storiedadventures's review against another edition
4.0
This was my favorite of the 3! I loved getting to know the world more and the characters!
pelargonia's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
wittyandsarcasticbookclub's review against another edition
5.0
There are spoilers for For a Muse of Fire (first in the series) below. You can find my review for that book here.
** Here Be Spoilers**
Oh man, I loved this book! From the plot-line to the characters, everything was done well. It was a worthy sequel to For a Muse of Fire, which was a huge relief after some of the sequels I’ve read lately.
Jetta is a great character. She’s tough without being cold and emotionless. In fact, her emotions are a big part of what makes her so tough. She has an illness that is most definitely bipolar (as confirmed by the author). I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but books that feature mental illness with consideration and respect automatically get extra points from me. This one in particular means a lot, since I also have bipolar. It is a mental illness that is rarely represented in YA, and even more rarely mentioned in the fantasy genre. Heidi Heilig’s choice to not only feature it in a fantasy, but to show both the positive and negative aspects of it is pretty stinking cool. But I digress.
In this book, Jetta has been offered a medication that will help with her illness, in exchange for the use of her blood by the crown. Whoever uses the blood can bind souls to inanimate objects, essentially animating-and controlling-them. The crown wants to use her power as a weapon against the rebels, who Jetta sympathizes with.
The rebels also want to use Jetta. Meanwhile, she’s afraid to use her power at all, worrying that it will make her like her biological father. He’s a monstrous necromancer, and everyone is afraid of what would happen if he- or another like him- came to power.
Of course, there’s also ye random romantic entanglement with Leo, another rebel. I’m not a huge fan of their relationship because it often came across as an unnecessary distraction from the rest of the plot, but I admittedly don’t like most dramatic bookish relationships.
I liked that Heilig didn’t pull punches. I was justifiably concerned about what would happen to some of the characters in the book. I like when an author gives things a sense of urgency, and she does that very well. I raced through this book, enjoying every moment of it.
I feel like this series is very underrated and deserves way more hype. It’s well-written and fast-paced, with memorable characters and an interesting plot. The mental illness representation just pushes it even higher in my esteem. I highly recommend this book.
Have you read this book? What did you think?
** Here Be Spoilers**
Oh man, I loved this book! From the plot-line to the characters, everything was done well. It was a worthy sequel to For a Muse of Fire, which was a huge relief after some of the sequels I’ve read lately.
Jetta is a great character. She’s tough without being cold and emotionless. In fact, her emotions are a big part of what makes her so tough. She has an illness that is most definitely bipolar (as confirmed by the author). I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but books that feature mental illness with consideration and respect automatically get extra points from me. This one in particular means a lot, since I also have bipolar. It is a mental illness that is rarely represented in YA, and even more rarely mentioned in the fantasy genre. Heidi Heilig’s choice to not only feature it in a fantasy, but to show both the positive and negative aspects of it is pretty stinking cool. But I digress.
In this book, Jetta has been offered a medication that will help with her illness, in exchange for the use of her blood by the crown. Whoever uses the blood can bind souls to inanimate objects, essentially animating-and controlling-them. The crown wants to use her power as a weapon against the rebels, who Jetta sympathizes with.
The rebels also want to use Jetta. Meanwhile, she’s afraid to use her power at all, worrying that it will make her like her biological father. He’s a monstrous necromancer, and everyone is afraid of what would happen if he- or another like him- came to power.
Of course, there’s also ye random romantic entanglement with Leo, another rebel. I’m not a huge fan of their relationship because it often came across as an unnecessary distraction from the rest of the plot, but I admittedly don’t like most dramatic bookish relationships.
I liked that Heilig didn’t pull punches. I was justifiably concerned about what would happen to some of the characters in the book. I like when an author gives things a sense of urgency, and she does that very well. I raced through this book, enjoying every moment of it.
I feel like this series is very underrated and deserves way more hype. It’s well-written and fast-paced, with memorable characters and an interesting plot. The mental illness representation just pushes it even higher in my esteem. I highly recommend this book.
Have you read this book? What did you think?
morgarelibrare's review against another edition
3.0
*Read at work for review for ROYAL*
This book was fine. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. Required reading at work for my review group.
Full review to come!
This book was fine. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it. Required reading at work for my review group.
Full review to come!
carlyoc's review against another edition
4.0
This sequel picks up where Book One left off - Jetta has rescued her father from torture, although he is weak and missing some fingers and his tongue. She pulled her brother back from the grip of death. Her mother is still far away with the other rebels, but she is getting closer to bringing her family back together. All that is missing is Leo, her love interest who left her in her hour of need.
But when she finds herself back in the hands of Leo's legitimate half-brother and -sister, Jetta must fight not to become a tool of both sides of the war.
This book felt much shorter than the first book, but fast-paced and full of twists and turns and action. No second book slump here. Although if you are looking for Heilig's usual touch of romance, you won't find more than a few sweet stolen moments in this installment.
The ending sets up very nicely for Book Three - not quite a cliffhanger but with a clear problem to be solved in the final book.
We get to know Leo's half-sister Theodora pretty well in this book, and a new character, the leader of the resistance known as the Tiger. We also get to know some of the key bad guys a little better, too, - Leo's half-brother Xavier who took over as general when their father died, Le Trépas the original necromancer, and Lieutenant Peak (not sure about spelling because I read the audiobook), one of the most racist and bloodthirsty members of the army.
All scenes not from Jetta's perspective are formatted like a play and just as in the first book, there are songs complete with sheet music interspersed with the story. It was cool to hear the songs come to life by listening to the audiobook.
But when she finds herself back in the hands of Leo's legitimate half-brother and -sister, Jetta must fight not to become a tool of both sides of the war.
This book felt much shorter than the first book, but fast-paced and full of twists and turns and action. No second book slump here. Although if you are looking for Heilig's usual touch of romance, you won't find more than a few sweet stolen moments in this installment.
The ending sets up very nicely for Book Three - not quite a cliffhanger but with a clear problem to be solved in the final book.
We get to know Leo's half-sister Theodora pretty well in this book, and a new character, the leader of the resistance known as the Tiger. We also get to know some of the key bad guys a little better, too, - Leo's half-brother Xavier who took over as general when their father died, Le Trépas the original necromancer, and Lieutenant Peak (not sure about spelling because I read the audiobook), one of the most racist and bloodthirsty members of the army.
All scenes not from Jetta's perspective are formatted like a play and just as in the first book, there are songs complete with sheet music interspersed with the story. It was cool to hear the songs come to life by listening to the audiobook.
jesssireads's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book a heck of a lot more than I did the first one! The stakes have been raised and the characters have made decisions that will have plenty of consequences. Jetta's voice in this one is incredible, and I really enjoyed the rebellion aspect.
I sincerely hope that there will be a third one!
I sincerely hope that there will be a third one!
rosie_khan's review
5.0
THIS BOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Totally going on my favorites shelf because all of Heidi Heilig's books do.
Okay, where do I even begin??? The first book, For a Muse of Fire, was an incredible story and put together in such a creative way that I adored everything about. Shadow puppeteers, blood magic and controlling souls, a country occupied by colonists, an actual family for the main character, beautifully written characters, and of course, the lush setting.
The sequel, A Kingdom for a Stage, picks up a few weeks later, and while the pacing was a little slow, I enjoyed it so much. Compared to book one, where Jetta is on the move very fast, this book takes a while to move, but we get a deeper look at important characters in that time. Speaking of characters, I thought that they seemed a little bit hard to understand. Perhaps it's realistic, but at times I couldn't tell whose side certain people were on.
But honestly, this book had it all. One of my favorite moments was
Oops, this review is very spoilery, but here is my main burning question:
In summary, my thoughts after finishing it are:
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
WHY
OH. MY GOD.
I need the third book NOW but it doesn't come out until spring break...so I guess that will be motivating me for the first half of this semester.
Heidi Heilig, if you ever read this review, thank you for these books.
Totally going on my favorites shelf because all of Heidi Heilig's books do.
Okay, where do I even begin??? The first book, For a Muse of Fire, was an incredible story and put together in such a creative way that I adored everything about. Shadow puppeteers, blood magic and controlling souls, a country occupied by colonists, an actual family for the main character, beautifully written characters, and of course, the lush setting.
The sequel, A Kingdom for a Stage, picks up a few weeks later, and while the pacing was a little slow, I enjoyed it so much. Compared to book one, where Jetta is on the move very fast, this book takes a while to move, but we get a deeper look at important characters in that time. Speaking of characters, I thought that they seemed a little bit hard to understand. Perhaps it's realistic, but at times I couldn't tell whose side certain people were on.
Spoiler
Theodora "La Fleur" Legarde was always a strange one to me, because what she said about responsibility and right was THE EPITOME of the white man's burden and she clearly had regrets about being the mastermind of so many weapons, but she's still allegiant to the Aquitans, so whose side was she on? Why did she just go along so friendly with the rebels?But honestly, this book had it all. One of my favorite moments was
Spoiler
when Cam reveals the scars on his back and explains to Jetta that the nickname "The Tiger" is "because of the stripes" and the fact that him being trans and using a binder is just casually part of his identity! I'm excited to see Camreon become king.Oops, this review is very spoilery, but here is my main burning question:
Spoiler
When Le Trepas let himself fall off the dragon and hit the ground, and Jetta immediately put the dragon's soul back into its skeleton and therefore under her control, WHY didn't Jetta dive down to Le Trepas's body and try to catch his soul right then and there, before he fled? Would the extra few seconds already have meant it was too late? I thought akela can only walk or run as fast as a living man could. Because she literally could have forced his soul into a rock or a piece of wood, and the whole MESS about Raik and Xavier's bodies going missing could have been avoided!!! I mean, Le Trepas is THE MOST DANGEROUS SOUL in the whole COUNTRY and they just left his corpse alone? When they had the chance to try and contain his fresh soul? I don't understand!In summary, my thoughts after finishing it are:
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
WHY
OH. MY GOD.
I need the third book NOW but it doesn't come out until spring break...so I guess that will be motivating me for the first half of this semester.
Heidi Heilig, if you ever read this review, thank you for these books.
jesskylie's review
4.0
I enjoyed this book a heck of a lot more than I did the first one! The stakes have been raised and the characters have made decisions that will have plenty of consequences. Jetta's voice in this one is incredible, and I really enjoyed the rebellion aspect.
I sincerely hope that there will be a third one!
I sincerely hope that there will be a third one!