For this Mark This Book Monday I'm finally reviewing another book for my 2014 Series Challenge and this one is a sequel that doesn't suffer from middle book syndrome at all! It manages to surprise, stun and break your heart a bit more with each page!
Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
After finishing Daughter of Smoke and Bone and having to deal with that ending, I just had to start reading this one immediately! I had to stop after the first few chapters though, because it was so hard to read! Such heartbreak both on Karou's and Akiva's sides!
I will try my best to keep this review as spoiler free as possible, but you really shouldn't read it if you still haven't read the first book!
Karou finally knows who she was and it's learning to be both her blue haired self and who she was before, now that all her memories are back. It has destroyed her as much as it has made her whole and she has vowed to commit herself to do Brimstone's work to rebuild the army of the Chimaera to be able to fight back the Seraphim after being almost wiped out.
Akiva has decided to fight towards making sure the war will stop, to make sure a better future without hate and war can be possible, even if he doesn't seem to have any possibility of hope for himself. He starts slowly but keeps on finding ways to stop the slaughter, even if it's in small ways at first.
This was a very dark and very heartwrenching book, so much that despite not wanting to put it down, I had to take a break because I was getting so heartbroken page after page!
Karou is such an amazing character and she undergoes such a journey again in here, from heartbroken and full of pain and resentment and anger and fear to a much more assertive, strong and decided to make any sacrifices necessary to save those she love and to stop the war and murdering.
Thankfully we have Zuzanna and Mik to add some sense of wonder and magic in the darkness and some sense of strenght and to remind Karou of what and why she's fighting for!
The ending is quite tough and quite full of unexpect surprises and twists but it does leave us with a little bit of hope. I'm just too stunned and looking forward to the next book. It doesn't end with an awful gruelling cliffhanger, but it does leave us with a big looming menace, but Karou is left in a position where at least it seems that she'll be ready to fight!
5 stars or more to this one!
View all my reviews
Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini TaylorMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
After finishing Daughter of Smoke and Bone and having to deal with that ending, I just had to start reading this one immediately! I had to stop after the first few chapters though, because it was so hard to read! Such heartbreak both on Karou's and Akiva's sides!
I will try my best to keep this review as spoiler free as possible, but you really shouldn't read it if you still haven't read the first book!
Karou finally knows who she was and it's learning to be both her blue haired self and who she was before, now that all her memories are back. It has destroyed her as much as it has made her whole and she has vowed to commit herself to do Brimstone's work to rebuild the army of the Chimaera to be able to fight back the Seraphim after being almost wiped out.
Akiva has decided to fight towards making sure the war will stop, to make sure a better future without hate and war can be possible, even if he doesn't seem to have any possibility of hope for himself. He starts slowly but keeps on finding ways to stop the slaughter, even if it's in small ways at first.
This was a very dark and very heartwrenching book, so much that despite not wanting to put it down, I had to take a break because I was getting so heartbroken page after page!
Karou is such an amazing character and she undergoes such a journey again in here, from heartbroken and full of pain and resentment and anger and fear to a much more assertive, strong and decided to make any sacrifices necessary to save those she love and to stop the war and murdering.
Thankfully we have Zuzanna and Mik to add some sense of wonder and magic in the darkness and some sense of strenght and to remind Karou of what and why she's fighting for!
The ending is quite tough and quite full of unexpect surprises and twists but it does leave us with a little bit of hope. I'm just too stunned and looking forward to the next book. It doesn't end with an awful gruelling cliffhanger, but it does leave us with a big looming menace, but Karou is left in a position where at least it seems that she'll be ready to fight!
5 stars or more to this one!
View all my reviews
Yes this one was definitely very dark and broody, and it made it all the more addictive! I don't think I liked it as much as book 1 but it was still a solid sequel that was a great progression of the story and not just a fluff middle book. And yes, I love Karou so hard! She's awesome! I'm excited to see where the 3rd book will send us!
ReplyDeleteI loved this one and I think it was the best book possible given the ending of book 3, and as you said, it wasn't a just fluff middle book at all!
DeleteSo excited for book 3!
Ahhh, I still have to read this one! I read Daughter of Smoke and Bone when it came out in... 2011? A long time ago lol. Then book two came out, and I was like OMG CHRISTMAS PRESENT! But then I saw that book three would be pushed back until 2014 and I was like O_O So I never read book two, because I didn't want to wait to read book three. And I've heard sad things about book two's end, so I'll just keep waiting lol. And waiting. Only a few weeks more! :D
ReplyDeleteFantastic review, Pili!
Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!
Yeah, I don't blame you for waiting to read book 2 till book 3 is nearly released, the week is not nice! BUT I just couldn't wait, book 1 also ended in quite a bad way, so I needed to know what happened in book 2! I hope you skimmed the review and I haven't spoiled the book for you, because this series is better enjoyed if you don't know too much going into it!
DeleteGreat review sweetie. <3 SO glad you loved this book :D I have yet to start this series.. but I will, once my pre-order of the third book arrives, and I have peeked at it, lol (A) but I am so excited, as they sounds amazing :D
ReplyDeleteYou really need to read this series, Carina, it's fantastic!!
DeleteYes! Pili I'm so happy you are loving these so much. I adore this series and really all of Taylor's writing. Just so beautiful and her descriptions and world building--perfection. I can't wait to see what the next has in store for us!
ReplyDeleteAgreed! This books are fantastic all around! The story, the characters, the writing... a joy to read!
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