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arcanewolf's review against another edition
4.0
The second book in the trilogy, following Lorkin's relocation with the Traitors, Sonea and Cery's search for Skellin and Dannyl's adventures as an ambassador for the Guild.
We learn so much more about the Traitor lifestyle, it sort of parallels what our world is like. Women are in charge and women have the final say in everything, though our society is trying to get more gender equality, it's still not quite there yet, since women are still getting discriminated against in our world.
We get introduced to two new characters who become important to the storyline, Lilia and Naki, and the consequences and discrimination faced with learning Black Magic in this world.
Homosexuality takes on a major theme in this book, exploring the relationships between two characters of the same sex and showing how normal it is in the society of that world.
More twists unravel in this book that I hope to be concluded in the final book, The Traitor Queen.
We learn so much more about the Traitor lifestyle, it sort of parallels what our world is like. Women are in charge and women have the final say in everything, though our society is trying to get more gender equality, it's still not quite there yet, since women are still getting discriminated against in our world.
We get introduced to two new characters who become important to the storyline, Lilia and Naki, and the consequences and discrimination faced with learning Black Magic in this world.
Homosexuality takes on a major theme in this book, exploring the relationships between two characters of the same sex and showing how normal it is in the society of that world.
More twists unravel in this book that I hope to be concluded in the final book, The Traitor Queen.
lauraeliza23's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
4.25
sheilaghs_wheels's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
caeralee's review against another edition
4.0
This one took a while to get through for me but about halfway in to it it started picking up and got really good, I hated when I got to the epilogue...I am sure book 3 will be awesome!
beaktastic's review against another edition
3.0
It's been a few years since I read the first book in this trilogy or the first trilogy, so it took me a long time to get back into this book. It took awhile for me to remember who all the characters are, the storylines and the magic system etc. It did eventually come back to me by the time I was halfway through the book, but it did make it harder for me to get into initially which I think may be part of why I didn't really enjoy this book for the first half.
I also felt that it took awhile to get into the main action and drama and that some of the drama seemed fairly pointless. I like Dannyl but the majority of his story in this book was quite irrelevant apart from a few moments particularly towards the end and I wonder if this will be expanded upon in the third book.
There were some new characters introduced as well in this book, the most prominent of which is a young novice at the Magician's Guild called Lilia who I thought was a nice and interesting addition to the 'cast' as it were. She was incredibly naive though it seemed to me and some of the twists related to her and her storyline seemed very obvious, and it was slightly annoying that she couldn't see them and I couldn't quite tell if Canavan expected us to believe them as well or expected us to to be able to see through them too.
Overall though, I quite enjoyed the book but I felt that little really happened for a long time and I found it quite hard to get into, although it's hard to tell if that's due to the book or if it's just because it's been awhile since I read the first book.
I also felt that it took awhile to get into the main action and drama and that some of the drama seemed fairly pointless. I like Dannyl but the majority of his story in this book was quite irrelevant apart from a few moments particularly towards the end and I wonder if this will be expanded upon in the third book.
There were some new characters introduced as well in this book, the most prominent of which is a young novice at the Magician's Guild called Lilia who I thought was a nice and interesting addition to the 'cast' as it were. She was incredibly naive though it seemed to me and some of the twists related to her and her storyline seemed very obvious, and it was slightly annoying that she couldn't see them and I couldn't quite tell if Canavan expected us to believe them as well or expected us to to be able to see through them too.
Overall though, I quite enjoyed the book but I felt that little really happened for a long time and I found it quite hard to get into, although it's hard to tell if that's due to the book or if it's just because it's been awhile since I read the first book.
sassblaster's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-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? No
4.5
crixyloo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It was a bit hard to get through the first half of the book, since the pace was rather slow, but in the second half, things get more tense and dynamic so that one wants to know what happens next.
kanissa's review against another edition
5.0
I liked this one just a bit more than the first, so I figure it's close enough to warrant 5 stars.
With the plot for this trilogy now established, this second novel kept the story moving. I didn't feel like it suffered from the typical "middle book" syndrome.
I do wish the storyline with Naki was a bit more fleshed out, although hopefully the reprecussions of that will continue in the third novel.
Familiarity seems to help my impression of the characters. (Or, as stated in the review for the first novel in the trilogy, perhaps Canavan's writing improved in the past 8 years.) I don't think this will ever be one of my favorite books ever, but I certainly don't regret buying a copy.
With the plot for this trilogy now established, this second novel kept the story moving. I didn't feel like it suffered from the typical "middle book" syndrome.
I do wish the storyline with Naki was a bit more fleshed out, although hopefully the reprecussions of that will continue in the third novel.
Familiarity seems to help my impression of the characters. (Or, as stated in the review for the first novel in the trilogy, perhaps Canavan's writing improved in the past 8 years.) I don't think this will ever be one of my favorite books ever, but I certainly don't regret buying a copy.
franilou89's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
4.0
This story continues following the adventures of characters that are both familiar and new It's gripping, and exciting, and has many unexpected twists. Visiting the Duna, discovering Traitor secrets and learning not all are as they seem. I really enjoyed this book, more so than the first book (which is always a winner)! It's medium paced, but its one of those books that had me thinking about it CONSTANTLY! Can't wait to read The next book. Definitely recommend!