Review: Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

Cruel Beauty
Rosamund Hodge
Published: January 28, 2014
Balzer +  Bray
Hardcover, 342 pages

Graceling meets Beauty and the Beast in this sweeping fantasy about one girl's journey to fulfill her destiny and the monster who gets in her way-by stealing her heart.Based on the classic fairy tale Beauty and the Beast, Cruel Beauty is a dazzling love story about our deepest desires and their power to change our destiny. Since birth, Nyx has been betrothed to the evil ruler of her kingdom-all because of a foolish bargain struck by her father. And since birth, she has been in training to kill him. With no choice but to fulfill her duty, Nyx resents her family for never trying to save her and hates herself for wanting to escape her fate. Still, on her seventeenth birthday, Nyx abandons everything she's ever known to marry the all-powerful, immortal Ignifex. Her plan? Seduce him, destroy his enchanted castle, and break the nine-hundred-year-old curse he put on her people.But Ignifex is not at all what Nyx expected. The strangely charming lord beguiles her, and his castle-a shifting maze of magical rooms-enthralls her.As Nyx searches for a way to free her homeland by uncovering Ignifex's secrets, she finds herself unwillingly drawn to him. Even if she could bring herself to love her sworn enemy, how can she refuse her duty to kill him? With time running out, Nyx must decide what is more important: the future of her kingdom, or the man she was never supposed to love. --GoodReads

3 Stars

Review:

OK, so I read this about a month ago, and I've been meaning to get to a review of this... jeez, it has been a while, hasn't it? So therefore, my review isn't going to be so much of a review, but rather some kind of rant thing.... I'm just going off the bits and pieces I remember, so bear with me, folks. 

Summary Rosie-style- From what I remember, a father makes a deal with a demon prince, and it all goes horribly wrong. With demons, you gotta remember to choose your words very carefully. At the time, his wife, pregnant, was very sick, and he wished that his twin girls would come out healthy and happy. However, he forgot to wish for his wife's health, and she ends up dying. There's a catch, though. The father sealed away the fate for one of his daughters, Nyx, who is fated to marry this demon prince, Ignifex. She's super bitter about this and tries not to hate her twin sister, who got the better part of the bargain. Her sister, on the other hand, receives all the love and attention from daddy, while Nix receives the "heroic" speech stuff. She gets the "Oh it's your duty to kill the demon prince and blah blah" and is reminded everyday of her terrible fate.

So she goes and marries the demon prince, right? Except he's not exactly what she expects. No matter how many times she [pathetically] tries to kill him, she never succeeds, and every time he brushes her off like a bug. He's very compliant and has quite a humorous approach to his situation. Apparently, being a supreme ruler with awesome powers becomes very boring, so much to the point of marrying a woman who YOU KNOW wants to kill you. The demon prince, master of all deals, makes Nyx a bargain. If she can guess his true identity, she will be set free, no questions asked. BUT, if she guesses wrong, he will turn her into stone, and she will forever reside in his haunted castle unable to do anything but be aware of her surroundings. So as a living result of a bargain gone wrong, she opts for the other route and explores his castle for ways to kill him and escape. 

So the whole book is about her relationship with her sister (Nyx struggles especially with her feelings about her sister. Her feelings of love and hatred battle throughout the book) , her father (who she yearns to receive approval from), her aunt (who shacks up with Nyx's father), and Ignifex (to whom she can't resist her carnal attraction!!! ooOOOoo ♥♥♥) Oh, and did I mention his Shadow? She falls in love with his Shadow, a mirror image of Ignifiex, a seemingly more human side of him, but possibly another trapped man?

Characters: Alright, now that the summary stuff is done, lemme tell you MY impressions of the characters. 

Nyx- So she lives there for a coupla years and cannot do jack****. She stinks as an assassin, and for a majority of the book (she narrates it, she's the POV) she just complains about her situation and ponders what she can do to possibly escape it. She worries over things she can't control, and she hates herself for being attracted to Ignifex. Also, she is so indecisive!!! Her feelings about her family change from chapter to chapter - I swear - and her love from Shadow to Ignifex changes every time one of them kisses her. Or maybe from page to page. At least it feels like that...you try to root for her, but she changes her mind way too much.

Ignifex- Ok, so he's super badass, and pretty funny when needs to be. He puts up with a failure of an assassin wife. He's a thumbs-up in my book.

Shadow- Um, is it just me, or is cheating on your demon husband with his shadow kinda WRONG??

Father- 5 Star jerk. Has sex with his dead wife's sister. Feels no remorse for what he's done, inadvertently killing his sick pregnant wife while selling the soul of his oldest daughter to the demon lord, all the while telling her its her duty to save the city, AND giving all his affection to his other clueless daughter. 

Astraia- Nyx's twin sister who gets the better part of the deal. Nyx says some pretty crappy things to her before going off to marry the prince...It's not really Astraia's fault - in fact, it's her father's fault for it all happening, yet Nyx despises her sister for a good part of the novel. But then loves her sister. But then hates her. She actually is pretty badass though...

Plot- Sooo, the city they all live in is taken over by some sort of dark force/demons, and is plucked away from the normal world. Um. The demon prince controls the demons, which everybody fears because once you see a demon, you're pretty much down for the count, aka DEAD. They live in a world where it's similar to Earth, but no really. They have a fake sun and such... it's like they're all living inside the pages of a book. Or at least that's how I imagined it. It really gets quite confusing how everything is explained.

The author tries to make a mish-mash between Beauty and the Beast and Greek Mythology, but it's just kind of a warble between the two. I can see how some aspects of Beauty and the Beast play into it - the living house - and how Greek Mythology plays into it, since Nyx's family worships Greek Gods... but that's pretty much it. Hodge kind of just goes on her own path and creates a story that hits you from out of nowhere. This book will not be what you will expect....but in a semi-good way I guess?

BTW - the pace is kind of slow, but it really doesn't feel that way. Unless you hate reading about indecisive POVs - now that could go really slowly. Not to spoil it, but it does end kind of weirdly. It takes a turn that you really don't expect... deus ex machina?

Overall- OK..... uh. If you like mish-mashing of stories you already know and don't mind indecisive MCs, then this is the book for you! One thing I really liked was the emotional progression of the relationship between Ignifex and Nyx. It wasn't supahfast like some YA novels, but was instead very realistic. The way the background info explained was a little shakey and a bit confusing. SO DON'T SKIM.

Happy Reading, folks!

Review: The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee

The Sentinel Mage (The Cursed Kingdoms #1)

By Emily Gee

Published: January 25, 2011

Publisher: Solaris

eBook, 509 pages 

Her magic may be the only thing that can save a prince—and the Seven Kingdoms.

In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage’s blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head—and assassins at his heels.

Innis is a gifted shapeshifter. Now she must do the forbidden: become a man. She must stand at Prince Harkeld’s side as his armsman, protecting and deceiving him. -- Goodreads


But the deserts of Masse are more dangerous than the assassins hunting the prince. The curse has woken deadly creatures, and the magic Prince Harkeld loathes may be the only thing standing between him and death.

3.5 Stars

Review:  

With an awesome premise of gender bending shape shifting, The Sentinel Mage stands out among other fantasies. However, its somewhat repetitive dialogue and predictable plot bog the novel, which should have been so much more.

Prince Harkeld of Osgaard has been raised with the notion that mages are vile creatures that eat humans and destroy everything good in this world. So when it’s revealed that he possesses mage blood himself, he is ready to say adios in fear of his “cannibalistic” inner nature. Too bad he has far more important things to do because his blood and hands are the only things that will save the world from a centuries old curse.




Since Harkeld is going bananas about his mage blood and mages in general, the mages protecting Harkeld have to find a guardsman to protect the prince because Harkeld’s evil daddy wants his son’s blood for far more nefarious plans. The only option is Innis, a powerful shapeshifter, to shapeshift into a man to protect him. As they journey together, both Harkeld and Innis will have to trust each other in order to survive.




Although my beautiful recap of the novel is perfect, the actual book is a slightly more draggy and dull. Many fantasy novels are basically the protagonists traveling through the woods toward a goal while beating up the bad guys. The Sentinel Mage does not deviate from this common theme for the most part. Even though there were three interwoven storylines, the main story of Harkeld and Innis kept dragging down the far more intriguing storyline about Harkeld’s sister, Princess Brigitta, who is forced to marry a malicious nobleman and her guardsman.




Furthermore, the third storyline should not count as a plotline because all that happens is Jaumé walks to toward the action. He does not meet the action yet, so his chapters were basically restatements of “He walked more today” with different words. I wish there was more about Jaumé than just him walking because he most likely will play a major role in the future books of this trilogy.

Despite these few setbacks, The Sentinel Mage is a truly enjoyable fantasy. Emily Gee is a wonderful writer who knows how to create a horrifically beautiful settings and how to write characters with dimension. Brigitta’s dilemma between drugging herself or experiencing her husband raping her totally grabbed my heart. She probably is my favorite character in the series for her strength and perseverance. Hopefully the future books in the series focus more on her because she is such an awesome heroine.

All in all, The Sentinel Mage could and definitely should have been more than it was. Harkeld and Innis are really the more important plotline, but Brigitta’s conflict was far more intriguing than several people journeying to three rocks. However, if you enjoy the fantasy genre, you’re guaranteed that this will be an exciting, yet forgettable read.

Purchase The Sentinel Mage here: Amazon | Barnes & Nobles | The Book Depository

Review: The Runaway King by Jennifer A. Nielsen

The Runaway King (The Ascendance Trilogy #2) 

By Jennifer A. Nielsen 

Release Date: March 1, 2013 

Publisher: Scholastic Press 

Hardcover, 352 pages 

A kingdom teetering on the brink of destruction. A king gone missing. Who will survive? Find out in the highly anticipated sequel to Jennifer A. Nielsen's blockbuster THE FALSE PRINCE!

Just weeks after Jaron has taken the throne, an assassination attempt forces him into a deadly situation. Rumors of a coming war are winding their way between the castle walls, and Jaron feels the pressure quietly mounting within Carthya. Soon, it becomes clear that deserting the kingdom may be his only hope of saving it. But the further Jaron is forced to run from his identity, the more he wonders if it is possible to go too far. Will he ever be able to return home again? Or will he have to sacrifice his own life in order to save his kingdom?

The stunning second installment of The Ascendance Trilogy takes readers on a roller-coaster ride of treason and murder, thrills and peril, as they journey with the Runaway King!

4.5 Stars

Review

Thank you very much Scholastic and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to review The Runaway King!

One of the greatest problems that comes with anticipating for books, aka. ‘Books to Die For,’ is when those books are major disappointments, not to mention the waiting. For The Runaway King, I was fortunately surprised to discover that Jennifer A. Nielsen has continued her spellbinding middle grade series with more at stake than ever before. With so many risks, there is always a chance of the story falling off the cliff, but instead we are left teetering on the cliff, always breathlessly at awe of the finesse of this cleverly written adventure.

This time around, Jaron being the king of Carthya is responsible for the problems that his father had timidly pushed off during his reign. War, a frivolous Council of Regents, and assassination attempts are just the beginning to a tumultuous reign for Jaron. To save his kingdom and his life, Jaron will have to sacrifice more than ever before to ensure his country and his own tomorrow.

Let me start off saying that Jaron has grown on me. He’s still the same cheeky brat from The False Prince, but we see some growth and maturity from his old days. His impetuous, sarcastic nature is always amusing and humorous to read about, and so are his enemies’ reactions to his insults and obstinate nature. However, it really makes a person wonder whether or not Jaron is really 14 years old. Can you imagine a 14 year old planning and intruding as deviously and irrationally as him? There are some traces of immaturity when he risks his life and his friend’s lives on some plans that have probably been in his mind since day 1. Somehow they still manage to work despite all of the crap that has happened. It is somewhat intimidating to have to read without having a heart attack when Jaron’s there to magnify the trouble a hundred fold. For such a young guy, Jaron really has so much going for him that it really makes you wonder how can a teenager like exist.

Besides Jaron, there doesn’t seem to be much emphasis put on the other characters. Sure, they are present, but there is not any development of their personalities. We see characters characterize as ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ but only a minor few have been shown to be middle ground like Jaron. However, that is only the surface that one penetrates. As we delve further into their actions and motives, we see that each character is their own enigma that threaten to outshine Jaron at many points of the story. I do wish that there was a greater focus on these supporting characters, but Jaron alone is enough to carry the book with all of the nefarious schemes he has in mind.

After barely surviving the adventure of The False Prince, The Runaway King was one of the reads that I was most looking forward to this year. Thankfully and somewhat annoyingly, The Runaway King comes with more dares, risks, and adventure, making this book the ultimate middle grade adventure. If you have not yet read The False Prince, I’m begging you to read this as soon as possible because you need to pick this one up now!

Pre-order The Runaway King here: Amazon/ B&N/ The Book Depository

Review: Black Moon by Jessica McQuay

Black Moon 

By Jessica McQuay

Published: October 2012

Publisher: Cambridge Press

Paperback, 240 pages

Thanks to the amazing author Jessica McQuay for providing us with a e-copy of this book to review!

"Am I losing my mind?"

Paige couldn't help but question her sanity. What other explanation could there be for her hearing a conversation held barely above a whisper in the back of a classroom full of students? What about coming home to find one of those very classmates lying in wait in the darkness of her home, ready to attack her?

Confused, frustrated and feeling every ounce of her social ostracism, Paige confides in the one person she's always been able to count on: her mom. But when her mom reveals a deeply rooted, unbelievable family secret, Paige discovers her world is filled with more than she ever imagined possible. A world where fairytales live alongside nightmares and secrets are the glue that binds them together. Suddenly no one is who they seem and Paige is faced with more questions than answers. Can she survive in a world filled with creatures scarier than anything she could imagine and where deceit runs as thick as blood? Or will the truth send her over the edge? --GoodReads

OK, I'm gonna try something new today. As I read the book, I'm going to leave my impressions of what's happening in the book. By the way, I'm reading this in a PDF format that doesn't actually match up with the pages of the paperback novel I was "reading" on GoodReads.  

Silly Face! Get it? "Impressions?" No? Okay...

Reading Commentary by Rosie

11/08	page 240		100.0%	"This book easily shattered and surpassed tenfold all my expectations of this book! I'm so glad to have read this book while chatting up a storm with the author herself, Jessica McQuay! Thanks Jessica for giving us this wonderful oppurtunity!"
11/08	page 240		100.0%	"Happy with how the book ends. It's not rushed, and most things are reasonably resolved."
11/08	page 233		97.0%	"LOL. Favorite part is here: "I stared up at her, unable to speak, the shock making it hard to find words. 'You, called my MOM?' I couldn't believe this. I couldn't believe her. 'Naialah, I don't believe this. How COULD you?'""
11/08	page 233		97.0%	"Epicness is happening right now."
11/08	page 229		95.0%	"NEED to know what Naialah is!"
11/08	page 225		93.0%	"Rachel is a tsundere!"
11/08	page 220		91.0%	"Dear gawd, Rachel is getting on my nerves. There's gotta be a reason to her charades. What makes her tick..."
11/08	page 214		89.0%	"JUST realized that the version I'm reading from has more pages than the paperback one includes.... so when it says I'm 89% done, I'm probably only about 70%...."
11/08	page 214		89.0%	"Naialah is the best! :)"
11/08	page 208		86.0%	"IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW. MY LIFE IS COMPLETE."
11/08	page 208		86.0%	"AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! Noooo wayyyyyyyyyyyy......."
11/08	page 208		86.0%	"So many twists and turns! I'm loving this!"
11/08	page 201		83.0%	"So many twists and turns! I'm loving this!"
11/08	page 190		79.0%	"And all the secrets are being revealed..."
11/08	page 163		67.0%	"Oh, one more thing. I feel like the writing style has definitely changed (matured?)from the beginning. I like it a lot more than what it was."
11/08	page 163		67.0%	"Her outfit sounds really pretty! Lots of silky, cottony fluff and boots to die for."
11/08	page 150		62.0%	"GO PAIGE!"
11/08	page 130		54.0%	"Yay! It's getting better!"
11/08	page 116		48.0%	"I'm a little frustated with the way the style is written in. I feel like Paige is constricted to a set/a list of vocabulary and it all seems very repetitive."
11/08	page 113		47.0%	"I'm thinking this book could probably be considered as Middle Grade. Nothing gory so far."
11/08	page 108		45.0%	"I would not wanna be part of the stressful royalty life, no matter how posh or rich it is. It's just too plain stressful!"
11/08	page 80		33.0%	"Stuff is picking up the pace!"
11/08	page 47		19.0%	"Gooooo Paige! Way to use your head!"
11/08	page 30		12.0%	"I've decided. I really like Paige's mom. You rock, fae mother of Paige!"
11/08	page 27		11.0%	"I take back what I said 2 statuses earlier...."
11/08	page 27		11.0%	"Wait a minute....."
11/08	page 27		11.0%	"OK, OK. How is Paige able to accept all of this new information without doubting it a bit? Because the story is moving so fast, I expect lots of stuff is going to happen from here on out...."
11/08	page 22		9.0%	"Ermergod. What. The.... The pace of this book is quite fast."
11/08	page 20		8.0%	"Now I want spaghetti!"
11/08	page 17		7.0%	"STALKER"
11/08	page 17		7.0%	"Plot twist! I sort of expected that to happen, though."
11/08	page 15		6.0%	"Chapter 2! Whoot whoot!"
11/08	page 12		5.0%	"LOVIN' THE ACTION."
11/08	page 11		4.0%	"Oi, looks like she's in the denial stage of "receiving an other worldly power" of YA books."
11/08	page 10		4.0%	"Characters are a bit highschool cliche stereotypical...we shall see how this goes! But I'm liking the main character....so far."
11/08	page 6		2.0%	"It looks okay so far."

Four stars along with and an invisible quarter star

Review

Okay, I'm going to cheat our usual rating system here. I'm going to give this book 4.25 stars.  You can imagine the missing 1/4 star. :) I'm going to be reviewing the Cover Art, Plot, Style, Characters, Personal Pet-Peeves, or PPPs, if you will, and Overall opinions.

Cover Art: Definitely an interesting choice for a cover. It's neither beautiful, nor gory, nor depressing. It's beguiling and alluring. The woman is beckoning potential readers to come over and find out her secrets. After reading the book, I'm honestly quite glad the author didn't go with some frilly-fluffy-bubbly-a-unicorn-threw-up-on-it-cover, as it seems most YA novels about faeries/fairies are. I'll give 4 (out of five) thumbs up for this cover!

Plot/Style: I don't think the plot summary of Black Moon does the book enough justice. I was truly quite skeptical when first going in, but, as I found out later, that I was quite wrong. I feel like the summary of the book gives off the wrong vibe. Not a bad vibe, just different from what I experienced while reading the book. I feel that the style of the book was quite varying. There was a lot of action, emotion, and learning about trusting one another/friendship. If you're looking for romance, this book ain't for you. There are maybe a total of 3-4 pages talking about romance that doesn't even involve Paige, the main character.

The plot of Black Moon definitely contains many plot twists and turns that make the story ten-fold better. While things might not make sense in the beginning, all will be revealed in the end. After reaching the end, I had encountered quite a few of those "Ah-ha!" moments.  Out of personal experience, it's extremely hard to write a novel that has just the right pace, interesting sensory details, and lovable characters, and still keep a satisfying ending. Jessica Mcquay is skillful in incorporating ah-ha moments without boring you to death in the process, as well as creating a whole new world that I can easily imagine. (Man, what I'd kill to become a Paige Tailor.)

The type of narration of Black Moon is written in first person, with Paige as the main POV, and sometimes switching off to Cail or Rachel. One last point: I was extremely happy with how the book ended. It wasn't rushed, and it wasn't forced. It was natural, and flowed right out of the heart. (cheesy, I know) Mostly everything is resolved and it reaches a satisfying conclusion. It's really hard to find a decent YA ending, but this book definitely has one.

Characters:
(Paige, Niahlah, Rachel)

Paige: The story revolves around a 17 year old senior, Paige Tailor, who is a geeky, quiet, A+ student. Never one to get in fights, and quite a loner, she seeks to change that, but her life quickly is flipped upsidedown as she finds out that she is part faerie! I was attacted to this book because I can sympathize with the protagonist's geeky, relatable character. Call me bias, but strong POVs are really quite fun for me to read, and Paige definitely fit this role for me. Quick to argue with people she doens't trust, she is really amusing to read, if not a little annoying for her stubborness. I have to admit, although I loved her character, she kind of complains (A LOT) while she's training her fae powers in the middle. All of her quirks kind of grow on you, like a little sibling or cousin.  I found it ironic that although she's displayed as "mature" in school, as you read about her later in the faerie world of Varulean, you'll learn that she is quite immature and childish at times. I loved watching her character develop throughout the story. In the beginning she was so new to the aspct of faeries, but by the end, she was a pro; like, pshhhh, controlling nature everyday ain't no biggie. (Her powers were my favorite :)

Niahlah: This lady was just kick-ass awesome. She's so secretive and awesomely epic, you can't help but love her. Her outfits were pretty funky, too. The outfits varied from day to day (in hindsight, this is a GOOD thing, regarding hygiene). She wore thigh-high black stilletto boots a lot of the time, apparently. Most of the book displays how the relationship betwen Paige and Niahlah grows and strengthens. I can't even describe how great Niahlah is. You'd have to read the book to find out.

Rachel: I have to admit: Rachel was a psycho. Jessica McQuay cleverly incorporates both sides of the story into the narration. As we see what's going on in Paige's life, the protagonists, we also get a pook from time to time in Rachel's life, the antagonist. Rachel, well, has many, er, problems. Let's just leave it at that. Rachel is a very needy personality, but puts up a "tough girl" attitude as a front to avoid emotional pain. Yup, for those of you who know a bit of Japanese, she is a tsundere. She's a person that'll treat you coldly and quite rudely, but will actually be quite soft and vulnerable on the inside. As I have been told from the author, more of Rachel's story will be revealed in the sequel! Oh, and did I mention that she's a werewolf?

Pet Peeves:
One of my petpeeves, or annoyances about this story would probably be the slow beginning. Definitely after the first 20-50 pages, the story picks up, but before then, it's quite draggy. I feel like you'd have to be patient to get to the "good part" and not many people are that willing to do so. My impressions for the first part, if you can see above, weren't as happy as the later ones. It might just be me, but I noticed a subtle change of writing style after 100 pages or so. I don't know if this was intentional, to symbolize the maturity of Paige (the book is written in 1st person). If this was done purposefully, then great job!

One more little eensy-weensy annoyance. In the middle of the story, Paige agrees with her fae grandparents to train in the liberal fae arts and socializing before learning magic. I noticed that Paige complains a LOT, LOT, LOT for about 20-30 pages. Once I read over that hurdle, everything was smooth sailing afterwards.

Overall:
One of my favorite parts abotu the faerie world is that it's a matriarchal society, meaning women rule. This isn't common, which is why I enjoy reading about it so much. Most of the fighting characters were women, including Paige, Naialah, and Rachel. GO ESTROGEN! As you can tell, I'm a feminist. So yeah....

I really enjoyed this novel, a lot more than I thought. As I said earlier in my reading commentary, this book exceeded and shattered all my expectations tenfold! :D

Overall, Jessica McQuay creates an elegant, yet dangerous faerie world, that follows the experiences of your not-so-average highschool senior, Paige Tailor. (BTW-how is she even able to graduate highschool in the end? She goes to the faerie world for a decent chunk of time!)It's definitely worth it to give this book a try. I guarantee you'll like it (once you get past the first 50 pages or so).


Happy Reading and thanks to Jessica McQuay for chatting up a storm!

Buy Black Moon at: Amazon/ Barnes&Noble/ The Book Depository

Review: The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

The Gathering Storm (Katerina #1)

By Robin Bridges

Published: January 10, 2012

Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers

Hardcover, 386 pages

St. Petersburg, Russia, 1888. As she attends a whirl of glittering balls, royal debutante Katerina Alexandrovna, Duchess of Oldenburg, tries to hide a dark secret: she can raise the dead. No one knows. Not her family. Not the girls at her finishing school. Not the tsar or anyone in her aristocratic circle. Katerina considers her talent a curse, not a gift. But when she uses her special skill to protect a member of the Imperial Family, she finds herself caught in a web of intrigue.

An evil presence is growing within Europe's royal bloodlines—and those aligned with the darkness threaten to topple the tsar. Suddenly Katerina's strength as a necromancer attracts attention from unwelcome sources . . . including two young men—George Alexandrovich, the tsar's standoffish middle son, who needs Katerina's help to safeguard Russia, even if he's repelled by her secret, and the dashing Prince Danilo, heir to the throne of Montenegro, to whom Katerina feels inexplicably drawn.The time has come for Katerina to embrace her power, but which side will she choose—and to whom will she give her heart? --GoodReads

One and a Half Stars

Review

Honestly, this book didn't do it for me. I've never really been a fan of books that involve a bajillion different characters. I also didn't know that there were a gazillion different ways to call royalty's attention. This book, mainly the plot and characters, did not pique my interest one bit, and I was quite annoyed with many of the characters.

A book can catch my attention with either the cover art, the summary, the title, a famous author or the style a book is written in. My favorite style is reading a book in 1st person with a conversational, friendly tone. Which, by the way, is why I really, really like Julie Kagawa's works. At a first glance, The Gathering Storm looks pretty good.

Eye-catching Cover art - Check!

Interesting Plot - Check!

Come on, you have to admit, the cover ain't so bad. Compared to other covers, sure, this one might be a little cheesy, but it's not half bad. When reading the summary of the book, I was really drawn to the idea of a Russian princess being a necromancer! I mean, who wouldn't be? It sounded cool. 

Unfortunately, when I actually got to reading this book, all I felt was a total let-down. Personally, I'm not a huge fan of YA books including European-historical-politic-mumbo-jumbo-what-not, but if it ties in nicely with the plot, I'll think about it. Gathering Storm tries to tie Russian politics and historical facts so much so that it becomes more like a list of facts rather than a story about a girl. I felt that the author wanted to tell us so much in the first book that she crammed it full of random characters and side plots that just didn't make much sense. 

By the end, I was so tired of reading about "-drovich"s and "-drovna"s and duchesses and dukes and princesses and princes and kings and queens and imperial highnesses and majesties and... so much more. There were so many different titles for everyone that I got many, many, many characters confused. It was very confusing and annoying to have to go flip back to the beginning or see when the character was introduced to remember who was who. I know if I dropped this book half way and picked it up a year later, I would be SO lost. I know I'm not a historical fanatic, but there's a point where you need to explain which titles match up with who. A character chart would be nice, or something of the like.

The plot was okay, but Katerina really bugged me. She thinks she's so special, being the princess and wanted by two hunky dudes, but when she finds out she's a necromancer she has a really hard time believing in the supernatural. She's one of THOSE CHARACTERS. The ones who believe in "science" as opposed to "the mumbo jumbo." I know it's a lot to take in, but, seriously. Look honey, if you've raising your dead cat and a bunch of dead soldiers that chase after you screaming "master," obviously there's something going on that even science can't explain. Not only that, but she also decides RUNS AWAY FROM ALL THE DEAD ZOMBIE PEOPLE SHE RAISES. 

Exactly.

Honest to God, I tried to tell myself that she'd improve; she'd make the RIGHT decisions. Nope. As the magic eight ball says, "Try Again."

LOL BRAH

Yup, my sediments exactly. Katerina is a smart, smart girl. One of the top in her class, actually. It's just that she makes stupid, stupid decisions. You know that bad feeling you get when your favorite tv show character makes a really, really, bad decision and you're screaming at the tv at the top of your lungs trying to tell him/her not to do it? Well, that's how I felt throughout this whole book.

AHHHHHHH!!!! NOOOOOOOOO.

As for the romance, it was there. I think. It was kinda hard to see and decipher through all the POLITICKING. I'm pretty sure there was a love triangle, but I'm not sure. 

maybe, just maybe, something is there

Just maybe, there was romance. Joking aside, the romance was slow and boring. The book was way too long than it should have been. I felt that the book was pumped full of Russian-historical-fact-steroids and Katerina made the stupidest choices ever. I don't think there's a change that I'll be reading the sequel.

So, for all of those who decide to take on the monstrous challenge of reading The Gathering Storm, I wish you good luck, and I truly hope you will enjoy it more than I did.

Happy Reading, 

Buy The Gathering Storm at: Amazon/ B&N/ TBD