The cover is stunning. The description and beginning of the book caught my attention and made me interested in the story, but that soon waned as it took so long to get to any action in the book. The main plot point of the story, Jaren ending up in Endla, didn’t take place until almost a third of the way through the book. I just found the pace to be too slow for me. I was just bored waiting for something to happen. Their were hints that things weren’t as they seemed, but honestly even their reveal didn’t surprise me much. There was nothing special about this book.
The characters were one-dimensional, and the main character was a Mary Sue for sure, which doesn’t usually bother me, but Jaren mentioned so many times how “special” she was and how she was different from anyone else, that it was a little over the top.
The atmosphere was the best part about this book. The descriptions of the Endlan rites and the blood-thirsty forest were creepy. The poisonous lake added an extra component that you don’t usually see in “dark, dangerous forest” stories. I liked how it made it difficult for the outsiders to come but also trapped the Endlans as well.
The plot sounded interesting, but the execution just fell flat. I wanted more mystery and more action.
**Thank you to BookishFirst and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed within are my own***
The characters were one-dimensional, and the main character was a Mary Sue for sure, which doesn’t usually bother me, but Jaren mentioned so many times how “special” she was and how she was different from anyone else, that it was a little over the top.
The atmosphere was the best part about this book. The descriptions of the Endlan rites and the blood-thirsty forest were creepy. The poisonous lake added an extra component that you don’t usually see in “dark, dangerous forest” stories. I liked how it made it difficult for the outsiders to come but also trapped the Endlans as well.
The plot sounded interesting, but the execution just fell flat. I wanted more mystery and more action.
**Thank you to BookishFirst and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All opinions expressed within are my own***