A review by saintlychelle
The Shadow of Polaris by D.L. Houpt, D.L. Houpt

adventurous challenging sad 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

3.5

Thank you D.L. Houpt and Black Sheep Literary for this ARC!! 

It was super easy to get into for the first few chapters: the flow of the story made me want to keep reading, and it was easy for me to want to read the next chapter. It then became rather slow for a little over half the book and I had a hard time wanting to keep up with it. I do understand that the pacing was slow in the first half only because there's so much building up to all the action in the latter half of the book, though. 

I loved the descriptive words throughout the story. They really allowed me to vividly visualise everything, and I really felt immersed. However I do feel this caused the story's pacing to drag on too much. 

The worldbuilding was just right for me - not too much where it felt like a history/geography lesson and not too little where I felt lost - and I think it's because of the descriptive storytelling. 

Elpis is definitely a strong female main character worth rooting for, her animal companion Arcturas is so lovable, and I can see Aryx being book boyfriend material. Overall I enjoyed the book!