Mama's Thoughts:
Holy ko, this was so much fun! While the action wasn't as all encompassing this time, it was by no means missing. Many of the scenes that were most intense were inside Elsa's mind, or Tyr's, and of course there were many instances where I couldn't guess what Runa would do next but I wasn't even sure I wanted to find out, so horrid was her disturbed soul. Or so I thought...
I would have loved to spend more time getting to know Elsa and Forse before this book, but what we do know we learn naturally, it isn't forced upon us in a contrived way, but rather brought about through memories and conversations they share. I really appreciated S.t. Bende's way of allowing us to find out more about the overall Aere story while still engaging us with each couple as we go along. It's got to be completely confusing to keep such a huge story arc straight while also writing individual journeys. I'm convinced Bende's some sort of word ninja, secretly putting together her books while no one is the wiser to her shenanigans. They're so emotionally satisfying, even when I'm left wishing I had more to read, I never regret the time already spent doing so. I'm absolutely ecstatic there will be two more to go, I could spend all year with this crew!
(reviewed the day of purchase)