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3.38 AVERAGE
3.38 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
fast-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
Valour and Petrichor are two of the highest-ranking assassins in the city, brought up together in the Order of Axsten. However, their abrasive and opposite personalities has caused a feud between them as the youngest assassins in the Order.
They are set a a job together to kill the sly, unknown cut-throat who's been leader of the 'ness smugglers for decades. ‘Ness being illegal magic tinctures: shrewdness tonics, brawniness tonics, wellness tonics, etc.
Valour is also babysitting the sociable, socialite hotel heiress, Ingrid who is too curious for her own good.
Valour lives up to her name, and is one of the only assassins to occasionally refuse jobs if she feels they are wrong. However, the punishment for that is branding. She’s queer, quiet, analytical, and lonely. Oh, and she loves food and tea.
Petrichor is methodical and disciplined and I think he definitely represents neurodivergence and perhaps a sexuality. The way his mind works is reflected in this matter-of-fact, blunt perspective and interactions.
”Maybe we're both trapped, Valour. And the only way to survive is to pretend that you relish your cage."
Interestingly, this also has a Norse backdrop with allusions to the gods. In some sense, this almost felt contemporary but set in an alternative world.
Occasionally, the writing and dialogue felt stilted and forced, and certain observations too cut and dry and telling instead of showing.
It became frustrating how many wide tangents there were that didn’t add anything to the story - conversations, entire chapters. Also, the repetition of certain jokes - Petrichor having a stick up his arse is something Valour reminds him of in nearly every interaction. And Valour thinking with her bodily lust.
Overall, this could have been about half the length and do with a lot less back-and-forth.
Thank you to Solaris for providing an arc in exchange for a review!
They are set a a job together to kill the sly, unknown cut-throat who's been leader of the 'ness smugglers for decades. ‘Ness being illegal magic tinctures: shrewdness tonics, brawniness tonics, wellness tonics, etc.
Valour is also babysitting the sociable, socialite hotel heiress, Ingrid who is too curious for her own good.
Valour lives up to her name, and is one of the only assassins to occasionally refuse jobs if she feels they are wrong. However, the punishment for that is branding. She’s queer, quiet, analytical, and lonely. Oh, and she loves food and tea.
Petrichor is methodical and disciplined and I think he definitely represents neurodivergence and perhaps a sexuality. The way his mind works is reflected in this matter-of-fact, blunt perspective and interactions.
”Maybe we're both trapped, Valour. And the only way to survive is to pretend that you relish your cage."
Interestingly, this also has a Norse backdrop with allusions to the gods. In some sense, this almost felt contemporary but set in an alternative world.
Occasionally, the writing and dialogue felt stilted and forced, and certain observations too cut and dry and telling instead of showing.
It became frustrating how many wide tangents there were that didn’t add anything to the story - conversations, entire chapters. Also, the repetition of certain jokes - Petrichor having a stick up his arse is something Valour reminds him of in nearly every interaction. And Valour thinking with her bodily lust.
Overall, this could have been about half the length and do with a lot less back-and-forth.
Thank you to Solaris for providing an arc in exchange for a review!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I absolutely adored this book.
Magical and full of mystery and Norse mythology this kept me intrigued from start to finish.
I loved the “six of crows” aspect this has previously been recieved as with the assassins of Axsten, and especially how deep it dives into Valour and Petrichor as people and through their life’s experiences having grown up together in assassin-hood.
Ingrid was an unexpected but beloved character and I fell for her and Valour so hard. Their sapphic love throughout the chaos of the city and its secrets was truly unbreakable no matter the costs and that dedication was truly something else.
The plot twists in this with Branderquist and the ‘ness trade were truly unpredictable and the intrigue the darkness behind it all was extremely engaging.
I was fortunate enough to recieve this as an ARC from Solaris and am so glad I did. Their advertising this as a Scandi romantasy with such chaotic dynamics was successful and I can only hope it woos others just as much.
The whole thing was incredibly well written, descriptive and engaging with great world building that helped you truly feel in that historical Scandinavian setting amongst the religious, mythological, political and general chaos.
I have never read Emma’s books before but after this I certainly will be keeping an eye on her in future for more wonderful addictive tales.
Magical and full of mystery and Norse mythology this kept me intrigued from start to finish.
I loved the “six of crows” aspect this has previously been recieved as with the assassins of Axsten, and especially how deep it dives into Valour and Petrichor as people and through their life’s experiences having grown up together in assassin-hood.
Ingrid was an unexpected but beloved character and I fell for her and Valour so hard. Their sapphic love throughout the chaos of the city and its secrets was truly unbreakable no matter the costs and that dedication was truly something else.
The plot twists in this with Branderquist and the ‘ness trade were truly unpredictable and the intrigue the darkness behind it all was extremely engaging.
I was fortunate enough to recieve this as an ARC from Solaris and am so glad I did. Their advertising this as a Scandi romantasy with such chaotic dynamics was successful and I can only hope it woos others just as much.
The whole thing was incredibly well written, descriptive and engaging with great world building that helped you truly feel in that historical Scandinavian setting amongst the religious, mythological, political and general chaos.
I have never read Emma’s books before but after this I certainly will be keeping an eye on her in future for more wonderful addictive tales.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
This is a fun, queer fantasy that keeps you guessing. I loved the characters and their banter. At times it was a little slow, but these moments were usually important to flesh out characters and relationships. All in all, it was a brilliant, original fantasy.
This was an interesting read for me. I think there were some things that were done really well, namely the development of the relationships between the characters and their coming to terms with their pasts and deciding how they want to live their lives. I especially liked seeing the relationship between the two main protagonists develop as they realised their similarities were more meaningful than their differences. I also liked the characters learning to be 'snowblooded' as opposed to 'coldblooded'.
On the other hand, some things didn't work as well for me. Some of the dialogue felt unnatural. The pacing was also strange, it really dragged at times. At one point they spent like 3 chapters slowly walking home in a snowstorm. This did serve to develop their relationship, but I constantly felt like each 'scene' dragged on in service of the character development/dialogue. I think it could have been edited down a bit.
The blurb compares this to six of crows, but I feel this story in comparison really lacks a competent protagonist, the two assassins seemed to stumble into every development in the plot and I didn't get the sense they had much agency in solving the mystery which felt frustrating.
Some really great character work and interesting plot points but ultimately didn't work for me overall unfortunately!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.
On the other hand, some things didn't work as well for me. Some of the dialogue felt unnatural. The pacing was also strange, it really dragged at times. At one point they spent like 3 chapters slowly walking home in a snowstorm. This did serve to develop their relationship, but I constantly felt like each 'scene' dragged on in service of the character development/dialogue. I think it could have been edited down a bit.
The blurb compares this to six of crows, but I feel this story in comparison really lacks a competent protagonist, the two assassins seemed to stumble into every development in the plot and I didn't get the sense they had much agency in solving the mystery which felt frustrating.
Some really great character work and interesting plot points but ultimately didn't work for me overall unfortunately!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes