char_722's review
adventurous
lighthearted
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
4.75
kim_oz's review
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
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? No
4.0
secre's review
3.0
This is one of those novels that I'm rather conflicted by; on the one hand, I enjoyed it - the characters are strong and whilst I'd have loved to see rather more of our little faerie friends, I liked how the action took place outside of the usual haunting grounds of the Beccia elven ruins. Also on the plus side, Taryn's moping around after various male figures is somewhat reduced throughout much of this novel, although oh boy does it come back in spades towards the end. That's a pity in and of itself, as Taryn was just starting to be built up as a strong female character in and of herself, without needing to hang on every word of a handsome man, which was a welcome and needed change. Then you get that sudden reversal and she's back to the 'I love him, I love him not' game, which was tiresome in primary school.
Where this novel fell down more though was on the narrative side, as whilst the last book certainly had a really strong overall narrative to carry it through, this felt more like the characters were bumbling along from one near miss to another until something went seriously wrong. The Emerald Dragon of the title plays very little part really until the last third of the novel, and the events throughout the book seem to be a build up for the final action filled sequence and sudden cliffhanger. And whilst much of the action occurs outside of Beccia, we didn't really get to see a whole lot of the outside world. I enjoyed it, but it didn't grip me in the way I would have wanted.
The climax of the novel is perhaps the strongest part here, to the point that I can't help but wonder if much of the prior travelling and build up could have been cut down to make way for more detail here and perhaps less of a cliffhanger finish. There is a whole new town to be explored and yet you see precious little of it or its inhabitants before the big showdown finale. I am certainly interested in where this is going next, as both Taryn and Alric may have found themselves in deeper trouble than they can get out of this time. It's perhaps rather mean of me to hope that only one of them comes out of it alive, but it would resolve the love me-love me not issues in an admittedly brutal fashion once and for all.
Where this novel fell down more though was on the narrative side, as whilst the last book certainly had a really strong overall narrative to carry it through, this felt more like the characters were bumbling along from one near miss to another until something went seriously wrong. The Emerald Dragon of the title plays very little part really until the last third of the novel, and the events throughout the book seem to be a build up for the final action filled sequence and sudden cliffhanger. And whilst much of the action occurs outside of Beccia, we didn't really get to see a whole lot of the outside world. I enjoyed it, but it didn't grip me in the way I would have wanted.
The climax of the novel is perhaps the strongest part here, to the point that I can't help but wonder if much of the prior travelling and build up could have been cut down to make way for more detail here and perhaps less of a cliffhanger finish. There is a whole new town to be explored and yet you see precious little of it or its inhabitants before the big showdown finale. I am certainly interested in where this is going next, as both Taryn and Alric may have found themselves in deeper trouble than they can get out of this time. It's perhaps rather mean of me to hope that only one of them comes out of it alive, but it would resolve the love me-love me not issues in an admittedly brutal fashion once and for all.
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