Lately I've become a fan of dilogies, as they tend to have tighter storytelling and not the problem of a 'bridge' middle book like trilogies. And this book just proved me right.
I adored book 1 so much with its alt!history approach and the whole aspect of alchemy and royalty. The Blood Orchid now deals with the aftermath of the mess that has culminated in the Scarlet Alchemist finale. Zilan is on a journey to a magical island, to save her loved ones and fight evil. Though what the evil is exactly will slowly unfold - good and evil have to exist in balance after all. The middle part of the story has a slight problem of weird pacing, and the quest of going place to place and getting items gets a bit boring over time. But then there's old friends, malicious foes and weird allies that make things interesting. The best part though is the ending that brings everything to a strong conclusion - and the message that magic might not be the most important thing in life. 4,5/5 stars Thank you @netgalley and @hodderbooks for the eARC! #TheBloodOrchid #Netgalley #Bookstagram