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A review by lynn_give_em_hel_vetica
Pirouette by Kenley Davidson
4.0
It was quite enjoyable to see Caelan and it's people as it's been mentioned previously but we haven't had cause to journey there. I wasn't sure what to expect considering we start out on this voyage with a very seasick Kyril and an exceedingly disagreeable group of colleagues consisting of Brenna (Mrs. Delaney), Alexei (Mr. Delaney) and Quinn (the reticent assassin).
Kyril (Kai) was such a lovable doofus in The Traitor's Masque and I'm delighted he got his own adventure. It's nice to know he can be more serious when the need arises; though he certainly didn't believe in himself for the majority of the time. By the end his confidence is real rather than faked and he shines like the gem he is. It doesn't hurt that he also gained a plethora of new family members that will have his back.
Ilani is a character I feel deserves more page time than she got. I know she has magic, like her sisters do, but she never really gets to explore it. I would have liked to see what precisely her magic does. As far as I could tell, it doesn't seem to do much more than make gold butterflies when dancing which feels like a bit of a letdown considering her other sister's powers.
Alexei, Janard and Brenna are all such fascinating characters and I would love to learn more about them. I hope they all get to have their own stories at some point. Rowan on the other hand is a duplicitous traitor and he really needs the day of reckoning he so sorely deserves
I've said it before and I'll say it again, Kenley Davidson has a way with words. Every time I read one of her books I find myself highlighting large swaths of text that delight me so that I can go back and read them again and again.
Though the dance was for the malek and his heir and a chosen few others to view, the celebration would include everyone who could be reasonably crammed into the extensive palace grounds. Opulence and extravagance were but poor cousins to the display planned for that remarkable occasion.
Kyril (Kai) was such a lovable doofus in The Traitor's Masque and I'm delighted he got his own adventure. It's nice to know he can be more serious when the need arises; though he certainly didn't believe in himself for the majority of the time. By the end his confidence is real rather than faked and he shines like the gem he is. It doesn't hurt that he also gained a plethora of new family members that will have his back.
“That was a hand woven tapestry,” he informed Kyril. “A carefully crafted piece of art that probably took months to create.” “And I,” Kyril reminded him, “am an unshaven, uneducated mercenary. An unwashed barbarian. A foreign idiot and”—he shot a look at Brenna—“a lout. I wouldn’t know art if you smothered me with it. I am merely protecting you as you have hired me to do.”
Ilani is a character I feel deserves more page time than she got. I know she has magic, like her sisters do, but she never really gets to explore it. I would have liked to see what precisely her magic does. As far as I could tell, it doesn't seem to do much more than make gold butterflies when dancing which feels like a bit of a letdown considering her other sister's powers.
“I am a princess,” she told him loftily, “and I decree that you are to call me Lani. And as you are merely a subject, you will obey. Also,” she continued, “because I am a princess, I can have your head cut off whenever I choose, no matter what you call me.” It was not true, but it amused her to pretend.
Alexei, Janard and Brenna are all such fascinating characters and I would love to learn more about them. I hope they all get to have their own stories at some point. Rowan on the other hand is a duplicitous traitor and he really needs the day of reckoning he so sorely deserves
It was Janard’s turn to smile. A very small smile. Kyril suspected the man did not smile, or laugh, very often, except when serving deadly drinks to unsuspecting visitors. Being right-hand man to a dictator who had run mad was probably not a very amusing job.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, Kenley Davidson has a way with words. Every time I read one of her books I find myself highlighting large swaths of text that delight me so that I can go back and read them again and again.
A roving vendor with a deep tray of jewels, naked to the waist and dripping with his own wares, called out in another [language], guttural consonants rasping out of a throat wrapped in a king’s ransom.