22. Apr.
Rating:4

Starmazing

Ein tolles Worldbuilding, interessante, sowohl sympathische als auch unsympathische Charaktere, unerwartete plottwists, all das findet man in diesem Buch. Leider wiederholt sich die Geschichte irgendwie ein paar Mal innerhalb der Reise, was ich sehr anstrengend empfand. Leilani’s Entscheidungen finde ich auch oft sehr fragwürdig. Das love triangle ist durchdacht und ich hätte zu Beginn nie gedacht, dass es sich so entwickelt. Das Ende wiederum??? Hallo?? Wie unfair, dass wir so lange warten müssen.

The Last Starborn Seer
The Last Starborn Seerby Venetia ConstantineBloomsbury Publishing PLC
19. Apr.
Rating:3.5

Tolles Worldbuilding, wunderschönes Cover

Die Story und die Charaktere fand ich allerdings etwas flach. Trotz 500 Seiten hatte ich nicht das Gefühl, dass alle Charaktere gewachsen sind. Ich glaube, manche hatten noch nicht einmal eine richtige Konversation miteinander. Das Buch ist nicht schlecht, aber ich bin mir nicht sicher ob ich diese Serie weiterlesen werde

The Last Starborn Seer
The Last Starborn Seerby Venetia ConstantineBloomsbury Publishing PLC
15. Apr.
Post image
Rating:3

First of all and that is actually my biggest complain about this book. It’s not adult fantasy as marketed. It’s YA or Romantasy with the author trying to make it complicated but instead making it confusing for no reason. If we ignore that it’s a very nice book that had a sufficient worldbuilding (for Romantasy). The love triangle is well written and I was really enjoying it how it played out. The magic system too is interesting and develops during the book while giving us quite some unexpected turns of events. The ending? Well that was mean. I’m not sure if I get the second book as physical copy but as ebook I’ll certainly continue the series. So yes, it is a book I would generally recommend but not as a adult genre book. But since after a while I was well able to ignore the wrong marketing and then enjoyed it, I’ll still give it 3 points (more like 3,5 tbh). Thanks to netgalley for the eARC!

The Last Starborn Seer
The Last Starborn Seerby Venetia ConstantineBloomsbury Publishing PLC
8. Apr.
Rating:4.5

What's a star to do, if not shine?

Ich hätte nach der Hälfte des Buches nicht erwartet, dass es so eine hohe Bewertung von mir bekommen würde, aber ich bin begeistert. „The Last Starborn Seer“ ist keine Romantasy, sondern Fantasy mit einer Prise Romantik. Das Worldbuilding ist nicht vergleichbar mit den Werken eines Sandersons oder gar Tolkien und Estelia‘s Ästehtik zu sternenlastig: starstones, star-Aether, starborn, starflowers, star-sickness, star-damned, starfruit, starlore, starcrystal, starsong, starfields aber wir bekommen eine ausgearbeitete Landschaft, Historie und politische Verstrickungen in einem moderaten Erzähltempo, das es mir ermöglichte schön in die Welt einzutauchen. Die Romantik würde ich als slow-burn aus Anziehung beschreiben. Sie beinhaltet keine erotischen Szenen leider aber ein Liebesdreieck …und damit kommen wir zu dem Punkt, der mich bis zur Hälfte des Buches an einer höheren Bewertung zweifeln lies: Astrophel. „People point, an older man spits. Shouts of sand-rat, river-roach, 'leaf-litter' carry across the water. A smile hovers on Astrophel's lips. He's enjoying this. He agrees with the rabble.“ Der Zwangsverlobte unserer Protagonistin. Silberhaarig, gutaussehend, beschützend, prüde und rassistisch. So verdammt oft hab ich Astrophel verflucht und mich gefragt wie die Autorin es schaffen will, dass ich ihn am Ende mag und überhaupt als Option sehe, aber sie hat es geschafft. „I look to Astrophel. He's smirking. Happy to see my plans unravel.“ Was für ihre Fähigkeit spricht die Figuren facettenreich, teils mit unsympathischen aber realistischen Schwächen und Entwicklungen zu porträtieren. Außer man ist eine der Nebenfiguren, die aber hoffentlich in den Folgebändern weiter ausgearbeitet werden. Das Ende! Das Ende hat mich erschüttert. Normalerweise lässt es sich immer gut erahnen wer das Endgame wird, aber diesmal bin ich ratlos. Den love Interest, den ich die ganze Zeit über präferiert habe, will ich nach diesem Ende gar nicht mehr mit Leilani zusammen sehen. Ich weiß nicht wie es weitergehen soll und ob ich als Leserin verzeihen kann was passiert ist. „I feel a stab of jealousy. What wouldn't I give to be pressed against that warm chest, enveloped by those strong arms“ Aber ich will unbedingt weiterlesen ❤️ dieses Buch hat seine Schwächen, aber es hat mich aus meiner letztmonatigen Leseflaute befreit. „I've been fighting since the moment I was born: fighting to fit in, for validation, for respect, for forgiveness, for freedom... I can finally stop. Stop fighting and close my eyes. A faint buzzing tickles my ears. Darkness closes in, but for once, I don't flinch from the shadows. Ilet the darkness take me.“

The Last Starborn Seer
The Last Starborn Seerby Venetia ConstantineBloomsbury Publishing PLC
20. März
Rating:4

Genre: High Fantasy Audience: Adult No spice in this one (slow burn is close to a no-burn)

"What's the point of being a seer, if I never see anything important?" This story was beautiful! The ending? Cruel. I will definitely pick up the sequel (this is a trilogy after all) - but since this book just came out, the waiting just began. I knew this was going to be a love triangle and from the synopsis alone I was sure, Blayze would be endgame. However, I quickly learned that Astrophel is the other pov-character, next to the main character Leilani - and that confused me. Would we really follow his pov, if he won't end up with Leilani? I usually don't like love triangles - I hate heartbreaks and disappointments, that come with it. To make this one even more cruel, there is another character, Maris, who was very likeable and in love with Blayze, so should Leilani end up with him, she would have to break the heart of her (new) friend too. I really didn't like this set up. Yet, the characters are all so great, as is the story. The slow-burn is slooow, so lots of time for the plot as well as the build up (of the relationships and getting to know the characters). The plot confused me from time to time, there is a lot of lore and I didn't gather all of it, but I still enjoyed the story a lot! It never bored me, always kept my attention and interest and the chapters (which have names, by the way, leading to lots of foreshadowing and angst) often ended in a "one-more-chapter" kind of way. "Die trying? Famous last words." I really liked Blayze and the banter that came with this character. This man has charisma and self-confidence. He knows what he wants and he knows his worth. I liked that about him. "Sparkle's not back yet? Couldn't wait to get away from you, ey, peacock?" He smirks. "Better work on that kissing technique." As mentioned before, the ending was cruel. It included elements I really disliked but still managed to carry them out in a way that didn't make me all too mad at the author - there is time to redeem herself. She better uses the second and third book for exactly that. I'm watching you, Venetia Constantine! The audiobook is beautifully narrated, I enjoyed it very much! I hope the other two books of the series will receive the same treatment!

The Last Starborn Seer
The Last Starborn Seerby Venetia ConstantineBloomsbury Publishing PLC