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Master of Restless Shadows

Book Review of Master of Restless Shadows, by Ginn Hale

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I received an copy of Master of Restless Shadows, by Ginn Hale, through Netgalley.

Description from Goodreads:

Freshly graduated Master Physician Narsi Lif-Tahm has left his home in Anacleto and journeyed to the imposing royal capitol of Cieloalta intent upon keeping the youthful oath he made to a troubled writer. But in the decade since Narsi gave his pledge, Atreau Vediya, has grown from an anonymous delinquent to a man renowned for penning bawdy operas and engaging in scandalous affairs. 

What Narsi―and most of the larger world―cannot know is the secret role Atreau plays as spymaster for the Duke of Rauma. 

After the Cadeleonian royal bishop launches an unprovoked attack against the witches in neighboring Labara, Atreau will require every resource he can lay his hands upon to avert a war. A physician is exactly what he needs. But with a relentless assassin hunting the city and ancient magic waking, Atreau fears that his actions could cost more than his own honor. The price of peace could be his friends’ lives. 


Review:

I’m really torn about how to review this book. I finished it really enjoying it and wanting to know more about what happens. But I didn’t really start to feel that way until about 75% into the book. And I’ve read BOTH of the duologies that precede it. The problem is that I haven’t read them recently and this book didn’t give me enough recap to remember the kind of small details it requires to really feel invested in the plot, and the first 3/4 of the book depends on those previous books. If you have not read the Lord of the White Hell and Champion of the Scarlet Wolf series (and read them recently) I would strongly discourage you from picking this one up. Because, as I said, even having read them I felt like I was fumbling along. 

Having said all of that, I did enjoy Hale’s writing style. I was rooting for both of the romantic pairings (the secondary one especially), though romance is definitely not the plot’s primary focus. And I do still appreciate the world Hale has created here. 

No doubt I will pick the next book up. I was just a bit disappointed to not love this one more.

Book Review of Champion of the Scarlet Wolf, by Ginn Hale

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Champion of the Scarlet Wold, 1Well, I am just gobbling up all the Ginn Hale books I can get my grubby little hands on. This time it was Champion of the Scarlet Wolf (book 1 & 2). I borrowed them from the library.

Description of book one:
Five years after abandoning the Sagrada Acedemy (Lord of the White Hell universe), Elezar Grunito has become infamous in the sanctified circles of noble dueling rings for his brutal temper and lethal blade. Men and women of all ranks gather to cheer and jeer, none of them knowing Elezar’s true purpose. But a violent death outside the ring marks Elezar as a wanted man and sends him into hiding in the far northern wilds of Labara.

There, creatures of myth and witchcraft—long since driven from Cadeleon—lurk in dark woods and prowl the winding streets. Soldiers and priests alike fear the return of witch-queens and even demons. Elezar soon learns that magic takes many forms, some too alluring to resist, others too terrible to endure. But just as he begins to find his place in this strange new country, the past he left behind along with his school days returns to challenge him once again.

Review:
A really quite marvelous read. Yes, there were some copy edit issues that really surprised me and yes, I cringed at the cliché use of the scorned woman going bad (seriously authors, women do have other motivations in life than men), but mostly I really quite enjoyed this.

I found Elezar’s tarnished honor and torn desires created a complex hero and I thought that Skellan, as a wholly under-estimated badass, was endearing. Their slow burn relationship was a pleasure and the Grimma/witches was an interesting culture.

However, though it was fun to see Javier and Kiram again, I admit they didn’t seem to add much to the plot and I thought Elezar and Skellan deserved the stage to themselves. But maybe J & K will become more important in book 2. Lastly, I thought that the villain was defeated too easily. Not in the sense that it was an easy thing to do or without sacrifice, but that the understanding of what to do and actually doing it seemed to come out of nowhere and be accomplished in a very short, almost anti-climatic amount of time.

So, I had complaints, but mostly I enjoyed then and can’t wait to jump into book two.

Champion of the Scarlet Wolf, 2Description of book two:
Skellan meant to save his city and avenge the woman who raised him. Instead he’s plunged his country into war and shaken their delicate alliance with the great nation of Cadeleon. 

Now only he and his crumbling city stand between an army of old gods and the world of mortal folk. But even as Skellan raises the city’s wards he struggles to unify the disparate defenders of Milmuraille. 

Though he promises his friends that neither political machinations nor magical power will ever undermine his ideals, the merciless reality of battling gods soon threatens to claim all he hopes to save.

Review:
I am so happy to have discovered Ginn Hale. Wow. This wrapped the series up nicely (though I could see some of the other Hellions maybe getting a book or two). I have very few complaints. I adored Skellen and Elezar as much, if not more, than I did in book one. I liked the world, the side characters, the writing, pretty much all of it.

I did think it felt overly long, like the middle dragged a bit. As with the other three books by Hale that I’ve read, the editing is surprisingly problematic. There aren’t a ton, but everything is so well done that I just don’t expect to stumble across copy edit mistakes. And I thought the ending a bit abrupt. Both in the sense that the final danger was quickly overcome and in the sense that after the climactic battle we’re given very little winding down of the story. But despite my grumbles I’ll be looking for more of Hale’s writing for sure.

Book Review of Lord of the White Hell, by Ginn Hale

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I went to library and checked out Lord of the White Hell 1 & 2, by Ginn Hale.

Lord of the White Hell 1Description from Goodreads:
Kiram Kir-Zaki may be considered a mechanist prodigy among his own people, but when he becomes the first Haldiim ever admitted to the prestigious Sagrada Academy, he is thrown into a world where power, superstition and swordplay outweigh even the most scholarly of achievements.

But when the intimidation from his Cadeleonian classmates turns bloody, Kiram unexpectedly finds himself befriended by Javier Tornesal, the leader of a group of cardsharps, duelists and lotharios who call themselves Hellions. 
However Javier is a dangerous friend to have. Wielder of the White Hell and sole heir of a dukedom, he is surrounded by rumors of forbidden seductions, murder and damnation. His enemies are many and any one of his secrets could not only end his life but Kiram’s as well.

Review:
What can I say, I liked it but I didn’t love it? The things I liked I liked a lot though. I liked the characters. I thought they were well rounded and engaging, even the side characters. Nestor and Fedeles struck me particularly. I liked Kiram’s tendency to speak his mind and Javier’s attempt to respect that, while still flirting. I liked the world and the setting. I liked the writing. It’s fairly simplistic, but the dialogue flowed well.

The things I didn’t like are a little less about the broad strokes though. I disliked the slow pace of the plot. If I’m honest, this is probably more a case of expecting more than the book ever intended to deliver in this department. It is largely a story about boys in a boarding school, with a little time dedicated to a larger conspiracy and I was looking forward to a bit more of a sweeping adventure. I disliked how the book ended. I understand what Hale did with the brothel scene, not only forcing Karim to acknowledge the reality of loving a man in such a repressive culture, but also the understanding of the other characters’ limited window to express affection. But I disliked it. I disliked that there are no women in the book, a couple mothers and whores are referenced but there are no female characters. I also thought the editing of the second half of the book started to falter.

I have book two and I’ll be reading it. But the series has lost a little of the luster it held when I was first starting out. Hopefully I can regain it.

Lord of the White Hell 2Description from Goodreads:

Kiram fought his family and Cadeleonian bigots to remain in the Sagrada Academy to prove himself as a mechanist and to dispel the deadly shadow curse that threatens to destroy his upperclassman, Javier Tornesal.

But when his efforts provoke retaliation, Kiram’s family and home are endangered. Both Kiram and Javier risk everything in a desperate gambit to combat the curse.

But they never imagined their battle would come so soon, or that it would be led by the one person they trust most of all.

Review:
I enjoyed this second book more than I did the first. In it I felt Javier and Kiram’s personalities came through more strongly and there was the action I was looking for in book one. I especially appreciated the way Javier is written as the sort of can-do-anything hero commonly seen in M/M but we’re also given his vulnerable, desperate side.

I was a little disappointed that the villain was so obvious. The foreshadowing for that particular twist started about 2/3 of the way through the last book. (I’m just hoping the reader was supposed to know, even if the characters didn’t.) And his defeat seemed a bit abrupt. I only have two other complaints. There are a few convenient saves in the plot, people who just happen to be in the right place to discover just the right thing to save the day. Also, Javier never fully acknowledged why Kiram pulled away from him in book one (the Brothel scene) even after he came to understand adari in Kiram’s culture and showed his own jealousies.

For the most part I ended this book quite happy. I’ll be looking for more of Hale’s writing.