Thursday, May 9, 2013

My Review of The Remedy



Serena Chase's "Eyes of E'veria" Blog Tour continues! You can click the button above to see the page on Serena's website dedicated to the tour, or you can visit her Facebook page to get all the updates. And if you missed it, be sure to check out my review of the first book in the series, The Ryn, HERE (post includes a Rafflecopter giveaway form!).

Here's a description of the book from the author's website:

"PURPOSED by birth. DESTINED by prophecy. REVEALED by Truth. 
Now, her time has come. 

Having come to terms with her long-hidden identity, Princess Rynnaia E’veri is ready to take her rightful place. But before she can join her father at Castle Rynwyk, she must endeavor to fulfill a 200-year-old prophecy and defeat the Kingdom’s ancient enemy, the Cobelds. Joined by her faithful knight, Sir Julien de Gladiel, and a gifted group of friends, Rynnaia must trek a dangerous path through canyons, forests, and into the very depths of a mountain where, if the prophetic scrolls prove correct, she will face an unknown foe, alone. Treacheries will be discovered, sacrifices will be made, friends will be lost, and love will be tested, but if even one line of the riddled prophecy is misinterpreted, Rynnaia will fail . . . and the Kingdom will fall.

Beginning at the point THE RYN ended, THE REMEDY concludes an epic re-imagining of the classic Grimm fairy tale, Snow White & Rose Red, but the Eyes of E’veria series is only beginning . . ."

My Rating

Spring

My Review

The Remedy is an ultimately exciting sequel to The Ryn, continuing the epic tradition of its predecessor and leaving just enough tantalizing hints about the future of certain secondary characters to leave the reader eager for more of the "Eyes of E'veria" series!

The beginning was a little rough for me in comparison to the great beginning of The Ryn. The pacing starts out sort of slow, and there's quite a bit of recapping from the first book. (That might be more helpful to those who haven't read The Ryn, however. It just kept me from really being drawn into the flow of the story for a while.) After all the foreshadowing and planning in The Ryn, I guess I was just eager for the actual journey to get started. *wink*

The plot really picks up close to halfway through the book, and from then on it's a thrilling, harrowing, surprising adventure as Rynnaia and her faithful companions seek the Remedy for the sake of the kingdom and all those they love. Lots of unexpected twists and lessons in humility along the way! The characters are spared very little of the danger and suffering such an undertaking entails. But the ending is completely satisfying and extra special for those who have read both parts of the story.

It's a pleasure to rejoin this great cast of characters, and I'm looking forward to seeing where Chase takes some of them in future novels. (If I wasn't already excited by the references in The Remedy to the potential plot of the third book, this Pinterest board would have me curious!) Chase offers a great "remedy" in this series for bookshelves deficient in a sweet mix of fairy tales and fantasy (with some romance, of course!).

*With thanks to the author for providing me with an ARC e-version of the book in exchange for my honest opinion.*

You can purchase The Remedy (Kindle e-book) now at Amazon.com!

18 comments:

Rissi said...

Thanks for a compelling review, Amber that leaves me curious to someday try this series. :)

I also struggle with the whole "recapping" thing in sequels. I understand why authors do it - for the purpose of sharing with the reader what happened way back when - but it's the readers fault (usually!) not the authors if they don't "get" what's going on. There is a knack and balance to strike in this area. Most the time, it's done well, the other's it's a bit annoying to be honest. :)

Hannah said...

Oh, how I wish there were paperback copies of these books!

Amber Holcomb said...

Rissi,

Of course! Anytime. ;) (But seriously, thank you for reading it!)

Yes, I agree that there's a right balance in there somewhere, because even readers who've read the earlier books might need a bit of a refresher. :) But I guess it's like any other back story - it shouldn't be dumped too much in any one place, and it should be woven in fluidly. (I think that's a mixed metaphor, LOL!)

Truth is, BH is a sequel, and I know I need to make sure I handle any back story well, too! I know of at least one spot where I recapped what happened during a break in BH's plot, and I think I need to tweak it, LOL. ;) It's a hard thing to get right, for sure! Too much recapping can be annoying/frustrating. :(

~Amber

Amber Holcomb said...

Hannah,

Aw, that's hard! I know I much prefer paperbacks myself, but I do have a Kindle, so at least that's an option. But for those who don't read e-books, this can certainly be frustrating. :(

I did see a comment on Serena's website asking about paperbacks, and Serena noted: "Right now the books are Kindle-only, but I plan to re-evaluate next fall and see if paperback is something to pursue." So maybe they'll be available in paperback sometime in the coming months...? :)

~Amber

Grace said...

The books do look interesting. I had never heard of them before until I saw them on your blog. Maybe I'll try them out, once I lessen my "to read" stack(which keeps growing!).

I wanted to let you know I switched blog addresses, and I also awarded you on the new blog.

The new address is here:

http://itssimplygrace.blogspot.com/

Grace

Amber Holcomb said...

Grace,

Glad I could introduce you to them! Serena Chase is a wonderful writer. :) And I hear ya about that growing TBR stack!

Thanks for letting me know about your new blog address. :) And thank you so much for thinking of me with that award! Appreciate it!!

~Amber

Serena Chase said...

Thanks so much for featuring The Remedy, Amber, and for your thoughtful review! *hugs*

Amber Holcomb said...

Serena,

It's my pleasure! These books are awesome and a great start to your series! Excited for all that you've accomplished and all that is to come for you. :) *hugs back*

~Amber

Kara said...

Ah! What a lovely review! And now you've gone and made me anxious again to read this one. As if I wasn't anxious enough already! ;P

I really, really, really want to get to this one soon. If only my pile didn't keep enlarging itself! *grin* I'm determined that I'll read it sooner rather than later. Yes. I will. Perhaps if I say it often enough, I'll actually become that determined. Do you think? ;D

Bluerose said...

Great review! I'm hoping to read this one as soon as I knock out a few review books(so close). :)

Unknown said...

Amber, this leaves me curious. Starting to think I have to get this book. ;)

Amber Holcomb said...

Kara,

LOL! I love your comment! ;)

Thank you for the sweet words! I know exactly what you mean about the ever-growing TBR pile... And the books in it that I really, really want to get to ASAP! Here's hoping you get to start The Remedy sooner rather than later. ;)

~Amber

Amber Holcomb said...

Bluerose,

Thank you! And you knock out those review books - you can do it! ;)

Happy reading! :)

~Amber

Amber Holcomb said...

Miranda,

Curious is a good thing when it comes to books, right? :)

I totally recommend reading The Ryn first - and each are priced at only $3.99 for Kindle, so that's not too bad at all if you're looking for some awesome fantasy/fairy tale reads! Hope you enjoy them if you do read them. :)

~Amber

P.S. Thanks so much for spreading the word about my review! You're always so sweet about that!

Joy Tamsin David said...

I'm looking forward to the end of this story. I've got to get started!

Amber Holcomb said...

Joy,

It's a fabulous ending! (Although I'm glad it's not the end of the series!) I'm sure you'll love it. :) Happy reading!!

~Amber

Lisa Medeiros said...

Is there a third book in the works? And when does it come out? :)
Lisa
Deiselbuffs@yahoo.ca

Amber Holcomb said...

Lisa,

Yes, there is a third book in the works! You can get a glimpse on the book's Pinterest page. :) I believe it will be coming out in 2014. And apparently Serena is also working on some other types of stories, so that's exciting!

Happy reading!

~Amber