A quick-moving, somewhat messy fantasy novel about a secret world of sorcerers.
A Canadian mage is sucked into an interdimensional magic war in Stillitano’s debut fantasy novel.
There is a civil war going on in the clandestine community of mages, one that has spilled over into the world of “terrians”—that is, humans. The Revolution wishes for mages to reveal themselves to the public, topple the Earth’s governments, and place themselves at the head of a new world order. The Resistance acknowledges that things need to change but wants it to happen peacefully. The fighting hasn’t reached Montreal yet, but when it does, Lyria, a mage who operates a small, cozy cafe, is afraid she’ll be forced to choose a side. After a painful breakup with her boyfriend, Julio, and haunted by a dream of a mage calling to her from the dreaded Wastelands, Lyria decides to take a much-needed vacation to Cuba. Julio, a member of the Brethren of Sorcerers and a researcher whose discovery sparked the Revolution, is frustrated to have lost Lyria—after all, he was counting on recruiting her to his cause. The Revolution’s goal is to resurrect the “archaic magic” of 500 years ago, thus enabling mages to return to their full potential powers. Little does Lyria know that, more than simply being forced to choose a side, she will be central to the conflict that is about to come, and it will not be limited to her own reality. Stillitano’s prose is urgent and pulpy: “Lyria paced back and forth and tried to clear her mind, to figure out what had just happened. How could she have let herself get dragged into an alternate plane, and how had she not realized it? There had to be another explanation—but really, this was the only logical answer.” The characters are all a little flat, unfortunately, and their dialogue and emotional maturity are reminiscent of teens more than the adults they are supposed to be. The plot is fast-paced, however, and Stillitano unfurls her world with confidence (even if it is built mostly of common fantasy tropes). Those who love urban fantasy will likely enjoy this tale that, if not revolutionary, gets the job done.
A quick-moving, somewhat messy fantasy novel about a secret world of sorcerers.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 311
Publisher: DartFrog Books
Review Posted Online: March 16, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
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Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
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