A Court of Silver Flames

Alright. This review for A Court of Silver Flame may be the longest I've ever written. Not only will this be a review it will be a reflection of a trauma victim reading a book about a trauma victim. So there may be triggers as I reflect back on my life as a victim and my coping mechanisms. There will be spoilers in this review. 

I am going to start off by saying this was by far the best book Maas has ever written. I felt Nesta was truly redeemed by the end of the book and we saw some serious growth in her as the book plays out. I may also add it was extremely spicy so this book is definitely not for young eyes as are any of the other books. I digress though. 

The start of the book was probably the hardest and most hard-hitting connection of the book to me. If anyone knows me well they know I am an abuse trauma survivor. This isn't the same as Nesta's. Though trauma survives can cope in similar ways. We both resorted to drinking and find pleasure in the sexual side of life. We took out our anger on those we care about and love. We push away those who want to help us or see the good in us even though we don't see it at all. 

I'm still processing the whole thing as an experience. Normally I can move on pretty quickly from a book and start the next, but I am definitely needing more time to really gather my feelings here. The adventure Nesta went through from her self-loathing, coping skills to the self-sacrificing sister was really a transformation. She willingly gave everything up for her sister, Rhys, and Nyx. She saved them with everything she had. She trained hard in order to overcome her trauma and gained some friends along the way. Two friends, who would go on with Nesta to beat the Illyrian Blood Rite. We find out more about another impending war that may be coming their way. 

I have this constant question though. We see Tamlin briefly throughout the last couple of books and he is an utter mess. I would definitely like to see a redemption arch for him. Not necessarily a romance redemption arch. Just something. I have this theory that Elaine will end up with Lucien in the end. They will go back to spring and Elain will be this beautiful friend for Tamlin. Not as a lover, but as a genuine and honest friend. Someone who will help him grow and help Elain heal too, maybe while also working on her mating bond with Lucien. Elaine just always struck me as someone who belonged in the spring court. Her gardens were her joy, so where else would fit her best. Especially after reading the Azriel chapter that was included in this book, I definitely started shipping Azriel with someone else. For those of you who have read the book and the extra chapter from Azriel's perspective will know exactly who I am talking about. It seems too obvious for Azriel to end up with Elaine. He actually says something along those lines. It's kind of a, "Why do Rhys and Cassian get a sister, but I don't" kind of thing. Though I think this new development might be better suited to Azriel than Elaine will be. 

Sorry, that was a tangent on my own theories and not really a review of the book. I did love that we got a glimpse at more lore from this series. We learned so much more about the past of the world and how dangerous somethings could be. We even saw a revival of an ancient group of female warriors, the Valkyries. I would love to this become the female equivalent of the Illyrians and maybe even something more powerful. 

I feel I really can't tough enough on the fact that Sarah presented a realistic trauma coping response. This is great. I feel a lot of the time trauma is presented and it's either not realistic or it's viewed from someone else's perspective and not the actual victim. We don't normally see this raw negative reaction where you see the character fall back from progress and then climb back up. It always seems like they never fail. It's nice to read in stories, but it's refreshing to see a realistic character on the pages of a fantasy book. We really see so many facets of Nesta and see her go through many of the stages of grief when it comes to recovery. We even see her at her final breaking point. This was in chapter 50. She had done something out of spite and eventually beat herself over it. She broke emotionally without anger. She has this moment where Cassian thought she was going to erupt into a burst of anger and instead we see this vulnerable Nesta who needs someone else. She lays herself out bare. She finally met her breaking point and this is where the true healing begins I feel. She's still hesitant about a lot of things. But she starts accepting things and letting things happen. 

I know this isn't like a chronological review. But I just felt there were aspects of this I really needed to touch on. To really show to you as readers why I felt this book deserves the amazing review and words I have for it. This book struck a real chord with me as I read. I felt I was Nesta. Sarah really did an amazing job after the bomb of Crescent City. The character depth through these pages really wowed me to the point I literally had to stop at times, process the pain and the reactions I was having as I felt for Nesta and connected on a very intimate level. 

On a lighter note, this spicy scenes were fire. I mean literal fire. lol

10 out of 5 stars for A Court of Silver Flames

Crescent City: House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas

Hello, my lovely booklovers. It has been some time since I have written a review and I figured why not write one now. 

Let me just start with this book took me over a month to read and was probably the hardest book to get into. There was a massive info dump at the beginning and the first 500 pages were probably the biggest let down for me.

There are quite a few triggers in this book. So be warned for those. The biggest one I noticed was drug use. The swear was a lot and sex was pretty much watching a porno. I want to be blunt and upfront with my reviews from now on, so here we go with the main review. 

So as stated above, the beginning of the book was a huge info dump that I could have cared less about. While important, I don't feel it was important enough to really constituent 500 pages. There were details in the book that bothered me and were unnecessary. I really didn't care how short Bryce's dress was or if you could see muscles through her clothing. I'm pretty sure everyone who read it understood more people found Bryce attractive and wanted to sleep with her which is fine.  

Now touching on some of the more technical aspects. This book was written in YA style with added adult content which was rather depressing for me. I was really looking for deep characters and a deep, deep plot that normally comes with adult fantasy. Sarah is the queen of smut and we all know this. Sadly, smut and swearing doesn't make an adult novel. So this was a super let down for me and I'm sure the cussing made up at least 1/8 of the word count for this book. So if swearing bothers you please don't bother with this book. 

Now, let's dig into my biggest complaint about this book, if you have read Maas' other works you have pretty much read this one. With some name changes and location and time change, Maas' has somehow managed to take all the same characters shes written and write them into a new exciting plot line and managed to destroy your hopes of the good ones to continue on in the plotline. Let's look back at Sam and Nehemia. Well-loved characters taken from us to soon. There were many points in this book where I felt I was reading The A Court series and Throne of Glass all over again. Bryce was Aelin remade. Which really made me disappointed in the main character as a whole. Though I think I have far more rooted feelings for how I feel than just her being a remade character with a different exterior.  Continuing on into the more story moving similarities. "Like calls to like" was yet again used which is fine, it helps connect the world Maas is making and allows the words to connect like we know that do. (Aelin flying through Velaris and Crescent City in Kingdom of Ash.) 

Now onto the Good, this story after page 500 finally started moving and the pace picked up and did keep me entertained. I was finally okay and didn't want to chuck the entire book across the room. The swearing subsided and finally got to the deeper part of the story. While the climax of the book felt familiar, it did leave me content with the book.

Overall this book was a solid 3 out of 5 stars. It was a 1 or 2 before I reached the 500-page mark solely because the ending redeemed the book. The genre of the book did nothing for me as I'm not a fan of urban fantasy. I think I went into this book expecting deep writing like some of my favorite adult fantasy writers and just didn't get the depth I was hoping for.  So I think that list plays a huge role in my rating and review of this book. I did enjoy the read, but it was not up to par with my expectations for the adult fantasy genre. 

Entwined Paths by M. L. Greye

*MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR FIRST BOOK*

Hello, again my lovely readers! I am here again with another review and this one is for a friend of mine and I truly love her books! This book is the second book in the swift shadows series and follows the before. In the first book, we got a little bit of background of what happened before  Of Rioters and Royals (ORAR). We got glimpses of Emry and Declan's pasts in the smallest bits, but never truely what led them up to the points we see them in the first book. This second book, Entwined Paths, answers many questions we may have collected from the first and tells a great story of getting us to the place we find Emry and Declan in the first book.

Greye manages to tell a prequel story in a descriptive and captivating way that keeps you hooked from the moment you true the first page. Follow Declan through his past of struggle with himself and the things he's done and he finds solace in the one person who seems familiar to him, Emry. His tormented past leads him on a journey of self-survival.

We also follow Emry as she goes on her journey to be the Queen she wants to see for the kingdom and her journeys through the lands she is to rule and where she will become The Mistress we have come to find her to be in ORAR. See her go through a change to become the person she pushes herself to be and the relationships she builds on this journey. Greye also manages to make us fall in love with new characters that make us question our loyalty to the OTP!

Greye has yet again written a great YA fantasy novel and stays true to her unique magic system and I can not wait to see what she has in store. This store pulls and captivates its readers and truly made me want to be a part of the world she has written. I wanted to walk beside Emry and help Declan through the challenges.

The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty

Hello, my lovelies! I just had the amazing opportunity to wrap up the second to last book the Daevabad Trilogy by S.A. Chakraborty. Let me just say this was an emotional roller coaster I was not ready for, but I loved every moment of it! It has made its way to the top of my favorite reads of 2019, and I can not wait for the last installment to be released in February of 2020.

If you have yet to read the trilogy the story follows the lives of Ali, Nahri, and Dara. This is a POV switch story. So if that is not something you enjoy, I'm sorry because the characters are amazing. haha. To sum of the first book, City of Brass,  follows the story of a young,  medically skilled woman from, named Nahri, who discovers what her true heritage is. Being orphaned she has no idea who she is or where she truly is called to be. Living in 18th century Cairo she works along aside a doctor and as a con woman to get by. Until she is attacked by a magical being and is found by Dara (a powerful Djinn warrior she accidentally summons) who takes her to Daevabad, where her life will change forever. Ali, is later met by Nahri and is the second in line for the throne in Daevabad and quickly becomes one of Nahri's only friends in the city of guilded brass, but this takes a turn and everything changes.

The Kingdom of Copper follows the same characters as they deal with the consequences of their actions from book one and they realize they are dealing with far more than the tyrant king that rules over Daevabad. Riots break out in the streets as Nahri and Ali do their best to unite a broken city of people and this leads to the darkest event the great city, made from the sea, has ever seen.

This story is filled with controversy among a prejudiced group of people toward those who are unlike them, battles for a throne, the horrors of war and magic. But you must not forget the stories of love and friendship that fill the pages to make this a completely and well-rounded story that is easy to enjoy.  The darkness of the story sets the vibe for what is to come while keeping the theme of fire as the hope of these people. The end of the book takes a turn you'll never expect and you will be waiting for more!