THE FATE OF THE TEARLING by Erika Johansen

Rating: A+
Synopsis:
In less than a year, Kelsea Glynn has grown from an awkward teenager into a powerful monarch and a visionary leader.

And as she has come into her own as the Queen of the Tearling, she has transformed her realm. But in her quest to end corruption and restore justice, she has made many enemies - chief among them the evil and feared Red Queen, who ordered the armies of Mortmesne to march against the Tear and crush them.

To protect her people from such a devastating invasion, Kelsea did the unthinkable - naming the Mace, the trusted head of her personal guards, Regent in her place, she surrendered herself and her magical sapphires to her enemy. But the Mace will not rest until he and his men rescue their sovereign from her prison in Mortmesne.

So, the endgame has begun and the fate of Queen Kelsea - and the Tearling itself - will be revealed...

With The Fate of the Tearling, Erika Johansen draws her unforgettable story full of magic and adventure to a thrilling close.

My thoughts on the book:
I finished this book a few hours ago, and I'm still stunned. The only way to describe what I'm feeling is mindblown. This novel took me on one hell of a rollercoaster ride, and the ending surprised me. It was a satisfying ending, but wow did it have some hard learned lessons in it. This story was exactly what I needed to read at this point in my life, but I just have so many things spinning around in my head because of it that this review may not make much sense. In short, this is the best fantasy trilogy I've ever read. 

Johansen managed to seamlessly pull off the free indirect discourse point-of-view; I haven't seen someone wield a pen (so to speak) so well since Emma by Jane Austen. I was 100% invested in all the characters, and while I had my favorites, I loved learning so much about each character that we followed throughout the series. Kelsea really impressed me. Her strength was admirable, and her willingness to sacrifice was inspiring. Katie was a fascinating character, one who was also very smart and strong. The narration style varied with each character, which was very well-done on the author's part. The Mace's narration left some mysteries about him because, just like the man, the narration was closed off. Everything about the narrative was flawless. 

It's clear from how much I enjoyed the narration that I felt that the writing was extremely well-done. I haven't read many books that had such a plethora of "big words." Johansen assumes her readers are intelligent, and I enjoyed her descriptions much more because of the vivid language she used. The Tearling and Mort both came alive on the page, and each area had an energy about it that was palpable as I turned the pages. I felt like I was along on the journey with Kelsea and crew, and that made me fully engrossed for the whole 500 pages. The plot twist and the ending shocked me. I mean I was expecting some of it, but how everything ended up really surprised me, and the message that was clear at the end was heartbreakingly beautiful. This book left me feeling inspired, and that doesn't happen often anymore. 

Overall, I'd recommend this book and trilogy to anyone who is looking for something a bit different in the fantasy realm. This is no run-of-the-mill fantasy novel. This series will make you think and evaluate your own life, and that's a good thing. Well done, Ms. Johansen. 

The Hangman in the Mirror by Kate Cayley

The Hangman in the Mirror
Kate Cayley

Grade: C-


Description from goodreads.com:

Françoise Laurent has never had an easy life. The only surviving child of a destitute washerwoman and wayward soldier, she must rely only on herself to get by. When her parents die suddenly from the smallpox ravishing New France, Françoise sees it as a chance to escape the life she thought she was trapped in.

Seizing her newfound opportunity, Françoise takes a job as an aide to the wife of a wealthy fur trader. The poverty-ridden world she knew transforms into a strange new world full of privilege and fine things -- and of never having to beg for food. But Françoise's relationships with the other servants in Madame Pommereau's house are tenuous, and Madame Pommereau isn't an easy woman to work for. When Françoise is caught stealing a pair of her mistress's beautiful gloves, she faces a future even worse than she could have imagined: thrown in jail, she is sentenced to death by hanging. Once again, Françoise is left to her own devices to survive . . . Is she cunning enough to convince the prisoner in the cell beside her to become the hangman and marry her, which, by law, is the only thing that could save her life?

Based on an actual story and filled with illuminating historical detail, The Hangman in the Mirror transports readers to the harsh landscape of a new land that is filled with even harsher class divisions and injustices.

My thoughts on the book:

Let me just start out by saying that I love the cover, and the synopsis sounded interesting. I love historical fiction, and it's obvious that Cayley did her research. However, none of the characters were likable, and I down right hated Francoise. She is manipulative and brash, not to mention delusional. She wanted to become a lady, so once she was a servant, she began to act like one. That blew my mind. In that time period, that just did not happen. She should know that since she lived in that period. She treated those around her horribly and simply used everyone to try and make her way. 

The research aspect was spot on. The quality if living for Francoise's family, and later her rich employer, were both true to life. I also like that this book didn't follow an aristocrat like many historical fiction books do. This novel told the story of an incredibly impoverished girl trying to make her life better, and if she had been the least bit likable, I would have respected and rooted for her. However, by the end of the novel, I was wanting her to hang. The only thing that saved this book from a D or F rating is the fact that Cayley is a talented writer and it's obvious that she did a lot of research for this project. Her language was fitting to the time period and wasn't overly modern. It takes me out of the story when someone uses modern colloquialisms in a period piece, so I'm glad Cayley didn't do that. 

Writing style aside, I'm a big character person, so the fact that I couldn't relate to, or like, Francoise made it impossible for me to enjoy this book. I would have much preferred someone who was a nice, caring character, and had just been dealt a rough hand. That would have made for a better story, in my opinion. Her parents were horrible as well. Her mother was an ex-prostitute and a drunk, and her father was a gambling drunk. The rest of the secondary characters didn't even feel like people. Just two-dimensional stereotypes. The only character that was tolerable was Jean, and I feel like he's an idiot because he believed Francoise and chose to marry and save her. I would have liked to have seen more of Jean because he's not even in the book really until halfway through. 

If you're not a big character person, or if you like your main characters INCREDIBLY flawed, then you'll adore this book. It's not lacking with writing style or research. The characters just got under my skin, which made me not enjoy the novel as much as I could have. I would read another piece by Cayley, however, because she is a fantastic writer. 

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