Q U I C K S T A T S
Characters: ⭐⭐⭐
Setting: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Writing style: ⭐⭐⭐
Overall rating: ⭐⭐⭐. 5
T H E B O O K
// Content Warning: Animal death / Blood / Chronic illness / Death of parent / Fatphobia / Kidnapping / Physical abuse / Violence //
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Age rating: 15+
Genre(s): Fantasy
Pub date: 15/05/18
[ Goodreads︱The StoryGraph ]
P R E M I S E
They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Now Kate lives as an outcast, clinging to the fringes of society as a member of the Relay, the imperial courier service. Only those most skilled in riding and bow hunting ride for the Relay; and only the fastest survive, for when dark falls, the nightdrakes—deadly flightless dragons—come out to hunt. Fortunately, Kate has a secret edge: she is a wilder, born with magic that allows her to influence the minds of animals. But it’s this magic that she needs to keep hidden, as being a wilder is forbidden, punishable by death or exile. And it’s this magic that leads her to a caravan massacred by nightdrakes in broad daylight—the only survivor her childhood friend, her first love, the boy she swore to forget, the boy who broke her heart.
The high king’s second son, Corwin Tormane, never asked to lead. Even as he waits for the uror—the once-in-a-generation ritual to decide which of the king’s children will succeed him—he knows it’s always been his brother who will assume the throne. And that’s fine by him. He’d rather spend his days away from the palace, away from the sight of his father, broken with sickness from the attempt on his life. But the peacekeeping tour Corwin is on has given him too much time to reflect upon the night he saved his father’s life—the night he condemned the would-be killer to death and lost the girl he loved. Which is why he takes it on himself to investigate rumors of unrest in one of the remote city-states, only for his caravan to be attacked—and for him to be saved by Kate.
With their paths once more entangled, Kate and Corwin have to put the past behind them. The threat of drakes who attack in the daylight is only the beginning of a darker menace stirring in the kingdom—one whose origins have dire implications for Kate’s father’s attack upon the king and will thrust them into the middle of a brewing civil war in the kingdom of Rime.
M Y R E V I E W
↬ PRE-THOUGHTS
This book has been on my TBR for a really long time and if I had read this back in 2019 or 2020, I would have liked it better.
↬ PLOT
Onyx and Ivory features two viewpoints: Kate, the traitor's daughter, and Corwin, the crown prince. We follow the two once lovers travel the entire nation for answers which are similar but different: Kate is desperate to know why her father betrayed the king, and Corwin's question is why his father. Along the way they encounter magic, mischief, and mayhem (I failed miserably trying to use the rule of three, if my tutor read this she would call me and tell me to never talk to her again).
Yes, my summary seems exciting and all, but it has the chosen one trope (which isn't prominent) but it's still there.
The plot had many plot holes and while all of this was buried beneath the writer's fruitful writing, they were quite noticeable. At least to me. Unfortunately, including them would spoiling the book and that's not something I want to do.
↬ WRITING AND SETTING
The setting was definitely fascinating and I would have loved to explore the promising locations a little more. I think the author had bottled her ideas, like Kaz wanted to bottle Inej's laugh (character from Six of Crows). But unlike Kaz, she actually wrote them down. Despite me not being a huge fan of the execution, her writing is definitely something I want to talk about more because it's addictive and enthralling and maintains the fantasy tone (despite not being as whimsical as Caraval or as 'with high stakes' as Dance of Thieves). I was initially supposed to have two paragraphs to discuss this but the ideas had somehow merged and now... it's just one long paragraph.
↬ CHARACTERS
Kate was... headstrong? Reckless? Needs to see a therapist? I can't find the right to describe her, and I definitely can't decide if I liked her or not. If I had one of those scale thingies lawyers have, and put everything I hated about her on one side and the stuff I liked about her in the other, it would be balanced.
Corwin (nice name, nice times) is the brooding dark haired prince in literally every YA fantasy book and he was tailored to fit Elian from To Kill a Kingdom (looking at the release dates, Elian was tailored to fit Corwin). After combing the depths of the internet, I have finally sealed the deeds and you're welcome world.
Here's reasons why Corwin and Elian share the same mother/ father (or 👀parents👀). I wanted to make a full-blown presentation but for some reason I can't include a presentation here?!
Needs to control their temper
Maintains intense eye contact
The family disappointment™️
Smooshy dooshy hair
Cool cloaks
↬ CONCLUSION
Pros: exes to enemies to lovers trope
Cons: chosen one trope
Overall rating: 3.5/5
T R O P E S
Exes to enemies to lovers
Forbidden romance
S I M I L A R B O O K S
Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson
↬ When the patriarch of the Ballenger empire dies, his son, Jase, becomes its new leader. Even nearby kingdoms bow to the strength of this outlaw family, who have always governed by their own rules. But a new era looms on the horizon, set in motion by a young queen, which makes her the target of the dynasty's resentment and anger.
At the same time, Kazi, a legendary former street thief, is sent by the queen to investigate transgressions against the new settlements. When Kazi arrives in the forbidding land of the Ballengers, she learns that there is more to Jase than she thought. As unexpected events spiral out of their control, bringing them intimately together, they continue to play a cat and mouse game of false moves and motives in order to fulfill their own secret missions.
B O O K S M E N T I O N E D
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
Caraval by Stephanie Garber
Dance of Thieves by Mary E. Pearson
To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
A D D I T I O N A L R E S O U R C E S
F I N D M E
Corwin stan? 😥