The Blurb :In the Forest of the Dead, where the empire’s worst criminals are exiled, twin sisters Moria and Ashyn are charged with a dangerous task. For they are the Keeper and the Seeker, and each year they must quiet the enraged souls of the damned.
Only this year, the souls will not be quieted.
Ambushed and separated by an ancient evil, the sisters’ journey to find each other sends them far from the only home they’ve ever known. Accompanied by a stubborn imperial guard and a dashing condemned thief, the girls cross a once-empty wasteland, now filled with reawakened monsters of legend, as they travel to warn the emperor. But a terrible secret awaits them at court—one that will alter the balance of their world forever.
My Thoughts :
I read blurbs, like them and therefore add the book to my wish list and then I promptly forget about the short description. I feel sorry for person who has to come up with the few sentences or paragraphs that have to capture the whole essence of the book and make it sound so awesome that you want to buy and read it. However I find that they usually give away too much of the plot for my liking and sometimes I will start a book I have had on my wish list and wonder why I wanted to read it at all. Blurbs can also be too good to be true.
I tell you all this because nine times out of ten I don't even read the blurbs of the books some authors have on offer. I have nothing against being surprised by my favourite authors. I trust them after all these years and brilliant stories and Kelley Armstrong is on this list of writers that I will read no matter what. She could write a historical romance (not my cup of tea) but I would still read it. Her style, imagination and wonder concepts are always good.
So after a few chapters of Sea of Shadows I was seriously ready to give up. I couldn't believe I was even contemplating it. This wasn't what I was expecting. Young Adult yes but Fantsasy? It was difficult, it wasn't modern and it wasn't familiar. I felt lost and confused. I went back to the blurb but that didn't help encourage me. So it was with a heavy heart that I put the Kindle down and went off to do something else.
However I didn't want to give up and after a week of work, normal life and finishing off an audio book I went back to this today and found new hope. It came a few more chapters in and I was suddenly relieved that this was going to be good and that I made the right decision to go back and keep reading. What followed was an impressive and fantastic story that becomes unforgettable and more than interesting.
Kelley Armstrong has done it again and delivered another brilliant read. Yes it was slow going at first but the rewards come along later if you keep going. It doesn't have the wow factor that her previous books have had but it still special. Action, betrayal, death and some lovely fantasy all come together in this debut book in the Age of Legends series. Any Armstrong fans will be happy with this new addition to their bookshelf and any lovers of Maria Snyder will find Sea of Shadows is a nice read to fill the gap between her releases.
Now I eagerly await the next installment. By the end I was ready for more. There are so many questions left unanswered and a lot of promise of more fantastic fantasy to come. I found the characters hard to befriend but by the end I felt invested in their story and I look forward to getting together with them again soon. Well worth checking out this new release from one of my all time favourite authors.
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