Review: Dark Triumph

Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2)
by Robin LaFevers
Fantasy
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

When Sybella arrived at the doorstep of St Mortain half mad with grief and despair the convent were only too happy to offer her refuge - but at a price. The sisters of this convent serve Death, and with Sybella naturally skilled in both the arts of death and seduction, she could become one of their most dangerous weapons.

But her assassin's skills are little comfort when the convent returns her to the life that nearly drove her mad. Her father's rage and brutality are terrifying, and her brother's love is equally monstrous. But when Sybella discovers an unexpected ally she discovers that a daughter of Death may find something other than vengeance to live for...

Review:

The second book in the His Fair Assassin trilogy centers around the darker character Sybella, who was very compelling from what I saw of her in the first book - "Grave Mercy".  And in this book she is even more so.  Her family and the background she comes from is amazingly disturbing - just all kinds of awful - and she is damaged quite a bit from her history, although it's not evident just how much at first.  Peeling back the layers on Sybella's history was a suspenseful aspect of this story, and showed just how strong a character she was to be able to come out of that experience with some integrity and decency.  Sybella was a big reason why I loved this book.

The first part of the story details how Sybella deals with living as a secret traitor in her father's house, and of the intrigues she must dodge as she tries to fulfill her mission.  This part of the story was so captivating to me, because of how tense and suspenseful it was to see Sybella flirt with danger.  And interesting to see just how vulnerable she was on the inside, when she always presented such a fierce exterior.

And then there's the romance that made me swoon.  Sybella is flinty, yet there is one character who sees beyond that and loves every part of her.  Just gorgeous.  The romance was a bit unconventional too which I loved.  It's an unexpected lighter aspect, given how grim the story is for the most part.  But it's important because Sybella has had such a difficult past, and she needed someone to help her leave all that behind.

"Dark Triumph" continues the political intrigue from the first book, but this story is more focused on Sybella's character development which I personally enjoyed more since there is a great balance between relationships and the politics of the land.  It made for a much more relatable story too since it was so easy to understand Sybella's motivations in such a difficult time for her land.  The larger historical context felt very realistic as well, which added another layer to the narrative.  This was a captivating read with suspense and a wonderful slow burn romance!

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

Review: Grave Mercy

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1)
by Robin LaFevers

Plot Summary:

Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

Review:

This story started off really strongly - there's so much going on with Ismae - from her forced marriage to the marks she bears on her back and her estranged relationship with her father - her character is set up so strongly in the first chapters.  I was fascinated by the strength Ismae needed to build to become an assassin, and although she has trained for it, her naivete with men gives her character more room to grow throughout the story. And with her relationship with Gavriel Duval, the romance is easily the best thing about this novel!  It's given room to develop and mature - they distrust each other at first, and both have to work hard to overcome that because both of them have been hurt and don't trust easily.  I loved that they are thrown together so much (because Ismae is pretending to be his mistress) and while that intimate pretend relationship is the furthest from their minds initially, it gradually becomes a temptation to them.  The tension between them is fantastic!

There were a couple of things I wasn't as happy with in this story - first that the pace slows down a bit in the middle - there's times when I wish there were less introductory information with the Duchess's plans, and more active uncovering of who is trying to betray her.  And the second thing more confused me af first than anything - the fantasy element was a bit of a surprise because I was more expecting this to be a historical YA thriller and I thought St. Mortain more of an ideal all the nuns worshipped than an actual deity who makes an appearance in this story.  And one more thing I didn't quite believe was the deus ex machina solution for the predicament Gavriel found himself in towards the end of the novel.  It was kinda um... weird.

The book really picked up towards the end though, and the solution to the mystery was definitely not expected!  There's also plenty of twists and turns in the royal court drama, and Ismae is a wonderful character to get to know.  Ismae and Gavriel make a great unstoppable pair!  This was a fantastic read!

Amazon  Goodreads