allicyn_a's review
I won this book in a giveaway here on Goodreads in return for my honest review.
Unfortunately I couldn’t even get 100 pages in before I decided to give this one up. I have been reading it for a week now and I’ve only made it to page 74. I just had no desire to pick this book up after I started it. I didn’t mind the first book, but I just can’t be bothered by this one, which is annoying since I think there are some pretty interesting concepts in this series. It’s just not for me.
Unfortunately I couldn’t even get 100 pages in before I decided to give this one up. I have been reading it for a week now and I’ve only made it to page 74. I just had no desire to pick this book up after I started it. I didn’t mind the first book, but I just can’t be bothered by this one, which is annoying since I think there are some pretty interesting concepts in this series. It’s just not for me.
salmaa's review against another edition
3.0
super excited to read this book! the first one was so beautiful <3
kblincoln's review
4.0
This is a true sequel in that it picks up where the first book left off: Kyra defeated the Order of Kali's upstart Mahimata in a duel, but the evil Kai Tau who murdered her family is still on the loose and consolidating power.
The marksman who helped her win the duel, Rustan, is off on his own quest.
In some ways, the first part of the book is a restart for Kyra. She's back in the caves with the Elders of her order, trying to become the kind of Markswoman who can be Mahimata enough to take on Kai Tau. There's some interesting stuff with the wyr-wolves, but I wanted to delve much deeper into their story and the kind of relationship they could have with the markswomen. The really interesting stuff happens with Rustan and his quest. Here is where the book unravels some of the history behind the sentient knives and rifles that create political power and chaos in Asiana. When they finally come together again, the book becomes a chronicle of the strategy and battle of taking down Kai Tau. It was quite cool seeing all the Markswomen and Marksmen from the first book teaming up here for the battles.
There's a late hour save in the form of a friend from book one that felt a bit deux ex machina, and some of the emotional turmoil from what happened to Kyra when she trusted and was betrayed was smoothed over in a way that felt dissatisfying because it was lost in the battle bits. However, the battle was sufficiently difficult and the horror of Kai Tau in the end satisfyingly evil.
There's some rehashing of same themes as the first book in this one, so at times I did a little skimming, but the surprises Rustan uncovers, and the battle scenes where Kyra fully embraces herself were terrific. Loved the mask of Kali as she fights!
And then we get the ending...which while emotionally satisfying...gets a bit foggy for me. It felt like an ending for the series, so it makes me think this is a duology, which is fine, but I hope the author might expand some of the fascinating stuff she came up with in side projects or other novels. (Like the wyr-wolves or other places the hubs take you!)
The marksman who helped her win the duel, Rustan, is off on his own quest.
In some ways, the first part of the book is a restart for Kyra. She's back in the caves with the Elders of her order, trying to become the kind of Markswoman who can be Mahimata enough to take on Kai Tau. There's some interesting stuff with the wyr-wolves, but I wanted to delve much deeper into their story and the kind of relationship they could have with the markswomen. The really interesting stuff happens with Rustan and his quest. Here is where the book unravels some of the history behind the sentient knives and rifles that create political power and chaos in Asiana. When they finally come together again, the book becomes a chronicle of the strategy and battle of taking down Kai Tau. It was quite cool seeing all the Markswomen and Marksmen from the first book teaming up here for the battles.
There's a late hour save in the form of a friend from book one that felt a bit deux ex machina, and some of the emotional turmoil from what happened to Kyra when she trusted and was betrayed was smoothed over in a way that felt dissatisfying because it was lost in the battle bits. However, the battle was sufficiently difficult and the horror of Kai Tau in the end satisfyingly evil.
There's some rehashing of same themes as the first book in this one, so at times I did a little skimming, but the surprises Rustan uncovers, and the battle scenes where Kyra fully embraces herself were terrific. Loved the mask of Kali as she fights!
And then we get the ending...which while emotionally satisfying...gets a bit foggy for me. It felt like an ending for the series, so it makes me think this is a duology, which is fine, but I hope the author might expand some of the fascinating stuff she came up with in side projects or other novels. (Like the wyr-wolves or other places the hubs take you!)
kbaj's review
4.0
I received this books as an ARC from Harper Voyager.
Even without reading the first of this series, I did enjoy it. I wasn't terribly attached to the characters or the plot, but I was interested in them. The worldbuilding was very creative, and I appreciated the female characters that weren't always cliche (definitely some though). What I didn't really like was the generic feel I got from the plot despite the setting being so interesting. I felt like I had already read the book, and it was only the worldbuilding that kept me reading. The protagonist Kyra spent an excessive amount of time pining over her love interest, and I would have preferred something that moved the plot along quickly. I like romance, but you can show that a couple is in love without them constantly thinking about it.
I was also disappointed by the lack of plot twists and unexpected events. At times, I thought I could feel a plot twist coming, because everything seemed too easy. But they never came, so it really was just that easy. Probably the most exciting part was *spoilers?* Kyra's betrayal of her love interest, because there was actual tension and conflict that wasn't completely cookie-cutter. But even this felt a little too easily resolved.
Overall, an entertaining read, but not one that I found myself extremely invested in.
Even without reading the first of this series, I did enjoy it. I wasn't terribly attached to the characters or the plot, but I was interested in them. The worldbuilding was very creative, and I appreciated the female characters that weren't always cliche (definitely some though). What I didn't really like was the generic feel I got from the plot despite the setting being so interesting. I felt like I had already read the book, and it was only the worldbuilding that kept me reading. The protagonist Kyra spent an excessive amount of time pining over her love interest, and I would have preferred something that moved the plot along quickly. I like romance, but you can show that a couple is in love without them constantly thinking about it.
I was also disappointed by the lack of plot twists and unexpected events. At times, I thought I could feel a plot twist coming, because everything seemed too easy. But they never came, so it really was just that easy. Probably the most exciting part was *spoilers?* Kyra's betrayal of her love interest, because there was actual tension and conflict that wasn't completely cookie-cutter. But even this felt a little too easily resolved.
Overall, an entertaining read, but not one that I found myself extremely invested in.
theladyduckofdoom's review
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sch91086's review against another edition
3.0
This started stronger than it finished, and I don't think it was as good as the first book, [b:Markswoman|35008759|Markswoman (Asiana, #1)|Rati Mehrotra|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1499096497s/35008759.jpg|49559896]. I think the big issue here is that a lot of those standardized YA Fantasy tropes Mehrotra managed to avoid in book one, had a full throttle, pedal to the medal presence here.
The romance was a huge focus this time around. For the record, I hate complaining that romance exists in a book- because I actually like romance. Claire and Jamie, Edward and Elizabeth, Elizabeth and Darcy, truly, it's a favorite theme of mine. What I don't like, is when we spend pages and pages straight up day dreaming of the significant other. That was how this romance often felt. There are barriers to Kyra's relationship with Rustan, but none of them ever felt all that challenging.
Another one of the things that I loved in Markswoman, was that Kyra never felt like a special snowflake to me in the first book. She made mistakes, she became an outcast, etc. Here special snowflake syndrome is alive and swinging. I can't say much without spoilers, but every single scene felt like it was dedicated to how special, how much better/braver/stronger/smarter she was then everyone else. I did a lot of eyerolling.
Finally- this novel requires a lot of suspension of disbelief. The relationships between these people were just not believable. Kyra upends centuries of fear and tradition regarding the wyr-wolves for no other reason than that she's the Mahimata of the Order of Kali. All the elders and other clans just sort of accept her rule. She's enlisted to lead a war despite never having been in one and only being like 18/19 years old. I was just kind of sick of it all at the end.
Despite all this, there were still parts I enjoyed. The introduction of the wyr-wolves was wonderful and probably my favorite part. The overall plot wasn't bad, even if it was wholly unbelievable and a little generic. There were a lot of great ideas at play, the hall of mirrors, the Sahirus, the hub and transport system. It was also a very quick read- and I tend to be more forgiving of those.
The ending was both abrupt and bizarre. Nothing was really explained. Kyra and Rustan got an ending but literally no one else. This book really needed a conclusion or an epilogue of some sort to make it feel complete. I reviewed an advance copy so it's entirely possible my copy simply didn't have it, but I was definitely left wanting more (and not really in a good way).
If you enjoyed the first book, it's probably worth reading the second just to see how it all ends. I'll be curious to see what Mehrotra does now that this duology is complete. Thank you to Edelweiss and Harper Collins for providing me with an eARC to review.
The romance was a huge focus this time around. For the record, I hate complaining that romance exists in a book- because I actually like romance. Claire and Jamie, Edward and Elizabeth, Elizabeth and Darcy, truly, it's a favorite theme of mine. What I don't like, is when we spend pages and pages straight up day dreaming of the significant other. That was how this romance often felt. There are barriers to Kyra's relationship with Rustan, but none of them ever felt all that challenging.
Another one of the things that I loved in Markswoman, was that Kyra never felt like a special snowflake to me in the first book. She made mistakes, she became an outcast, etc. Here special snowflake syndrome is alive and swinging. I can't say much without spoilers, but every single scene felt like it was dedicated to how special, how much better/braver/stronger/smarter she was then everyone else. I did a lot of eyerolling.
Finally- this novel requires a lot of suspension of disbelief. The relationships between these people were just not believable. Kyra upends centuries of fear and tradition regarding the wyr-wolves for no other reason than that she's the Mahimata of the Order of Kali. All the elders and other clans just sort of accept her rule. She's enlisted to lead a war despite never having been in one and only being like 18/19 years old. I was just kind of sick of it all at the end.
Despite all this, there were still parts I enjoyed. The introduction of the wyr-wolves was wonderful and probably my favorite part. The overall plot wasn't bad, even if it was wholly unbelievable and a little generic. There were a lot of great ideas at play, the hall of mirrors, the Sahirus, the hub and transport system. It was also a very quick read- and I tend to be more forgiving of those.
The ending was both abrupt and bizarre. Nothing was really explained. Kyra and Rustan got an ending but literally no one else. This book really needed a conclusion or an epilogue of some sort to make it feel complete. I reviewed an advance copy so it's entirely possible my copy simply didn't have it, but I was definitely left wanting more (and not really in a good way).
If you enjoyed the first book, it's probably worth reading the second just to see how it all ends. I'll be curious to see what Mehrotra does now that this duology is complete. Thank you to Edelweiss and Harper Collins for providing me with an eARC to review.
em_err's review against another edition
4.0
Thanks so much to Goodreads for this giveaway!!
About the ending.... what the crap was THAT? No clue where they are, no clue what happens. Truly a cliff hanger that Rick Riordan would be proud of. But you know what Rick did really well? He wrote more than two books before leaving everyone hanging!
Yes, I’m slightly mad, but in my defense it’s after one in the morning and the book hangover has only begun. Don’t misunderstand me, this thing was so good. I read Markswoman just before and the sequel was so much better than the original! Couldn’t. Put. This. One. Down.
What did I like? Action, mystery, adventure, travel, the characters, the different perspectives, all the plot twists, and the what-will-happen-next moments. Seriously, phenomenal storytelling.
What did I dislike? Well, the ending, obvs. But I’ve already established that bit. Can’t think of much else. I will say that just like in Markswoman, the romance aspect still felt very forced. Not as bad, but still forced. Like, “Oh, well it’s YA so of course Kyra HAS to go gah-gah for the first male she lays eyes on. Anything else won’t do.” Do I ship it? Yes. 100%. Just make it believable. The same with her killing Kai Tau. That felt very... well easy. It was over really quickly. It was like everyone talked about him and then in wizard of oz fashion, there wasn’t much behind the curtain. And nothing much behind the curtain meant it was over quickly and it was kind of a let down. And it wasn’t exactly believable or realistic.
Still mad. Still want answers that I know I’ll never get. But it was definitely still worth the read. I would recommend it and would read it again. I would also definitely read a third book!
About the ending.... what the crap was THAT? No clue where they are, no clue what happens. Truly a cliff hanger that Rick Riordan would be proud of. But you know what Rick did really well? He wrote more than two books before leaving everyone hanging!
Yes, I’m slightly mad, but in my defense it’s after one in the morning and the book hangover has only begun. Don’t misunderstand me, this thing was so good. I read Markswoman just before and the sequel was so much better than the original! Couldn’t. Put. This. One. Down.
What did I like? Action, mystery, adventure, travel, the characters, the different perspectives, all the plot twists, and the what-will-happen-next moments. Seriously, phenomenal storytelling.
What did I dislike? Well, the ending, obvs. But I’ve already established that bit. Can’t think of much else. I will say that just like in Markswoman, the romance aspect still felt very forced. Not as bad, but still forced. Like, “Oh, well it’s YA so of course Kyra HAS to go gah-gah for the first male she lays eyes on. Anything else won’t do.” Do I ship it? Yes. 100%. Just make it believable. The same with her killing Kai Tau. That felt very... well easy. It was over really quickly. It was like everyone talked about him and then in wizard of oz fashion, there wasn’t much behind the curtain. And nothing much behind the curtain meant it was over quickly and it was kind of a let down. And it wasn’t exactly believable or realistic.
Still mad. Still want answers that I know I’ll never get. But it was definitely still worth the read. I would recommend it and would read it again. I would also definitely read a third book!
delaneybull's review against another edition
2.0
There were a lot of worldbuilding additions that were good, but distracted from the setup of the first book.
pantsreads's review
3.0
3.5/5
Good conclusion to the duology, but I'm left with a lot of questions I'd love answers for.
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
Good conclusion to the duology, but I'm left with a lot of questions I'd love answers for.
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.