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A review by annamickreads
Song of the Forever Rains by E.J. Mellow
3.0
I was ready to be a bigger fan of this book due to the intriguing world building, but I think ultimately it fell a bit short for me due to the characterization and parts of the plot.
"Song of the Forever Rains" takes place in a fantasy realm called Aadilor where a secret, more hidden realm called The Thief Kingdom lurks within a sort of pocket dimension. The Thief Kingdom is a place for dangerous magic and even more dangerous people, ruled by the elusive Thief King and his trio of daughters with ancient magic, who are known as the Mousai. As it so happens, the second-most-powerful Duke in the city of Jabari is also a fearsome man with beautiful, powerful daughters, so I wasn't exactly shocked when the book revealed they were one in the same.
As the sisters (specifically, our youngest heroine, Larkyra), race to uncover who has been spreading illegal magic between the Thief Kingdom and Jabari, they also cross paths with Darius, stepson of the Duke of a neighboring kingdom. In another plot point that wasn't exactly earth shaking, Darius is looking to dethrone his nefarious stepfather and develops a romantic relationship with Larkyra when they decide to work together.
The dialogue in particular was very strong (especially between the three sisters, who I felt had a realistic and lovely relationship with one another!) and as the reader I did get the sense this was an experienced author. Genuinely, I don't mind a little predictability, but I thought there were times when the characters were two-dimensional and we really weren't seeing anything new for the genre.
Additionally, a lot of people have been characterizing this book as YA based on the writing style, but I don't think it's YA at all based on the content. If anything, I this book belongs in the 'New Adult' category, because it's less a coming-of-age story that's typical for the YA genre.
"Song of the Forever Rains" takes place in a fantasy realm called Aadilor where a secret, more hidden realm called The Thief Kingdom lurks within a sort of pocket dimension. The Thief Kingdom is a place for dangerous magic and even more dangerous people, ruled by the elusive Thief King and his trio of daughters with ancient magic, who are known as the Mousai. As it so happens, the second-most-powerful Duke in the city of Jabari is also a fearsome man with beautiful, powerful daughters, so I wasn't exactly shocked when the book revealed they were one in the same.
As the sisters (specifically, our youngest heroine, Larkyra), race to uncover who has been spreading illegal magic between the Thief Kingdom and Jabari, they also cross paths with Darius, stepson of the Duke of a neighboring kingdom. In another plot point that wasn't exactly earth shaking, Darius is looking to dethrone his nefarious stepfather and develops a romantic relationship with Larkyra when they decide to work together.
The dialogue in particular was very strong (especially between the three sisters, who I felt had a realistic and lovely relationship with one another!) and as the reader I did get the sense this was an experienced author. Genuinely, I don't mind a little predictability, but I thought there were times when the characters were two-dimensional and we really weren't seeing anything new for the genre.
Additionally, a lot of people have been characterizing this book as YA based on the writing style, but I don't think it's YA at all based on the content. If anything, I this book belongs in the 'New Adult' category, because it's less a coming-of-age story that's typical for the YA genre.