SERIES: Falling Kingdoms #1 | OTHER BOOKS IN THE SERIES: Rebel Spring #2 [Releases: 12/3/13]
AUTHOR: Morgan Rhodes [Michelle Rowen]
PUBLICATION INFORMATION: December 11th 2012 by Razorbill
EDITION: Hardcover, 412 pages
ACQUISION: Borrowed | Library
CATEGORIES: Fantasy, Young Adult, Magic, Romance, 3 Stars, Razorbill, Review, Book Club Book, Falling Kingdoms
RATING: 3.00/5.00 | GOODREADS RATING: 3.82/5.00
ADD TO GOODREADS
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: The gripping New York Times bestseller that is Game of Thrones for teens.
In a land where magic has been forgotten but peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest is simmering. Three kingdoms grapple for power—brutally transforming their subjects' lives in the process. Amidst betrayals, bargains, and battles, four young people find their fates forever intertwined:
Cleo: A princess raised in luxury must embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long thought extinct.
Jonas: Enraged at injustice, a rebel lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country impoverished—and finds himself the leader of a people's revolution centuries in the making.
Lucia: A girl adopted at birth into a royal family discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.
Magnus: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, a firstborn son begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword. . . .
The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?
MY THOUGHTS: So for our first book club
meeting, we decided to read this fantasy book by adult author Michelle Rowen,
whom I have not read before. I started this book before I left for BEA (at the
end of May) and when I got back I was so into The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken, that I never picked it back
up… until it was chosen for our book club book for July!
I am glad that I ended up finishing
it because it turned out to be pretty good.
I saw on GoodReads that someone
had referred to it as; ‘Fantasy-Lite’ and I believe I agree with that. While
definitely a fantasy, I do not think it was a high fantasy, or anywhere near the
level of Game of Thrones, which it is
compared to.
The world that Falling Kingdoms takes place in is
called Mytica. Mytica is divided into three kingdoms; Auranos, Paelsia, and
Limeros, and also The Sanctuary. While it’s told in multiple points-of-view, I
feel like Cleo, the princess of Auranos, is the main character. The book
quickly throws you in the midst of the events that set up the theme for the
rest of the story, and while there were times that I felt it moved just a
little slowly, for the most part the pacing was fine.
Since most fantasies do have
multiple narrators, I feel that this one could’ve been stronger in each
narration. While I felt I was being told a story, save for a few parts, I didn’t
feel a ton of emotion. If I want to laugh, cry, or throw a book across the room
because I’m so mad at what just happened, then I know it’s an amazing book! I
did find myself getting a little worked up at certain parts, but again, it just
didn’t wow me.
This book has a lot going on, and
I felt that the different characters didn’t have unique enough voices to really
stand out and stand apart from each other for me. I didn’t have a favorite
character, but would choose Jonas if I had to.
I also had issues with the
world-building. I got the differences in the kingdoms, and could tell what was
different between them, but I didn’t really see the world in my mind. I couldn’t
really imagine what it was completely like, and found I was hoping for just a
little more.
Overall, I did enjoy the story
for the adventure and fantasy aspects, and I will read the rest of the books
that come out in this series. I believe it has potential to get really good and
I have a feeling the characters are going to grow and change a lot in the next
book.
SIMILAR READS: Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst | The Assassin's Curse by Cassandra Rose Clarke | Venom by Fiona Paul | Poison by Bridget Zinn | The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken
Happy Reading!
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