Reviews

Nomad by R.J. Anderson

mayawo's review

5.0

Jslsjsdgsksk this booook I love this series to much hehe and Ivy and Martins Friendship is everything even though I want it to be more heheh I’m sad that Martins gone again :( but looking forward to torch

rjandersonwriter's review

I just re-read this and SWIFT back to back (shh, it's been a few years, I'd forgotten a lot of it) and am so very proud of the way Ivy and Martin's story turned out. I can't wait to finally share the brand-new third book of the trilogy with my readers in February 2021!

book_grinch's review

5.0

So, I've just finished this story, and in the aftermath of this glorious experience, all I can say is basically:

THE FOLLOWING ONE, BETTER NOT BE THIS SERIES' LAST VOLUME!

How can I possibly face a world without all of these characters???

Okay, Martin's dramatics may have rubbed off... a tiny bit... on me. BUT it's true. I will miss all of them, as sure as I would miss long time friends.

This is an amazing series that develops contemporary issues, giving them spotlight in these characters' lives. Who cares if they're fairies, sprigans or piskeys?

They feel real. They act real.

In my mind they are real... and they broke my heart while reading this story!



The politics in the Piskey world have taken a turn for the worst.

As we saw in the last book, Ivy was thrown out by her aunt Betony, _the Joan (this title means she gets to give the orders...), _despite having saved them all, but the Piskeys remain in danger.

The place were they have lived their entire lives is poisoned, and they keep dying or growing sick, and their Joan doesn't do anything about it.

Once again it will be up to Ivy to find a way to go against her aunt's intransigence.

Helping her we have Martin (aka Richard, aka you better not trust me, aka Shakespeare is my life!) and some piskey friends.



Ivy is young, and she feels young while reading this story.

She makes mistakes. She's not a Knife (see book with the same name)... which is good, because this means the author kept her real... to the way she was raised!

This means that mostly she fights with her heart. She fails, and she has to get up, even when she doesn't believe it possible

Martin is the opposite, with a melodramatic vein in him.

He's a jaded, sarcastic, at times impossible to figure out, character!

I love him! Especially in the way he's always there for Ivy.

We follow Ivy's story, and Ivy's path, and all of a sudden, his story, and his past, are right in the middle of it. Good and unexpected twist!

Oh, oh, and the way it ends... ;) *big Cheshire smile*

Can I just say how much I love this weasel?

Again? ;)



Can't wait to read the follow up!

paperbookmarks's review

adventurous emotional fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

*Re-read* 
I definitely enjoyed this adventure, and it felt like snuggling down in a childhood blanket as I loved this series so much when I was younger. Ivy and Martin are brilliant characters, and I love the lore and the way Rebecca traverses across the country! The politics between the different magical folk, as well as within their own communities are so compelling and I can't wait to read TORCH! 

****

So how can I really describe how I feel about this book... there are kind of no words but just this really lovely warm fuzzy feeling. I used to read books about fairies, magic etc when I was younger and they are really the sorts of books that opened my eyes to reading. 
I picked up KNIFE in 2009 or 2010 and I instantly fell in love with this world that was laid out for me; the characters, the magic and I felt like I did all those years ago. Five years later, here I am, sitting at my desk at university and still loving every second.

isalavinia's review

4.0

4.5 stars

The Faerie Rebels and Swift series are pure YA gold, worthy of a spriggan hoard!

In Nomad, we pick up right where Swift left off: with Ivy banished from the Delve and in the company of "Richard" (now Martin). And though details were a bit hazy to me, seeing as I read Swift 2 years ago, thankfully, Susana was reading it now, so I could ask questions to my heart's content.

Ivy and Martin, while hiding in a cave, come upon a hoard of spriggan treasure which allows them to live in more comfort. But that's the only bit of luck they seem to have: Martin is still looking for his people and trying to find out who he was, and Ivy, plagued my dreams of a spriggan boy from 400 years past, still has to find a way to save her people from the poisoned Delve, and the rule of her aunt Betony.

Apart from a brief exposure of the "Nice Guy" who is friendly just as long as there is a chance for "something" else, and a few attempts to overcome fantastical racism, there weren't many social issues represented in this book - at least compared to what usually shows up in this series; to date: disability, racism (albeit the fantastical type), cultural clash, feminism, spiritual doubt, infertility, toxic familial relationships, among many others.
That's not to say it wasn't an excellent book from start to finish, but I was expecting more, that's how greedy R.J. Anderson's writing has made me...

Ivy, as in the previous book, is still an amazingly believable and well-written character. Her thought-processes and actions make sense, she's mature for her age, but not so mature as to be unbelievable, she's brave, and stubborn, and loyal, and a delight to read!
Martin is still his Shakespeare obsessed self, given to a bit of the over dramatic at times, but thoughtful and so heartbreakingly intent on hiding his true emotions!

That's one of the (many) things I love about R.J. Anderson's writing: how she writes so much emotion, and has her characters attempt to hide it, and the readers suffering alongside them.

This book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, which I usually despise, but in this case I just rejoiced, because it means there must be another book in the making, and I, for one, cannot wait to get my hands on it!