Uncategorized – Nonfiction and Nonsense

God of War by Rina Kent

I finally made it to the end of the Legacy of Gods series. I am relieved and already looking for my next fantasy/romance novel to get obsessed over. I am already thinking about what I am going to read next because even though this series was decent, I only truly loved one out of the six books. The other five featured my least favorite trope, and reading the same story, albeit with minor changes to the story line, five times in a row, was exhausting and tiresome.

Ava has been a background character for five novels running, but we finally get to learn what her story and tragedy is. She has serious mental health issues, a form of psychosis, of which started to affect her around puberty. She inherited her diagnosis from her grandmother, so her parents recognized what was happening to her when it started, and she has been in therapy and medicated since. However, Ava has never been the most diligent when it comes to taking her medication, and paired with her love of drinking and taking recreational drugs, her treatment plan isn’t always as effective as it should be. She drinks, takes drugs, and parties to excess not only to escape her psychosis, but because of heartbreak. When Ava was seventeen she confessed to longtime family friend Eli, cousin of her roommate Glyndon, that she was in love with him and had been for a long time. He rejected her, brutally, and since then she has been doing everything she can to prove to him that she doesn’t love him anymore, hates him in fact, while simultaneously ruining any chance he has at a relationship with any other woman.

Ava gets far too out of control one night, she gets in her car after leaving a club incredibly inebriated, gets into an accident, and the next time we see her she is waking up in a hospital. She assumes she has spent a few days in a coma, but it has actually been months. And there is another twist to go along with that one.

This book I did actually get very much into, as I enjoy reading about psychology and psychoactive drugs as a hobby. It was fun for me to try to figure out what exactly was going on at the same time that Ava was, trying to piece together what had happened in her life during the lapses in her memory. Everyone around her knows the truth about what happened between the accident and when she wakes up, some more than others, but no one wants to tell her for fear of upsetting or angering her. Everyone thinks it’s best if she never remembers the truth, or if the memories return on their own. It was part mystery, part thriller, part dark romance, which is a very alluring combination.

If you don’t mind the virgin trope, this is a top tier series for you to get into. You’ll get five novels absolutely focused on it. If you can’t stand it, I would not recommend it, you’ll be groaning about it the entire time like I was. God of Fury is still and will always be my favorite novel in this series, it had the right balance. For fun, and because I wanted to see if everything was cohesive, I created a timeline of the major events that occur over the course of the six novels. Each book is stated as being a standalone, but you hear and read about the same characters in each book and the first five novels all happen within months of each other. It may not be entirely correct, but I did my best based on periods of time mentioned by the main characters, content clues, and comparing the narratives between books. Take a peek if this interests you, I have the pdf at the end of this post, and I hope you enjoy it.

Legacy of Gods timeline Download

The Other Mistress by Shanora Williams

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This was an interesting one. I thought it was going to be a classic story about a woman whose husband cheats on her and she wants revenge. I thought that the twist might be that things get a little out of control, maybe she murders the husband or the mistress. There were twists, but they were not the kind I was imagining.

I enjoyed this story, but I was also puzzled for the bulk of it. The twist gets revealed near the end, which is normal. But before I figured out what was going on I was irritated with the main character, Adira, for being too soft. Even with the help and support of her new friend, Jocelyn, who is all for Adira dumping her husband, which I fully agreed with, she can’t seem to let him go. She is a beautiful, successful, and very wealthy woman, who has been made stupid because of her love for a man who is absolutely not worthy of her. One thing that makes me furious in both literature and real life is a woman who is hung up on a man who is not deserving of her. But let me get into why this book had me questioning multiple things for the majority of the time I was reading it.

When the murder case that was currently the talk of the town was first mentioned I thought that it would be important to the plot. But even when it is mentioned a second time it ends up adding nothing to the overall story, it has nothing to do with the plot. It was literally filler, conversation between characters that we didn’t need. Was the author trying to trick us into focusing on it as a means of attempting to get us to not focus on the mystery of whatever is going on with Adira? Perhaps. But I just found it to be a meaningless plot that the story did not need at all because it added nothing of substance. And nothing could have distracted me from trying to figure out what was going on with that woman. Half of the reason I read this book so fast was to try and determine what was really going on.

If I read something and it doesn’t make sense to me, I am immediately suspicious. Did the author actually mean to write something that seems to make no sense, something that seems like an actual error, or was it purposeful? When Adira directly asked Gabriel about Jocelyn and nothing came of it, I was baffled. She asked him about the woman he was having an affair with, by name, then he kind of made a joke about it, and then the conversation ended. I can’t think of a single circumstance in which a person confronts their partner about an affair, the partner brushes it off, and then the accuser lets it go. She did not question him at all after he told her that he had no idea what she was talking about. But then later in the story when she asks him about it again, he admits to the affair. And she forgives him so easily! Adira was calm, too calm in my opinion, I knew something was off. When you figure out what was going on and you go back to read those two passages, plus a few others, they make sense. But for a while I was a little confused while at the same time angry with Adira for forgiving her husband too easily.

Will I read this again? No. But I will not say that it is not worth a read. It’s a good time and you can get through it very quickly. I think I was just expecting a little more darkness and danger and I was disappointed that I didn’t get it. Hopefully I will find a book like this soon, because I now find myself with a thirst.

Rule of Wolves by Leigh Bardugo

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I can’t believe there aren’t any more books in the Grishaverse after this one. I’ve been reading this series for about two months, and I’m really going to miss it.

I originally started reading this series because I saw the trailer for the show on Netflix, and I knew it was something I would get a lot of enjoyment out of watching. But because I knew it was a series of books, I couldn’t watch it while possessing that knowledge. I bought all the books and planned to watch the first season after I had finished the first book. But when I started watching the first episode and realized that there were characters being introduced that were not in the first book, I knew that I would have to read a lot more before I could begin. For anyone who likes to read before they watch, I will say that you need to read the trilogy and then Six of Crows before you start the show. I won’t divulge any more spoilers than that.

Now for the book itself. If you read my last review you will know that I found Nina’s chapters to be incredibly dull in King of Scars, probably because she was deadly depressing for most of them. Whereas in Rule of Wolves, I couldn’t wait to see what she was up to. We get back the original vibrant and clever Nina we met in Six of Crows. She has infiltrated the Fjerdan Ice Court once again, performing some very deep undercover work for Ravka. She is also trying to figure out where her future stands with Hanne. Will Hanne choose to remain loyal to her nation and her family, even though she has always been miserable living under the strict rules placed upon Fjerdan females? Or will she leave with Nina when her time as a spy comes to an end, to live in Ravka where she can have freedom and live without fear of using her powers? Will Nina ever be able to show Hanne her real face, the one she has been wearing since before she met Hanne many months ago, or will Hanne only ever know the face of Mila? I don’t know if I could live forever with a false face, Nina certainly misses the one she was born with. But I guess it’s different if you don’t feel comfortable in your own body, which we see a lot where Hanne is concerned. There are a lot of allusions to transgender issues at play here, and I think it was very well written and fit into the story perfectly.

We finally learn a lot more about Zoya’s upbringing and training as a young Grisha. We get to see why she often comes off as cold, sometimes even nasty. She has her reasons, I don’t think they entirely justify her overall personality, but now we at least know why she keeps her distance from people and refuses to form close relationships of any kind. However, her sensibilities are put to the test as the pull between her and Nikolai becomes even stronger in this final book. I tried to imagine them as a couple, and I found it difficult. I can’t remember hoping for them to get together at any point during the story. I just don’t know if I find them suitable for each other.

There was one character death that absolutely broke my heart. I exclaimed, “No!” very loudly when it happened. I was hoping it would turn out to be a mistake or they would find a way to bring this person back but it didn’t happen and I am still very upset about it. There was also one plot twist that I also screamed out loud in reaction to that I really did not see coming. It was a really excellent surprise. I am kind of bummed that unless there are more books in the future we won’t see any sort of redemption or character growth from this individual and I think that they had a lot of potential to become someone great. There was also the potential for a lot of conflicts of interest, questions of morality, and the breaking of promises to oneself that would have made for great writing. Maybe some bold fanfiction writer will see the potential I saw and write a piece about those characters one day. I won’t say who these characters were, but I will say that they are currently in Fjerda.

I’m trying to figure out if the author brought back old characters because she wanted us to be with them one more time before she puts this series to rest. Or, if the ending of this book hints at, she has more planned for this universe in the future. It has only been about four years since Rule of Wolves came out, which is a short period of time when you consider how many years we have been waiting for Winds of Winter or The Doors of Stone. I don’t believe there are any rumors floating around, but I would love to hear anything regarding a continuation of the series. I would love to go back to Ketterdam and see what the Dregs are up to, especially Inej, since we barely got a glimpse of her in Rule of Wolves. Kaz is young and I know he will have more money making schemes in his future. I could probably do without Alina and Mal, who are enjoying their relatively peaceful life running the orphanage. Unless there is another matter in the future that would require them to be brought back into the fold. I will just have to look for the next adventure series that will have me raving about it in my future reviews.

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

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It has now been several years since Nikolai has taken his place as the king of Ravka. His ascension was fraught with many challenges, exiling the old king and queen, fighting a war against the Darkling, and trying to convince Alina to marry him, those just being the biggest of his many struggles. His struggles have not gotten smaller in any way. The kingdom was, and still remains, incredibly poor, any money that Ravka may have had that wasn’t being funneled towards the centuries old war was spent frivolously by the royal family. And although the Darkling is gone and there seems to be a tenuous peace within Ravka itself, there are other dangers looming.

On a slightly bright note, one thing that seems to be going particularly well is the advancement of weapons and transport. The air ships Nikolai has been working on for years are now at the peak of their functionality and his underwater ships are promising as well. The one thing he needs is more of them, as a means of protection now instead of a means of adventuring, because the threat of war from either Fjerda or Shu Han still lingers. The ships would be an immense help, due to the many soldier and Grisha deaths that occurred during the civil war, which greatly depleted their army. Nikolai is trying to put an end to his country’s debts and find a way to make allies, and even though he is reluctant to say so, he and those closest to him know that the best way to get both money and allies is through marriage.

While I am always excited to continue reading a book that is part of a larger series, I was disinterested in a lot of the plot in this one. It took me much longer to finish this than I would have liked because it kind of lost me in the middle. I think a lot of it had to do with Nina’s chapters. She was so terribly depressed and it did not make for great reading. I also was not into the new sect of religious fanatics led by Yuri, as well as not being into the character of Yuri himself. I am thankful that there were no chapters from his point of view. I also didn’t really care for all the chapters that detailed Nikolai, Zoya, and Yuri’s trials during their disappearance, even though what occurred is important for what it leads up to in the next book.

Some might consider this strange, but when Isaak started to become a main character; that is when I got drawn back in. I really liked him, even though he was a pretty minor character up until that point. I liked how he started off kind of ordinary but he became something kind of extraordinary. I loved his devotion to his family and to Ravka, and the way he fully committed himself into doing what was asked of him. My other well liked moments in this book were any scenes in which Genya and David spoke to each other. They are by far my favorite romance in this series.

To wrap things up, I will say sorry if you have been reading my reviews and have been waiting to see what I would have to say about the King of Scars duology. I have one more book to go and then my time with the Grishaverse will be at an end. If you have come this far, I will have some spoilers in my next review. They won’t necessarily be about the book, Rule of Wolves, I have not decided how that review is going to be written yet. But I will be writing what I thought about the Netflix adaptation of the books, and that will contain many spoilers. But hopefully they won’t be terrible spoilers, especially if you have read the original trilogy and the Six of Crows duology. Although this is primarily a book review blog I really feel the need to talk about the show because I have a lot to say about it.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

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Before I had even finished the second chapter of this book I knew that I was going to enjoy it more than the Shadow and Bone trilogy. I spent every free moment I had every day in the pages of this gritty adventure.

Between Novyi Zem and the continent that is made up of Ravka, Fjerda, and Shu Han, in the middle of the True Sea, lies the island of Kerch. The overcrowded and maze-like city of Ketterdam is where the island’s great source of wealth comes from, trade. Like most large cities with a focus on trade, it can be easy to find exactly what you are looking for in Ketterdam, whether that be rare goods or pleasurable company, or information. Kaz Brekker, also known as Dirtyhands, can find out anything about anyone, and in exchange for doing him a favor, he won’t spill your deepest secrets. Information is power in this city, and Kaz has used his arsenal of blackmail worthy knowledge, dirty espionage, fighting skills, and business savvy to make his gang one of the most powerful and prosperous in the city. The other great power in the city is that of the merchants guild, and they want to hire Kaz and his gang to do something for them, a job that will make them more wealthy than they could have ever dreamed of. The problem is that the job is extremely dangerous and has been said to be impossible.

We get introduced to the small team that Kaz has determined have the right mix of skills to get the job done, and it is an unusual group. Not everyone likes each other, some of them actually want to kill the others, and they are not shy about voicing that fact, and there is not a lot of trust between anyone overall. The tension between everyone keeps you invested throughout the story, combined with the fact that Kaz always has a part of the plan hidden from the rest of the team that he only reveals when necessary, which is usually at the last minute. He is so incredibly clever, he seems to think of everything, and he almost always has a back up plan for the back up plan. I loved how everyones past was revealed a little bit at a time and I also loved that the book was written in a first person perspective from multiple characters. I was worried that this duology would read the same as the Shadow and Bone trilogy, but I was so relieved and excited when I discovered that it was much more dirty, dangerous, and thrilling. I liked Shadow and Bone, but it felt like something was missing, something that would make me more engaged with the story. This book had everything that I felt was missing from those books, things I couldn’t put words to at the time. If you read the trilogy and felt the same way, do not give up on the Grishaverse. Six of Crows will draw you back in and keep you. Come back next week to see what I have to say about Crooked Kingdom. I am particularly interested in seeing what happens between the three potential love interests that were set up here.