4.5 Stars

Wow. That was pretty amazing. Peter V. Brett is a very talented writer. This was an epic fantasy story, with unforgettable characters. It was told from 3 different characters point of views, Arlen, Leesha, and Rojer. The story was told over a span of about 15 years. You got to know each of these incredible characters from their childhood, straight through to their young adulthood. It was a long, but enjoyable journey.

The demons that ruled the night, were absolutely terrifying. But the story itself really depicts something even more daunting, the people that had lost their fight. Everyone in this story cowered to these demons, they let them rule the night, destroying villages and villagers alike. This book had me entranced from the first few chapters. This world Mr. Brett created was nothing short of magnificent. It painted a clear and alluring picture that I could not get out of my head.

The Warded Man was long enough that, even jumping around from the 3 view points, you still got to know each character thoroughly. Arlen was probably my favorite, you couldn't help but to cheer him along throughout the whole book! Leesha was a close runner up though. She was brave, smart and strong. Rojer was a good character as well, though I felt for him more so out of pity through most of his stories. At the end though all three came away nothing short of heroic.

I think that fans of high fantasy books such as, Graceling, and Game of Thrones, will love this book just the same. I will definitely be reading the remaining two books in this trilogy.

I'm so sad to see the Kate Daniels series come to an end but man oh man, what a way to go! I couldn't think of a better way to end this series, even if I never really wanted it to ever end. And omg that epilogue...my spidey senses were screaming set up for another spin-off series! One can dream. Can't wait to reread all of these again one day soon <3

FOUL IS FAIR BY HANNAH CAPIN This is not a book for the faint of heart. This one is all sharp edges. The pages are blades and the words are poison. It is a blood soaked revenge tale that is relentless, uncomfortable at times (most of the times) but also shamefully entertaining. It can read a little disjointed but I think it was purposefully done that way. Definitely feeling those Shakespearean vibes and a more contemporary Heathers/Cruel Intentions (on steroids...and maybe like bath salts too lol). It's amped up and bloodthirsty and venomous. Maybe a bit too over the top but mostly in an enjoyable way. I'd like to read more by this author in the future.
 
I received an ARC of this book from St. Martin's Press / Wednesday Books via Netgalley and this is my honest review.

I read this in one day. It pretty much sucked me right in and I didn't want to put it down once I got going. I wish they'd be more careful with tag lines for books sometimes, 'Gladiator meets Game of Thrones' was very ambitious and while I can see some elements here, basically court politics and gladiator fighting, it puts a lot of pressure on a story to be a lot more intricate than it is, or has to be, I think.
 
I liked pretty much all of the characters, Evie's journey was interesting and entertaining and I love that this was only the beginning of it really. I was quite surprised to find out Evie was 28 years old. This felt much more like a YA coming of age journey to me than an adult story. Which was totally fine by me, I love that type of thing. I'm thinking the next book might kick it up a few notches from occasional swearing and one frank sex thought lol. The scenery changes were perfect, I loved discovering each new place, even if it was just different sects within the kingdom and out of the palace. I extra loved the idea of the ultimate people pleaser finally getting to find a kind of freedom and ultimately a better version of herself in doing things for her own pleasure for a change.
 
Honestly this felt like a lighter fun fantasy that had some heavier more complex stuff going on for sure but it never felt heavy to me. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the story progresses in the next book!

3.5 stars


I am so glad that this sequel was nearly as fun as the first book. Admittedly I was a little like Paloma in that I missed the gladiator life a bit in this one, but it was understandably absent. Protect the Prince had more than enough court drama and assassination attempts to keep you flying through the pages. There were some surprises along the way and some things that were fairly easy to see coming but were entertaining none the less. I'm really glad there isn't much wait for the next book to come out because I'm super excited to see what happens next! Also, kinda hoping Estep was setting some groundwork here for a potential spinoff later with a certain young girl and her loyal gargoyle. Seriously I'm here for more Grimley and Gemma down the line!