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Arcanus #1
Destined
Raised together, Sarnaiel and Naliel are as close as brothers could be, until the dark elf Sarnaiel decides he wants them to be something more. Only after he reveals his intentions does he learn of an arranged marriage that stands between them and their happiness. Unable to stand the idea of the one he loves with another, he vanishes, leaving Naliel alone...or so he thought.
But someone has been watching the young half elf from the shadows, and without Sarnaiel's presence he makes his move in the most brutal of ways. Naliel survives, but his mind and body are broken. Sarnaiel returns to pick up the pieces, mending and nurturing and rebuilding their bond, but once again their relationship is thwarted by the birth of Naliel's bride.
Once the source of his greatest joy, Sarnaiel becomes Naliel's torment. For Sarnaiel, when hurt, strikes back twice as hard and viciously. It doesn’t matter who it is. He almost goes too far and through that, finally learns what should be truly important to him. The oath they make that day is what seals their already unbreakable bond, and the two grow older, and wiser, together. For no matter what happens, no matter what they face, even if it's their own kin, they live by their
"It was us from the beginning, and it'll be us until the end."
Content This book contains near rape, questionable consent, and moderate violence.
But someone has been watching the young half elf from the shadows, and without Sarnaiel's presence he makes his move in the most brutal of ways. Naliel survives, but his mind and body are broken. Sarnaiel returns to pick up the pieces, mending and nurturing and rebuilding their bond, but once again their relationship is thwarted by the birth of Naliel's bride.
Once the source of his greatest joy, Sarnaiel becomes Naliel's torment. For Sarnaiel, when hurt, strikes back twice as hard and viciously. It doesn’t matter who it is. He almost goes too far and through that, finally learns what should be truly important to him. The oath they make that day is what seals their already unbreakable bond, and the two grow older, and wiser, together. For no matter what happens, no matter what they face, even if it's their own kin, they live by their
"It was us from the beginning, and it'll be us until the end."
Content This book contains near rape, questionable consent, and moderate violence.
266 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 18, 2011
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 9, 2011
3.5 stars
So, I had this really awesome (and yes, long) review already written but wouldn't you know, I accidentally refreshed the page and poof! No more review. *sigh*
Anyways, the blurb is pretty detailed on what happens in the story. Almost exactly, in fact. I'm actually glad I didn't read the blurb before I started the book or else I might have been annoyed with that. Either way, I think this book would have benefited better if it were separated into two books instead of just one. The first book possibly about Sarna and Nal finally pursuing a relationship and the injury Nal obtains and how he copes with that. The second book, I felt, should have been about the arranged marriage Nal went through because of his sense of duty and the toll it takes on Nal and Sarna as well as anything that happened during Nal's time in marriage and afterward. As it was, everything is just in one book and because of that, I felt like the story wasn't as complete as I would have liked it to be especially since it covered over a century and more of Nal and Sarna's lives.
For one, something really terrible happens to Nal. It's not as bad as the blurb makes it sound and I was actually kind of disappointed in that because it had such a huge impact on Nal and because it had such a huge impact, I was hoping to experience the trials he went through in trying to heal. I would have liked to read about the PTSD he had afterward, to know how he overcame the shame, self-loathing and self-hatred he had and how exactly Sarna was able to help him through it. Unfortunately, we don't get that type of information.
Most of the book revolves around what Sarna and Nal go through to finally be together when they are still young (in their twenties). Maybe fifteen percent of the book is dedicated to Nal, his arranged marriage with Maya and the hurt and pain Sarna causes Nal because of Nal's obligation. The last ten percent of the book is like an epilogue. .
I enjoyed the characters because together they are like one person. Where Sarna is angry, mean and uncaring, Nal is the exact opposite. He's calm, in control and polite. What Sarna lacks, Nal has and what Nal lacks, Sarna makes up for. The world intrigued me. There was all these different words and things that I found fascinating and wanted to know more of especially the elements their powers revolved around. I've always loved Elemental books.
While I enjoyed it, though, I felt it lacked a lot of things. The world was interesting, there's no doubt that, but it wasn't as developed for someone like me who thrives on fantasy world-building. I wanted more descriptions on things instead of the vague information given. I wanted to know everything about these elves. .
Overall, the biggest fault with this book is the lack of depth and development with certain issues. The world and characters are fascinating. It held my attention through most of the book, although there were a few parts that dragged. I wanted more, though, especially when he came to Nal's healing. I still liked it and I'll continue reading the series as it progresses (unless there's girly bits). I do have to ask, what does Arcanus mean? That is the series name but I have no idea what it means and it bugged me a bit through the whole book because I couldn't find the connection between the story and the series name. Lol
So, I had this really awesome (and yes, long) review already written but wouldn't you know, I accidentally refreshed the page and poof! No more review. *sigh*
Anyways, the blurb is pretty detailed on what happens in the story. Almost exactly, in fact. I'm actually glad I didn't read the blurb before I started the book or else I might have been annoyed with that. Either way, I think this book would have benefited better if it were separated into two books instead of just one. The first book possibly about Sarna and Nal finally pursuing a relationship and the injury Nal obtains and how he copes with that. The second book, I felt, should have been about the arranged marriage Nal went through because of his sense of duty and the toll it takes on Nal and Sarna as well as anything that happened during Nal's time in marriage and afterward. As it was, everything is just in one book and because of that, I felt like the story wasn't as complete as I would have liked it to be especially since it covered over a century and more of Nal and Sarna's lives.
For one, something really terrible happens to Nal. It's not as bad as the blurb makes it sound and I was actually kind of disappointed in that because it had such a huge impact on Nal and because it had such a huge impact, I was hoping to experience the trials he went through in trying to heal. I would have liked to read about the PTSD he had afterward, to know how he overcame the shame, self-loathing and self-hatred he had and how exactly Sarna was able to help him through it. Unfortunately, we don't get that type of information.
Most of the book revolves around what Sarna and Nal go through to finally be together when they are still young (in their twenties). Maybe fifteen percent of the book is dedicated to Nal, his arranged marriage with Maya and the hurt and pain Sarna causes Nal because of Nal's obligation. The last ten percent of the book is like an epilogue. .
I enjoyed the characters because together they are like one person. Where Sarna is angry, mean and uncaring, Nal is the exact opposite. He's calm, in control and polite. What Sarna lacks, Nal has and what Nal lacks, Sarna makes up for. The world intrigued me. There was all these different words and things that I found fascinating and wanted to know more of especially the elements their powers revolved around. I've always loved Elemental books.
While I enjoyed it, though, I felt it lacked a lot of things. The world was interesting, there's no doubt that, but it wasn't as developed for someone like me who thrives on fantasy world-building. I wanted more descriptions on things instead of the vague information given. I wanted to know everything about these elves. .
Overall, the biggest fault with this book is the lack of depth and development with certain issues. The world and characters are fascinating. It held my attention through most of the book, although there were a few parts that dragged. I wanted more, though, especially when he came to Nal's healing. I still liked it and I'll continue reading the series as it progresses (unless there's girly bits). I do have to ask, what does Arcanus mean? That is the series name but I have no idea what it means and it bugged me a bit through the whole book because I couldn't find the connection between the story and the series name. Lol
May 19, 2013
This isn't a formal review, but I hate rating books 1 star. I'm usually pretty forgiving and easy to please. I really wanted to explain why I felt this way about this book and why for me it was an abysmal read. I only finished it because I had received the paperback as a gift and wanted to honor the giver for his thoughtfulness.
Naliel is a very unlikable character. He is passive to the point where he hurts other people. He's in an arranged betrothal that he states many times he *could* get out of, but never even attempts to change the course of his fate even though he's supposedly in love with his step-brother Sarnaiel. To add insult to injury, he's INCREDIBLY possessive. That's right. I don't care how long elven lifespans are, this kind of grudge-holding is ridiculous. But it gets even worse. Naliel holds a ridiculous double standard.
Sarnaiel is better, but not much. He's constantly angry at Naliel and yet always falls back into his arms anyway without demanding change. He's hurtful and spiteful. Worse is the fact that
We are told that the characters grow up at the end, but the author skips years in the book and we never see how any of these changes come about. We don't get to see While they do seem to be better people in the last chapter, Naliel still seems to be extremely possessive, describing Sarniel to Tyrnus as "mine" like he is an object.
The paperback edition is also poorly laid out. The text is squashed in a small column in the middle of the page, leaving a third of the paper as white space and making the book much larger than it needs to be. The lines are also extra spaced and the text is fairly large, making this look like a YA or children's book instead of an adult novel. Add to this the fact that it has NO page numbers. I had to guess at where I was to track progress on Goodreads. There are also words that are stuck together along with grammatical and spelling errors, especially in the latter half of the book.
I really wanted to like this book, but I can't recommend it. The characters don't deserve to end up happily-ever-after. The book is packed full of bad yaoi cliches . The characters are cruel to one another and just bad people in general. I refuse to believe elves would act this way. The plot is based around Big Misunderstanding after Big Misunderstanding, meaning the couple is either fighting or fucking most of the time. There's no real plot besides this relationship melodrama and any side characters' fates' are reduced to footnotes at the end of the book.
This book could use a rewrite with some real plot to move the drama along, characters who treat each other better, and without the huge chunks of time being skipped. A book is a journey. Character development should be part of the story, not something that automatically happens with the years off-page. I want to see characters endure and grow together, not act like spoiled brats and then be told later that they're better people. Show, not tell.
Naliel is a very unlikable character. He is passive to the point where he hurts other people. He's in an arranged betrothal that he states many times he *could* get out of, but never even attempts to change the course of his fate even though he's supposedly in love with his step-brother Sarnaiel. To add insult to injury, he's INCREDIBLY possessive. That's right. I don't care how long elven lifespans are, this kind of grudge-holding is ridiculous. But it gets even worse. Naliel holds a ridiculous double standard.
Sarnaiel is better, but not much. He's constantly angry at Naliel and yet always falls back into his arms anyway without demanding change. He's hurtful and spiteful. Worse is the fact that
We are told that the characters grow up at the end, but the author skips years in the book and we never see how any of these changes come about. We don't get to see While they do seem to be better people in the last chapter, Naliel still seems to be extremely possessive, describing Sarniel to Tyrnus as "mine" like he is an object.
The paperback edition is also poorly laid out. The text is squashed in a small column in the middle of the page, leaving a third of the paper as white space and making the book much larger than it needs to be. The lines are also extra spaced and the text is fairly large, making this look like a YA or children's book instead of an adult novel. Add to this the fact that it has NO page numbers. I had to guess at where I was to track progress on Goodreads. There are also words that are stuck together along with grammatical and spelling errors, especially in the latter half of the book.
I really wanted to like this book, but I can't recommend it. The characters don't deserve to end up happily-ever-after. The book is packed full of bad yaoi cliches . The characters are cruel to one another and just bad people in general. I refuse to believe elves would act this way. The plot is based around Big Misunderstanding after Big Misunderstanding, meaning the couple is either fighting or fucking most of the time. There's no real plot besides this relationship melodrama and any side characters' fates' are reduced to footnotes at the end of the book.
This book could use a rewrite with some real plot to move the drama along, characters who treat each other better, and without the huge chunks of time being skipped. A book is a journey. Character development should be part of the story, not something that automatically happens with the years off-page. I want to see characters endure and grow together, not act like spoiled brats and then be told later that they're better people. Show, not tell.
August 9, 2012
This book was okay. The author, I felt, has a lot of potential and I look forward to her future works. This book, however, is not something I would seriously recommend.
The pace is really too fast. There's not enough time to get involved with the characters and I found myself never really caring too much about their romance. Secondary characters entered and left the stage way to quickly for them to have any meaningful impact upon me. I felt I was reading two distinct stories in the same book. The first one ended half way through and the second one was the rest of the book. Really, there wasn't enough time to smell the roses much less stop and look at them.
The second half of the book, I felt that I was being alternatively lectured and pep-talked at the same time. It made for tedious reading, I felt I could have just stopped and been just fine at the half way point. Even the most significant event in the story hardly warranted much emotion or thought and was the whole point of the second half. I never really felt the characters struggled and they just fell kind of flat and were generally uninspiring.
Overall, I feel the author just needs to slow down, build her world more, have the major conflicts be drawn out, and just simply let the reader stop and smell the roses instead of whisking them from scene to scene. This is good for some light or fluff reading, but if you're looking for a good romance, I would recommend something else.
The pace is really too fast. There's not enough time to get involved with the characters and I found myself never really caring too much about their romance. Secondary characters entered and left the stage way to quickly for them to have any meaningful impact upon me. I felt I was reading two distinct stories in the same book. The first one ended half way through and the second one was the rest of the book. Really, there wasn't enough time to smell the roses much less stop and look at them.
The second half of the book, I felt that I was being alternatively lectured and pep-talked at the same time. It made for tedious reading, I felt I could have just stopped and been just fine at the half way point. Even the most significant event in the story hardly warranted much emotion or thought and was the whole point of the second half. I never really felt the characters struggled and they just fell kind of flat and were generally uninspiring.
Overall, I feel the author just needs to slow down, build her world more, have the major conflicts be drawn out, and just simply let the reader stop and smell the roses instead of whisking them from scene to scene. This is good for some light or fluff reading, but if you're looking for a good romance, I would recommend something else.
August 31, 2011
I was lucky enough to get a copy of DESTINED The Arcanus series in a giveaway and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Catriana Sommers blended fantasy and love in an intriguing and unique story. I love the characters of Sarnaiel and Naliel. They're like two halves of a whole and they go through hell to be together. The world building is well-done and I'm looking forward to learning more about it in book two.
November 17, 2012
2.5 stars
There were portions of the book that had me on edge and wanting more but also parts that made me dislike the story and want to put it down. I liked it well enough 3/4ths of the way in and the rest of the way I just didn't care for. There were a a couple of questions the book didn't answer and I'm not so sure I'll be continuing the series. There was good world and character development, not to mention the cover art is really pretty.
There were portions of the book that had me on edge and wanting more but also parts that made me dislike the story and want to put it down. I liked it well enough 3/4ths of the way in and the rest of the way I just didn't care for. There were a a couple of questions the book didn't answer and I'm not so sure I'll be continuing the series. There was good world and character development, not to mention the cover art is really pretty.
October 5, 2012
This book was amazing, I read it several times, I love stories that bring the characters to life and Catriana does just that. I can't wait for her next book.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews