I have many, many thoughts on this book and all of them are angry.
Here are my basic thoughts upon finishing the book:
- If I were in a magic dragon military school, I'd side with Jack Barlowe because Violet Sorrengail is annoying enough to want to murder
- If I took a shot every time Violet mentioned how tiny, fragile or "intelligent" (she says this all the time, but I don't think she ever really backed it up) I would be dead of alcohol poisoning before I even reached 50%
- Not to be a Dain apologist,

Spoiler

but if my childhood best friend ran off with some moody, rebel guy and they started being all secretive, I would probably not be happy about it either

- All of these characters were sooooooo desperate to baby-make for literally no reason whatsoever
- I threw up in my mouth and I also cried over the book ... so good feelings all around, am I right? (No.)
-

Spoiler

The only decent character - Liam - died and I 110% blame Violet and Xaden for it and no I will never forgive them.

- The only scene I actually kind of liked was the final fight scene
- Violet is just Mare Barrow but more "pick me" and Xaden is just ctrl+v any dark haired, moody, "feminist" love interest
- The "cliffhanger" that everyone keeps talking about I found to be very predictable ...

Spoiler

I literally called it the second they mentioned that Brennan died

Anyway, will I read the next book? Probably.
But be warned that I will complain about it even more than I did about this one.
Link to Libby Annotations

Dear Danny Hart,
I would like to formally apologize for saying you didn't suffer enough in book one. I rated it 4.75 stars because I wished "Danny had been put in more danger."
I now regret saying that; you have suffered plenty.


This book broke me. This whole series broke me. While I have technically cried harder over other books, this series leaves me hurting. No character is left unharmed. Forget angst, this book is just straight depression.
And I loved every second one it.

I know I'm in the minority here, but Jet is better than Kasta.

Spoiler

This series really did Jet dirty. He had his whole life thrown into turmoil the moment Zahru stepped into the palace and yet he never did her harm or complained outwardly. His throne was stolen by his murderous brother and his ex, who married his brother. His father died and he thought his sister was dead for months. Zahru manipulated his thoughts and emotions multiple times and then blamed him for being upset and paranoid.
So, yeah, #Justice for Jet.

"'Then I will stay with you...until the end.'"

This is my fourth...fifth...sixth?...time reading this book and it's still one of my all-time favorites.

Things I love about this book:
- Greco-Roman-inspired world with lots of magic!
- Jude and Anton, no explanation necessary
- the ANGST
- the way every piece of the book fits together like a puzzle at the end
- the color scheme of the world? I don't know if that makes sense but I like it
- the beginning of a found family...
- the foreshadowing...

Spoiler

every time Anton mentions how Jude's Grace calls out to him

Imagine being a super evil monster and then some twenty-year-old guy with an accent shows up and rips off your arm, so you run home to your mom, and then he follows her and slaughters both of you...

This was my second time reading Beowulf, and I have to say, I liked Heaney's version better than Raffel's. In Raffel's translation, you get the same story but Heaney's gives it so much more emotion and I find it it much more impactful.

That being said, the contexts and history behind the manuscript itself might be more interesting than the story.
Duolingo should add an Old English option.

"'I've been running for a long, long time,' Anton said, touching his thumb to Jude's brow. 'And you were the first thing that ever made me want to stay.' ... 'Your Grace called out to me...I found you...That means...I get to keep you'"(404).
Okay, to be fair, all of chapter 44 is, like, one of my favorite chapters of all time.

I still can't decide if I like this book more or less than the first. It's still an amazing book, but I think I liked book one better...except for the ending. The ending of book two is awesome.
The worldbuilding of this series is just incredible to me. I love the Greco-Roman vibes, especially with the map of what's definitely not the Mediterranean Sea. And the characters? I would give so much just to be a part of the little found family.
This series is so underrated it's not fair.

Also, I've read this book at least four times and I still forget that Illya's hair is brown...

"Jude knew the truth. In nineteen years of koahs, meditations, and rigorous adherence to every rule of the Order of the Last Light, Jude had never once come close to the divine harmony he felt when Anton touched him. Anton's love was sacred, his kiss a revelation, and Jude's purpose had never been clearer to him than it was when he was beside him..."(231).

Spoiler

"'Everything dies eventually. Everything comes to an end. But if I have to die, then I'd rather die knowing that I gave my life everything I could. That I wanted. That I loved and was loved. That I was afraid, and I didn't let fear hold me back. That I leapt from the top of a lighthouse without knowing what lay below. That I walked down a path darker and stranger than the one set before me, with only the faith of the boy I love to guide me'"(398).

This. Freaking. Series.
For the record, I would like to say that I only teared up a little this time, which is an improvement from full-out sobbing over it for hours.
I love how cinematic it is, I love Anton and Jude and Beru and Ephyra and Hector and Khepri and sometimes Hassan (and maybe even Illya too...nope, I take that back), and I adore this world and the story. This book specifically might be one of my top three books ever. I felt all of the emotions a human can possibly feel while reading it.
I love this series so much.

Roman. Crazy. Kitt.
There is no way that everyone is fighting over Rhysand and Xaden when Roman Kitt exists.

"She and Roman would survive this war. They would have the chance to grow old together, year by year. They would be friends until they both finally acknowledged the truth. And they would have everything that other couples had---the arguments and the hand-holding in the market and the gradual exploration of their bodies and the birthday celebrations and the journeys to new cities and the living as one and sharing a bed and the gradual sense of melting into each other. Their names would be entwined---Roman and Iris or Winnow and Kitt because could you truly have one without the other?---and they would write on their typewriters and ruthlessly edit each other's pieces and read books by candlelight at night"(425).

The worldbuilding is exquisite, the writing is divine (get what I did there?), and the characters and romance are so amazingly well-written.

Spoiler

Also...that ending? I am so freaking excited for book two. Hopefully it gives me what I wanted from Marie Lu's Steelstriker but didn't get.

"'It's not a crime to feel joy, even when things seem hopeless. Iris, look at me. You deserve all the happiness in the world. And I intend to see that you have it'"(508).

I think that this was a classic case of right book, wrong time.

In theory, I should've adored this book. It was like A Darker Shade of Magic met Elena of Avalor and they had a baby with some of my favorite tropes.
But it took forever to read the book and I was bored. Were there plenty of actions scenes? Yes. Was there angst and danger? All the time. Did I like the characters? They weren't my favorites, but I didn't dislike them.
I don't know why this book fell flat. Was it the wrong time to read it? Am I in a reading slump? Was it really just not my kind of book? I have no idea. All I know is that I was sort of disappointed in what I anticipated to be one of my favorite reads of the year.

So I'd seen reviews for this series recommending that you read it with an audiobook and a physical copy simultaneously. I decided to try that method with the novella (because I've never actually listened to an audiobook before), and I am so glad that I did.

I played the audiobook on my laptop while reading the e-book on my phone, and while I admit that for a longer book, it might be a bit annoying to have two devices running at the same time, I enjoyed it so much. The audiobook combined with the e-book made reading it feel more like an experience than a story.
Not only is each character voiced by a different narrator, but the sound effects in the background gave me chills multiple times and I got so excited to finish it that I basically read it in two sittings.
The story itself was super cool and short and it was definitely a worthwhile prequel to the series. I didn't cry, but I teared up at the end a bit.

Listening to the book while also reading it has inspired me to do the same for the rest of the series, so over winter break I intend to reread the series with the audiobooks and the e-books at the same time. I'm excited for it already.