Scan barcode
A review by book_hoarding_dragon
Grave Dance by Kalayna Price
2.0
For some reason this hasn't been a good year for me with books. I've had one bad experience after another. This is a prime example of that. I'd really like to give this book 1 1/2 stars, but I'm giving it a two.
I can only think of two good things to say about this book I can come up with is that Price's world building is... interesting. And the cover is waaaay better than the first (The Alex on the Grave Witch cover looked like she was Anorexic and because of where the title was placed, it seemed she had shoved a dagger/short sword down her pants.)
That's it.
Onto the bad.
About five minutes in I found that Price naming her city "Nekros City" still got on my nerves. Really? Dead City? I can see it if it was made up of zombies, vampires, ghouls that sort of thing but it wasn't. Every time she mentioned the name I found myself rolling my eyes.
I can understand authors mixing up mythology. There are many variants in them (for example in Fairy lore in one part of England this one thing is a ghost or elderly woman, another part of England same name but it's in the form of an animal). However, if you do this BE CONSISTENT! The top thing that bothered me about this book was that in this book Alex went to The Bloom or Blossom (it started with a 'B') that is a pocket of Faerie she spent time there AND in Faerie too, maybe the Winter Court. I don't know. She comes back and she's been gone for five minutes.
I'm rolling with it, I'm all cool. The myths do say that time passes differently in fairy. So... time goes slower there than here. Okay. Then, my brain kicks in and I remember that in Grave Witch, Alex was in the same place but she thought she was only gone for 10 hours and turns out she was gone for 3 days. *annoyed* I think this was an error on Price's part since it was never touched upon in the book as it being a new ability of Alex.
Love triangle. Hate hate hate hate hate hate them. They have been used to death. (Also, my respect for Price has diminished a bit since she uses this device in her Haven Series, too)
Alex as a doormat.
Falin. He's kind of this good ol' boy, with this past, a protector, and he's blondish and is very up front with his affections for Alex. I thought the reveals about him in this was an interesting look into the Fae.
Death or whatever his name is. Dark, dark, bad boy, dark, mysterious, and dark. Seriously, what do we know about this guy? Oh yea, he's mysterious, likes to wear black and he's a soul collector. How did he get there? Did he chose this path or born into it? We know nothing about him other than since Falin showed up, he's hot and heavy for Alex. I also think he's supposed to Romeo to Alex's Juliet. Star crossed lovers? Really? :headdesk: I am disappointed that Price has gone this route with him. I could understand Alex having a teenage crush on him, but as a grown women. No. And the whole him "loving" her back? :feels headache coming on: I would be more impressed with this series if he was more of a friend (best friend would be fine) or colleague.
Personally, I prefer Falin because he has more substance than a piece of cardboard that is called Death.
To me, this was just a filler book. For the number of pages there are, not a very executed one at that. There could have been so much more done.
At the end there was no explanation for some things that kind of bothered me. And a lot of some other things going on in the story was left very open ended. The book didn't seem that well thought out.
Price's Alex series has so much potential. The potential for her family problems which once AGAIN was not really touched upon besides saying she has issues. The potential for Alex to be torn between her new role as one of the Fae which we don't really see (we see other people's reaction to that news, but not her). Potential for Death. Price really falls short.
I can only think of two good things to say about this book I can come up with is that Price's world building is... interesting. And the cover is waaaay better than the first (The Alex on the Grave Witch cover looked like she was Anorexic and because of where the title was placed, it seemed she had shoved a dagger/short sword down her pants.)
That's it.
Onto the bad.
About five minutes in I found that Price naming her city "Nekros City" still got on my nerves. Really? Dead City? I can see it if it was made up of zombies, vampires, ghouls that sort of thing but it wasn't. Every time she mentioned the name I found myself rolling my eyes.
I can understand authors mixing up mythology. There are many variants in them (for example in Fairy lore in one part of England this one thing is a ghost or elderly woman, another part of England same name but it's in the form of an animal). However, if you do this BE CONSISTENT! The top thing that bothered me about this book was that in this book Alex went to The Bloom or Blossom (it started with a 'B') that is a pocket of Faerie she spent time there AND in Faerie too, maybe the Winter Court. I don't know. She comes back and she's been gone for five minutes.
I'm rolling with it, I'm all cool. The myths do say that time passes differently in fairy. So... time goes slower there than here. Okay. Then, my brain kicks in and I remember that in Grave Witch, Alex was in the same place but she thought she was only gone for 10 hours and turns out she was gone for 3 days. *annoyed* I think this was an error on Price's part since it was never touched upon in the book as it being a new ability of Alex.
Love triangle. Hate hate hate hate hate hate them. They have been used to death. (Also, my respect for Price has diminished a bit since she uses this device in her Haven Series, too)
Alex as a doormat.
Falin. He's kind of this good ol' boy, with this past, a protector, and he's blondish and is very up front with his affections for Alex. I thought the reveals about him in this was an interesting look into the Fae.
Death or whatever his name is. Dark, dark, bad boy, dark, mysterious, and dark. Seriously, what do we know about this guy? Oh yea, he's mysterious, likes to wear black and he's a soul collector. How did he get there? Did he chose this path or born into it? We know nothing about him other than since Falin showed up, he's hot and heavy for Alex. I also think he's supposed to Romeo to Alex's Juliet. Star crossed lovers? Really? :headdesk: I am disappointed that Price has gone this route with him. I could understand Alex having a teenage crush on him, but as a grown women. No. And the whole him "loving" her back? :feels headache coming on: I would be more impressed with this series if he was more of a friend (best friend would be fine) or colleague.
Personally, I prefer Falin because he has more substance than a piece of cardboard that is called Death.
To me, this was just a filler book. For the number of pages there are, not a very executed one at that. There could have been so much more done.
Spoiler
Also, for the life of me I can not figure out why the hell the baddie was trying to kill or take out Alex. It made no sense. All that I can come up with is that evil is stupid or Price just needed a plot device and just went with that without thinking it through. Another thing for the baddie's why leave just the left foot? Why wouldn't it be both feet?At the end there was no explanation for some things that kind of bothered me. And a lot of some other things going on in the story was left very open ended. The book didn't seem that well thought out.
Price's Alex series has so much potential. The potential for her family problems which once AGAIN was not really touched upon besides saying she has issues. The potential for Alex to be torn between her new role as one of the Fae which we don't really see (we see other people's reaction to that news, but not her). Potential for Death. Price really falls short.