It's not often that I come across standalones in the fantasy genre. Somehow fantasy stories seem to flow better as series to accommodate all the worldbuilding and long adventures. When I came across We are Blood and Thunder, I was excited. Because although most of my favourite books seem to be series, I love reading standalones. They tend to be more fast paced than books in series and also the feeling of closure at the end of the book is a nice feeling.
My thoughts on We are Blood and Thunder-
↠ I actually liked that we have alternating PoVs. Generally I'm not a fan because I don't immediately recognize that there has been a change in PoV unless it's mentioned in the Chapter title or something but here I didn't have that problem. Lena and Constance alternate every chapter and though it's not mentioned at the beginning, it's always very clear whose PoV it is just then.
↠ I liked that we have characters whose loyalty and allegiance we can't quite figure out till the end and I really liked that. It added the sense of mystery and uncertainty that I liked.
↠ It had it's tropes yes. But was it still enjoyable? YES. And that makes me happy! It's not everyday that an author can use age old tropes and give them a bit of twist so it's enjoyable and doesn't feel so trope-y.
↠ We have two badass female characters; strong in their own ways. One of them, Lena is unsure about pretty much everything now, mostly herself. And the other, Constamnce is unsure about everything but herself. I really liked the way their paths cross and how somehow they are connected by the magical storm cloud that plagues the Duke's forest.
“Whenever she held the butterfly, she remembered how she had felt the night she'd found it - or rather, the night it found her. She felt wanted. Calm. Secure in the knowledge she was worth something. Because she had something of worth.”
↠ The magic system was very intersting to learn about.
As someone who adores learning about worldbuilding, pantheons and magic systems, this was very satisfying. This was part of the reason I enjoyed Lena's chapters more because she was learning all about the world and magic along with me.
↠ Constance's chapters are more filled with
political intrigue, investigations and scheming which too I really liked! But I have to say that the mysterious aura about Constance unnerved me a bit which is crazy cause she's a fictional character but that's just how amazingly the author wrote her that she felt so real.
↠ The writing was so
fast paced and
flowed so well that I pretty much read the book in one sitting. The fact that if say, Lena's chapter ended in a cliffhanger, I'd have to read Constance's chapter before being able to find what happened made me read everything much faster!
“She who spins the cloud, weaves the storm.”
↠ I liked having morally grey characters who were so realistically written. Kudos to the author for having written
interesting and engaging secondary characters who definitely didn't just fade into the background but rather almost all of them had important parts to play in the plot.
↠ That being said,
I wasn't a huge fan of the romance. It came really close to insta-love for me and felt rushed. I really think the plot would have been just as awesome without the bit of romance in it.
↠ Also while I liked Lena, she was also a bit annoying at times! I did like that she wasn't taking things lying around but sometimes Lena did make me roll my eyes with how she went about with some things.
↠ Constance was an extremely complex character and it was
SO hard to figure her out with the way she acted. But I have to say
I loved how determined and calculating she was. She was the
perfect Slytherin and so well written that I couldn't stop thining about her even after I'd finished the book.
We are Blood and Thunder is a fantastic debut with everything from magic and spells to secrets and betrayal. Would definitely recommend!!
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