Damian's Oracle- Lizzy Ford

When Sofia begins to suffer from strange, incurable symptoms, she cries out for help in desperation. Her call is heard by two forces: the White God- Damian and his counterpart, the Black God-Czerno. It turns out that Sofia is a Natural- a human with strong paranormal gifts. If she were any normal natural, Damian would not waste his time with her. However, she is an Oracle, the first in thousands of years and whoever controls the Oracle will tip the balance in their favor. When the Black God kidnaps her and tries to force her to go through a binding ceremony, she is rescued by Damian. Now, instead, Sofia must bind herself to the White God to stop the Black God from taking over humanity and to weed out the traitors he has planted among the Guardians (Naturals who belong to Damian's regime).

Overall Merit: Wait for it, wait for it...I actually liked this book. True I have to give it a bit of leniency seeing as it was self published (if it were published by a big house then I'd bump each of the scores down about a point), but that aside, once I got past the errors and looked at it big picture, I truly enjoyed this book. The characters had legitimate struggles and there were times when I thought Sofia was literally going to go insane. The only thing that really bothered me (aside from the minor typos) was the beginning. This book was good. It was a great concept with a great cast of characters and if it had gone through a more intense publishing/editing process, I think I would be in love. Score- 9

Characters: Wow, Sophia had kick in her. I was actually so proud of her for not being a typical fantasy heroine and being like "Damian is so hot. We MUST be soul mates." Nope. After the initial realization that he was indeed very hot she fought tooth and nail to keep herself from falling for him. Hell, they didn't even sleep together until the very end of the book! Damian was such a bad-ass, and a legitimate one too. So many times, writers will try to make a "bad-ass" character who just falls flat on his or her face. Damian did not disappoint and neither did his immortal siblings who were super fun characters as well. The only character that upset me a bit was the antagonist. There was the typical femme fatale character floating around and she was annoying, but not gut-wrenchingly evil. However, Czerno played a surprisingly small role. It seemed like his henchmen were scurrying around while he sat back and didn't do all that much. For the most part, solid protagonists and a few good supporting characters. Score-8

Blush Factor: This was refreshing. They were attracted, but they resisted. Key word being: RESISTED. It was like a dream come true (pardon my platitude). Most power couples will make a flimsy effort to resist and end up in each other's arms by page 100, Sofia whacked Damian upside the face and made him work for her attention. I'm not a crazy feminist by any means and would have been just as please if Sofia had to work to make Damian admit he liked her. Turns out they were a great couple, which made me even happier when they finally got together. So many romance novels smoosh the love interests together without making them do any work! Score- 10 (yes, look at that, a 10)

Structure: The viewpoints weaved a bit between Sofia and another character named Two, but I loved all the perspectives, which is rare. Usually I find I like on perspective over the other(s), but Ford kept me entertained throughout. The only issues I had with this were sometimes she didn't explain some of the technical inner workings of her world well enough e.g the way the powers worked, the hierarchy of gods/Watchers and the beginning. The beginning felt rushed, the characters didn't get fleshed out until later and the premise wasn't explained very well so I was sort of lost until I got a good 50 pages in. Score- 8

Plot: There were a ton of things going on at the same time and the non-stop action kept me reading. I liked the underlying storyline, which was essentially the timeless battle between good and evil. However, I would have liked more insight into the world of the "baddies". Great idea, great potential. I'm not sure if I'll read the sequel, but it's a possibility. Score- 8

In summation: Read this book and support a self-publishing author. Best part is, it's super inexpensive so I should hear no complaints on that front.


Vervain says: "There are three levels of deities: the primordial gods, the Watchers, and then the gods on Earth (Damian, Dusty, Jule, and Czerno). It's a bit hard to keep straight sometimes."

Insatiable- Meg Cabot

Meena Harper is sick of hearing about vampires (I think everyone in the world is sick of hearing about vampires), but this doesn't stop her bosses from forcing her to work on a project that incorporates the supernatural beings into her television show. However, Meena has a supernatural talent herself that seems to always get her into trouble: Meena can see when someone is going to die. So when she meets Lucien Antonescu, she can't understand why she can't see his demise--maybe because he's already dead. Meena and Lucien fall in love, a dangerous action seeing that he is being hunted by holy knights from the Vatican. Soon it will be up to Meena to decide where her loyalties lie and if love is enough to make her choose a new fate.

Overall Merit: I was actually so excited when I thought I found a book that was going to go against the stereotypes of a vampire romance novel, even the trailer suggested that this was the case. However, while it started off with the heroine renouncing the whole vampire love story nonsense, she ended up falling right into the hum drum cliche that Twilight started. I was desperately hoping for something a bit more snarky and satirical. Meena had the potential to turn this into a satirical biting novel, just by the nature of her character, but she was too busy swooning over Lucien and his "hotness" to channel that snark power. Also, making a vampire turn into a dragon does not count as original. It counts as weird and unnecessary, especially when it seems like it's being used as an excuse for a horrible metaphor. Score- 6

Check out the trailer:

Characters: I liked Meena, I really did. Or at least I thought I did. I thought she was going to do something epic with her death discerning powers, but she didn't. This element seemed extraneous and I wondered why Cabot even bothered putting it into the story. Sure, it gave Meena something to morally struggle with, but the moral struggle shouldn't be over something that takes away from the story. There was definitely humor brought mostly by Alaric Wulf (my favorite character in the novel). I mean he was pretty hilarious: a socially awkward, comic book collecting vampire hunter--doesn't get much better than that. Alaric was the saving grace of this book because he actually made me laugh. However, I had a real *bang head on desk* moment when he fell in love with Meena. I love geeky guys, but when they fall in love with the wrong person it upsets me. Lucien was a cliched vampire prince who could read minds. Cough Edward Cullen Cough. Do I need to elaborate? Score- 8 (because I loved Alaric)

Blush Factor: Yes, there is sex. This is a vampire romance novel, not written by a Mormon, of course there's casual sex. Keep young adolescents away from this book because the smut is pretty blatant. Nothing new happened here, you knew from page 20 that Meena and Lucien were going to get it on, and get it on they did--after one date. Score- 4

Structure: If you couldn't tell, this was mainly third person from Meena's perspective, with glimpses of Lucien and Alaric sprinkled throughout. Nothing new happened here, the technical writing was effective and clean. Score-8

Plot: Cliche. If I had to say it in one word it would be cliche. It was advertised as a parody or a satire, but what I got was a standard love triangle vampire story. This book was pretty much what Twilight would have been if Bella weren't such a block of tofu. The supporting characters saved it a little bit as some of their antics were mildly amusing, but overall this book made me very sad about the future of fantasy. Score-5

In summation: If you want the perfect example of a lovable and epic geek then read this book or at least skim the parts with Alaric.

Vervain says: "Meena's visions of the future aren't definite, she has the capacity to change them. However, this doesn't make the power any more useful as a plot device."

Angel Burn- L.A. Weatherly

Willow is gifted with the power to look into the future and decipher the hopes and dreams of others by touching them. She doesn't know where her power comes from as no one else in her family is gifted. It isn't until the assassin, Alex, shows up with instructions to kill her that she finds out what she truly is and why her powers exist. However, Alex isn't the only one who wants Willow, she is also being chased by legions of evil angels and their followers. She must team up with and learn to trust Alex to escape from the angels because she might be the last hope for the human race's survival and freedom.

Overall Merit: When I picked up this book from the YA section of the library, I was thinking one thing: this is going to be exactly like every single angel book out there. Weatherly tries very hard to break out of that mold and in some ways she does, so bravo on that front. Her angels are dark, soul-sucking creatures who lure humans in and feed off them. See this would be original if it didn't sound exactly like another type of supernatural being. Let's think, where have I heard that exact description before...? No way, it's a vampire!  Please, for the love of all things fantasy, come up with some new ideas! To be nice, I did like that people who interacted with the angels slowly withered away from disease. Willow's character disappoints because she is set up to be such a kick ass heroine and then she just isn't. My main issue with this story is the missing plot line. The story plods along for a good 350 some odd pages, but nothing actually happens until like the last 20 pages! Score- 7

Characters: The biggest issue I had with this category was that the antagonists didn't seem to be trying very hard to do anything. It seemed like they were like "oh, well we want Willow, but before we exert any effort getting her let's have some afternoon tea." Willow had the potential to be a badass. I mean come on! She fixes cars for fun and is a psychic, I wanted someone more quirky, someone unique. What I got was a gushing, lovesick girl, "oh Alex, I wanna snuggle!" Where are my villains!? Sure there was Raziel, but he seemed to spend a lot of time bossing people around and gloating about his wickedness as opposed to doing anything proactive. Score- 4

Blush Factor- The entire novel was consumed by a cheesy romantic "subplot" to the point that it would have been more productive to write this as an erotica novel. Weatherly went out of her way to put the characters in situations in which they would have "no choice" but to embrace each other or get all touchy feely. I'm just as much of a sucker as the next girl for a good romance thread in a novel, but this wasn't even well done. It was cheesy and to be perfectly honest a seventeen year old guy is not going to behave like Alex does. (Like I said, it would have made a better erotica, provided the characters were older.) Score- 4

Structure: This might have been the undoing of the entire novel. There were far too many POVs going on at the same time and therefore things were revealed to the reader before the protagonists were aware. If done WELL this can be effective and make a story better, but when I learn what the "villains" are going to do there is no element of surprise and in a story with an already weak plot line this just bangs the final nail in the coffin. As a reader, I want to experience the action along with the protagonists, I should be traveling on a journey with them. If I already know what's going to happen then the impact is minimal. Score- 2

Plot: Hmm...still searching for this...give me a second...ah there we go! 350 pages in, whew thought I'd never get there. I mean there was sort of a premise...? There was a definite deus ex machina employed at the end to try and salvage some sort of action from the extended period of nothingness. There was a lot that could have been done with this concept, Weatherly just didn't take advantage.

Vervain says: "Alex's full name is Alex Kylar, his job title: Angel Killer. If that doesn't make you cringe, shame on you."

Mini-Rant

Ok, I'm going to preface this by saying: I don't hate every single book I read. I swear--on the River Styx. However, as an avid fantasy reader it takes a lot to impress me. Unless an author whacks me over the head with something stunning, I am not going to be content. Sure, I'm the first one to admit that I'm jaded, but that should be the challenge right? Impress me. Make even the most bitter reader weep at the beauty of your prose, of your characters. I am that bitter reader and I can't abide by people gushing over things that don't deserve such high accolades. My standards are too high, I know, but I'm a perfectionist and I think that too much garbage gets published and lauded. By all means, take what I say with a grain of salt, but I am really trying to express my honest opinion on the books I read. Oh, damnation, why is everyone still in my library?! At least have the courtesy to pick up your socks if you're going to throw them on the floor!

Vervain says: "Lady Adriana Ivy likes to complain. Ignore her. She's moderately misanthropic. However, she does have a good eye for books...I must admit."

Incarnate- Jodi Meadows

In a world where everyone has been reincarnated hundreds of times, Ana is a nosoul. A few years before her birth, a woman named Ciana died, Ciana was supposed to come back, but she never did. Ana was born instead. While all the others in her world remember their past lives, she has none and that makes her a threat--dangerous. Ana's cruel mother, Li casts her out of their home on Ana's 18th birthday. Ana has no choice but to go to Heart and see if she can figure out why she was born and if she will be born again or if her life will fizzle out. Li gives her a faulty compass and she loses her way to Heart. She is rescued from freezing to death in Range by a mysterious man named Sam. They venture to Heart together, a place where he will be her greatest ally and possibly her greatest love.

Overall Merit: First of all, I love the cover so kudos for that. Secondly, the premise was fascinating. Imagine remembering all of your past lives for millennia. However, some of the storytelling didn't ring true for me and I was especially disappointed by the ending. The world didn't make sense because there simply weren't any rules in place. There were dragons and sylphs running around and some god-like entity called Janus, but we never knew whether or not he was real and if he was what purpose he served. Also, in the story, the people just found Heart already built and waiting for them. What?! No, just no. At the beginning, Ana had a motive: find out why she exists, but after about a day she seemed to forget. She was way too busy drooling over Sam for 80% of the novel. This book had so much potential, but it fell flat. There were too many inconsistencies and technicalities that went unexplained. Score-6

Characters: The characters all had a fatal flaw, they were almost good but not enough, the antagonist was almost evil, but not enough, etc. They were boring. Ana was dull, she is a passive character who steps up at random moments to rescue someone, usually Sam. However, how come she can stand up to sylphs, but when she sees Sam sneaking out every night and overhears him talking behind her back, she can't confront him about it? Where is her backbone? Sam wasn't very interesting either and I didn't buy his "crippling" fear of dragons. It was a cop out. Meadows makes him seem like a brooding artist character, only to reveal that he's distant because he's afraid of dragons. Hmm...yea no. Li was the only real antagonist, and well she wasn't even that interesting. It seemed like she was being mean for the sake of being mean. She had some connection with Ciana, but it was never established properly and therefore her animosity wasn't convincing. Score-6

Blush Factor: This consumed the entire story. Literally the whole novel was about the romantic tension between Sam and Ana, which would have been fine if it were actually interesting. It actually got frustrating how slowly it moved. It's like "just kiss her already!" There was nothing unique about their romance and when I can predict exactly what's going to happen, it makes me irritated. Basically it was a standard YA romance that took up more space in the book than it should have. Score-6

Structure: Standard linear first person, but the thing about first person is that it's limiting so unless the narrator is compelling, the reader is apt to get bored. Ana was not a very interesting narrator. For all her abusive upbringing there was no inner turmoil, I could not feel her angst! YA novels are supposed to have a TON of angst! Nothing interesting happened in terms of structure. First person is pretty straight forward so nothing new here. Score-6

Plot: Before I start, I promise that this category will score extremely low. The concept was there and it was brilliant, but the execution was painfully bad. What started as a promising story turned into a long running love story with a protagonist who seemed to forget what she had been looking for in the first place. Sure she spent some time researching in the library, but  most of her time was spent mooning over Sam and learning to play the piano because apparently she had a passion for music. The ending was atrocious, talk about a deus ex machina (literally). I won't say exactly what happens, but just know that you couldn't possibly conceive this ending because no one in their right mind would come up with it and think it was a good idea. No offense to Meadows, but this was pretty sad.

Vervain Says: "Deus ex machina is a Latin phrase and it literally means 'God out of the  machine'. In other words, it is when a writer invokes a god or higher power or even just brings in a character that seems to have all the answers and can put the story to rights with little difficulty. This is a device that should be avoided at all costs." 

A Fistful of Sky (LaZelle #1)- Nina Kiriki Hoffman

In the LaZelle family, each of the members goes through a brutal "transition" and if they survive they awaken with powerful magic. The magic varies for everyone based somewhat on personality type and the rest on chance. However, it is also known that "late-bloomers" tend to end up with a  less desirable gift: the gift of curses. This wouldn't be an issue, but it is also true that if the magic goes unused for too long, it will inevitably consume the wielder. Gypsum LaZelle is nineteen years old and completely "magic-less" in contrast to her powerful siblings and therefore resigned to a mundane existence. Then, one day when her family is out of town she becomes gravely ill and wakes up with a new gift--one that will make her wish she had remained normal.

Overal Merit: I LOVED the concept of this book, so much so that when I found it on goodreads.com, I bought it for my e-reader so I could start immediately. I actually could not tear myself away from it and finished it in about three hours. Gypsum is a great character and her siblings are awesome. However, per usual, I had my gripes. What started out as a fantastic predicament took a turn for the weird. I have no issue with weird, in fact, I adore weird, but this was too weird. The ending also threw me and I wasn't satisfied when it came to a close. The end is bizarre, but that's ok. If you want a new take on magic, read it anyway. Score- 8.5

Characters: Gypsum was fascinating and probably the only heavy female character I've seen who wasn't languishing in self-pity about her weight. She was so real and human that for all her flaws she was still lovable. The supporting characters didn't disappoint either and I loved how it was near impossible to define the antagonist. Strong personalities all around for Gypsum's siblings and her "curse child", Altria. Some of the concepts Hoffman tackled within personalities were heavy usages of Jungian archetypes so if that doesn't sit well with you, you have been warned. Score-9

Blush Factor: This was disappointing as it promised to be present, but wasn't really there. Hoffman teased with a potential relationship, but it fizzled out into nothing of interest. This was probably the weakest point of the novel and Hoffman would have done well to exclude it completely. Score- 4

Structure: The structure was fairly linear and told from Gypsum's perspective. I followed it easily and had no complaints. Nothing innovative was done here. One major gripe I had was that Hoffman brushed on the subject of creatures from alternate worlds, but she never went into any detail, which left me somewhat confused. Also, she didn't define the limits on Gypsum's power, which also annoyed me because I wanted more definition as to what she actually could and could not do. The score would have been higher if Hoffman did a better job of covering her bases in terms of technicalities. Score- 5

Plot: I was completely enthralled by the plot until I got to the ending, which was a bit too forced and philosophical for my taste. I'll not say more than that because of spoilers. The concept was phenomenal and a refreshing addition to the world of magic-weilders. In spite of the flaws, I was able to suspend my disbelief more than usual because of the great cast of characters. Score-7

In summation: if you are looking for something with an excellent plot and great characters and are willing to turn a blind eye to some technical issues and a strange ending, then go for it.

Vervain says: "Gypsum is a crystalline stone that symbolizes stability in the midst of chaotic change as well as growth and improvement."

The Wizard's Ward- Deborah Hale

Maura's world of Umbria was ravaged by Hanish invaders and the only hope of restoring Umbrian power is to find and awaken the mythical "Waiting King". However, the only one who can do this is the "Destined Queen". Maura's guardian, the wizard Langbard informs her on her birthday that she is said "Destined Queen" and she must venture to the magical grove where her husband awaits. That afternoon, Maura finds herself in the woods gathering some magical herbs when she rescues a young outlaw named Rath from some Hanish soldiers. She brings him back with her to Langbard's cottage and the wizard decides that Rath will accompany him and Maura to Maura's Aunt who is in possession of the map that will lead them to the grove of the "Waiting King". Am I the only one who could see what was coming as soon as I read the synopsis on the back of the book?

Overall Merit: I mean, it wasn't a bad book. Then again, neither was it a good book. For all the interesting premise, the story fell rather flat. Not to mention, if I can guess the ending by reading the synopsis on the back it is not a good sign. Same goes for the characters. They weren't bad characters, but I didn't find myself caring about them all that much. By the end of the book I got pretty bored because I knew exactly what was going to happen. Not really worth your time. Score- 6

Characters: They were non-descript. I for one did not take Rath very seriously as an outlaw, he was far too civilized for that and there was not enough inner turmoil over his identity. There should have been more of a struggle between his desire to be good for Maura and his instinct to behave like a thoughtless boor. Maura was ok, she annoyed me a bit at points, but there was nothing so horrendous about her character that made me want to stop reading. I think that Hale tried to make her a plucky, strong female heroine, but the attempt fell flat. Maura was too goody-goody for that. Score- 6

Blush Factor: This aspect of the book irked me. There was all this really horrible attempt at romantic repression where it got to the point where I was just like "either be with her or don't just make up your mind!" Obviously Rath and Maura end up together (if that was a spoiler I'm really not all that sorry). However, the thing that bothered me the most was the gratuitous sex scene at the very end of the book. It really did not fit at all and it made me question the morals of the characters. I'm not a prude by any means and if sex is appropriate then go for it, but going off the basic tone and cultural structure of the book it didn't work. Score- 4

Structure: It was linear and third person from Maura's point of view. Nothing interesting was done here, but it wasn't convoluted or confusing. Score- 5

Plot: This could have been interesting, but it seems like Hale came up with an initial premise and never really did any development beyond that. The stakes weren't high enough, meaning I never felt like the characters were in imminent danger. A good story beats the character over the head with a mallet until they are ready to collapse. Neither Maura nor Rath faced any such predicament. It was far too easy for them to get to the grove and the Hanish threat that was introduced from the beginning wasn't used to its full potential by a long shot. Score- 4

In summation, I strongly advise avoiding this book unless you are given an important puzzle and the only way to solve it is hidden somewhere in the pages of this rubbish.

Vervain says: "There are two types of magic used in this world: mortcraft and vitcraft. Mortcraft calls upon dark powers whereas vitcraft is a nature based form of magic. 

Meet My Assistant

What are you gawping at? No. Not a dragon. A wyvern. Why don't you ask her yourself? She can talk you know.

Vervain says: "I've never met a mortal before, but I always thought they'd look more appetizing."

Well that's rude. She doesn't breathe fire you know, and she'll only spit poison  if you really upset her.

Vervain says: "I think we should turn them in to the Magistrate."

Of course this is coming from an illegal pet who happens to live in my library. Since she's here however, feel free to direct any questions to her. Also, from now on she'll be defining important terms that are crucial to understanding each novel.

Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega #1)- Patricia Briggs

After her abusive pack leader is killed, Anna is taken in by a new leader whose son, Charles claims Anna as his mate. Anna always thought that she was just a particularly weak beta wolf, but it turns out that she is a rare omega instead. Omegas have the ability to sense neutralize tension in other wolves, therefore protecting themselves from the ferocity of others. News comes to the new pack that a rogue werewolf has been killing humans in the surrounding areas and it is up to Charles and Anna to hunt it down. Not only do they need to eliminate the threat, but they also need to work on stabilizing their pair-bond or Anna is fair game to any other wolf who comes along. Sounds vaguely familiar...

Overall Merit: This book was decent as far as paranormal romance is concerned. It didn't bring anything new to the table, but for fans of the genre, go for it. I did like that Briggs played around a bit with werewolf powers and didn't just stick to the by the book rules (nor did she make them sparkle, phew). The actual conflict in the story was interesting, but without revealing too much detail, some of the mythology didn't seem to click properly. By that I mean: it was an interesting idea, but the technical details didn't convince me of the possibility of said magical occurrence. Score- 9

Characters: Anna wasn't the most interesting character, but neither was she unlikeable. Same goes for Charles. There were times when I could really feel their personalities shine through, but I wished I could sense that throughout. There was some interesting flashback stuff going on with some of the side characters and the antagonist and I almost wish that Briggs had gone into that more. The book was fairly short by genre standard and she definitely could have fleshed that part out without any difficulty. Also, the supporting characters were very stereotypic and would have merited from some more depth. Score-7

Blush Factor: Wow, for paranormal romance, this was surprisingly PG. Usually book with similar covers and premises are dripping with smut, but this was clean--as in I would let a mature thirteen year old read it. The romance was sweet, but not overwhelming and I liked the romantic dynamic of Charles and Anna. Unlike many paranormal couples, they were both pretty balanced (for werewolves).

Structure: This wasn't linear with a few brooding side chapters from the jilted lover, as many paranormal books are. Instead, there was a side story from a different character entirely and his story was fascinating, which is why I was so disappointed that Briggs only chose to brush the surface. She really could have done so much more with it and I would have put this into the "must read" category. The main story (Charles and Anna) plodded along, but there was enough action to keep me interested. Score- 8

Plot: As I mentioned earlier, the plot was solid as in fairly predictable with a few refreshing twists. However, I found myself more entranced by the side plot than by the main plot, which can end up being kind of dangerous if the reader isn't invested in the primary story. It didn't help that the character with the most depth was also a member of said side plot. It was a sturdy story and it held its own, to the point that I'm actually considering reading the next book, even though I find that the second book in any series isn't nearly as good as the first one. We shall have to see if Briggs can keep me reading once again. Score- 8

In summation, it was a pretty good book and a quick read so if you have time then by all means. I was actually surprised that it had a legitimate plot instead of being a smut book.

Sword of Fire and Sea- Erin Hoffman

When Vidarian's great-grandfather married a fire priestess, he swore an alliance with the High Temple of Kara'zu (headquarters of the fire priestesses). This agreement is called into play, when the high priestess Endera summons Vidarian to honor his family legacy and escort a promising young priestess named Ariadel to a different temple in the south. Since Ariadel was caught by the Vkortha, a group of rogue magic users, she has been in constant danger of capture. Vidarian's job is to see her safely to the new temple where she can seek refuge from the Vkortha. At least in theory, this is what the story is supposed to be about. 


Overall Merit: I found that the story I was promised fell flat and well I'm amazed I forced myself to finish the book. It wasn't that the writing was inherently bad, it was just the storytelling ability wasn't there and neither was the character development. I don't quite know why I even bothered to finish it, maybe so that I could give an accurate review to the imaginary people who are reading this blog. Anyway, please don't read this book unless your only other option is Twilight, then by all means go ahead. Score- 4 (this is mainly because I really liked the cover...) 


Characters: Were there even characters in this story? No, not really. They were caricatures if anything. I mean I've read flat characters before, but usually there's at least one person who saves the day, even if they're in a supporting role. This book gave me nothing to work with. There was no drive to do anything, the characters simply accepted the roles they were given because either "the goddesses said so" or they had some innate intuition that it was "their destiny". If characters don't have a legitimate reason for going on a quest or fighting against a force then the readers don't care if they do it or not. In fact, I cared so little about these characters that they could have been brutally murdered and I wouldn't have done more than shrug. Also, I couldn't even figure out who the antagonist was supposed to be. The Vkortha were pathetic and played a minimal role, somehow the Imperial Army showed up in the last fifty pages, and then the high priestess suddenly became quasi evil. It didn't make sense at all. Oh, one thing I had a MAJOR issue with was the fact that the chaos goddess comes in and says "Correctamundo" and "See ya later alligator". Even in a realistic fiction book no one says that, but she's a goddess--a chaos goddess nonetheless. Score- 2 


Blush Factor- This was also miserable, but that should be self explanatory because if the characters have nothing to say for themselves, then they certainly can't have interesting relationships with each other. From essentially the first page you knew there was going to be something between Vidarian and Ariadel, which is fine. However, there was no build up. One minute they were simply companions on a journey and the next they were cuddling and kissing. There was no transition and when the romantic bit came about I actually had to go back and reread the section because I thought I had missed something. The romance is misplaced and unrealistic and if anything it detracted from the already pathetic story. Score-2 


Structure- Another thing I had an issue with. The transitions were abominable in this novel, it kept jumping over hours, and even days at a time, leaving the reader confused and disoriented. It's like, "I don't care if you put a little wave icon in between sections every time you shift; I still have no idea what's going on!" Otherwise, the story was traditionally linear and only told from one perspective. Score- 3 


Plot- The plot had potential to be good. I did like the magical hierarchy in the world and I thought that if done correctly the story would have been enjoyable. However, the entire thing was completely botched. The story was trite and it didn't flow at all. There were too many elements going on at the same time. If Hoffman had simply taken out one or two of the irrelevant plot tangents and focused on the main story thread it would have been much more successful. Score- 5 (for potential) 


In summation: Do not read this book unless you somehow find yourself in a Saw movie and you have no other option.