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claire_loves_books's review
3.0
I really enjoyed the first book but this one fell a bit flat for me.
It felt like there was too much happening and none of it was ever really explained.
It felt like there was too much happening and none of it was ever really explained.
Spoiler
The thing that irritated me the most though was the way Abby kept bouncing back and forth for no apparent reason between Taliver and Ion. She wants one, she wants the other, she wants them both, she wants neither. Decide woman! Decide!chelseavbc's review
5.0
This review was originally published at Vampire Book Club.
Remember how you fell in love with Brystion in A Brush of Darkness? I didn’t think anyone would be more appealing to me in Abby’s world.
I. Was. Wrong.
So very wrong. We come back into Abby’s world eight months after the end of the first book. Brystion broke up with Abby because it “just wouldn’t work” with him being an immortal succubus and her being a human, albeit one with serious fae ties. Moira placed her brother Talivar as Abby’s bodyguard. And they fell into a complementary friendship — both caring for Moira’s son.
Talivar is emotionally wounded, an outcast and recognizes Abby’s strength. And, honestly, after spending more than 350 pages with him — I just want to climb the guy like a tree. I love the way he interacts with Abby and the obvious burdens that come with being the unwanted royal.
A Sliver of Shadow isn’t about Talivar, though. It’s about a struggle for power. (Isn’t it always with the fae?) Once again, Abby’s found herself mixed up in the Fairy Court’s troubles. In order to help, she has to challenge her past. She’s given access to missing memories and reconciling the truth and the implications on her life forces her into a more mature role.
All the characters are dealing with regret in A Sliver of Shadow. Many want to wish away past deals, others past hurts and most of all those past actions that read like betrayal in hindsight. There’s a beautiful story arc of Abby — and others — making the move to make peace with her life, without foregoing the snort-induing one-liners.
After you’ve finished, you’ll love Abby even more. You’ll care about Taliver and Ion. You’ll be enraptured in the drama of the Crossroads. And you may be tempted to immediately re-read.
Snarky, sexy and action-packed, A Sliver of Shadow is a must-read.
Sexual content: Sex and plenty of sexual references (Phineas is around, after all.)
Remember how you fell in love with Brystion in A Brush of Darkness? I didn’t think anyone would be more appealing to me in Abby’s world.
I. Was. Wrong.
So very wrong. We come back into Abby’s world eight months after the end of the first book. Brystion broke up with Abby because it “just wouldn’t work” with him being an immortal succubus and her being a human, albeit one with serious fae ties. Moira placed her brother Talivar as Abby’s bodyguard. And they fell into a complementary friendship — both caring for Moira’s son.
Talivar is emotionally wounded, an outcast and recognizes Abby’s strength. And, honestly, after spending more than 350 pages with him — I just want to climb the guy like a tree. I love the way he interacts with Abby and the obvious burdens that come with being the unwanted royal.
A Sliver of Shadow isn’t about Talivar, though. It’s about a struggle for power. (Isn’t it always with the fae?) Once again, Abby’s found herself mixed up in the Fairy Court’s troubles. In order to help, she has to challenge her past. She’s given access to missing memories and reconciling the truth and the implications on her life forces her into a more mature role.
All the characters are dealing with regret in A Sliver of Shadow. Many want to wish away past deals, others past hurts and most of all those past actions that read like betrayal in hindsight. There’s a beautiful story arc of Abby — and others — making the move to make peace with her life, without foregoing the snort-induing one-liners.
After you’ve finished, you’ll love Abby even more. You’ll care about Taliver and Ion. You’ll be enraptured in the drama of the Crossroads. And you may be tempted to immediately re-read.
Snarky, sexy and action-packed, A Sliver of Shadow is a must-read.
Sexual content: Sex and plenty of sexual references (Phineas is around, after all.)
booklvrkat's review
5.0
Abby Sinclair, or Absinthe in Faery, is at it again. And she's flying by the seat of her pants. She's TouchStoned to .... well, just about everyone now and it's draining her. Not to mention that the Queen of Fae has gotten ill, Moira won't come back, and some seriously demented people claiming to be something they aren't are running around Portsmythe. Heart broken by Ion and a new love interest in her new guardian, Talivar, aren't making things easier. Did I mention the Crossroads slamming shut, trapping OtherFolk here? What's a girl to do but rescue the world while trying to keep the men around her from making her a possession of theirs?
drey72's review
4.0
Things have a way of going awry when Moira leaves Abby in charge. This time while Moira’s in Faery, her son sprouts wings, a “new” Protectorate shows up and tries to bind Abby to a contract, and her studies in the Dreaming aren’t going smoothly. But it’s all manageable.
Until the CrossRoads are closed, and all the OtherFolk stuck on this side are getting antsy – when they aren’t just simply fading away. Now Abby has to take her barely-there skills into Faery to find the Queen and get the CrossRoads re-opened. Never mind that she’s unprotected while there. Never mind that she has no clue how to achieve either goal. And never mind that she may not survive the endeavor. She still has to try, because she’s Abby…
The things she learns in Faery, though, would make anyone cower before the madness of the Queen. But Abby cannot, if she’s to save her friends. And family.
The story keeps you intrigued and wanting to know what happens next. The characters get developed a bit more – especially Talivar. Phin is still rooting around in panties. And Abby. What shall I say about Abby, other than she grows a heck of a lot in this second in the series? I’ll say I loved A Sliver of Shadow, and cannot wait for book 3, A Trace of Moonlight!
drey’s rating: Excellent!
Until the CrossRoads are closed, and all the OtherFolk stuck on this side are getting antsy – when they aren’t just simply fading away. Now Abby has to take her barely-there skills into Faery to find the Queen and get the CrossRoads re-opened. Never mind that she’s unprotected while there. Never mind that she has no clue how to achieve either goal. And never mind that she may not survive the endeavor. She still has to try, because she’s Abby…
The things she learns in Faery, though, would make anyone cower before the madness of the Queen. But Abby cannot, if she’s to save her friends. And family.
The story keeps you intrigued and wanting to know what happens next. The characters get developed a bit more – especially Talivar. Phin is still rooting around in panties. And Abby. What shall I say about Abby, other than she grows a heck of a lot in this second in the series? I’ll say I loved A Sliver of Shadow, and cannot wait for book 3, A Trace of Moonlight!
drey’s rating: Excellent!
morticia32's review
1.0
2nd book in a trilogy.
I can't say I hated this book, it had some redeeming features, but they were few and far between. And the ending.... I really had a tough time finishing this book. I have to admit to skipping around, because I just couldn't deal with all the jerks.
Jerk #1 Ion
Jerk #2 Robert
Jerk #3 That Damned Unicorn, Phin
There are even more, but 3's already a crowd.
Ion was an ass in the first book, using Abby and abusing her trust, yet for some reason Abby thinks he's all that and a bag of chips. Umm, no. He's an Incubus, who eats your dreams and really treats you like crap.
Robert, cheating dirt bag and yet Charlie stays with him, blaming Moira for the whole lot. Takes two to tango, sorry Charlie.
Phin just freaking makes me crazy. Blech.
I HATED the end with a fiery passion, I HATED the love triangle (because frankly I hate the entire concept of the love triangle trope! Please, make them stop) and actually yes, quite frankly, can say, I HATED this book.
I can't say I hated this book, it had some redeeming features, but they were few and far between. And the ending.... I really had a tough time finishing this book. I have to admit to skipping around, because I just couldn't deal with all the jerks.
Jerk #1 Ion
Jerk #2 Robert
Jerk #3 That Damned Unicorn, Phin
There are even more, but 3's already a crowd.
Ion was an ass in the first book, using Abby and abusing her trust, yet for some reason Abby thinks he's all that and a bag of chips. Umm, no. He's an Incubus, who eats your dreams and really treats you like crap.
Robert, cheating dirt bag and yet Charlie stays with him, blaming Moira for the whole lot. Takes two to tango, sorry Charlie.
Phin just freaking makes me crazy. Blech.
I HATED the end with a fiery passion, I HATED the love triangle (because frankly I hate the entire concept of the love triangle trope! Please, make them stop) and actually yes, quite frankly, can say, I HATED this book.
beth_dawkins's review
3.0
Abby is a TouchStone for the Protectorate who is also a Princess of the Faery Court, Moria. Moria has gone to the Court to give statements, and take care of her mother, the Faery Queen. She leaves her newborn son with Abby and her brother, Abby’s bodyguard, to take care of. While she is gone another faery tries to abduct the baby, and TouchStone Abby. When the faery fails she casts an enchantment on all the OtherFolk in the area. These events whisk Abby deeper into the Faery, and may spark a war.
This is the second book in the Abby Sinclair series. It is also the first book in the series I have read. I wish I had started out with the first book. Many of the character relationships are already built, and though it does let the reader know some of what has happened in the first book, I never got a very clear picture. On top of that there is a great deal of stuff going on. The book doesn’t suffer from slow spots, but the amount of information I felt like I was missing did slow me down.
Abby is a sassy Urban Fantasy heroine. She is a TouchStone which lets OtherFolk live in our world, or that is what I gather from it. Otherwise she is mostly human. There is a strong love triangle that doesn’t show its face until the last half of the novel. She is stuck between her growing attraction for the Faery Prince, and her ex-boyfriend, an incubus. The love triangle sometimes gets in the way of the plot, even Abby points it out, but something about watching the two try for her is worth the distraction.
The plot not only moves fast, but jumps around a lot. Abby is forced to deal with Faery politics, and some secret discoveries about her own past. She doesn’t have a lot of patience for any of these things, and I don’t blame her. She is a real go-getter, but it puzzled me why she was forced into leadership positions. I did love the fact that she makes an even bigger mess. The OtherFolk don’t seem to have a handle on their problem letting Abby solve their problems. The book leaves us on an even greater cliff hanger which makes me want the next book yesterday.
The side characters shine bright in the story. The OtherFolk are made up of everything from Were-Critters to Unicorns. They are snarky, mellow-dramatic, mysterious and above all really interesting. I really enjoyed meeting each one. Abby also gets to cross into the Faery and the CrossRoads which was a neat experience. The mythology and back stories to the races of OtherFolk is detailed, and helped draw me into the story.
I greatly enjoyed this book, but felt like I was missing a greater understanding of the story. This isn’t a series that you want to start in the middle of. I will be going back to read the first book. Other than that it was an enjoyable read. The characters are fun, and I look forward to meeting with them again. The plot twists and turns, thickening at each turn. It didn’t slow down, but kept speeding up. If the series keeps growing this will be one to pick up for some Urban Fantasy goodness.
This is the second book in the Abby Sinclair series. It is also the first book in the series I have read. I wish I had started out with the first book. Many of the character relationships are already built, and though it does let the reader know some of what has happened in the first book, I never got a very clear picture. On top of that there is a great deal of stuff going on. The book doesn’t suffer from slow spots, but the amount of information I felt like I was missing did slow me down.
Abby is a sassy Urban Fantasy heroine. She is a TouchStone which lets OtherFolk live in our world, or that is what I gather from it. Otherwise she is mostly human. There is a strong love triangle that doesn’t show its face until the last half of the novel. She is stuck between her growing attraction for the Faery Prince, and her ex-boyfriend, an incubus. The love triangle sometimes gets in the way of the plot, even Abby points it out, but something about watching the two try for her is worth the distraction.
The plot not only moves fast, but jumps around a lot. Abby is forced to deal with Faery politics, and some secret discoveries about her own past. She doesn’t have a lot of patience for any of these things, and I don’t blame her. She is a real go-getter, but it puzzled me why she was forced into leadership positions. I did love the fact that she makes an even bigger mess. The OtherFolk don’t seem to have a handle on their problem letting Abby solve their problems. The book leaves us on an even greater cliff hanger which makes me want the next book yesterday.
The side characters shine bright in the story. The OtherFolk are made up of everything from Were-Critters to Unicorns. They are snarky, mellow-dramatic, mysterious and above all really interesting. I really enjoyed meeting each one. Abby also gets to cross into the Faery and the CrossRoads which was a neat experience. The mythology and back stories to the races of OtherFolk is detailed, and helped draw me into the story.
I greatly enjoyed this book, but felt like I was missing a greater understanding of the story. This isn’t a series that you want to start in the middle of. I will be going back to read the first book. Other than that it was an enjoyable read. The characters are fun, and I look forward to meeting with them again. The plot twists and turns, thickening at each turn. It didn’t slow down, but kept speeding up. If the series keeps growing this will be one to pick up for some Urban Fantasy goodness.
jonetta's review
5.0
If you haven't read the first book, Stop! There are events discussed here from that story that may be spoilers for you.
The story picks up six months from the end of the first book. Abby is coping with (or trying to) her breakup with Brystion. Moira leaves for the Faery Court and soon after, all hell breaks loose and Abby's in charge. Talivar is still staying with Abby as her personal bodyguard, along with Phineas the unicorn and Benjamin, Moira's baby who she left in Abby's care.
Unlike the first book, this story takes off seemingly from the first page. Abby still has missteps but she's still got very good instincts and has gained the respect of those OtherFolk in Portsmyth. When an Elven woman shows up claiming to be the new Protectorate, Abby kicks into high gear to determine the authenticity of the claim and figure out what's going on. With Talivar and Phineas at her side, she stumbles into one discovery after another, including astonishing revelations about her own past. Her relationship with Talivar develops into an intimate one and becomes more complicated when Brystion re-enters the picture. Together they navigate the complicated Faery world in an attempt to have the Queen reopen the CrossRoads and stave off a war with the daemons from Hell.
The story is fast paced and all action. Even though the love triangle (hate them) is a constant, it doesn't overwhelm and they have to work in tandem. I haven't decided yet whether I'm team Brystion or team Talivar (leaning towards him) as they both are extremely appealing in different ways.
Abby continues to use good judgment as she faces the unknown and grapples with understanding the protocols and politics of a foreign world. There are so many twists and shifts here in this fantastical world that you can't stop reading for fear you won't keep up. I had a tough time finding stopping points that didn't keep me from rushing back when life showed up.The ending was so startling, exciting and surprising I didn't have a choice but to jump right into the next book. This was spectacular!
The story picks up six months from the end of the first book. Abby is coping with (or trying to) her breakup with Brystion. Moira leaves for the Faery Court and soon after, all hell breaks loose and Abby's in charge. Talivar is still staying with Abby as her personal bodyguard, along with Phineas the unicorn and Benjamin, Moira's baby who she left in Abby's care.
Unlike the first book, this story takes off seemingly from the first page. Abby still has missteps but she's still got very good instincts and has gained the respect of those OtherFolk in Portsmyth. When an Elven woman shows up claiming to be the new Protectorate, Abby kicks into high gear to determine the authenticity of the claim and figure out what's going on. With Talivar and Phineas at her side, she stumbles into one discovery after another, including astonishing revelations about her own past. Her relationship with Talivar develops into an intimate one and becomes more complicated when Brystion re-enters the picture. Together they navigate the complicated Faery world in an attempt to have the Queen reopen the CrossRoads and stave off a war with the daemons from Hell.
The story is fast paced and all action. Even though the love triangle (hate them) is a constant, it doesn't overwhelm and they have to work in tandem. I haven't decided yet whether I'm team Brystion or team Talivar (leaning towards him) as they both are extremely appealing in different ways.
Abby continues to use good judgment as she faces the unknown and grapples with understanding the protocols and politics of a foreign world. There are so many twists and shifts here in this fantastical world that you can't stop reading for fear you won't keep up. I had a tough time finding stopping points that didn't keep me from rushing back when life showed up.The ending was so startling, exciting and surprising I didn't have a choice but to jump right into the next book. This was spectacular!
saltyred's review
4.0
**4-1/2 Stars**
Loving this series! Hating cliffhangers and love triangles when you have to wait so long for the next book that you need to re-read the previous book to remember what the cliffhanger actually was! And not only do we get a cliffhanger, but we also get a preview of the next book that makes no sense, so in essence, it's another cliffhanger--UGH!! FLOVED the book, though and love, love, love Talivar!
Loving this series! Hating cliffhangers and love triangles when you have to wait so long for the next book that you need to re-read the previous book to remember what the cliffhanger actually was! And not only do we get a cliffhanger, but we also get a preview of the next book that makes no sense, so in essence, it's another cliffhanger--UGH!! FLOVED the book, though and love, love, love Talivar!
k_aldrich's review
2.0
It just seems to be one of those books that you don't particularly love but you have to know what happens next.
bookbriefs's review
5.0
Allison Pang does not disappoint with book two in the Abby Sinclair series. It has just as much fun, snark, magic and adventure as the first book. The writing is fantastic and the characters are some of the best I have read in a while. I am such a huge fan of Abby. She is so kick ass!
Abby always seems to find herself in the thick of the trouble.I think this is because she is so strong that she is the only one around that can deal with these problems. She is so unique, and I just love how fleshed out she is. She is so three dimensional. I feel like I really know her.
My only complaint in this book is that there was just not enough Ion. I always want more of him. He was moping around for a lot of the book and I just wanted to yell at him to "Snap out of it and do something!" Taliver was charming too. I didn't want to like him, but he quickly won me over. He is really sweet and of course he likes Abby so much. I feel like he is a really genuine character. But he is just not Ion to me. And he can't help that my heart is already on team Ion.
I liked seeing into the land of the fey. I find them fascinating so I always like to read about different authors takes on the creatures. Allison's are really interesting. (As are all her depictions of creatures) I liked the storyline of this one. Although I must say the nightmare storyline from the first book is still my favorite. But this story was a great continuation of the series.
I am loving this series so much. The writing is great, the characters are amazing and the plot is addictive. I can't wait to read book 3!!
Abby always seems to find herself in the thick of the trouble.I think this is because she is so strong that she is the only one around that can deal with these problems. She is so unique, and I just love how fleshed out she is. She is so three dimensional. I feel like I really know her.
My only complaint in this book is that there was just not enough Ion. I always want more of him. He was moping around for a lot of the book and I just wanted to yell at him to "Snap out of it and do something!" Taliver was charming too. I didn't want to like him, but he quickly won me over. He is really sweet and of course he likes Abby so much. I feel like he is a really genuine character. But he is just not Ion to me. And he can't help that my heart is already on team Ion.
I liked seeing into the land of the fey. I find them fascinating so I always like to read about different authors takes on the creatures. Allison's are really interesting. (As are all her depictions of creatures) I liked the storyline of this one. Although I must say the nightmare storyline from the first book is still my favorite. But this story was a great continuation of the series.
I am loving this series so much. The writing is great, the characters are amazing and the plot is addictive. I can't wait to read book 3!!