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3.47 AVERAGE
3.47 AVERAGE
I got this book for free from BookSirens for an honest review.
Now I read the synopsis and this is normally right up my street, unfortunately I didn’t like it. The story idea was a great idea but unfortunately it didn’t really feel finished.
There was a lot of unnecessary death. I felt like there was a lot more work that needed doing to it, if it was longer and parts expanded on to make this seem more engaging.
Character development only really happened for the two main characters as the others are more, almost disposable characters. I didn’t feel attached to any of the characters which was a shame as when people died I was expecting to feel the loss.
Now I read the synopsis and this is normally right up my street, unfortunately I didn’t like it. The story idea was a great idea but unfortunately it didn’t really feel finished.
There was a lot of unnecessary death. I felt like there was a lot more work that needed doing to it, if it was longer and parts expanded on to make this seem more engaging.
Character development only really happened for the two main characters as the others are more, almost disposable characters. I didn’t feel attached to any of the characters which was a shame as when people died I was expecting to feel the loss.
The Order of the Key was fast-paced and action packed. I loved the main character Jacks and the magic system was fascinating.
It seemed a little rushed at the end, but I'd love to read more about these characters.
It seemed a little rushed at the end, but I'd love to read more about these characters.
**Thank you BookSirens for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review**
OKAY. FIRST THING - did anyone else feel like they were on information overload? Because I sure did! I feel like I got a ton of information in very few pages - it's basically thrown at you. At under 300 pages I was a little bit overwhelmed because of this!
I did enjoy the book and found it very entertaining, it has a creative plot, romance, mystery, excellent and well thought out characters that do experience growth and most of all, my favorite, EVIIIIILLL.
This does have the makings of an amazing YA novel despite the information overload and I very much appreciate that the book features strong female characters as I have read so many things lately that put women on the back burner and I'm just not a fan of that!
The ending was a bit disappointing but did fit the typical superhero trope that our main character would have loved - my only fear is that this book will never see a series come to life as it feels like we know everything already. Don't get me wrong, everything doesn't have to be a series but I feel at least a second book would give you the satisfaction that this book did not.
OKAY. FIRST THING - did anyone else feel like they were on information overload? Because I sure did! I feel like I got a ton of information in very few pages - it's basically thrown at you. At under 300 pages I was a little bit overwhelmed because of this!
I did enjoy the book and found it very entertaining, it has a creative plot, romance, mystery, excellent and well thought out characters that do experience growth and most of all, my favorite, EVIIIIILLL.
This does have the makings of an amazing YA novel despite the information overload and I very much appreciate that the book features strong female characters as I have read so many things lately that put women on the back burner and I'm just not a fan of that!
The ending was a bit disappointing but did fit the typical superhero trope that our main character would have loved - my only fear is that this book will never see a series come to life as it feels like we know everything already. Don't get me wrong, everything doesn't have to be a series but I feel at least a second book would give you the satisfaction that this book did not.
The world building in this book is excellent. In fact it is one of my favourite aspects of this book. I did not enjoy the characters that much - for me it was just hard to connect with any of them. The plot was okay, but at times I found myself confused by the storyline as well as the actions and/or thoughts of the characters. However, overall this is a fun read - especially if you are a fan of Cassandra Claire's writing and worldbuilding style.
Thank you to StoryOrigin for the review copy in exchange for my honest review of the book.
Thank you to StoryOrigin for the review copy in exchange for my honest review of the book.
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review
Jacklyn Madison is an ordinary superhero loving, track running girl until the day of her 18th birthday. When inter-dimensional monsters attack, the past her mother was trying to protect her from catches up to them. The Order of the Key is made up of supremely gifted humans that protect the rest of the world from inter-dimensional horrors. But... all is not as it seems on the surface as corruption is rife in the Order and Jacklyn finds herself at the heart of it all.
This has the makings of a fantastic YA novel- strong, female characters, great action, some romance and fairly good pace. There are parts of the novel where I found the pacing a little rushed, particularly towards the conclusion of the story. There were also moments where I found the characters other than Jacklyn, falling flat. I would have loved to be able to connect more with Gana and Kyp as their stories are so heavily intertwined with Jacklyn's. This lack of connection sometimes made me question loyalties and become apathetic to the character's fates. In regards to other characters, they sometimes felt like background noise rather than contributors to the story.
I did enjoy the overall story and would be intrigued to read more about Jacklyn and the Order of the Key. I love that the character of Jacklyn encourages girls to be who they want to be and demonstrates that strong can be sexy too.
Jacklyn Madison is an ordinary superhero loving, track running girl until the day of her 18th birthday. When inter-dimensional monsters attack, the past her mother was trying to protect her from catches up to them. The Order of the Key is made up of supremely gifted humans that protect the rest of the world from inter-dimensional horrors. But... all is not as it seems on the surface as corruption is rife in the Order and Jacklyn finds herself at the heart of it all.
This has the makings of a fantastic YA novel- strong, female characters, great action, some romance and fairly good pace. There are parts of the novel where I found the pacing a little rushed, particularly towards the conclusion of the story. There were also moments where I found the characters other than Jacklyn, falling flat. I would have loved to be able to connect more with Gana and Kyp as their stories are so heavily intertwined with Jacklyn's. This lack of connection sometimes made me question loyalties and become apathetic to the character's fates. In regards to other characters, they sometimes felt like background noise rather than contributors to the story.
I did enjoy the overall story and would be intrigued to read more about Jacklyn and the Order of the Key. I love that the character of Jacklyn encourages girls to be who they want to be and demonstrates that strong can be sexy too.
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wow……I was not ready for this book……for how deeply emotional it would become.
As the book says, this is an origin story. If you’re a fan of super heroes then you can guess what that means for our FMC.
I’m moving on to the next book, and hoping for the revenge arc.
As the book says, this is an origin story. If you’re a fan of super heroes then you can guess what that means for our FMC.
I’m moving on to the next book, and hoping for the revenge arc.
I loved this book! It’s Shadowhunters meets X-Men. The chemistry/antagonism between the characters is so well done, and each character is its own. So often supporting characters are forgotten when doing the development, but that is definitely not the case here. I honestly could not put the book down - the story just pulls you further and further in. 5 stars!
MY OPINION: ***
I received this ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review!
For some reason, this book took me forever to read. It's probably because I was reading about three other books at the same time. Nevertheless, I'm glad I finished it.
I personally found this book hard to get through because I wasn't too invested in the plot. It was fairly cliche, and I'm not the biggest fan of fantasy plots. I've been going through a fantasy binge lately and I think I've realized that it's just not for me.
Jacklyn is a normal girl living in the Bronx when suddenly one day she is attacked by demons out of nowhere. She is saved by a boy named Kyp and she and her family are brought to a regiment of trained warriors who combat the demons and save the world. It turns out that her mother already knew and was always a part of this group of people along with her father.
Lavinia is the leader of this organization and is also Kyp's mom. We soon find out she's a tough, brutish, almost cruel woman who rules with a firm hand. I felt an instant dislike towards her and for good reason. We soon find out the extent of her cruelty through a "punishment" that almost gets Jacklyn and her entire family killed.
Kyp and Jacklyn start a romantic relationship that I personally did not ship. I felt zero chemistry between them and I felt that they were better off as friends. Throughout the entire book, they learn more and more about each other, Jacks especially as she learns more about her new world. Kyp acts like a jerk a lot of the time when they're in front of others and I personally didn't like his character.
Besides the romance, I found the book sort of confusing. The world building was well-written but I would have liked a little more clarification as to what was going on. Half the time I had to go back and reread just to see what was happening and try to figure out what was going on. It followed a similar format to most other books where a seemingly-ordinary girl or boy finds out that they aren't as normal as they think and are suddenly introduced to a brand new world. I'm currently rereading Harry Potter which follows a similar format and there I can decipher what is happening because it is shown very well. However, there were times in this book where I couldn't figure out who was a Key or a Guardian, what their purpose was, what the demons looked like, etc.
I liked the writing style. It added enough description and details with just the right amount of humor and levity that makes a good young adult book. While there were a few errors here and there, it was mostly flawless in terms of structure and flow. I liked the pacing of the book and it was quite engaging. I wish it was a bit longer or slower towards the end because the ending felt rushed and disjointed.
I would recommend this book to readers looking for a fun, refreshing, interesting fantasy read with a little bit of romance and a little bit of action.
Main Character: Jacklyn
Sidekick(s): Kyp, Gana, Jaina, etc
Villain(s): Lavinia, etc
Fantasy Elements: This book was based in a fantasy world with fantasy characters and creatures.
I received this ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review!
For some reason, this book took me forever to read. It's probably because I was reading about three other books at the same time. Nevertheless, I'm glad I finished it.
I personally found this book hard to get through because I wasn't too invested in the plot. It was fairly cliche, and I'm not the biggest fan of fantasy plots. I've been going through a fantasy binge lately and I think I've realized that it's just not for me.
Jacklyn is a normal girl living in the Bronx when suddenly one day she is attacked by demons out of nowhere. She is saved by a boy named Kyp and she and her family are brought to a regiment of trained warriors who combat the demons and save the world. It turns out that her mother already knew and was always a part of this group of people along with her father.
Lavinia is the leader of this organization and is also Kyp's mom. We soon find out she's a tough, brutish, almost cruel woman who rules with a firm hand. I felt an instant dislike towards her and for good reason. We soon find out the extent of her cruelty through a "punishment" that almost gets Jacklyn and her entire family killed.
Kyp and Jacklyn start a romantic relationship that I personally did not ship. I felt zero chemistry between them and I felt that they were better off as friends. Throughout the entire book, they learn more and more about each other, Jacks especially as she learns more about her new world. Kyp acts like a jerk a lot of the time when they're in front of others and I personally didn't like his character.
Besides the romance, I found the book sort of confusing. The world building was well-written but I would have liked a little more clarification as to what was going on. Half the time I had to go back and reread just to see what was happening and try to figure out what was going on. It followed a similar format to most other books where a seemingly-ordinary girl or boy finds out that they aren't as normal as they think and are suddenly introduced to a brand new world. I'm currently rereading Harry Potter which follows a similar format and there I can decipher what is happening because it is shown very well. However, there were times in this book where I couldn't figure out who was a Key or a Guardian, what their purpose was, what the demons looked like, etc.
I liked the writing style. It added enough description and details with just the right amount of humor and levity that makes a good young adult book. While there were a few errors here and there, it was mostly flawless in terms of structure and flow. I liked the pacing of the book and it was quite engaging. I wish it was a bit longer or slower towards the end because the ending felt rushed and disjointed.
I would recommend this book to readers looking for a fun, refreshing, interesting fantasy read with a little bit of romance and a little bit of action.
Main Character: Jacklyn
Sidekick(s): Kyp, Gana, Jaina, etc
Villain(s): Lavinia, etc
Fantasy Elements: This book was based in a fantasy world with fantasy characters and creatures.
Jacklyn lives a fairly quiet life with her mother and her sister Gana. Her world turns upside down when she comes face to face with monsters and meets Kyp and Cass. Kyp whisks Jacklyn and her family to where he lives with other soldiers who are part of The Order of the Key. These soldiers are gifted humans who protect others from creatures who spill through inter-dimensional rifts. They fight under Kyp’s less than stellar mother, Lavinia, who rules with an iron fist. The more Jacklyn trains for her place as a Key, the more she learns of the corruption that spills down from higher up. This might not be the safest place for her little family after all.
Ms. Manzano was kind enough to send me a paperback of this, and once I started, I could not put it down. The various skills that the members had were fun, creative, and very powerful. The characters were fantastic, even Lavinia, who made a great bad guy. The storyline is fun and addicting, and the book is exceptionally well-written. This was a super fun read from start to finish and a fantastic first novel. While this book isn’t out just yet, I cannot wait for more from this author because I am not ready to let these characters go. Very well done!
Ms. Manzano was kind enough to send me a paperback of this, and once I started, I could not put it down. The various skills that the members had were fun, creative, and very powerful. The characters were fantastic, even Lavinia, who made a great bad guy. The storyline is fun and addicting, and the book is exceptionally well-written. This was a super fun read from start to finish and a fantastic first novel. While this book isn’t out just yet, I cannot wait for more from this author because I am not ready to let these characters go. Very well done!
I liked this book. It contained an interesting premise and ideas. It was also well-paced, with very few dull moments. I was a particular fan of Gana. I would enjoy an opportunity to see Kyp and Jacklyn's childhood more, as their reconnection felt swift and not as impactful as I had hoped. I appreciated the introduction at the end, and imagine the sequel will be a fun ride.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.