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3.43 AVERAGE
3.43 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
When I first read the summary of this book on Amazon, I was so excited and immediately put it on my wish list. I mean, "A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself" sounded pretty intriguing to me. When I received an ARC from NetGalley, I was over the moon!
In hindsight, I should have been a little less optimistic.
The first few chapters of the book were a bit slow going and the action that was present was not really all that exciting, but I was willing to push past it because that's just how some books start. However, as I kept reading, I got less and less interested and kept looking down at my phone trying to see just how close I was to finish it.
I think the two biggest issues I have with this book is that the descriptions were just so bland and dull, and the characters were just as equally as boring. I couldn't connect with any of the characters on any sort of level. They didn't stand out or do anything worthwhile that made me care for them. The only time I ever felt anything towards any of them was probably annoyance at both Nadya and Malachiasz.
My annoyance at Nadya stems from the fact that she was so steadfast in her beliefs and determined in her abilities, but after she meets Malachiasz, it all just goes downhill. She becomes somewhat obsessive about him and it seems as though she doesn't care about anything else except for him. I know love can change people, but man, this change happened far too fast and felt unrealistic.
As for Malachiasz, I just got tired of him and his lies. He reminded me of The Darkling from the Grisha trilogy, except less cunning and more... childish. To be honest, Malachiasz wasn't more of a villain as he was a gnat.
I know Emily stated that this book is to be a trilogy, but in all honesty, I don't find myself excited to invest any more time in this series.
When I first read the summary of this book on Amazon, I was so excited and immediately put it on my wish list. I mean, "A girl who can speak to gods must save her people without destroying herself" sounded pretty intriguing to me. When I received an ARC from NetGalley, I was over the moon!
In hindsight, I should have been a little less optimistic.
The first few chapters of the book were a bit slow going and the action that was present was not really all that exciting, but I was willing to push past it because that's just how some books start. However, as I kept reading, I got less and less interested and kept looking down at my phone trying to see just how close I was to finish it.
I think the two biggest issues I have with this book is that the descriptions were just so bland and dull, and the characters were just as equally as boring. I couldn't connect with any of the characters on any sort of level. They didn't stand out or do anything worthwhile that made me care for them. The only time I ever felt anything towards any of them was probably annoyance at both Nadya and Malachiasz.
My annoyance at Nadya stems from the fact that she was so steadfast in her beliefs and determined in her abilities, but after she meets Malachiasz, it all just goes downhill. She becomes somewhat obsessive about him and it seems as though she doesn't care about anything else except for him. I know love can change people, but man, this change happened far too fast and felt unrealistic.
As for Malachiasz, I just got tired of him and his lies. He reminded me of The Darkling from the Grisha trilogy, except less cunning and more... childish. To be honest, Malachiasz wasn't more of a villain as he was a gnat.
I know Emily stated that this book is to be a trilogy, but in all honesty, I don't find myself excited to invest any more time in this series.
*Reread 4/5*
So I definitely enjoyed this more after listening to it. So my reviews more of a 3.5 now. I can't help, but feel like I love the idea of the book more than the actual book itself. There are some amazing lines of dialog and I still feel like the relationship between Nadya and Malachiasz developed a little too quickly for my taste. Serefin is still my fave and I really want to see what happens with his character in book 2 after what happened at the end. I will definitely continue on with this series, but idk I just don't like it as much as I want to and I'm ANNOYED ABOUT IT.
*Original Review 1/29*
Hmm so this is a very low three star, but I think I'm going to listen to it on audio when it comes out in the hopes that I like it better.
SO. I really wanted to like this book, but for the most part I just didn't connect with it. There's a lot of unknown words and world building that I wish I had taken notes on because I kept forgetting what certain words meant and who was who in regards to the gods and saints. I also really hate reading on my nook because I like to be able to easily flip pages when I forget things like that.
I liked Serefin and although I really tried liking Nadya and Malachiasz, I just didn't connect with them. I liked parts of them, but not as a whole. I also liked how it kind of starts off with Nayda being the heroine, but as the story progresses, lines blur and you're not sure who's on the "right" side.
I think the thing that truly ruined this book for me was the pacing. I felt like everything moved too quickly and I had no chance to savor anything. There was hardly any build up. The romance was something I expected and something I wanted to support, but it felt so wrong to me. I found myself getting annoyed with it at times. It happened too quickly and it just didn't fit. Also the betrayal that happened towards the end was extremely confusing and out of place. I just wish things were more fleshed out and there were a bit more spaces in between. There were things constantly happening and they began to jumble together and just didn't make sense.
The concept is interesting and the characters are cool(plus I really love the fan art I've seen), but it was ultimately disappointing to me. Hopefully I can reread and like it better sometime in the future, but at this point I'm not sure.
So I definitely enjoyed this more after listening to it. So my reviews more of a 3.5 now. I can't help, but feel like I love the idea of the book more than the actual book itself. There are some amazing lines of dialog and I still feel like the relationship between Nadya and Malachiasz developed a little too quickly for my taste. Serefin is still my fave and I really want to see what happens with his character in book 2 after what happened at the end. I will definitely continue on with this series, but idk I just don't like it as much as I want to and I'm ANNOYED ABOUT IT.
*Original Review 1/29*
Hmm so this is a very low three star, but I think I'm going to listen to it on audio when it comes out in the hopes that I like it better.
SO. I really wanted to like this book, but for the most part I just didn't connect with it. There's a lot of unknown words and world building that I wish I had taken notes on because I kept forgetting what certain words meant and who was who in regards to the gods and saints. I also really hate reading on my nook because I like to be able to easily flip pages when I forget things like that.
I liked Serefin and although I really tried liking Nadya and Malachiasz, I just didn't connect with them. I liked parts of them, but not as a whole. I also liked how it kind of starts off with Nayda being the heroine, but as the story progresses, lines blur and you're not sure who's on the "right" side.
I think the thing that truly ruined this book for me was the pacing. I felt like everything moved too quickly and I had no chance to savor anything. There was hardly any build up. The romance was something I expected and something I wanted to support, but it felt so wrong to me. I found myself getting annoyed with it at times. It happened too quickly and it just didn't fit. Also the betrayal that happened towards the end was extremely confusing and out of place. I just wish things were more fleshed out and there were a bit more spaces in between. There were things constantly happening and they began to jumble together and just didn't make sense.
The concept is interesting and the characters are cool(plus I really love the fan art I've seen), but it was ultimately disappointing to me. Hopefully I can reread and like it better sometime in the future, but at this point I'm not sure.
I am torn between leaving this book a two star review or a three star review. I felt that this book had so much potential and fell so so short of it. The main characters had no depth, the secondary characters were forgotten and overlooked, the writing was confusing and sloppy at times, and the pacing of the book was inconsistent.
The one saving grace of this book, and the reason I give it three stars is the magic. I liked the concept of blood mages vs. divine power vs. a complicated third option and how they were at war with each other. But even this aspect of the book was never explained. How does it work? What are the limitations? How did each faction come to be? Etc...
I do admit that I also liked the tone. The tone was cold and dark even in a place filled with color and opulence. But again, this paled in comparison to her use of Russian themes because it was not as well done as Katherine Arden’s Winternight Trilogy or as subtle as Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone Trilogy. I felt that her blatant reminder of how this is supposed to be like a mythical Russia detracted from the story rather than added to it.
Overall, I don’t know if I would recommend this book to other readers and it is too soon to tell if I am curious enough about the story to pick up the second one in the future.
The one saving grace of this book, and the reason I give it three stars is the magic. I liked the concept of blood mages vs. divine power vs. a complicated third option and how they were at war with each other. But even this aspect of the book was never explained. How does it work? What are the limitations? How did each faction come to be? Etc...
I do admit that I also liked the tone. The tone was cold and dark even in a place filled with color and opulence. But again, this paled in comparison to her use of Russian themes because it was not as well done as Katherine Arden’s Winternight Trilogy or as subtle as Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone Trilogy. I felt that her blatant reminder of how this is supposed to be like a mythical Russia detracted from the story rather than added to it.
Overall, I don’t know if I would recommend this book to other readers and it is too soon to tell if I am curious enough about the story to pick up the second one in the future.
if i could rate this 0 on here, i would. if i could go lower than that, i would.
(ah, on storygraph i can, lovely)
nuggets of a genuinely interesting premise were burdened by THE most forced and contrived romance i have ever laid eyes on being shoved down my throat to the point said eyes rolled to the back of my skull every time a ‘romantic’ scene was squeezed into the page. nadya, the main character of this story, ended up being very much NOT like the main character of HER OWN STORY, but rather a participant in malachiasz’s story, evident from the fact that pretty early on i stopped caring at all about nadya and only kept reading out of curiosity for malachiasz’s backstory. then of course that didn’t last long, because by the end i only cared about serefin, who i initially didn’t care for at all in the beginning. you can either see this as a stellar example of making you care about a character by the end of the story, but again, given this is supposed to be nadya’s story and not any of theirs…that’s not a good thing. at all.
(ah, on storygraph i can, lovely)
nuggets of a genuinely interesting premise were burdened by THE most forced and contrived romance i have ever laid eyes on being shoved down my throat to the point said eyes rolled to the back of my skull every time a ‘romantic’ scene was squeezed into the page. nadya, the main character of this story, ended up being very much NOT like the main character of HER OWN STORY, but rather a participant in malachiasz’s story, evident from the fact that pretty early on i stopped caring at all about nadya and only kept reading out of curiosity for malachiasz’s backstory. then of course that didn’t last long, because by the end i only cared about serefin, who i initially didn’t care for at all in the beginning. you can either see this as a stellar example of making you care about a character by the end of the story, but again, given this is supposed to be nadya’s story and not any of theirs…that’s not a good thing. at all.
ugh so boring. this has definitely put me on a reading slump. thumbs down.
This book gave me Grishaverse vibes, but in a good way. I really enjoyed it. Fast paced and dark. Set in a world where two countries are at war over differing beliefs. One country uses blood to perform magic and in the other gods are worshiped and only gifted clerics can speak to the gods and with their help perform magic.
The relationship between Nadya and Malachiasz is a bit confusing. Sometimes they kiss and then other times they are considering killing either other. I wasn't super comfortable with the casual cutting required for the blood magic in this book. But overall this was a fantastic dark fantasy that kept me reading.
The relationship between Nadya and Malachiasz is a bit confusing. Sometimes they kiss and then other times they are considering killing either other. I wasn't super comfortable with the casual cutting required for the blood magic in this book. But overall this was a fantastic dark fantasy that kept me reading.
Read this review and others at sarahthebooknerd.home.blog!
At first glance, I was excited to delve into this book. It's described as being hard-core, Gothic, and beautiful. The presentation of the book is absolutely gorgeous. The cover changes color in light, the spine has intricate artwork, and the pages themselves have a Gothic-type design. I was thrilled when I received in this my Uppercase box.
I wasn't so thrilled while I was reading it.
This book is super dense and nearly impossible to keep up with. Generally, the plot is confusing. This makes the plot twists exceedingly difficult to understand. I didn't really connect with the characters, so when things happened between them... I wasn't too shaken up about it. I'm not going to spoil the plot, but shit gets real in this book.
I know that much from context, but the plot was sort of all over the place. The settings weren't as developed as I would've liked and it didn't leave me wanting more after each chapter. I pushed through this book because I wanted it to get better. The idea of this book is five-star worthy, but the execution needed work.
There is going to be a second book. I will probably read it, hoping it's better than the first.
At first glance, I was excited to delve into this book. It's described as being hard-core, Gothic, and beautiful. The presentation of the book is absolutely gorgeous. The cover changes color in light, the spine has intricate artwork, and the pages themselves have a Gothic-type design. I was thrilled when I received in this my Uppercase box.
I wasn't so thrilled while I was reading it.
This book is super dense and nearly impossible to keep up with. Generally, the plot is confusing. This makes the plot twists exceedingly difficult to understand. I didn't really connect with the characters, so when things happened between them... I wasn't too shaken up about it. I'm not going to spoil the plot, but shit gets real in this book.
I know that much from context, but the plot was sort of all over the place. The settings weren't as developed as I would've liked and it didn't leave me wanting more after each chapter. I pushed through this book because I wanted it to get better. The idea of this book is five-star worthy, but the execution needed work.
There is going to be a second book. I will probably read it, hoping it's better than the first.
Second read:
The audiobook is bad. I don't recommend it.
I give this the same rating cause I got interested at the same point around quarter of the way and was addicted even though I knew the ending. Also, why didn't we get this Serefin from the beginning :( ?
------------
First read:
3.5stars
Oh my , this was a ride. I loved the story and actually devoured it.The magic system was so good . I loved being in this world.I loved the characters so much. I connected to each one of them even the morally gray parts.I loved the different relationships,too.
Nadya's parts was far more interesting for me the whole time. The Prince's parts became good when he returned to the palace.That made my favourite character is Malachiasz.
What knocked a star here:
The book has slow start . I was bored in this part.
+
.
-Using the family names and the first names confused me in the beginning.I hated this long names any way.
-half a star went because the characters weren't deep enough for me.
The audiobook is bad. I don't recommend it.
I give this the same rating cause I got interested at the same point around quarter of the way and was addicted even though I knew the ending. Also, why didn't we get this Serefin from the beginning :( ?
------------
First read:
3.5stars
Oh my , this was a ride. I loved the story and actually devoured it.The magic system was so good . I loved being in this world.I loved the characters so much. I connected to each one of them even the morally gray parts.I loved the different relationships,too.
Nadya's parts was far more interesting for me the whole time. The Prince's parts became good when he returned to the palace.That made my favourite character is Malachiasz.
What knocked a star here:
The book has slow start . I was bored in this part.
+
Spoiler
Making an important character seem to die in the beginning without knowing him was useless.-Using the family names and the first names confused me in the beginning.I hated this long names any way.
-half a star went because the characters weren't deep enough for me.