A Dance of Blades- ♥♥♥♥♥

DavidDalglish- Dance of Blades

391 pages

This book carried on the fantastic vibes from the first book. I really love how the characters are separate yet unified, and dangerous but lovable. There are still some lingering questions about the setup of the world, but they are overall irrelevant for now. It’s more just curiosity on my part. The level of change and growth in a lot of the characters was astounding. While five years had gone by, Dalglish did a really good job of moving them forward in a way that felt authentic. I’m pretty attached to most of the main characters now, even the new ones. They each have something fantastic about them that I can’t help but to love.

I liked this plot significantly more than the previous, which is saying something. While the last book was about Thren trying to impose his will onto Aaron, this one focuses on Haern deciding who and what he wants to be. A couple new characters added impact the dynamic in interesting ways. The way Dalglish builds up plot arks, the next couple of books should be just as amazing if not more so.

Rating:

♥♥♥♥♥

For a more detailed review (including spoilers), click here!

A Dance of Cloaks- ♥♥♥♥♥

David Dalglish- Dance of the Cloaks

461 pages

This book was truly incredible! When I think of fantasy novels, this is what I want. Dalglish talks in the author’s note at end about not having a complex world built, but I think he did an amazing job setting everything up. The main characters are extremely flawed people, and it makes watching their lives unfold so much more interesting. My emotional connections to several characters were strong almost immediately. Others took some warming up to. There is a real rollercoaster of feelings toward several characters. Love and hate blend wonderfully.

While this isn’t exactly a mystery, the complete ark of the story isn’t really known for most of the book. Things are revealed slowly and deliberately. While a few of the twists are a given, the rest caused interesting things to happen to the perspective of the story. There is still so much of the world left to explore, and the next books I hope will unlock it all. Overall I am really happy I swung by the library on a whim, and even happier the name Dalglish jumped out at me!

Rating:

♥♥♥♥♥

For a more detailed review (including spoilers), click here!

Fish Out of Water- ♥♥♥♥

MaryJanice Davidson- Fish Out ofWater

270 pages

As much as I like Fred (I’m still pretty positive I am her), this book just didn’t go as well as the others. The plot was ok, but it wasn’t anything I was super excited about. I liked seeing Fred’s dynamics with Jonas, Thomas, and Artur, but there just wasn’t enough depth to the storyline for me. Then the ending was disappointing, of the major plot not the whole book. Davidson has a habit of ending major arks in a page or two. Not all the time, but enough to make me sad. It makes even really good arks seem anti-climactic.

I’ll be sad to not see more of Fred, but I have hopes she will show up in a Betsy story (I’ve been under the impression Fred, Betsy, and Wyndham are all intertwined). Now, while I didn’t like how the major ark was resolved, I did like how the trilogy was wrapped up. The ending for everyone involved was near perfect for me. I was more than happy with the course everyone’s lives were set, and even if I don’t see Fred again, I am comfortable with how we left things!

Rating:

♥♥♥♥

Domination- ♥♥♥♥

Jon S. Lewis- Domination

277 pages

Domination fit well as the conclusion to this series. Its pace felt better to me than the other two, and its ending is satisfying. Sure it would be nice to hear more from CHAOS, but I'm ok with where we left things.

Colt really came into his own here. You really get to see him round out as a character. Even though he is still young, he really starts to decide who he is and what his values are.

Dani was still a little disappointing to me, but she was better in Domination. I would have been happier to see more character progression from her. It almost feels like she was most put to the side and forgotten about after the first book.

Oz was lack luster in this one. The changes and trials I was expecting just weren't there. It bothered me quite a bit, but I still like him as a character. I felt like more could have been done with him in this book.

The hardest thing to deal with in this book was the resolution of the major ark. There was an awful lot of buildup and then it just... ends. More time should have been put into that resolution.

All in all I like the book and the series, and I would be very happy if at some point another book was released!

Rating:

♥♥♥♥

For a more detailed review (including spoilers), click here!

Alienation- ♥♥♥♥

Jon S. Lewis- Alienation

274 pages

Reading this book gave me some perspective on Invasion. I guess with Invasion I kept expecting to see other planets. That doesn't seem to be the goal of this series. This isn't about traveling around, it's about the impact those other places can have on Earth. I'm kind of disappointed, but the story is still good!

Alienation gives you a much broader understanding of CHAOS and their technology. Most of it was pretty interesting, some of it I couldn't understand. I don't really hold that against the book, more so against my understanding of STEM as a whole. It makes the world more appealing and definitely more dangerous.

I really like how Colt is developing as a person. He seems to be coming into his own and figuring out the kind of person he wants to be. He's starting to accept that some of the things done to him in childhood can't be changed now, and he's moving forward. This book was full of revelations for Colt, and it really pushed him to be better.

Danielle on the other hand... I'm not thrilled with her. She went from being this strong willed badass to practically cowering in the corner. Maybe the third book will change that. I really hope it does. While I understand having to give your characters flaws, they can't be perfect, that kind of personality change didn't really help move the story forward it just made me not like her so much (which is sad!).

Oz was just Oz. Throughout the course of the book he didn't really change much. It isn't a bad thing, he's kind of an awesome character. I would like to see him improve himself some in the next book, and I have a feeling he will go through the self-revelation process that Colt did in this book.

The plot was solid, though a few things didn't seem to add up. The third book might hold those answers (I'm still looking for some answers from the first book). The third book will be the last, and I feel like there is a lot of little mysteries that need to be cleared up. I wish there was a little more closure from this book, but I know why there wasn’t.

Rating

♥♥♥♥

For a more detailed review (including spoilers), click here!

Invasion- ♥♥♥♥

Jon S. Lewis-Invasion

336 pages

This book has a lot of great aspects, but I felt like the story progression was a bit slow. There were several times it just felt like too much filler was happening. This kind of books often requires a lot of set up, world building, and explaining, and all of that stuff is good with me, but there were just a few too many lulls for my taste.

All of that aside, I like Colt. He is an interesting character with an interesting history. The little stuff that bothered me about him just go to strength him as a character. It makes him more realistic and more relatable. They are human flaws not writing flaws.

Dani is also a really great character. She felt the most authentic to me out of all the people in this book, she could be a main in her own right. Her sense of humor is pretty fantastic too. Colt and Dani balance each other so well, and their dynamic was definitely refreshing to read.

I didn't want to like Oz, but I did. He's kind of an ass, but in the best possible way. He is able to be overly silly and weird (in a good way!) then turn around and be serious and kind of badass. I did end up liking what he brought to the table.

The plot is a little... lacking. It doesn't feel like there was that big of an ark, and I don't feel like it was resolved enough. Even though it is part of a series, and there are more books to read, it seems like more should've been accomplished.

Overall, I liked the book and have high hopes for the second book!

Rating:

♥♥♥♥

For a more detailed review, (including spoilers) click here!