Book: Rites of the Starling
Reviewed by plotdrunk
Rating: 4/5
I enjoyed this overall, but it wasn't quite as compelling as it could have been. It's definitely a long book, and I really felt it at times, especially with all of the travel throughout the book. I didn't feel the urgency to keep reading until the last 15% or so when everything finally started to come together.
The worldbuilding, however, continues to be a major strength in the series. I loved getting more details on the Voster, their factions, and the corrupted magic in Calandra. It really added so much depth to the story, and I loved all of the political intrigue and secrets along the way. Capsia and Andreas's storyline was another standout. Their relationship felt emotional and real, and I found myself wishing Odessa and Ransom's dynamic felt the same.
Some of the structural choices didn't really work for me. As I mentioned above, the amount of travel could have been trimmed without losing the overall feel, and having our main characters not reunite until halfway through the book was a bit frustrating. I definitely saw all the twists coming, which means the author did too much telling and not enough showing. Even though I fully saw Caspia being Odessa's mom, I did really enjoy the way it was laid out.
All in all, this was a book that didn't suffer second book syndrome and had some really great moments of worldbuilding and character development. Even though the twists were foreseeable and the pacing was a bit bumpy, I'm still invested and will definitely read book 3 to see how the story ends.