Review: Just Keeps Improving
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 31, 2013
SWORN TO RAISE[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]Sworn to Raise had so much potential.  It could have been one of the best books of the year for me, yet it fell flat in some respects.  Terah Edun’s fantasy world was absolutely amazing, Ciardis was a pretty good character and the plot was exciting and believable and yet…there was something lacking.I can’t say it lacked heart, because it really didn’t.  But what I think Terah Edun did here was try to cram too much information into only 176 pages.  A lot happens in Sworn to Raise in a very short time and it’s exciting, but it’s at the expense of detail.  Detail is everything in fantasy because the books take place either in an alternate Earth or a completely different fictional universe.  Detail helps us understand the universe, but also get to know the characters and generally find our way around.  Sadly, Sworn to Raise did not have enough detail because Terah Edun seemed to shy away from descriptive passages.  Too much description is boring, but too little and you get confused.  I wasn’t confused all of the time, but there’s still sort of that rushed atmosphere throughout the whole book that I really didn’t appreciate.  This book should have been at least 300 pages and even that would be pushing it.Despite the rushed atmosphere, I did enjoy Sworn to Raise.  Ciardis is an interesting character who tries her best to raise herself from her lowly station in life—even if it means joining the Companion’s Guild.  While in training, she discovers who she really is and who she wants to be, making a few friends along the way.  Her decision at the end of the book wasn’t surprising per se, but it was satisfying because in the beginning Ciardis would have chosen otherwise.  Her character arc is fascinating, but a bit rushed because of the insane pace of the plot.Terah Edun’s fantasy world is fascinating and generally stays away from the tropes you often find in fantasy.  There are a couple of tropes, but she put her own twist on them and made the plot pretty unpredictable.  Some of the plot twists completely blindsided me—something that doesn’t happen often in fantasy.  Yet, the rushed feel just didn’t do it for me.  I like a fast plot, but sometimes it’s okay to slow down and let your readers catch their collective breath.  Will I be continuing the series, though?  Absolutely!  Terah Edun has a great premise here and I think her writing will only improve with time.I give this book 4/5 stars.SWORN TO TRANSFER[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook from Terah Edun in exchange for an honest review.]Some authors never improve, but Terah Edun is not one of them.  Instead, in Sworn to Transfer she fixed pretty much everything that was wrong with the last book.  The pacing was much better because everything was slowed down to a manageable but interesting speed and the villain wasn’t such a caricature as in Sworn to Raise.What I liked the most about Sworn to Transfer is how Ciardis’ character has developed over time.  You can tell that although she keeps getting in trouble with the Companions’ Guild for breaking protocol, overall she’s far more sure of herself and her powers.  At the same time, things are a little more awkward between Ciardis and Sebastien.  You can tell they’re starting to develop feelings for each other, but they’re still not sure just how to express them.  At least they’re not falling in Insta-Love, but rather their love is growing organically.What I really liked were the plot twists.  The huge jaw-dropping twist at the end was completely unexpected but made sense.  In addition to that shocker, there were several little turns of events that kept me reading late into the night.  I don’t want to give anything away so let’s just say that every character has their secrets and they aren’t exactly eager to share them with Ciardis, the wild card in the Imperial Court.If you enjoyed Sworn to Raise you’ll love Sworn to Transfer even more.  The extended world-building, the character development and the evenly paced plot make it a huge improvement over the last book.  And although there are some moments where the plot drags, when you finish the book you’ll be begging for the next one to come out.I give this book 4.5/5 stars.SWORN TO CONFLICT[Full disclosure: I received a free ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]You know, I was more than a little skeptical of the entire Courtlight series after reading the first novel.  It was more than a little rushed and the writing was decent enough, but nothing special.  What made me stick with the series was the amazing characters and the incredibly unique premise.  So, now that I’m on the third book out of four books, was it worth it?Of course!I loved Sworn to Conflict even more than I loved the previous book, Sworn to Transfer.  It’s better than the first one and I thought it would be hard to top the second book, but Terah Edun has improved yet again.  She’s found the perfect balance between dialogue and description and has expanded her fascinating fantasy world yet again.  There are new creatures, new threats to the realm and terrifying new secrets that change everything Ciardis thought she knew.Aside from the world-building, I really enjoyed the characters in this novel.  Ciardis is a great character in that she’s not afraid to stand up to Prince Sebastian, despite the fact he’s the heir to the realm and she’s only a Companion.  And when she’s betrayed by him, she doesn’t go running back to him, ready to forgive all of his wrongs.  No, she’s able to be mad and stay mad and eventually begin the long path to forgiveness.  It’s far more realistic, believe me.The plot was fast-paced but not to the point where I had no idea what was going on.  There were so many twists and turns that I barely kept up, but I enjoyed myself the whole time.  You never really know just where Terah Edun is going to take the series and I think the final book, Sworn to Secrecy is going to be even better than this one.  I can’t wait for the release!I give this book 5/5 stars.OVERALLI'll admit that I was more than a little skeptical when I read the first book, but Terah Edun just keeps on improving.  Her world-building, characterization and pacing just keep getting better and better.  You honestly can't go wrong with this boxed set.