Book Review: Rebel Spring: A Falling Kingdoms Novel: By Morgan Rhodes

Title: Rebel Spring
Author: Morgan Rhodes
Series: Falling Kingdoms book 2
Publisher: Razorbill
Date of Publication: Dec. 3, 2013
Source: bought, hardcover, 416 pages
Rating: YA Fantasy


From Goodreads:

Love, power, and magic collide with war in the second book of the Falling Kingdoms series
Auranos has fallen and the three kingdoms—Auranos, Limeros, and Paelsia—are now united as one country called Mytica. But still, magic beckons, and with it the chance to rule not just Mytica, but the world...
When the evil King Gaius announces that a road is to be built into the Forbidden Mountains, formally linking all of Mytica together, he sets off a chain of events that will forever change the face of this land, forcing Cleo the dethroned princess, Magnus the reluctant heir, Lucia the haunted sorceress, and Jonas the desperate rebel to take steps they never could have imagined.

 My Thoughts:
Love doesn't even encompass the emotion and feelings that spring forth when this series, Falling Kingdoms, crosses my mind.
Just gazing at the cover of the second novel, Rebel Spring, I get this tingling sensation all over my body.  It's just so hard not to get caught up in this book because there is so much going on in it.  But the story isn't crowded at all; on the contrary, every move made in this story is a tactical one.  It is another step in the seeming direction of the overall thrilling plot arc.
No matter how tiny each detail is, it is another scene that contributes to the entire story line.  That is FANTASTIC writing! There is no filler, no excess.  Everything in this story has a purpose and a reason for it.
This is superb writing that supersedes just one genre.  Of course there is young adult fantasy, but then there is romance, and a lot of thriller vibe going on.
Actually the romance seems to take a backseat to all the power struggles that seem to be taking place.  I think I would compare it to these reality shows, The Real Housewives franchise.  The royalty in Rebel Spring could put all of those people to shame.  These power struggles are deceitful, intense and downright evil.
And let's just say, I definitely would not want to be a servant in the Danora household.  Servants do not seem to last long here.

Rebel Spring really dives deeper into the lore of the Watchers and Kindred as we learn more about Luica's power and the golden hawks peering down.  I love how Morgan Rhodes writes these complex and difficult characters, who may be good inside but have to show a completely different personality to literally survive in this world where danger comes from the ones closest to them.
I'm in awe of how she writes characters that would usually be classified as weak but she gives them ethereal strength to them.
Princess Cleo is one of these characters.  Her enemies always underestimate her, seeing her as a weak and spoiled princess.  That is their undoing.  I love that she gets to prove these people wrong constantly.
Jonas is another character that makes me smile whenever he "walks" into a chapter.  But I am also a slight fan of Prince Magnus-so you can see that I am torn between sides.  And I think that is exactly what Rhodes wants us to be.  She wants to make it hard for us to pick one character and be completely on their side because each one has good and bad traits, just like in real life.
Another series I could compare to Falling Kingdoms is The Walking Dead.  Okay, wait, here me out first.  I know there isn't any undead in Mythica; but let's say loss prevention isn't important in either series.  You cannot get attached to any one character because chances are they aren't going to last long....in either series.  It seems Rhodes likes to torture us with killing off characters I didn't like losing.  No one is safe.  (And that  is how they are similar)
So yeah, there were a few deaths that left me saying, out loud, "What the hell just happened?"
But even with that, I wouldn't change a thing about Rebel Spring because every single situation, good or bad, plays into the bigger picture. And the conclusion of this story is going to be epic.  I can feel it in my bones.
This is one of those stories that I wish there was a rating for a million hearts, a million stars, just a million of anything.  But it has already captured my own beating heart and holds it in its magic forever; 5 hearts will just have to suffice.
But a slight plea, if you may:  Please don't destroy my heart too terribly as the story progresses further.

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