— 3.5 stars ✰
i wasn’t writing reviews back when i read dance of thieves so let me summarize my thoughts: the pacing was terrible, the romance was too fast, and everything happened in the first + last 100 pages. 3 stars.
a ton of people told me vow of thieves was better than the first, so i was excited to read it especially since the first ended on a cliffhanger. and this was better, just not .. that much better.
first of all i still hated the romance. it definitely took a back seat to the politics and action this time but i got tired of reading how much kazi and jase loved each other. like, we get it. you’re in love and the other person’s keeping you going. you miss them. trust me, we really get it.
the pacing was a lot better in this one, but i still felt like nothing really happened until the second half. i get that the plot has to be built up but it just felt like, well, nothing happened. i wouldn’t say i was bored, just uninterested.
i did enjoy the second half of the book though - i read it in one day. it definitely picked up with the action and i enjoyed reading about the scheming going on. i also really loved the redemption arc for one of the characters.
speaking of characters, i love love love wren and synove. they saved this book for me at some points. i also liked paxton and, of course, kazi and jase. everyone else fell flat for me. i simply didn’t care about the ballengers or anyone in their vault. i didn’t care about montegue and his little circle. i also constantly imagined montegue as an old man (he’s only like, 23?).
this duology isn’t terrible. it’s really not all that bad, but i think the length of them was off putting for me. i don’t mind a long book (i ate up acomaf, after all), but the length needs to be necessary. and there was no reason for either of the books to be more than 400 pages. the romance could’ve definitely been better, as well as the pacing, but the plot was there. i’d recommend this because i’m definitely in the minority here, but there’s also better fantasy books out there.