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lissajean7's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! It was a very satisfying second half of the first one.
The good:
1) I really loved the character development. I felt like I got to know them enough to know that I wanted to know more. That was a convoluted sentence, but it's true. The three main characters have realistic strengths and weaknesses and a bond that is something that makes you treasure the friends in your life even more. They have - sometimes severe - ups and downs and I feel like they stayed in character. Her side characters were unique enough to be both remembered and speculated upon. I'm dying to know what makes Thomas so skeptical of Whitnee for so long! And Whitnee's Mom...I want to know more about her! The characters that they both travel with and stumble upon give a depth to the world and a richness to the story.
2) I thought the magic system was cool. It wasn't explained in great detail and was more in the 'feel' the magic camp, but was well done just the same. I thought the different types of magic made sense and the effects of the magic were fun to experience. I am looking forward to reading about it more in the next book.
3) The pacing of this book was very fast! It was a fun read and intense pretty much from page one.
4)Caleb and Gabriel. I know...another love triangle. However, I found this one refreshing on several levels. First, I like both of them. That's a big plus. Usually there's one that is clearly (to me) the right choice, so there's not as much tension. But I love both of these characters, so I don't even know who I'm rooting for. Second, they both have very clear strengths and weaknesses and they each have a very different relationship with Whitnee - and love her in totally different and totally beautiful ways. I'm looking forward to getting to know Gabriel a little better in the next book, so I'll have a little bit better understanding of his feeling for her. Finally, I love their relationship to each other...totally jealous, but totally respecful at the same time. They recognise the good in the other and see how the other is good for Whitnee. Which just makes me like them both better!
The not-so-good:
1) Okay, this one is just plain bad. However, I'm not sure it's really the book's fault. I'm going to blame the publisher for a huge mistake until I learn otherwise. Windchaser and Windfall should be ONE book. They should never have been split in two...ever. Neither book on its own has a complete story arch. It drives me mad! Reading either one without the other is impossible. There is one story in these two books and they needed to market it as such. Honestly, if I hadn't met Krissi Dallas myself and enjoyed our conversation, I would NEVER have picked up this second book. That's how mad I was at the first one. And that would have been a horrible, sad thing because this book was great! This is one of my biggest pet peeves as a reader. I really could go on and on about how horrible this idea was, but I think I've said enough. You get the idea. By the way, THIS is the reason I had to give it four stars instead of five...and even then I had to console myself that it was on both stories put together because as individual books they aren't complete (but I wasn't going to go on about that, was I?)
2) Whitnee annoys me sometimes. She just drives me nuts. I want to take her out and smack her every now and again...and she's the viewpoint character. I really think some of her decisions are just plain dumb, but I'm pretty sure they're in character for her, so I think it's just personality conflicts beween me and her...hahahaha!
Thats it. So, final thoughts? Read both books as if they were one, you'll enjoy them.
The good:
1) I really loved the character development. I felt like I got to know them enough to know that I wanted to know more. That was a convoluted sentence, but it's true. The three main characters have realistic strengths and weaknesses and a bond that is something that makes you treasure the friends in your life even more. They have - sometimes severe - ups and downs and I feel like they stayed in character. Her side characters were unique enough to be both remembered and speculated upon. I'm dying to know what makes Thomas so skeptical of Whitnee for so long! And Whitnee's Mom...I want to know more about her! The characters that they both travel with and stumble upon give a depth to the world and a richness to the story.
2) I thought the magic system was cool. It wasn't explained in great detail and was more in the 'feel' the magic camp, but was well done just the same. I thought the different types of magic made sense and the effects of the magic were fun to experience. I am looking forward to reading about it more in the next book.
3) The pacing of this book was very fast! It was a fun read and intense pretty much from page one.
4)Caleb and Gabriel. I know...another love triangle. However, I found this one refreshing on several levels. First, I like both of them. That's a big plus. Usually there's one that is clearly (to me) the right choice, so there's not as much tension. But I love both of these characters, so I don't even know who I'm rooting for. Second, they both have very clear strengths and weaknesses and they each have a very different relationship with Whitnee - and love her in totally different and totally beautiful ways. I'm looking forward to getting to know Gabriel a little better in the next book, so I'll have a little bit better understanding of his feeling for her. Finally, I love their relationship to each other...totally jealous, but totally respecful at the same time. They recognise the good in the other and see how the other is good for Whitnee. Which just makes me like them both better!
The not-so-good:
1) Okay, this one is just plain bad. However, I'm not sure it's really the book's fault. I'm going to blame the publisher for a huge mistake until I learn otherwise. Windchaser and Windfall should be ONE book. They should never have been split in two...ever. Neither book on its own has a complete story arch. It drives me mad! Reading either one without the other is impossible. There is one story in these two books and they needed to market it as such. Honestly, if I hadn't met Krissi Dallas myself and enjoyed our conversation, I would NEVER have picked up this second book. That's how mad I was at the first one. And that would have been a horrible, sad thing because this book was great! This is one of my biggest pet peeves as a reader. I really could go on and on about how horrible this idea was, but I think I've said enough. You get the idea. By the way, THIS is the reason I had to give it four stars instead of five...and even then I had to console myself that it was on both stories put together because as individual books they aren't complete (but I wasn't going to go on about that, was I?)
2) Whitnee annoys me sometimes. She just drives me nuts. I want to take her out and smack her every now and again...and she's the viewpoint character. I really think some of her decisions are just plain dumb, but I'm pretty sure they're in character for her, so I think it's just personality conflicts beween me and her...hahahaha!
Thats it. So, final thoughts? Read both books as if they were one, you'll enjoy them.
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