April

This month, there is a shift of genre to unban mysteries and paranormal romance. I have to finish all the books my friend has lent me as well as finish the pending list of books that I promised to send in bookmooch. Well, at least I know which books I will be reading :) On with the first review!!

89. Cast in Secret (Chronicles of Elantra #1) by Michelle Sagara
"Seven years ago Kaylin fled the crime-riddled streets of Nightshade, knowing that something was after her. Children were being murdered -- and all had the same odd markings that mysteriously appeared on her own skin.…

Since then, she's learned to read, she's learned to fight and she's become one of the vaunted Hawks who patrol and police the City of Elantra. Alongside the winged Aerians and the immortal Barrani, she's made a place for herself, far from the mean streets of her birth.

But children are once again dying, and a dark and familiar pattern is emerging. Kaylin is ordered back into Nightshade with a partner she knows she can't trust, a Dragon lord for a companion and a device to contain her powers -- powers that no other human has. Her task is simple -- find the killer, stop the murders…and survive the attentions of those who claim to be her allies!!

I've been meaning to read Sagara's Cast series for awhile now and book one starts out as a good beginning of a series too. We're introduced to Kaylin, who is thrust back into her tragic past when events that led to her escape from the slums she grew up in began happening again, and she's stuck in the middle trying to solve the mystery. We're introduced to ehr companions a mysterious dragon and her childhood companion, Severn who she attempts to kill at first sight.
I have to admit that there are some good parts and bad parts to the novel. I found myself getting very engrossed in the book but at some points, the story keeps twisting this way and that way that I sometimes think "Isn't this ending soon?" We find out what really happened in her past around the latter part of the book(After thinking all throughout what Severn could have done to merit her hatred) and yes it was traumatic but I liked that the author doesnt really justify that what happened was right or wrong.
The premise has a lot of promise and the characters are interesting but she has a habit of describing them over and over again, without actually developing the characters more. I liked the characters though and hopefully they could be more developed in the succeeding books. And I would love a more detailed description of the world. The only thing I get is the three towers and one street over is the place where she grew up. I admit I don't really concentrate so much when I'm reading sometimes but I found myself rereading some parts (esp the first time she went in NightShade's place) because I didn't get what just happened.

I did get hooked on the world and the people there though so I will read the parts of the series :)

Rating : B