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indecisivesailorscout's review
1.0
Yeah, this one isn't happening. So far, it's a combination of all of the worst parts of Romeo and Juliet plus the first chapter of [b:Heir of Fire|20613470|Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass, #3)|Sarah J. Maas|https://d2arxad8u2l0g7.cloudfront.net/books/1460846511s/20613470.jpg|25128502] - the romance is barely explored, and then the protagonist spends the next little while wallowing in self-pity for no reason. There is no rhyme or reason to anything that happens, as far as I can tell. Weak character introduction, no room for development, zero world building outside of the nameless city, and the plot is only moved forward by her crying and then deciding to do something or kill somebody, and then do some more nothing. Very disappointed in this one.
wildfaeriecaps's review
4.0
I'm not going to lie - when I started this book, I actually groaned out loud. A blond, female assassin who has a last name beginning with S. Sound like a popular character/series that already has huge amounts of praise?
Well, the similarities pretty much stop there (okay, there are a few more - but they're fairly standard book trope things). This book was So Good. I'm pleasantly surprised. And.. I finished it in a day. It was that good.
First person narratives usually bother me, but this one worked well. It never felt awkward. Also I was so engrossed in the happenings of the story that I wouldn't have noticed anything technical anyway. So glad I picked this one up!
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Second read through to refresh my memory for the sequel. Still adore this book. Still read it in a day.
Well, the similarities pretty much stop there (okay, there are a few more - but they're fairly standard book trope things). This book was So Good. I'm pleasantly surprised. And.. I finished it in a day. It was that good.
First person narratives usually bother me, but this one worked well. It never felt awkward. Also I was so engrossed in the happenings of the story that I wouldn't have noticed anything technical anyway. So glad I picked this one up!
*
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Second read through to refresh my memory for the sequel. Still adore this book. Still read it in a day.
phillygirljl's review
4.0
In a nutshell: With a unique view of vengeance, Assassin's Heart explores forbidden love, betrayal, and a young woman's quest to find her family's killers.
More review to come!
More review to come!
laughlinesandliterature's review
5.0
*I received this book from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review*
I loved this book, absolutely loved it. Assassin’s Heart was just what I needed to read, it was the perfect mix of Fantasy, Action, and Romance. It started out a bit slow, and I really wasn’t sold on that first chapter, but thankfully I kept with it. Oleander Saldana is fascinating to read about because she is so driven to be the best, but she also cares about her family in a way that is very endearing. I loved that Lea never took the easy way out, even when it would have been easier and safer to just give up. She also remained true to herself despite everything, this was not a book in which a lot of character growth was necessary. Lea wasn’t immature and she didn’t make poor decisions (usually), her only crime was to think that the person she loved cared enough about her to not murder her whole family, and really I don’t see anyway she could have known that it would backfire so badly. Lea did make some mistakes once she got to Yvain, but I chalked that up to the fact that she was
A. Just lost her entire family in a horrific massacre
B. Her boyfriend and his family are responsible
C. She’s in a new city
It doesn’t absolve her of the poor decisions she does make, but it does mean that I can understand her and grant her some grace here. Especially because once she does calm down and gain her bearings, she really starts messing things up. The other characters in this book were awesome, I really loved Les and the fact that he was NOT perfect. He was incredibly kind and wanted to help others, but he wasn’t afraid to be a murderer for hire because the world is just a cruel place sometimes. Les was a character that started off in the annoying category, and ended up in the endearing category. Even her uncle was fascinating even though he alternated between disliking her and trying to protect her. Val as the murderous love interest was such an odd dichotomy. It was obvious that he did care for Lea in some way, but never enough to go against his family. I also loved the way Ahiers mingled the religion and worship throughout the entire book. The gods of that world are not faceless and removed, but interacting with their worshipers on a whole new level. They take an active interest in those that worship them, offering protection to worshippers, and offering priests some real power. Sarah Ahiers gave us a fantastic bit of writing with this novel, the descriptions of Ravenna and Yvain were incredibly detailed, and I can picture each of them with perfect clarity. I would give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
*This review was first posted to Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2017/02/assassins-heart-by-sarah-ahiers.html*
I loved this book, absolutely loved it. Assassin’s Heart was just what I needed to read, it was the perfect mix of Fantasy, Action, and Romance. It started out a bit slow, and I really wasn’t sold on that first chapter, but thankfully I kept with it. Oleander Saldana is fascinating to read about because she is so driven to be the best, but she also cares about her family in a way that is very endearing. I loved that Lea never took the easy way out, even when it would have been easier and safer to just give up. She also remained true to herself despite everything, this was not a book in which a lot of character growth was necessary. Lea wasn’t immature and she didn’t make poor decisions (usually), her only crime was to think that the person she loved cared enough about her to not murder her whole family, and really I don’t see anyway she could have known that it would backfire so badly. Lea did make some mistakes once she got to Yvain, but I chalked that up to the fact that she was
A. Just lost her entire family in a horrific massacre
B. Her boyfriend and his family are responsible
C. She’s in a new city
It doesn’t absolve her of the poor decisions she does make, but it does mean that I can understand her and grant her some grace here. Especially because once she does calm down and gain her bearings, she really starts messing things up. The other characters in this book were awesome, I really loved Les and the fact that he was NOT perfect. He was incredibly kind and wanted to help others, but he wasn’t afraid to be a murderer for hire because the world is just a cruel place sometimes. Les was a character that started off in the annoying category, and ended up in the endearing category. Even her uncle was fascinating even though he alternated between disliking her and trying to protect her. Val as the murderous love interest was such an odd dichotomy. It was obvious that he did care for Lea in some way, but never enough to go against his family. I also loved the way Ahiers mingled the religion and worship throughout the entire book. The gods of that world are not faceless and removed, but interacting with their worshipers on a whole new level. They take an active interest in those that worship them, offering protection to worshippers, and offering priests some real power. Sarah Ahiers gave us a fantastic bit of writing with this novel, the descriptions of Ravenna and Yvain were incredibly detailed, and I can picture each of them with perfect clarity. I would give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
*This review was first posted to Moonlight Gleam Reviews http://moonlightgleam.com/2017/02/assassins-heart-by-sarah-ahiers.html*
dearestdorian's review
5.0
Holy crap. Read this book.
I just finished and I keep grinning and clenching my fists, because the residual awesomeness is still coursing through my blood. I feel like I could knock down a wall with nothing but my excitement over this.
I'm not generally a fan of teen-assassin novels. I've read too many that sucked, but this was a surprise. From page one, I was invested in Lea's story, because unlike many in the genre she actually spends her time doing assassin stuff. Her entire life is drenched in it, even the worldbuilding backs it up, and creates a sort of assassin mafia spread across nine families, all with different status.
Characters
Lea was great. Her motivation was extremely sympathetic, because who wouldn't want revenge in her situation? Her grief was realistic, as was her training and ability to focus despite the pain.
Les.
I didn't expect to like him as much as I did. He behaves like an actual person, but still has his skills, and he's charming without crossing a line and becoming a douche.
Val was much less present than other characters, but still important to the plot. I have mixed feelings towards him and generally agree with Lea's opinions of him.
Worldbuilding and Plot
Very strong. The religious aspect wasn't just a neat background detail. It played an active role in the plot, and everything was set up early, in manageable chunks. There was absolutely no infodumping.
Safraella's influence over the nine clipper families and the cities they operate in is neatly woven throughout.
There is no deus ex machina, no plot contrivances, nothing convenient. When Lea is in trouble, she has to get out of it herself, with her skills or using the environment and circumstances to her advantage.
Final Thoughts
Give me a sequel now.
I just finished and I keep grinning and clenching my fists, because the residual awesomeness is still coursing through my blood. I feel like I could knock down a wall with nothing but my excitement over this.
I'm not generally a fan of teen-assassin novels. I've read too many that sucked, but this was a surprise. From page one, I was invested in Lea's story, because unlike many in the genre she actually spends her time doing assassin stuff. Her entire life is drenched in it, even the worldbuilding backs it up, and creates a sort of assassin mafia spread across nine families, all with different status.
Characters
Lea was great. Her motivation was extremely sympathetic, because who wouldn't want revenge in her situation? Her grief was realistic, as was her training and ability to focus despite the pain.
Les.
I didn't expect to like him as much as I did. He behaves like an actual person, but still has his skills, and he's charming without crossing a line and becoming a douche.
Val was much less present than other characters, but still important to the plot. I have mixed feelings towards him and generally agree with Lea's opinions of him.
Worldbuilding and Plot
Very strong. The religious aspect wasn't just a neat background detail. It played an active role in the plot, and everything was set up early, in manageable chunks. There was absolutely no infodumping.
Safraella's influence over the nine clipper families and the cities they operate in is neatly woven throughout.
There is no deus ex machina, no plot contrivances, nothing convenient. When Lea is in trouble, she has to get out of it herself, with her skills or using the environment and circumstances to her advantage.
Final Thoughts
Give me a sequel now.
sydcreek's review against another edition
5.0
such a fantastic read! It felt like I could picture the entire book in my brain like a movie. at the end of every chapter, I just wanted to read more and more. I love how the romance wasn’t automatically “I hate you but I really love you”, it was a beautiful slow growth in the romance department! I will be adding the second book to my list
krayleann's review
3.0
Good story overall. Very strange religious system, but at least it's unique. Loved the characters and the roles they played in the plot - Everyone was useful. Wasn't crazy about the INSTA-love, but glad that Lia didn't let her love life change her ultimate goal. It finished up nicely, so will be interesting to see if there is a continuation.
elizabethkg's review against another edition
4.0
I really had to push myself through the beginning to late middle of the book. But then it picked up and Lea stopped whining and I really appreciated her after it. Now that I know it's a series, things make a bit more sense plot wise. It reminded me of the His fair Assassin world. Death God, assassins that follow his order, kick ass girl assassin...
I'm interested to see where this goes!
I'm interested to see where this goes!
_camk_'s review
3.0
Assassin's Heart had an interesting and intriguing premise but the story itself was a little bland.
The main character was nothing more than okay - there was nothing captivating about her as a leaf character and love story was nothing special. There was no spark between the characters and to be honest
Also, the main thing about the story I did not get was the ghost. Why was there ghosts?.
The main character was nothing more than okay - there was nothing captivating about her as a leaf character and love story was nothing special. There was no spark between the characters and to be honest
Spoiler
Val was more exciting so I read more about him rather than a wishy-washy love story.Also, the main thing about the story I did not get was the ghost. Why was there ghosts?