Jay Kristoff: Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicles #1) | Lara
In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. If she bests her fellow students in contests of steel, poison and the subtle arts, she’ll be inducted among the Blades of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the vengeance she desires. But a killer is loose within the Church’s halls, the bloody secrets of Mia’s past return to haunt her, and a plot to bring down the entire congregation is unfolding in the shadows she so loves.Will she even survive to initiation, let alone have her revenge?
And never, ever forget."
I must admit I am still ashamed of myself because it took me a week to read this book. It is probably because school started and I am tired as fuck, but I need to speed up a bit. And also send your prayers because my kindle froze and Amazon promised to replace it but it will take a month so until then I have to read on my tablet which is too huge or my phone which is too small and I want to die. (plus I lost all my favorite quotes on kindle.) I'm sorry I know probably no one cares.
First of all I must pay respect to this beautiful cover *u* I just had to stop and stare at it for a while every time I saw it. And I like Mia's pants they're cool.
This book promised everything I usually like: sixteen-year-old girl determined to avenge her family, politically unstable community led by tyrant, school for assassins and super-tense but cute romance.
So what is the problem?
As I read some reviews from people who hated this book (1 star mostly) I noticed one huge objection: writing style is confusing and full of excessive purple prose.
As for me I noticed it when I first started the book and it was the only thing I didn't like. It can even be the reason it took me so long to finish this book.
This will probably sound stupid, but something I find really repulsive about is when narrator addresses the reader and 'tell the story' in second person perspective. I don't know why, but it makes me feel like a child being told a story and I can't stand it. There was a whole lot of invocations and weird introductions such as:
"I mention this by way of warning,
O, my gentlefriends, that your narrator shares no such restraint. And if the unpleasant realities of bloodshed turn your insides to water, be advised now that the pages in your hands speak of a girl who was to murder as maestros are to music. Who did to happy ever afters what a sawblade does to skin."
I usually don't have a problem with reading purple prose, on contrary I enjoy it, but this was too much. Sometimes there was just so many excessive metaphors and descriptions that I had to skip whole paragraphs. Not to mention the all-consuming want to dig my eyes out every time I saw the words ''O, gentlefriends" -.-
Just why? Is it necessary? Does it make story more enjoyable to read? Nope. It is annoying and confusing.
"Tric gave another half-hearted stab, but the beast had forgotten its quarry entirely, great eyes rolling as it flipped over and over, dragging its bulk back below the sand,howling like a dog who's just returned home from a hard turn's work to find another hound in his kennel, smoking his cigarillos and in bed with his wife."
^What?
After my rant about writing it's time to see how much I loved this book.
Mia Corvere just knows how to make me happy. Driven by revenge and full of bitterness she has only one goal: to kill people responsible for death of her familia.
We get know her slowly trough retrospectives and her development is really amazing. She is really strong and determined, ruthless, but kind in the same time. Her character was so interesting because she did some terrible, ruthless things that could or could not be justified by her standards, but she also cared for her friends and protected them despite the fact they were her competition.
But in the place filled with merciless assassins where every mistake means death, there is no place for pity or mercy. The moment I realised just how much I love Mia was *minor spoiler* when she refused to kill that innocent kid at the end of her initiation. Just the fact that she refused to kill innocent no matter the cost, and let's not forget becoming Blade was everything to her.
Just why? Is it necessary? Does it make story more enjoyable to read? Nope. It is annoying and confusing.
"Tric gave another half-hearted stab, but the beast had forgotten its quarry entirely, great eyes rolling as it flipped over and over, dragging its bulk back below the sand,howling like a dog who's just returned home from a hard turn's work to find another hound in his kennel, smoking his cigarillos and in bed with his wife."
^What?
After my rant about writing it's time to see how much I loved this book.
Mia Corvere just knows how to make me happy. Driven by revenge and full of bitterness she has only one goal: to kill people responsible for death of her familia.
“You’ll be a rumor. A whisper. The thought that wakes the bastards of this world sweating in the nevernight. The last thing you will ever be in this world, girl, is someone’s hero.”
We get know her slowly trough retrospectives and her development is really amazing. She is really strong and determined, ruthless, but kind in the same time. Her character was so interesting because she did some terrible, ruthless things that could or could not be justified by her standards, but she also cared for her friends and protected them despite the fact they were her competition.
Iron or glass?, they’d asked.
Mia clenched her jaw.
Shook her head.
She was neither.
She was steel.
But in the place filled with merciless assassins where every mistake means death, there is no place for pity or mercy. The moment I realised just how much I love Mia was *minor spoiler* when she refused to kill that innocent kid at the end of her initiation. Just the fact that she refused to kill innocent no matter the cost, and let's not forget becoming Blade was everything to her.
“O, Goddess,” she breathed. “I’m so sorry, Hush.”
'you see?'
The boy’s lips twisted in what might have been a smile.
'you don’t belong here'
When I started reading it I found Mia anti-hero-ish, but in the end her motives weren't entirely selfish and she ended up *spoilerish*
World building is exceptional, the Darkin and Mia's ability to control dark reminded me of The Young Elites. I really like that Mia is determined to find out everything about her power, because I recently read some books where authors tend to forget (khm Red Queen) to explain important stuff like origin of mc's special abilities. Niah's school for assassins reminded me of Hogwarts which made reading about it more fun.
The wolf does not pity the lamb. The storm begs no forgiveness of the drowned.
Plot was intense and really fun to read. Although I knew something else should happen beside Mia graduating I wouldn't mind if it ended with them becoming Blades because it was interesting enough with so many twists and surprises.
Spoiler for ending in last paragraph:
AshLiNn why did you doooo that? I hate it because I loved Ash so much. I want her perspective and I want to see her reunion with Mia I don't care if they betrayed each other
And Tric isn't dead I am 100% sure
I liked that romance had no influence over the plot, but it was still developed enough. If you like nice and handsome with tragic backstory, mixed with a lot of denying feelings and some smut this would be just right for you. Mia obviously cared for Tric the whole time and I thought all that pushing away and will-they-won't-they drama will annoy me, but it didn't. They both had demons to fight and it was paced just perfectly.
So would I recommend this book? Definitely.
If you love this type of writing or you can ignore such things I wholeheartedly recommend you to pick up Nevernight.
Or you can delay reading and come back later for it because Darkdawn isn't out for another year...
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