Series: Starling (bk. 3)
Genera(s): Paranormal Romance/Urban Fantasy
Subjects: supernatural, magic, mythology, gods and
goddesses, Valkyries, Norse Mythology
Setting: New York City
POV/Tense: 3rd person POV: Mason, Fenn,
Heather and Cal
Age/Grade Level: Teen
Length: 343 pgs.
HC/PB: Hardcover
List Price: $17.99
Publisher: HarperTeen
Summary/ product description: “LOVE CONQUERS
On a
storm-swept terrace high above the streets of Manhattan, Mason Starling holds
the fate of the world in her hands as her beloved Fennrys lies bleeding at her
feet, his life hanging in the balance. The ancient Norse prophecy of Ragnarok
stands poised on the knife edge of fulfillment. Mason’s transformation into a
Valkyrie—a chooser of the slain and the one who will ultimately bring about the
end of the world—is complete. Still, she remains determined to thwart her
father’s apocalyptic desires. Whatever is to come, it won’t happen because of
what the prophecy foretold, or what Gunnar Starling has planned, or what the
fates have already decided. What happens next will be up to Mason and the
Fennrys Wolf. The world had better hope they haven’t reached the limits of what
their souls and swords can survive.
Perfect
for fans of Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series, and set in the same
universe as Lesley Livingston’s much-loved WONDROUS STRANGE trilogy, with roots
in Greek, Roman, Norse, Egyptian, and Celtic myths and legends, this thrilling
conclusion to the acclaimed Starling trilogy is filled to the hilt with
sweeping adventure and soaring romance.”
My Review: Yet
another series comes to a close. I’ve been reading a lot of finales lately, and
this one was definitely a good one. It was also very complex. I had some issues
with the previous books. I sometimes got bored or confused. There are so many
characters to keep track of, it gets confusing. This finale book starts out
like a apocalyptic fantasy because New York City is trapped in a magic fog and
all regular mortals are unconscious or dead because this curse. Ragnarok is coming and Mason
and her friends are trying to prevent it.
I really
enjoyed the Valkyrie badassery of Mason, even though she felt she had to keep
that park of her underwraps. The outfit she wears sounds cool. Too bad she
doesn’t have wings. Just a winged helmet. I picture her like Lady Sith in Thor,
or something. I would love an outfit as cool as the one mentioned. Mason is
very different from Kelley, the main character of Wonderous Strange. Mason is a
fencer, and she was going for national prior to the mythology stuff. She goes
to Gosforth Academy, where everyone is pleaged to a god, even if they don’t
know it. Mason’s in love with Fenn, a character from the Wonderous Strange
books. He’s known as the Fennrys Wolf, and may very well be the Fenris wolf
from the legend. I pictured him as Alex Pettyferd with blond hair.
There
were a lot of interesting descriptions of characters. I will help refresh you
memory of who is who. Cal, Mason’s ex, is a demi-god of the sea. Toby is
Mason’s fencing instructor. Rafe aka Anubis has dreadlocks. Heather, who’s
blond, is Mason’s best friend. Mason’s brothers Roth and Rory are very
different. Roth’s nicer, and Rory is psycho. Gunner, Mason’s dad, is trying to
make Ragnarok happen. Mason’s mom Yelena is Hel, the goddess of death. Iris,
the goddess of the rainbow, has silvery hair and wings like opal and I think
that’s awesome. There’s also Loki, who is different from the Loki from the Thor
movie in that he’s blonde and not evil and not the brother of Thor in anyway.
Lots of crazy twist and interpretations to the Ragnarok prophecy. We find
out who Fenn’s dad is. Something happens to Fenn that changes him. We get to see what an eight-legged horse
might look like and find out about Toby’s past. More myths and legend are
interwoven into the world building of this story. We have gods of Norse, Greek,
Roman and Egyptian myth, plus the fey. Lesley really did a great job creating
her paranormal underground. I personally like this better than Mortal
Instruments and I usually love anything with angel mythology.
I recommend anything by Lesley Livingston. I suggest
reading the Wondrous Strange series first because we get some of Fenn’s
backstory as a Janus Guard. I recommend this book to fans of Percy Jackson and
the Olympians, The Kane Chronicles, Darkness Becomes Her by Kelly Keaton, Stork
by Wendy Delsol, Need series by Carrie Jones, Wildfire by Karsten Knight,
Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini, or any other mythology YA. Also the Mortal Instruments
and other urban fantasy.
Cover Art Review: I love the pink flowers (cherry blossoms)
on this cover. It makes me think of cotton candy and strawberry frosting.
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