Snakecharm

The Kiesha'ra #2

by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

ZANE COBRIANA, COBRA shapeshifter, thanks the gods every day for Danica, his hawk pair bond, and the peace their union has brought to the avian and serpiente. Soon, Danica will have a child to carry on their royal line. But what should be a happy time is riddled with doubt.

Syfka, an ancient falcon, has arrived from Ahnmik claiming that one of her people is hidden in their midst. The falcons are more powerful than the avians and serpiente combined, and Syfka shows nothing but contempt for Zane and Danica’s alliance. To Zane’s horror, his own people seem just as appalled as Syfka is by the thought of a mixed-blood child becoming heir to the throne. Is Syfka’s lost falcon just a ruse to stir up controversy among them? The truth lies somewhere in their tangled pasts—and the search will redefine Zane and Danica’s fragile future.

Praise for Hawksong:

“Atwater-Rhodes has created a stunning adventure that draws readers in and leaves them begging for more.”—School Library Journal, Starred

“Atwater-Rhodes takes a break from vampires to create two warring clans . . . [with] impressively complex cultures.”—Publishers Weekly

A VOYA Best Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror List selection


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Romance, Fiction, Shapeshifters, Paranormal, Young Adult Fantasy

167 pages, Library Binding

First published September 28, 2004

About the author

I grew up in Concord, Massachusetts, where I matriculated through the public Concord-Carlisle school district from kindergarten until my graduation in 2001. The best part of school, from fifth grade until the year I graduated, was definitely chorus. I love music, and I love to sing, and though I never had the courage or the talent to participate in any of the high school plays as a performer, I enjoyed being involved at other levels; the music and drama community at CCHS was the highlight of my high school career. I was also on the fencing team for two years, an experience that actually inspired a couple storylines, and regret that I did not continue with that sport.

I now live in Massachusetts with several pets... as well as, of course, my family. I am a student at the University of Massachusetts, with an English/psychology double-major. I hope to work either as an English teacher at the secondary level, or in special education. I have strong opinions about literacy, education, and how our educational systems are treated- strong enough that most of my friends know not to get me started on the subject.

My non-writing hobbies are eclectic, and cover everything from rather domestic pastimes like cross-stitch and cooking to aquarium keeping, playing piano, gardening, carpentry, Harley-Davidsons, driving, and arguing- there are few things I enjoy more than a good debate with someone who knows how to argue, which might have something to do with a best friend who works in politics. I love to learn, so if I have down-time and nothing to do, it is not at all unusual to find me pouring over some book, website or video designed to teach me some new skill, from belly dancing (something I desperately want to learn but have not yet been brave enough to sign up for classes on) to JavaScript.

Reviews

[Keertana · Rating 3 out of 5]

After Hawksong, I was immediately filled with a desire to know more about Zane, Danica, and their tumultuous world. Thankfully, I had Snakecharm on hand and began it almost at once. Yet, this sequel leaves much to be desired. While Danica is expecting a child, which puts both herself and Zane in the difficult situation of figuring out how to rear their heir, the haughty falcons have come into their world to search for missing falcons who have hidden among Danica's warriors. Although these two plot threads converged rather cleverly, Snakecharm as a whole never felt as cohesive as Hawksong. It had a heavy focus both on politics as well as character, but neither was given the depth it needed. Atwater-Rhodes, quite simply put, writes her books too short. For epic fantasy, a certain degree of length needs to be persistent in order to convey the scope of the novel that is being told. While these books are excellent, especially for those wary of thicker and heavier fantasy novels, I feel as a series this may leave many readers disappointed. I, for one, will not be continuing, simply because the next three novels are connected and though Falcondance had received strong reviews, the last two books have not. I'd rather leave this series on a good note. Nevertheless, I cannot recommend Hawksong enough. It works brilliantly as a stand-alone and is likely to become a favorite of many.

[Arminzerella · Rating 2 out of 5]

Danica and Zane are still trying to heal the rift between their two peoples – the avian and the serpiente clans. Their marriage is about to bear fruit, as Danica has become pregnant. But now there’s some concern – from both groups – about how the child will be raised, and how she will be able to hold the two peoples together once she grows up. It’s even more important to make a decision when Danica is attacked. Her guard is able to save her life and that of her unborn baby girl, but informs Danica that this will be her only child. The attack is instigated by a member of the falcons, whose powers rival both the avian and serpiente. They are a haughty race, accustomed to taking what they want, and doing as they please. They come to Danica and Zane looking for a falcon masquerading as something/someone else, and when they discover Danica is pregnant with a serpiente’s child, they try to destroy her.

Everything is, of course, fine in the end. The falcons find the ones they’re looking for, and Danica and Zane decide their daughter will rule a different people/domain entirely – one that will incorporate people from both clans, and eventually their children. It will mix their cultures more effectively than they’ve been able to thus far. The renegade falcons are also returned to them, albeit, stripped of their forms and powers.

I was really pleasantly surprised by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes’ Hawksong, which I thought was pretty phenomenal (especially since she was a teen when she wrote it – well done, AAR!). I didn’t like this one as much. I think part of it was because it was told mostly through Zane’s point of view and I didn’t like how he suddenly came to eclipse everything about his mate, Danica. Also, things happened too easily and too quickly. Conflicts are introduced and resolved almost instantaneously. While this worked well for the first book (where there was an understanding that the war between the avians and serpiente had been going on for generations), it just diminishes the importance of said conflicts in this follow-up. I would have liked something a little meatier.

[Minni Mouse · Rating 2 out of 5]

#1.) Hawksong: ★★★★
#2.) Snakecharm: ★★

This was not a good book and shared very little with its predecessor, Hawksong. I thought I read somewhere that the author wrote the first book when she was a teenager and ended up publishing it herself. Unsure if this book followed the same self-published route but it had none of the personality nor spine of the original. In that sense, this is akin to poor Susan Ee surprising us with her self-published book Angelfall but then disappointing for the two sequels.

THE GOOD
The reveal of the identities of the two Falcons were a surprise to me. This was also a short read; I wasn't in mundane misery for long.

THE BAD
The problem was that Hawksong took place during wartime from Danica's perspective. That wartime element alone meant there was a strong overall story as well as smaller, more personalized stories going on with Danica and Zane, and then with Danica and Zane together. This book, however, took place during peacetime. Peacetime is nowhere near as interesting as wartime.

Another problem was at the end of Hawksong, we left Zane and Danica at the point where they just stopped hating and mistrusting each other. Snakecharm starts months after the first book where peace is booming, Zane and Danica are blissfully in love, and Danica is pregnant. What the....? Why leapfrog over the part where we learn where the mutual trust and devotion between Zane and Danica happened?

THE VERDICT
This is where I stop the series. Snakecharm was incredibly dull. Zane's perspective was extremely flat, the plot was flat, and characterization was almost nonexistent.

Would I recommend? No.

[Kogiopsis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, this sure is a middle book.

I don't recall particularly loving this one when I first read this series, and I definitely don't love it now. It's doing a lot of work to bridge the gap between the story Atwater-Rhodes had already told and the one she wanted to tell next, and that means that it introduces a lot of concepts and moves characters around to get them in the right positions, but unfortunately not in a way that's satisfying in and of itself. As a whole the narrative feels un-polished; there are a lot of things that don't really make sense in terms of motivation and decision-making, and events feel like they happen just because the plot required them to happen.

However: all of that is setting up for Falcondance, which I recall being my favorite of the quintet, so if that one's still as good as I remember, it's worth it. This book only took me an afternoon to reread, anyhow.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read Hawksong years ago, twice, and I really liked it for the little bit of romance it had in it. To a young teenager that was really exciting. Since then I've read quite a few books by her and realize how actually terrible the writing is. Like one of the worst I've read. Very simple, fast, not deep at all in regards to both the plot and characters.

I don't remember much about Hawksong. Pair bond seemed a stupid way to refer to someone's mate. Why not just mate? Pair bond seemed like a word for affection rather than a title like mate or boyfriend. Like did you see Danica and Zane. They formed a pair bond between them somewhat like you'd say there's attraction between them. Or a verb, such as yeah, the new pair of birds have bonded with each other. So stupid.

I hated being in Zane's perspective. I like being in the girl's POV, especially since we were in the first. I thought it was terrible that he didn't tell Danica that his brother died attacking her people, and he went there to kill her mom. He didn't know how successful he was, but that's something he should tell his mate.

I don't think we knew that he had ridden out when he was 16 to avenge his older bother's death. He went to attack but came upon her room where she was sleeping and fell in love with her and just wanted peace. Just like that. I also didn't like that someone else suggested he take the enemy queen as his mate. I thought it was his desire.

This was so hard to keep up with, so confusing to the point where I had to go back and reread some things over and over again because I didn't understand what was being said. I kept getting confused if people were male or female, falcon or avian, and if falcon what type of falcon and if avian what kind. Then the names didn't help. Andreios was nicknamed Rei without anyone telling me that so I thought they were two different people. All of the titles were soo hard to keep up with. I couldn't remember if they were for a male or female, serpiente or avian. The names of the place were weird and I didn't know how to pronounce them. A world that only the author knows what's going on-or maybe she hasn't clearly defined it to herself-that is barely explained at all. There needed to be a glossary of all of the characters, who they were, along with the titles and what they meant, and the names of places and where they were at. I was dumbfounded throughout this whole thing.

Tuuli Thea.
Namir-da.
sha'Mehay, the dancers' nest where the guild lived, slept, ate and danced.
Naga, title for Danica in the snake world.
Diente was a title for Zane. Alistair was his title in the Keep.
If a female was serpiente leader her mate was named Nag.
Arami is some title that Zane had.

The dancers' guild and serpiente dances were really interesting. They're considered the blood of the serpiente. It was cool that they had complex, traditional dances.

Danica was unlikable and hard to relate to, mostly because I didn't get to hear her thoughts and know more about her. A terrible idea having Zane tell the story. When she said "Come, my love, let me dance for you" I wanted to gag. I HATE the expression my love. It's so mushy it makes me want to puke. And how old is she? Isn't she a teenager, so why the heck is she talking like an old woman?

I wasn't liking it at all. I resented Danica for her cardboard cutout presence and no personality. I felt so old for it. I wish I had read it back in middle school after Hasksong because my taste in books has evolved to where this doesn't do it for me. I'm definitely too old for it.

I was irritated that Zane used male pronouns to refer to the criminal the falcon was looking for, despite the falcon saying it could be a he or she. Zane just took it upon himself to dub a criminal a guy, and then said she for their child. If she was born with red eyes and wings. That bothered me that he assumed a criminal must be a guy but a baby would be a girl. Sexist. It pissed me off and made me dislike Danica more when she started saying "she" in reference to their child. She even said "One queen cannot rule two worlds, even if she is of both." Wtf. You know, there's two options for the sex of a baby. Why do they associate being a baby with female?

And it also ticked me off that Danica was okay with their kid being taken away from them and raised at the Keep to be that leader. I thought what an idiot to give up your child to hardly ever see them, when by all rights it should be Zane's heir of the serpiente and the heir of the avians. She's a doormat to give in to the mean people who want the kid to be a serpiente and not avian. Weakling.

Zane was such an idiot when his sister said it's too early to worry whether Danica's child--and wtf was up with that? Even Zane said Danica's child, as if it was hers alone and not his. Does this author also think if a woman gets pregnant it's her problem and not the father's?--was male or female and he said he hadn't even considered that. Dumbass! Ever heard of a baby being a boy? For a boy, that's pretty damn stupid.

I don't remember what I thought of Rei, but it's kind of annoying when authors have a side romance going on that competes with he main characters. I can't say how boring it was to have Danica down and out with a pregnancy. Having a young adult deal with a baby was too much. It's too mature a theme for this age group. There was a girl that challenged Rei to do the snake dances and he was learning for her, which made mad when A'isha bared her leg to the thigh for his benefit knowing he likes another girl. At least Rei wasn't watching.

I didn't like that there would only be one kid. It would've been really interesting to see if each kid was different, like one more cobra and one bore hawk and one a combination of both.

Rei defended the identity of the criminal falcon that Syfka was after, so it was clear that was the girl he liked. It was soon revealed that Erica is the falcon and she isn't really Erica. She masqueraded as her when the real Erica died because falcons can take the appearance of others. Valene, the outcast, let her pose as her niece.

She saved Zane's life after he was stabbed on the way to the keep with a poisoned blade, by forcing him to change and taking the poison into herself, because it's harmless to falcons. And it leaves a mark on her magic, so her hand took on the appearance of snakeskin.

I was so freaking sick of hearing about Danica and her complexion and how she was acting. 83 pages in and it was like the third time that something had happened and she had to recover and he remarked on the color in her cheeks and I couldn't care less. Is there a plot or should this book be called Danica's health?

Danica didn't have a single strong moment until pg. 83. Zane told her Erica was the falcon and after she leaned on the wall and said Oh dear I was ready to blast her for her weakness, but at least she did say she wasn't letting Sifka take her.

Danica was such an idiot for not seeing that Syfka was behind the attack. One of the avian attackers described a female avian that convinced her that attacking was a good idea because the child will be a bad thing. So, stupid trusting Danica doesn't think it's Syfka because of the fact that Syfka wasn't present during the attack. That's some nice freaking logic there, Dan. It's no wonder you're a leader...what person do you know that hired an attack would be present at the attack?

I liked that people feared the Cobriana garnet. That was cool.

It was a surprise that Rei was the real criminal falcon Syfka had been looking for. We were led to believe that he was only protecting Erica, who's really named Kel, so kudos to there being a big surprise. It sucked tho that Rei wasnt really himself. Just like Kel, he was another falcon that had taken on the identity of someone else. His name is really Sebastian and he's Araceli's son. When I flipped to the shapeshifter's chart-the family tree-and saw that Kel's line came from the same mom I almost lost it. I thought they were siblings that liked each other and that would be the surprise. Then I looked back later and saw that hers was a dashed line which meant a lapse of several generations and an indirect relation. So, they're related and no one mentioned that?? How much older is he?

He had been sentenced to live with them, and during the serpent attack the real Rei was poisoned. Zane didn't know if Sebastian had tried to save Andreios by forcing changing him and then had taken on the crow appearance himself, or if he had seen an opportunity for freedom and took his identity since he was dying. Danica never could understand how she survived and Rei didn't die from the poison. That's because he didn't survive.

It was so over dramatic the way Danica fell to the ground, head bowed and then shook her fist until she hid her emotions under a facade. Zane thought she was hiding her soul from him and was frightened by her calmness. Just another problem we didn't need. They barely had a relationship at all. Holding hands, I don't even remember if they kissed on the lips, but it was like nothing. No heat at all. Now he thinks she's an emotionless robot. Just what we needed over 70% of the way through: marital problems.

When he said there had been jealousy between him and Rei I wondered just what kind of jealousy. Spell it out for us. I'm going to need to hear that.

While I was reading this I was complaining the entire time about how boring it was and how bad the characters were. This shouldn't have even been written. Hawksong should have been a standalone and well enough should have been left alone. What a total letdown from the first and I can't stand when authors take a series and then the main characters are abandoned while we switch to other people I don't care about. A fatal decision.

I can't believe we didn't get to see Danica and Zane together; when I read Hawksong all those many years ago I didn't know anything about this being a series and having a sequel, but I can't believe the second fast-forwarded to her being pregnant with no in-between. And what's with them? There was not one single reference to sex. No "We had sex once. No "We were married for a month before we had sex." No "I can't wait to have sex as soon as she's well." I was stupefied as to how these two produced a baby when all they did was "kiss"-And I mean no details, just she kissed him and that was it-and hold hands. It was like the immaculate conception. No reference to them going beyond the most casual of touches. What a snooze fest. How is it that a series goes from having a little bit of heat to it, to having absolutely nothing in the next book? It's backslid.

The plot was such a bore. It was entirely revolved around two side characters with Danica and Zane playing spectators in their own story. First Erica is the missing falcon, then Rei is really it. He's taken away by his evil falcon mother because he's the sole heir. Not sure what he did to cause him to be banished to the avian Keep, guess it wasn't too clear to me, but now was a good time to get him back, for some reason. Erica--Kel--goes after him and is taken too. Valene, the woman who let Kel pose as her niece, goes to petition the court to let them free because they're dancers and the ancient text of the dancers written by the original shapeshifters trumps everything else. The dancers get to handle their own, so Valene comes back with the promise that the Empress will consider it. The next day I think, Syfka, in what was totally one of the most anticlimactic, easy and convenient copouts I've ever seen, just shows up and hands Kel and Rei over because she's taking it upon herself to mete out punishment and she thinks being sentenced to stay out of falcon lands is the worst punishment to happen to a falcon. So they can't come back to falcon lands or else they'll be killed. How convenient. And Kel asks for permission to court her alistair, and kisses Rei once it's given. Kudos to having the main characters vanish in the misty drapes of boredom as two side characters steal the show and have more romance going on. This was the only romance happening, cuz Danica and Zane were a freaking snore fest. Oh, and there was one reference to an avian man being propositioned as soon as he came to the dancer's guild, which was the only time sex was brought up and this was a very casual reference. There were a couple mildly amusing lines that and Danica managed to actually sound strong I think a total of 3 lines in the entire book. Other than that she was either injured and recovering or sleeping. Oh, a woman's lot in life...

[Mei · Rating 5 out of 5]

The war is over. What now?

The story continues in this book.
The peace has been made. Tentative moves are also made to unite the avians and the serpientes. Some are successful, some are not.
But the royal couple is expecting a heir and it is dubious that the races will accept a mix blood as future ruler. Who will raise the child: serpiente or avians?

But the child of a cobra and a hawk is a less certain equation. The serpiente don't mind having a hawk as Naga so long as their Diente is pure cobra — the Naga's power is always second to her mate's. But they aren't fond of the idea of a feathered Diente. They are even less fond of the idea that any half avian child could choose an avian mate, leaving the serpiente throne ruled entirely by birds."

"They might tolerate a mixed child as your heir if he or she is raised serpiente, and if they are assured that its mate will also be serpiente, but…" She trailed off, not needing to say what the other side of the problem was: Danica's court would feel the same way. They would want a daughter to be given an alistair — an avian alistair. Even if the child was male, avian tradition would demand that he be betrothed to a suitable avian girl within his first few years of life.

Serpiente are more passionate, while the avians are more reserved; one are hot and the other strive to be cold...

"Danica, do you know what you are asking of me? Giving up my child to the Keep, to be raised by strangers, to sleep in lonely silence, to be taught to be ashamed of what she feels and what she is… and to be betrothed before she can even speak, before she can possibly understand love."

Another heir in the future could solve the problems: one ruler for the avians, one ruler for the serpiente and peace mainained by sibling holding the thrones. But the problems get more complicated when an attack insures that this will be the only heir: Danica will not have other children... Poor woman... :(

This is just one problem. Falcons appearence is another. Their threats are serious and disrupt the already complicated situation.

Rei is uncovered as heir to Falcon throne and Kel is also a falcon in disguise.
Their love is not apparent until the end, but it is bitter-sweet as she's ready to sacrifice herself, just to be with him... even in death.

Some lore is explained here by Valene and at the end the solution to the main problem is found in founding a new court: Wyvern's Court, where avians and serpiente will live mixed together and where the mixed blood child will be accepted as ruler.

We'll see in the next books how that will work! :D

[marisa. · Rating 3 out of 5]

well this is awkward.

i loved hawksong. it has always been one of my favorite books. and although i thought i hadn't read this one before, i remembered a lot of it as i continued to read. and i remembered just how boring it was.

so the premise of the book is that syfka, a royal falcon, comes to the serpiente court to announce that a fugitive is living among either the serpents or the avian people. being that danica is pregnant, the falcon's presence is a huge source of concern for zane.

and then some stuff happens. or well, nothing really happens. words are said, and characters walk around and talk, and....yeah.

this book meandered. most of it was conversation, discussing what to do with the falcon, sykfa, and her demands. characters went places, they talked, and then they went to another scene, where they talked some more. the characters felt more like vehicles for information than anything else, and all the relationships seemed to take a backseat to the plot with the falcons.

this should not have been narrated by zane. or it should have switched povs around. for one, his narration isn't that interesting, and for another, the main characters of this story were definitely kel and rei. the plot did not revolve around zane and danica's characters, so much as the falcons. and for how much they were discussed, we didn't see much of anything about them. it was supposed to be the central conflict of the story, and yet...it fell completely flat on its face.

the entire book fell flat. there were moments where it picked up, mainly zane and danica's interactions and their concerns with the pregnancy, but plot threads were dropped and other picked up, then they too were dropped to pick up earlier, unresolved plot threads in a way that was very haphazard.

the halfway point is where it lost any momentum it had, at least for me. there were moments of tension, but what should have been important plot threads were delegated to the background.

namely, the climax of the story. rei and kel were taken prisoners by the falcon heir and this is where the POV should have switched to follow them. instead, valene flies out to speak with the queen and we are left with danica and zane planning the details of the wyvern court. there was no tension before the end, no building suspense - all of a sudden rei and kel were back and talking about their time spent imprisoned. then the books ends.

what should have been the climax was simply dialogue that the characters talk about after.

and that's what this book suffers from most. telling. we are not shown anything - especially not the falcon's city, which had been spoken of so much that i thought it was building up to a journey to the place. we don't get to see it except through kel and everyone else's talking about it.

i am so frustrated by this book, mostly because i loved hawksong so much. i wanted to see a continuation of the story in that book. i wanted to see more struggles between the serpents and avian people, as zane and danica dealt with their commuting between the two lands and how they had come to trust each other completely. in this book, they were unfailingly devoted to one another, when in hawksong they had only just fell in love. i don't know, it just seems to simple and uncomplicated between them.

the only problems arose in the case of their child, and at the end, they found a solution. and true, it won't be easy but it feels as if all the plot threads were tied together too neatly. there wasn't much conflict, or danger, or any tension. i didn't feel fear for the characters, or anything, really. the characters i loved in hawksong seemed so much...blander in this story.

all in all, this was a transitory book. it was meant to introduce the falcons, reveal their identities, and introduce the wyvern's court. that is literally all that happened in this entire book. it was readable, as aar's books always are, but boring.

i think it should have been split into two books. one for the avians and serpents, and the other for the falcons.

by now i'm just repeating myself, but bottom line is that this suffered from sequelitis and it suffered hard. it was obvious the author wanted to move the plot forward for the next books and the wyvern's court but didn't want to spend too much time or effort developing the world or relationships or plots.

i did give it three stars because the world is interesting, and even at its slow parts, it was still immensely readable. and very short. unfortunately, it was a disappointing follow-up to a book i love so much.

[mkh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Charming, charming, charming- NOT. Let me start off by saying I had high hopes for this book, Hawksong (its predecessor) was a light exhilarating read. With Snakecharm however, you feel that it is too fast paced and too rushed. For example, Danica only named Zane as her Alistair a a year ago and barely able to trust him. In Snakecharm, she's pregnant! How absurd! The character development changed immensely in ONE YEAR! enough to have a child.... What I'm trying to get at is, Rhodes didn't think about character development pacing at all...At some parts, some characters seemed a little OC for me... Like when Andreios and Erica/Kel start to develop a romantic relationship...I was like...WTF!? why? because Andreios/Sebastian DELIBERATELY gave up his falcon throne just to be near Danica and loved her since they were children. THEN, ALL OF A SUDDEN, he's like "Danica who? I'm not even going to try...oh well, ON TO THE NEXT ONE!" There was just a lot of scenes where the character's pissed me off because they weren't acting REALISTICALLY. I would describe a few, but I think I already have a substantial amount of spoilers in this review...
Also, I missed Danica's strong personality, instead, all she basically does in Snakecharm is get injured, and sleep. Way to be interesting...I'm glad Snakecharm was a quick read because if it was longer, I probably would have pulled my hair out.

[anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite the fact that I love Hawksong with my whole heart, I still went into this book somewhat hesitant. I'd heard some negative reviews with this novel, resulting in my thinking that perhaps it wouldn't live up to its predecessor. But it DID. I LOVED this book. I still am partial to Hawksong, but this book and Hawksong sort of go hand in hand. I adore them both.

I love how much you learn in this novel. In Hawksong, it was about the war, in Snakecharm, it's about the peacetime. And because it's the peacetime, this novel is more relaxed, and I could see how some could find that boring, but I found it captivating.
I love how you learn more about the serpiente and their fascinating culture.

Atwater-Rhodes has really developed this world she's written. The characteristics and language and attitudes of each culture really shine. As do her characters. If the most minor ones seem to be known.


LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE

A definite reread--hopefully sooner rather than later.


PS: Read it in one day. Just like Hawksong. :D


2020: this is my fourth time reading this I think?? still love it.

[Nidofito · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid 3 stars!

This world that Atwater-Rhodes has created is wonderful but the books are just too short and too fast-paced! On the other hand, there is barely any plot drag that current YA fantasies seem to have. Despite the Keisha'ra series being an MG - YA fantasy, the author's really good with her romance. I remember Hawksong being so sensual even though there wasn't anything extra in it - just good word choice. Not so much here. I kinda wish she would slow down a bit, a fantasy needs that, and I deeply regret that the she did not extend the newly wed phase of Danica and Zane.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

The seconf od the Kiesh'ra series, this book gives light to Zane Cobriana's mind. As the narrator for the book, he provides a significant change to the prior novel, which was told through the voice of Danica Shardae his new wife. Zane is much more sarcastic and emotional than she, and it gives the plot a bit more pazzaz. The story line in itself develops nicely and explors the reasons behind the struggle for both the avians and serpiente to live harmoniously to a greater extent.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amelia Atwater-Rhodes is so talented. I read her books back when I was a teen and just flew through all of them. I still think fondly of them from time to time. I hope to re-read them at some time. The Kiesha'ra series has a special place in my heart.

[Sabrina · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is very boring and bad. Badly written. Badly paced. Had I not been bored every time I picked it up, I could have finished it in a day or two. But here we are on Day 4 and it was a struggle to force myself to read the last 40 pages.

I made it one of my goals to reread Atwar-Rhodes’ work this year as I had physical copies of all her books from high-school when I adored them. Two months ago, I read the first in this series, ‘Hawksong’,and was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t awful. ‘Snakecharm’, being the direct sequel...was surprisingly and disappointingly BAD.

‘Hawksong’ didn’t feel like a complete story to me on it’s own, and that was part of the reason I wanted to continue in the series, but ‘Snakecharm’ starts a few months later and it seems nothing has happened. In fact, nothing happens for about 50% of the book other than poor narration.

When the plot finally picks up (and I’m being generous by saying it did that at all), the twist/reveal is anti-climatic, and the characters seem to think so as well with their tepid reactions. The next 50% of the book is trying to work through this problem, though. Slowly. With a lot of discussions of what should be done rather than anyone doing it. (And then there’s a side-plot of an heir which takes up more space than it should with all the focus being on this other conflict). BUT THEN THE SOLUTION IS SO SIMPLE. Here’s another 30 pages of the characters discussing just how to go about it.

I hated this book. I hated it for how good it could have been with an inch more of world-building and a smidgen more work on the characters. A few paragraphs of action rather than just discussion would have made this more tolerable, even.

[Emily W · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok so I absolutely loved this book and the series, but I wish I wasn't over so fast, and theat it showed more of the serpentine ability to 'sense' emotions like Zane showed Danika in the first book. I'm glad the child wasn't born in this book because that would be easy to fast, even though I kinda expected that to happen. Also, I honestly expected *SPOILERS* Erica and Andreios to be the missing Falcons because they have been actinge strange for some time, and they were just the best fighters from day one? Why else would Rei be so protective of Erica and the fact that he didn't know were the missing Falcons were? I love the falcon picture in general, sky blue eyes, blue hair, awesome wings, I mean, that beats serpentine everyday. Buuut, I don't think Atwater-Rhodes should have put in that a falcons eyes alone can control you. I think that should have stayed one of the Cobriana's traits, not a shared one.

[Cait S · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just feel like this series would be so much better as a couple standard size books. There's too much info dumping and history crammed in to these short 150-200 pages, it just feels overwhelming and like we are more focused on that than on what's currently happening and how it affects the characters. The names are (for me) completely unpronounceable which means I'm hearing gibberish in my head for most of every page. All of that combined together just wasn't an enjoyable reading experience (aside from how short it was) so I don't think I'll be continuing the series.

[m. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 STARS

I loved the first installment, but this one just didn't do much for me. There was barely any romance which was really a big shift from the first book.

There were some good parts and soms interesting stuff thrown in but not enough to really keep me invested in this story and these characters.

[Jessica {Litnoob} · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I was very very happy to be back in this world with these characters I do wish things had been a little longer. I need more angst with my drama and that's more easily done with more length. Still seeing things from Zanes point of view was a nice change and I'd still like to continue on.

[Bailey Mosher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hawksong was good, but the writing went off the rails for Snakecharm.

[Andi Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

The happy ending I want. (Note: I have never read books after this in the series)

[Penni Hollins 📚🐉 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still enjoying this although finding my mind wandering to more epic fantasy as I’m really enjoying the world building aspect and this series isn’t big on world building but that’s ok it reads fine without it.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's been years since I've read Hawksong, and I never wanted to read this because I thought it was in their kid's perspective.

Their history was surprisingly confusing, with a lot of names to remember.
Idr it being in Zane's perspective, but maybe the author decided to do it for the 2nd bk. She didn't capture a guy's voice. At first I thought it was a girls, in Danica's POV.

I did not remember Zane's oldest brother killed Danica's mom. And he went to attack them, and saw her sleeping and fell in love, wanted peace. If he fell in love upon sight, then why did he cheat after they were together?
Her sister died, allowing her to become heir to the throne, same as Zane with his brother.

It's weird to say 'the serpiente dress rippled around the hawk's long legs' when she's in human form.
When he said Andreios had known and loved Danica all her life and was too much the gentleman to speak of his love for another man's mate I couldn't believe it.

I thought they found the pregnancy out at the end of the last book. Because it says it in the description. They gave it away in the synopsis when the characters didn't even know.
When the dance teacher tells Zane to get her some raspberry ginger tea he realizes she's pregnant and she doesn't even know! The dance teacher then sends them off saying women have babies for forever and Danica didn't even comment. This led me to believe Danica isn't very bright.
Talking about his child being able to spread a cobra's hood was weird. What does that even look like? And a woman's feathers on her neck while in human form. It's just weird. Why would they have any animal traits while they're in human form?
Talking of a snakes egg growing too quickly. They're in human form! The serpient child growing in her avian body was so very twilight.
'I wrapped my arms around milady.' That isn't how the word milday should be used.

Rooms are called nests, and idk why a snake's room would be called a nest.
Diente and Naga are serpiente king and queen. Tuuli Thea and alistair are avian king and Queen.

They weren't sure the criminal Syfka was after was a guy, but Zane kept saying 'he'.
'Our child would be born in peace, but would she live in war?' Here again, why use he or she when you don't know the gender?

Him and his brothers were Arami and Diente. If a girl takes the throne as Diente her husband would be called Nag.

I didn't like that Zane put down the avians, how they aren't raised with dance and a passion to live, but with chaste sense of duty and modesty. There's nothing wrong with that.

A'isha is annoying, being seductive around Rei when she knows he likes someone else.
It's interesting to hear of their dances, how some dances men don't perform without their mates.

There's unique names and then there's a Betsy and a Seth, which didn't fit at all.

Danica isn't strong. She falls from the horse on the 'soft ground' and has bruises and scrapes, gets knocked unconscious. She's missing the meetings with the falcon. She's passed out twice already.

Earlier Zane said he didn't know if it was a boy or girl but when Erica heals Danica he asks about his daughter and Erica says his daughter will be fine. When did the knowledge of the birth became known?

The magic is very sketchy. Even the character says "idk how I can explain it. I...put the hurt pieces together again." That sounds like a 5 year old's explanation. Of course falcon magic isn't always best for the mom, didn't hurt the baby at all,& now she won't be able to have another child. Just to complicate matters further. All that was was a major plot device, that I hated.
Without the magic Danica might have lived but not the baby.
It was very like twilight how they only had one kid.

There's too ellipsis in here, and dashes where they don't belong.
"I haven't had it in...months."
"It happened when I was...8."
"I found Rei..."
"But a hawk..."
"I remember seeing a viper sink its fangs into Rei's side, but...not much more."
"I felt as if I had to keep going back to the field...to try to help."
Those were all from one page. One page.

And--
"Betsy is worried the child was--hurt."
"I am sure she will want to know that you are--recovered."

Zane tells Danica that Erica said it will be a girl,& I was thinking no she didn't. I had to flip back and see. He asks after the child and she says she'll be fine, but that didn't tell me it was a girl because Zane has been using the term 'she', so I thought it was another guess at the gender.
And it's a girl, just like twilight.

I found Danica old-sounding, not young at all. She was 15 I think it said in here in the first bk, or at least when the attack happened on her family by Zane's brother, where her alistair was killed.
I can't connect with her at all,& I find it unrelatable that YA would relate to the kid part either. It stands out when she says "I want to talk to the monster who tried to prevent her from having one," all mother bear. I just don't think teens would relate to this.

There's no emotion from the characters. They grab each other's hands, hold each other close but there's no emotion behind it. No adjectives on how they feel.

Danica is also slow up on the uptake. The woman who fired the bow at them said a tall, fair, foreign avian convinced them of the plan to kill them,& Danica's like "Syfka wasn't even there." Wow, that was dumb.
More sketchy magic when Erica said Syfka would see the magic on her,& that "there was falcon magic all over that group." How can you see magic? What does it look like?

Kel looks at Rei with a cool, sad gaze which isn't really possible to do. Can you be cool and sad at the same time?
Kel calls Syfka Lady aplomado, and it seemed like it should be capitalized.
The white lady sounds like narnia and the white city sounds like gondor.

Children of the falcons are rare, because Ahnmik's magic is based on stillness and death.
So if someone in the upper ranks has a child it's a miracle. Mixed blood children are easier to have but more dangerous. Their magic gets warped and they go mad.

I thought it was cool how traditionally a member of the Royal Flight must get permission to court a lady, since he can't swear to guard and protect his pair bond and his queen with his life.

Idk what time period this was in. It feels medieval, what with the Keep, but it would have been nice to have a year of when this was set in.

It's weird that the snake's dance hall is called nest and maybe their bedroom too, while the bird's place is called Keep. It should be the opposite.
This sounds medieval, yet the word brat is used.

Zane wonders what would have happened if Kiesha and the other 8 servants from the Dasi had survived as the royal falcons had. Or Queen Alasdair and her first avian kin. And what magic their people might have had if they hadn't wasted thousands of years in war. I wish this book had been about that, with them having full powers like the falcons, who stayed out of the war. It would probably be more interesting that way.

The 'heir to the kingdom of moon and mountain' sounded like the hobbit.

I didn't like that Rei was the missing falcon, and an heir to boot.
The cool Andreios wasn't even like the blushing guy with A'isha the dance teacher.
He said Araceli sent him there as a child. And his real name is Sebastian. And Araceli is his mom.
They didn't say she was old enough to have kids.

I like that the word used for the necklace, shakecharm was used for the title. I like when titles are used in the book.

I didn't like that for the falcons to have to take someone's form the person has to have died. Like Erica really being Kel, a falcon who tried to save her. And Andreios really being Sebastian.
Zane wonders if when Danica survived a serpent's attack when Rei was poisoned and she was unconscious if he had tried to save Andreios from the serpent's poison by force-changing him and then earned a crow's form in the process. Syfka ordered Sebastian to return home when Rei was hurt so no one questioned his absence when the substitution was made. That explained his sudden behavior of wanting to quit the guard. Because that wasn't really Rei. So Rei has been dead since that day.
I hated that even more.
I thought this was what happened until Danica said that Rei was someone else all these years. I wondered why Zane even presented that one possibility if it didn't turn out to be true.

Her mom Nacola said Danica hasn't been that upset since her alistair died at 15, and Andreious(or Sebastian) drew her out of it. I didn't know she loved her alistair, and didn't even remember her having an alistair.
I was surprised when he said there's been jealousy between him and Rei cause I don't remember that.

I assumed Gerard was young, wanting permission to court a young lady. When it turns out he's courting Danica's mom, I couldn't believe it. You have to say peoples age and appearance. That is very lacking in here.

Zane helped in the training of the new guards after the falcons were taken, then it says as evening fell Danica drifted to his side, making it sound like she was watching the training, but all of a sudden they were on their balcony.

So the real Rei died protecting her, and his father died too when Danica was 12.
I didn't think it made sense for A'isha to say that falcon or not, heir or not, he's one of theirs. 'The Cobriana learned years ago that you don't hold a dancer against the ruling of the best. The shm'Ahnmik might as well learn the same."

Danica gives a speech about Kel and Rei, saying "a young woman who used to dance in her homeland, and who teasingly challenged the man she fancied to learn" but she never knew about that. Zane did. Because Zane's been where all the action is, while Danica is off in some room recovering. How did she learn of Kel challenging Rei to dance?

"Even if we can't find a way to bring our dancers home, we may find something helpful for the future." It doesn't seem like dancers would be that important, definitely not above heirs and royalty.
A'isha says she should be able to protect Rei. "Like I said yesterday, the guild has always dealt with its own. Nest justice always comes before outside rule." That's ridiculous.
Idl that they're calling him ours and one of our own. He was just learning to dance, it wasn't like he was sworn in.

Out of nowhere comes an idea of having a new world with their blended ppl,& it gets built up into an actual plan in a couple of lines. With no planning, just throwing it out suddenly.
When A'isha says she'd join a dragons nest I thought it was supposed to be funny, and when that's passed up she says wyvern's nest. Then Wyvern's Court, so now they've come up with a name with no planning.

The cute moments are brushed over. She says her first mad scheme was when she announced him as her alistair. And then it goes to the next chapter without his response. We could use some more connection between them, teasing and romance. Don't just brush over it.

Without talking it over and hashing it out, they start looking for the approval of their courts and talking of spreading the news in the markets. The whole thing was so sudden, it was insane.

Valence goes alone to Ahnmik to petition the falcon empress to get Andreios back based on a very convenient loophole in some ancient texts. I couldn't believe they didn't go with her. Right when the book would be getting interesting, it just drops it,& leaves it. Why wouldn't the royals--Zane and Danica--go to another royal to petition to get one of their own back? Why send some third party completely alone? That made zero sense. I guess because Zane can't--cough *wont'*--fly, the author skipped over the hassle of figuring out how to get him to a faraway land.

Again they use gender when they don't know it: Nacola says if she had another child she would raise her to be loyal to her king or Queen and their heir. Are you banking on having another girl? Are they fortune tellers here? I know avians are more likely to have girls--idk why. neither does the author--but you could have a boy.

I found it weird how the dancers stretched and danced in the morning and the end of the day. And just sleep in the nest all together. It was too cult-like for my tastes, and I didn't care for the dancers guild, tribe, organization, whatever you wanna call it.

On pg 156 Zane says “Compromise may also mean letting unattached ladies and gentlemen make their own decision and mistakes.” I looked at Danica , remembering the first uneasy months after she had agreed to become my mate. She smiled encouragingly.’
Ugh, are you thinking of your affair, you sleezeball? And you claimed to fall in love with her the night you saw her. Why the heck would she be smiling then?

He said it was only a few days ago when Rei and Valene were accepted as dancers, and now anyone who wanted to help their project was welcome. That is way too sudden. I couldn't believe the whole book took place over a few days. And I've never seen a project come together so fast. Imagine coming up with a whole community in a few minutes, and planning for it in a few days!

Syfka showed up, acting completely different. I couldn't believe it, and it actually confused me, because she seemed to have been helping Kel and Rei the whole time, but she was evil, so I didn't even understand her motives. Yes, she didn't think they were fit to live as falcons, but why help them?

The saying 'feathered Hades' was used, and it didn't make sense to have a Greek god in here, when these are descendants of Egyptian gods.

It took them years to come searching for Rei because it took that long for Araceli to convince the Empress he was still falcon. That was pretty dubious reasoning there. It took you years to convince the Empress that Rei was still a falcon. Hmm.

This didn't have a conclusive ending. The whole book was about the birth of their child, and then it doesn't even include it. We also don't know if/when they build their new kingdom, and if it will be successful, and their people will accept it. Also, how will a seperate kingdom of avians and serpents solve the problem of their two species when you're still leaving the serpent kingdom separate and the avian kingdom separate. That would still keep the two cultures apart.


Looking back on the book getting quotes, I reread where Zane and Danica were supposed to have a dance together 4 months later, an ancient ritualistic dance of this people. The author didn't include it, because this book only covered a few days, but that would have been nice to read about.

I reread & didn't remember pg 16 at all, where Sebastian came to them at age 12 as ambassador of the falcons. He didn’t know kid’s games. When Syfka arrived to check on him, he said he was staying and would be Danica’s alistair. Rei’s father was killed right after Sebastian left. I’m really confused now. How did Sebastian go from being Danica's alistair to going back to his people? Then how did Sebastian turn into Rei if he had left for his home?!
The Sebastian/Rei thing was too confusing, and wasn't explained properly. I still don't understand it.

I also reread this on pg38:’Remembering so many years of war when this beautiful woman had been my enemy, so hated that when fate crossed our paths there had been no choice but for me to love her.’ That didn't make any sense. She was so hated that you then had no choice but to love her...(??)

I found Zane to be hypocritical. He wanted Danica to accept his culture, but he did nothing to accept hers. Unless you count tolerating his mother-in-law as acceptance. She’s danced and learned to sleep beside him, but he hasn’t flown or done anything from her culture. Then he spent the whole book bashing the avians, how they raise their children, leaving them alone, how they don't accept themselves or live with passion, and how they're modest. What if Danica just put down your culture the whole time?

This was ok-ish. It lacked world building, and explanations of how magic worked, and had very little detail on characters' appearances, age. I wish this had been the last one, but there's like 5 in this series. So now I feel sort of obligated to read them, but I don't really want to.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far Snakecharm by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes has been really great. It took a while to get used to the style of writing that the author uses, but after getting past the strange style it is a really good book. The plot is progressing all the time so there is never a dull moment. Once you get into it you don't want to put it down.

Zane Cobriana

Zane Cobriana, the main character in Snakecharm by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, is a cobra shapeshifter with a hot flaring attitude determined to keep peace and tranquility running in his newly joined kingdoms. After his marriage to Danica Shardae in Hawsong (the first book in the series), Zane and his new mate face the trial and excitement of their first child. The radiant news of expecting a child is quickly overshadowed by an unanticipated and unwanted visit by a dark cloud, Syfka. Taking on the form of a falcon shapshifter, she has come in search of a wanted falcon believed to be hiding out in The Hawk’s Keep or The Cobra Palace. Soon know around The Palace and The Keep for having a notorious reputation of suspicion and questioning, Syfka starts to take over the joined kingdoms and will stop at nothing to find the missing falcon. Within a short amount of time everyone is being questioned by the ruthless warrior, even member of the Royal guard from both The Palace and The Keep. Zane, not having a timorous or passive personality, begins to get severely irritated by the out of line falcon’s actions and her constant presence. Though he remains calm for a prolonged period of time for the good of the people, Zane finally is pushed to the edge when Syfka plans and puts into motion a dirty underhanded attack to get rid the world of Danica and Zane’s mixed blood unborn child. After the attack Zane can’t take it anymore and does anything in his power to get Syfka out of his presence and out of land. Even though Syfka leaves, Zane and strong Danica press on not knowing the test of strength that will have in the near future.

Text to World, Text to Text, and Text to Self

Snakcharm by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes can be compared to many different fields of writing and experiences. On a text to world level the book can be compared to people in general. Zane and Danica struggle through the same situations as any young couple would. They are expecting the birth of their first child and are taking great measures to take care of it while trying to keep their two joined kingdoms together. So just like a new couple it’s like they’ve just gotten their new house (The Keep and The Palace) and are combining all of their belongings. Also the book shows a slight form of “racism” between the two houses, The Keep and The Palace. Snake shapshifters and Hawk and sparrow shapshifters don’t get along and each party has the idea that one is better than the other. Also, just like different cultures both the hawks and snakes have different customs for their separate societies, which makes it hard for the two to come together peacefully, not to mention that they just broke out of a bloody war with each other. On another plane, text to text, this book reminds me a lot of the graphic novel Fruits Basket. In Fruits Basket a particular group of characters are afflicted with a family curse that causes them in some instances to turn into an animal from the Zodiac. This makes me think of Snakecharm because of the shapeshifting aspect. Switching platforms again, with text to self, I guess I relate to the stress level that they deal with while being so young. Danica and Zane obviously have drastically different things to worry about in Snakecharm, I can still relate to how they are feeling about their situations. For example, they have to worry about running a newly join kingdom that isn’t happy about being joined, and they are expected to make peace and keep everyone happy. Although this isn’t quiet as drastic, I’m on the yearbook staff so I have to try to please everyone with what happens in the yearbook, and I don’t do it alone as Danica and Zane don’t do it on their own either. They have advisors and friends that help them deal with problems and decision just like I have everyone on the yearbook staff, and we all collaborate. The same goes for student council we are like the student body government like Danica and Zane are king and queen and govern The Keep and the Palace. Many connections can be made on every level with this book even thought it is an out of the ordinary fantasy book that, at first glance, has nothing to do with the real world.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amelia Atwater-Rhodes welcomes us back into her world of shapeshifters in this second volume of the planned Kiesha'Ra series. First off, if you haven't read Hawksong (the first volume), you will be lost in the second volume. While there are brief references to that book in this novel, Snakecharm introduces us to a new clan and characters, but also lacks the power of it's predecessor.

In Snakecharm, Zane takes the driver's wheel and guides us into the newlywed's life with his pair bond Danica. Both the lands of the hawks and the snakes are at peace (with a few bumps), but this is all put on a string when Syfka, a powerful falcon from Ahnmik (home of her people), warns Zane and Danica of a wanted falcon is in their land. And to make matters worse, Danica is pregnant with their first child, which could upset the balance of the hawks and the snakes.

The plot offers a more gripping, mature and dark tone than Hawksong. To me, it offers a more reality-based peice than Atwater-Rhodes last offering (Hawksong was Romeo and Juliet without the climatic death of the main characters). Also, it's nice to see old characters return and with a whole new outlook on their ever-changing world. Zane's first-person narrative offers a new face too, but it seems Atwater-Rhodes needs some more experience writing for a main male character. While she has proven great success with her main female characters, Zane's P.O.V. is often crossing the line between first/third person and this tends to leave the reader wandering around with no guidence.

Along with her weak male narrator, Atwater-Rhodes also treads into familar problems once more. She offers her readers a fantasical world, but she only gives you the tip of the iceberg. Some areas could use vast improvement, but mostly this makes the novel fast-paced, leaving no time for the reader to take nessarry information in. Another problem she also presents is the odd arrangement of characters. Atwater-Rhodes often adds characters "for the sake of addition characters", meaning compact and over-stuffed scenes.

Speaking of characters, I find the use of Normal and RPG-Style names within the same setting quite annoying. This makes the story not really believeible. If Atwater-Rhodes is desperately trying to create a fantasy setting, adding names like "Besty" makes me think that she isn't trying. One other complaint I offer is the issue of quickie romances. The budding romance between Kel and Rei is sloppily added in out of the blue. This, along with the trademark forced ending, is poorly done. Speaking of Rei, that name is Japanese and it is (I believe) a female name. To me, this name doesn't suit her male character very well (if you want to name a seemingly-weak male character, try Pip).

All in all, Snakecharm is an OK follow-up to Hawksong. I will still continue to read the rest of Atwater-Rhodes' series. The idea of the supposed encounter with the wolf shapeshifters and a new court is very promising, along with the birth of Zane and Danica's child.

[Jojobean · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books and I love rereading it over and over. This will be a short review because there are lots of spoilers in this book and I don't wanna give anything away

This books picks up a few months after the first book, Hawksong. This book is in Zane's point of view. The war between the serpiente and the avians is over. Danica and Zane rule both people in their each individual courts. While the war is over, the two cultures have not merged together. Some brave individuals have traveled to the other's markets to do business but integration has not occurred yet. Zane and Danica are tasked with figuring out how to make both of their races happy, especially if they are planning on having children, who would be heirs to both thrones. While dealing with this issue, the falcons shapeshifters have come to Danica and Zane's lands claiming that there is a hidden falcon in their land that they want back.

I still love all the characters from the previous book and there are all in this book: Zane, Danica and Rei. Zane and Danica's love has grown and the reader can see and feel the love they have for each other. Danica has become a serpiente dancer and dances for Zane many times. Just from Zane's and Danica's words and actions toward each other shows how much they love each other. Both have also grown as leaders and are comfortable in each other's lands with each other's people. Rei still protects Danica with his life but his love for her as a partner has passed.

With this book is the introduction of the falcons, a shape shifting race that were only mentioned in Hawksong. They are powerful shape shifters that live on an island. Their magic is still intact and its powerful magic. Falcons can take on the form of someone, can heal people, can read minds and can fight with their magic. They are also very strict and very conceited race. They believe they are above all the other shifters and are the best. On the island, the penalty for breaking most laws is death. The falcons only treasure pure blooded children between the same species of falcon and any other children are seen as abominations. We meet two falcons from the island who come searching for a missing falcon. They are Syfka and the heir to the throne Araceli. I really didn't like either of them. They were arrogant, insulted Zane and Danica several times and acted as if they were the best creatures on earth. I wanted to smack them.

All in all this is one of my favorite books and a great 2nd book in the series.

This review is also posted on The Book Owl Extraordinaire

[Koorihime-sama · Rating 4 out of 5]

Checked out from the library.

Review/Rating:

4 out of 5

Danica and Zane have achieved a lot in their aim of peace between the avains and serpiente. However, when Danica becomes pregnant, will the peace last long? Also, a falcon named Syfka comes and that causes more problems, so is the falcon just there to find their missing falcon? Or, is she there just to stir up trouble amongst their people?

Another supernatural book, however, this time it is about shapeshifters, again. Yay. \o/

As a second book of series, Snakecharm was very well written, but I like the first book a lot more than this one. It’s not as good as the first book, but it is still a good book to read. The plot of the second book is a little common, but that doesn’t make it any less special. This book has suspense, romance, betrayals, and shapeshifters. Finding shapeshifter books, just on their own, are rare, so that makes this book even more wonderful.

I just love the main character Zane and Danica, but unlike the first book there is hardly any clashing between them. Also, the way all the characters develop in this book is great, but they could have grown a little bit more than what they did. The descriptions and events are also very well done, but a little bit more about how the other characters look like would have made it a little bit better. Also, unlike the first book, the narrator for this one is Zane, not Danica.

Even though the plot is typical — two separate group at war, two people characters marry to stop the war, peace comes, the ruler gets pregnant, but then the heir issue comes up — you should go ahead and read this book/series. Though, like I said before, I didn’t really like this book. I like how the main characters are still Zane and Danica, but not how the focus is not completely on them. To me, it would have been better just to end it with the first book, and not this one. I just hope the other books in this series doesn’t ruin how I view the series right now.

Anyways, go ahead and read the book, even though it doesn’t have the same spark as the first one.

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

I rediscovered Hawksong on my shelf, and given my current predilection toward both escapism and nostalgia for childhood books, I decided to try and read the rest of the series. This book was....OK. It seemed to just continue the plot of the first book without a lot of the emotional urgency or sexiness that made Hawksong seem pretty great to 11 year old me (still is pretty good!). The two main characters are madly in love and there are machinations and stuff they have to contend with, but it's just bland. Wouldn't really recommend unless you want to read through the series, like I'm doing. Definitely still recommend Hawksong, though, it's pretty fun.

[Isa · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I've mentioned in Hawksong's review, these books, though a delightful read, left me wanting.

One thing I should add when it comes to Snakecharm is how well the author dealt with how the "inter-species" (in a way) marriage worked and the difficulties that came from raising a child of two cultures. Most books tend to sweep these conflicts under the Happy Ever After rug, it's always a nice treat when an author does not shy from these issues. Granted, it's fantasy, but these are also issues prevalent in the real world and Amelia Atwater-Rhodes did a very good job writing about them.

As happened in Hawksong, things felt a bit rushed. It's baffling, really, I would gladly give them a 4 or a 5 if only the author had not seemed in such a hurry to finish.

Still, recommended to anyone who likes political marriages between sworn enemies that end in love (which should be just about anyone who's into romance).

[Kathy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book- being the second of the series, was under a lot of pressure to impress the fan base of the first book. I enjoyed the first book immensely and I was expecting more development of the two protagonists and the continuation of their lives after the first novel. Is that what you get from this sequel? Yes and no. Yes, they are still characters in the book, they make appearances through-out it, but no, they are no longer the book's focus. This sequel was disappointing to me, not simply because the characters I loved became extras but the story itself lost its enchantment. I did read the entire book, but I was not pulled into it's plot nor its world like I was in the first. However, the protagonist's relationship do develop and their new married life touched upon at the beginning of the book made a sweet read and opening to the second novel. However, Rhodes chooses to center this book around Rei and his new romance partner. You may enjoy this plot change and also support the new pair of lovers as much as the first. And I hope that you do, but if you were, like me, expecting more Danica and Zane, then perhaps this book will not satisfy your curiosity.

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was absolutely in love with Hawksong! The characters the plot, and not to mention the obvious chemistry between Zane and Danica. This book was kind of a disappointment. With their new world of freedom and semi-peace, the avian and serpiente people are on edge when a falcon comes claiming that there is one of her own kind hidden among Zane and Danica’s people.
When people start to find out that Danica is pregnant with a half cobra/hawk child, arguments are started as to what will happen to it, who’s kingdom it will rule and even more, what will it be like? (Cobra or hawk, etc…)
The book is mostly about how Zane and Danica solve the problem of ruling both kingdoms. There’s next to nothing about them. I suppose it was a good read if you really wanted to know what happened to their people and how they solved the political problems of their union, but if you’re interested in what happens to Zane and Danica, my advice would be to just leave it at the first book and just be happy that they love each other.

[E. C. Ecchor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My rating is actually 3.5 stars. As always, I am impressed with the author's firm grasp of world building and I get easily attached to her characters. That being said, I was not as engrossed by this story as I was with the first. There was something in the desperate attempt to create peace that was engaging and that was lacking a bit in this one. I appreciated how the characters strove, constantly, to overcome each other's prejudices in the hopes of making a better world, because that was realistic and parallels the kind of thing we all should be working for in our own world.

Part of what I had a problem with, I think, was the lack of... action? Or maybe it was more the sense that this was politics and missed all the recklessness of two young people in love and in people desperate enough to try crazy things. I wanted Zane and Danica to be more involved, not just in decisons, but in actions. And I felt that things were wrapped up too quickly and too easily.

I enjoyed the stoey and recommend checking it out - it's a quick read - it just wasn't the favorite of her books, not for me.