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culturekath 's review for:
The Second Death of Locke
by V.L. Bovalino
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the ARC
The Second Death of Locke is a romantic lady night fantasy about undying bonds, duty and friendship.
The story follows Grey, a Knight, who is also a Well (a person who can store power) for her Mage (a person who can use magic), Keir, who is also her childhood best friend. They fight in a never-ending war, which has been ongoing since the nation of Locke was destroyed 16 years ago, and the nations of the island of Idistra fight for power and control.
The Second Death of Locke is a book of two halves, and a lot of people will find they prefer one half over the other. I adored the first half of this book. Grey and Keir are tasked with rescuing and escorting a young girl, the possible Heir of Locke, across the island to safety. Their journey is fraught with danger, yet also marked by camaraderie and emotional tension. The first half sets up the power imbalances between Mages and Wells, but also their undying bond. We also get great world-building and geopolitics, and a good introduction to the magic system.
The squad that travels with Grey and Keir is the best part. I adore all the side characters, but I could have done with so much more of this squad adventure. For me, the second half of the book was a big miss; it went from a 4.5-star book to a 3-star book.
There is far more focus on the romance in the second half, and I didn’t care enough about the characters for this much yearning. Because of the focus on romance, we lose a lot of plot; stuff happens, but very quickly and lacking in detail, other characters are sidelined or vanish for large sections. We also get far less lady knight, and the whole second half just feels very standard romantasy. The ending felt rushed, and I was left wanting more and looking forward to the book being over.
While it was a miss for me in the end, The Second Death of Locke is beautifully written and will appeal to those who enjoy romantic fantasy, but if you are looking for a full-on epic lady knight fantasy, I’d look elsewhere.