Review- Endless Knight by Kresley Cole

Title: Endless Knight
Series: The Arcana Chronicles
Author: Kresley Cole
Published: October 1st 2013
Book 2
(Sent by Simon and Schuster Publishers) 
The Review for Poison Princess (The Arcana Chronicles #1) can be found here

Evie unleashes her full arsenal of abilities as the Tarot Empress, and Jack was there to see it all. She must learn to trust new allies in an attempt to thwart Death in the epic battle between the remaining Arcana champions. Facing new threats that lurk in the shadows, Evie is forced to trust her newfound alliance against Bagmen, Cannibals, post-apocalyptic storms, other Arcana, and new horrors she couldn't begin to imagine. On top of all of that, she finds herself strangely drawn to the precarious Endless Knight who shares a history with the Empress; one that she cannot remember, but he can never forget.

I really enjoyed the majority of the novel, as we got to delve more into the world of the Arcana and the Tarot Cards. We also got to see more of the other Arcana champions which I thought was great. The author did a brilliant job in developing the characters and the setting of each stage in the novel. Each champion is unique with their own name, call (a melodic sound which other Arcana hear when a champion nears them), and tableaux (a symbolic image of an Arcana champion which reveals itself when another Arcana first sees them). The author weaves a brilliant world which has a fusion of love and hate, truth and deception, and loyalty and betrayal.

Cole's excellent talent of foreshadowing the events in this novel is amazing. Everything is planned so excellently that it just falls into place. I liked the cover of the novel, as I thought it revealed a lot about the events unfolding within it. The cliffhanger was so ARGH!!! It was a massive cliffhanger that left me wanting the next book NOW! I can't believe I have to wait over a year.   

There were a few things that bothered me a little bit. Firstly, I find it strange that Evie is suddenly an expert in knowing how to use her powers after she was so inexperienced in the first novel. I believe that it should have progressed throughout the novel, not just there without any explanation. Apart from that, the only other thing is that the novel dragged on quite a bit towards the end. It was the same thing over and over again (I won't say it because its a spoiler).

Overall, I believe that Endless Knight was a great sequel to Poison Princess and I cannot wait until the third installment of the Arcana Chronicles. Cole develops an excellent world of the Arcana Chronicles and writes with excellent talent that leaves me inspired.

Rating: 4.5/5 

Review- Pathfinder and Ruins by Orson Scott Card

Title: Pathfinder
Series: Pathfinder
Author: Orson Scott Card
Published: December 12th 2011
Book 1
(Sent by Simon and Schuster Publishers) 
Rigg is a young boy, well-trained by his father to keep countless secrets. The biggest secret being kept is that Rigg can see paths. Paths of animals and humans are characterised by colours and shapes depending how recent they are made. His father has taught him everything he knows ranging from subjects like Geography to Astronomy. Rigg believes that all of these teachings are pointless, as his day to day life consisted of setting traps for animals in the forest then selling their furs for money. Little does he know that the day his father dies, everything will change. Betrayals and mysteries will be uncovered, along with others who have similar abilities to him and Rigg will use his father's teachings to uncover who he truly is and who he can trust.

I generally liked this novel as the author provided great depth to each of the protagonists and each scene was described with utmost precision. The author weaves a binding tale, leaving behind a web of mysteries and conspiracies that leave the audience awestruck. The novel was a likable with the exception of a few setbacks. When the author was describing each character's ability, he confused me so much to the point where I had absolutely no idea what some of the character's abilities are. Similarly with the plot of the story and some descriptions of it, the author answers questions with questions leaving me dumbfounded as to what the answer might be. Some parts of the novel dragged on for so long because of this and one of many particular scenes with Rigg, thinking to himself lasted for approximately 12 pages and it ended up being irrelevant in the end anyway. Overall, the main plot of the story is well-written and I think it could've been a lot better if the answers to some of the questions were clearer and the abilities of the characters are actually specified.

Rating: 4/5

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Title: Ruins

Series: Pathfinder
Author: Orson Scott Card
Published: November 1st 2012
Book 2
(Sent by Simon and Schuster Publishers) 
Rigg and his friends have finally passed the Wall into Vadeshfold. They believe that they will find a safe haven, invisible to the eyes of the people who want to kill them. But there are new dangers that are exotic to them. They soon discover that Vadesh-- the wallfold's expendable-- is untrustworthy, but they cannot even overcome their issues and trust each other. They learn that there is a danger fast approaching towards Garden. They must learn to trust one another, learn to control their time shifting abilities and alter the past, or there will be no future for Garden. 

The thing that I most liked about this novel was how the author adds just the right amount of depth to the characters and their emotions. Similarly with the first novel, I enjoyed the premise of the book, however, the author just writes the book in a way that didn't appeal to me at all.The thing that I most disliked about the book was that it was basically pointless. The protagonists just kept on going into the past to try and figure out how to stop their world from ending and by the end of the book, they still fail to discover WHO DID IT, WHY THEY DID IT, AND WHAT THE RESOLUTION IS! It was an endless ring of time shifting, going back to the present because it failed, then time shifting to another point and still coming back to the present because it failed. Similarly with the first book, Pathfinder, the author also answers questions with questions for chapters at a time with no real answer you just stare at the book thinking "that was pointless".

Overall, this book wasn't as appealing as I expected it to be and it is the same for the first in the series. For the most part (by that I mean the plot), the novel was good and the characters were great but I think it could of been better if the author had a proper resolution and STOPPED answering questions with questions for CHAPTERS at a time.

Rating 3/5:

Review- Poison Princess by Kresley Cole

Title: Poison Princess
Series: The Arcana Chronicles
Author: Kresley Cole
Published: October 1st 2012
Book 1
(Sent by Simon and Schuster Publishers) 
The Review for Endless Knight (The Arcana Chronicles #2) can be found here

Evangeline, "Evie", Greene is plagued with hallucinations, nightmares and hearing voices. She leads a regular life as any sixteen year old teenage girl would, trying to suppress and ignore her aggravating hallucinations and the irksome voices that penetrate her mind. When an apocalyptic cataclysm demolishes the country, Evie begins to discover that her hallucinations predicted the future. And they continue to do so. She has no choice but to turn to her delinquent classmate; Jackson Deveaux. He and Evie travel across what’s left of the catastrophic land and along the way meet others with unique abilities to answer the call that was laid upon them. Evie discovers a shocking ability that will cause her to either save or destroy the world. 

I pride the author on her eloquent style of writing that remained consistent throughout the novel. It contributed to creating the mystical and enthralling world in which took place events that enticed me to keep reading the next couple of chapters just to see the outcome. Each character seemed to be developing throughout the book which forms a bond between them and the readers. I constantly empathised with many of the characters in this novel as the author weaves a binding tale which continues to be intriguing and spellbinding. It honestly amazed me how the author managed to incorporate small parts of romance between characters even though the world around them is slowly crumbling.

What really drew me to the book was the cover. It surprises me that this one image gives away many of the events that unfold throughout the novel. The raging fires and barren land in the background giveaway the event of the apocalypse. The main image provides us with the information that these are the two protagonists of may have a forming or already formed relationship. The cover is an excellent pick which defines this novel perfectly. The only minor thing that troubled me in this novel was the sudden rages that Jackson had for absolutely no reason at all. 

Overall, the novel Poison Princess was, in my opinion, a great success and I highly recommend it. Kresley Cole, the author, creates an excellent first novel in the Arcana Chronicles and leaves me waiting for a much anticipated sequel. 

Rating 5/5