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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A Vow so Bold and Deadly managed to hook me super quickly. It opened with Rhen and Harper’s POVs and sucked me right in. What I very much appreciated was that the author included some recaps from the previous books in such a way that I could just read this one without rereading the previous two, but also without making the book feel draggy.
Rhen and Harper really manifested themselves as favourite characters of mine. This conclusion especially made them feel so real to me. From their thought processes and inner struggles to their realisations about themselves and glimpses about Rhen’s past... I just felt like I really understood them and knew them better than ever. I liked the moments between the two of them a lot as well, and this book truly managed to show me how they are definitely similar. I can also say that after the previous book, I felt like Rhen got a worthy arc that showed me the true heart of his character, and his POV (despite loving Harper’s a lot too) was for sure my favourite of the 4.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t that big a fan of Lia Mara and Grey as I was before. I did like them, and I also especially admire Lia Mara’s hope and kindness, but I felt like their initial chapters were a bit more draggy, and I connected less with them than with Harper and Rhen (probably because they felt more real due to their thought processes), resulting in me checking each time when those POVs would come back. Their chapters near the end were enjoyable to me though! I would also still like to applaud the author for managing to write 4 distinct POVs like this.
Overall, I really enjoyed the reading experience, and I quickly got immersed into the world of Emberfall and Syhl Shallow. However, I was left a bit dissatisfied with the ending.
SPOILERS START HERE
I didn’t mind that there were some loose ends, but I felt like some of these could have been resolved if the author had let Rhen be king instead of Grey. Now we are left wondering how things will be done with the two kingdoms and the heir as well. The loose ends left here didn’t bother me that much though, it was mostly the unfairness of it all. After everything Rhen went through and suffered for his people and for Emberfall, he doesn’t get to be king? He was raised to be king and is described as the strategist. How is Grey more fit to be king then? It just felt so unfair to me. And Rhen also wanted peace, so they could have just struck an alliance. Grey claimed at first not to want to be king anyway, so why did he want to now if Rhen was also offering peace? The ending does hint at Rhen being a bit relieved at moments to just be able to be Rhen and not the crown prince, but still I just felt like he deserved more. It was just so sad also to see him be lost as now he didn’t really know what to do anymore.
I do have to say I loved the scenes between Grey and Rhen being brothers in the end! When they hugged! That was just so sweet. As well as when they were in the tavern together joking around.
Rhen and Harper really manifested themselves as favourite characters of mine. This conclusion especially made them feel so real to me. From their thought processes and inner struggles to their realisations about themselves and glimpses about Rhen’s past... I just felt like I really understood them and knew them better than ever. I liked the moments between the two of them a lot as well, and this book truly managed to show me how they are definitely similar. I can also say that after the previous book, I felt like Rhen got a worthy arc that showed me the true heart of his character, and his POV (despite loving Harper’s a lot too) was for sure my favourite of the 4.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t that big a fan of Lia Mara and Grey as I was before. I did like them, and I also especially admire Lia Mara’s hope and kindness, but I felt like their initial chapters were a bit more draggy, and I connected less with them than with Harper and Rhen (probably because they felt more real due to their thought processes), resulting in me checking each time when those POVs would come back. Their chapters near the end were enjoyable to me though! I would also still like to applaud the author for managing to write 4 distinct POVs like this.
Overall, I really enjoyed the reading experience, and I quickly got immersed into the world of Emberfall and Syhl Shallow. However, I was left a bit dissatisfied with the ending.
SPOILERS START HERE
I didn’t mind that there were some loose ends, but I felt like some of these could have been resolved if the author had let Rhen be king instead of Grey. Now we are left wondering how things will be done with the two kingdoms and the heir as well. The loose ends left here didn’t bother me that much though, it was mostly the unfairness of it all. After everything Rhen went through and suffered for his people and for Emberfall, he doesn’t get to be king? He was raised to be king and is described as the strategist. How is Grey more fit to be king then? It just felt so unfair to me. And Rhen also wanted peace, so they could have just struck an alliance. Grey claimed at first not to want to be king anyway, so why did he want to now if Rhen was also offering peace? The ending does hint at Rhen being a bit relieved at moments to just be able to be Rhen and not the crown prince, but still I just felt like he deserved more. It was just so sad also to see him be lost as now he didn’t really know what to do anymore.
I do have to say I loved the scenes between Grey and Rhen being brothers in the end! When they hugged! That was just so sweet. As well as when they were in the tavern together joking around.
..im depressed. i really did love this one a lot it’s been a while since I’ve read a book relatively quick but towards the end i wanted to see more of rhen and harper i feel like their last convo was still left with many things unsaid as well as new conflicts surfacing towards the very last pages with greys concerns of taking his place as the new heir. despite those things i rated this 5 stars bc honestly i enjoyed every bit of this book. this is definitely one of my fav series
Well I've read the entirety of the Cursebreakers series, in the hopes that I would finally become converted into a true fan of the series (especially since I've adored Brigid Kemmerer's previous YA contemporary books). However, as you probably can guess from my 3 star rating, the series never found its footing for me - not even the last week, where all the loose ends are wrapped up.
Kemmerer ambitiously takes on four different POVs here, alternating between our four main leads - Harper, Rhen, Grey and Lia Maria. The first two are in Emberfell, as Rhen grapples with his decision to enter into a war with Syhl Shallow and his older brother, Grey. Not to mention, Rhen is hiding a pretty big secret of his own from Harper. Rhen is trying to unite Emberfell in preparation of war, but his own people do not seem to trust in his ability to rule. Harper and Rhen's relationship has also become incredibly strained, due to his terrible behavior previously and Harper's disappointment at his choices.
Meanwhile, Grey and Lia Maria are trying to reign over a disunited Syhl Shallow, one that mistrusts magic and that the man who wields it is so close to Lia Maria. Lia Maria believes in compassion and empathy, whereas her mother ruled through cruelty and fear - her people are unused to her methods and are hesitant about the war that is on the horizon. When an assassination attempt is made on Lia Maria, it becomes clear that she has more enemies in the kingdom than she believed. At the same time as Grey is trying to help Lia Maria adapt to her rule, he is also beset with difficulties in getting the military to trust him - understandably so, since he was Commander of the enemy's force shortly before this.
A Vow So Bold and Deadly should've been an exciting read because of the conflict that's on the horizon. However, I just found certain moments of the book to be repetitive of the earlier themes - Rhen still refuses to trust Harper with his fears and secrets; Harper continues to be impulsive and the two of them really do not communicate well. I actually appreciated the scenes at Syhl Shallow a little more because at least there was some progress there - Lia Maria is trying to rule a kingdom that may not want to be ruled in the way that she envisions, how is she to overcome that? Grey's rapprochement with her forces was also interesting, especially as he has to manage his own expectations about how his previous foes view him and his previous allegiance.
I also wished that the conflict was resolved in a more interesting manner. Instead, the climax was just...anti-climatic.
Kemmerer ambitiously takes on four different POVs here, alternating between our four main leads - Harper, Rhen, Grey and Lia Maria. The first two are in Emberfell, as Rhen grapples with his decision to enter into a war with Syhl Shallow and his older brother, Grey. Not to mention, Rhen is hiding a pretty big secret of his own from Harper.
Spoiler
And that's the return of Lilith, the enchantress that they'd all believed was gone for good.Meanwhile, Grey and Lia Maria are trying to reign over a disunited Syhl Shallow, one that mistrusts magic and that the man who wields it is so close to Lia Maria. Lia Maria believes in compassion and empathy, whereas her mother ruled through cruelty and fear - her people are unused to her methods and are hesitant about the war that is on the horizon. When an assassination attempt is made on Lia Maria, it becomes clear that she has more enemies in the kingdom than she believed. At the same time as Grey is trying to help Lia Maria adapt to her rule, he is also beset with difficulties in getting the military to trust him - understandably so, since he was Commander of the enemy's force shortly before this.
A Vow So Bold and Deadly should've been an exciting read because of the conflict that's on the horizon. However, I just found certain moments of the book to be repetitive of the earlier themes - Rhen still refuses to trust Harper with his fears and secrets; Harper continues to be impulsive and the two of them really do not communicate well.
Spoiler
Rhen could've saved a lot of trouble if he had just told Harper that Lilith was back and that he was frightened that she would get hurt.I also wished that the conflict was resolved in a more interesting manner. Instead, the climax was just...anti-climatic.
Spoiler
Basically Rhen is tortured by Lilith and Harper manages to convince Grey and his forces to mount a rescue...which basically involves stumbling across Rhen in the castle and then Grey just turns Rhen into a monster again to battle Lilith? And Rhen just tears Lilith apart as a monster? Which, honestly, he could've already done in the first book.
Fave Line: “I wish I could undo so many things.”
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating:
3.5/5 ⭐️s
While I love the ending of this book I have to be honest and say that the beginning dragged on. It seemed like she was trying to fill the pages and make it more dramatic than it needed to be. I will also say though that I haven’t read the second book since November 2019 and having the explanations in the first half helped me remember what had happened in the prior books. I will honestly miss all the characters and the kingdoms because I have grown to like them so much.
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rating:
3.5/5 ⭐️s
While I love the ending of this book I have to be honest and say that the beginning dragged on. It seemed like she was trying to fill the pages and make it more dramatic than it needed to be. I will also say though that I haven’t read the second book since November 2019 and having the explanations in the first half helped me remember what had happened in the prior books. I will honestly miss all the characters and the kingdoms because I have grown to like them so much.
I can’t tell if this is 3 stars because of the interrupted two weeks it took me to read it or if I just got kinda burnt out by the end but I DID IT and a good ending nonetheless. Seems like all is not well in waffleville though, dost thou smelleth dissent in Syhl Shallow hmmmm? 🤨
What an end to the trilogy!
I loved seeing what happened before Forging Silver Into Stars.
Ily Rhen <3
I loved seeing what happened before Forging Silver Into Stars.
Ily Rhen <3
adventurous
adventurous
challenging
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes