Tag: NA fantasy

Review: Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

Anna and Alexis1 Comment
Alexis' hand holds a library copy of Fourth Wing over a gray blanket and a green blanket

Alexis:

Look what came in from the library! And yes, I did sit down and binge-read it in two days.

I want to start out by saying that I know that Fourth Wing has been EVERYWHERE. Like, I have seen it not only on book accounts, but just all over the internet in general. And by the time I realized this might be a book I should read (especially since it’s my genre), it was sold out of bookstores. So, thank you to my local library!

Due to this book’s hype, I’m not going to include a synopsis here, so feel free to look up what this book is about if you’ve managed to miss the frenzied discussion around it.

First off, I want to start off with my criticisms of this book.

Fourth Wing is in the same vein as A Court of Thorns and Roses and The Serpent and the Wings of Night with a dash of Eragon on top, so if those are your jam, this might be for you. 

This certainly isn’t a unique book, and honestly, that in itself is my main criticism—there were a lot of moments that were just too close to those of other books. I also found the plot to be extremely predictable. I can’t go into it that much without revealing spoilers, but I found that Yarros dropped too many hints about what ended up going down in the ending. The writing also does lean more YA, which honestly doesn’t bother me (this is NA people, that’s the point—adult themes but with the voice and snapiness of YA) especially because they’re in a college.

I also wish we got to see more of Violet’s dragon bonding. And I found Xaden, the love interest, to be exactly like every other love interest in the fantasy romance space and honestly not the most interesting character. 

Yet, that being said, I couldn’t put this book down. It has that thrilling, adventurous feeling that’s addicting. Yarros’ writing style is easy to devour, and I appreciated the amount of action scenes in this book. There’s never a dull moment! 

The Basgiath War College, aka the dragon riding college, in itself sounded super cool. I loved the brutality of both the college and the world. And I really appreciated the Ehler-Danlos syndrome rep, and I thought Yarros did a good job of exploring how it affects Violet’s training and her confidence. 

This book was wholly engrossing, and I definitely think it’s a good start to the series. I’m glad we don’t have too long of a wait until the sequel arrives this fall!

VERDICT: 5⭐ reading experience

Review: One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
One Dark Window rests on a yellow scarf next to a cashmere candle and an oil perfume rollerball called Dusty Manuscripts.

Alexis:

One Dark Window is a new adult fantasy that follows Elspeth, who lives in the mist-locked kingdom of Blunder. Elspeth has a secret—after she contracted the infection that gave her illegal magic, she accidentally let a monster called the Nightmare into her head. Now, it lives in the back of her mind and protects her.

But when Elspeth runs into a group of highwaymen, she unexpectedly ends up joining a quest to rid Blunder of its dark magic: a deck of cards called the Providence Cards.

The first topic I want to discuss is the magic system. The idea of a magical deck of cards is very unique, and I really enjoyed how it shaped the worldbuilding and the story. The cards are the only legal way to do magic; each card temporarily gives the user a magical ability. 

Now for the worldbuilding. In the beginning of each chapter is a passage or two from a text called the Book of Adlers. This really helped give insight into the culture of Blunder and helped shape the world, as well.

As for the pacing, the beginning is really slow, and it takes a while for everything to be set up before Elspeth can actually go on her quest. But once the quest began, I really enjoyed being on the journey with her.

There’s a romantic subplot, as well. I’m a huge fan of a romantic subplot, and while I did enjoy it, I was hoping for a little more depth. (It’s worth noting that there’s also the fake-dating trope in this book, which I haven’t seen anyone mention!) But I’m hoping the romance doesn’t feel as surface-level in the sequel.

Speaking of sequels, the ending of One Dark Window sets up for a killer second book. 

Overall, One Dark Window is a great choice if you’re looking for an atmospheric and gothic read with a unique, dark magic system. 

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Review: Daughter of the Drowned Empire by Frankie Diane Mallis

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment

Alexis:

Daughter of the Drowned Empire is a NA fantasy that follows Lyriana, who is third in line to the Seat of Power in Bamaria. She hopes to be a mage after her ceremony, when her magic will be announced and unleashed, but she has a secret—her two older sisters both have illegal magic.⁣

⁣It took me a little while to get into the beginning of this, so I highly recommend checking out the glossary in the back first to get a handle on the worldbuilding. There’s also a love triangle that I was feeling iffy about. But once the plot got rolling, I was hooked!

This was a fun book that ended up being fairly complex. I liked the themes of love, sisterhood, and staying true to yourself. I enjoyed Lyriana’s character arc, and I can’t wait to see where Mallis takes her next.

⁣Overall, the character development was well done and this was a fun read. I can’t wait for the sequel!

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ⁣

Review: Edgewood by Kristen Ciccarelli

Anna and Alexis1 Comment
Alexis holds a copy of Edgewood- green with a girl wearing a purple dress and holding a dagger- in front of a bookshelf.

Alexis:

Another 5 ⭐ review!

Edgewood is a new adult fantasy that has everything I love in a book: atmospheric writing, creepy woods, and a dynamic love interest. 

There were two really great themes woven throughout this book. The first is music. Emeline, the main character, is a nineteen-year-old singer, trying to tour and get her foot in the door of the music world. I loved how music played a magical role in this book.

The second is memory. Emeline’s grandfather, who she calls Pa, is suffering from dementia. Ciccarelli bases his character on her own grandfather who suffered from dementia, and so she writes Pa with care, and her grief comes through in her writing. The themes of forgetting and remembering play a critical role in the story.

There’s also a Wood King, a city deep in the woods, a curse, and interesting creatures that appear in the story. And I found Hawthorne, the love interest, to be a well-rounded and mysterious yet warmhearted character. 

My only critique is that there were a couple of minor storylines that I think could’ve been explored further. However, I enjoyed this story immensely and definitely recommend it if you’re looking for something atmospheric and full of forest imagery and magical music.

(And it doesn’t hurt that the whole book is beautiful!)

Review: Furyborn and Kingsbane by Claire Legrand

Anna and AlexisLeave a comment
The spines of Furyborn and Kingsbane rest on a windowsill next to a white curtain and a candle.

Alexis:

Furyborn, and the rest of The Empirium Trilogy, has been on my tbr list for a while now, and when I found Furyborn in a used bookstore, I grabbed it!

To be honest, it took me a while to get into the worldbuilding. I had to read the first half of this book carefully in order to understand the world and the characters.

Furyborn has two timelines—1000 years apart. Two queens, the Sun Queen and the Blood Queen, are prophesied to either break or save the world. Rielle can perform all seven kinds of elemental magic, and enters a series of trials to prove that she is the Sun Queen. 1000 years later, Eliana is an assassin just trying to keep her family alive in the Undying Empire when she runs into a rebel named Simon who needs her help.

Like I said, once I got to the halfway point, I loved this book. It’s both action packed yet slow paced. The first chapter/prologue offers a glimpse of what happens in the end, and I found that it upped the tension and anticipation for me while I read. 

While I wasn’t a huge fan of Rielle’s character, I found Eliana to be interesting and flawed. And Simon was by far my favorite character; I can’t wait to learn more about him in the next book.

My one main critique is that this book was originally marketed as YA and—it’s not. It’s definitely adult, with adult themes and sex scenes. I would categorize it as New Adult, which I desperately hope will eventually be a more solidified genre. 

If you’re looking to dive into a new trilogy full of action, powerful and flawed women, angels and elemental magic, and dual timelines, then you might like this.

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

As for Kingsbane, where to begin!

The plot thickens. Legrand throws her characters into everything imaginable; anything bad that can happen does.

It’s hard to say anything else about this book without giving major spoilers, but I both hated and loved reading it, and the ending almost had me throwing it against the wall.

Despite feeling terrible for all of the characters, this book was just so intense and dark, and I loved it. That being said, I’m not a fan of how Legrand writes her sex scenes, and I think there were several in here that were unnecessary. 

But Kingsbane stuck with me, and I’m still waiting to read the third and final book in the trilogy to see what happens!

VERDICT: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5