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| Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken |
"Sydelle Mirabil is living proof that, with a single drop of rain, a life can be changed forever. Tucked away in the farthest reaches of the kingdom, her dusty village has suffered under the weight of a strangely persistent drought. That is, of course, until a wizard wanders into town and brings the rain with him.
In return for this gift, Wayland North is offered any reward he desires—and no one is more surprised than Sydelle when, without any explanation, he chooses her. Taken from her home, Sydelle hardly needs encouragement to find reasons to dislike North. He drinks too much and bathes too little, and if that isn’t enough to drive her to madness, North rarely even uses the magic he takes such pride in possessing. Yet, it’s not long before she realizes there’s something strange about the wizard, who is as fiercely protective of her as he is secretive about a curse that turns his limbs a sinister shade of black and leaves him breathless with agony. Unfortunately, there is never a chance for her to seek answers.
Along with the strangely powerful quakes and storms that trace their path across the kingdom, other wizards begin to take an inexplicable interest in her as well, resulting in a series of deadly duels. Against a backdrop of war and uncertainty, Sydelle is faced with the growing awareness that these events aren’t as random as she had believed—that no curse, not even that of Wayland North, is quite as terrible as the one she herself may carry."
Rating:
A really exciting book! Filled with magic and adventure.
What I absolutely loved about this was the romance between North and Sydelle. North may’ve been an arse at first, and I was annoyed with him, but as the story progressed, I began to understand him as Sydelle has. I felt the same pull of annoyance with Sydelle as well she was just too stubborn. But putting them together was a witty amusement. They actually make a good team. They feel like completely normal couples; fighting like crazy then suddenly gawking sweetly at each other. They were amusing and I came to love them as I read through.
The story as well was very nice, with fun-filled action and exploits. It is slow moving though, but each chapter would help you get to know Sydelle and North more and more, so it’s not so bad. The mysteries are a bit aggravating to be revealed but it wouldn’t be a disappointment. It has a lovely ending that somehow makes you scream for more.
