Hi everyone!
As you all know, I’m a reviewer for the website Reedsy Discovery. It’s been a hot minute since I reviewed a book for them, but I was browsing their titles and saw this one and couldn’t pass it up. The title, cover, and synopsis just called to me, so I decided to review it.
You can find my original review for this on the Reedsy Discovery site here.
Eleven years ago, Yulsan soldiers invaded the kingdom of Crieda, killed countless of its citizens, and enslaved the rest. Now, Reina is held in Den Zei, an encampment in Yulsa, whilst Malyssandra is a maid in the palace. Reina has survived eleven years of torture and pain, and now she has discovered a power within herself that she has to make a decision about: should she keep it secret, or let herself be free?
Malyssandra has worked as a maid within the palace in Yulsa this entire time. She has put her head down and done her job just to get through it all. However, when she hears of the king’s plans to trade slaves for an army, she is thrown into a life she’s never imagined.
Reina’s and Malyssandra’s lives are forever changed – not only because of the king’s plans, but also because a dark shadow figure has started appearing to both of them. They have to figure out what it is and what it wants fast – or risk losing it all.
When I first saw Of Chains and Shadows on the website, I was inexplicably drawn to it. I don’t know what it was, but the cover and the synopsis just called to me, and I knew I had to read it. I’m so glad I did!
Lauren Duell’s writing was incredible. Her writing style, paired with the development and plot, made this book so enjoyable. I loved every minute, and I could not put this book down. It just kept getting better and better!
This book had me hooked from the beginning. It held my attention the entire time, and I was highly intrigued to find out what happens in each chapter. I had such a hard time putting it down because I needed to know what happened next.
The world building and history of the kingdoms within this novel was very well done. It gave enough information without feeling like an info dump, but it also was not underdeveloped. I felt like I had a good sense of what had happened to the kingdoms and people within this novel.
I think the magic and gods aspect of this novel was well written. It was thought out and made the story so interesting, especially throughout the second half of the novel.
The characters were fantastic! I absolutely loved Reina and Malyssandra. They had such great character arcs and I was excited to get to both of their perspectives. Their character development was well written, and I loved it.
The only gripe I had was that I wish there was a little more time between the two characters who had a romance. I definitely felt the vibes going on between them, and honestly, I was completely there for it! Even though I was happy when it occurred, I think it could have held off for just a bit longer. Drag out that tension a little more.
I also really liked that this plot was fast paced! Some fantasy novels, even though they are good, they tend to drag on. This was a quicker read, and it definitely felt right.
Overall, Of Chains and Shadows was such a fantastic read. I loved every minute of it, and I am highly anticipating the sequel! I would definitely recommend this!
I rated this 4.5 stars.
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