Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
I was recommended this book (thanks Em!) and will forever owe her for it!
I really liked this book. Political drama is my jam and pairing that with romance is always going to be a plus for me. This book does hit some of the "BookTok" cliches and tropes and characterizations that is super common in the past few years BUT this book did some things to set itself apart from that.
Ithacana and Maridrina are so unique to any other fantasy nation that I've read - particularly Ithacana. The world Jensen has crafted is so interesting and the geography/land really takes on a larger than life presence and feels like a major character. Ithacana's culture and its contrast with Maridrina's is incredibly interesting - giving reasons to why these two just don't get along besides The Bridge.
I really like that Lara is the grim dark broody one of the pairing while Aren is idealistic and outgoing. It's a great mix up from the typical formula and I like both of them AND them together very much. (Although, I wish Lara got to be more brutal and violent - hoping we get more of that in the sequel! Because it's quite different to /say/ she is but to see it on the rare occasion really hits hard).
TL;DR - Super fun, tropey but with enough uniqueness to make it a good read.
I really liked this book. Political drama is my jam and pairing that with romance is always going to be a plus for me. This book does hit some of the "BookTok" cliches and tropes and characterizations that is super common in the past few years BUT this book did some things to set itself apart from that.
Ithacana and Maridrina are so unique to any other fantasy nation that I've read - particularly Ithacana. The world Jensen has crafted is so interesting and the geography/land really takes on a larger than life presence and feels like a major character. Ithacana's culture and its contrast with Maridrina's is incredibly interesting - giving reasons to why these two just don't get along besides The Bridge.
I really like that Lara is the grim dark broody one of the pairing while Aren is idealistic and outgoing. It's a great mix up from the typical formula and I like both of them AND them together very much. (Although, I wish Lara got to be more brutal and violent - hoping we get more of that in the sequel! Because it's quite different to /say/ she is but to see it on the rare occasion really hits hard).
TL;DR - Super fun, tropey but with enough uniqueness to make it a good read.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Over all a good book. Writing is solid. Not phenomenal but good enough not to distract me. If anything, I think the reason this isn’t a 5 star is because by the time we actually got to the couple’s relationship I expected more.
It was a slow burn alright. But once they gave into their feelings it’s like we went from 0 to 100. There was no real gradually getting to know each other. In fact, the book time skips what I feel like would have been good developments for both Lara and Aren, but Lara especially. They talk about Lara starting a school but it would have been nice to actually SEE these things develop, as well as their relationship in general, rather than just hearing about it casually only to never be mentioned again.
I honestly don’t know if I want to read book 2. I want to because man that cliffhanger but on the other hand I don’t want to have the author gloss over what I feel are essential elements of a slow burn, especially a slow burn with betrayal.
It was a slow burn alright. But once they gave into their feelings it’s like we went from 0 to 100. There was no real gradually getting to know each other. In fact, the book time skips what I feel like would have been good developments for both Lara and Aren, but Lara especially. They talk about Lara starting a school but it would have been nice to actually SEE these things develop, as well as their relationship in general, rather than just hearing about it casually only to never be mentioned again.
I honestly don’t know if I want to read book 2. I want to because man that cliffhanger but on the other hand I don’t want to have the author gloss over what I feel are essential elements of a slow burn, especially a slow burn with betrayal.
I really liked this book! I'm all for a marriage of convenience and forced proximity plot! Really liked the unique idea of the plot, having the Kingdoms fight over a Bridge to gain control isn't something I've seen in a book before
I also really enjoyed Lara and Arens characters. Lara is super badass and I love a strong badass fmc. Aren is just a giant softie in disguise and I love his and Lara's relationship
Just a couple of things stopping me from giving this 5 stars. I felt like it needed to be a little bit longer, it felt like the time jumps were a bit too often and the final battle just felt a tad fast like it was over in 0.2 seconds. The stakes just didn't feel high enough. I feel if it was a little longer there would have been more time to explore the enemy taking over the Bridge
Overall really liked it and can't wait to read the rest of the series
I also really enjoyed Lara and Arens characters. Lara is super badass and I love a strong badass fmc. Aren is just a giant softie in disguise and I love his and Lara's relationship
Just a couple of things stopping me from giving this 5 stars. I felt like it needed to be a little bit longer, it felt like the time jumps were a bit too often and the final battle just felt a tad fast like it was over in 0.2 seconds. The stakes just didn't feel high enough. I feel if it was a little longer there would have been more time to explore the enemy taking over the Bridge
Overall really liked it and can't wait to read the rest of the series
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was entertaining. I would have liked to see more details about how they went from hate to love. I expected there to be a 50/50 of fantasy and romance, but the fantasy aspect was lacking.
adventurous
challenging
fast-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
adventurous
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