Review:
I have a full 1,000+ word review written out for this book, but I definitely don't want to overwhelm anyone during this tour. Firstly: all of my thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours, Labyrinth Road, and Penguin Random House for allowing me to take part in this tour! It is truly an honor! Make sure to check out the other tour stops and see what else the hosts have to say! Secondly: if you've been following me since last year you might remember my obsession with the first book in this series. I am no less obsessed with this book! Thirdly: while I love this book deeply, it does contain triggering content so I strongly recommend checking the content warnings before reading.
I find Esme to be a very strong writer but I think where she truly excels is in her writing of the main characters. Callie, Elowen, Willow, and Edwyn are some of the most three-dimensional characters that I've ever met in a fantasy novel! They all have intricacies that allow them to work together but also cause them to argue at times. They're struggling from the traumas they have been through, but they also want to help the others through their struggles. These characters are brilliant and I adore them with every part of my heart.
Esme also does a really, really good job at exploring the intricacies in this world. The many sides of a war and the truths that aren't always the truths. The people who are caught in the crossfire and suffer the most. The people who wind other's around their fingers to get the results they want. This is a tough topic to approach, especially in a middle-grade novel, but I think they do a very good job.
The settings in this book are also amazing, even if they aren't positive settings! Helston is written wonderfully and the Dragon's Roost is something that I would love to see illustrations of. I'm pretty sure I said it after the first book and I'll say it again: I really want a movie or TV show to be made from these books.
The emotional hold that this book and the first book have on me is indelible! I have such a deep love for these books and such an earnest admiration for Esme that it's hard to be matched. I am eagerly anticipating the third book, especially after how this book ended.
I have a full 1,000+ word review written out for this book, but I definitely don't want to overwhelm anyone during this tour. Firstly: all of my thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours, Labyrinth Road, and Penguin Random House for allowing me to take part in this tour! It is truly an honor! Make sure to check out the other tour stops and see what else the hosts have to say! Secondly: if you've been following me since last year you might remember my obsession with the first book in this series. I am no less obsessed with this book! Thirdly: while I love this book deeply, it does contain triggering content so I strongly recommend checking the content warnings before reading.
I find Esme to be a very strong writer but I think where she truly excels is in her writing of the main characters. Callie, Elowen, Willow, and Edwyn are some of the most three-dimensional characters that I've ever met in a fantasy novel! They all have intricacies that allow them to work together but also cause them to argue at times. They're struggling from the traumas they have been through, but they also want to help the others through their struggles. These characters are brilliant and I adore them with every part of my heart.
Esme also does a really, really good job at exploring the intricacies in this world. The many sides of a war and the truths that aren't always the truths. The people who are caught in the crossfire and suffer the most. The people who wind other's around their fingers to get the results they want. This is a tough topic to approach, especially in a middle-grade novel, but I think they do a very good job.
The settings in this book are also amazing, even if they aren't positive settings! Helston is written wonderfully and the Dragon's Roost is something that I would love to see illustrations of. I'm pretty sure I said it after the first book and I'll say it again: I really want a movie or TV show to be made from these books.
The emotional hold that this book and the first book have on me is indelible! I have such a deep love for these books and such an earnest admiration for Esme that it's hard to be matched. I am eagerly anticipating the third book, especially after how this book ended.
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Synopsis:
The battle is won, but the war is far from over. In this thrilling sequel, a twelve-year-old nonbinary hopeful knight fights for the heart of their kingdom in a magical medieval world filled with dragons, shape-shifters, and witches.
Thanks to Callie and their friends, Helston seems to be changing for the better: Boys are allowed to explore their magic, and girls are permitted to train as warriors. Callie is an official Helston page, Willow in on track to become king, and Elowen and Edwyn are finally safe and free of their father. Everything is...perfect.
Except it isn’t.
Not in Helston, where every step forward is accompanied by a storm of opposition. Even Queen Ewella and Sir Nick are struggling against the wave of fear and anti-magical sentiment growing daily, while the encroaching threat from across the bridge looms.
Callie isn’t foolish; they notice the suspicious glances thrown Neal’s way and hear the doubtful murmurs following Willow. They know what people think about them, too. Tolerance is not the same as acceptance, and when the fragile peace finally shatters, Callie and their friends have no choice but to leave their home and run.
On the other side of the bridge, old secrets are revealed and new allegiances are formed that will throw into question everything Callie thought they knew about their world. Including what it means to be a hero.
The battle is won, but the war is far from over. In this thrilling sequel, a twelve-year-old nonbinary hopeful knight fights for the heart of their kingdom in a magical medieval world filled with dragons, shape-shifters, and witches.
Thanks to Callie and their friends, Helston seems to be changing for the better: Boys are allowed to explore their magic, and girls are permitted to train as warriors. Callie is an official Helston page, Willow in on track to become king, and Elowen and Edwyn are finally safe and free of their father. Everything is...perfect.
Except it isn’t.
Not in Helston, where every step forward is accompanied by a storm of opposition. Even Queen Ewella and Sir Nick are struggling against the wave of fear and anti-magical sentiment growing daily, while the encroaching threat from across the bridge looms.
Callie isn’t foolish; they notice the suspicious glances thrown Neal’s way and hear the doubtful murmurs following Willow. They know what people think about them, too. Tolerance is not the same as acceptance, and when the fragile peace finally shatters, Callie and their friends have no choice but to leave their home and run.
On the other side of the bridge, old secrets are revealed and new allegiances are formed that will throw into question everything Callie thought they knew about their world. Including what it means to be a hero.
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