loonytoons's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Simplistic, wasn't expecting it to be quite so YA for some reason. A shame that the supposedly incredibly talented sourceror actually seems to be a bit useless
thesqueakycleanreader's review
4.0
Red’s father just died from a death curse. Now he’s the next king.
Aly is the secret sorcerer sworn to serve the King of Tandera. That king is now Red.
The power of Truthwell’s and a sorcerer’s power is tied to telling truth and avoiding lies.
When Red is given a death curse just like his father’s can Aly save him? Can Aly and Red learn to discern the truth of their magic, the truth of who cursed him? Or will they believe the lies they’ve always known?
As they work to save their kingdom from the evil beasts from the Canyon, can they also save each other from the darkness? Can they protect each other and their special magical binding?
The Writing: I really enjoyed the magic system in this book. It was new, it was interesting, it kept me reading trying to figure out how it worked. The other thing that kept me reading was the plot. Trying to figure out who sent the death curse and how to get rid of it. Great hook that kept me in this story.
I personally really struggled liking Aly and Red for the majority of this book. I didn't feel like we had any great emotionally connecting moments with them that would make me like either of them until we were about halfway in. There are lots of emotionally heavy things they go through at the beginning of the book so I felt for the characters but didn't really fall in love with them until the end of the book.
The romance: This is a clean slow burn romance. The romance is spread throughout the series and towards the end of this one is when Aly and Red finally move from enemies to kinda interested in each other lovers. Gotta keep reading the series to see where it's going.
The Overall Theme and Message: With the magic system being based upon truth and lies we see the characters going through the dilemma of whether I should lie or tell the truth in many situations. I found it riveting to see an actual correlation to lying and truth telling in this book. Great life lessons to be learned here.
Things to be aware of: Death and grieving is a big part of this book. Aly also has an evil father who they try and fight, thus there are some emotional issues there. Red is trying to deal with his grief and doesn’t handle it well at moments.
Aly is the secret sorcerer sworn to serve the King of Tandera. That king is now Red.
The power of Truthwell’s and a sorcerer’s power is tied to telling truth and avoiding lies.
When Red is given a death curse just like his father’s can Aly save him? Can Aly and Red learn to discern the truth of their magic, the truth of who cursed him? Or will they believe the lies they’ve always known?
As they work to save their kingdom from the evil beasts from the Canyon, can they also save each other from the darkness? Can they protect each other and their special magical binding?
The Writing: I really enjoyed the magic system in this book. It was new, it was interesting, it kept me reading trying to figure out how it worked. The other thing that kept me reading was the plot. Trying to figure out who sent the death curse and how to get rid of it. Great hook that kept me in this story.
I personally really struggled liking Aly and Red for the majority of this book. I didn't feel like we had any great emotionally connecting moments with them that would make me like either of them until we were about halfway in. There are lots of emotionally heavy things they go through at the beginning of the book so I felt for the characters but didn't really fall in love with them until the end of the book.
The romance: This is a clean slow burn romance. The romance is spread throughout the series and towards the end of this one is when Aly and Red finally move from enemies to kinda interested in each other lovers. Gotta keep reading the series to see where it's going.
The Overall Theme and Message: With the magic system being based upon truth and lies we see the characters going through the dilemma of whether I should lie or tell the truth in many situations. I found it riveting to see an actual correlation to lying and truth telling in this book. Great life lessons to be learned here.
Things to be aware of: Death and grieving is a big part of this book. Aly also has an evil father who they try and fight, thus there are some emotional issues there. Red is trying to deal with his grief and doesn’t handle it well at moments.
booktrovertreader's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.0
marijanecooke's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
aprilmariee's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
kendallmarie's review
i’m looking for that amazing YA fantasy that grips my attention and this one was just not it. i’m not a huge fan of the characters and the plot was moving slowly
juani's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
beth26's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.5
darkclouds's review
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Somehow I found the prequel much easier to read. I'll be honest - I don't know what's drawn me in with this series but I will be continuing. I think. There is just a vast amount of characters to remember. A lot of names of kingdoms, deities and terms for their magic. Maybe I was just overwhelmed.
But also underwhelmed by the plot. I was here for the slow burn. The "clean" romantasy and also the escapism because the aesthetics were all there. It just felt off with the execution. At times maybe a little... boring.
Am I the only one who felt bothered by the almost childlike characteristics of Aly at the beginning of the book? She's 22 and yet I found her much more mature in the prequel which was set 6 years before. I think we definitely could've done more with her interaction with her birth father after all these years and buildup of fear she's had. It fell flat for me.
Would I use the label enemies to lovers? Ehhh not really. It's more of a hate to love as they're already allies from the get go. I mean. Aly is his protector. That's set in stone.
By all means, you could still get lost in this relatively feel good YA fantasy.
But also underwhelmed by the plot. I was here for the slow burn. The "clean" romantasy and also the escapism because the aesthetics were all there. It just felt off with the execution. At times maybe a little... boring.
Am I the only one who felt bothered by the almost childlike characteristics of Aly at the beginning of the book? She's 22 and yet I found her much more mature in the prequel which was set 6 years before. I think we definitely could've done more with her interaction with her birth father after all these years and buildup of fear she's had. It fell flat for me.
Would I use the label enemies to lovers? Ehhh not really. It's more of a hate to love as they're already allies from the get go. I mean. Aly is his protector. That's set in stone.
By all means, you could still get lost in this relatively feel good YA fantasy.
helpme71's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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
4.0