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sashapasha's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
“Yelena?”
“Hmm?”
“I’d like you to stay with me while we figure out how to unblock your magic. We’re stronger together.”
“All right.”
He laughed. “I thought I’d have more of a fight.”
“I’m too tired to argue.”
“Then I should take advantage of the situation.”
I cracked one eye open. “And?”
“I’d like you to stay with me forever.”
I was prompted to read this after seeing the above snippet of conversation between Valek and Yelena, which I found quite cute. I loved Poison Study and, while I didn't much like the sequels, Valek and Yelena have always held a spot in my heart. However, the issues I had with the sequels did not vanish in this book – if anything, they intensified.
Once again, Valek and Yelena only spend about 2% of the book together and that time generally consists of them in bed. The fantastic, push-and-shove relationship dynamic and quick dialogue from the first book are gone, replaced by empty platitudes and love-making. The rest of the book was then reduced to a plodding mystery that felt like more of a check-in with old characters than a solid storyline. Valek's chapters primarily consisted of flashbacks of Valek's assassin training and the commander's takeover; while somewhat interesting, I kept assuming they would somehow be tied back into the story, but the ending did not satisfactorily provide an explanation for their inclusion and I was left with the impression that they were just added to increase page-count.
What kept me reading was the need to reach the snippet of conversation, and I confess, there were some boring and detail-oriented pages that I skimmed. I finally found the quote two pages before the end and it wasn't much expanded upon – quite the let down. Can't say I'll be reading the sequels to this one, despite the cliffhanger-ish ending. Or maybe I will, I seem to have a weakness for reading these books despite not really liking the direction they take.
lauracooleyjohnson's review against another edition
3.0
This book seemed a bit out of place to me. Perhaps I read things out of order (I did skip the little books in between, maybe that’s why?) but the plot felt a bit disjointed, referring to characters I didn’t know with histories I didn’t have. And the end didn’t resolve anything, just left us with a blatant cliffhanger. The only reason that I didn’t give this only two stars is that I really enjoyed reading about Valek’s backstory. That was interesting, although didn’t really advance the main, convoluted, storyline.
readingwiththeresa's review against another edition
5.0
HOW DO I EVEN BEGIN???? It took me a while to finish this book because of life, work, school and everything else BUT I FINALLY FINISHED and oh my GOODNESSSS!!!! This has officially became one of my favorite series of ALL TIME!
Yelena: I adore her craziness, madness, stubbornness, loyalty and everything about her.
Valek: Deadly but definitely has a soft spot for his woman, Yelena
Janco: BAE
Yelena: I adore her craziness, madness, stubbornness, loyalty and everything about her.
Valek: Deadly but definitely has a soft spot for his woman, Yelena
Janco: BAE
callmelaura's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
cosymilko's review against another edition
4.0
This book feels like it was combined with Night Study to be one book. I don't know how I feel about it. It just sort of.... stopped. Suddenly. Like I ran into a wall. I'm annoyed.
Let's go back a tad further though.
Things are getting serious in this universe. There's a drug that can paralyse magic and incapacitate a person. There's a drug that can open a person's mind and leave them vulnerable to psychic attacks. There's a type of magic that prevents magic from being used near another person. There's a type of magic, now outlawed and hopefully lost, that allows a person to use another's magical potential as their own. There's a magical way to swap a person's soul into another's body.
There are countless poisons that will be undetectable to the average person.
And then, you have a rag-tag bunch of magicians and assassins and spies trying to keep the world as balanced as they can without everything turning to mush when they go on holiday.
Caught up?
Yelena is a soul-finder. She finds souls. Frees them. Let's them move on. Pretty much what it says on the box.
At the start of this book though, she loses her magic. The rest of the book is a tight plot following her search to find out how she lost her magic - it covers all possible avenues, almost tiresomely at times.
This is also the first time the book has not been told entirely from Yelena's point of view. We get chapters titled with other characters names and the story is told 3rd person from their point of view. Helpful for all the action we miss when Yelena splits the party.
We also get Valek's backstory. I know people were dying to have it and to be honest, I could have done without. The version in my head was so much richer. And he was so much more brutal and fierce for not having a fleshed out backstory.
I'm going to finish this because I love this series and as always, the secondary characters are amazing in Snyder's books. It just didn't rock my world the way the first series did.
Let's go back a tad further though.
Things are getting serious in this universe. There's a drug that can paralyse magic and incapacitate a person. There's a drug that can open a person's mind and leave them vulnerable to psychic attacks. There's a type of magic that prevents magic from being used near another person. There's a type of magic, now outlawed and hopefully lost, that allows a person to use another's magical potential as their own. There's a magical way to swap a person's soul into another's body.
There are countless poisons that will be undetectable to the average person.
And then, you have a rag-tag bunch of magicians and assassins and spies trying to keep the world as balanced as they can without everything turning to mush when they go on holiday.
Caught up?
Yelena is a soul-finder. She finds souls. Frees them. Let's them move on. Pretty much what it says on the box.
At the start of this book though, she loses her magic. The rest of the book is a tight plot following her search to find out how she lost her magic - it covers all possible avenues, almost tiresomely at times.
This is also the first time the book has not been told entirely from Yelena's point of view. We get chapters titled with other characters names and the story is told 3rd person from their point of view. Helpful for all the action we miss when Yelena splits the party.
We also get Valek's backstory. I know people were dying to have it and to be honest, I could have done without. The version in my head was so much richer. And he was so much more brutal and fierce for not having a fleshed out backstory.
I'm going to finish this because I love this series and as always, the secondary characters are amazing in Snyder's books. It just didn't rock my world the way the first series did.
marie_reads_books's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
frenchfrybri's review against another edition
3.0
this is like a second part of the trilogy i was reading before which was really really good and all 4 or 5 star reads. this one is still good but i rated it lower cause it just didn’t live up to the other ones. too much was going on and i didn’t follow all of what was happening
_joyfullyyy's review against another edition
4.0
This is the book where we explore Valek's backstory, and the tension between him and the Commander because of his loyalty to Yelena. This is the sequel we wanted over a decade ago - and Maria V. Snyder delivered. There are some great new characters too, like Onora.
I could have been more interested in Yelena's POV chapters. Unfortunately, I cannot recall much from Magic Study or Fire Study, so I got confused at times.
I could have been more interested in Yelena's POV chapters. Unfortunately, I cannot recall much from Magic Study or Fire Study, so I got confused at times.
brendalovesbooks's review against another edition
3.0
When I saw this available on Netgalley to review, I was pretty excited. I love it when I can get favorite author's books early. I enjoyed this one, but was a little disappointed in it. I felt like it moved a bit too slowly until the end when everything happened way too quickly.
I didn't understand how the story was going to get all wrapped up when there wasn't very much book left. Well, it didn't really get all wrapped up. Obviously there's more to the series, but this book left a lot of things up in the air, and what it did resolve it did so in a matter of pages.
I liked the characters, but the more I read books set in this world, I find Janco less endearing and more annoying. Still, I did enjoy reading this, and will definitely continue on with the series.
I didn't understand how the story was going to get all wrapped up when there wasn't very much book left. Well, it didn't really get all wrapped up. Obviously there's more to the series, but this book left a lot of things up in the air, and what it did resolve it did so in a matter of pages.
I liked the characters, but the more I read books set in this world, I find Janco less endearing and more annoying. Still, I did enjoy reading this, and will definitely continue on with the series.
freadomlibrary's review against another edition
5.0
This review was originally posted at https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
It’s no surprise how much I love this series so obviously, I have an amazing time when reading. These books tend to be filled with non-stop action and drama and this book is no exception. There’s suspense and mystery and intrigue. This book is filled with dangerous situations and the characters are bombarded with problems the entire time I have to say that while this series is marketed as YA, the grand majority of the characters are adults which definitely affects the themes explored here.
Writing Style – 4 out of 5 stars
Unlike the previous trilogies I’ve read from this author, this book has a lot more POV’s. It was really awesome to see inside the minds of some of my favorite side characters and I love how distinct each voice felt. The writing is really fast paced, engaging and addicting. It’s detailed and descriptive and super easy to read through. The magic system is complicated and tends to have continuous holes but it’s also so freaking entertaining that I can’t complain haha.
Characters – 5 out of 5 stars
All of these characters are basically my babies and I don’t think I could think critically about them even if I tried. So forgive me while the rest of this review is basically me gushing about these guys with a few exceptions.
Yelena is my favorite character of all time and I am so incredibly happy to be back in her head in this book! She’s much more vulnerable and scared than I’ve ever seen her before, this book definitely takes her out of her comfort zone and makes her confront the way she’s lived for so long. She’s worried, protective but definitely just as reckless as she’s always been which yes, is still as frustrating as it’s always been haha. I’m looking forward to seeing how she grows throughout the rest of the series because she’s in a completely new situation now and it’s going to be challenging for her.
There’s various side characters that are becoming more prominent in this book, from hearing from their points of views for the first time or to being introduced to them for the first time. Valek is my favorite, I honestly can’t quite grasp how old he is in this book, it’s insanity. But I loved seeing inside his head and his growth though! I don’t think I’ve ever seen his explore his emotions as much before, it was great. Janco is one of my favorites in this series because he’s just so hilarious with a side of annoying. He’s that character that brings comic relief and he does it well. Finally, I’ll mention Onora who’s a brand new character who throws a wrench in the entire dynamic of the team and that was really interesting. She’s defensive and guarded so I hope to learn more about her in the next few books.
Emotionally
The plot is full of mystery. We follow Yelena, whose life has only gotten more dangerous since becoming a poison taster. She gets attacked and her magic is blocked away and she has to find out what happened without alerting her enemies of her weakness. I’m glad that there’s several POVs in this book. There’s so much going on plot wise (which is no surprise, that’s how these books are) that it would’ve been much harder to keep up with everything with that was happening. There’s various different plot lines and things that are happening simultaneously. There’s a lot of action, there’s a lot of drama, and there’s also so much more new information. One of my favorite things about this series is the fact that we get to grow with the characters. This book is sold and marketed as young adult but the grand majority of the characters (all the main ones) are adults. Even one of my favorites is in his forties. So the kinds of things happening in this book are adult in nature. The drama I mentioned s beyond what most YA books have in their books and I liked reading about these kinds of older people problems. One of them being I have acquired an entire lifetime full of enemies in my job and now I have no magic to defend myself. That’s some heavy shit haha. It brought a whole new dimension to the regular dynamic that’s always been a part of the series. These crazy impossible situations that always seem hopeless and somehow when you reach the end, things get resolved. It’s always a roller coaster ride and that’s one of the reasons I love this series. But at the same time, you get in a comfortable rhythm and yet, just when you think this world can’t get anymore complicated or complex, the author throws a wrench into the system and it does. Everything is so intense and so crazy right now that I flew through the entire book and could’ve finished it in a day if I wanted to. The ending was so unfair! It’s one of those cliffhangers that hit you deep in the feels and you don’t even know what to do with yourself. I had to start the second book immediately even though it was like two in the morning. I have no regrets though.
Yelena is one of my favorite characters of all time, but the poor girl can never catch a break. She’s always having such a hard time at it. The past few years of her life have taught her to deal with things on her own. She’s always taken obstacles in stride and tried to do the best for everyone that she can. However, this particular situation is taking her out of her comfort zone and making her vulnerable. That is terrifying for her but she’s also so used to being independent and self-sufficient that she becomes reckless which is so frustrating! She’s always been smart and brave but sometimes she throws herself into situations thinking that she knows the best way to solve the problems happening, but there’s so many people involved and it doesn’t really occur to her to ask for assistance. I love that she’s growing and that she has the space to develop more as a character.
I’ll talk briefly about some of the side characters. Valek is one of my favorites, I love Yelena and him together, they’re my favorite ship of all time. In this book, however, his hard exterior is cracking. He’s much more worried and more protective than usual. We get to learn more about his past which is something I’ve always been intrigued by and it was so amazing to read about! Janco’s point of view was kind of a surprise for me. He’s never really had that much of a voice within the plot but I loved reading from his voice. He brought a lot of humor and simplicity to what was going on which helped alleviate the feeling of tension that the general series always brings. And we also get to see that being the joker isn’t the only thing that he’s good at. He’s really observant and he’s a huge asset to the type of work Valek’s team does in this world. Also, his bromance with Ari gives me the feels and the giggles all the time haha. Lastly, I want to talk about a side character. This side character has been around for the entire big series (The Chronicles of Ixia) and he’s trans. Finding that out in the first book was one of my favorite things about this series. Apparently, there was some further explanation in the third book of the first trilogy but I didn’t really consciously take it in because I read that book so quickly. However, that explanation is reiterated in this book and… it’s so upsetting. For some unknown reason, the author felt the need to add a magical reason to this side character’s trans identity. I don’t feel like it’s necessary and it’s so beyond complicated in a way that it didn’t need to be. I would’ve loved for this powerful, confident and intelligent side character to just have his trans identity and for it to not need extra explanation. I just feel like it cheapens his identity and ruins some of his greatness. That’s my biggest issue with this series as a whole.
Overall, I loved this book but I already knew that was going to happen. The plot is fast paced, the writing style is addictive and distinct between characters. I loved seeing much more adult themes and conflicts explored in this book and I can’t wait to see how the rest of the books continue to develop the plot. I’d also like to say that this is my favorite of all time and all this gushing comes from a personal bias.
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
It’s no surprise how much I love this series so obviously, I have an amazing time when reading. These books tend to be filled with non-stop action and drama and this book is no exception. There’s suspense and mystery and intrigue. This book is filled with dangerous situations and the characters are bombarded with problems the entire time I have to say that while this series is marketed as YA, the grand majority of the characters are adults which definitely affects the themes explored here.
Writing Style – 4 out of 5 stars
Unlike the previous trilogies I’ve read from this author, this book has a lot more POV’s. It was really awesome to see inside the minds of some of my favorite side characters and I love how distinct each voice felt. The writing is really fast paced, engaging and addicting. It’s detailed and descriptive and super easy to read through. The magic system is complicated and tends to have continuous holes but it’s also so freaking entertaining that I can’t complain haha.
Characters – 5 out of 5 stars
All of these characters are basically my babies and I don’t think I could think critically about them even if I tried. So forgive me while the rest of this review is basically me gushing about these guys with a few exceptions.
Yelena is my favorite character of all time and I am so incredibly happy to be back in her head in this book! She’s much more vulnerable and scared than I’ve ever seen her before, this book definitely takes her out of her comfort zone and makes her confront the way she’s lived for so long. She’s worried, protective but definitely just as reckless as she’s always been which yes, is still as frustrating as it’s always been haha. I’m looking forward to seeing how she grows throughout the rest of the series because she’s in a completely new situation now and it’s going to be challenging for her.
There’s various side characters that are becoming more prominent in this book, from hearing from their points of views for the first time or to being introduced to them for the first time. Valek is my favorite, I honestly can’t quite grasp how old he is in this book, it’s insanity. But I loved seeing inside his head and his growth though! I don’t think I’ve ever seen his explore his emotions as much before, it was great. Janco is one of my favorites in this series because he’s just so hilarious with a side of annoying. He’s that character that brings comic relief and he does it well. Finally, I’ll mention Onora who’s a brand new character who throws a wrench in the entire dynamic of the team and that was really interesting. She’s defensive and guarded so I hope to learn more about her in the next few books.
Emotionally
Spoiler
It’s no secret that this was going to be a book that I love because it’s part of my favorite series of all time, but I did have some issues with some of the choices the author made with the characters.The plot is full of mystery. We follow Yelena, whose life has only gotten more dangerous since becoming a poison taster. She gets attacked and her magic is blocked away and she has to find out what happened without alerting her enemies of her weakness. I’m glad that there’s several POVs in this book. There’s so much going on plot wise (which is no surprise, that’s how these books are) that it would’ve been much harder to keep up with everything with that was happening. There’s various different plot lines and things that are happening simultaneously. There’s a lot of action, there’s a lot of drama, and there’s also so much more new information. One of my favorite things about this series is the fact that we get to grow with the characters. This book is sold and marketed as young adult but the grand majority of the characters (all the main ones) are adults. Even one of my favorites is in his forties. So the kinds of things happening in this book are adult in nature. The drama I mentioned s beyond what most YA books have in their books and I liked reading about these kinds of older people problems. One of them being I have acquired an entire lifetime full of enemies in my job and now I have no magic to defend myself. That’s some heavy shit haha. It brought a whole new dimension to the regular dynamic that’s always been a part of the series. These crazy impossible situations that always seem hopeless and somehow when you reach the end, things get resolved. It’s always a roller coaster ride and that’s one of the reasons I love this series. But at the same time, you get in a comfortable rhythm and yet, just when you think this world can’t get anymore complicated or complex, the author throws a wrench into the system and it does. Everything is so intense and so crazy right now that I flew through the entire book and could’ve finished it in a day if I wanted to. The ending was so unfair! It’s one of those cliffhangers that hit you deep in the feels and you don’t even know what to do with yourself. I had to start the second book immediately even though it was like two in the morning. I have no regrets though.
Yelena is one of my favorite characters of all time, but the poor girl can never catch a break. She’s always having such a hard time at it. The past few years of her life have taught her to deal with things on her own. She’s always taken obstacles in stride and tried to do the best for everyone that she can. However, this particular situation is taking her out of her comfort zone and making her vulnerable. That is terrifying for her but she’s also so used to being independent and self-sufficient that she becomes reckless which is so frustrating! She’s always been smart and brave but sometimes she throws herself into situations thinking that she knows the best way to solve the problems happening, but there’s so many people involved and it doesn’t really occur to her to ask for assistance. I love that she’s growing and that she has the space to develop more as a character.
I’ll talk briefly about some of the side characters. Valek is one of my favorites, I love Yelena and him together, they’re my favorite ship of all time. In this book, however, his hard exterior is cracking. He’s much more worried and more protective than usual. We get to learn more about his past which is something I’ve always been intrigued by and it was so amazing to read about! Janco’s point of view was kind of a surprise for me. He’s never really had that much of a voice within the plot but I loved reading from his voice. He brought a lot of humor and simplicity to what was going on which helped alleviate the feeling of tension that the general series always brings. And we also get to see that being the joker isn’t the only thing that he’s good at. He’s really observant and he’s a huge asset to the type of work Valek’s team does in this world. Also, his bromance with Ari gives me the feels and the giggles all the time haha. Lastly, I want to talk about a side character. This side character has been around for the entire big series (The Chronicles of Ixia) and he’s trans. Finding that out in the first book was one of my favorite things about this series. Apparently, there was some further explanation in the third book of the first trilogy but I didn’t really consciously take it in because I read that book so quickly. However, that explanation is reiterated in this book and… it’s so upsetting. For some unknown reason, the author felt the need to add a magical reason to this side character’s trans identity. I don’t feel like it’s necessary and it’s so beyond complicated in a way that it didn’t need to be. I would’ve loved for this powerful, confident and intelligent side character to just have his trans identity and for it to not need extra explanation. I just feel like it cheapens his identity and ruins some of his greatness. That’s my biggest issue with this series as a whole.
Overall, I loved this book but I already knew that was going to happen. The plot is fast paced, the writing style is addictive and distinct between characters. I loved seeing much more adult themes and conflicts explored in this book and I can’t wait to see how the rest of the books continue to develop the plot. I’d also like to say that this is my favorite of all time and all this gushing comes from a personal bias.