Review: Rebel Spring by Morgan Rhodes

Title: Rebel Spring (Falling Kingdoms #2)

Author: Morgan Rhodes

Publisher: Razorbill

Date: 3rd December 2013

This series is addictive. It’s been a while since I fell hard for a story and something about this world and these characters has captured my attention. I enjoyed Falling Kingdoms so much that I went straight ahead and bought the second and third (although now that I’ve read them I am regretting not buying the full series).I love Fantasy as a genre and this has the best of everything. Thrilling twists, revenge, romance and a world that seems so real. I only wish that I had read it a lot sooner. Be warned, there will be spoilers for the first book.

Taking place after the events that led to the downfall of Auranos and the death of their King, King Gaius has taken control of all of Mytica, thanks to the magic of Princess Lucia, his adopted daughter. Princess Cleo, the rightful heir to Auranos, is held against her will by the tyrant and forced to show him respect and to recognise him as the ruler. But she is holding out hope that magic could help her to regain the throne, she is just unsure how. Jonas, the fearless rebel, wishes to help Paelsia, his home, and gain power from the King at whatever cost, while Princess Lucia wishes to understand her own power. Then there is Prince Magnus, the King’s son, who yearns to prove his worth to his father and become just like him. Gaius has begun to build a road that will link all of Mytica and end at the Forbidden Mountains, but it is paved with blood and its true meaning kept a secret.

I love how unexpected this series is. You never really know what is going to happen and I love being surprised by what the characters do. I also really like the magical elements to this story and the elementia that Lucia possesses. We find out more about the Watchers in this book, mystical beings who are searching for the Kindred which will restore magic, but only the very powerful sorceress can find.

The plot definitely thickened a lot more in this book, with more secrets and political intrigue. We have the introduction of a few new characters, such as Prince Ashur who is from Kraeshia, a country across the Silver Sea. He was a bit of a mystery but I have a feeling he will feature more later on. We still have the multiple perspectives, which I find great because I love getting to see what everyone is doing and little secrets are given here and there, which is only more frustrating when the other characters are oblivious.

As for characters, I felt even more attached to them and couldn’t help beginning to like some more than I first thought I would (looking at you Magnus) and then there were others who made incredibly stupid mistakes (yep, that’s you Jonas). Lucia was a lot more complicated in this series and took me by surprise with some of the things she did, and it just seems like all that power is going to her head. I see bad things coming in the future. Then there is Cleo, who has had her whole world torn down and is forced to live with the people who did it. I can understand why she wants revenge and I urge her onward because King Gaius is the worst.

While there wasn’t as much action as the first one, as this was way more political, I still enjoyed all that it had to offer and went onto the third one straight away. I enjoy the way that Morgan Rhodes writes because it moves so quickly and I am always on the edge of my seat, waiting for the next unexpected thing to happen. There is a lot of romance and feelings in this book, a love triangle, hate-to-romance kind of thing and in a way I kind of loved it. I just can’t wait to read more about these characters and how their lives become intertwined, more so than they already have.

Overall, I’m going to give this a solid 4 stars.

Review: Throne of Glass

Title: Throne of Glass

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Date: August 2nd 2012

Publisher: Bloomsbury

After turning the last page of this book I asked myself one question…Why on earth had I not read this book before now? It has been sat on my shelf for years, gathering dust since I bought it in 2013. For some reason I had put off reading it and then I went through a period of not picking up books at all. Finally I noticed it and made myself promise to read it and I am so glad I did. Fantasy is quickly becoming one of my favourite genres and I’m afraid I’m going to have to buy the rest of the series very soon (apologies to my bank account).

Throne of Glass follows Celaena Sardothien, a deadly assassin who has been locked up in Endovier serving a life sentence, until suddenly she is offered a deal by the Captain of the Guard. If she represents the Crown Prince in a competition to become the King’s Champion, she can have her freedom back. But first she has to win the competition and that will not be an easy feat. All in all there are twenty three contestants, all of whom have been offered the same deal and who would kill for the chance to be free again. Celaena is thrust into a world where politics rule and things are not what they always seem. All she knows is that she has to win, no matter what.

After reading so many amazing reviews of this book, I am happy to say that, for me, it lived up to the hype. I didn’t want to stop reading once I had started. There were so many elements that I loved, the first of which is the world that Maas created. Her writing style made me believe that this Erilea could exist and her descriptions of the castle and the landscapes helped me picture it so vividly. This book was so addictive and I can only imagine that the rest of the series will get better with each book. It took me on an adventure that I didn’t want to end.

I can’t even begin to describe how much I love the character of Celaena. She is everything I want in a female protagonist. She is strong, witty, she knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to go for it. I saw myself in her at times, making her all the more relatable and more than once I found myself smiling while reading. She may seem hard and cold on the outside, the killer assassin, but she is also kind and charming, more vulnerable than the other characters realise. I was rooting for her the whole way through and I am left wanting to know more.

Celaena wasn’t the only character that I loved. The Captain of the Guard, Chaol, grew to also be one of my favourites, even though he can be a tough nut to crack, you can see that he is caring to the people around him, especially his friend, the Crown Prince, Dorian. I can’t figure out who I prefer, Chaol or Dorian. The latter is definitely not what I expected and isn’t a shallow Prince by any means. He is complicated, not nearly as complicated as Celaena though, and I couldn’t help but love their encounters. All the friendships and relationships in the book seemed genuine and realistic, there was nothing forced about it.

I could go on and on about this book! I have a feeling that more of the world Maas has created will be explored and I am looking forward to seeing where Celaena’s story takes us. An incredible novel that I only wish I had read sooner. It gripped me from the beginning and was simply magical. And with no glaring faults, I think that this is going to be my first 5 star review on this blog!