This was a solid collection of stories. I enjoyed them all, with one rather shocking exception which I am afraid that I will go on at length about in a bit. None of them became instant favorites, but I am glad I read them.

 

As is par for the course with Tamora Pierce, there is a preponderance of strong female characters, many of whom are of the old-school Alanna the Lioness kick-ass warrior lady variety. I enjoyed seeing a few old friends and just the general tone of most of the stories. Elder Brother and The Hidden Girl were especially intriguing--I'd like to see more of this part of the world.

 

And then there was Nawat.

 

I was really excited when I saw the title--the Daughter of the Lioness duology might be my favorite Tortall books, and I couldn't wait to see what would be done with these characters that I had grown to love so much.

 

I wish I had not read this story.

 

There is this moment in Rilla of Ingleside where

It hit me with such horror that when I think back on that book, that is almost all I remember. I have read worse things in terms of horror, perhaps, but this hit me right in the gut, hard, and still makes me sick to think about. I have never and will never re-read that book, and that scene is a large portion of the reason why. 

 

Chunks of Nawat hit me the same way. It changed the ways I saw those characters, and not for the better. I don't think I will be re-reading this, and honestly I think I am going to pretend to myself I didn't read it in hopes of being able to continue to re-read the duology without having to think about any of the horrors apparently being carried around in the thoughts of some of these characters. The severity of the problems I had with the story are probably due to personal circumstances, but I defy anyone to believe that the concepts presented are fluffy, happy things that make you think better of the characters.

 

If you're looking to pick up Tamora Pierce for the first time, this is not the place to start. This is not just because it is darker in tone than much of the rest of her work, but also because the Tortall-related stories in here would majorly spoil the ending of at least two of her series, possibly three depending how carefully you read.  Taken together, though, they are a pretty good example of Tamora Pierce's primary driving theme, which is that women can be awesome in pretty much any way they want. 

 

This felt like a thriller movie.

 

It was fun, although fluffy and at least partly obvious. It was also a very quick read. It was nice to pick up something that wasn't party of a hefty series. Standalone YA novels seem few and far between these days, and while I enjoy diving into a series, sometimes I need the palate-cleansing relief of something that starts and ends quickly.

 

The characters were not the most likeable all the time, though they were relatable enough. The love story was a bit overdramatic, but it was also not really the focus of the novel, and there was enough else going on that it was easy to just roll my eyes a little bit and focus on the mysteries behind everything. I was expecting the ending when it came (well, most of it; a few tidbits surprised me), but that didn't really bother me: I have typically figured out a thriller movie by the time the twist is revealed, too.

 

I'm glad I read it and I might pick up something else by the author if she has anything comparable, but I'm not in a huge rush. 

 

I just love all of these people so much.

 

Spoilers for the previous books in the series will follow, though if you've read through Scarlet you're safe to read through.

 

I enjoyed this installment more than Scarlet, mostly because I liked Cress herself so much. In addition, the love interest (let's see if we can't guess the name, here, huh?) is much more up my alley than Wolf ever was, and it is nice to see the interplay between them.

 

One of the things I love is all of the little bits of the original fairy tales that make it back into the series in a new and often very weird way. The name of the ship? The Rampion, which is, of course, the food that Rapunzel's mother so needs out of the witch's garden in the original story. And our love interest has a name that is alarmingly relevant, unfortunately.

 

Cress herself is sweet and charming and very young-feeling. It makes perfect sense given she has been stuck in a space station alone for her entire life, but it makes her stand out from the other women in the crew. She somehow feels more like a fairy tale character, though her naivete does not always work out well for her in this world. This is her part of the story, so we get to see her handle herself and become more than she thought she could, more than she ever believed was possible when things started out. She is a useful ally and a clever girl, and I really enjoyed having her along.  

 

While this may be Cress's part of the story, the entire arc still belong to Cinder, who is having some identity crises as well as missing her prince. She's still trying to figure out who and what she really is, and if she believes in her own destiny or if she can somehow shape her own.

 

Back on the ground, we get some more from Kai, who is dealing with an extremely unwelcome visitor he cannot turn away and trying to handle planning for a wedding he absolutely does not want. Having him there to ground us (sorry, I could not quite resist the pun) throughout the book was a nice way of handling the politics while still letting Cinder and Co. drive around and handle all of the action-y bits.

 

This is shaping up to be a phenomenal series, and I do have access to the last volume as I'm writing this. I've even started it, which is what led me to sit myself down and write this before I get to the end of the whole story and can't remember what happened in which book. Then I'd have to re-read and gee whiz, that would be terrible...

 

If you loved the previous books in the series, you'll love this. If you haven't tried Cinder and it sounds even remotely interesting, try it. It is handled beautifully, even though it sounds like a huge pile of random things thrown together if you try to describe it to someone (I know this from personal experience), but it is fun and I really do love these characters. I can't wait to get back to seeing what they are up to next.