Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Misrule

Well, the library *finally* got this second book in the duology! I mean, it's not their fault it took so long - there's been tons of issues with our supplier - but I was thrilled to get my hands on it because I have been eagerly awaiting this conclusion after loving the dark turn the ending took in the first book.

At the end of Malice, we are left with the visual of Alyce having shifted into a dragon and essentially destroying all of Briar after one too many betrayals...and of course, Aurora is in her cursed sleep situation. Misrule pretty quickly jumps the reader 100 years forwards in time...Aurora is still asleep, but Alyce has rebranded herself as Nimara and is now the leader of the Dark Court, having waged a decades-long war against the Fae for revenge, and to free and bring together all the "ugly" creatures (shifters, demons, imps, goblins, etc.) in one place, one home, again. Other than Aurora still being asleep, things are pretty much perfect for Nimara. However, when a human, Derek, washes up on the Dark Court's shores, and Aurora is finally awoken, Nimara/Alyce will have to figure out how to keep the home she made for her outcast brethren, win Aurora back (she may or may not have overly embraced the "monster" side of herself while Aurora was asleep), and contend with quite a bit of back-stabbing and secret plots and ulterior motives...plus her own insecurities that just won't seem to let her go. Oh, and there's the powerful vila, Mortania, whose spirit is still very alive and strong within her.

This story was nonstop from start to finish. And I mean that in the "there are battles and death" way, of course, but also in the "constant scheming and secrets-coming-out" way too. There were so many twists, small and large, throughout that I have to admit, a few times I did get a bit lost in them. I actually want to start here, to get my few criticisms out of the way early, because for the most part I had a truly great time reading this. I know I mentioned in the first book how some of the background info about the realms and history of Briar and Malterre and the Fae, etc. all seemed a bit confusing and underdeveloped. And I know I didn't do myself any favors by picking up this second book so long after the first and without a reread, but I have to be honest and say that I didn't get it all as cleared up as I would have liked. There was definitely some clarity, but after a while I ended up stopping trying to figure it all out and to just go with the vibes and flow of the story. That was the right call, and made the reading experience more fun, but definitely I would have loved a little cleaner, clearer world-building. With that, and possibly this didn't help my world-building confusion, there were (as I said) many twists and allegiance switches (both real and fake) that I found myself a bit turned around a few times. Plus, in general, I did feel like many of the characters other than Alyce were fairly surface/type-cast. In particular, there was one new character, Regan, who I mostly enjoyed reading because, to be honest, I couldn't get a bead on her...and when her finale arrived, I liked the way it went, and why, but the writing of it al it unfolded throughout the second half of the novel felt a bit forced on it's way there. It was a weird feel and I really wanted to like it, objectively I did, but subjectively it just felt a little off the whole time.

One last note here, that is related in my head. Alyce spent her whole life being mistreated and lied to and manipulated...and yet continues to not be able to spot it or be suspicious of it where she should be. Now, I know there was some interesting commentary here on one's inner voice and insecurities and how strong they are, but still, after so much duplicity, you'd think she'd be at least marginally more suspicious of everyone, and not just a random few. It seemed very inconsistent, who she chose to believe and who she chose to alienate, and how hard she dug into those, even after myriad experiences to (or being straight up told) the contrary. Minus Aurora, of course, because, ahhhh the blinding power of love (and everlasting hope of belonging), but at least Alyce recognized what she was doing, in that case.

Otherwise, even though this second book felt almost like a different style altogether, as compared to the first, I was really into it. I loved that once Walter went dark and intense, she kept it there. There is really no coming back from certain decisions and I appreciated that she didn't try. Plus, the dark and creepy Maleficent vibes (the "uglier" sides of magic and magical creatures) were awesome - brought to life so well and I had some amazing visuals in my mind. Walter made this novel, this second half of Alyce's story, something altogether new. To that end, the 100 year jumps that were made really fit the story. I do think, after so much hurt, that much time is necessary to assuage feelings and realities, before people are prepared to even think about alternative options/paths. And there were some really wonderful messages in there, on that point, about cycles of jealousy, hate, love, power, and fear and how they can all get tangled up and mimic each other - and what it takes to end that type of cycle. Speaking of the end, though the review isn't over yet, this seems like a place to point out that I loved the ending. I mean sure it had the sorta cheesy fantasy "fixing the world threatening issue" plot finale, which was solid, but also, the way Alyce and Aurora's story ended was....perfect. Nothing else would have felt right or been believable for me, and it gave the exact right combination of sweet and longing and matched the cyclical storytelling style with the time parallels to how the beginning.

Let me say more things I liked, because this review started tough, but there was so much I was into! While the overarching retelling remains Sleeping Beauty, of course, I loved the continued shades of other fairy tales and nursery rhymes sprinkled in, as in the first one (Little Mermaid, for one, and Beauty and the Beast again). I thought the disaster that was Aurora waking up was so great, because really, how could it be anything else (even in the original?!) after having been asleep for that long and everything you know falling to ruin? Finally, and a real highlight, was the high quality fantasy-style exploration of how loving an idea/ideal always falls short of reality. And even better, an unpacking of how claiming to love someone and want to change the world when you have the power, but having trouble with the reverse when the power balance is overturned, gave some profound insight on privilege and the comfort of those visually similar to you. There's great meditation on what it is that makes a monster, and how it’s easier to love a "monster" when the power lies with you, versus the other way around. Walter really dived into the conversation about whether those power/privilege barriers are to large to overcome with a single interpersonal connection, and if not, how do you move past that cycle of the previous ~millenia~ of being at odds and power shifting and revenge and what it actually takes to make things right/better.

Although there were some developmental holes and/or a lack of continuation in the quality and depth of the development from the first book (in the world and character aspects), I felt like this was still a spectacular conclusion to the plot and to Alyce and Aurora's story in particular. I had so much fun reading this book. It has that nostalgic fantasy feel to it, mixing the magical/fanciful with metaphors/messages about life, but all of it is "overpowered" by the adventure of the story and the journey the plot takes you on. I felt fully immersed in the world of Briar and the Dark Court throughout both books and that quality escapism was exactly what I wanted/needed. If you are looking for a fantasy escape in your life, let me really recommend this duology!

“It has always interested me the ways in which a tale will change based on who is telling it.”

“Tragedy teaches us things about ourselves and about others. […] Sometimes we do not like what we see. But we have to look anyway. We have to know.”

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wrensreadingroom's review against another edition

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adventurous dark inspiring tense medium-paced

5.0

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livlamentloathe's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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litalia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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katzenlyrik's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Ugh, Alyce drove me batty during this entire book – I agree with the other review that she didn't seem like she'd lived 120 years, but rather like a lovesick teen. I suppose it's understandable, since humans (aka authors) don't live that long, and we would struggle to grasp that kind of mindset. At any rate, Alyce was maddeningly obsessed with Aurora for reasons that didn't really make sense to me – maybe I'm too aro for the logic (or lack thereof), but at many points during the book I was very tempted to jump on board the Regan/Nimara ship. That kind of relationship made sense – I mean, being based on actual time spent together.

This book felt a lot more "typical" fantasy than the first, with the big war and the truly astonishing number of magical creatures. A lot of the descriptions were over-the-top (and by halfway in, I never wanted to read that Callow or Chaos "chuffed" ever again), but I think that sort of over-description is typical for (YA? new adult?) fantasy. Part of me really enjoys the wardrobe descriptions, but I also wondered how Aurora could smell like apple blossoms ALL the time...

I almost wish the book had done a bit less with the sweeping fantasy war and more with the Aurora/Alyce/Regan relationships. And Neve felt like an afterthought. (Also, I couldn't decide how to pronounce her name... A character guide would've been great for this story, and a map!) The Imps drove me batty, too, although they seem to be a fan favorite. I really liked the very start, where Regan arrived, and might have preferred more on the founding of the Dark Court.

All that said, huge fan of Callow/Derek and the Dark council, and I couldn't stop reading. It's eminently readable despite the MC's frustrating traits (the eternal teenager syndrome), and although I liked *reading* Malice better, I absolutely wanted to know what happened in Misrule. Having such an unreliable narrator as Alyce (her hatred of Derek was in such stark contrast to his actual character, for example) was a neat reading experience considering that usually fantasy books like this (that I've read) are told from someone like Aurora's viewpoint. She felt a bit vague in this book, but I did love how often she figured sh!t out while everyone else was plotting beheadings and torture. It felt like there was more to her than was shown.

Spoiler

She would've been much cooler on her own without Alyce's obsession, which I guess is what the SECOND hundred-year separation in the epilogue was meant to suggest. I really liked that she brought up Alyce's unhealthy obsession with the idea of her partway through the book. The epilogue to me read like a very pointed allegory on LGBTQIA+ struggle in today's world. Alyce as an activist, humans as flawed... I can see why it's there, but it felt detached from the rest of the story. Like one of those moralizing conclusions to a fable of La Fontaine, in case you missed the point during the rest of the story lol.

Obviously a book that inspired a lot of curiosity and interest, and I'll definitely be on the lookout for whatever Heather Walter writes next!

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eviecate's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I have been anticipating this book since I finished the first one and it delivered. The world building in this series is so good and I loved the developments in this book. Overall a really cool take on the traditional fairytale. I can't wait to read more from Heather Walter!

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