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Author: Kalyn Josephson
Series: The Storm Crow
Series #: 2
Genre: fantasy
Age Group: young adult
ARC?: yes

Princess Thia, her allies, and her crow, Res, are planning a rebellion to defeat Queen Razel and Illucia once and for all. Thia must convince the neighboring kingdoms to come to her aid, and Res’s show of strength is the only thing that can help her.

But so many obstacles stand in her way. Res excels at his training, until he loses control of his magic, harming Thia in the process. She is also pursued by Prince Ericen, heir to the Illucian throne and the one person she can’t trust but can’t seem to stay away from.

As the rebel group prepares for war, Res’s magic grows more unstable. Thia has to decide if she can rely on herself and their bond enough to lead the rebellion and become the crow rider she was meant to be.

Review

I gave the first book in this series three stars. I enjoyed it, but didn’t love it. However, I was very excited to see where the second book would take us in the world. I thought that it had all the potential in the world to be an amazing book. I was right. This book was absolutely stunning from beginning to end. I absolutely enjoyed it. So much more than the first one. I know this is a duology, but I am so not ready to leave these characters behind yet.

The Writing
I love Josephson’s writing. There is something so endearing about it to me. It resonates, and it makes me so happy to read. I flew through this in two hours. I could not put the book down. I was sucked in and drawn in. It’s how she writes the characters, and the plotlines…just it all worked so well together. It felt so wonderful. Everything was alive and breathing for me in this book. I loved the writing so much.

The Pacing
I had some issues with the pacing in the first book, but honestly? This one I had no problems at all. This book was action packed to the brim, and it is the perfect type of book for me. the plots that were going on, the character development, all of it felt well paced to me, and I was enjoying to because nothing seemed too rushed or too slow. There was purpose.

The Plot
I enjoyed the plot of this one much more than the first one. Not sure why the plot and I didn’t work in the first one (I found the evil queen Razel and arranged marriage really boring) but the plot really worked in this one. It felt like it undid what I didn’t like in the first one and made it so much better. Of course, lots of stuff goes down in this book, and I literally do not want to talk about any of it for fear of spoiling anything that happens. It is worth it to read without any preconceived notions.

The Characters
THIA. I love Thia and Kiva and their friendship. I feel that it works so well becomes it helps form the basis of the book. It is steady and there, and I love a good friendship. And theirs is written so well. I am highly impressed by that. Also Auma and Kiva? *insert heart eyes* (See that notation? I love them. I want to see a story all about them!) Thia is just an amazing character in this. I feel like she really grows and starts to come into herself in this book, and it works for her. She becomes a stronger person.


Another thing that I didn’t like in the first book but liked in this one was Ericen and Thia’s friendship and its development. I liked it a lot better in this, it went well with the story.


There are a lot of characters in this, and honestly, they’re all great. Even the bad ones. I liked everything about it.

The World building
Again, I think the world building is really good in this series. Flying crows? Yes. HECK YES. One of the best parts! And I like how the world is set up, but it isn’t too detailed so you’re not getting tripped up or trying to figure anything out. It works!

Overall
AMAZING BOOK. I can’t wait to see what else Josephson has in store for us, because I know I will be looking for more books by her in the future!