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A review by skylarkblue1
Wrath of the Talon by Sophie Kim
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Thank you to Entangled Publishing for a free e-ARC in return for an honest review!
While I'm not sure this was better than the first book in some aspects, in others it was for sure! Was a lot more romance than I was hoping for though and not really too much plot progression. Most of the plot happens near the end, the rest is quite a slow, drawn out "this is what the 3rd book will be about" and a hell of a lot of romance in it (and a fair bit more sexual content than I'd expect from a YA book?).
The characters were mostly the same, I didn't quite like the slight POV change however but it wasn't too bad overall.I mainly just didn't like how overly aggressive and demanding the voice was, it was a stark contrast to Lina yes but it was also kinda just aggravating to read through honestly aha. It was a pretty nice twist on the prophecy cliche though! Eunbi was as great as ever, she's been what was getting me through these 2 books mainly because I just loved her so much. Major spoilers but needs to be said: I do wonder how the 3rd book will go with that ending now. I think the 3rd book will be a lot more of my think, focusing more on the world and the action happening rather than bedroom romances, but with that ending and loosing the "light" character.. I'm not sure lol.
The plot was a tad all over the place. It seemed to want to focus on Rui and Lina's romance mainly rather than progress too much plot. I think it suffers from middle book syndrome a fair bit, not quite sure how to move from the start to the end (book one to book two) and wants to leave the big action ending all to the last book? Though the finale of this one was certainly interesting and it did pick up the pace a fair bit, even if sadly it wasn't for too long.
In the middle of the book the pacing does slow down to a crawl while there's a *massive* lore dump that goes on for quite a while. It's just text book lore dumping and does get to be a bit of a slog to get through even if the world building is interesting.
Through my reservations though, I will be reading the 3rd book - mainly, honestly, because it seems like there might be less romance so I can read more of what I'm enjoying which is, ofc, the action and world building haha! I did quite enjoy the world building in this (even if I didn't quite appreciate the delivery of it) and how the history of everything got fleshed out. I'm quite interested in what action will take place next!
While I'm not sure this was better than the first book in some aspects, in others it was for sure! Was a lot more romance than I was hoping for though and not really too much plot progression. Most of the plot happens near the end, the rest is quite a slow, drawn out "this is what the 3rd book will be about" and a hell of a lot of romance in it (and a fair bit more sexual content than I'd expect from a YA book?).
The characters were mostly the same, I didn't quite like the slight POV change however but it wasn't too bad overall.
The plot was a tad all over the place. It seemed to want to focus on Rui and Lina's romance mainly rather than progress too much plot. I think it suffers from middle book syndrome a fair bit, not quite sure how to move from the start to the end (book one to book two) and wants to leave the big action ending all to the last book? Though the finale of this one was certainly interesting and it did pick up the pace a fair bit, even if sadly it wasn't for too long.
In the middle of the book the pacing does slow down to a crawl while there's a *massive* lore dump that goes on for quite a while. It's just text book lore dumping and does get to be a bit of a slog to get through even if the world building is interesting.
Through my reservations though, I will be reading the 3rd book - mainly, honestly, because it seems like there might be less romance so I can read more of what I'm enjoying which is, ofc, the action and world building haha! I did quite enjoy the world building in this (even if I didn't quite appreciate the delivery of it) and how the history of everything got fleshed out. I'm quite interested in what action will take place next!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Torture
Moderate: Gore, Sexual harassment, and War
Graphic: Manipulation, Child Death, Loss of a Loved one