Long ago, dragons were hunted to near extinction by the Order of St. George, a legendary society of dragon slayers. Hiding in human form and growing their numbers in secret, the dragons of Talon have become strong and cunning, and they're positioned to take over the world with humans none the wiser.

Ember and Dante Hill are the only sister and brother known to dragonkind. Trained to infiltrate society, Ember wants to live the teen experience and enjoy a summer of freedom before taking her destined place in Talon. But destiny is a matter of perspective, and a rogue dragon will soon challenge everything Ember has been taught. As Ember struggles to accept her future, she and her brother are hunted by the Order of St. George.

Soldier Garret Xavier Sebastian has a mission to seek and destroy all dragons, and Talon's newest recruits in particular. But he cannot kill unless he is certain he has found his prey: and nothing is certain about Ember Hill. Faced with Ember's bravery, confidence and all-too-human desires, Garret begins to question everything that the Order has ingrained in him: and what he might be willing to give up to find the truth about dragons.

My review

Author: Julie Kagawa
Pages: 449
Publication Date: October 28 2014
Source: Library


Talon was not what I was expecting. It was so much lighter than I thought it would be, and surprisingly, I did not despise that. I say "despise that" because I don't actively seek out light books. In fact, I actively avoid them. I don't have anything against them except that my tastes are somewhat extreme, and I would like extreme stories.

Now, as far as light books go, because I have read a few, I liked this one. It had a very different mood from the other Kagawa books I've read. (I suddenly have an urge to continue with her vampire series, which was darker.) There is a lot to like in Julie Kagawa's writing, from the importance of family, and the fact that her characters have friendships that matter to them. Ember herself was a character that stuck me as quite immature, but in an incredibly lovable way.

Gosh, I would love to be friends with Ember. Ember is honest and fierce. She says and does what she wants, and she seems to be oblivious to the consequences of her actions. Ember is that friend that has great stories and is always passionate about everything. She rants and squeals and her emotions are always quite obvious. She is not always reasonable and sometimes you feel like telling her to grow up, but like my little sister, she is lovable anyway.

The entire story seemed to be fun and exciting. The dragon mythology was pretty light and basically, Talon is an evil corporation-like entity committed to the preservation of dragons. Now when I say committed, I mean that they are creepy fanatics that are willing to do terrible things to accomplish their goals. And there's another group, St. George, which are a bunch of dragon hunters committed to the extinction of dragonkind. Dragons in Talon like shiny things, are predators that breathe fire, but also possess a human form where they are incredibly beautiful so that they can better manipulate human emotions.

It's all entertaining and fun, and there is nothing wrong with that. It's just not my type. I think Talon skews towards younger YA because it is surprisingly sweet, and it lacks some of the details of older YA. Ember's naivete is a strength, but I think I've read this story of wanting to be normal a billion times and so it didn't stand out to me. I'm more curious about Ember's brother, Dante, who is the 'good kid'. You know, the one that does what he is told and does not get into trouble. I don't understand Dante and that's probably because Ember is pretty self-absorbed. Dante is interesting because as Ember is truly enjoying the human experience, Dante is more committed to Talon's cause. And I don't really want to talk about the plot because it was a classic buildup-until-the-end-where-there-is-a-cliffhanger, and I don't feel like saying for the billionth time that I wish there was more stuff happening throughout the story.

In general though, I don't feel like Talon really brought anything new to the table. Nothing about the world or characters has intrigued me enough to follow up with this series and I think I'm being quite nice in my review of Talon because I think this book will be excellent for some audiences, and I see some MG crossover. This was not what I was looking for in a book, and I am disappointed in that. However, I suppose if I'm going to have to be surprised and read a really light, younger YA type read, then this one is not the worst in the world. So, there's that, I guess. #glowingenthusiasm

-P.E.

Author: Julie Kagawa
Date of Publication: October 23 2012 (solid day)
Pages: 377
Source: Library

Don’t look at Them. Never let Them know you can see Them.

That is Ethan Chase’s unbreakable rule. Until the fey he avoids at all costs—including his reputation—begin to disappear, and Ethan is attacked. Now he must change the rules to protect his family. To save a girl he never thought he’d dare to fall for.

Ethan thought he had protected himself from his older sister’s world—the land of Faery. His previous time in the Iron Realm left him with nothing but fear and disgust for the world Meghan Chase has made her home, a land of myth and talking cats, of magic and seductive enemies. But when destiny comes for Ethan, there is no escape from a danger long, long forgotten.

Review:

I would normally be sleeping around now, but I just finished The Lost Prince and I want to finish this review first. I read the book in one go. After I started it, I couldn't muster the self control to put it down except to eat dinner. Now I'm finished and as always, dying for the sequel.

The Lost Prince builds off of Meghan's story, albeit years later. That means there is a new cast of characters featuring Ethan, Mackenzie, Kierran, and more. Ash and Meghan are still in the story. They're just not the focus.

My biggest issue with The Lost Prince is that I wanted the old story. I'm a hopelessly loyal reader so whenever there is some sort of spinoff, I always prefer the original characters. That means my favourite scenes were within Meghan's court to see how she has grown and everything has changed. I frankly still connect emotionally and care more about the first few books.

That's not to say the cast of The Lost Prince isn't likable. They're different and sometimes irritating due to the awful decisions they make (like, it's a wonder they're still alive). Ethan is interesting. Finally, we get the PNR romance from the guy's POV. And Kenzie is meant to be likable, but does that mean I like her? Yeah, but not too much.

Ethan harbours a lot of rage and that's very obvious in his narration. He's bitter and angry and feels completely alone. I sympathized with him. While he does get into a relationship, I thought it was not instalove. Maybe insta-attraction but there is definitely buildup.

I won't say much more about the setting and premise beyond how much I adore it. I love reading about the courts and the faeries are quite entertaining. There's this stunningly enchanting feel to Kagawa's series that brings the world to life.

There was one thing I didn't like early on that still stands out to me. Ethan seems to be a bit of a judgmental character and it's annoying. I hate how he thought of the jocks and cheerleaders. I don't think it's fair to look down on them the way he does. Obviously, all jocks aren't meatheads and not all cheerleaders are bitches. I'm particularly sensitive to this issue and while it wasn't present for the vast majority of the story, I was irked by it when it existed. That being said, this is probably just the way Ethan views the world.

It's hard to rate The Lost Prince because so much of my love and enthusiasm for the book comes from the series. Ir's hard to judge how good this book right here was. After some consideration, I feel like 3 is appropriate. I liked the plot, nice characters, amazing world. However, Ethan still hasn't won me over. So, 3 hearts.

-P.E.