Mortal Heart, Robin LaFevers

After enjoying the first two books, I expected quite a bit from Mortal Heart. I love the way the series uses history and blends it with myth and fantasy elements; I enjoy the way that it takes a unique look at the figure of Death and what, in fact, the god of death might be like. The first two books have shown us two aspects of Mortain, in the form of women called to serve him. This book shows us another, and perhaps the most intimate yet.

I was enjoying this a lot until the point where a certain reveal is made, and then it just felt… over the top, out of nowhere. It just didn’t feel like it fit. I mean, we know it’s a world where gods are real and their presence is felt, but… to this degree? I shouldn’t say too much about it for fear of spoilers, but that aspect definitely made this my least favourite of the trilogy, despite Annith being an interesting character.

This book also deals with the issues of the Abbess and what exactly is going on there — why she’s doing what she is, why she doesn’t seem to be serving Mortain (as the heroines of the previous two books rightly felt), and it also solidifies some of the connections between characters, and shows us them anew. It even manages to humanise the Abbess, a little, which is hard going with her actions in this book and the previous two.

Overall, I think this was the weakest of the trilogy, because that reveal jars and because I think I prefer Ismae and Sybella as characters. But it was still entertaining and hard to put down.

Rating: 3/5

Cruel Beauty, Rosamund Hodges

There were some aspects of this Beauty and the Beast reworking I found really interesting — mostly, the Greek mythology that was mixed in. It didn’t feel like a typical woodsy-castle-y faux-medieval-y setting, which was refreshing, and the references to the Kindly Ones — aka the Furies — worked pretty well for me. The complex relationship between Nyx and her sister was actually kind of interesting too; it’s not straightforward, because everything is not as it first appears, and neither of them are honest to each other.

But otherwise, there were a lot of aspects of this I just couldn’t get into. Both the relationships the main character had just felt off, despite the attempt to show a dichotomy between the two where one, to borrow Tolkien’s phrasing, ‘looks foul and feels fair’ and vice versa (except mostly acts/feels; they’re both handsome, as I recall). The romance tends to the insta-love trope, and given that Ignifex never makes himself really pleasant (unlike, say, T. Kingfisher’s Beast in Bryony and Roses).

There are some interesting aspects, as I said, but looking back at it as I write this somewhat belated review, it definitely never came together for me, and it didn’t really become memorable either.

Rating: 2/5

The Sin Eater’s Daughter, Melinda Salisbury

The cover for this book is just gorgeous, and between that and the first chapter, it really drew me in. There are some interesting concepts and politics, actually: I was worried from some of the reviews that it really wouldn’t hit that mark, but the way the queen uses the people around her, even her son, does actually manage to hit some interesting notes. There are a couple of twists I wasn’t really expecting, but in that way where they made sense when they happened, so kudos on that.

Overall, though, thinking about it now, it feels rather thin. I liked the concept of Twylla’s power and was quite prepared for it to be real; the way the plot plays out is actually a little disappointing, since the original idea is so tantalising. It’s also pretty heavy on the romance, and though there are one or two good scenes, mostly I wasn’t that taken with it. The title is disappointing, too; Twylla might be the sin-eater’s daughter, but that’s not really important to the plot, doesn’t really mean anything in the grand scheme of things. A lot of what I found interesting — like the sin eating — was background, or not real, while the elements I was least interested in were focused on.

Enjoyable enough, but not something I’m desperate to read more of. I’m glad I haven’t already picked up The Sleeping Prince; I might in the end, but not immediately.

Rating: 3/5