I’ve got two bite-sized reviews for you today, both fantasies! I hope these bite-sized reviews will be enough to feed your fiction addiction!
City of Bastards by Andrew Shvarts Series: Royal Bastards #2
Also in this series: Royal Bastards
Published by Disney-Hyperion on June 5, 2018
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 384
Source: The Publisher
My content rating: YA (Characters have sex but it's not shown, Some violence and drinking)
My rating:
Tilla, bastard of House Kent, has it made. Safe from her murderous father in the dazzling capital of Lightspire, she lives a life of luxury under the protection of the Volaris King, alongside her boyfriend Zell and best friend, Princess Lyriana.
So why isn’t she happy? Maybe it’s the whispers and stares that follow her wherever she goes, as the daughter of the traitor waging war against Lightspire. Or maybe it’s the memories of her beloved brother, Jax, who lies cold in his grave even as she tries to settle into a life in the city's prestigious University.
Then, Tilla stumbles upon the body of a classmate, a friend. The authorities are quick to rule it a suicide and sweep it under the rug, but when Tilla herself is attacked by a mysterious man with terrifying powers, she’s convinced of a conspiracy. Her friends beg her to stay silent; what she's suggesting is impossible... and treasonous.
But Tilla can't, won't, let it go. And the deeper she digs, the more questions she uncovers. How is the West beating the supposedly invincible Lightspire Mages in battle? Is it connected to the shadowy cult wreaking havoc in Lightspire? Nothing is as it seems in the glorious capital, and Tilla’s presence might just be the spark that sets the Kingdom aflame.
One thing that I LOVE about this series is that it isn’t told from the perspective of the “special snowflake” or the “Chosen One.” Really, when I think about it, this series would normally be told from the POV of Princess Lyriana—not only a princess, but also a powerful mage. Or even Zell, a Zitochi warrior who can fight and win pretty much any battle. But, no, the story is told through Tilla’s eyes—and there is literally nothing special about her except she happens to be the bastard daughter of the man who’s trying to overthrow the king. She gets caught up in the whirlwind of the revolution and can’t escape. Amazing things are happening all around her: powerful magic, revolutionary plotting and intrigue, massive battles, but she’s still just a regular girl. So it’s sort of a sign of Shvarts’s genius that we are enthralled with Tilla anyway. Tilla is strong and intelligent, and she stands on her own in a world that could easily overshadow her.
Anyway, this book was maybe a smidge less action-packed than the first, but it still kept me interested the whole way through. I love Shvarts’s humorous style—a fantasy that makes me laugh is the best! These books aren’t rich, epic fantasy—they’re lighter overall—but I enjoy that occasionally. In the end, this sequel hit the spot (avoiding the dreaded middle-book syndrome), and I’m eager for the finale to this trilogy!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
Ice Wolves by Amie Kaufman Series: The Elementals #1
Published by HarperCollins on March 27, 2018
Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Pages: 352
Source: Purchased
My content rating: Middle Grade
My rating:
Everyone in Vallen knows that ice wolves and scorch dragons are sworn enemies who live deeply separate lives.
So when twelve-year-old orphan Anders takes one elemental form and his twin sister, Rayna, takes another, he wonders whether they are even related. Still, whether or not they’re family, Rayna is Anders’s only true friend. She’s nothing like the brutal, cruel dragons who claimed her as one of their own and stole her away.
In order to rescue her, Anders must enlist at the foreboding Ulfar Academy, a school for young wolves that values loyalty to the pack above all else. But for Anders, loyalty is more complicated than obedience, and friendship is the most powerful shapeshifting force of all.
NOTE: This series is actually just called ELEMENTALS, but since I already had a series with that title on my blog, it messed things up, so I just had to add “The” to it so the books would show up properly. Sorry for any confusion!
I had high hopes for Kafuman’s newest, even though it was a departure for her: a middle grade fantasy. I actually ended up reading the first 50 pages while in line at her signing with Jay Kristoff (it was a long line), and I was thoroughly pleased with the engaging storyline. But then I had quite a few review books I needed to read, so I ended up putting this book aside for awhile and picking it up again over a month later. This could have spelled doom for the book—usually if I set a book down for so long, it sort of ruins the flow—but in this case, I was no less excited about the book when I started reading again. That, in itself is a ringing endorsement!
Anyway, this book ended up being a really fun middle grade fantasy, filled with shape-shifting dragons (and wolves!) and a whole lot of adventure! Sure, it had a few predictable elements, but I was engaged with the story and the characters were fun and well-developed. We had a little bit of mystery, a few nice revelations, and an MC you couldn’t help but love (as a mom, I just wanted to give the kid a hug!). I’m excited to keep reading this series!
Nicole! You reviewed books that I have not heard of, but they sound like totally fun reads. I think maybe Shvarts’ writing is a nice introduction to fantasy. I tried Scott Lynch’s the Gentleman’s Bastards series (just the first book) and it was so not my thing. I like a bit of humor in books that I read.
Elementals is so going on my wish list. I loved Amie Kaufman’s writing in Illuminae and Gemina. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for this middle-grade book. I don’t read enough middle-grade.
I read the first Gentleman Bastards book too, and I agree that it’s hard to process. I like epic fantasy, but I can only handle it in small doses. The Royal Bastards would be PERFECT for people who like the idea of fantasy but aren’t a fan of the really dense, intense fantasies out there.
All of these sound quite good. And the covers are stunning. Thanks for sharing your reviews. I’m always looking for my next read.
Glad I could share some great reads with you!
Completely the same on City of Bastards, not surprisingly hah. Such a fun series! And of course, same with Everless! I loved the idea of it so much, yet… it was just really predictable for me, and a little generic? But the concept though!
Glad you really enjoyed City of Bastards too. Sometimes I like to read fantasy that’s a little on the lighter side, and this hit the spot!
City of Bastards sounds great, and I do like the sound of the POV being someone other than the “special” one. It would be fun to see the perspective of someone other than the big shots. And Ice Wolves doesn’t sound bad either- I kinda want to try more Kaufman now that I’ve finished off the Illuminae books.
Yes, you rarely get the POV of the friend of the powerful person—especially without that being a hook for the book (which it’s not for this book—it’s just the way things are).
That’s awesome City of Bastards is told in an unexpected POV. I love that! I’m glad to hear you liked Ice Wolves – I’m a big fan of finding good MG books that I can also enjoy, being far off from that age group. haha Sorry Everless wasn’t that engaging until the end. Maybe this means the second book will be better?
-Lauren
I feel like that might be true about Everless—it really picked up at the end, so now I’m still eager to read the next book.
I definitely agree with you on City of Bastards. It totally did not fit the slump that a lot of second books in series do hit. Great reviews! Everless is one of those that I loved the cover, but the description just didn’t grab me enough to try to get it.
Yes! It’s always nice when you read a second book that keeps up the momentum.
I got myself a copy of City of Bastards as soon as it came out because I adored Royal Bastards! The banter was A+++. Can’t wait to read it.
Totally agree about the banter!
That’s disappointing to hear about Everless. It’s finally nearing the top of my TBR and I am really intrigued by the whole “blood currency” system in place. Slogging through more than half a book to get to the good parts isn’t that fun though…I just did it with a review copy this week. I’ve heard nothing but good things about how Everless wraps up, though, so I’m sure I’ll still give it a try. Great review Nicole!
The idea is so unique—and I really do think the book is worth the read in the end. If it starts to feel too slow to you, maybe skim the beginning?
Too bad Everless didn’t truly pick up until the very end. The concept is definitely interesting but with so much set-up I’m not sure I’ll be rushing to pick it up. At least the ending wowed you enough to continue the series! 🙂
Yes, I was really hooked by the end, I just wish it hadn’t taken me quite so long to get there.
City of Bastards let me down a bit. I thought that the first 100 pages were boring. I agree about the super snowflake thing. I kept waiting/dreading that Tilla was going to wake up with powers or something — thankfully she didn’t!
Sorry you didn’t love CoB as much as the first book!
I’m so happy to hear that you enjoyed Royal Bastards! I’ve been keeping my eye on that trilogy and it’s one where I’m waiting for the final book to come out. I’ve started doing that for series I’m iffy over whether I’ll like or not. Fabulous review and here’s hoping it ends with a bang next year!
I agree that this can be the best policy sometimes.