#historical fantasy

[polsterreich]

At some point, you have to succumb to the feelings.

[pallinea]

gothic vampire (no, the other gothic)

[didanagy]

ANASTASIA (1997) dir. don bluth and gary goldman

[pollyssecretlibrary]

"Son of the Serpent", by Shauna Lawless

𝐈 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗮 𝗟𝗮𝘄𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗭𝗲𝘂𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝟮 - 𝗲𝗿𝗮 𝟮 (𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝟱 𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹) 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 ❞𝗚𝗮𝗲𝗹 𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴❞ 𝗦𝗮𝗴𝗮 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is Shauna lawless’ most complex and probably one of the best books she has written so far. It is also the most politics-heavy and history-heavy of them all. Because the next invaders are here. After the Vikings came and settled on the Irish shores, the Anglo-Normans are coming and this story, that was already epic, will reach the status of legendary.

The book picks up where “Daughter of the Otherworld” ends. It is divided in three parts and although mostly the plot moves forward in a straight line with different and varied points of view. We have three opening chapters with one of the character’s background that helps us understand how the scheming and the several change of plans and sudden treasons are originated. This is not one people agains the other, no, it’s more complicated than that. Peoples figth with other peoples and within themselves, races fight against other races, sons against fathers and brothers against brothers. All of them at the same time. However, the way Lawless unveils the different movements and tricks on her phenomenal chess board makes everything easy to understand for any reader. She that magic writing that builds an atmosphere, a magnetic air that not only captures the readers, it also implicates them in every fight, every treaty and every fake oath. The characters feel painfully real, the worldbuilding and the depictions of the inner workings of the societies, of the royal courts, and of the armies are so vivid, and so brutally honest that the reader cannot help rooting for one character or other, feel broken, betrayed or hopeful.

The story has many interesting plot twists and so many surprises impossible to predict that at this point I cannot explain the plot, because almost everything is a spoiler. We still have the Fomorians, the people of fire, trying to take over Ireland and reign forever, but each and every one of them wants the power for themselves, for they all are greedy and selfish by nature. Now that the Descendants of the Tuatha De Dannan are extinct (or are they?) and the mortals not being a real threat to them, will Gormflaith, Donnchad, Cécile or Angelo be the high king or queen of Ireland? Can the old prophecy be forgotten once and for all?

In the meantime, Cuan, the Viking, who must avenge his mother’s death and his father’s blindness, starts a journey of self discovery while at the same time the rest of the kings of Ireland are at arms and a battle cry can be heard both from England and France. In an already everyday life threatening world where violence is the norm, there’s still hope for love and survival.

Once again Shauna Lawless captures your heart and she breaks it only to heal it and break it again in an endless loop of hope and despair. She’s ruthless and I love her for that.

[divinedb]

Cold Iron and Water

by Seraphina Crow

Rhona Tait gentles horses. She has never once mastered an animal by force, and her father always swore she never would need to — patience, he said, will break anything that can be broken, and break it kind. Then her father dies, the laird's factor gives her until the spring term to quit the croft a widow has no right to hold, and the thing in Carr Loch takes its third man of the glen.

A water horse cannot be killed with anything the glen owns. But the old wisdom says it can be caught: an iron bridle thrown over its head, and it must serve the hand that holds the rein — plough and haul and harm no one — until the day it works the iron loose again, and drowns whoever kept it. So Rhona goes down to the black water at the turning of the tide and does the one thing she swore she never would.

Read it free on DivineDB

[pallinea]

[emwrote]

Finished reading Ella the Slayer by A.W Exley.

I enjoyed it so much that I completely forgot there was a Cinderella story among the zombie slaying and post World War I England. I just went "oh, sweet it's a Cinderella plotline" when Ella got a beautiful gown and sparkling shoes to go the ball.

If you can get a copy and like the idea of an easy to read story of zombie slaying Cinderella I I recommend trying to find a copy.