I have never been more confused
It has been awhile since I really couldn’t figure out how many hearts to give to a book. I liked Reign the Earth, but it wasn’t what I was expecting.
Book Review: Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen
Rating:
Title & Author: Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
Release Date: January 30 2018
Series: The Elementae
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Synopsis
Shalia is a proud daughter of the desert, but after years of devastating war with the adjoining kingdom, her people are desperate for peace. Willing to trade her freedom to ensure the safety of her family, Shalia becomes Queen of the Bonelands.
But she soon learns that her husband, Calix, is motivated only by his desire to exterminate the Elementae—mystical people who can control earth, wind, air, and fire. Even more unsettling are Shalia’s feelings for her husband’s brother, which unleash a power over the earth she never knew she possessed—a power that could get her killed. As rumors of a rebellion against Calix spread, Shalia must choose between the last chance for peace and her own future as an Elementae.
I give Reign the Earth by A.C. Gaughen… I have no idea how many hearts to give Reign the Earth! I have so many things I did and things I didn’t like about it.
I liked Shalia even though she rubbed me the wrong way. She sacrifices her own happiness for the safety of her family, or at least so she thinks. I would never do that. But through A.C. Gaughen’s writing I understood her thoughts and ethics. The bad thing about Shalia was that she sometimes felt like a cookie cutter character. She is the one that doesn’t think she will have/get powers, that then gets powers. The marriage she is put into is with a dominant male.
Calix was the worst villain. He is dominant, calling Shalia ‘wife’ and telling her everything he wants to do to her to get from her what he wants. I rather have a bad guy that is more gray or more redeemable. But he is brutal and that is something I did like about him.
I loved the writing and which makes it hard for me to give Reign the Earth a rating. The overall story was fine, a bit cliché, but okay. The characters were, again, cliché but also okay. I still have a hard time with it.
I think I will just let it sit at THREE hearts out of five. Really, I don’t even know whether I want to read more of this series.
Let me know what you thought of this book!
If you have any requests for which book I should talk about next, please let me know in the comments down below.
For now, let books enrich your life!