jtbrooksbooksandreviews's Reviews (732)

Deborah Wilde has written a unique and complex world surrounding magic. The mythology behind how magic came to be was inventive and I loved how it wasn’t the traditional or expected creation story. Ash’s magic was intriguing and I wanted to know more about why her magic was so rare and feared. I couldn’t get enough of this world and loved following Ash on her case to see what she would do next. I couldn’t get enough of Ash’s humor and snarky comments. Ash and Levi’s encounters were tinged with the perfect amount of tension. It actually reminded me of Kim Harrison’s Hollows series and the tension between Trenton and Rachel. The way this story ended, left me with questions that I hope will be answered in the following books in this series. I binged this story in a day and am enamoured with it!

Katerina Martinez continues Izzy’s saga by further exploring her magical world and having Izzy revisit her past. The tension between Axel and Izzy is finally explored, but was a bit lackluster from what I had expected. I was a bit disappointed that we, readers, were left with another cliff-hanger in this story. I had thought that this was going to be the final installment in the Wardbreaker series, but is not. There will be at least a fourth book.

The magical prison, Harrowgate, was supposed to be very hard to break into and have a lot of security. While it did take Izzy and her team a while to figure out how to get in, it was not as nerve wracking and intense as I was expecting. I was also surprised by several characters near the end of the story. One of them I had forgotten about and the other surprised me with their true alliance.

I enjoy Katerina Martinez’s writing style and the world she has created, but this installment in the Wardbreaker series felt a bit off from the other two. It was not as adventurous as the previous two stories and really only seemed to focus on the prison break, which led to me to feel like it was more of a short story in Izzy’s journey.

This story reminded me of Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunters series and Dream-Hunters series. Kathryn Smith filled this tale with intriguing mythology around the dream realm. I am excited to read more about Dawn’s Nightmare powers in the next novel and find out how she and Noah’s relationship works out. Dawn and Noah were an interesting couple who didn’t seem to fit together at first, but become a hot and fierce pair. The villain in this story was written perfectly and I hated him, but respected his ambition. This story pulled me in from the beginning and wouldn’t let go, just like a fabulous dream you don’t want to end.