For readers who find George R.R. Martin’s epic too much, here’s considerably less. Sequels are certain.
Lips meet, hearts blaze, blood gushes and kingdoms clash in this thoroughly predictable Song of Ice and Fire wannabe.
Chucking in requisite elements—a magic ring, crystals with “ultimate power,” a vague prophecy about a chosen one, hidden Watchers, societies frozen at a medieval level—“Rhodes,” otherwise known as paranormal romance author Michelle Rowen (Vampire Academy: The Ultimate Guide, 2011), centers her tale on teen characters in three adjacent lands who are swept into savage conflicts of both hearts and politics. Showing particular fondness for cut throats the author splashes both opening chapters and climactic battle with sprays of gore as, in between, impulsive Princess Cleo of Westeros Auranos falls in love with her hunky bodyguard before setting out incognito (in courtly dress) to wander impoverished villages in search of magical healing for her dying older sister; merchant’s son Jonas of Paelsia turns revenge seeker burning with hatred for the royals who murder his brother; and Prince Magnus of Limeros wrestles with “forbidden feelings” for his sister Lucia—whose growing magical powers make her the centerpiece of their bloody minded father’s schemes of conquest. Several of the sympathetic characters in the teeming cast suffer sudden death or at least inner strife that settles out in different ways, but all are recognizable types and any secrets they harbor are either telegraphed or clumsily manipulated to heighten romantic tension. The sex is all implicit or offstage, and even the hint of incest turns out to be illusory.
For readers who find George R.R. Martin’s epic too much, here’s considerably less. Sequels are certain. (Fantasy. 13-17)Pub Date: Dec. 11, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-59514-584-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: May 1, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2012
Busy, but at least there’s a death ray
A pair of teen detectives bops between London and Cairo in a steampunk adventure that would probably make a better movie than it does a book.
Octavia Nightingale and Sebastian Tweed return in this sequel to The Lazarus Machine (2012), solving mysteries in a Victorian London jam-packed with automatons powered by human souls and carriages running on Tesla turbines. Their search for Octavia’s kidnapped mother entangles them in a larger mystery, with missing scientists and Egyptophile cultists around every corner. Each solved puzzle reveals a further complication: traitors, lizard people, rocket launchers—even a secret world. Perhaps the number of threads is too many to keep under control; some characters are dropped abruptly, while one major arc comes to a character-building ending without ever developing through a beginning or middle. The overall mystery is impenetrable, but the set dressing of “vacuum tubes and wiring...tools and gears, clocks, glass beakers filled with strange liquids, and disassembled automatons” makes the right backdrop for a novel that climaxes with an airship-vs.-ornithopter dogfight over London. Purists take note: Among the myriad errors and inconsistencies are copious anachronisms detracting from the Victorian feel.
Busy, but at least there’s a death ray . (Steampunk. 15-17)Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-61614-857-7
Page Count: 295
Publisher: Pyr/Prometheus Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 13, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A run-of-the-mill quest fantasy, despite its uncommon setting.
In the sequel to Prophecy (2013), demon slayer Kira searches for a second ancient treasure to protect her cousin and her homeland.
Only days have passed since the Iron Army, led by Kira’s uncle, King Eojin, defeated the Yamato invaders and liberated Hansong. Unfortunately, their triumph is short-lived: Assassins murder Eojin at a royal banquet, fracturing the fragile alliance that had united the Seven Kingdoms under one leader. To defend her cousin, Prince Taejo, from those who contest his claim to the throne, Kira embarks on a quest with her most trusted companions to find a jeweled dagger, the second of three magical treasures mentioned in an ancient prophecy. Their action-packed journey provides ample opportunities for Kira to demonstrate her fighting prowess and explore her growing feelings for the handsome, haunted Jaewon. Unfortunately, the brisk pacing doesn’t entirely compensate for the stock characters and the weak worldbuilding. It’s difficult to understand Kira’s strong senses of duty and loyalty when her most important relationships feel perfunctory. Meanwhile, though Oh weaves many details from Korean history and folklore into her story, her inconsistent prose—which veers from contemporary snark to stilted formality—prevents her from establishing a convincing sense of time and place.
A run-of-the-mill quest fantasy, despite its uncommon setting. (glossary, map; not seen) (Fantasy. 13-16)Pub Date: Dec. 31, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-209112-3
Page Count: 336
Publisher: HarperTeen
Review Posted Online: Oct. 8, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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