Review: Hidden Huntress

Hidden Huntress (Malediction Trilogy #2)
by Danielle L. Jensen
YA Fantasy
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

Beneath the mountain, the king’s reign of tyranny is absolute; the one troll with the capacity to challenge him is imprisoned for treason. Cécile has escaped the darkness of Trollus, but she learns all too quickly that she is not beyond the reach of the king’s power. Or his manipulation.

Recovered from her injuries, she now lives with her mother in Trianon and graces the opera stage every night. But by day she searches for the witch who has eluded the trolls for five hundred years. Whether she succeeds or fails, the costs to those she cares about will be high.

To find Anushka, she must delve into magic that is both dark and deadly. But the witch is a clever creature. And Cécile might not just be the hunter. She might also be the hunted…

Review:

Stolen Songbird, the first book in this trilogy was a magical read for me.  It had a lovely romance that built on the characters getting to know each other, a very suspenseful and fast-paced plot, and an intriguing take on trolls and their mythology.  The world-building was especially immersive, and I am delighted that all of the things I loved about the first book, is expanded and built upon beautifully in Hidden Huntress.

There's already a lot of tension in this story because of the way the first book ended.  While in the first book I did not always love the dual POV between Cécile and Tristan, in this book it was absolutely necessary and the two storylines meshed together perfectly.  It's also a major plus that both storylines were equally riveting.  Sometimes when a book switches to a different plot line at the end of a chapter, I feel frustrated and indifferent to the new direction the story takes because I want to keep going with the other set of characters, but with Hidden Huntress, I was totally engrossed the whole way through.  The author did such a wondrous job of keeping the pace and the interest in both plot lines pretty high all the way.  This is such an excellently plotted book - there is no second-book syndrome here!

With the romance between Cécile and Tristan being part of the reason why I loved the first book so much, I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy this one because of the circumstances from the first book.  But again the author manages to keep the tension of the romance going despite the separation.  And I was totally satisfied with every aspect of it.  Cécile and Tristan have such great chemistry as characters - it's so easy to understand them and root for their happy ending.

Another aspect that I loved about this book is learning more about the fantasy world.  This story takes some interesting twists, and manages to make the world of Trianon just as fascinating as Trollus.  Which, given how wonderfully detailed Trollus was in the first book, is no small feat!  I also loved getting to see more of Cécile's family and friends which helped to flesh out more of Cécile's character.

Even though the ending, which is very dramatic, sets up the third book beautifully,  I was so glad that some important plot threads were wrapped up, and there's a real sense that the story and the characters are developing believably.  This was an exciting read, with just more of everything that made the first book amazing.  I can't remember the last time I was so completely satisfied with a book in every respect.   If you want a gorgeously detailed fantasy with strong characters and a romance that will make you melt, this is the series for you!

(I received this book from the publisher or author for a fair and honest review. I was not compensated for this review.)

Hidden Huntress comes out tomorrow, June 2nd!  And ICYMI here's my interview with the author from last week.