The Iron Flower by Laurie Forest

The Black Witch Chronicles

The Black Witch * The Light Mage * The Iron Flower *

The Shadow Wand 

Publish Date: September 18th, 2018
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Format Reviewed: eBook
Series: The Black Witch Chronicles
Author: Laurie Forest
Author’s Goodreads
Author's Twitter
Author's Website
My Review on Goodreads

Introduction

The rebellion is secretly trying to right various wrongs while Gardneria is busy forcing the Western Realm to their will. As much as she tries to save all of her friends against her own people, Elloren is running out of time. Society is volatile and politics are rapidly changing, creating a dangerous world. To top it off, Aunt Vyvian is closing in on Elloren to wandfast to Lukas Grey. While there is undeniable chemistry between them, Elloren does not know if she can trust him, or if she should dare to use him for her own gain. 

Love Triangle

I usually detest love triangles, but here, it's a bit different. Yvan is mostly distant and clearly on the side of morally good. Lukas clearly wants her, and he is on a murky almost darkside, temping her. In this book we get to know more about the two, and Yvan's mysteries are all laid out for the reader. Lukas, however, still remains a bit of an unknown. He isn't necessarily evil or an enemy, but he is not actively fighting against his country's atrocities. 

Final Verdict

This book is much like its predecessor, so if you enjoyed The Black Witch, you'll enjoy this one as well. Here there is more doing, as the rebellion is in full swing and Elloren is firmly enmeshed. However, I did notice that there is a lot of repeating themes that we have already hashed out, so I didn't have much patience for those passages. We also get to see more of the other cultures in this book, which fleshes-out the world some more. This installment also has some tearjerking moments as well, so don't expect everything to be all sunshine and rainbows.

Also, this was another instance of me finishing a book and getting up immediately to get the next one. IT ISN'T EVEN OUT YET.

The Black Witch by Laurie Forest

The Black Witch Chronicles

The Black Witch * The Light Mage * The Iron Flower *

The Shadow Wand  

Publish Date: May 2nd, 2017
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Format Reviewed: Hardback
Series: The Black Witch Chronicles
Author: Laurie Forest
Author’s Goodreads

Author's Twitter
Author's Website
My Review on Goodreads

Introduction

Elloren Gardner lives in a world that prizes those who can use magic, and she has no magic ability whatsoever. To make matters worse, she is the granddaughter of the famed Carnissa Gardner, the Black Witch with immense power who saved the Garderian people in a war. She goes to school that admits all manner of students, including those she was raised to have prejudices against. As the year goes on, she learns that what she, and all Garderians, have been taught is incredibly biased in favour of the belief that Garderians are the "pure" race. As the truth of their world's history is revealed to her and political tensions rise, she has to see past the discrimination she was raised with and stand with the downtrodden. 

Story 

This is a story of overcoming prejudices that one is raised with. The reader knows that it's racism and it is bad, but we get to see the MC and those around her unravel their previous preconceptions. We can see from the beginning of the book that she is a good person in other ways, and she slowly comes around, even when her circumstances are difficult. If you stopped reading 1/4 of the way through, you miss out on her growth and how she learns the truth. This isn't the first book ever written to have this plot. 

World Building/Characters

I greatly enjoyed being in this book's world. There are many different kinds of people from mythology with histories and religions of their own. The politics were a bit difficult for more to keep up with, but in the end, it isn't too complicated. There are a variety of lands that we hear about, but we don't see. I'm hoping that in the next installments we get to see some of the places that were mentioned. Magic is a key component in this book, yet we don't get to see much of it happening until the later bits of the book. Magic is facilitated with wands which I'm not the biggest fan of (maybe because it reminds me of Harry Potter). 

All of the characters in this book are so detailed. We are told about where they come from, some of their cultures, and then we glean their personalities from their actions/dialogue. There are a lot of flawed characters, which I appreciate. There is the standard "bully", who isn't going to learn anything at least in this book, but there are other characters who are also flawed and they grow. It is so heartbreaking when you learn that characters want something, but it cannot be accomplished because of a cultural/religious restraint.  

Writing

The only negative thing I can say about this is some of the writing. Everyone says Elloren Gardner's name in just about every third sentence. No one talks like this. The main character is also crying every five-ish minutes so the act of crying loses its impact. 

Final Verdict

I greatly enjoyed reading this book. This is a flawed fantasy world full of racism and dogma. We have young characters who get to know one another and who band together to make a difference before everything gets much, much worse. I'd run out and buy the next books that are already published, but pandemic. Now I have to wait. 

(extra gif below, if you dare.)

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Odriel's Heirs by Hayley Reese Chow

Publish Date: March 1st, 2020
Format Reviewed: ebook
Series: Odriel's Heirs
Author: Hayley Reese Chow
Author’s Goodreads
Author's Website
My Review on Goodreads

I received an advanced review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Introduction

Kaia is the Dragon Heir, as was her father before her, and yields flame to protect the land of Okarria. A necromancer's undead army is threatening the world and she, along with the Time Heir and the Shadow Heir, must defeat him and his hordes of the undead. But they are missing an Heir and must continue on, hoping to find him along the way. They meet a large cast of characters, including a talking cat and a magus, and they gather allies and head to the final showdown.

Characters 

This book sports a vast cast of characters, my favourites being Shad (a talking cat) and Gus (her loyal fire-proof canine). There are some interesting fantasy creatures who become allies, plus Kaia's infuriating twin brother Bram, a magus, and more humans. I usually dislike large casts of characters but I managed here easily, perhaps because everyone had their own personalities and it was easy to remember who everyone is. 

Protagonist 

The main character wasn't perfect, and I can see exactly why she is a bit abrasive. She has been hated since she was a child, and then she was expected to sacrifice everything and go save them? I also like characters with faults, because you know...everyone has faults. No one is perfect. In real life, we don't toss a person in the bin if they have a flaw. People are complex and that's awesome. She has the power of fire that is linked to her emotions. At seventeen, that's a lot to handle, and there's a war going on.

War

It's war. People die. Characters that you have grown attached to die. And stay dead. And I very much like that this story didn't shy away from that. I appreciated that when they fight, they hare injured and exhausted and need a lot of time to recover. It drives me bananas when characters go through so much and go directly into the next battle like it's nothing, even when they suffer huge injuries. We also get to see Kaia's grief at a few points in the story, and that was great. She's young and in her first battles, you don't walk away from that all sunshine and rainbows.

Final Thoughts

I loved this book and I highly recommend it. It was an engaging read that held my interest. If you like fantasy with life-or-death battles with consequences, I think you will enjoy this book.

*~*Below is a spoiler, so don't read it if you haven't read it!*~* 

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Ending Spoiler:

I was nearing the end of this book, cuddling my dog, when the scene with Gus happened. I gasped "Nooo!" AND THEY DID IT BECAUSE THEY HAD TO AND I COULDN'T EVEN.

If Gus didn't get a good ending I would have lost it. I was afraid this book was going to do me dirty, but it saved me right at the end. All is well in the world now, I'm fine.

The Queen's Rising by Rebecca Ross

Published: February 6th 2018
Publisher: HarperTeen
Author's Website

Introduction

Brienna's grandfather has placed her in Magnalia House, a boarding house to intensively study one of the five passions: art, music, wit, theatre, or knowledge. The problem is, at 10 years old, she doesn't have an innate ability in any of the passions. Her grandfather convinces the Dowager (headmistress) to take her, even when they were already full. All she knows is that it has something to do with her mysterious father. Ardens (students) live and learn at Magnalia House for 7 years, and Brienna must master a talent and secure a patron (an employer). Obtaining a patron doesn't go as planned, but she does become entangled in politics from the neighbouring country, Maevana. Maevana was once ruled by queens, and is now ruled by a ruthless king. The queen is rising, and Brienna finds herself part of the uprising.  

IF YOU'RE READING A PRINT COPY, DON'T READ THE FAMILY TREE IN THE FIRST FEW PAGES. Seriously, it's like putting Luke Skywalker's family tree before the scrolling wall of text.

Similar Stories/Essay Ideas

The easiest thing to compare this to is Divergent. Brienna doesn't have more than one talent, but I think she benefits from knowing a bit about each one. There also isn't much on the line for her if she fails to passion (become a master), other than being embarrassed and going home, not like in Divergent. Harry Potter comes to mind as well, as Houses are separated by personality. I don't tend to read many stories that separate their people like this, so this is all I have.

Feminist matriarchies come to mind as well, as Maevana has always had queens, and they highly respect their women. An essay can easily be written about feminism or matriarchies. 

Romance

There is a romance that is a bit problematic. The romance of Brienna's story doesn't take up much space, but it's there. This part of the story might bother some people.  

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I have a problem with who Brienna ends up with. He seems to be a fine young man, but the issue is that he IS A YOUNG MAN. At the end, Brienna is 18. He is 26. If that was it, I don't have much of an issue with it. But he was her teacher. There's a major power imbalance. He doesn't act on his feelings until she's about to leave. Ok... but he knew her when she was 10, and he was a teacher. Something about this is so skeevy. It didn't seem that he was grooming her, and he only taught her for her last two to three years. It also didn't help that the audiobook makes him sound like an old man. Anakin and Padme is so close to this. At least she wasn't his teacher. 

End of Spoilers 

Final Thoughts

It was a great book! The author has stated on Goodreads that there is a second book coming out next year. There's action, school drama (at the beginning), a tiny sprinkling of romance, some mystery, a tiny bit of magic, and a bit of simple politics. I liked how it wasn't a YOU'RE THE CHOSEN ONE, BRIENNA, story. A queen is rising, she's not the queen. It makes the rest of us pleebs feel good. I see no reason to keep this from a library collection. 

The Salbine Sisters by Sarah Ettritch

*ebook from NetGalley-much thanks!

Published October 2010

Publisher: Norn Publishing

Website: Author’s Website 

Introduction

Maddie entered into the monastery of Salbine Sisters, a religious order of offensive mages that draw on the elements to defend their country. She begins her lessons with a mistress that she has taken as her lover, and discovers that she cannot draw on the first element, fire. With the news that there is something different about her, she travels to another monastery to find her answers.  

Story

It takes too long to establish how this world works, and I still have questions. Most of all, I want to know more about their religion. At one point we get a run down about Lina from a tapestry, but what about Salbine? It’s the name of their God/Goddess, a central aspect to this story, and I know nothing about Her.

The story was supposed to be about Maddie travelling and researching her condition. The story takes another turn and in the end I was left asking BUT WHAT ABOUT HER CONDITION? Nope, we have just forgotten about that. The book ends. Thanks, Book, for disregarding what you set out to do.

With this said, it was not a terrible story. It meandered all over the place, and it presented itself as fantasy. It’s really a romance. Straight up romances usually aren’t my cup of tea, but this story had me wondering about Lillian and Maddie’s relationship. How can it survive the awful conclusion that she cannot draw on the elements? So much happens consecutively after that, it made me anxious to read what would happen next in their relationship. There are many instances of dialogue that had me smiling or sad-the book was exceptionally moving to me, at times. Aside from a romance, the story accomplishes very little.

Characters

There are a ton of characters. For the most part, they are terribly flat. Because the story is concerned with an order of women, the characters that the reader is concerned with are women. It’s too bad that none of them have a convincing personality-the author populates the covenant with people whose only traits are that they are women. Gwendolyn is evil for about 10 minutes, and she has to most personality out of all the women.

Message

            The author’s website says that this is “A story about faith and love.” The faith, the religious kind, was alright until I felt like I was being hit in the face with everyone has a purpose set forth by a higher being. That became old quickly. Because I don’t want to spoil it here, Maddie’s purpose is the kind of thing I rail against with a feminist fervor.  

Verdict

Yes, it has two women as lovers, labeled lesbians (though the term is not used in the text), so some people will gasp, cover their mouths, and be offended. In this instance, it would be best to know a person’s sensibilities before you recommend this book. I recommend this book as a love story, not a fantasy. Because there is no fighting against a society that wants them to conform, I don’t even recommend it for people looking for LGBT literature that is about breaking free from society’s rigid structure. It's an nice love story of two women, one older, one younger, struggling against a series of unfortunate events, and I found it to have some wonderful moments.