Lovin' los libros

 

 

I am a huge science fiction lover, so naturally I wanted to try this series out. While I believe it had potential, there were too many other issues that just kept it from becoming a great read. I didn't hate this one, but I don't think it's going to be very memorable.

 

World building is a key element in any science fiction book, and I really felt we were lacking it here. I never really had a clear picture of the universe, the planets on which they lived, and the way the Houses were set up. So much felt jumbled and I really struggled to follow the direction the author wanted to take us. I am all for a slower reveal and build up if you don't want info dump to happen, but we never got that here.

 

Our main character is Asa, who is the youngest Daughter of Fane. After her older sister Wren fell into a coma, she is determined to help save her life. After seeing that her eldest sister Emmie, is going to be married off to the Westlet house, Asa decides to jump in and take her place, as long as she helps Wren. Of course, this causes quite the uproar because Asa is not the eldest, nor is she the Heir of Fane. Asa wasn't a bad character and I didn't hate her like some other readers did, but I didn't really connect with her either.

 

The romance in this one isn't horrible, but I wish it had been developed a bit more. Eagle starts out cold and distant, not really paying her much mind, but then he starts to be a bit more human. Once he does, I really liked him. I think he recognizes the good in Asa- that she isn't this manipulative girl, but a desperate one to save her world and her family. She also stands up for him and she genuinely sees the beauty in him, even though he has been badly scarred by an accident. I ended up really liking them together though.

 

I felt some of the writing was a bit choppy too. We would end a scene and then jump to another and there wasn't really a clear transition. That jarred me a bit and it made the story hard to follow at times.

 

Again, I felt this really had potential. However, the world building really needed a lot of work and we needed a clearer understanding of everything that was going on. I felt Asa's mother's storyline was thrown in to create conflict and it ended up being too much. Had it been introduced toward the end and led into the second book, I think it could have really worked. But there was already too much going on here that should have received more explanation. I am not sure if I will pick up the next book in the series, even though I am curious to see how things with Asa's mother progresses, as well as her relationship with Eagle.