I’d like to thank NetGalley, Miller, and. Sourcebooks Fire for providing me an eARC in exchange for a free review.
Mask of Shadows by Linsey Miller (Pub 29 August 2017)
Description:
Sallot Leon is a thief, and a good one at that. But gender fluid Sal wants nothing more than to escape the drudgery of life as a highway robber and get closer to the upper-class and the nobles who destroyed their home.
When Sal Leon steals a poster announcing open auditions for the Left Hand, a powerful collection of the Queen’s personal assassins named for the rings she wears — Ruby, Emerald, Amethyst, and Opal — their world changes. They know it’s a chance for a new life.
Except the audition is a fight to the death filled with clever circus acrobats, lethal apothecaries, and vicious ex-soldiers. A childhood as a common criminal hardly prepared Sal for the trials. But Sal must survive to put their real reason for auditioning into play: revenge.
Review:
At the time I began this book, I had just finished the first book in the Throne of Glass series for the first time (I know, I know, don’t hate me). So i was super hyped for ANOTHER assassin book, ESPECIALLY one with a gender fluid protagonist. I do have mixed feelings for this book, though.
The book sort of just throws you straight into the audition with little to know background knowledge that makes the world building a tad bit awkward. The lore is fascinating, however, it’s a bit over complex and went over my head at times. The “science” behind the magic was never fully explained, either.
Sal, the main character, is great in the fact that they own their gender identity and don’t take ANYTHING from anyone about it. And at the same time, they still have a personality outside of that (even if it’s just being a little to pompous for their own good). It is interesting seeing Sal’s balance between cocky and cautious and how it progresses throughout the book.
I did like the individualizations of the other auditoneers and the Gems, especially Ruby. The love interest, on the other hand, was sort of just irritating to me. The insta-love was WAY too much for me to handle and all of Sal’s interactions with her felt staged and awkward.
The plot overall is really cool, despite its similarity to the Hunger Games and the Testing series. Something I noticed that is VERY different from the typical dystopias is that Sal actually likes their current queen (shocker, I know) and is whole-heartedly set on dying for her. Also, in a weird way, whether on purpose or accident, the deaths of the other auditioneers feel less real and tragic to me. Part of it may be due to Sal’s characterization and cold-hearted training to be an assassin, but I just feels a little off to me. I do ADORE the enemy of the shadows in the book; dangerous and intimidating yet with the right amount of mystery and magic.
In terms of story structure, I felt a little confused; the book felt as though it reached a “climax” on at least two separate occasions and it felt as though their was little to no introduction. There were some plot holes, as well (How come all the auditioneers are of young adult age? How come Sal can see the eyes and faces of the other auditioneers if they’re wearing masks? How are the Gems assassins if they’re infamous throughout the kingdom?) .
I feel like I said a lot of bad things about this book but I really DID enjoy reading it. It was a little rough around the edges, but that is to be expected for an authors first book EVER. I might try to pick up the sequel when it comes around and HOPEFULLY some of my questions will be answered.
Rating: 3.5/5 Hearts ❤️❤️❤️💔
Would I recommend? If you’re looking for a twist in the typical assassin story with some extra magic and murder.
quadruplebooked 