Book: Heaven's Tempest by K.J. West
Reviewed by Halliday in the Books
Rating: 3.5/5
Willow and her sister Nyadwynn live alone, deep in the mountains. They are the last of their kind. Since they were born sharing a body, this makes them the singular last remaining himmel: an enormous, serpentine dragon with powers over the wind. They still have access to all the ancestral memories passed down over generations. Therefore Willow can remember a time when himmels would bond with a race of humans who no longer exist. She and her sister are doomed to be forever alone, and have decided to prefer it that way.
Then, they are captured in an ambush, and separated through malevolent powers. Willow wakes up in a humanoid shape, her sister still imprisoned. She has no hope of undertaking a rescue on her own while injured and in a body she hasn’t learned how to use. One of the very hunters who captured her offers to help. Normally she wouldn’t trust him, and yet she feels the spark of a potential bond that she hadn’t previously believed possible. He’s not even from her world. He entered the realm through a rift, and during the process lost his bonded lykodine (a creature much like her) and is still grieving. If he can keep himself together, he might be able to help with more than only getting Willow’s sister back.
We’ve got a lot of cool ideas here, and it’s clear that book one is only the first step into this expansive universe. There are multiple magic systems and numerous magical creatures. The most fascinating of which were the dragons. They have widely varied powers and body shapes based on their elemental lineage. I also really liked the way that Willow and Nyadwynn were able to communicate within their shared mind while retaining separate identities. I’m very curious to see what else the author will bring in for subsequent installments of the series.
I enjoyed the twist on the fated mates trope. Here, they don’t give in immediately upon feeling it. For differing reasons, they both resist (though not always at the same time). It draws the romance out long enough for it to start encroaching on slow burn territory. However, Willow’s telepathic and empathic powers do provide some shortcuts when it comes to relationship-building. While this is a fun power to watch in some parts of the narrative, in this usage, the progression of the relationship becomes less satisfying for the reader.
There were a couple other issues I saw that often plague new writers. This included some awkward pacing, lack of differentiation between character voices, and flowery language that became distracting at times. These are the sort of issues that have a tendency to improve over subsequent books as the writer’s style matures. Although they pulled me from the story a few times, I’ll still be keeping an eye out to see where this series goes next.