Genres: YA, Fantasy, Romance, Adventure.
Sylvie grew up in the permanent twilight of the Dusklands among those who either feared her power or hated them. But she has always known that there was a place where she would belong: Coeur d’Or, the palais of the Amber Empress and her highborn legacies. But after only a short amount of time spent there, she begins to realize that all might not be as it seems and that the world she has always dreamt of may simply not exist. Among lies and plots, she must learn to master her legacy or the consequences could be dreadful.
I must admit, I had high hope going into this novel and was so excited to find it in my December Owlcrate box. From reading the synopsis alone, I knew that the book had all the ingredients to make me fall in love with it: court intrigues, magical powers, and adventure. I mean, what else could you ask for? And let me tell you, the book delivered even more than I expected. The world building was amazing. I love how certain moments (more specifically certain interactions between the characters) where foreshadowing. There are many instances in the books where the main character thinks back at something that has been said to her and suddenly realize the true meaning of it. And I loved finding out that meaning with her. It also goes to show how well tied is the intrigue and how much thought the author has put in it. In adition, I liked the romance. It was well-built and I do look forward to see how their relation evolves from here.
Now, let’s talk about the writing. The writing was absolutely beautiful. We also get so many pieces of information about the world in which the characters live in. Not in a way that overwhelms you or feels like just a list of characteristics, places and background story. Instead, it flowed perfectly into the story, making it all the more enjoyable.
As for the characters, I quite like the main character. At some point, I must admit that her entitlement was a bit annoying to me as it is a flow that I find quite annoying, whether it be in persons or in characters. However, I understood. From my point of view, that entitlement was what kept her standing through her hard years in the duskland and was part of what gave her a sense of self and the hope that she might one day finally find a place she belonged to. Also, I think that characters who are flawed are more interesting and realistic than the stereotypical perfect good maker characters so common in books and movies. It is what makes them interesting, relatable and real. I also loved the character of Sunder. He wasn’t perfect neither but I always had a soft spot for characters who have a darker past/have done terrible things but still try to do good. For some reason, I am always drowned to those characters (like Draco Malfoy and Damon Salvatore to name only those). He also made me think a lot of that quote from Demelza in Poldark « One bad thing does not outweigh the many goods. ‘Tis the balance that counts. ». And while the opposite is also true: one good thing does not outweigh the many wrongs, I do think that there is still hope for Sunder’s balance. I also felt so much empathy for him and how he undergoes his legacy and past. I think that circumstances made him do bad things, not that he is bad. Now, I know that everyone seems to like Lullaby and I would not say that I do not like her but I don’t fully trust her. I can’t explain why: it’s mostly just a feeling that I have. And this feeling didn’t go any weaker once I realized that all the legacies who have been gone (that we know of) were people close to her. It might just be me being paranoid but after all, Coeur d’Or is a place of lies, deceits, and betrayal. I guess I’ll just have to wait for the next book to see if I was right or not.
To conclude, I did really enjoy this novel and cannot wait for the next one to come out (December 3rd, 2019).
Overall rating: 4.3/5
Plot: 4.5/5 ; characters: 4/5 ; writing: 4.5/5.
This was my first time writing an actual review. I don’t know if I did it well but I guess I’ll improve with time. Please let me know in the comments what you thought of it.
hogwartsreader 