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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
3.5. I found HL's world of magic very fascinating and I even liked Kaz's origin story. I didn't care too much for the plot which was simple and there was so much exposition there was no time for character development or romance. Also a bunch of plot holes like how is Min a 'king of thieves' but perpetually broke? If you in a mood for magic and fae folk this might scratch your itch but don't look here for romance.
*4.35* Aramin is snarky, quick-witted, loyal, and a lover of whomever catches his fancy.
Lisa Henry continues to impress me with her excellent story crafting. I first discovered her reading [b:Dark Space|16174363|Dark Space (Dark Space, #1)|Lisa Henry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1354020610l/16174363._SY75_.jpg|22023544], the first in a series, a sci-fi gem.
Of course, he always had problems differentiating between the people he'd like to punch and the people he'd like to fuck. They were so often the same people.And then you have Kaz. Someone with the power to bring down the kingdom, but also...
The boy who only ever wanted to make potions and poultices and be left alone.The book begins with Min waking up next to a women who is more than she seems. We learn his young friend Henry is missing, being held by a powerful family for sneaking into their daughter's window. Min is tasked (threatened) with bringing home a nephew for this family.
His gaze was speculative, clever and cold. That seemed to be a family trait of the Sabadines. They probably beat all the warmth out of their children from birth.If you enjoy intelligent fantasy, fabulous dialogue and well-fleshed out characters with depth and emotion, you'll love this MM, virgin H, high fantasy, magic driven story. There is steam here, but it's not gratuitous.
Lisa Henry continues to impress me with her excellent story crafting. I first discovered her reading [b:Dark Space|16174363|Dark Space (Dark Space, #1)|Lisa Henry|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1354020610l/16174363._SY75_.jpg|22023544], the first in a series, a sci-fi gem.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was just okay. I spent a lot of time thinking about what I wanted it to be, rather than what it was.
Despite the book's title, very little time is actually spent in the mysterious village of Anhaga. The characters are in-and-out within the span of just two chapters. The fae remained an ominous background presence throughout, but didn't have as large of a role as I hoped.
Despite the book's title, very little time is actually spent in the mysterious village of Anhaga. The characters are in-and-out within the span of just two chapters. The fae remained an ominous background presence throughout, but didn't have as large of a role as I hoped.
The romance didn't work for me. Kaz doesn't have much of a purpose except to be a damsel; he's a scared, inexperienced 19-year-old who gets swept into a contrived romance with his captor. I would have liked it better if Robert had been Min's love interest instead. He was by far the most interesting character in the book, and they actually had some great chemistry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a quick, fun read. Nothing original or unique really but that didn't mean it was boring. I loved the characters and the fast pace and it very much was built like a fairytale. It was really surprisingly sweet. The relationship built maybe a touch too quickly but since it was a short book I can forgive it a little for moving a bit fast. Plus, it kind of fit with the fairytale feel of the book.
Quand arrivent les beaux jours, j’ai souvent envie de lire des romans aux histoires un peu légères avec des romances prenant place dans des univers de fantasy et ce livre venait tout juste de sortir avec sa jolie couverture qui me tendait les bras.
On se trouve donc à Amberwich, où on suit le voleur Aramin Decourcey qui tente de venir en aide au gamin qu’il a ramassé dans les rues, Harry. Celui-ci étant un petit imbécile, il s’est amouraché d’une jeune fille bien au dessus de sa condition et il se trouve maintenant maudit par le sorcier de la famille.
Pour le tirer de là, Min accepte de passer un marché et d’aller chercher un jeune homme apprenti sorcier qui se trouve dans une ville pas très lointaine mais où personne n’a envie d’aller et qui n’a aucune intention de rentrer dans cette famille.
Au niveau de la romance, on est dans un schéma hyper balisé qui ne surprendra personne. Min tombe sous le charme de Kazimir, mais il faut qu’il le ramène pour que Harry soit sauvé et il est donc tiraillé par sa conscience. Heureusement, les relations entre les deux personnages sont très drôles, Min maniant le sarcasme comme personne, et ça permet de ne pas trop s’ennuyer dans ce volet là où les sentiments arrivent quand même très vite.
Mais c’est sur son univers que ce livre tire son épingle du jeu. On est dans quelque chose avec de la magie et des pouvoirs et c’est très intéressant de voir tout ce système d’hedgewitch, avec une hiérarchie bien précise. Min cache en plus des choses et j’ai aimé découvrir petit à petit comment il avait pu obtenir cette réputation de meilleur voleur de la ville.
Mon seul petit bémol est qu’on se trouve dans un tome unique et que l’auteure se focalise donc essentiellement sur les personnages et leurs péripéties en laissant justement un peu de côté tout le background de son univers.
J’aime la magie et les pouvoirs et j’aurai aimé en apprendre plus sur ce volet là ou sur les Faes et c’est un peu léger au niveau du développement de l’univers.
Ma lecture a été très rapide parce que l’écriture est très addictive. Tout est très fluide, les déplacements se font rapidement et on n’est pas submergé par un nombre de personnages affolant. Quand les Faes finissent par être introduits dans l’histoire, ils viennent apporter des rebondissements bienvenus et j’ai été agréablement surprise par certains qui ne restent pas enfermés dans leur vision.
L’ensemble est donc léger, fun, avec une romance qui ne prend pas toute la place et des personnages bien campés auxquels il est facile de s’attacher. Exactement ce que j’attendais de ce livre en somme.
On se trouve donc à Amberwich, où on suit le voleur Aramin Decourcey qui tente de venir en aide au gamin qu’il a ramassé dans les rues, Harry. Celui-ci étant un petit imbécile, il s’est amouraché d’une jeune fille bien au dessus de sa condition et il se trouve maintenant maudit par le sorcier de la famille.
Pour le tirer de là, Min accepte de passer un marché et d’aller chercher un jeune homme apprenti sorcier qui se trouve dans une ville pas très lointaine mais où personne n’a envie d’aller et qui n’a aucune intention de rentrer dans cette famille.
Au niveau de la romance, on est dans un schéma hyper balisé qui ne surprendra personne. Min tombe sous le charme de Kazimir, mais il faut qu’il le ramène pour que Harry soit sauvé et il est donc tiraillé par sa conscience. Heureusement, les relations entre les deux personnages sont très drôles, Min maniant le sarcasme comme personne, et ça permet de ne pas trop s’ennuyer dans ce volet là où les sentiments arrivent quand même très vite.
Mais c’est sur son univers que ce livre tire son épingle du jeu. On est dans quelque chose avec de la magie et des pouvoirs et c’est très intéressant de voir tout ce système d’hedgewitch, avec une hiérarchie bien précise. Min cache en plus des choses et j’ai aimé découvrir petit à petit comment il avait pu obtenir cette réputation de meilleur voleur de la ville.
Mon seul petit bémol est qu’on se trouve dans un tome unique et que l’auteure se focalise donc essentiellement sur les personnages et leurs péripéties en laissant justement un peu de côté tout le background de son univers.
J’aime la magie et les pouvoirs et j’aurai aimé en apprendre plus sur ce volet là ou sur les Faes et c’est un peu léger au niveau du développement de l’univers.
Ma lecture a été très rapide parce que l’écriture est très addictive. Tout est très fluide, les déplacements se font rapidement et on n’est pas submergé par un nombre de personnages affolant. Quand les Faes finissent par être introduits dans l’histoire, ils viennent apporter des rebondissements bienvenus et j’ai été agréablement surprise par certains qui ne restent pas enfermés dans leur vision.
L’ensemble est donc léger, fun, avec une romance qui ne prend pas toute la place et des personnages bien campés auxquels il est facile de s’attacher. Exactement ce que j’attendais de ce livre en somme.
medium-paced
A lot of promising potential that the book never fully capitalized on. Felt a bit rushed and not fully developed.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Sometimes I like to start reading books without knowing much, and I had almost no expectations when I started to read this one.
In the beginning, I thought I had stumbled over a new fantasy favourite. The story was captivating. Since I’d hardly read the blurb, I didn’t know who Min’s love interest was, but the writing was good, the pace was fast and the worldbuilding intriguing. I liked Min as a morally gray character and enjoyed his witty dialogues with the others. He appeared younger than he was at times, but I didn’t mind that too much. I liked how the supporting characters, like Harry, Aiode, Talys and Robert, were living, breathing and quite believable.
When I finally realised that the young and lonely Kaz was supposed to be Min’s romantic interest, and that the two of them were supposed to fall in love while Kaz was in Min’s captivity, I got worried. I did not at all like the possibility of Kaz being portrayed as a helpless victim who would end up falling for his hostage taker. To me, that’s not very romantic, especially not with the threat of a forced incestuos marriage. Still, I was already invested in the story, so I tried to ignore my worries and hoped that the captivity at least wouldn’t last too long.
Min and Kaz had some sweet moments, after all, and I liked when Kaz showed a hint of resistance or self preservation or showed some of his strengths. I just couldn't quite root for them. At times, I actually wondered if a romance between Min and Robert would have worked better, at least if Robert had been a bit more sympathetic. Or maybe Min and Kaz had felt better together if they had been more like equals.
Anyway. The spicy scenes were spicy, although I ended up feeling slightly uncomfortable because of their situation.
Btw Kaz’ “not all men” comment made me want to laugh and cry at the same time, because, fuck. Obviously, the scene was meant to illustrate Kaz’ naivete and Min’s contrasting jadedness, but damn, to me it highlighted their problematic situation and reminded me of my own ignorance and … well, that's a story for another day.
Damn, I’m ranting. I did like this book as a fantasy novel. The story had interesting twists and turns towards the end. Many readers will love this book. If you like stories with tortured men finding love, and you enjoy beautiful worldbuilding, and you don’t have my hangups, this is well worth checking out.
The premise was okay, the writing was okay, the protagonist Mon had potential but it wasn’t explored and the other protagonist Kaz also had potential but ack too typical bubblegum sweet. The book fell flat for me; like reading fan fiction but had no investment in the characters.