Author: Morgan Rhodes
Genre: Young Adult, High Fantasy
Release Date: December 3, 2013
Source: Penguin Australia via NetGalley
Goodreads rating: 4.42 out of 5.00 (100+ ratings)
Goodreads | The Reading Room
Love, power, and magic collide with war in the second book of the Falling Kingdoms series
Auranos has fallen and the three kingdoms—Auranos, Limeros, and Paelsia—are now united as one country called Mytica. But still, magic beckons, and with it the chance to rule not just Mytica, but the world...
When the evil King Gaius announces that a road is to be built into the Forbidden Mountains, formally linking all of Mytica together, he sets off a chain of events that will forever change the face of this land, forcing Cleo the dethroned princess, Magnus the reluctant heir, Lucia the haunted sorceress, and Jonas the desperate rebel to take steps they never could have imagined.
Review by Nara
*No spoilers for Falling Kingdoms or Rebel Spring*
People looking for a good YA high fantasy- look no further than the Falling Kingdoms series. Political intrigue, badassery, romance, action, adventure- this series has it all. I've seen the tagline for this series as "Game of Thrones for young adult readers", and in a way, that's true. There are multiple points of view characters, it's an epic fantasy set across multiple kingdoms, there's a lot of death (unexpected, brutal death). And I mean, A LOT. But that definitely doesn't mean that you should go into this story looking for something like A Game of Thrones. I'd definitely try not to compare the two, or at the very least: don't be disappointed in this series for not being like GoT. That's a difficult act to follow.
That being said, I guess in a way, the writing itself does remind me of George RR Martin's. It's sort of a languid style- in that it takes a while for things to really happen, just like in the ASOIAF series. I suppose some people might find that it does have sections where not much action takes place- but these scenes are crucial for setting up for the later consequences. I personally quite liked this style. And once the pace picks up, it really picks up. All the way to a cliffhanger ending. (Damn you, Morgan Rhodes.)
Cleo
I really love how Cleo's character develops as the series goes on. The shallow, somewhat naive princess is no more. Through bloodshed (oo dramatic), we get a character who is admirable and strong and cunning. Probably my favourite character at this point.
Magnus
I actually rather liked Magnus in the first book, and with his character further developed in Rebel Spring, I find myself liking him even more. And it's strange that I like both Cleo and Magnus seeing as though they hate each other, what with the whole Magnus being responsible for bad things happening to people Cleo loves. I even almost ship them at this point. You'll see why when you read the book hehe.
I actually rather liked Magnus in the first book, and with his character further developed in Rebel Spring, I find myself liking him even more. And it's strange that I like both Cleo and Magnus seeing as though they hate each other, what with the whole Magnus being responsible for bad things happening to people Cleo loves. I even almost ship them at this point. You'll see why when you read the book hehe.
Jonas
And then I also like Jonas. He honestly seemed rather annoying in the first book, but again, character development in this book has made him one of my favourites.
And then I also like Jonas. He honestly seemed rather annoying in the first book, but again, character development in this book has made him one of my favourites.
Lucia
The only POV character I don't particularly like at this point would be Lucia. I'm just not sure what to think of her. Her character certainly becomes a lot darker in this book as she comes to terms with her magic.
SEE?! Ridiculously complicated. But awesome haha.
Well, as I said before, grab this series if you're a fan of high fantasy. Or even if you're not. I RECOMMEND IT TO EVERYBODY!
Ratings
Overall: 9/10
Plot: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
The only POV character I don't particularly like at this point would be Lucia. I'm just not sure what to think of her. Her character certainly becomes a lot darker in this book as she comes to terms with her magic.
Possible ships:
Cleo x Jonas
Jonas x Lysandra
Lysandra x Brion
Jonas x Phaedra
Cleo x Magnus
Magnus x Lucia
Lucia x Alexius
Cleo x Nic
Nic x [spoiler] (woah was this unexpected. And just random. Total WTF)
Cleo x Aron (if you ship this, you're a terrible person.)
Gaius x Melenia (ewww)
SEE?! Ridiculously complicated. But awesome haha.
Well, as I said before, grab this series if you're a fan of high fantasy. Or even if you're not. I RECOMMEND IT TO EVERYBODY!
Incredible
Ratings
Overall: 9/10
Plot: 5/5
Writing: 4/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
I'm a huge fan of ASOIAF, so this series might be a good choice for me until the sixth book in ASOIAF is released. I tend to be a patient reader if the writing is good, so it doesn't bother me if it takes some time for the action to build up provided that when it does pick up it keeps me glued to the pages. I'll definitely check this one out.
ReplyDeleteOana @All Fantasy Worlds
Oh god, when will Winds of Winter be released...it seems like it's been an age since Dance of Dragons. Hopefully we can get it sometime in the next decade lol.
DeleteThis series is quite similar in the sense that no punches are pulled when it comes to brutality and things (in other YA fantasy, there almost seems to be a rule that main characters don't die and things like that, but the rule definitely doesn't apply to this series haha)
THE NIC ROMANCE CAME OUT OF NOWHERE. I sort of liked it as a twist though and want to see what comes of it.
ReplyDeleteI liked Rebel Spring way more than Falling Kingdoms and the characters are starting to grow on me (except Lucia. Like you, I don't particularly like her). The writing style if reminiscient of your typical high/epic fantasy novels, and I like how it's a more... adult approach to YA fantasy (with all the shocking violence and political intrigue)
There I was, casually reading, and then BAM! Total moment of wtfery. Definitely looking forward to seeing how it'll be developed!
DeleteI really like both books, but I think I like Rebel Spring more as well because of all the character development! So interesting to read about :D
Oo, an adult approach to YA fantasy! That's a nice way of putting it!
This sounds like a fun series. I enjoy the Game of Thrones series, but there are a lot of things that I don't like in it. It sounds like this series has what I like and not what I don't like.
ReplyDeleteWell that's awesome then! You should definitely give it a go :D
DeleteSo glad to hear you enjoyed it. The first book wasn't for me, so I'll probably not read this one. It is always great to read positive reviews though!
ReplyDeleteAw, I guess I can see why people might not enjoy it! Fair enough for not reading this book if you didn't like the first :)
DeleteThat's a lot of potential relationships
ReplyDeleteIndeed! And I really feel like it could go in any direction at the moment...
Delete