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A review by ryrichard28
Amber & Dusk by Lyra Selene
4.0
Preface:
While I have some complaints about the heroine, I absolutely LOVED this book. Political scheming, a damaged antihero, and twists in the story combined to slingshot me through this novel. I’m officially willing to devour whatever this author will write next.
The plot:
The story is full of politics, scheming, and secrets, and an evil empress who uses her court as her own personal Mean Girls Coliseum. The people around Sylvie are miserable, but she’s like a cult victim, and completely naïve to how evil the Amber Empress is. Sylvie spends most of the story focused on cultivating her ability and confused about the drama unfolding around her.
Sylvie: the heroine?
She’s ambitious, and oh so entitled. She’s not the most perceptive heroine either, as she just doesn’t get what’s going on around her. She wheedles her way into the palais so that she’ll be with other people like her, motivated to learn about her ability while being surrounded by luxury. She’s conveniently blind to the fact that her new place serving the Empress is basically a life of slavery. She’s like Katniss, but selfish — “I volunteer as tribute! But only because I belong with the other victors. You can dress me in Swarovski now! (But I’ll address the maids by their real names so you know I’m not evil.)”
The girl doesn’t notice that she’s willingly placed her head directly into the lion’s mouth. When reading the synopsis, I got the impression that Sylvie is astute, and trying to work out the mystery of the place she’s at. But she’s dense and doesn’t ask questions, admires the villain and distrusts the hero, and spends a good deal of time talking herself out of the truth.
Multiple opportunities for improvement:
She wants so badly to belong somewhere. But when she’s presented with that opportunity in the beginning, she gives it up in order to be with others like her in a life of privilege. A sense of belonging isn’t the only thing she’s after. She’s ambitious, and is resentful of her humble origins as a poor orphan. And she feels sorry for herself because of everything she’s been through, which is annoying. It really makes me question whether she’s truly heroine material. The girl has flaws up the wazoo.
And yet, as the story progresses, more of the typical OG heroine traits emerge. She gets angry at injustice and motivated to take action. She evolves, making her a much less annoying protag after some time investment. In fact, I actually began to like the things I initially complained about. She’s not Snow White, all purity and altruism. At first glance, she could even have what it takes to be a villain. But by the end, I was loving that she wasn’t your basic heroine mould. She’s got darkness to her. And she is indeed a heroine by the end, albeit a complex one.
Sunder: either the antihero or the villain (place your bets!):
Sunder enters the scene as an antagonist. He steps up to sponsor her, but in a way that it makes it seem like he’s rooting for her to fail. But still, he steps up and makes it possible for her to stay at the palais. He “saves the cat,” so to speak. “Saving the cat” refers to the mechanism used by writers of introducing a person as a protagonist. The hero shows himself as a hero by saving a cat from a tree, signifying that he’s a “good guy.” Sunder’s intro is very “save the cat”ish, and it had me doubting throughout the book whether he was a villain because I had that moment stuck in my head. He has several moments where his actions seem negative, but are they really? That game of villain vs antihero is played throughout the novel, and we do get our answer by the end.
His personality:
He’s dark, damaged, and wears a cloak of cockiness to mask his vulnerabilities. It’s an attractive recipe that’s been used frequently, but it works. Hence its frequent use. Our inner heroine wants to rescue him from himself, pat him on the head, and tell him he’s worthy. I love this character, and he ended up being my favorite one to follow. I cared more about his story than Sylvie’s.
PS, the synopsis implies that Sunder isn’t forthcoming with answers, but he is when she finally starts asking.
Supporting characters:
Luca — the best friend. Beautiful and clearly in love with Sylvie. He’s sunshine personified.
Severine — the Amber Empress. The evil “it girl.” The end.
Dowser — trains Sylvie how to use her ability. Secretive about his past and what he knows of Sylvie’s history. Father figure.
Lullaby — reluctant ally of Sylvie. Trains her in etiquette. Damaged by her time in the Amber Empress’ court.
Takeaways:
There’s commentary on how trials throughout life and enduring pain can lead to strength and transcendence compared to living on Easy Street. Trials build character.
To build something beautiful — a life, a society — loss is inevitable. The concept of breaking the world to create a new one makes an appearance.
The theme of making your dreams into reality is central. The protag’s power is illusion, and it ties into displaying her dreams for others to see.
Pitfalls:
Elaboration on people’s abilities comes late. The whole time I’m wondering what exactly Reaper can do (ps, it’s not what I thought at all).
Maids are introduced in the beginning, seemingly set up as characters, but are forgotten after the intro. They’ve got names, personalities, and then whoosh, they’re gone. I mean, I didn’t really care about them, but when they resurface towards the end, it’s just a bit jarring.
Tropes:
Sylvie is basically the chosen one trope. Little orphan that’s destined for more.
There’s also a love triangle that’s not really a triangle but more of a misdirect. There’s really only one true love interest, though I can see Selene potentially employing another misdirect in the sequel with the other dude.
Ultimately:
It feels unfinished, so I can’t see this as a standalone. There are a couple cliffhangers. I don’t know where it’s heading, but I’m definitely in for the next one! It was a breeze to get through, and addicting enough that I ended up carrying it around with me on my errands for those spare seconds in between tasks when I could read a few sentences at a time.
PS: a big thanks to Scholastic for sending me an ARC!
While I have some complaints about the heroine, I absolutely LOVED this book. Political scheming, a damaged antihero, and twists in the story combined to slingshot me through this novel. I’m officially willing to devour whatever this author will write next.
The plot:
The story is full of politics, scheming, and secrets, and an evil empress who uses her court as her own personal Mean Girls Coliseum. The people around Sylvie are miserable, but she’s like a cult victim, and completely naïve to how evil the Amber Empress is. Sylvie spends most of the story focused on cultivating her ability and confused about the drama unfolding around her.
Sylvie: the heroine?
She’s ambitious, and oh so entitled. She’s not the most perceptive heroine either, as she just doesn’t get what’s going on around her. She wheedles her way into the palais so that she’ll be with other people like her, motivated to learn about her ability while being surrounded by luxury. She’s conveniently blind to the fact that her new place serving the Empress is basically a life of slavery. She’s like Katniss, but selfish — “I volunteer as tribute! But only because I belong with the other victors. You can dress me in Swarovski now! (But I’ll address the maids by their real names so you know I’m not evil.)”
The girl doesn’t notice that she’s willingly placed her head directly into the lion’s mouth. When reading the synopsis, I got the impression that Sylvie is astute, and trying to work out the mystery of the place she’s at. But she’s dense and doesn’t ask questions, admires the villain and distrusts the hero, and spends a good deal of time talking herself out of the truth.
Multiple opportunities for improvement:
She wants so badly to belong somewhere. But when she’s presented with that opportunity in the beginning, she gives it up in order to be with others like her in a life of privilege. A sense of belonging isn’t the only thing she’s after. She’s ambitious, and is resentful of her humble origins as a poor orphan. And she feels sorry for herself because of everything she’s been through, which is annoying. It really makes me question whether she’s truly heroine material. The girl has flaws up the wazoo.
And yet, as the story progresses, more of the typical OG heroine traits emerge. She gets angry at injustice and motivated to take action. She evolves, making her a much less annoying protag after some time investment. In fact, I actually began to like the things I initially complained about. She’s not Snow White, all purity and altruism. At first glance, she could even have what it takes to be a villain. But by the end, I was loving that she wasn’t your basic heroine mould. She’s got darkness to her. And she is indeed a heroine by the end, albeit a complex one.
Sunder: either the antihero or the villain (place your bets!):
Sunder enters the scene as an antagonist. He steps up to sponsor her, but in a way that it makes it seem like he’s rooting for her to fail. But still, he steps up and makes it possible for her to stay at the palais. He “saves the cat,” so to speak. “Saving the cat” refers to the mechanism used by writers of introducing a person as a protagonist. The hero shows himself as a hero by saving a cat from a tree, signifying that he’s a “good guy.” Sunder’s intro is very “save the cat”ish, and it had me doubting throughout the book whether he was a villain because I had that moment stuck in my head. He has several moments where his actions seem negative, but are they really? That game of villain vs antihero is played throughout the novel, and we do get our answer by the end.
His personality:
He’s dark, damaged, and wears a cloak of cockiness to mask his vulnerabilities. It’s an attractive recipe that’s been used frequently, but it works. Hence its frequent use. Our inner heroine wants to rescue him from himself, pat him on the head, and tell him he’s worthy. I love this character, and he ended up being my favorite one to follow. I cared more about his story than Sylvie’s.
PS, the synopsis implies that Sunder isn’t forthcoming with answers, but he is when she finally starts asking.
Supporting characters:
Luca — the best friend. Beautiful and clearly in love with Sylvie. He’s sunshine personified.
Severine — the Amber Empress. The evil “it girl.” The end.
Dowser — trains Sylvie how to use her ability. Secretive about his past and what he knows of Sylvie’s history. Father figure.
Lullaby — reluctant ally of Sylvie. Trains her in etiquette. Damaged by her time in the Amber Empress’ court.
Takeaways:
There’s commentary on how trials throughout life and enduring pain can lead to strength and transcendence compared to living on Easy Street. Trials build character.
To build something beautiful — a life, a society — loss is inevitable. The concept of breaking the world to create a new one makes an appearance.
The theme of making your dreams into reality is central. The protag’s power is illusion, and it ties into displaying her dreams for others to see.
Pitfalls:
Elaboration on people’s abilities comes late. The whole time I’m wondering what exactly Reaper can do (ps, it’s not what I thought at all).
Maids are introduced in the beginning, seemingly set up as characters, but are forgotten after the intro. They’ve got names, personalities, and then whoosh, they’re gone. I mean, I didn’t really care about them, but when they resurface towards the end, it’s just a bit jarring.
Tropes:
Sylvie is basically the chosen one trope. Little orphan that’s destined for more.
There’s also a love triangle that’s not really a triangle but more of a misdirect. There’s really only one true love interest, though I can see Selene potentially employing another misdirect in the sequel with the other dude.
Ultimately:
It feels unfinished, so I can’t see this as a standalone. There are a couple cliffhangers. I don’t know where it’s heading, but I’m definitely in for the next one! It was a breeze to get through, and addicting enough that I ended up carrying it around with me on my errands for those spare seconds in between tasks when I could read a few sentences at a time.
PS: a big thanks to Scholastic for sending me an ARC!