BookeryBliss
Written on Apr 16, 2018
I may not pre-order the third book for this one, but I'll probably borrow it from the library.
With each passing day, Kelsea Glynn is growing into her new responsibilities as Queen of the Tearling. By stopping the shipments of slaves to the neighbouring kingdom of Mortmesne, she crossed the Red Queen, a brutal ruler whose power derives from dark magic, who is sending her fearsome army into the Tearling to take what is hers. And nothing can stop the invasion.
But as the Mort army draws ever closer, Kelsea develops a mysterious connection to a time before the Crossing, and she finds herself relying on a strange and possibly dangerous ally: a woman named Lily, fighting for her life in a world where being female can feel like a crime. The fate of the Tearling – and that of Kelsea’s own soul – may rest with Lily and her story, but Kelsea may not have enough time to find out.
In this dazzling sequel to her bestselling debut The Queen of the Tearling, Erika Johansen brings back favourite characters, including the Mace and the Red Queen, and introduces unforgettable new players, adding exciting layers to her multidimensional tale of magic, mystery and a fierce young heroine.
- ISBN10 0857502484
- ISBN13 9780857502483
- Publish Date 30 June 2016 (first published 9 June 2015)
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Transworld Publishers Ltd
- Imprint Bantam Books (Transworld Publishers a division of the Random House Group)
- Format Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
- Pages 576
- Language English
Reviews
I may not pre-order the third book for this one, but I'll probably borrow it from the library.
wyvernfriend
Written on Dec 10, 2016
Ashley
Written on Dec 9, 2016
- The backstory.
- Finally getting to see what this series is all about.
- "The Crossing" is the coolest thing ever.
- The desperation.
My favourite part was definitely the mystery—the not knowing what genre this even is. Is it fantasy? Futuristic? Dystopia/utopia? Time travel? I'm still figuring it all out, and I love that. There's something exciting about this level of not knowing.
Jordon
Written on Sep 5, 2016
I remember really enjoying The Queen of the Tearling, I remember thinking it was similar to the Fire & Thorns series by Rae Carson, I remember being incredibly confused by what time period it was set in. But it was a fun read.
When I picked up The Invasion of the Tearling I had no idea what to expect. I started reading chapter one and thinking 'Okay, this is good', the story opens up with a quick background of a character that eventually becomes the general of the Tearling army. Once I got to chapter two though I suddenly realised I could barely remember what happened in book one. I literally could not remember what the major plot points were in The Queen of the Tearling, I couldn't remember how the book ended, and I could only vaguely remember there were two necklaces - Help!
At this point I put the book down and started to read as many reviews of The Queen of the Tearling as I could. I was hoping to find spoiler-y reviews, maybe a recap post. But I couldn't find many that gave away the major plot points... So I re-read the last few chapters of the first book and hoped for the best.
I started reading The Invasion of the Tearling again, and once I got to chapter three I was hooked! We suddenly have a POV from a completely new character and I was confused. I was so confused but so entranced that I couldn't put the book down! I didn't understand what was happening and I needed to know, so I kept reading.
The Invasion of the Tearling was a more political story that focused on Kelsea and this new character that I was so entranced by. This story was not an adventure story like the first story was, this story was deeper and revealed how the world of the Tearling came to be. It felt incredibly different to the first book, which at first I was confused about but then I fell in love with this book.
Once again, romance is not a factor in this story. It doesn't bother me because the rest of the story was so strong, the characters were interesting and I was reading chapter after chapter. I didn't need a romance to keep me hooked. I felt sad for Kelsea in this book, she felt very alone and she knew there was no one that could understand how deep that feeling ran. She still lusted after the Fletch, but he didn't make too much of an appearance in this book, this book centred around Kelsea and this mysterious new character.
Now for anyone that hasn't read the book, the next paragraph is spoilery! You have been warned.
I found Lily to be an incredibly interesting character, her story line drew me in and it's what kept me reading this book. To be honest, Kelsea's story was a lot less exciting than Lily's. The whole time all I wanted to know was who is this woman?! Why are we seeing her story? The fact that it was set back in modern times, and we got to see how the world fell to shit, was so interesting. And Lily trying to get away from her abusive husband was intense. Lily's chapters were always so dramatic, I really liked her story a lot. I still have questions as to who she is to Kelsea, I know that Lily must be Kelsea's great, great grandmother or something like that, but I want to know more!
I wonder if we'll get to find out in book three? I'm definitely hanging on the edge of my seat waiting for it!
Overall
I really enjoyed The Invasion of the Tearling, it's left me with more questions, but I am pretty excited to pick up the third book in this series!
I love that this book was a lot better than the first, I hope that means that book three is going to be an amazing finish to this series.
In my opinion, if you liked book one or even f you weren't that fussed about book one, pick up this book because this story gets more intense. And this book is a different read to the first, it's not an adventure story, it's not about Kelsea finding love, and it's not about a young girl trying to rule a country. It's about a young woman trying to fight for her country's safety, it's about a young woman coming to terms with who she is and who she is not, it's about a woman trying to make sense of things that only she can make sense of because she's the only one with the puzzle pieces.
The Invasion of the Tearling was nothing that I expected, and in a really good way.
This review was originally posted on Simply Adrift
ross91
Written on May 28, 2016
Cool new characters, great character development and loved the fact that this book doesn't hesitate in talking about difficult topics like rape, domestic violence, self harm and not wanting to have children.
The italian edition is magnificent, the editor did a very great job!
inlibrisveritas
Written on Jul 2, 2015
When we leave off in Queen of the Tearling Kelsea was beginning to prepare for the oncoming invasion from Mortmesne (mort-main) and was establishing herself as a queen with a mind for ruling both smartly and fairly. For better or for worse. Now the threat is drawing ever closer and Kelsea is introduced to new players and new powers. At this point I’m pretty sure I’m in love with this series. The bizarre nature of the land they live in is one that I’ve questioned since book one, and I hated that it was never truly explained because we know the settlers came from a world like ours but very little mention on how and why they made the Crossing. We get this backstory in the form of visions through Kelsea, and we begin to see the life of a Pre-Crossing woman named Lily. She lives in a world a little more advanced than our own technology-wise, but a lot of the rights and freedoms we are accustomed to are gone. I loved getting to know Lily, but damn was it painful She’s a tad naive, but she doesn’t like her life and the moment the idea of more dawns on her she can’t get it out of her head. Her struggle was painful but I think she became a stronger woman because of it, she just needed the space to grow. Back in Kelsea’s world war is raging and society is facing some rather important issues thanks to the constant pressure of the Holy Father and the Arvath. One could argue that this book takes on too many social issues (i.e. birth control, women’s rights, LGBT, etc.) but while there were a lot to be handled I think they were handled well and in a way that it didn’t sound overly preachy in getting it’s point across.
The only problems I had with this book lie with Kelsea herself. She’s a strong woman, and at only 19 she has some self confidence issues that she’s been struggling with since the first book. I loved that about her. I loved that she knew her worth was more than what her face looked like, but she still couldn’t help but worry at it…I’ve been there plenty of times. I also loved her love affair with the new power she’s gained thanks to her jewels, and the spiral it sends her own. Her path definitely gets a bit darker in areas and lighter in others, and the internal struggle she had with these were excellently done. My problem however lie in her “I must be more adult” mantra that she’s taken on. Personally I found this ridiculous because when you look at what she’s doing on a daily basis (ruling a country for example) the fact that she finds herself lacking simply because she’s a virgin is just idiotic. I mean I know all young adults venture into that mindset at some point, like it’s some odd race just because you hit an age where you feel you need to be attainable…but seriously? Why is this a worry? If people are looking at you like you’re a kid simply because you haven’t had sex yet, they are a bunch of idiots and you need to get away from theme. Plus added to the fact that no one but her (well and the Holy Father who insists upon marriage) really even cares what goes on in her bedroom I found this to be a weirdly immature inclusion. Understandable? Yes…Likeable? NO
The narrator, Davina Porter, was a great choice for these books. She has a great repertoire of voices for the characters and her pacing was excellent. Definitely another one of those storybook type voices perfect for a hold nothing back fantasy novel.
Overall I really enjoyed it, and I can’t wait for the next book…especially since the ending was so open. These books are not for the faint of heart and contain both the horrors of war and the horrors of domestic abuse, if you don’t like detailed conflicts of either nature it might be best to sit this one out.
Mackenzie
Written on Jun 30, 2015
Full review to come...if I can get my thoughts in order (which seems unlikely at this moment).
sarahjay
Written on Apr 24, 2015