Bookish Mumma

The first 4 chapters of Shaedes of Power was really exciting for me to read, though these ones were less so. I am very much hoping that the story picks up after now that a major plot point has taken place.

If you would like to read the previous chapters or books, you can find them here

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“I’m glad you are safely back home, Opal. But I think we should go back to being friends instead of lovers. Two years is a long time, and who really knows what the future has in store?”

So Astor is Opal’s ‘boyfriend’ and he’s dumping her because she hasn’t developed a shaede that is immediately visible. His name is also quite astute because he is indeed being an Ass-tor.

“There is nothing wrong with having high expectations,” stated Leyanna. “But someone like Astor will always disappoint. His favourite person in the world will always be himself. He probably could only make love in front of a mirror. Tell me I’m wrong. But I’m not wrong, am I?”

Go Leyanna! She’s a grumpy faerie most of the time, but she can be sassy and I love that.

The fact that she was apologizing to me, as if in this moment she should waste her breath on such a sentiment, absolutely broke my heart.

In a lot of books where there is magic and the parents of a character are in a position of power, they are too frequently cold or overbearing due to their position. They are also not able to separate themselves from that, even with their children. It’s nice to see loving and accepting parents in a position of power.

For this chapter, there is no quotes for me to react to. Not because there was no talking, but for me, because there was too much talking. This was 2 long monologues and I found it difficult to connect to what was happening here. It was a lot of lore and opinion dropped on me. It was difficult to take it all in by sheer volume alone. Through all of my chapter reviews on every book, I insist on being honest. I have seen the reviews from other readers and I have hope that this was momentary and that it will get better and back to the original vibe that I loved.

When I was very young, I would be whimpering. They would hear me, throw back the covers, and allow me a safe, warm haven between them.

I like that the author illustrates really tender moments like this in Shaedes of Power. This brings a sense of humanity to a species that lives for a very long time and who are previously described as ruthless

“Leyanna, they can’t glamour his memories! I know he has to go back, but he worked hard for those scars, so he deserves to know where they came from.”

I can understand wanting to take away his memory after such a traumatic event, but that should be his choice. That is also such a strange thing to say that he worked hard for those scars. He was laying there getting mauled and could have died.

He stroked my hair until I was ready to tell him everything, and when my recount of the day’s events had finally stopped spilling out of my mouth with a few rogue tears, only then did he speak.

Farris is a supportive king and I adore him.

“That would be a hard life.” Farris sounded pensive. “Being looked down on for the very skills that others exploited.”

Farris makes a really good point here that I love. The black shaedes were given a role for their abilities and then they were crucified for the same thing. Double standards are everywhere, including with faeries.

“It’s okay, really. I think talking about all this was a good reminder of what we are up against. If you do not know your history today, you will relive it.”

Not necessarily true. History repeats regardless of awareness. It’s less about knowing the history rather than learning what went wrong and wanting to change it.

“It is, but there is beauty to be found in all the realms – including yours,” I said.

Even though the faeries live in a realm that is stunning with magic in the essence of everything. To be able to see another realm as beautiful – even as a different kind of beauty

“It went on for about two years. I used to hide from her in her dead husband’s library. He was an antique book collector and that is when I really fell in love with history. I used to read and reread his first edition copy of War and Peace over and over, praying that dementia would set in and Evangeline would forget about the boy she bought, cowering in the library.”

I think for a lot of us, it is an unfortunate reality that reading was an escape from a horrible reality, myself included. That is what I love the most about books and reading. While I was dealt a really awful hand, as too many do, I can live many other lives in my own life time. I can experience magic and love that don’t exist in my own world. There’s a really great power to reading and it is an excellent way to cope. Contrary to what Kall Me Kris may say.

To prove he was no squirrel, he was suddenly on top of me. He had my wrists in his hands above my head before I could register what was happening, and the length of him pinned my body to the mattress hard.

As much as I love a bit of spice, this came a little out of left field. I love this description and action. It would have been better placed somewhere later in the book, however.

It would have been so easy to cry. To barricade myself in my room, to avoid the court at the ceremony, to declare myself too in mourning to deal with anything that was plaguing the realm right now.

The grief surrounding the death of the High Shaedes is a direct conflict to the previous statements that the faeries were ‘ruthless’ around their apathy around death. As a species and a culture that accepts death as a fact of life, seeing the outbursts and Dru falling apart in the wake of the deaths is strange.

I caught a glimpse of Astor, petulant and disgruntled, along the side of the room, daggers in his eyes for Dru. It was impossible not to feel a little satisfaction at that.

Ha! Take that, Ass-tor.

conclusion

This block of chapters felt very strange and contrary to me. I hold hope that, now that Shaedes of Power has given a lot of history and lore, there can be a stronger story and structure later on the the story. I’m also recalling how much I really enjoyed the first 4 chapters and I am looking forward to that vibe to come back into the later chapters.

If you would like to pre-order the audiobook or kindle edition, you can do that here