booksonmars's review against another edition
how am i halfway through the book and cannot care less about any of the characters; the premise and the prologue were so strong too im kinda bummed
lyricallit's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Enjoyed it but saw a lot of repeated tropes with another "romantasy" I'd just read. I am interested enough to see how this wraps up, and I am willing to commit to a trilogy for that, but any more than that would be a no. The pacing was a bit uneven, and it took me awhile to really get invested. I have a better sense of who Rielle is vs Eliana.
As a woman in the Bible belt American South, I saw a great deal of potential early on for criticisms of organized religion & its use of women. By the conclusion, however, I felt as though that thread got muddled. I am hoping this feminist theme develops further in the other novels.
As a woman in the Bible belt American South, I saw a great deal of potential early on for criticisms of organized religion & its use of women. By the conclusion, however, I felt as though that thread got muddled. I am hoping this feminist theme develops further in the other novels.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
spookynerd13's review against another edition
5.0
Reread for 2019! Loved it just as much as the first time!!
mishedme's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed all of the characters as well as the two timelines.
The selling point of this book for me were definitely the angels and the short chapters. Definitely plan on continuing this series.
The selling point of this book for me were definitely the angels and the short chapters. Definitely plan on continuing this series.
iamtaylorhope's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
lanaregina17's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
eabanden87's review against another edition
2.0
Most of the reviews I see of this book are praise for the two point of views that the reader hops back and forth between, but for me this was the book’s biggest shortcoming.
************Spoilers******************
Because Elianna and Rielle’s stories feed into one another, nearly all of the “twists” that should have given the book a bunch of gasp moments ended up being anticipated and expected. For instance, the revelation about Elianna being the Sun Queen, the Emperor being Coriene, etc. There weren’t any true revelations and it sucked much of the excitement out of the twists as they came along. The other point that suffered was the events we heard about coming to pass (Rielle and Audric’s big showdown, Rielle becoming the Blood Queen) never get told because we’re split between Elianna’s timeline and Rielle’s. I kept anticipating these great battles and scenes that just… never came. I think the story would have been much improved if the author had focused on Rielle’s story first, then Elianna’s and saved the switching POVs for a later book when they are closer to what seems to be their inevitable meeting. All of the big reveals happen at the end of the book too, so you seem to be just waiting and wait and waiting to get there. Event he ones that weren’t anticipated, like the Empire’s Crawlers, happen so far to the end of the story that there’s little time to establish them as a threat
As characters, Rielle is certainly the stronger of the two girls. I think the author was going for conflicted with Elianna, but it ends up being wishy-washy. They’re both inconsistent, wavering and small one moment and then bold and confident the next without the proper build up to justify the change. Again, Rielle is the stronger character in this vein because she does slowly grow into her powers and has accomplishments to back up her small bouts of cheek. The side characters are numerous, and again due to the double timelines a little hard to keep track of. The villains of the story are not clear. Or if they are clear, they don’t stick around for long. Both Coriene and Razavel blip in and out of their interactions without time to establish them as true threats and their stakes are never high enough to make the reader truly afraid of them.
The world the author creates in both timelines is beautiful, intricate, and believable, especially in the contrast of Rielle’s pre-empire world to Elianna’s conquered one. It’s a shame that the worlds of each couldn’t be explored and enjoyed more before we’re hopped back to the other timeline.
Had this been one girl’s story or the other, I probably would have rated this book higher and enjoyed it more. As it stands, I’m undecided on whether I’m curious enough about everything this book set up to get into the sequel.
************Spoilers******************
Because Elianna and Rielle’s stories feed into one another, nearly all of the “twists” that should have given the book a bunch of gasp moments ended up being anticipated and expected. For instance, the revelation about Elianna being the Sun Queen, the Emperor being Coriene, etc. There weren’t any true revelations and it sucked much of the excitement out of the twists as they came along. The other point that suffered was the events we heard about coming to pass (Rielle and Audric’s big showdown, Rielle becoming the Blood Queen) never get told because we’re split between Elianna’s timeline and Rielle’s. I kept anticipating these great battles and scenes that just… never came. I think the story would have been much improved if the author had focused on Rielle’s story first, then Elianna’s and saved the switching POVs for a later book when they are closer to what seems to be their inevitable meeting. All of the big reveals happen at the end of the book too, so you seem to be just waiting and wait and waiting to get there. Event he ones that weren’t anticipated, like the Empire’s Crawlers, happen so far to the end of the story that there’s little time to establish them as a threat
As characters, Rielle is certainly the stronger of the two girls. I think the author was going for conflicted with Elianna, but it ends up being wishy-washy. They’re both inconsistent, wavering and small one moment and then bold and confident the next without the proper build up to justify the change. Again, Rielle is the stronger character in this vein because she does slowly grow into her powers and has accomplishments to back up her small bouts of cheek. The side characters are numerous, and again due to the double timelines a little hard to keep track of. The villains of the story are not clear. Or if they are clear, they don’t stick around for long. Both Coriene and Razavel blip in and out of their interactions without time to establish them as true threats and their stakes are never high enough to make the reader truly afraid of them.
The world the author creates in both timelines is beautiful, intricate, and believable, especially in the contrast of Rielle’s pre-empire world to Elianna’s conquered one. It’s a shame that the worlds of each couldn’t be explored and enjoyed more before we’re hopped back to the other timeline.
Had this been one girl’s story or the other, I probably would have rated this book higher and enjoyed it more. As it stands, I’m undecided on whether I’m curious enough about everything this book set up to get into the sequel.
jourdenbrubaker's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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? No
4.0