Nightstrider (Nightstrider 1) by Sophia Slade
5 stars
Out: Today
Wren is a nightmare and bound to Warwick, the only night creature who can cross the boundary between the dream and waking realms. Being punished for failing him she joins the rebellion to help them find the weapon he seeks. She meets a fellow nightmare, Alaric, and they form a pact to take Warwick down. Warwick's son, Prince Caine, is to marry young queen Ila who is secretly a weaver, a protector of the Boundary between realms. Ila must recover the weapon. Circumstances have all four working towards the same goal — to stop the very fabric of reality from unraveling.
At the beginning of the book there is a guide to the names (yay pronunciations), locations and terms we will encounter in the following pages. A fine example more books need to incorporate.
The prologue introduces an exceptional villain and bam! you are hooked. The narrative pulses with great action and descriptions that immerse you into this dangerous world. The pacing is brilliant, the storytelling wonderfully straightforward and utterly readable with precious gems of creative wording, making sentences that sparkle. I so enjoyed the author's imagination, evident in both realms but in the Reverie is where it truly shines. There is whispered intrigue, promises of enticing reveals and in-your-face intrigue that has your mind whirring with possibilities. Both keep you turning those pages.
Emotionally intelligent POVs, each giving us distinct characters to care and root for. Tough as nails Wren, charming and kindhearted despite his father Caine, trying to do what's right Ila and determined to atone for his past Alaric. They succeed in giving us a full scope of the story, a story that is intricate but well laid out. I really liked how the POVs were woven together. There were instances when a POV would go back to show how a character got to a certain point in a previous POV and show an event from their side and sometimes authors trip over that endeavor. This author does the job admirably. The clash and coming together of the characters is impressive to read. There are humorous undertones to the situations they find themselves in. The author develops the characters well, even the secondary characters, some of which you will adore like Mica.
This is a book about redemption. A question that is asked is if doing good can balance out the bad. It is also about power and the good or bad it can bring. Not everything is black and white — grey is a good color too.
With a charismatic premise of a waking and a dream world this is yummy dark fantasy full of thrills and excitement, smile-worthy moments and heart-jolting events. I am sooo reading the sequel.
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