Yelena, once so scared of magic grew dependent on her powers, and she realizes it when they are suddenly gone. A weird attack rendered her powerless and feeling oddly vulnerable. How did she live all those years so defenseless before she discovered her powers? She must keep it a secret though because many of her enemies would jump on this opportunity to put an end to her life.
I have been waiting for years for another Yelena & Valek book and I was so happy when Maria announced she's working on a new series featuring them. As much as I loved this novel, and I'll tell you all about it later, I'm afraid the years between the releases ( 7 since the last Study book, 5 since the last Glass book) played hell on my memory and I grew frustrated about all the details I had forgotten. To avoid this situation, I would suggest you reread the books before you get to Shadow Study, if it's something that would bother you too.
Yelena gained quite the reputation as the Soulfinder and liaison between Ixia and Sitia. She is almost bigger than life if you listen to all the gossip, so for her to be suddenly powerless and away from Valek was quite the challenge. I loved that even though giving in to despair was tempting, she never gave up and fought back with everything she had. This girl just doesn't have it in her to hide and wait it out. The mystery surrounding her magic's disappearance is quite thick, and I'm afraid we'll have to wait for the next novel to really know what actually happened. Thankfully, Snyder pointed us the culprit, which make the tension bearable, but barely. I really want to know how that person did it!
My favorite aspect of this novel, and by far, are all the visits to Valek's past. What happened in his youth, how he became an assassin, his struggles, meeting with the commander and finally, killing the king. I was completely mesmerized by those bit of tales speckled all over the book and I was craving the next one again and again. I admired his focus, determination and resourcefulness. Really, Ari & Janco can only dream of being that good, I was thoroughly impressed.
Fans will be happy to know many old friends -and foes- are featured in this novel. A peculiar new character is also introduced, and she is bound to leave you scratching your head in wonder.
The plot is of course filled with intrigue, battles and twist & turns. I never would have guessed the extend of the different betrayals taking place in this book, and I can't wait to see all the consequences in the next novel, Night Study, expected in 2016.
If I had one complaint to formulate, can we please have Yelena and Valek together?? They were apart the whole time! *pouts*
Eeee, I'm looking forward to this. I need to get on with my reread of the earlier books... Oh that endless to do list.
ReplyDeleteYay!!! I was waiting for a review on this one to see if I'd pick it up or not. You've convinced me. Even though I'm disappointed to hear that Yelena and Valek don't share any scenes. I wish Snyder would give us more of them together. The two books before this didn't have them together a whole lot either. :(
ReplyDeleteI hear you -.-
ReplyDeleteThey were briefly together at the beginning and at the very end
ReplyDeleteAh, ok! That's good to hear and seems to be Snyder's usual style for this series with the exception of the first book.
ReplyDelete