Summary: Nym is an elemental, aka a badass lightning-bolt wielding medieval version of a superhero. She runs into some trouble when she's recruited by the shady Lady something, and falls for her trainer, Eogan, who takes dark, brooding, and handsome to a whole new level. There's an evil king, a shapeshifting king, and a hot king. There's an evil princess, a magical princess, and a nice princess. And a bald guy. And lots of (literally)explosive magic and sexual tension.
Basically, within the first ten pages, you can tell that Nym kicks butt. Again, literally. Her narrative is sassy and exasperated and refreshing--I can't remember the last time I fell in love with a character so quickly. She's got the unique having white hair going for her, which apparently is indicative of her superpowers and is super rare based on the gasps from the crowd in the first chapter. Also, she makes storms. And has killed people. And has cool tattoos(that are also sad because they're for the people she killed. But still cool).
But the best part is that she has a heart. Not a whiny, annoying, cookie-cutter main character conscience, but a real, powerful need to help people and protect them from herself. There were some pretty good twists right from the get-go that established this, and I was furious and sad right along with Nym.
But then came the reason for the four stars.
I'll tell you right now, this was a 3 1/2 star book with a 5 star ending. And maybe 5 star magic. But the majority of it(the 3 1/2 star part) was lackluster and predictable--despite the constant airship raids and wolf attacks, I never really felt like any of my precious babies were ever in any danger. Even the betrayals and reveals could be seen coming from chapter one. This is clearly a rich, huge world, and it's clear that it's setting up for the rest of the trilogy, with minor cameos of clearly complex characters. Unfortunately, I was never really scared for them.
The worst part was that the fight scene at the end(War scene? Battle scene?) that went on for a good five chapters was easily the most boring part of the book(When I say 5 star ending, I really mean the very very last page). They're supposed to be the most exciting, right? But it's okay, because the rest of the action in the book is equally as uninteresting. I wasn't expecting too much.
As far as the romance--what can I say? It's there. It exists. We all saw it coming. Even though I do appreciate the love-hate beginning to it.
But you know that something's wrong when I looked forward to the slimy villain's advances more than heartfelt moments with Eogan and Nym. (He's not really that slimy. He just does that thing when he speaks where he draws out his s's).
Conclusion: Worth a read, hence the four stars. Enjoyable, but if you think something's gonna happen, it will. If you think someone is the long-lost brother of that other important someone, he is. If you think two people are gonna kiss--they are. But at the same time--lightning! Dresses! White hair! Shapeshifters! Unapologetic deaths of main characters!
Also, the cover art? Prettyyyyy.
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