Blood and Moonlight is the story of a young woman named Catrin (or Cat, for short), who finds herself embroiled in the investigation into a local serial killer terrorizing young women of the night. Beyond what is already said in the synopsis, I'm not sure how much more I can say without giving away the plot of the book. This story is full of suspense, intrigue, and a cast of characters for the reader to cast suspicion on. But, it is also a story of magic, needless discrimination, and the stigma of mental illness. It is a fun, thrilling read that packs an emotional punch from time to time.
What I Liked:
- As someone who has read voraciously, sometimes these sorts of murder mystery plots can feel predictable and old hat. Though I did predict who the killer was by about the mid-way point of the book, I was not absolutely sure of my suspicion until close to the end.
- The world building was well done. I felt like I had a good sense not just of the city in which the events of the story take place, but of the world directly around it, despite not traveling there.
- The characters all felt distinct and fleshed out. Though we only see the POV of our main character Catrin, the other character's motivations shine through. It was not hard to keep up with the cast because their personalities were distinctive.
- The themes resonated with me personally. Even if there were a passage or two in which the main character may have hit the thematic nail too on the head a little hard, it was still a worthwhile discussion of how we judge others who are not like us.
What I Didn't Like:
-The only "flaw" I saw with this book is what felt like a rather large info dump about the magic system about two thirds of the way through the story. It was not so much the way the information was dumped in (the main character was set up with very little other rational ways to get this information, which was necessary to further the plot), but the timing. The action of the story was propelling forward at a great pace at this point, but this pause to go over the intricacies of the magic system for pages at a time interrupted that momentum.
All in all, this was a fun read with a great heart. If Tower of Dawn was your favorite book in the Throne of Glass series, this is a book for you. If you like a little mystery with your fantasy or vice-a-versa, pick this one up.
<3
What I Liked:
- As someone who has read voraciously, sometimes these sorts of murder mystery plots can feel predictable and old hat. Though I did predict who the killer was by about the mid-way point of the book, I was not absolutely sure of my suspicion until close to the end.
- The world building was well done. I felt like I had a good sense not just of the city in which the events of the story take place, but of the world directly around it, despite not traveling there.
- The characters all felt distinct and fleshed out. Though we only see the POV of our main character Catrin, the other character's motivations shine through. It was not hard to keep up with the cast because their personalities were distinctive.
- The themes resonated with me personally. Even if there were a passage or two in which the main character may have hit the thematic nail too on the head a little hard, it was still a worthwhile discussion of how we judge others who are not like us.
What I Didn't Like:
-The only "flaw" I saw with this book is what felt like a rather large info dump about the magic system about two thirds of the way through the story. It was not so much the way the information was dumped in (the main character was set up with very little other rational ways to get this information, which was necessary to further the plot), but the timing. The action of the story was propelling forward at a great pace at this point, but this pause to go over the intricacies of the magic system for pages at a time interrupted that momentum.
All in all, this was a fun read with a great heart. If Tower of Dawn was your favorite book in the Throne of Glass series, this is a book for you. If you like a little mystery with your fantasy or vice-a-versa, pick this one up.
<3