Review: The Forever Court

The Forever Court

Rating: 4/5

Buy or Borrow: Buy 

Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher! 

Life is returning to normal for Denizen Hardwick. Well, the new normal, where he has to battle monsters in quiet Dublin bookshops and constantly struggle to contain the new powers he has been given by Mercy, the daughter of the Endless King. But Denizen may need those powers sooner than he thinks - not only are the Tenebrous stirring again but the Order of the Borrowed Dark face a new threat from much closer to home... 

I remember reading the first book in this trilogy, and not really being sure what to expect...but I ended up being totally blown away! This trilogy is so imaginative and original and with this book we find out the books are going to be a trilogy! I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't quite everything I hoped it would be. For instance a lot of the focus on Denizen was shifted and I was so excited to see more about him and Simon. 

We get a new POV in this book, and there are some new characters introduced. Uriel. Uriel is part of a cult. The cult where written perfectly, they where scarily dedicated and it was believable and authentic. But I was a little bit lost as I was trying to work out what the deal with was this group. And I just wanted to explore the world of the book more and see more of Denizen. See him talk to his mother and find out more about him and his past. I would say this is more YA rather than middle grade, due to content and so on. 

The imagery and the writing was still completely fantastic. The opening pulled me in and set up some intrigue, even if I did end up a little bit lost more than once. The writing still creates an atmosphere, and vivid settings that help to pull you in to the book. I was excited to see Abigail and Darcie and everyone again, but we really didn't get to see much of them this time, which was a little disappointing. But we did get to meet the Palatine and meet some more knights. Plus there was some interesting information about the Order and how it started, and I'd love to have dived in to that some more. 

In this book Denizen is dealing with the aftermath of the previous book and his new Cant knowledge. I still loved his character but I did kind of want to smack him one at some point but then I can only assume he was being a typical boy. He did see that he was being a prat at one point when he was feeling all betrayed by Simon. Which made a nice change. Denizen is hanging out with Mercy a lot this book...oh yes. She's back. And she's just as fascinating as ever. I'm not sure I ship them together because I don't entirely trust Mercy, especially after her little comment at the end....slip of the tongue? Or more? I'm excited to find out. 

The ending is intriguing, and I'm excited to see where this is going to go in the final book. I also want to point out some storytelling/writing that I loved....the way the Redemptresses story was told towards the end! I loved it. It broke up the narrative nicely, and was a clever and interesting way to tell the story and get two POV's in there. 

I loved the creepy bits in the first book, and how it was slightly dark. But the first book had some uplifting moments that this book didn't have. It was still fast paced, there was still plenty of action, and Denizen is still a great character. The writing is still completely brilliant, and I really enjoy the authors storytelling. Buuutt I was disappointed to not get to see some of my favourite characters much, and I was a bit sad not to get to explore the world more and see more of the various different creatures in the book. So this book was kind of a mixed bag for me, especially as I got a little bit lost buuuttttt with the knowledge at the end that this was a trilogy, I can understand why some of the things I liked and looked forward to weren't present, as I can see the kinda direction the story is going! 

Review: Knights of The Borrowed Dark

Knights of The Borrowed Dark
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher, Puffin! 

Denizen Hardwick is an orphan, and his life is, well, normal. Sure, in storybooks orphans are rescued from drudgery when they discover they are a wizard or a warrior or a prophesied king. But this is real life—orphans are just kids without parents. At least that’s what Denizen thought. . . . 
 
On a particularly dark night, the gates of Crosscaper Orphanage open to a car that almost growls with power. The car and the man in it retrieve Denizen with the promise of introducing him to a long-lost aunt. But on the ride into the city, they are attacked. Denizen soon learns that monsters can grow out of the shadows. And there is an ancient order of knights who keep them at bay. Denizen has a unique connection to these knights, but everything they tell him feels like a half-truth. If Denizen joins the order, is he fulfilling his destiny, or turning his back on everything his family did to keep him alive?

This book...it's just...bloody brilliant! I loved it and I'm SO GLAD this is the first in a series! I have a feeling this series is going to be big, this is unlike anything I've read recently! It's so original and imaginative and I was completely blown away by it! 

The opening is seriously creepy, and then you know...there's a load of other creepy bits, which send a bit of a chill up the spine if I'm honest! The entire atmosphere of the book felt very grey to me, like I was reading and everything had a grey, dark tinge to it, if that makes sense? There's some brilliant pages that are all black with a couple of words that add to the atmosphere of the scene brilliantly and really, really made the goosebumps on my arms come out and say hi! 

It's fantastically written, the descriptions?! I loved them! "the shadows of the tunnel came with it, hanging from its throat in cobweb curls" I mean how freaking awesome is that description!? There's loads more like it as well and I fell in love with the writing. The vibe is dark, the book is atmospheric which engulfs you in the world of the book, it's fast paced and original and funny and full of action and just completely brilliant! The book grips you and draws you in to the world and you become completely obsessed with it and what's going on in it! 

The history/lore to the Knights is rich and fascinating and you want to know more and more about it, as well as the creatures they fight! They where fantastically creepy as well, but at the same time, I'm oddly eager to see more of them!? The action scenes have you biting your nails and cheering on the good guys, the plot twists blow your mind and have you shrieking. There's a brilliant cast of characters, Jack, Darcie (I would totally be Darcie, I kinda want her job!), D'Aubigny, Abigail, Grey, Denizen and his aunt and so on. They're a great bunch and all work so well together, and each brings something to the story! Grey gives you a good chuckle for example! I loved his relationship with Denizen! Denizen I liked because he's refreshingly skeptical about everything, he doesn't believe in dreams and he's not the sunshine and rainbows characters you usually see, things have been tough for him and he's developed accordingly. He's just very realistic in his reactions and everything! He's going to be a great main character, I can tell! 

Knights of The Borrowed Dark is a fantastically refreshing addition to the genre, and it's going to delight and maybe even slightly terrify at the same time, depending on who's reading! I just can't get over it, I loved it and I'm excited to dive back in to the world and see what the author is going to come up with next!