go from friends to lovers, but i found i didn't really care about the romance between rielle and audric. it was fine, but i just didn't really care if they ended up together or not. i could have potentially shipped eliana and simon, had it not seemed so rushed in the end. i was kind of rooting for them to eventually get together back when they hated and wanted to murder each other, but then both of their demeanours changed so fast i almost got whip lash. they went from constantly wanting to fight one another, to then becoming sweet and doting with one another. it just didn't feel like a natural transition and at all and i wished for something more gradual.
"I am your doom."
all in all, it was a pretty solid book. it held my attention and had me wanting to know what happened next at the end of each chapter. it was by no means perfect, but my enjoyment of the book was greater than the flaws of the book. i read it in one sitting and stayed up until the middle of the night to finish it, which is always i good sign. there are a lot of questions i want answered (why were humans and angels at war? why did rielle kill audric?? how tf do the stories take place 1000 years apart???), but i assume the future instalments in the trilogy will answer those questions.
4/5 stars!
I recieved this ARC in the November 2017 Fairyloot box.
This was really good! In the beginning it was a little bit confusing because of the dual perspective, but once I got the hang of it I was able to follow the story easily. I really liked the characters in this. They are all very fleshed out. One thing that bugged me a bit is that most of my questions went unanswered. I understand that this is the first in a trilogy, but after that crazy prologue I wish we were given a little bit more about how the story will get to that point (that sentence probably made no sense, but I'm tired and I can't figure out how else to word it). Overall this was a pretty great read, and I'm sure it will be a big hit when it comes out in May!
Side note: my ARC does not have the final cover, and I am so jealous because it is STUNNING!
This was really good! In the beginning it was a little bit confusing because of the dual perspective, but once I got the hang of it I was able to follow the story easily. I really liked the characters in this. They are all very fleshed out. One thing that bugged me a bit is that most of my questions went unanswered. I understand that this is the first in a trilogy, but after that crazy prologue I wish we were given a little bit more about how the story will get to that point (that sentence probably made no sense, but I'm tired and I can't figure out how else to word it). Overall this was a pretty great read, and I'm sure it will be a big hit when it comes out in May!
Side note: my ARC does not have the final cover, and I am so jealous because it is STUNNING!
DNF - I will come back to this series, it's a great story just found the characters hard to get on board with. Hard work to read when you're just looking for a binge series. I suspect it gets better over the series, so I will give another read when I'm in a more active reading period.
I'm not really sure how I feel about Furyborn. I did write a review but it doesn't seem to have saved.
The story is a dual perspective between Rielle Dardenne and Eliana Ferracora who live in two different timelines. The world building is lacking which can be a bit confusing at the beginning.
I really enjoyed Eliana's story at the beginning before it began to intertwine with Rielle's story. I really liked her banter with Simon but as the story progresses on and it gets a bit darker, I lost interest.
The story is a dual perspective between Rielle Dardenne and Eliana Ferracora who live in two different timelines. The world building is lacking which can be a bit confusing at the beginning.
I really enjoyed Eliana's story at the beginning before it began to intertwine with Rielle's story. I really liked her banter with Simon but as the story progresses on and it gets a bit darker, I lost interest.
Furyborn is the most delicious puzzle, a book where the picture is clear from very early on and becomes clearer still as all the pieces slide into place. And YET you hope against hope that the picture on the box is not what the puzzle pieces will reveal. You know what happens (to one of the characters anyway) and you still root for a different outcome all the same. You still gasp when Things Are Revealed and suffer over the what you know is coming still.
I found myself racing back and forth between the alternating chapters, wanting to get to the next part in each girl's story, torn between who I which part I wanted to read more of each time, I tried to pick a favorite (I think Rielle won out a tiny bit), but I came to admire the fierce power and fire in both of these young women. Oh and the guys aren't too shabby either.
*Thank you Sourcebook Fire & NetGalley for the E-Arc copy of this novel.*
I found myself racing back and forth between the alternating chapters, wanting to get to the next part in each girl's story, torn between who I which part I wanted to read more of each time, I tried to pick a favorite (I think Rielle won out a tiny bit), but I came to admire the fierce power and fire in both of these young women. Oh and the guys aren't too shabby either.
*Thank you Sourcebook Fire & NetGalley for the E-Arc copy of this novel.*
