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3.96 AVERAGE
3.96 AVERAGE
I have a lot of love in my heart and it goes out to this book. I was hooked, every chapter, every page I was left wondering what would happen next as I began to remember the characters and story that had brought me to love the world Snyder had created. I am looking forward to the next book and feel very lucky that she decided to continue the series!
I love the commander so much. I really want him and Valek to have a heart-to-heart and learn to trust one another again. Also, what is going to happen when the Commander becomes too old to rule or dies? Who will lead Ixia? And how will the continue the legacy that the Commander has built in his time as ruler? I hope that this series explores that, as it seems to be exploring the retirement of Valek and Yelena.
I love the commander so much. I really want him and Valek to have a heart-to-heart and learn to trust one another again. Also, what is going to happen when the Commander becomes too old to rule or dies? Who will lead Ixia? And how will the continue the legacy that the Commander has built in his time as ruler? I hope that this series explores that, as it seems to be exploring the retirement of Valek and Yelena.
Disappointed. I feel like I just reread Fire Study and Magic Study. Another bad guy Yelena put away escapes prison, with help, again. This is supposed to take place, what, six years after Fire Study? And yet all of the characters are the exact same and nothing has really changed. And the “villains” are the same too. It’s like Snyder has a formula that she saw worked once so she just keeps doing it, changing only a few details.
The plot is the same and Yelena reacts the same way to every situation, even when it hasn’t worked out for her not once. She always wants to go off and do things on her own, always get captured, always has to be rescued. She keeps things from Valek and people who could help her, which causes things to get even worse for her every single time. I go back and forth between hating her and being neutral about her. The only thing different here is that she doesn’t have her powers anymore, so a la Poison Study, but now she should be only half as helpless considering her assassin skills. But no, she’s pretty much just helpless because magicians are all powerful. And yet the bad guys constantly decide to “kill her later, just incapacitate her for now”, just to further the plot.
The story could be compressed down to at least half the size, and it would have been better that way. The last third of the book was somewhat interesting, so I’m frustrated that Snyder didn’t get there sooner. That being said, it wasn’t interesting, just somewhat. It still falls into the same pattern as the previous 3 books, making it repetitive and unimaginative. The most interesting part of the whole book was Valek’s story of how he infiltrated the King’s castle by disguises himself as the Queen’s beautician, detailing how he got the name “King Killer”. I fully enjoyed every minute of that story, but it was only one and a half chapters, split up. Which brings me to another issue I had: why are Valek and Yelena always split up? Why can’t we get a story where the Valek/Yelena dynamic is strong? They are rarely in the same room in all 4 Study books I’ve read. It’s crazy.
I loved Poison Study . But I feel like that formula is getting tired and each book after that has gotten more blah and boring. Valek, Janco, and Ari are awesome characters, but, again, there really hasn’t been much growth for any of the characters, and that’s frustrating. On top of that, the ending was very predictable, and it concerns me that the next book is going to be more of the same but with a new annoying character that'll be toted around.
Sorry to repeat myself, but I can't get over it. Shadow Study really feels like a repeat of the previous two books. Valek, Janco, and Ari save this from being a one or two star book, but I still feel like I wasted 2 days reading it, and a reading a 10 page summary of the book would have sufficed.
I already bought Night Study, the second book in the Soulfinders series/fourth book in the Study series, so I may read it eventually, but I’m not itching to read it. It’ll sit in my big pile of “to read someday” after I finish all of the others.
The plot is the same and Yelena reacts the same way to every situation, even when it hasn’t worked out for her not once. She always wants to go off and do things on her own, always get captured, always has to be rescued. She keeps things from Valek and people who could help her, which causes things to get even worse for her every single time. I go back and forth between hating her and being neutral about her. The only thing different here is that she doesn’t have her powers anymore, so a la Poison Study, but now she should be only half as helpless considering her assassin skills. But no, she’s pretty much just helpless because magicians are all powerful. And yet the bad guys constantly decide to “kill her later, just incapacitate her for now”, just to further the plot.
The story could be compressed down to at least half the size, and it would have been better that way. The last third of the book was somewhat interesting, so I’m frustrated that Snyder didn’t get there sooner. That being said, it wasn’t interesting, just somewhat. It still falls into the same pattern as the previous 3 books, making it repetitive and unimaginative. The most interesting part of the whole book was Valek’s story of how he infiltrated the King’s castle by disguises himself as the Queen’s beautician, detailing how he got the name “King Killer”. I fully enjoyed every minute of that story, but it was only one and a half chapters, split up. Which brings me to another issue I had: why are Valek and Yelena always split up? Why can’t we get a story where the Valek/Yelena dynamic is strong? They are rarely in the same room in all 4 Study books I’ve read. It’s crazy.
I loved Poison Study . But I feel like that formula is getting tired and each book after that has gotten more blah and boring. Valek, Janco, and Ari are awesome characters, but, again, there really hasn’t been much growth for any of the characters, and that’s frustrating. On top of that, the ending was very predictable, and it concerns me that the next book is going to be more of the same but with a new annoying character that'll be toted around.
Sorry to repeat myself, but I can't get over it. Shadow Study really feels like a repeat of the previous two books. Valek, Janco, and Ari save this from being a one or two star book, but I still feel like I wasted 2 days reading it, and a reading a 10 page summary of the book would have sufficed.
I already bought Night Study, the second book in the Soulfinders series/fourth book in the Study series, so I may read it eventually, but I’m not itching to read it. It’ll sit in my big pile of “to read someday” after I finish all of the others.
AND WOW, WE ARE BACK WITH THE AMAZING PLOT!! Only now we have Valek and Janco's POV, so it's finally not annoying that our main characters are at totally different places. Before this, it was extremely off putting that Valek was very much a protagonist in Poison Study, and then was barely there in the rest of the books, same about Janco and Ari, but to a lesser extent. BUT NOW IT'S ALL GOOD! Cannot wait for the next book in the series.
I have mixed feelings about this book. I fell in love with the Study series back in 2010 or 2011, and when I found out that there would be a new adventure for Yelena, Valek, Ari, and Janco, I fangirled for a good few weeks (and then I noticed the release date and cried, but that's besides the point). I loved Poison Study, but the next two books disappointed me [Magic Study] [Fire Study]. Not that they weren't interesting, but the characters kind of let me down. This book, unfortunately followed that pattern.
I loved that this book finally gave a peak into Valek's past. This was probably the most captivating part of the novel. Valek's past has always been hidden in the shadows, more so than him, and his story was probably what kept me constantly reading the book. Every time his part popped up, I'd sit up straighter and give the book my full attention, because oh my goodness, it was amazing. Gah, reading about him training and his life in general is the best thing ever. And how he met the Commander! AH. It was awesome. I'd actually recommend the book for old and new fans, JUST for Valek's story. You have to admit, you're curious too.
Then there was Yelena. I love her. Don't get me wrong. But I hate that since she got her magic she's become a very dependent character. It's like all of her kickass training and stuff got tossed out the window the minute she found out that she has magical powers. I hate it. And I hated it especially in this book. As stated in the synopsis, her magic is blocked, and she becomes this weak girl. She's mopey, and sad, and "vulnerable". Yet, in the first book she was kickass and amazing. She doesn't even try now. No more warm-ups and training for her. It's annoying. that's what it is. Reading about her worrying over her powers drive me insane. I know that she's worried about some things, like fire world stuff, and getting like barraged with magic mojo, but when it comes to a physical fight, she just can't and that bothers me beyond reason. She was probably the let down for me in this book, and that sucks.
Janco and Ari are awesome as always, and I really love the new badass touch the new characters add to the story. At least someone can hold their own in a fight. They're story provides another hint of mystery and intrigue to the story, as well as general confusion and fascination. I love the final twist within their story. It really makes you question loyalties and who's trustworthy and it's perfect.
As per usual, her world building was wonderful. While I would've liked a little more of it, just to refresh my memory after all these years, it was a perfect amount if you were to read the series consecutively, without pause. I've missed the lands of Ixia and Sitia, and I know I'll miss them just as much as I wait for the next book to come out...
All and all, not my favourite of the series, but not a bad start to the new segment of it. Valek's story honestly makes the book, and if you don't want to read it for any other reason, read it for Valek, and you won't regret it.
Plot: 4.5/5 Characters: 4/5 World Building: 4.5/5 Writing: 5/5 Cover: 5/5 Overall: 4.5/5 GoodReads Rating: 4.23/5
eARC obtained via Mira via Harlequin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
-review by Between Printed Pages
I loved that this book finally gave a peak into Valek's past. This was probably the most captivating part of the novel. Valek's past has always been hidden in the shadows, more so than him, and his story was probably what kept me constantly reading the book. Every time his part popped up, I'd sit up straighter and give the book my full attention, because oh my goodness, it was amazing. Gah, reading about him training and his life in general is the best thing ever. And how he met the Commander! AH. It was awesome. I'd actually recommend the book for old and new fans, JUST for Valek's story. You have to admit, you're curious too.
Then there was Yelena. I love her. Don't get me wrong. But I hate that since she got her magic she's become a very dependent character. It's like all of her kickass training and stuff got tossed out the window the minute she found out that she has magical powers. I hate it. And I hated it especially in this book. As stated in the synopsis, her magic is blocked, and she becomes this weak girl. She's mopey, and sad, and "vulnerable". Yet, in the first book she was kickass and amazing. She doesn't even try now. No more warm-ups and training for her. It's annoying. that's what it is. Reading about her worrying over her powers drive me insane. I know that she's worried about some things, like fire world stuff, and getting like barraged with magic mojo, but when it comes to a physical fight, she just can't and that bothers me beyond reason. She was probably the let down for me in this book, and that sucks.
Janco and Ari are awesome as always, and I really love the new badass touch the new characters add to the story. At least someone can hold their own in a fight. They're story provides another hint of mystery and intrigue to the story, as well as general confusion and fascination. I love the final twist within their story. It really makes you question loyalties and who's trustworthy and it's perfect.
As per usual, her world building was wonderful. While I would've liked a little more of it, just to refresh my memory after all these years, it was a perfect amount if you were to read the series consecutively, without pause. I've missed the lands of Ixia and Sitia, and I know I'll miss them just as much as I wait for the next book to come out...
All and all, not my favourite of the series, but not a bad start to the new segment of it. Valek's story honestly makes the book, and if you don't want to read it for any other reason, read it for Valek, and you won't regret it.
Plot: 4.5/5 Characters: 4/5 World Building: 4.5/5 Writing: 5/5 Cover: 5/5 Overall: 4.5/5 GoodReads Rating: 4.23/5
eARC obtained via Mira via Harlequin via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
-review by Between Printed Pages
I didn’t finish this book and I NEVER don’t finish books. I also never review books - I’m generally pretty easy to please. However, the writing was atrocious and seemed to get more remedial with each book.
Fuck, there’s MORE of these? I thought we were done. I wish we were done. (Looks like Sstudy came out in 2014, a couple years after I made the very smart decision to stop reading this fucking series. Apparently I was smarter at age 11 than I am now)
Never once in the history of literature has adding extra povs to your sequels added anything to your books. I’m sorry, but it’s true. If we had stuck with Yelena, this book MIGHT have been redeemable. But nooo
Here’s another universal truth of writing: if you’re going to spend half a book on contrived flashbacks telling the backstory of a secondary character, they have to give us new and interesting information. Valek’s drawn out history was neither. He had a perfectly serviceable backstory that simply did not need extra detail, and beating a dead king gets you nothing.
Was sstudy bad? Yes. Do I regret reading it? Yes. Is it bad enough that I’m going to abandon this train wreck of a series? Only time will tell.
Never once in the history of literature has adding extra povs to your sequels added anything to your books. I’m sorry, but it’s true. If we had stuck with Yelena, this book MIGHT have been redeemable. But nooo
Here’s another universal truth of writing: if you’re going to spend half a book on contrived flashbacks telling the backstory of a secondary character, they have to give us new and interesting information. Valek’s drawn out history was neither. He had a perfectly serviceable backstory that simply did not need extra detail, and beating a dead king gets you nothing.
Was sstudy bad? Yes. Do I regret reading it? Yes. Is it bad enough that I’m going to abandon this train wreck of a series? Only time will tell.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
It was great to be back with Yelena and the crew. This book is the first one in the Ixia novels to have multiple perspectives, which was a lot of fun, especially since they were of Janco and Valek. We got some of Valek’s backstory which was interesting. Snyder continued to use her cliffhanger endings to chapters, which always made her previous books hard to pause. However, since the chapters switched perspectives, it made it easier to put down and was sometimes hard to remember exactly what had happened at the end of the last chapter with that character’s perspective.
I like the extra conniving that is happening in Ixia. The Commander’s decisions thus far have been unexpected and yet not surprising for his character. It’s added a fun complexity that is sure to make all the Ixians have to reevaluate their allegiances.
It is also frustrating that every female character seems to have sexual assault as part of their backstory. It almost feels like Snyder wants each female character to have something in their past that they have overcome or need to overcome and this is the only trauma she can think of.
It is also frustrating that every female character seems to have sexual assault as part of their backstory. It almost feels like Snyder wants each female character to have something in their past that they have overcome or need to overcome and this is the only trauma she can think of.
Spin-offs can be sooo... iffy. It can very easily disappoint fans especially if you love the original trilogy. I approached Shadow Study with a mixture of caution and utter excitement. Yes, a lot more excitement than caution because Maria V. Snyder is a Must-Read-Author for me. And to my complete delight, she did not disappoint; Shadow Study had me on the edge of my seat from the very first page to the very last.
In Shadow Study, there are a few perspectives (Yelena’s, Valek’s, & a little bit of Janco’s) and a number of new very interesting characters. What is most prominent in this book is Valek’s flashbacks of his past –mostly on how he became who he is and to be where he is. As a fan, I must say I found these to be very exciting! Although it’s a little strange that his background is being told as Valek’s spacing out and remembering them… are you allowed to space out if you’re an assassin?
With Yelena’s magic being blocked (pssst, I don’t think it’s the poisoned arrow! I think something at the end of the book has something to do with this), it lent the story higher tension as it renders her vulnerable. Each time something happens, my thought ran to, ‘oh no, she’s got no magic! This is bad…’ She’s proven herself to be very resourceful again and again. She’s definitely one of my favourite heroine of all time.
Shadow Study has an action-driven plot full of intrigues and with many twists that I will guarantee to keep your eyes glued onto the pages. An Un-put-down-able read and I think I may have to re-read the Study trilogy to staunch my impatience for book 2. If you haven’t read the Study trilogy yet, I suggest that you start there first. If you loved Study trilogy, never fear, you’d love this new instalment of Yelena & Valek!
Thank you, Harlequin Books Australia for copy of paperback in exchange of honest review
In Shadow Study, there are a few perspectives (Yelena’s, Valek’s, & a little bit of Janco’s) and a number of new very interesting characters. What is most prominent in this book is Valek’s flashbacks of his past –mostly on how he became who he is and to be where he is. As a fan, I must say I found these to be very exciting! Although it’s a little strange that his background is being told as Valek’s spacing out and remembering them… are you allowed to space out if you’re an assassin?
With Yelena’s magic being blocked (pssst, I don’t think it’s the poisoned arrow! I think something at the end of the book has something to do with this), it lent the story higher tension as it renders her vulnerable. Each time something happens, my thought ran to, ‘oh no, she’s got no magic! This is bad…’ She’s proven herself to be very resourceful again and again. She’s definitely one of my favourite heroine of all time.
Shadow Study has an action-driven plot full of intrigues and with many twists that I will guarantee to keep your eyes glued onto the pages. An Un-put-down-able read and I think I may have to re-read the Study trilogy to staunch my impatience for book 2. If you haven’t read the Study trilogy yet, I suggest that you start there first. If you loved Study trilogy, never fear, you’d love this new instalment of Yelena & Valek!
Thank you, Harlequin Books Australia for copy of paperback in exchange of honest review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced