2 out of 4 stars
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In Rowan Wood Legends by Olivia Wildenstein, Cat has just learned of Holly’s death. What puzzles her is the cause of death. As Cat struggles to find the cause of her friend’s death, she faces difficult decisions in her journey. Soon, she must choose which side she wants to be on: human or faerie.
This is the first book from this series I have read. Even with the cheat sheet provided by the author in the front of the book, I had difficulty following the background of the book and concepts discussed by the characters. The only things that were clear were Cat being half faerie, Holly dying, and rivalries between characters. It is my opinion that a detailed synopsis of the previous book would prevent confusion for future readers.
It is easy to see that the author has put countless hours into writing this series. I enjoyed how the author begins the first chapter by introducing so many characters that are so diverse. Even for a first-time reader, it presents a sense of equal representation for what is to happen later in the book.
I feel that the absence of the synopsis for the previous book in this series created many problems in this book. Cat was hard to relate to. When reacting to Holly’s death and the news of her illness, I thought that her reactions were forged; they seemed artificial.
The overall story line was well written. A clear goal began to form in the first few pages as Cat discussed her abilities and relationships with different characters. The author did a good job in not straying from this initial plot even when side plots and details came into place.
As a reader, I prefer to read a book that is placed in third person. When a book is written in first person, it is easy for the reader to forget who they are and the growth of that character. Every time the character’s name is mentioned, the reader is reminded of what that character has gone through.
When describing characters and scenery, the author did well to include enough detail that the reader could see what the author saw. As an author, it is important to create this world for the reader and communicate it exactly as the author sees it.
I give this book 2 out of 4 stars. The way that the book was written (absence of synopsis and point of view) was distracting and took away from some of the creativity in the book. In addition, the amount of errors I found in the book caused me to reread certain sections with my notes and made reading tedious. This is a good book in terms of creativity, detail, and story line. I feel that after a few corrections, Rowan Wood Legends will prove to be an amazing page-turner the fantasy reader.
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Rowan Wood Legends
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