Well, as the second and last entry for this week's Saturday Pages, I have a book that was chosen by Alyssa from The Eater of Books! We decided to push a book on each other for every month of the year (inspired by Epic Recs) and for this month, I chose this one! And quite unsurprising... Alyssa triumphed once again! This girl has such a similar taste to mine that it's scary!
Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first book that I read after reaching an agreement with my fellow awesome blogger friend Alyssa from The Eater of Books, based on Epic Recs, we've decided to push one book on each other each month! She actually sent me a huge list, but I went for Sea of Shadows cause I already had it on my Kindle app!
I am so very happy that I chose this one! It was a great read and totally put me in the mood for reading more epic fantasy!
This is the story of two sisters, twins. Physically identical but quite different in attitude and ways to deal with their responsabilies. They're the Keeper and the Seeker of the Forest of the Dead and they live in the village of Edgewood, right at the start of the forest. Ashyn and Moria are facing the rituals to put the spirits of the dead at peace on their own for the first time and each in their own way are trying to deal with the nerves and stress of the situation in their own way.
As with most fantasty books the pacing is not fast but with the wonderful world building we have entangled with the plot progression, I was kept enganged, entertained and even mesmerized! The mythology in this series simply seems amazing. The world seems like a mix of Japanese and Middle Ages with a twist, and the depth of information we glipse at everytime we peel a small layer here and there it's amazing!
The story is told in dual POVs from Moira and Ashyn, and I always felt they were distinct enough to never feel confused or wonder who were following in each chapter. The first chapters are prefect to introduce us to the world and to show us enough of the sisters together, to show their bond and their interactions. Then some unexpected and quite dire events happen and the sisters are separated, and both end up on their separate ways with varied travelling companions. Both trying to get to civilization to get help for themselves and their village.
Each of the sisters go through their own inner and outer journey, each with a guy that they wouldn't have chosen to accompany them. You can expect some romance because of this, but nothing really prominent at all. For most of the book, if not all, we see these relationships develop, getting to know each other, how to work with each other, and they first start with a friendship that seems to be progressing to something more.
Before I continue babbling about this book more, I cannot miss mentioning both Tova, Ashyn's hound and Diago, Moira's wildcat! Both beasts were no mere pets, but bonded to the girls since they were chosen as Seeker and Keeper. They're loyal and protective of the girls, and they're as important companions as any of the other human characters!
This a great first step on a larger journey, with plenty of world building, establishing our characters and although the ending leaves more than enough opening for more to come, with an actual twist that was quite a shocker that I didn't see coming AT ALL! But we close a chapter and the journey comes to an end. No real cliffhanger per se, so that's a plus!
Very well deserved 4 to 4.5 stars for this one! Thanks Alyssa for pushing this one me! Cannot wait for book 2 now!
View all my reviews
Sea of Shadows by Kelley ArmstrongMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is the first book that I read after reaching an agreement with my fellow awesome blogger friend Alyssa from The Eater of Books, based on Epic Recs, we've decided to push one book on each other each month! She actually sent me a huge list, but I went for Sea of Shadows cause I already had it on my Kindle app!
I am so very happy that I chose this one! It was a great read and totally put me in the mood for reading more epic fantasy!
This is the story of two sisters, twins. Physically identical but quite different in attitude and ways to deal with their responsabilies. They're the Keeper and the Seeker of the Forest of the Dead and they live in the village of Edgewood, right at the start of the forest. Ashyn and Moria are facing the rituals to put the spirits of the dead at peace on their own for the first time and each in their own way are trying to deal with the nerves and stress of the situation in their own way.
As with most fantasty books the pacing is not fast but with the wonderful world building we have entangled with the plot progression, I was kept enganged, entertained and even mesmerized! The mythology in this series simply seems amazing. The world seems like a mix of Japanese and Middle Ages with a twist, and the depth of information we glipse at everytime we peel a small layer here and there it's amazing!
The story is told in dual POVs from Moira and Ashyn, and I always felt they were distinct enough to never feel confused or wonder who were following in each chapter. The first chapters are prefect to introduce us to the world and to show us enough of the sisters together, to show their bond and their interactions. Then some unexpected and quite dire events happen and the sisters are separated, and both end up on their separate ways with varied travelling companions. Both trying to get to civilization to get help for themselves and their village.
Each of the sisters go through their own inner and outer journey, each with a guy that they wouldn't have chosen to accompany them. You can expect some romance because of this, but nothing really prominent at all. For most of the book, if not all, we see these relationships develop, getting to know each other, how to work with each other, and they first start with a friendship that seems to be progressing to something more.
Before I continue babbling about this book more, I cannot miss mentioning both Tova, Ashyn's hound and Diago, Moira's wildcat! Both beasts were no mere pets, but bonded to the girls since they were chosen as Seeker and Keeper. They're loyal and protective of the girls, and they're as important companions as any of the other human characters!
This a great first step on a larger journey, with plenty of world building, establishing our characters and although the ending leaves more than enough opening for more to come, with an actual twist that was quite a shocker that I didn't see coming AT ALL! But we close a chapter and the journey comes to an end. No real cliffhanger per se, so that's a plus!
Very well deserved 4 to 4.5 stars for this one! Thanks Alyssa for pushing this one me! Cannot wait for book 2 now!
View all my reviews
Awesome review Pili :D I'm so glad you enjoyed this book. <3 I just need to get myself to read it, lol. But I am excited. Just need to make myself start it, hih :)
ReplyDeleteOh yeah Carina, give this one a chance! It was great and totally put me in the mood for more fantasy!
DeleteThis is such a good idea! :) I would be one of those that would not keep to it though. You have a lot of dedication, my dear! :)
ReplyDeleteI saw a review for this over at Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf and she also had good things to say about it!
I have yet to read a book by Kelly Armstrong and I am debating getting this one next month. It looks so good and I love the premise of it. Also, we have similar tastes so the fact that you liked it is such a huge bonus!
Thanks for sharing hun & great review! :) xxx
Alex @ The Shelf Diaries
I will totally recommend it, Alex!! It has also been my first Kelly Armstrong book!
DeleteI've been meaning to check this one out as I like Kelley Armstrong's work and now you've bumped it up my list. I don't often read many siblings stories so I think this will be an interesting one. I also love that the book is written in alternating points of views, that's always fun.
ReplyDelete-Mari
This was a great read, Mari! I do hope you'll check it out soon!
DeleteWe do indeed have similar tastes, it's so awesome! I still need to read Solving For Ex - but I will! I think I have one more June book, In the End by Demitria Lunetta.
ReplyDeleteBUT YAY I'M SO GLAD THAT YOU ENJOYED THIS BOOK! No cliffhanger is a huge plus. And I think I forgot to mention the wildcats in my review, but I loved them as well :D Such fun!
Fabulous review, lady!!
Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!
Oh my goodness, Alyssa! IN THE END!! I cannot wait for your review for it!! =D
DeleteAnd yep, we're pretty much book taste twinsies! =P And I was rambling on the review and then realized I hadn't talked about the hound and wildcat and they're super important in the book and I love animals!
As someone who doesn't read a lot of fantasy, I was a bit put off by the slow pacing. So I am glad to see that you said that is normal. I did enjoy it, and with the ending, definitely have to read on to the next book to find out what happens next! Great review!
ReplyDeleteA lot of fantasy books have a slight slower pace than other books while they introduce you to the world, but the next books do pick up on pace loads usually! I cannot wait for the next book!
DeleteAwesome review Pili, I'm actually surprised I haven't read that many reviews on this book. I love the sound of the sisterly bond here and their pets sound adorable too!
ReplyDeleteIt's true that this one isn't getting hype at all, but it's a great fantasy book! I hope you'll check it out, Jeann!
DeleteThank you, Aman! This is the first Kelley Armstrong I've read and loved it, so I need to check out more of her books!
ReplyDelete