Thursday, March 6, 2014

Review: Promise of Shadows

PROMISE OF SHADOWS
Justina Ireland
Paranormal Young Adult
371 pages
Simon & Schuster
Available March 11th
Source: eARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Zephyr Mourning has never been very good at being a Harpy. She’d rather watch reality TV than learn forty-seven ways to kill a man, and she pretty much sucks at wielding magic. Zephyr was ready for a future pretending to be a normal human instead of a half-god assassin. But all that changes when her sister is murdered—and she uses a forbidden dark power to save herself from the same fate.

Zephyr is on the run from a punishment worse than death when an unexpected reunion with a childhood friend (a surprisingly HOT friend) changes everything. Because it seems like Zephyr might just be the Nyx, a dark goddess made flesh that is prophesied to change the power balance. For hundreds of years the half-gods have lived in fear, and Zephyr is supposed to change that.

But how is she supposed to save everyone when she can’t even save herself?


MY THOUGHTS
Promise of Shadows is a story that will delight readers who love Greek mythology, starting us out in the pits of Tartarus before tossing us directly in the path of some of the heaviest hitters–gods, goddesses and creatures alike–as Zephyr’s tale continues. Power, darkness, greed, and betrayal are all constant companions as we read, the gears in our minds turning at full speed as we try to figure out a way for our young heroine to fight not only her external battles, but her internal ones as well.

Zephyr is a character with whom many readers will likely struggle given her extraordinarily negative self-image, but the little glimpses we get of her life before she was sent to Tartarus paint a painful picture of verbal abuse and emotional manipulation, at the very least allowing us to understand why Zephyr sees herself the way she does. Her mother and sister would never view their treatment of Zephyr as such, instead arguing they were simply trying to make her a stronger Harpy, but their ceaseless criticism and constant reminders of unmet expectations have turned Zephyr into her own worst enemy. Now at every turn she hesitates and doubts, prepared to lose before whatever fight she’s facing has even begun. While there are times when we can’t help but want to yell at her to snap her spine straight and defend herself to those who continue to berate her, it's easy to take a step back and remind ourselves that seventeen years of ingrained worthlessness are not something she can quickly shed simply because a prophecy tells her she’s strong.

Though the mythology is fascinating and Zephyr is someone we’re desperately rooting for (insecurities and all), where this story slides a little off the rails is in the romance between her and her childhood friend Tallon. Tallon is physically everything we might consider swoon-worthy in a fictional boyfriend: Dark and muscular with a bevy of unique abilities and an extremely attractive fighting prowess, however, the moment he opens his mouth the beautiful illusion of him shatters and he becomes someone who doesn’t seem ideal for Zephyr in the least. He’s callous in his remarks to her, insulting her and belittling her again and again when she doesn’t behave as he feels she should as the Nyx, and while he is at least man enough to apologize for the hurt he causes, the repetition of this pattern throughout the book robs his apologies of all sincerity. There are undoubtedly a couple romantic moments between them, it’s just extremely difficult to believe in them as a lasting couple given Zephyr’s history with people who use their words as weapons to cut her down.

Troublesome romance aside, Promise of Shadows is a solid and enjoyable read, the pages turning quickly and easily as we wait to see if Zephyr will embrace the prophecy and see herself without the prism of everyone else’s opinion distorting her view. The highlight of the story is Zephyr’s best friend Cass, a young woman with her own painful past and the only individual to support Zephyr without question, a pillar of true friendship and acceptance for the person Zephyr is rather than who she isn’t. Ms. Ireland tells a good story despite a few flaws, and I look forward to following where she next leads.

Rating: 3.5/5
 

Find Justina


This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review
I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

34 comments:

  1. Oh I didn't realise this book was based on Greek mythology (probably because of my habit of not reading blurbs haha). It does sound pretty intriguing (apart from the romance/callous love interest), so I'm quite looking forward to its release!

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    1. It's worth a read for sure Nara, I just wasn't quite on board with her and Tallon as a couple:)

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  2. Hmmm . . . I've had this on my watchlist b/c I LOVE Greek mythology, BUT the death of her sister (I really must start reading blurbs in their entirety--I have three, so this is a highly upsetting situation for me) and insincere manboys . . . I'm a great believer in the old, "If you were really sorry, you'd stop doing it," proverb.

    We will see ;)

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    1. EXACTLY!!! He apologized repeatedly, but it never stopped him from snapping at her anyway. Drove me crazy. I couldn't see why she was attracted to him (outside the physical) given her history with her mom and sister.

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  3. I really need to read more books which deal with Greek mythology Jenny (I know I've lost count of the number of times that I've said this). I think that I would really like Zephyr’s character despite her insecurities. I had a big smile on my face when you described Tallon, but I think that his character would aggravate me the most. But at least we have a wonderful friendship to look forward too! Lovely review Jenny and thanks for putting this book on my radar!

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    1. I liked Zephyr overall Jasprit, even when I wanted to yell at her to stand up for herself:) I could understand why she didn't, she was just so used to being put down that she honestly believed the things they said to her. Cass was fabulous though, and I loved that Zephyr finally had someone who appreciated her unconditionally:)

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  4. I love Greek mythology so this caught my eye. It seems like a pretty decent read. Tallon sounds like the bad boy that I love to hate. If only he wouldn't open his mouth. ;) I will have to check this one out. Thanks for the great review!

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    1. I would have liked him more if he didn't open his mouth ;-) I could forgive him a trespass or two, but he was careless with his words a few too many times for me. I wanted better for Zephyr.

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  5. I normally love Greek mythology in books but this hasn't been getting the best feedback, so I'm kind of wary to read it. Your review confirms that I would have a lot of issues with it. Zephyr seems like a really hard character to connect with and Tallon just sounds like a jerk. I'm not sure how I would feel about their relationship.
    I'm glad you liked it overall, Jenny. Lovely review!

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    1. Tallon was troublesome for sure. I expected better of him at least by the end, and I just really couldn't ever believe in them as a couple. I did like the Greek mythology aspect and Zephyr overall, so it was still a solid read:)

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  6. Oh dear I think I would have to beat Tallon up if I read this. Your review is so good for it though that even though Tallon and I might have to have words, I still really want to read this one!

    Great review Jenny!!

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    1. I had some choice words for Tallon while reading for sure Ali! He was a butthead. I'm such a huge fan of Greek mythology though, so I loved seeing Hades and Cerberus and a myriad of others front and center:)

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  7. Boo. I dislike jerkwad romance leads. They tend to ruin the enjoyment of a book for me.

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    1. Yes. He was a bit of an a-hole at times. I could have forgiven him once he apologized if he actually changed his behavior after that, but he didn't. It was just rinse and repeat which made my heart hurt for Zephyr.

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  8. OK, how had I never heard of this book? I mean it's YA. It's Greek mythology. Two things *I* adore. So why wasn't it on my radar before now?

    Sad about the romance, though. *sigh* I do love a good romance and since this is lacking and there's quite a few YA Greek mythology stories WITH great romance, I'll probably pass.

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    1. I don't know? It's been on my radar from the moment I saw that absurdly gorgeous cover:) It was a middle of the road read for me, I'm glad I read it but I certainly won't rush to do so again.

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  9. Love the blue of the cover and the mythology. The MC sounds flawed, and maybe a little snarky. Wonderful review Jenny!

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    1. I'm madly in love with this cover Kim! And I did enjoy Zephyr even if I wished she would have stood up for herself a bit more:)

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  10. I'd like to boot Tallon into Tartus! He sounds incredibly frustrating and one that I would stay far, far away from. I hope Zephyr finds a better love interest. Surely, the author wouldn't make her suffer and force her to be with this jerk. Although I like Greek Mythology, I don't think I can stomach Tallon and will have to take a pass on this one. Great review, Jenny!

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    1. As far as I could tell, they're together in the end, so I think it's a Zephyr and Tallon pairing for sure. It's entirely possible other people won't find him as frustrating as I did, I have very little patience for those who treat others with a lack of respect, apology or no.

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  11. I do love Greek myths so that is a plus

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  12. Books featuring Greek mythology never get old IMO. Sorry to hear that the romance wasn't quite up to snuff. Is this a stand-alone? I don't have time to commit to another series, but if there's only one book I might reconsider it. I need a little more YA in my life. :)

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  13. Oh dear. This sounds like a romance that would drive me batty! I'm kind of burnt out on mythology stories but I'm kind of IN LOVE with the cover. I might buy it for the cover. Seriously, I NEED it.

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  14. I honestly I am passing on this one because for whatever reason, well because there has been so many books with Greek mythology that I am burned out on it.

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  15. This book sounds interesting. I feel like it'll be comedic as well as serious.

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  16. This books sounds like a great read! Definitely on my TBR list. I really enjoyed your review!

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  17. I love the sound of Zephyr... a reluctant harpy. I mean that right there is full of win. However, not sure I would like Tallon. I might wait for the next book to see if he gets his arse kicked or at least learns how to sincerely apologize!

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  18. It's a shame about the romance in this, but I'm glad to see the mythological aspects are well-done. Lovely review, Jenny!(:

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  19. I'm pretty excited about the Greek mythology elements in this but I'm thinking that I'm just gonna ignore the whole romance, since it doesn't seem like it's quite working. Yeah. I'm gonna go in with that plan and see how it works.

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  20. I think my problem with this one wouldn't be with the protagonist so much because I feel like I would be sympathetic to her position, but with the romance. I really do not respond well to that kind of "romantic" dynamic so I don't think I would really take to this story, unfortunately. Too bad because I really do love mythology! Anyways, thanks for this really helpful review, Jenny!

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  21. This is the first I've heard of this book; the cover is really pretty. The whole harpy aspect has me curious, but I don't think I could stand a love interest like Tallon. Especially if Zephyr is already on the negative side.

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  22. You had me at greek mythology! WHOOP! This sounds pretty good.

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  23. We never seem to tire of Greek mythology based stories, do we? I haven't read any featuring a harpy as the MC, so that intrigues me. I think I could handle Zephyr if there was surety that she changes and grows in this book, but from her choice of love interests, I'm thinking not. It's not a surprise that the quality of a romance can make or break a story for me, and I'm already cringing about this guy. Are we supposed to root for him or be suspicious? In any case, if you didn't like him, I'm doubtful that I will, so for now I'll be skipping this. Thanks for the honest review!

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