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A review by thechronicknitter
Siege of Shadows by Sarah Raughley
3.0
The second installment in the Effigies series has moments of thrills and excitement, of secrets to be uncovered, and relationships to ponder. After the Efigies' battle against Saul in France he hasn't showed up again, but Natalaya is entering Maia's dreams every time she closes her eyes. Maia lives in constant fear that Natalaya will finally get strong enough to take over her body again, but the one way to beat Saul is to figure out what Natalaya knew (which means scrying giving Natalaya the opportunity to take over her body) or she has to find Marian which means getting past Natalaya. The hardest part is that now it's not just the girls who need Maia to scry, but the Sect is asking as well. She has no choice.
Meanwhile, they are being attacked by former Sect trainees that had supposedly had died years ago but have magical powers. One dies before we learn of them, and a girl, Jessie, is able t control the bodies of the dead (and can control an army's worth at once). The Sect, and most likely the Council has been infiltrated by these traitors who are loyal to Saul and his vision of "rebuilding" the earth. Which is really code for laughing while the world burns. The girls have to figure out how to stop him and who they can trust.
Meanwhile, Maia is also trying to figure out whether the vision Natalaya keeps showing her of the night she died is true or if she's lying. Did her crush Aidan Rhys really kill Natalaya Filipova, or was it someone else? Can she trust him, or will he end up killing her too? The only thing she knows is that if Belle ever hears of it she will kill Rhys, and both his death or the knowledge that he killed Natalaya will kill Maia.
This book is all about plot, though even with that said this book is a little sluggish. Until readers get to the turning point (at least halfway) they will not be staying up late into the night to finish reading the book. I enjoy the mystery of trying to get down to the bottom of how the effigies were created, how the phantoms/magic entered their world etc. Readers still don't know the answer at the end of this book but they will be one step closer.
Character development leaves much to be desired. There is still some romance between Maia and Aidan/Rhys but it is marred by the question/answer of whether or not he killed Natalaya and what else he has done in his time as a Sect agent. Their relationship is an overused trope of a broken boy that needs to be fixed and can only be fixed by the love and attention of a girl. The diversity is still wonderful and even secondary characters are described and diverse which is exciting and refreshing.
While the second book doesn't live up to the first it is still readable and makes me hopeful for the third book.
Meanwhile, they are being attacked by former Sect trainees that had supposedly had died years ago but have magical powers. One dies before we learn of them, and a girl, Jessie, is able t control the bodies of the dead (and can control an army's worth at once). The Sect, and most likely the Council has been infiltrated by these traitors who are loyal to Saul and his vision of "rebuilding" the earth. Which is really code for laughing while the world burns. The girls have to figure out how to stop him and who they can trust.
Meanwhile, Maia is also trying to figure out whether the vision Natalaya keeps showing her of the night she died is true or if she's lying. Did her crush Aidan Rhys really kill Natalaya Filipova, or was it someone else? Can she trust him, or will he end up killing her too? The only thing she knows is that if Belle ever hears of it she will kill Rhys, and both his death or the knowledge that he killed Natalaya will kill Maia.
This book is all about plot, though even with that said this book is a little sluggish. Until readers get to the turning point (at least halfway) they will not be staying up late into the night to finish reading the book. I enjoy the mystery of trying to get down to the bottom of how the effigies were created, how the phantoms/magic entered their world etc. Readers still don't know the answer at the end of this book but they will be one step closer.
Character development leaves much to be desired. There is still some romance between Maia and Aidan/Rhys but it is marred by the question/answer of whether or not he killed Natalaya and what else he has done in his time as a Sect agent. Their relationship is an overused trope of a broken boy that needs to be fixed and can only be fixed by the love and attention of a girl. The diversity is still wonderful and even secondary characters are described and diverse which is exciting and refreshing.
While the second book doesn't live up to the first it is still readable and makes me hopeful for the third book.