Author: Claire Legrand
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: May 22, 2018
My Rating: 4.5 Stars
*I received an e-arc from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.*
My gosh where to even begin. Legrand weaves a stunning tale full of dark magic and twists and turns! And I loved every moment of it! The plot was juicy, the characters swoon worthy, and the world building a perfect amount of description without being boring! Let’s dig into things.
The premise of this book is what drew me in. A blood queen and a sun queen, but who is who? And they fight angels? Yes. Please. They will each have seven powers and mastery over the elements. Fire, Water, Air, Sun, Shadow, Earth, Metal. Told from two points of view, I find it interesting we begin at the end of Rielle’s story. It almost makes it more intense that way because you have no idea how she got to the mental state she was in. So each time you read her point of view, you technically already know what happens to her. Now, Eliana’s story takes place 1000 years after Rielle’s and we start at the beginning with hers. But there is a ton of mysteries going on around her and in her blood that the reader doesn’t know about until three quarters of the way in. I never really liked Rielle, I thought she was way too proud and kind of stupid to not trust in her closest allies and friends. I’m not sure that you are supposed to like her though. But Eliana, I loved. She was a total B.A. but deep down had shame and guilt for the things she had done. She had depth and personality that Rielle didn’t have. I’d also like to mention my two favorite side characters, Navi and Zhara! I want their backstories!
Now, there was only one tiny complaint I had. Some of the writing was a little repetitive. For example, the phrase, “cheeks flamed” was used a lot. I feel as though the author could have come up with something else for feeling embarrassed. There were a few other phrases that were used repeatedly so that’s why I knocked a half star.
My take away: I thought this was really well done. It kept my attention, and I even dreamed about it. I know that’s a good read when that happens! I highly recommend to any one who likes a kick a** heroine taking names and kicking butt.
Happy Adventuring!
Storied Adventures 