Rating: 2.5 hoots out of 5 hoots
Published: May 5 2020
Number of pages: 464
Format: electronic advanced reading copy
Publisher: Tor Teen
Genre: fantasy, romance
Audience: young adult
Get it at: Chapters Indigo
Shelve it at: Goodreads
Summary:
Lydia is a scholar who finds herself tangled up in the plots of the most powerful man in the Calendar Empire. With her life in danger she escapes to the far side of the Endless Seas and is entrapped in a foreign war. Killian is marked by the God of War but his gifts fail him after the Corrupter invades Mudamora. Disgraced, he vows his sword to the crown princess but his oath and loyalty are put into a test. After Mudamora falls beneath the armies of the Corruptor, Lydia and Killian strike a bargain to save those they love the most until there are consequences they both must face to survive.
My Review:
An electronic advanced reading copy was given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Funny story, I didn’t know this was a sequel in a series, I honestly thought this was a standalone. I was very surprised to have found this out after I received the electronic ARC! I wasn’t sure what to do as I only had 60 days to read the ARC, and with my job I wasn’t sure I could start and finish the first book on time. Plus the libraries are closed so that didn’t give me a lot of options. I decided to just dive right into Dark Skies and review it as it is without any knowledge about the first book. So here goes my review.
The story is split into two character perspectives: Lydia and Killian. Lydia, is an adoptive daughter of the Senator. She goes through an amazing character development, from a sheltered daughter of a politician, to a runaway, and then trains to be a fighter in a foreign land after being Marked by a god. I found her transformation quite interesting as Lydia quickly learns how to survive out on her own after escaping a near death. Most of the things she learns are from books, but Lydia starts to learn from other people’s experiences after gaining an amount of trust from them.
Killian’s story was more interesting then Lydia’s. I mean I love a good badass girl character but reading how Killian tries to undo his mistake by protecting and putting all his trust on the crown princess, only to be tangled up in politics and power dynamics was intriguing. Although I was little lost with the politics that were going on in this world. Understandable as I didn’t read the first book (eeep). A lot goes on in terms of political interests and new alliances formed especially during a time of war when the enemy starts to invade an entire kingdom. Meanwhile you’ve got family politics which is messier. Killian tries to do everything in his power to help the crown princess until his older brother appears and messes things up for him.
There is some romance but it doesn’t take up too much of the story. Before that there were some hints of chemistry between the characters that slowly builds up with the two of them realizing their feelings for each other. But it’s not insta-love which is a relief. Reading Lydia and Killian’s story and how their character developments revolve around the power struggles within the family houses, kind of reminded me of the political games in Game of Thrones. It took me awhile to really get into the story and there were moments when I didn’t care much about what was happening. Overall I thought this was ok although I’m still not sure if I want to continue the series after reading the first book.
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