Renee
Written on Jan 21, 2021
- no explanation of why two countries are fighting
- no consistent characters
- no character growth
- unfinished storylines
- no consistency
Two girls use forbidden magic to fly and fight--for their country and for themselves--in this riveting debut that's part Shadow and Bone, part Code Name Verity.Seventeen-year-old Revna is a factory worker, manufacturing war machines for the Union of the North. When she's caught using illegal magic, she fears being branded a traitor and imprisoned. Meanwhile, on the front lines, Linne defied her father, a Union general, and disguised herself as a boy to join the army. They're both offered a reprieve from punishment if they use their magic in a special women's military flight unit and undertake terrifying, deadly missions under cover of darkness. Revna and Linne can hardly stand to be in the same cockpit, but if they can't fly together, and if they can't find a way to fly well, the enemy's superior firepower will destroy them--if they don't destroy each other first.
We Rule the Night is a fiercely compelling story about sacrifice, complicated friendships, and survival against impossible odds.
- ISBN10 1549179896
- ISBN13 9781549179891
- Publish Date 2 April 2019
- Publish Status Active
- Imprint Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
- Format Audiobook (CD)
- Duration 11 hours and 40 minutes
- Language English
Reviews
- no explanation of why two countries are fighting
- no consistent characters
- no character growth
- unfinished storylines
- no consistency
Kat @ Novels & Waffles
Written on Feb 28, 2020
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bookishzelda
Written on Apr 3, 2019
The narratives in We Rule the Night are very interesting. At first I felt that both Revna and Linne were pretty equal but then it seemed like Linne took over. I felt like she was crowding out Revna’s voice until Revna started to have more faith in herself and it felt like she got louder. The story is two very different girls, from very different backgrounds and difficulties finding themselves in the same place at the same time.
Revna has such a strong spirit. It comes through in her love for her family and her need to prove that having a disability is not something that holds her back. Losing her legs in an accident she now has prosthetics made out of something called living metal. It’s a material that has a mind of it’s own. I kind of thought of it as being like an animal. It feeds off your emotions, if you want it to work for you you have to treat it nicely. It reacts to anger, fear and calmness. She has also controls a type of magic called the weave. Where she can pull the threads of the fabric of life to distort things around her. Not in a illusion way but in order to move objects.
Linne is the daughter of a high up military official. She does not want to be a perfect lady as he expects her to be. She disguises herself as a boy and manages to serve in the military for three years before getting caught. That is when she is transferred to the female night flying unit. So she has trouble interacting with the other girls because she is so used to making herself seem brash and unfeeling in order to be unnoticed by the men. She is blessed with the talent of the Spark which works like a flame. It is what is used to power an aircraft, where the weave is what is used to move them.
I loved Magdalena and I think at first Revna is very leary of her friendship. She kept feeling like she might only be friends with her because of her disability and pity her. You can tell how much Magdalena respects Revna’s abilities as a pilot and how strong she truly is. I love the fierceness that Magdalena defends her friend. Plus she is just a spunky character herself and a clever engineer.
There are so many things to make you mad in the story. The mistreatment of the unit is definitely a top one but even more so the treatment of women. They are treated much like they have been in early American wars, meant to keep the homefront together or be nurses. They don’t want the women on the front line. Tamara’s unit has to fight to earn their respect that other soldiers just have automatically. Not only are they fighting a war against the Elda but a war against their own country in order to be allowed to defend it. Seems crazy.
Linne and Revna come from very different backgrounds. Each are judge by their fathers, even though they have no control over their actions. It was so frustrating to see the way they were each treated and it shaped their defensive personalities. Revna is for sure the more level headed of the two but even she had her own prejudices against Linne. The two girls have to find a way to work as a team and they struggle through the story, until they are caught in a situation where they have to rely on one another or they won’t make it out alive. This is where I think you see their true characters. I loved how they went to from enemies to two people who realize that they can trust one another and can work together. They build a stronger friendship out of it.
The ending was kind of interesting. It was kind of like you were in the final act and the curtain just closes. I can’t really decide how I feel about it. It felt a little like some things were not resolved but you can also fill in the rest with your mind. I just have mixed feelings.
I really enjoyed the story. I’m not always a fan of war stories but this one was fast paced enough that it kept me interested. I was also very invested in the girls succeeding. I’m glad there was no romance because it didn’t really have any place in the story. This was about these girls and finding their own power and voices. Showing men that they are can do the work as well.
pagingserenity
Written on Mar 31, 2019
We Rule the Night is a magical read with enchanting world-building and characters you can’t help but root for despite their flaws. It's more of a 4.5 star read for me, though.
jeannamichel
Written on Mar 10, 2019
Revna, a traitor’s daughter, keeps her head down at the factory that she works at. When a bomb lands in her hometown, she escapes death using illegal magic. The only problem: she was caught using it. Linné, a general’s daughter, disguises herself as a man to join the military to fight for the Union. It isn’t soon after that, she is caught. The two women join the 146th Night Raiders, a female-only regiment, that intend to use magic to help win the war against the Elda. With their clashing personalities, Revna and Linné must learn to work together. Their very lives depend on it. Claire Eliza Bartlett builds a stunning debut, leaving readers wanting more.
The intriguing premise of an all-female crew of militants using illegal magic to help end the war sounded absolutely fantastic! It also opens up to several reflections of women in the military and how they're treated. Despite the fantasy backdrop, the discussion on sexism can easily reflect our own society, and even some of our own experiences.
The book opens right in the middle of a raging war. It was such an easy and visual way to be introduced to our two female leads. Revna finds herself under a bomb threat at the factory she works for. While Linné is being called into the colonel’s office for disguising herself as a man all this time. From these introductions, the back stories of both characters are immediately intriguing. We Rule the Night quickly becomes a page turner of epic proportions.
We Rule the Night follows the 146th Night Raiders, a group of amazing woman intent on flying planes run on magic to win the war. The regiment is filled with such a large cast, it's difficult to remember every name. The two leads are easy enough to remember: Revna and Linné. However, as much as readers get a few scenes filled with the large cast, there isn't much description to help remember each character in the book.
Revna may have leg prosthetics but she doesn’t let that stop her fighting for the Union. When she falls, she gets back up. She is strong, intelligent, and brave—even if she doesn’t think so at first.
Linné is immediately judged by the woman of her new regiment for her connections in the army and being her father’s daughter, a general’s daughter. It also doesn’t help that she acts as if superior and more-knowing than the other girls. However, a lot of the assumptions and fast judgments made by the girls were rather unfair as no one tried to break through Linné’s barrier to get to know her. Out of all the characters, Linné is the most realistic, most complex. Despite getting a bad reputation from the other characters, I quite liked her.
I got some major steampunk vibes from We Rule the Night. YA has a sparse landscape of steampunk novels so I was stoked to find elements of it in this one. The book is set during wartime. There are planes made from living metal, which has a mind of its own. The pilot and navigator connect to the plane, becoming one mind. The concept was enthralling to behold.
The friendship between Linné and Revna, once forced, becomes complicated and deep, intertwining with their clashing personalities. The war brings out the worst, and the best, of the two. In order to make their plane fly, they must connect their minds to the living metal which forces them to connect to each other on a different level. Through the book, readers witness the wonders of a friendship take root between Revna and Linné.
The world building is constructed beautifully. The superb writing folds the world right into the seams of the story. There is a minimal info dumping which is always the best way to introduce a new world.
The ending wasn’t exactly what I wanted. It was realistic. Yet, after the exhilaration of the climax, the ending was a bit disappointing. Under my disappointment was a smile, however, in what the two amazing female leads had accomplished.
I couldn’t help wanting more though. Bartlett opens readers’ eyes to this whole new world that is as fierce and deadly as it is gorgeous and intriguing. The story is a wild ride that straps you in and refuses to let go.
Bartlett created a superb world that I hope to visit again. We Rule the Night was a riveting narrative of complex relationships, shocking action sequences, and an on-the-edge-of-your-seat story.