“Do not fear the thunder, nor the fire in the skies.
Rest little darling, and close your tired eyes,
For up above us now in that great, golden dome
A Stormling stands against it all to protect our sacred home.”


A stunning cover, a unique synopsis, implied political intrigue; everything about this book seemed to be calling to me. I was enthralled by the idea of storm magic and all that could imply. From the very first page, I could tell that Carmack was a gifted author. Her writing style is impressive, her imagery nearly perfect, and the book opens just at the beginning of the story. I was all-too-ready to be swept away into this magical world. Unfortunately, that wasn't what happened.

As I kept reading, the author's beautiful imagery and unique concept weren't enough to keep me from finding several, quite large problems within the story. It seemed like every moment I decided to just ignore something that was concerning me, something larger and even more problematic reared its head.

I wish I could give it a better rating, but the longer I think about the problems I had with it, the more firm I am in my decision to give it one star.


Things I Liked

Unfortunately, I don't have much I can say here that I didn't already say above. Carmack is a skilled writer, with a wonderful idea and fantastic world-building, but I can't think of much to praise aside from that.


Things I Didn't Like

*sighs*

1. Aurora/Rora/Roar
I wanted to love her, I really did. I mean, gosh, every single dude in this story was falling all over her so clearlyyy I was missing something. (*cough* Was that harsh?) I love, love, love flawed protagonists. I really do. However, what I don't love is a flawed protagonist that is described as unrealistically perfect. Multiple times Aurora is described as vulnerable yet fierce, ignorant to the ways of the world yet an almost infinite wealth of knowledge, of a slender, willowy build yet strong enough to take down grown men, etc. After awhile, it got extremely annoying hearing almost every character sing her praises.

More often than not, it seemed like the plot simply happened to her. There were several moments where her fierceness was visible and I could see the character she was meant to be, but for the most part, she simply felt like a shadow of a strong protagonist.

2. The Pacing
I don't believe this was meant to be a trilogy, and it's evidenced by how much filler is truly in this book. We spend so much time with these characters wandering around almost aimlessly, having conversations in their campsites, and getting attacked by different storms that it begins to feel as though you've read the current scene several times already.

The true villain isn't even introduced until the last third of the book.

It wasn't as if that was all the story had to offer, either. I wanted to spend more time with Nova or the Queen or Cassius' family. Their stories intrigued me, but unfortunately, the story didn't devote much time to their perspectives.

3. The Love-Interests
We have now arrived at the source of the vast majority of my qualms with this book. I could have looked past a dull main character and bad pacing, but my GOSH these men are horrible. When did being abused become desirable?

(If you read any further, there will be minor spoilers. Just a warning <3)

When Cassius is introduced, you know he's supposed to be messed up. He comes from a family where love is practically non-existent and the only goal is to conquer, so of course he isn't going to be the standard for a loving partner. Whenever you are in his POV, you can tell this is an extremely flawed character. The way he views Aurora is disturbing at best, and psychotic at worst. I was relieved when it became obvious he wasn't the main love interest.

However, that relief was short-lived once Locke spoke more than a single sentence. Homeboy's got some issues.

“Roar was looking at Locke with smug rebellion, and even as he wanted to shake her, he envisioned ways he could wipe that pretty smirk from her mouth.”

This is like, what? less than 24 hours after they meet each other? So that's great. (Not to mention, he keeps saying that Aurora reminds him of his deceased older sister, which just makes me a weeeee bit uncomfortable.)

The more time we spend with Locke, the more obsessive and abusive he reveals himself to be. Even his most charming of advances leave Aurora with little-to-no choice in the matter. He sees her as a conquest, as an object, as something he must protect, never once stopping to consider that maybe she needs to be protected from him.

“For a moment, Roar did not understand what was happening. She knew his lips were on hers, pushing hard enough to be a punishment , and his fingers threaded through her hair, and an arm wrapped tight around her waist.”

Do you hear that sound? That's the sound of a million red flags materializing into existence all at once. (After this scene, Aurora does tell Locke he should have asked her permission before attacking *cough* I mean, kissing her, but even this is made void as Aurora mentally romanticizes the event.)

“I'm the first to touch this mouth? To taste it?” … “That means it's mine. My territory.”

I think what I find so extremely frustrating about this is that this book is marketed for 13-18 year olds. The idea of a 13 year old reading this and deciding that this abuse is something desirable, something romantic, is horrible. These quotes aren't affectionate, nor are they romantic. They are barbaric.

4. The Mythology/Lore

The idea of storm magic was already epic enough on its own, there was no need to reveal that storms are actually just ghosts and have the protagonist essentially rip the heart out of a little dead boy. It's just weird.

TW: Attempted rape, manipulation from a love interest


Final Thoughts
It's been a while since a book has left me as frustrated as this one has. The story had so much promise and I had so much hope for it; I was even ready for it to become a favorite. However, in many ways, the flaws choke out any positive potential and replace it with nothing but an abusive love interest and a shoddy mythology.
I wish I could have enjoyed it, but, unfortunately, this story was just not for me.