The BiblioSanctum

Book Review: Warrior of the West by M.K. Hume

Posted on January 12, 2014 Leave a Comment

Warrior of the West by M.K. Hume

Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Series: Book 2 of King Arthur

Publisher: Atria

Date of Publication: January 7, 2014

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars – “Hume takes her expertise on the legend and history of King Arthur and weaves in her own personal imaginings, portraying many prominent figures of the mythos in unique, intriguing ways”

Of the many re-tellings and interpretations I’ve read based on the King Arthur mythos, I think M.K. Hume’s is probably the most “scholarly” version I’ve ever come across. As an expert on Arthurian literature writing the series as more of a historical fiction than a fantasy, the author clearly went to great lengths to find the most accurate accounts of Arthur’s reign. Still, she ultimately chose to tell the legends her way, and there are certainly no shortage of surprises here.

This is the second book of Hume’s King Arthur trilogy. The first book Dragon’s Child was about how Artor (Arthur) won his crown to become High King of the Britons, while Warrior of the West takes place approximately twelve years after that. The story almost feels like it is split into two parts, with the first half of the novel focusing on the war against Glamdring Ironfist and his army of Saxon invaders.

But while it was undoubtedly the right call for Hume to open the book with the excitement and conflict of a war campaign, I personally found the events of the second half of the novel more engaging. Having driven back his enemies, the rest of the book centers around Artor’s efforts to establish his throne and his need for a legitimate heir. This, of course, is where Wenhaver (Guenevere) comes in, and the interesting part begins.

I have to say this book’s characterization of Wenhaver is one of my favorite portrayals of King Arthur’s queen that I’ve ever encountered. Simply put, she’s a terrible, vicious person, little more than a spoiled child accustomed to using her beauty to get what she wants. In her afterword, Hume confesses that she has never much liked Guenevere or her character’s relevance as someone who could bring ruin to an entire kingdom for the love of another man, and yet could still retain her likeability as a person. I’ve never thought about it that way, but the fact that Guenevere and her part in the legend has always been heavily romanticized is true enough.

However, in this story Wenhaver is a vile, jealous and sadistic character who cheats on her husband out of spite. Hume also leaves the character of Lancelot out entirely, which makes sense because she is staying faithful to the older versions of the legend (Lancelot is thought to have been absorbed into the Arthurian tradition after he was introduced by the French romances). But while there’s no love lost between king and queen, Hume cultivates her character relationships in other places.

As a counterpoint to Wenhaver, we have Nimue, known commonly as the Lady of the Lake who enchants the heart of Merlin. Nimue is the polar opposite of Wenhaver, being a sweet, kindly and down-to-earth young woman — which again is an intriguing portrayal of a key figure that is very different and unique. I love the background Hume has written for Nimue, while still managing to tie in a lot of the elements from the more popular versions of the legend, including her relationship with Myrddion Merlinus.

In spite of this, the story also feels grounded in historical reality, which I’m sure is due largely to Hume’s research and academic expertise. The nature of the writing style also puts you right there, and is quite effective at emphasizing the brutality of the times. In some ways, the starkness of the prose makes the violence seem so much worse, making me feel a lot more squeamish. Indeed, the author does not spare us from the darker, bloodier side of forging a kingdom.

As you can see, the book veers off a great deal from the more “accepted” versions of the King Arthur legend, but that is also what I love best about it. The way Hume weaves her own personal imaginings into a framework which brings together myth and legend with historical accounts is what’s making this series stand out for me. It’s true that these novels lean further into historical fiction territory than fantasy, making them quite different than the type of books I’m currently reading now, but I’m definitely looking forward to checking out the conclusion of this trilogy.

4 of 5 stars

A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

YA Weekend: Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Posted on January 11, 2014 Leave a Comment

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

Genre: Young Adult Horror, Paranormal

Series: Book 1 of Anna

Publisher: Tor Teen

Date of Publication: August 20, 2011

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy’s Rating: 3.5 of 5 stars – “An intriguing young adult horror novel with perhaps a questionable romantic side plot, but otherwise a spine-chillingly good read”

I seem to be running into a lot of young adult novels with overly vague or very misleading descriptions lately. Anyway, I don’t know what I was expecting when I picked up this book, but for better or worse, it wasn’t this.

From what I’ve seen and heard, Anna Dressed in Blood is a horror novel. Everything about it screams, “Read me! I am scary!” I mean, you have ghost hunter Cas Lowood traveling the globe in search of urban legends and lore, vanquishing the evil spirits that are killing and terrorizing innocent people. He ends up following a tip to Thunder Bay, where a ghost called Anna has been the bane of the local population since her death in 1958.

A victim of a grisly murder herself, she is called “Anna Dressed in Blood” because her ghost still wears the white dress she had on the day she died, now dripping and stained red with gore. She haunts the house where she used to live, and every person who has ever stepped foot inside has met a gruesome end by her hand. If you ask me, when it comes to evil ghosts that need busting, no one deserves it more than Anna. I so looked forward to Cas ending her reign of terror.

And therein lies the kicker. I wanted Cas to kill Anna, not fall in love with her! Granted, I had a suspicion this was where the book was headed given its genre, not to mention how obvious it was from the way these two characters were being handled. Still, while I did not immediately dismiss or even terribly mind the romantic side plot, I did have some issues with the way their relationship unraveled. It felt rushed and clumsy, and I did not find it remotely convincing. The way I see it, Cas has been killing far too many ghosts for far too long to just up and one day fall in love with one. And despite Anna’s special circumstances, the author did not give her an engaging enough personality to persuade me that she could capture Cas’ heart so effortlessly.

Also, despite the horror vibes practically leaking off this book, it is still classified as young adult and as such I did not actually expect it to be very scary. In this I was mostly right, though there are some genuinely tense and downright disturbing scenes which could possibly set off a reader’s creep-out meter. If anything, I applaud Kendare Blake for being able to create this spine-chilling atmosphere, and wish she had expanded and continued this aspect throughout the entire book. This had all the potential to become one of the most unique young adult horror novels I’ve ever read, but it was the lukewarm romantic subplot that ended up derailing the momentum for me.

There are some other more minor things that made me stumble, including the supporting characters who felt shoehorned in and not given adequate space to really shine. Carmel, Thomas, Morfran and even Cas’ mother were all very intriguing people, with personalities that I would have been delighted to see explored further. Plus, considering how little time the teens actually spent in class, the book really could have done without the school setting to begin with. Cas could have been in the area for the summer and there would have been very little difference. Massive points to Anna Dressed in Blood for taking place in Thunder Bay though, a very nice hat tip to this very nice Northwestern Ontario city.

All in all, this book gets several mixed opinions from me, though my overall experience was positive. If the romance had been handled better, I really think this could have been something more special and amazing. As it is though, it’s still quite good. I’ll definitely still be checking out the next book.

3.5 of 5 stars

Mogsy’s Book Haul

Posted on January 11, 2014 Leave a Comment

Be My Enemy and Empress of the Sun – This was a pretty awesome week thanks to Jo Fletcher Books, starting with number 2 and 3 of the Everness series. I’ve heard so many good things about it that I quickly caught up with the first book Planesrunner at end of last year just in time to tackle these books. Be My Enemy was as amazing as I thought it would be, and I’m looking forward to start Empress of the Sun very soon!

Cemetery Girl – the first graphic novel published by JFB and it’s a pleasure to be able to check this one out!

The Scarlet Tides – last year I also read Mage’s Blood and loved it. Much thanks to JFB as well as Pat from A Bitter Draft for passing along his extra copy of the sequel, because you have no idea how badly I want to find out what happens in this series next.

Netherworld – a book I received from the small press JournalStone via a giveaway. It looked very interesting from its description of a paranormal historical featuring a nineteenth-century female demon hunter.

Red Delicious – Blood Oranges was one of the first reviews I wrote for this blog when we revived it again last year, and how time flies because the sequel is about to come out already! I absolutely adored the first book and I have a feeling this one will be just as incredible. The main protagonist of this series Siobhan Quinn is such a riot.

Iron Night – I already an ARC of this but I had to get the retail copy to complete my collection. And why not, this is such a brilliant series and I can’t remember the last time I was this excited over an urban fantasy! Iron Night just came out this week, so go get it!

Siege and Storm – there was a flurry of audiobook sales recently, including an Audible 2-for-1 credit deal which I took advantage of. I haven’t even started Shadow and Bone yet, but I will soon because it’s one of the books on my winter reading list and I figured having the sequel on hand will be a good idea.

Necessary Evil – the second audiobook also happens to be a sequel, the third book of the Milkweed Triptych. I’m finally all set to finish this trilogy by Ian Tregillis; I enjoyed the first and second books and I hear the third one ends with a bang and is the best one of all.

Crux – yet another sequel! I listened to the audiobook of Nexus last month and really liked it. Hopefully I’ll have a review of it up soon. I saw both books on sale as a Kindle daily deal last week and took that opportunity to grab the Whispersync bundle of Crux for a few bucks.

Silence – I’m thinking of doing a YA reading challenge for 2014 and this one has been on my reading list for a while. Needless to say, when I saw it as a daily audiobook deal one day, I quickly snapped it up.

The Waking Engine – the only ebook ARC in my haul this time. I was so proud of myself this holiday season when I brought my NetGalley stats to over 90% but I’m sure that number will be destroyed again in the new year. Sure enough, here I start requesting again. But The Waking Engine, it just looks so good! They…they all do…

Book Review: The Inevitable by Daniel Hope

Posted on January 10, 2014 1 Comment

The Inevitable by Daniel Hope

Genre: Science Fiction

Publisher: Self-published

Publication Date: July 2013

Author Info: speculativeintent.com

Wendy’s Rating – 4 of 5 stars:

The Inevitable certainly has no shortage of action and intrigue, but it’s the human interactions and Tuck’s experiences that truly make this book a surprisingly touching gem.

Tuck is a robot. The last sentient robot in existence after the culling of the Bot Riots, and the most human robot you’ll ever meet, in spite of his completely inhuman appearance. After 150 years, Tuck is barely held together with old parts that he diligently works to replace. He is often hunted by collectors seeking to add a much prized trophy to their shelves. His quest for survival eventually leads him to a man of questionable motives who can keep Tuck functioning for many more years, but the arrangement may force Tuck to take human lives, something he is strongly against.

From the moment we first meet Tuck, it is clear that he’s a robot, but though he makes the Pinocchio comparison himself, he notes that he is not seeking to become real. He knows that he exists, and while he doesn’t question being alive, he knows that he doesn’t want to die. Nor does he want to kill, though he has in the past, either by mistake, negligence or intent. And he remembers every death.

Through Tuck, Hope explores the idea of mortality and of humanity. Even when Tuck is making highly technical calculations as he assesses a situation, Hope’s writing maintains such an endearing level of compassion. One of my favourite scenes involves Tuck is pithily breaking down how we experience emotion. It becomes clear early on that Tuck understands and respects more about humanity than we humans ever will.

The plot described in the blurb implies a lot of action and intrigue, and The Inevitable certainly has no shortage of that, but it’s the human interactions and Tuck’s experiences that truly make this book a surprisingly touching gem. I loved the vastness of this future world, while appreciating that Hope didn’t feel compelled to go too deeply into the details of each and every planet. It’s important only to know that earth exists, and we’ve moved on to other worlds as our technology and hubris demands. And most of all, I loved Tuck.

Panels: Star Wars: Legacy #6 (Vector)

Posted on January 10, 2014 Leave a Comment

Cade Skywalker is not a big fan of his famous surname,
or its 100 year old legacy.

Star Wars Legacy #6

Book Review: The Grendel Affair by Lisa Shearin

Posted on January 9, 2014 2 Comments

The Grendel Affair by Lisa Shearin

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of SPI Files

Publisher: Ace

Date of Publication: December 31, 2013

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars – “A solid introduction to a promising new urban fantasy series; features an endearing protagonist and an action-filled story line full of fun and energy”

Quirky and energetic, The Grendel Affair is the first book which kicks off the new SPI Files series by Lisa Shearin, featuring a mash-up of police/government agent procedural elements with urban fantasy. Think The X-Files meets Men in Black — except instead of aliens, Supernatural Protection & Investigations is in charge of tracking paranormal creatures and keeping the public safe from them. Unfortunately, they also don’t have those handy flashy neuralyzers thingies to help hide the truth of their existence from the general populace.

The book follows Makenna Fraser, a southern seer who moves to New York City to persue her dreams of becoming a world famous journalist. However, not long after starting her first job as a trashy tabloid reporter, she is recruited by the NY branch of SPI for her special ability to see through any kind of glamour, veil, spell or shield that a supernatural baddie can come up with.

Mac’s duties generally don’t require her to be on the front lines, but a sudden string of murders by something not human puts SPI on high alert. From then on it’s all hands on deck, especially when the murders are linked to a bigger plot to expose supernaturals to the world on the night of the biggest party of the year — New Year’s Eve in Time Square. Thousands more will die if the SPI doesn’t stop their adversary in time, and the only person who can see through the disguises of the killer creatures is Mac.

First of all, can I give a big yay for Grendel? Yes, we’re talking the Grendel of Beowulf fame. The monsters that SPI goes after in this book are creatures like Grendel, probably even his descendents, and that is just way too cool. In a series that also features the usual fare of urban fantasy creatures like vampires, werewolves, ghouls and goblins, it’s a nice as well to see a touch of inspiration from Old English literature and mythology.

Other than that, this book is what you would expect and quite typical of the genre, complete with an action-filled mystery plot, a budding office romance, and clever snappy dialogue but without a lot of the snark. Mac is an interesting character, not being an outwardly kickass or sassy kind of protagonist but she is still very endearing in her reluctant-heroine awkwardness…to say nothing of her cookie-gobbling ways and the fact she carries a fake handgun loaded with tequila. Also, I enjoy the fact that her business partner and fellow SPI agent Ian Byrne is not the kind of arrogant, cheeky-posing-as-charming love interest I generally have the tendency to dislike on sight. These two are both down-to-earth and will be very good together, I can already tell.

It’s true that those who read a lot of urban fantasy probably won’t find anything too new about the overall premise or story in this book, but The Grendel Affair is still a very solid introduction to the SPI Files as well as a promising beginning to the series. Those looking for a fun read will not be disappointed.

4 of 5 stars

A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Be My Enemy by Ian McDonald

Posted on January 8, 2014 Leave a Comment

Be My Enemy by Ian McDonald

Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction Fantasy

Series: Book 2 of Everness

Publisher: Jo Fletcher

Date of Publication: June 6, 2013 (ed.)

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars – “When it comes to delivering excitement and adventure, Ian McDonald knows his stuff; take everything that made Planesrunner great, dial it all up and you get this book”

With its intriguing application of quantum physics and topic of parallel earths, Planesrunner secured its spot as one of the most unique young adult novels I read last year. And of course, who could forget the heart-pounding airship battles? When it comes delivering excitement and adventure, Ian McDonald knows his stuff, and I could not wait to get my hands on the next book. Seeing as the third installment of the Everness series is already on the horizon, I thought it best to get right on that post-haste.

But first, bear in mind that this review may contain spoilers for book one, since Be My Enemy immediately picks up where Planesrunner left off. Last time we saw Everett Singh, he had managed to escape his enemies by transporting himself and his new Airish friends to another parallel earth. His computer device holding the Infundibulum and the key to the multiverse is safe for now, but it’s only a matter of time until their pursuers catch up. Plus, Everett still needs to figure out a way to rescue his father, a seemingly impossible task, seeing as Tejendra Singh is now stranded somewhere on any one of the possible parallel worlds — 10 to the power of 80 of them, to be exact. Yep, it’s a big multiverse.

Everett’s search for answers eventually leads him to E1, the first Earth to develop a way to jump between parallel universes. It’s also the only world amongst the ten known Earths that is sealed off, quarantined, nothing going in and nothing coming out. I won’t deny it, I was thrilled that the characters ended up here. The speculations drove me insane in the first book, leaving me wondering and guessing what could have happened to E1 to make everyone so afraid, and now thanks to this sequel, I finally know why. And the reasons are hair-raising indeed! I doff my hat to you, Mr. McDonald.

But wait, that’s not all. One thing about this book is that it simply does not stop with the surprises, and not least of them is the lengths the bad guys will go to in order to get what they want. Everett’s enemies have some wily tricks up their sleeves, stopping at nothing to gain control of the Infundibulum. All I’ll say is that in time, the perplexing introduction to Be My Enemy, not to mention that curious title, will be explained. I can’t even begin to ponder the future implications of everything that happened here. Take everything that made Planesrunner so great, dial it all up and you get this book:

Action? Check. In fact, this story has it in spades.

Cleverness? Check. No doubt the book fudged a lot of the science, but it’s done for the sake of top-notch storytelling. In spite of that, this book does not patronize the reader, which makes me think this series would appeal to adults and young adults alike.

Interesting characters? Check. This book gave me a more in-depth look into Everett’s personality, in the most unexpected and unique way possible. As for the supporting cast, I feel like I finally have an idea of who they are. I never gave much thought to Sen in the first book, but now I find her to be a delight. I loved the brief glimpses of the story told from her perspective, and couldn’t help but think how awesome an entire novel in her point of view would be. I can dream, can’t I?

And what about the world building, you ask? Big check. Absolutely fantabulosa.

After all, anything can happen when it comes to a story about parallel earths. I was impressed with Ian McDonald’s imagination at work in Planesrunner, the way he brought the Airish culture to life and the incredible way he described the world of E3. True to form, he does not hold back for the sequel either, giving the same creative treatment to settings like E1 or the frozen wasteland at the beginning of the novel, despite these being much bleaker and darker worlds.

You never know where the story might take you, or what amazing things you’ll see next, and that’s one of the main reasons why I’m having so much fun. Bring on the third book, I’m ready!

4.5 of 5 stars

A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

US Cover

Waiting on Wednesday 01/08/14

Posted on January 8, 2014 Leave a Comment

“Waiting On Wednesday” is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine that lets us feature upcoming releases that we can’t wait to get our hands on!

Mogsy’s Pick

The Silk Map by Chris Willrich: May 6, 2014 (Pyr)

I can’t remember the last time I came across a book like The Scroll of Years — action-adventure fantasy, gorgeously written but with such wit and an elegant touch! The Silk Map is the sequel, and I am looking forward to reading more about Imago Bone and Persimmon Gaunt.

“It’s Brent Weeks meets China Mieville in this wildly imaginative fantasy adventure featuring high action, elegant writing, and sword and sorcery with a Chinese flare.

At the end of The Scroll of Years, the poet Persimmon Gaunt and her husband, the thief Imago Bone, had saved their child from evil forces at the price of trapping him within a pocket dimension. Now they will attempt what seems impossible; they will seek a way to recover their son. Allied with Snow Pine, a scrappy bandit who’s also lost her child to the Scroll of Years, Gaunt and Bone awaken the Great Sage, a monkeylike demigod of the East, currently trapped by vaster powers beneath a mountain. The Sage knows of a way to reach the Scroll — but there is a price. The three must seek the world’s greatest treasure and bring it back to him. They must find the worms of the alien Iron Moths, whose cocoons produce the wondrous material ironsilk.

And so the rogues join a grand contest waged along three thousand miles of dangerous and alluring trade routes between East and West. For many parties have simultaneously uncovered fragments of the Silk Map, a document pointing the way toward a nest of the Iron Moths. Our heroes tangle with Western treasure hunters, a blind mystic warrior and his homicidal magic carpet, a nomad princess determined to rebuild her father’s empire, and a secret society obsessed with guarding the lost paradise where the Moths are found — even if paradise must be protected by murder.”

Book Review: A Guile of Dragons by James Enge

Posted on January 7, 2014 Leave a Comment

A Guile of Dragons by James Enge

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Book 1 of A Tournament of Shadows

Publisher: Pyr

Date of Publication: August 21, 2012

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Mogsy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars – “Dynamic character relationships and an intriguing mix of fantasy elements in this adventurous tale about dwarves versus dragons”

James Enge’s A Guile of Dragons is actually the first book of a “prequel” series called A Tournament of Shadows featuring his celebrated character Morlock Ambrosius. Not having read the original books, I’m sure my experience is probably going to differ wildly from that of a reader who is already familiar with the world and character, but knowing beforehand that I was going into an origins-type story was good preparation for what to expect.

Most of the book covers the life of young Morlock. We begin at a point before he is even born, then watch as he is given to the dwarves as an infant. Morlock’s real father is Merlin — yes, that Merlin — though he is raised among the dwarven folk; as such things go, the character’s struggles with his birthright and mixed feelings about his heritage eventually emerge as one of the overarching themes of the story.

But on top of that, the book is also an adventure, with an ancient war between dwarves and dragons at its heart. When the dwarven territories are invaded, their defenders taken prisoner or placed under the corrupted influence of dragonspells, it falls to Morlock to protect his surrogate family and the people who raised him.

This was a good story, well told in its complexity and showing of relationships between different characters, but I have a feeling I’m not clicking with it as much as I should. I’m sure a lot of it had to do with the book and I getting off on the wrong foot, with the introductory chapters throwing me off with its pacing. The sections that take place before Morlock’s birth and up to the brief scenes of his childhood with the dwarves feel like they should have been a prologue, separated from the rest of the book.

I understand the importance of including this time of his life as part of his back story, but I don’t know if it meshes that well with everything that comes afterward. The first part of the book felt like a running commentary on the circumstances behind Morlock’s birth, resulting in a disconnect between myself and the character. Fortunately, the book really gets going once he reaches adulthood and we get into the meat of the story, when we encounter the dragons and their violent confrontations with the dwarves.

What follows is a very intriguing take on the history behind the dwarven-dragon conflict, and the intricacies in the nature of the two societies. The character dynamics also pick up, and as factors like bitter resentment or shifting loyalties start to come into play, things get a lot more interesting. The author throws in a lot of surprising twists, and I have to say one of my favorite aspects of this book is how Enge incorporates elements from legend and Arthurian fantasy into the world lore.

My overall feeling is that you can definitely read A Guile of Dragons on its own, but I have no doubt I’m also missing out on a lot of the subtleties. Yet despite delving into this one without any context, I was on the whole impressed. After seeing how the events of this book has shaped Morlock as a character, I admit I find myself curious about him and his future exploits.

3 of 5 stars

A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Kushiel’s Mercy by Jacqueline Carey

Posted on January 7, 2014 Leave a Comment

Kushiel’s Mercy by Jacqueline Carey

Genre: Epic Fantasy, Romance, Erotic Fantasy

Series: Kushiel’s Legacy #6, Imriel’s Trilogy #3

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Publication Date: June 2008

Author Info: www.jacquelinecarey.com

Wendy’s Rating: 3 of 5 stars

Kushiel’s Mercy is the sixth book in Carey’s Terre d’Ange adventures, and the third book in the Imriel de la Courcel’s story. It is the conclusion of his trilogy and honestly, I only read it for the sake of completion. Thus far, neither of the two trilogies that followed Phédre no Delauney’s own have been nearly as good, mostly because of the main characters.

Prince Imriel de la Courcel is the son of the beautiful traitor, Melisandre Sharizai. He was kidnapped into slavery, rescued and later adopted by Phédre and her consort, Joscelin, and has since gone off on his own adventures. In the last book, he was betrothed to a woman he didn’t love, but then perhaps matured with the brutal murder of his wife and unborn son and the subsequent vengeance he enacted upon the culprit. And within that all of that, he fell in love with Sidonie de la Courcel, the dauphine of Terre d’Ange, and daughter of the queen whom Imriel’s mother sought to depose. Unsurprisingly, there are those who are quite opposed to their union, in spite of the precepts of blessed Elua: “Love as thou wilt.” Queen Ysandre will only allow them to be married, if Imriel brings his long missing mother to justice. But before he is able to do so, Prince Astagal of Carthage orchestrates an incredible piece of magic that ensorcels half of Terre d’Ange, even convincing Sidonie that she not only has never loved Imriel, but that Imriel does not even exist.

This wasn’t a bad story. It contained all of Carey’s epic, world hopping fantasy, her beautiful people, intriguing characters, wonderful mythology and theology that touches on our reality, while still being wholly hers, sweeping political intrigue and more. The problem is that, at the centre of all this are Imriel and Sidonie and their cloying romance. I can be as hopelessly romantic as the next person, but it gets tiresome when it’s the main plot and purpose. The beauty of Phédre and Joscelin’s romance was that they didn’t spend the whole time pining for each other, even when they were together. But Imriel and Sidonie’s story is made to be a fairy tale romance (and is repeatedly referred to as such). I suppose it doesn’t help that the characters have never endeared themselves to me. I appreciate them, but they lack the depth of their predecessors. And Imriel spent the last two books being an annoyingly self-centred teenager.

One thing I do find annoying about the subsequent books in this series is the constant and repeated reference back to past events. It’s usually quite unnecessary, though perhaps it might be less so for someone who has not read the previous books. However, I do appreciate the scope of the history Carey creates with each new epic addition to her world.