Waiting on Wednesday (#319): Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week, I'm featuring:

Dark Shores by Danielle L. Jensen

Book One of the Dark Shores series

Publisher: Tor Teen

Publication Date: May 7, 2019

Summary (from Goodreads):

Piracy, blackmail, and meddling gods meet in Dark Shores, a thrilling first novel in a fast-paced new YA fantasy series by Danielle L. Jensen.

A PIRATE WITH A WILL OF IRON

Teriana is the second mate of the Quincense, a ship beholden to the Goddess of the Seas. Her people are born of the waves, and they alone know how to cross the impassable oceans between East and West. 

A SOLDIER WITH A SECRET

Marcus is the commander of the Thirty-Seventh, the notorious legion that has led the Celendor Empire to conquer the entire East. The legion is his only family, and even they don't know the secret he's been hiding since childhood.

A DANGEROUS QUEST

When a power-hungry ruler captures Teriana's crew and threatens to reveal Marcus's secret unless they help him conquer the unknown West, the two are forced into an unlikely–and unwilling– alliance. They unite for the sake of their families, but both must decide how far they are willing to go, and how much they are willing to sacrifice.

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I didn't like Jensen's previous series, but I am willing to try this new book. I hope it's good!

Review: Warrior Witch by Danielle L. Jensen

Warrior Witch by Danielle L. Jensen

Book Three of The Malediction Trilogy

Publisher: Angry Robot

Publication Date: May 3, 2016

Rating: 1 star

Source: eARC from the publisher

Summary (from Goodreads):

The thrilling conclusion to the breakout Malediction Trilogy by Goodreads Choice finalist Danielle L. Jensen. 

Cécile and Tristan have accomplished the impossible, but their greatest challenge remains: defeating the evil they have unleashed upon the world.

As they scramble for a way to protect the people of the Isle and liberate the trolls from their tyrant king, Cécile and Tristan must battle those who’d see them dead. To win, they will risk everything. And everyone.

But it might not be enough. Both Cécile and Tristan have debts, and they will be forced to pay them at a cost far greater than they had ever imagined.

What I Liked:

Initial reaction, upon finishing this book: I wish I had never started this series. I don't think I have EVER said that about a series before. This series was a complete downhill rollercoaster - from amazing (book one) to horrible (book two) to so terrible I want to block it from my memory (book three). I feel bad because I requested this book from the publisher! But at the same time... I'm well and truly hurt right now. My thanks to Angry Robot, but, ah, I'm sorry too? 

Like Stolen Songbird and Hidden Huntress, Warrior Witch is a Pili-Pushed recommendation! It's going to count for the month of March. To see the my Pili-Pushed reviews, click on the "Pili Pushed" tag (at the bottom of my blog).

What I Did Not Like:

Issues I had with this book:

- The first half (maybe a little more) is boring as h*ll. Gosh I struggled with this book overall, but a significant part of this was due to how boring the first half was. I was either bemoaning how boring it was, or how much of a dumb*ss Cécile was (whoops?). Of course, boredom is subjective. 

- Cécile is actually a stupid and terrible person. Check out my Goodreads updates for this book, if you get a chance. You'll see that I struggled with her from start to finish of this book. I also hated her in Hidden Huntress - weird how I was just fine with her in Stolen Songbird. She wasn't that bad, at the time.

I have so many problems with our heroine. The author writes her in a way that she wants to seem independent and tough and bad*ss, but it seems so forced. Cécile is constantly coming up with her own (dumb) plans, and she's constantly ignoring voices of reason (i.e. smarter people than her). Where does it lead her? Well, in one instance, a whoooole bunch of people die. In another instance, she endangers Tristan. In another, she selfishly decides to do XYZ and her human family is left wondering if she is even alive. Cécile placates her own self by saying that she is "going to save everyone" and she "wants to be doing stuff", basically she wants to be a bad*ss, but she is a danger to herself and everyone else. 

What makes me even MORE angry is that she's so self-righteous with it! Like she's actually saving th world - her, the human, against powerful trolls, fae, and magic she doesn't understand. Cécile is seventeen and a HUMAN. I think the author forgets this part A LOT. There is no logical way (logical within this fantasy realm) that Cécile is SO much more powerful than everyone else (or has the ability to seem really powerful) - even with her ability to make potions (or whatever "witch" qualities the author gave her). I don't understand! It makes no sense! In any case, Cécile thinks she's God, and better than everyone else. So frustrating!

AND THEN she blames everything on everyone else. Actually, let me back up. We go from bouts of self-pity and martyrdom (woe is me, I've lead to the death of these people - honey, yes you did), to omg Tristan THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT. Um... girl. You killed Anushka. You lead to a bunch of humans dying when YOUR plan failed. Not Tristan's. Not anyone else's. You want to come up with DUMB, immature plans to "help"? Face the consequences.

- Tristan and Cécile seemed to have no relationship. How in the world did I ever fall for these two?! There was no love between them. They were hardly together in this book, and when they were, it seemed like Cécile was mad at Tristan (for nothing that was his fault), or blaming him (same story), or defying him just so she could seem bad*ss. There was one "swoony" (read: not swoony) scene - that's the scene that the author tweeted about, as "racy". Oh please. It was all of three sentences long and it was not racy (or swoony) at all. It seemed rushed and not articulated well. Also, it was one of those scenes where the two characters were like, well, we might die so... let's have sex! 

I didn't feel their love. Tristan clearly cared very much for Cécile, but Cécile... I don't know what to say about her. She's selfish (but acts like she's a martyr), and I am not convinced of her feelings for Tristan. She never seemed grounded in anything except getting into the worst possible situations, making everything infinitely worse, blaming literally everyone (all the while throwing the nastiest pity parties), and trying to act like she was some kind of bad*ss female protagonist (this felt fake and forced and NO). 

- Parts of the ending felt like a cop-out. Ever heard of deus ex machina? Well.

- To be honest, I'm not even sure how the ending worked. I really don't understand how some things just magically... stopped. Or how a human girl (child, I should say) was able to do certain... things. It makes no logical sense. And I'm not quite sure why and how things just... stopped.

- I've barely scratched the surface on the ending - it was HORRIBLE (and not a HEA). Hands-down the worst part of this book was the very very end, after all was said and done in terms of the war and Roland and blah blah blah. POSSIBLE SPOILER: if you like HEAs, don't read this series. The ending gutted me. I was already having so much trouble with the book - the series - and then the ending happened. It was not good. It was not happy. The last couple of sentences were an author's cop-out to have some semblance of a "happy ending", but the ending was NOT happy. 

Don't get me wrong, not every book or series needs to have a happy ending. But I personally like them, and I will sure as h*ll take away stars if the ending of a book (ESPECIALLY a conclusion novel) isn't a happy one, and for cruel reasons too. That being sad, you (whoever is reading this review) might think the ending is lovely and beautiful and perfect! Not me. 

Maybe I was too invested - I really wanted the ending to redeem the series for me. It was cruel, one of the cruelest endings. And the sad thing? I'm saying it's cruel but the ending is NOT what you think. Trust me, it's worse. Authors, take note: please don't end your trilogies like this.

I am so disappointed in this book. And the series, to be honest. I loved Stolen Songbird. I had issues with Hidden Huntress, and most of those issues were with Cécile. I'm incredibly disappointed that so many of those Cécile issues that I had in book two carried over into this book. And I am so emotionally gutted from the ending of this book. This book could have gotten a decent rating with the Cécile issues if the ending hadn't been so... brutal. 

Would I Recommend It:

Even with all of that being said, I would never discourage someone who had read Stolen Songbird (and possibly Hidden Huntress as well) from continuing the series (unless you really trust me/my opinion, in which I'm flattered!). But if you have not started this series... maybe ask for spoilers before you do. Or, you know, just don't. Don't start the series. Don't put yourself through this misery. I literally cannot remember the last time I hated a series so much (especially after LOVING the first book! It was so incredibly amazing!). There are better fantasy series out there! Try Jodi Meadows' The Orphan Queen/The Mirror King, or Sherry Thomas' Elemental trilogy, or Robin LaFevers' His Fair Assassins trilogy.

Rating:

1 star -> but I would give it 0 stars if I could. Overall series rating: 2 stars (the first book was really good). I seriously wish I had never started this series though. I think I need therapy. Or maybe several extremely sexy/swoony adult romance novels with low drama and a guaranteed HEAs? Anything to help me recover. I just want to forget I ever started this series!

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Waiting on Wednesday (#155): Warrior Witch by Danielle L. Jensen

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week, I'm featuring:

Warrior Witch by Danielle L. Jensen

Book Three of The Malediction Trilogy

Publisher: Angry Robot

Publication Date: May 3, 2016

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sometimes, one must become the unimaginable

The witch is dead, the curse is broken, and the trolls are free of their mountain prison. Cécile and Tristan have accomplished all it was foretold they would, but their greatest challenge remains: defeating the evil they have unleashed. Because the trolls are not the only creatures now free to walk the world.

Enclosed within the safety of Trianon’s walls, Cécile and Tristan scramble for a way to protect the people of the Isle and liberate the trolls from their tyrant king. But Cécile and Tristan both have debts, and they will be forced to pay them at a cost far greater than they had ever imagined.

The thrilling conclusion to the breakout Malediction Trilogy by Goodreads Choice finalist Danielle L. Jensen.

Author Blog | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Stolen Songbird review | Hidden Huntress review

I loved book one, didn't really like book two, hopefully book three won't disappoint!

Review: Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen

Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen

Book Two of the Malediction Trilogy

Publisher: Angry Robot

Publication Date: June 2, 2015

Rating: 2 stars

Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sometimes, one must accomplish the impossible.

Beneath the mountain, the king’s reign of tyranny is absolute; the one troll with the capacity to challenge him is imprisoned for treason. Cécile has escaped the darkness of Trollus, but she learns all too quickly that she is not beyond the reach of the king’s power. Or his manipulation.

Recovered from her injuries, she now lives with her mother in Trianon and graces the opera stage every night. But by day she searches for the witch who has eluded the trolls for five hundred years. Whether she succeeds or fails, the costs to those she cares about will be high.

To find Anushka, she must delve into magic that is both dark and deadly. But the witch is a clever creature. And Cécile might not just be the hunter. She might also be the hunted…

What I Liked:

Well, that was disappointing. I didn't completely dislike this book, but I was very, very disappointed, to be honest. A lot of factors were at play - I think my expectations were very high after reading Stolen Songbird, but this book in general was just all over the place. And kind of bad. I can't even say that this book suffer from sequel slump because it's not like this book is boring or slow or could have been skipped altogether. No no - there were serious problems with this book (for me) that went beyond your typical "sequel slump" symptoms.

In any case, this book is my Pili-Pushed recommendation for the month of April. To see all of the Pili-Pushed recommendations, like on the "Pili-Pushed" tag! It's unfortunate that I didn't like this book more, because I loved Stolen Songbird - it's my favorite Pili-Pushed recommendation to date!

It's been two months since Cécile left Trollus, since she and Tristan have been separated. Tristan is a prisoner for conspiring against the king, and Cécile is trying to have somewhat of a normal life in Triannon as a singer. But she is not content with singing anymore - she wants to find Anushka and put an end to the curse. Separated but bound together, Tristan and Cécile must work from each of their worlds to find a way out, a way through, and a way back to each other, to find Anushka. But nothing is simple or easy, and Cécile and Tristan are in much more danger than they realize.

I will say that I was never really bored while reading this book. It's loooooong, and there are times when I really felt the length, but for the most part, I thought the story had decent pacing and interesting events. The twists and turns were predictable (see below). But I couldn't not keep reading, as I wanted to know if my intuitions were correct (they were all correct, because the plot twists were obvious). 

That was really the only thing that I really *liked* about this book - it kept me reading, I kept going. Oh and no love triangle. That's always a good thing. We get Cécile AND Tristan's first-person points-of-view, which is pretty cool, and different from book one. But most of my feelings towards this book aren't all that positive. Read on!

What I Did Not Like:

Seriously, what in the world happened to this book?! Stolen Songbird blew me away! This book lacked the spark and flare that its predecessor had. I'm honestly confused by the huge difference in quality of story, between Stolen Songbird and this book. Things I didn't like: Cécile's seriously passive attitude, the constant guilt-trip-woe-is-me-martyr episodes, the predictability, certain plot arcs in general, the lack of romance. The last one isn't a sticking point, but it didn't exactly help that the romance is pretty much nonexistent in this book.

I'll start with Cécile. I really did NOT like her in this book. I liked her a lot in Stolen Songbird! But in this book, she complains a lot. She lets people boss her around, tell her what to do, tell her what's best for her. The very first few scenes features her mother harassing her into performing this or that. Or there was Chris, physically trying to prevent her from doing something, speaking over her, making decisions for her. This goes on throughout the book. Cécile's mother never stops controlling Cécile, and Cécile never stops her. Cécile goes along with it, though we know internally she gets irritated sometimes. Other times, she's all, I-love-my-mother-la-la-la-everything-is-fine.

I have so many problems with this attitude! Cécile lets everyone tell her what to do, how to act, how to run her life. Does Cécile even WANT to be a singer in Triannon? It sure does NOT feel like that from the beginning of this book, yet Cécile doesn't try to do anything different. She doesn't stand up for herself at all. Sometimes, she gets mad internally (but does nothing), but most of the time, she doesn't even know that someone is owning her like that. SO WRONG.

And tell me why she is blindly following her mother? A woman who hasn't been in her life for years? A woman who only cares about projecting her career goals on her daughter? It's obvious that Genevieve doesn't are about Cécile. Yet Cécile is constantly trying to please her, obey her, cater to her every whim. If this were MY estranged mother... please. That lady would have been shown the door. I don't tolerate people dictating my life.

Not to mention the whole martyr thing got old real quick. Both Tristan and Cécile went through some serious guilt trips throughout the book. Tristan, I was more forgiving towards him, because his guilt made sense. With Cécile, I felt like her guilt was more misplaced, and it was more of her feeling sorry for herself. She did A LOT of moping and whining and complaining and feeling sorry for herself in this book. Lots of pity parties.

This book was totally predictable. There were so many twists that you could spot from a mile away. There was a big one with Anushka that I knew from the beginning. FROM THE BEGINNING. Really obvious. This is the case with most of the "twists".

There were a lot of plot arcs that I really just didn't agree with. To begin with, separating the two protagonists for 75% of the book? I'm not okay with that. But let's pretend that one is okay. The author does certain things to Tristan, and to Cécile, and involving Cécile's brother Fred, and a lot of these events got eye rolls from me, or pissed me off. Like, OF COURSE Fred is going to do this, because he feels this guilt about this and that. It's so frustrating! There are so many plot cliches! I can't say things specifically without giving things away, but you'll have to take my word for it.

Last thing I'm going to talk about (there's more, but I'm tired) - the romance. It's basically not there. There's no romance, no chemistry, and little interactions. I don't want to spoil anything, but I was not happy with the romance.

I was also not happy with the ending, but that had nothing to do with the romance. It's a bit of a cliffhanger, but that's not what is bothering. What's bothering me is Cécile's idiot brain that tells her to do stupid and to not do smart things. Ugh. No spoilers, but... ugh.

Would I Recommend It:

Eh. If you liked Stolen Songbird (like me), then you should give this book a chance. But if you haven't read Stolen Songbird, then don't bother. Not yet, at least. Stolen Songbird was AMAZING. This book? Not so much.

Rating:

2 stars. This book could have been so much better. I had expectations, but this book didn't even come close to meeting any of my expectations... this book was such a disappointment for me. I've seen others enjoy it though, so perhaps I'm just too picky!

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Swoon Thursday (#106): Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen

Swoon Thursday is a hot meme hosted by the fabulous ladies at YA Bound!

- From the book you’re currently reading, or one you just finished, tell us what made you SWOON. What got your heart pounding, your skin tingling, and your stomach fluttering

- Try to make the swoon excerpt 140 characters (or less), if you are going to tweet about it. Use the hashtag #YABOUND when tweeting

This week, my swoon is from Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen!

He kissed me, gently at first, and then harder as his control vanished. My lips parted, and the kiss deepened, opening up a floodgate of heat that tore through my body. Rational thought slipped away, and all that was left was need and desire. I felt his hands on me and I tore at his coat, pulled off his shirt and dug my fingers into the hard muscles lining his back, felt his breath hot and ragged against my lips and at the plunging neckline of my dress. The air was cold against my legs as my skirts rode up, and I wrapped my ankles around him, pulling him own against me. All I wanted was him. And I wanted everything.

- Kindle book, 76%

Author Website | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

Read my review HERE!

I read this one last week, but I had to share an excerpt from this book. There were so many swoons, physical and emotional!

Review: Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen

Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen

Book One of The Malediction Trilogy

Publisher: Strange Chemistry

Publication Date: April 1, 2014

Rating: 4 stars

Source: Bought from Amazon

Summary (from Goodreads):

For those who have loved Seraphina and Graceling comes another truly fabulous fantasy...

For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the ruins of Forsaken Mountain. Time enough for their dark and nefarious magic to fade from human memory and into myth. But a prophesy has been spoken of a union with the power to set the trolls free, and when Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she learns there is far more to the myth of the trolls than she could have imagined.

Cécile has only one thing on her mind after she is brought to Trollus: escape. Only the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time, wait for the perfect opportunity.

But something unexpected happens while she’s waiting – she begins to fall for the enigmatic troll prince to whom she has been bonded and married. She begins to make friends. And she begins to see that she may be the only hope for the half-bloods – part troll, part human creatures who are slaves to the full-blooded trolls. There is a rebellion brewing. And her prince, Tristan, the future king, is its secret leader.

As Cécile becomes involved in the intricate political games of Trollus, she becomes more than a farmer’s daughter. She becomes a princess, the hope of a people, and a witch with magic powerful enough to change Trollus forever.

What I Liked:

I think this is my favorite Pili-pushed recommendation so far. For those of you who don't know, Pili (from In Love with Handmade) and I trade recommendations, and once a month, we read/review a recommended book. To read all of my Pili-pushed reviews, see the "Pili-Pushed" tag at the bottom of this post!

Cécile is kidnapped out of nowhere, by someone she wants thought a friend. The "friend" takes her to the secret home of trolls, which Cécile didn't even know existed. There, the trolls are planning her marriage to the crown prince, Tristan, so that Cécile will break a curse placed on the trolls. Cécile is married against her will - but as time goes on, Cécile falls for the prince, and makes friends with other trolls. Soon, she's caught up in the politics and deception. How can she leave when the half-bloods (half-human, half-troll) are suffering under the rule of the full-blooded trolls? How can she turn her back on her husband's secret cause? How can she not try and give so many people hope?

The beginning was a bit busy, in my opinion. The focus is Cécile's voice, her singing, and Cécile trying to fill her mother's shoes. Cécile has just completed a performance, and is really happy. And then a former friend kidnaps her and takes her to a mountain and trades her for her weight in gold. The trolls need a red-haired daughter of the sun to help break the curse. So, Cécile is now married to Tristan, and it's like hate at first sight.

To be honest, I am a HUGE fan of the hate-then-love-at-first-sight thing. It's one of my favorite romance tropes. Cécile hates Tristan because she hates the entire situation - she doesn't want to be forced to marry anyone! Tristan hates Cécile because (according to Cécile) she's human; really, that's not why he despises her. He doesn't like being bonded with anyone, and Cécile is human (i.e., very breakable). If she gets hurt, he feels it. They can feel each other's feelings. It's not Cécile's fault that she seems to feel a lot... which is annoying to Tristan.

Soooo... I loved the romance. Very slow-burn. very hate-to-love, very passionate. In the beginning, Cécile and Tristan really do not like each other. Then, they slowly understand each other better, and only pretend to antagonize each other so that people think they are not getting along. Then it comes to the point where they really care about each other, but there's that facade in the way...

I liked Cécile. She's very rash and impulsive and lives in the moment, making stupid, quick decisions that have heavy costs. However, I LIKE her. She's fiery and determined, strong-willed and protective of herself. She's a strong person and a strong character, and while I can't say I agreed with everything she did, I liked her nonetheless.

I really liked Tristan. We get Cécile AND Tristan's first-person point-of-view, though not necessarily alternating. Tristan is not who he appears to be, throughout the book. But in my opinion, he is a selfless and sweet guy, who has a lot of adult burdens that have a lot of adult consequence. Princely burdens with princely consequences. I liked his rationale better than Cécile's, when it came to making decisions. 

At first, I was apprehensive about the story - kidnapping, forced marriage, no thank you?! But the story starts to get really interesting (it was already interesting, but more in a positive way) quickly, and I especially loved watching Tristan and Cécile step around each other. Jensen weaves a complex and intricate story, pulling all the strings together at the end. The world-building is very good; this novel is fantasy, involving trolls and magic and witches and curses. I loved the uniqueness of this story, the characters, the romance.

The end... the end is the only reason why this one isn't getting five stars. I'll get to that in the next section.  Rest assured, I will definitely be reading Hidden Huntress.

What I Did Not Like:

I'm actually kind of irritated with the ending, to be honest. It's cliffhanger-esque, and it's brutal, and I wasn't very happy with it. It felt a bit cliche, and I had a feeling it was coming. That doesn't mean I have to like it (and I didn't). But that's okay...

Would I Recommend It:

Despite the ending, I would totally recommend this one! Especially to fantasy lovers. This book has been so highly recommended to me, by many, many bloggers. Many bloggers participated in the Top Ten of 2014 event during the last week of 2014, and many bloggers featured this book - multiple times during that week! I know see why.

Rating:

4 stars. More like 4.5 stars. I really, really enjoyed this book - it was so fun and engrossing to read! It didn't feel like nearly five hundred pages, to be honest!

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