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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Didn't strike me the way the first one did. I felt the moon god and finale were underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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:
Complicated
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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:
Complicated
Honestly had to go and grab the first book because I forgot what was happening (read it nearly a year ago). Soooo this might take me longer than I thought.
This was a fantastic conclusion to the Mistland duology, and I found myself enjoying it even more than the first book. Everything flowed seamlessly, and it picked up right where the last one left off, with plenty of connections and “aha” moments along the way. The romance was a slow burn, building up tension, angst, and a lot of yearning. I especially loved how the FMC was the one wielding the cool shadow powers while still being a total badass.
The world-building and plot were also strong, as we saw the main characters start off apart and then come back together to face the world side by side. I appreciated the prophecy element and the way the adventure and god lore were integrated into the story.
As with the first book, the found family dynamic was one of my favorite aspects, and it was wonderful to see the relationships and friendships between the other characters develop as well. The themes of love, self-discovery, and character growth were handled really well. Overall, this was a solid YA romantasy filled with adventure and unexpected twists. Thank you to Entangled for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The world-building and plot were also strong, as we saw the main characters start off apart and then come back together to face the world side by side. I appreciated the prophecy element and the way the adventure and god lore were integrated into the story.
As with the first book, the found family dynamic was one of my favorite aspects, and it was wonderful to see the relationships and friendships between the other characters develop as well. The themes of love, self-discovery, and character growth were handled really well. Overall, this was a solid YA romantasy filled with adventure and unexpected twists. Thank you to Entangled for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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
I was not expecting to love these books as much as I did. Kiara is a perfect FMC, she is tough, loyal, and flawed. Jude well, I was probably half in love with him before he realized he was in love with her. Morally gray MMC with so much heartache, broody, need I say more? I think I liked the world building and suspense of book one but book two was full of emotion, twists, and not knowing who to trust in a world where anyone could turn you in to save themselves. Excellent conclusion to a very well written new adult romantasy .
adventurous
emotional
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
As I hoped, this book improved on book 1.
There's a lot of really good world building and lore development going on in this book. The lore and magic system in this world really was unique and there were elements I really enjoyed that 'break the mold' of your typical YA/Romantasy books.
For instance, I love that Kiara is a shadow-wielder. How many "shadow daddy" MMCs have we come across in the past few years? HUNDREDS. How many FMCs? I literally can't think of any other than this FMC.
In fact, I really enjoyed the power-play between Kiara and Jude. The way their magic was working against them even as it was pulling them closer. All of this was really unique and interesting stuff.
I also really enjoyed just how involved the gods were in the story. It's not often you encounter a story where the gods aren't these aloof bystanders or these shrouded figures manipulating the game board from afar. In this story Kiara and co. actually become allies with multiple gods, and fight against the 'big bad' with divinity at their side.
Speaking of the fighting--this book's plot was VERY action-packed. I think Quinn's strength is writing fight scenes and engaging adventure plots. The pacing wasn't always the best, there were times I wondered why we were wasting our time with random scenes--but when the action was there, it was impossible to put the book down. This is especially true for the last 50 pages or so.
The found-family aspect of the story is expanded too, and the composition is equally as unique. Usually when we think about a found family the characters are all generally a similar age. In this book, that's not the case. Jude's MOTHER ends up joining Jude, Jake and Kiara on their quest and she brings her lover along and another friend--these are parent-aged individuals tagging along with teen-aged main characters.
As unique as this scenario was, it sometimes posed problems, because the dialogue REALLY didn't do the older characters justice. If you didn't KNOW that the Fox (Amelia) was Jude's mom, and you read any of her dialogue, it'd be easy to assume she was the same age as Jude and Kiara.
All in all, this book's got its flaws, but I think it's a solid young-adult fantasy romance story. It gets points from me for breaking the shadow daddy mold and for it's unique lore and magic system.
There's a lot of really good world building and lore development going on in this book. The lore and magic system in this world really was unique and there were elements I really enjoyed that 'break the mold' of your typical YA/Romantasy books.
For instance, I love that Kiara is a shadow-wielder. How many "shadow daddy" MMCs have we come across in the past few years? HUNDREDS. How many FMCs? I literally can't think of any other than this FMC.
In fact, I really enjoyed the power-play between Kiara and Jude. The way their magic was working against them even as it was pulling them closer. All of this was really unique and interesting stuff.
I also really enjoyed just how involved the gods were in the story. It's not often you encounter a story where the gods aren't these aloof bystanders or these shrouded figures manipulating the game board from afar. In this story Kiara and co. actually become allies with multiple gods, and fight against the 'big bad' with divinity at their side.
Speaking of the fighting--this book's plot was VERY action-packed. I think Quinn's strength is writing fight scenes and engaging adventure plots. The pacing wasn't always the best, there were times I wondered why we were wasting our time with random scenes--but when the action was there, it was impossible to put the book down. This is especially true for the last 50 pages or so.
The found-family aspect of the story is expanded too, and the composition is equally as unique. Usually when we think about a found family the characters are all generally a similar age. In this book, that's not the case. Jude's MOTHER ends up joining Jude, Jake and Kiara on their quest and she brings her lover along and another friend--these are parent-aged individuals tagging along with teen-aged main characters.
As unique as this scenario was, it sometimes posed problems, because the dialogue REALLY didn't do the older characters justice. If you didn't KNOW that the Fox (Amelia) was Jude's mom, and you read any of her dialogue, it'd be easy to assume she was the same age as Jude and Kiara.
All in all, this book's got its flaws, but I think it's a solid young-adult fantasy romance story. It gets points from me for breaking the shadow daddy mold and for it's unique lore and magic system.