Hunter Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

HUNTER
Hunter #1
Mercedes Lackey
Young Adult/Fantasy/Dystopian
384 pages
Disney Hyperion
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Centuries ago, the barriers between our world and the Otherworld were slashed open allowing hideous fantastical monsters to wreak havoc; destroying entire cities in their wake. Now, people must live in enclosed communities, behind walls that keep them safe from the evil creatures constantly trying to break in. Only the corps of teen Hunters with lightning reflexes and magical abilities can protect the populace from the daily attacks.

Joyeaux Charmand is a mountain girl from a close knit village who comes to the big city to join the Hunters. Joy thinks she is only there to perform her civic duty and protect the capitol Cits, or civilians, but as cameras follow her every move, she soon learns that the more successful she is in her hunts, the more famous she becomes.

With millions of fans watching her on reality TV, Joy begins to realize that Apex is not all it seems. She is forced to question everything she grew up believing about the legendary Hunters and the very world she lives in. Soon she finds that her fame may be part of a deep conspiracy that threatens to upend the protective structure built to keep dark magic out. The monsters are getting in and it is up to Joy to find out why.

MY THOUGHTS
Hunter drops us right into the thick of things, introducing us to this post-apocalyptic paranormal world and our heroine as she faces down one of the beautifully brutal fae on her way to a new life. From there we hit the ground running, learning the ins and outs of the various otherworldly creatures who make everyday life difficult as Joy runs into them on her Hunts, all the while slowly unraveling the politics behind the superstar quality to life as a Hunter.

Joy is a young woman we can't help but love the moment we meet her, the size of her ego inversely proportional to her abilities as a Hunter, ensuring she has us in her corner before she even steps foot off the train. She's quick to share her knowledge with her fellow Hunters instead of keeping it all to herself, and is equally open to learning what they have to teach her so that she can better protect those who cannot protect themselves. Despite being used to Hunting solo, she adapts easily and becomes a team player through and through, unfazed by the celebrity status of some her fellow Hunters and focusing on the job at hand.

The pacing does take a slower turn midway through, the Hunts Joy is sent on feeling a little like empty action as it's not entirely clear where her Hunting is heading in the grand scheme of things. The romance also leaves a little to be desired, emotionally quiet enough that the story would likely be equally successful without it, but it's possible the relationship will increase in importance as the series continues. Those two flaws aren't enough to detract from an altogether thoroughly entertaining story however, with the final one hundred pages flying by as politics and Hunting clash and try to bring Joy to her knees.

Overall, Hunter gives us a unique paranormal world full of little-known creatures who wreak all kinds of havoc, as well as a heroine who is gorgeously strong and quick-thinking; a true badass who doesn't even realize how badass she is. We're left in a satisfying place, a lot of questions as of yet unanswered but it's clear we'll figure things out together with Joy as we go, and I for one look forward to teaming back up with her and her ever-growing pack of hounds.

Rating: 4/5

Find Hunter:

Amazon • B&N • iBooks • Goodreads

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MERECEDES LACKEY

Mercedes Lackey is the acclaimed author of over fifty novels and many works of short fiction. In her "spare" time she is also a professional lyricist and a licensed wild bird rehabilitator. Mercedes lives in Oklahoma with her husband and frequent collaborator, artist Larry Dixon, and their flock of parrots.

Find Mercedes:

Website • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads

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GIVEAWAY 

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Be sure and check out all the previous stops for more reviews, interviews and guest posts!

WEEK ONE

8/24/2015- Fictitious Delicious- Interview  

8/25/2015- What the Cat Read- Review  

8/26/2015- Tales of the Ravenous Reader- Guest Post  

8/27/2015- The Book Bratz- Review  

8/28/2015- Bewitched Bookworms- Interview

WEEK TWO

8/31/2015- She Dreams in Fiction- Review

9/1/2015- Two Chicks on Books- Guest Post

9/2/2015-The Book Cellar- Review

9/3/2015- Mundie Moms- Interview

9/4/2015- Supernatural Snark- Review

Review: Legacies

LEGACIES (Shadow Grail #1)
Mercedes Lackey & Rosemary Edghill
Paranormal Young Adult
320 Pages
Tor Teen
Available Now
Received from publisher for review

THE STORY
Spirit White just recently become an orphan. Her mom, dad, and sister all perished in a car accident that left her in the hospital for weeks until she was informed an institution by the name of Oakhurst Academy put up the money to pay her bills and is to bring her under their care per her parents request. Though she has no home to go to since it mysteriously burned to the ground not long after the accident, she's not entirely excited to be shipped off to the middle of Montana either.

On the way to the school via expensive car and private jet, Spirit meets fellow orphan and new Oakhurst initiate Lachlan, and they both learn they are Legacies–one or both of their parents also attended Oakhurst. Upon arrival, both Spirit and Loch are taken to meet Doctor Ambrosius and are enlightened with yet more shocking information. Turns out the students of Oakhurst possess magical gifts, and the academy is in place to help the students learn and harness their abilities.

When it's Spirit's turn to find out what gift she has, nothing happens, and though everyone insists the ability is there, it refuses to manifest and Spirit finds herself an outcast among outcasts. She doesn't have much time to dwell on her feelings of inadequacy though when students at Oakhurst start going missing, though no one seems too worried other than Spirit and her friends. They soon learn these are not the first students to disappear, and it turns out Oakhurst is hiding a secret deeper and darker than the magic it teaches.

MY THOUGHTS
Legacies is a story not entirely original in nature, focusing on a boarding school for students with magical abilities, but despite its familiar premise, Ms. Lackey and Ms. Edghill infuse their world with a lingering darkness we've not encountered before. Instead of being a nurturing environment designed to foster trust and understanding of the use of magic, Oakhurst Academy has a rather sinister edge where students are discouraged from forming tight friendships and are forced into rigorous training programs with instructors who don't spout words of encouragement, but rather speak harsher truths presumably designed to hasten improvement. As a result of this unnerving situation, we feel Spirit and the other student's sense of profound isolation much more vividly, the remote locale of the school echoed in the cold teaching methods and lack of student-instructor positive interaction, and we are left with an intentional sense of unease as the physical and emotional coolness mists from the pages and sinks deep into our bones, chilling us to the core as magic and mystery unfold.

Though the suspense surrounding the disappearing students is well-executed with clues deftly woven throughout, this is the type of story that's engaging while we're reading–keeping us questioning how each revelation fits with the one before–but when we finish we come to realize we don't have nearly as much information as we thought we did. We scan the final page with the hope a book dealing with magic might have the answers we seek secretly hidden and is just waiting to reveal them to us until we've wished for them hard enough. While we do discover the who/what is behind the disappearances and a fraction of the why, so many of the fundamental issues remain shrouded in darkness, denying us the warmth understanding provides and leaving us shivering on the outside wondering when of if we'll be brought into the fold.

Because this is the first book in a series, some unanswered questions are to be expected and ultimately necessary so the series can continue, but in addition to several facets of the disappearance mystery remaining completely unknown, we also learn very little about the purpose for the school itself. We are told initially it's to help train students in their magical abilities so they can defend themselves against those who would use magic to harm them, but we are given no details about either the aforementioned villains or the impending war we're told is coming. Why is this war happening now? Have the two factions always been at war? Furthermore, the title of this series is the "Shadow Grail" novels, yet in this first installment no mention is made of a Shadow Grail outside of its appearance on the school's coat of arms, leaving us with still another question as to why this object is important enough as to name the series, but not important enough to introduce in this first book.

Overall, Legacies is an interesting read, one where a dark plot is beautifully revealed and where a romance is not the primary focus, but rather is refreshingly replaced by the bonds of friendship between five gifted individuals. Because the story is engrossing while we're in the middle of it, the long line of unanswered questions only becoming bothersome upon conclusion, it is a series worth continuing in the hope so much information is withheld purposefully. We walk away from this tale longing to shed our jackets, hats, and gloves, leaving them behind in the cold environment of the unknown as we are finally welcomed inside Oakhurst Academy to become privy to her secrets and the secrets of the people she houses.

Rating: 3/5