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A review by emleemay
Rebel Spring by Morgan Rhodes
2.0
2 1/2 stars.
I'm honestly not sure if this rating is generous or harsh. I'll let you be the judge.
On the one hand, I couldn't stop myself from coming back to this series after reading [b:Falling Kingdoms|12954620|Falling Kingdoms (Falling Kingdoms, #1)|Morgan Rhodes|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337026387s/12954620.jpg|18111704]. Rhodes is an extremely compelling writer. Every scene is crafted in such a way that you're on the edge of your seat, hanging on the author's every word. It's a case of excellent dramatic timing - dragging the scene out with a perfect amount of tension before dropping a dramatic revelation or conclusion on the reader.
And the character dynamics are all exciting. Lots of passions and hatred flowing around, including forbidden relationships, dark secrets, etc. You would think all the aforementioned would add up to a great book, right?
Except I simply can't ignore the fact that this is one of the most derivative series I've ever read.
Literally every major plot point has been borrowed from other fantasy series. I know you can generally expect familiar elements from the genre - royal politics, competing for the throne/power, citizen rebellions - but this goes way beyond that. And the book gets most of its material from - no surprise - [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg]'s A Song of Ice and Fire.
I can ignore basic setting aspects like the North being all ice and the South being warmer and the general theme of competing for the throne. But King Gaius is like a mash-up of Tywin Lannister and Stannis Baratheon.
He takes over Auranos, kills their king, and captures PrincessSansa Cleo, intending to force her to marry his son and future king. However his son - Magnus - has something other than platonic feelings for his sister. Meanwhile, King Gaius is secretly advised by a strange, mystical woman called Lady Melisandre Melenia.
Separate from all of this, rebels are coming together to try and overthrow King Gaius and take back their country.
I feel like I already know what happens. There is a little part of me that enjoys reading Rhodes' fast-paced, drama-filled plagiarism, but there's a much bigger part that's telling me to go find something better and more original.
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I'm honestly not sure if this rating is generous or harsh. I'll let you be the judge.
On the one hand, I couldn't stop myself from coming back to this series after reading [b:Falling Kingdoms|12954620|Falling Kingdoms (Falling Kingdoms, #1)|Morgan Rhodes|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337026387s/12954620.jpg|18111704]. Rhodes is an extremely compelling writer. Every scene is crafted in such a way that you're on the edge of your seat, hanging on the author's every word. It's a case of excellent dramatic timing - dragging the scene out with a perfect amount of tension before dropping a dramatic revelation or conclusion on the reader.
And the character dynamics are all exciting. Lots of passions and hatred flowing around, including forbidden relationships, dark secrets, etc. You would think all the aforementioned would add up to a great book, right?
Except I simply can't ignore the fact that this is one of the most derivative series I've ever read.
Literally every major plot point has been borrowed from other fantasy series. I know you can generally expect familiar elements from the genre - royal politics, competing for the throne/power, citizen rebellions - but this goes way beyond that. And the book gets most of its material from - no surprise - [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg]'s A Song of Ice and Fire.
I can ignore basic setting aspects like the North being all ice and the South being warmer and the general theme of competing for the throne. But King Gaius is like a mash-up of Tywin Lannister and Stannis Baratheon.
He takes over Auranos, kills their king, and captures Princess
Separate from all of this, rebels are coming together to try and overthrow King Gaius and take back their country.
I feel like I already know what happens. There is a little part of me that enjoys reading Rhodes' fast-paced, drama-filled plagiarism, but there's a much bigger part that's telling me to go find something better and more original.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Youtube | Pinterest