The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title: The Demon's Surrender

Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 978-1-84738-291-7
Pages: 383
Series: The Demon's Lexicon #3
Type: Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Goodreads


The Goblin Market has always been Sin's home and she always expected to spend her nights dancing for the demons and her days learning to take over as the Market's next leader. But now Sin's home is in danger. The Market is at war with the magicians, a demon has been made flesh and Sin finds herself competing against her friend Mae for the leadership role. Most disturbing of all is Sin's attraction to Alan Ryves. She has always feared and disliked the Ryves brothers but soon comes to realise they may be the only people she can trust.

This is the third and final book in the Demon's Lexicon trilogy (after The Demon's Lexicon and The Demon's Covenant). This time the story is told from the perspective of Sin, the lead dancer at the Goblin Market, and again the change in narrator allows the reader to explore new aspects of the world of the book. This time the focus is securely on the Goblin Market and the world building is incredibly deep, really capturing the uniqueness of the event and its workers. It also allows a focus on the intoxicating demon dances and what it really means to be a dancer.

The story is fast paced, whisking the reader through a quick flashback to Sin's past to terrifying tests to determine the Market's future leader to an action-packed finale. There is no holding back in this book and all aspects of the world are changed, all motivations are questions and all characters are shown in new lights. Along with the increased scale of the battles, there is also more romance in this installment as Sin and Alan begin to develop a relationship and Mae and Nick continue with theirs.

Sin's voice is different to the previous narrators of Nick and Mae. Not only does she have a unique perspective as a dancer, but Sin is incredibly mature for her age. Since her mother's possession and death, Sin has been raising her younger siblings almost single handedly so when the security of her world is disrupted it is not only herself she fears for. Allowing a more mature narrator to end the trilogy was a brilliant choice as it really helps to highlight how much all the characters have grown.

While Sin's story is the main focus of the book, the other characters continue in their own development. I love how the author has a clearly defined narrator but manages to tell the other character's stories in a separate yet intertwined way. The book steps back from Sin's viewpoint at times so the reader can experience and understand Nick's progress as a demon, or what is going on with Jamie and Seb. This book completes the total reshape of the character's worlds in a grippingly realistic manner.

All in all this was a great read and I thoroughly recommend the entire trilogy to any young adult or urban fantasy fans.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 48/50

Teaser Tuesday (22)

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers.

My teaser:

"She was simply happy, in a way she hadn't been in a year or more, in a shining, certain way. She hid her smile against his shoulder and went to sleep."

~ Page 242, The Demon's Surrender by Sarah Rees Brennan

The Demon's Covenant by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title: The Demon's Covenant

Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Simon Pulse
ISBN: 978-1-84738-920-0
Pages: 440
Series: The Demon's Lexicon #2
Type: Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Goodreads


Mae's life has spun out of control. Her brother Jamie is a magician and she's horrified to learn he's now meeting with the leader of the Obsidian Circle, the same group who almost got them both killed. When Mae calls in her friends Nick and Alan to save her brother, the last thing she expects is for the Circle to spring a trap...for Nick. Now with brother set against brother Mae is forced to turn to the dangerous and mysterious Goblin Market in hopes of saving them all.

This is the second book in the Demon's Lexicon trilogy and I was really impressed with the first volume The Demon's Lexicon so I was excited to get stuck into this. It picks up a few weeks after the conclusion of the previous book and is told from Mae's perspective which is a nice change. The switch in narrator not only gives us a different perspective, but also allows us to see different parts of Mae's world. As with the previous book the story is well paced and plotted with vivid scenes that really come to life on the page.

In addition to the usual character development, world building and awesome action scenes this book has a more psychological aspect which questions the nature of love, betrayal and trust. It really adds a new layer to the story and really deepens the world giving it a more emotional slant and bringing the humanity of all the characters to the forefront.

In addition to the modern day action, excerpts from Nick and Alan's father's journal are included and I found these sections fascinating. I was glued to the page and loved the revelations of how an adult dealt with the appearance of a demonic baby. I also loved seeing Nick and Alan as little kids before the realities of their lives fighting with magicians set in.

I really liked Mae in this book and it was great to watch her grow in maturity as the story progresses. Where she ends up is completely different to where she began and I loved it. There is a bit of a weird romance situation going on throughout between Mae, her boyfriend Seb and Nick and Alan. Mae takes forever to decide what (and who) she wants and then the decision is almost made for her. I like that the romance isn't the main aspect of these books, but the indecisiveness started to bother me after a while.

Nick is easier to read through Mae's eyes and, given the revelations at the end of the previous book, far more enjoyable this time. His sarcasm and wit shine through along with his quest to become more like a normal human, and I really liked him. Alan has become more stubborn and his choices have left him with some serious angst to brood about. I never really liked Seb, especially how he acts towards Jamie who also experiences some major character growth.

All in all this was an awesome read and I can't wait for the final volume The Demon's Surrender.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 9/10
Cover: 9/10

Overall: 47/50

The Demon's Lexicon by Sarah Rees Brennan

Title: The Demon's Lexicon

Author: Sarah Rees Brennan
Publisher: Allison & Busby
ISBN: 978-1-84738-289-4
Pages: 322
Series: The Demon's Lexicon #1
Type: Young Adult Urban Fantasy
Source: Purchased
Goodreads


Magicians summon demons in exchange for their power. The demons promise anything and everything to mark you, and then you get possessed...and die. Nick has been on the run with his family for his entire life. Along with his brother Alan, he is helping his deranged mother hide from the terrifying magician she stole a powerful charm from. But when Alan is marked by a demon and two humans are drawn into their life, the tables turn and suddenly it is Nick and Alan who are hunting the magicians...

This is one of those books that has been sitting on my to-be-read shelf for ages waiting to be read, but being passed over for other books. When I started reading, I immediately realised that I was really going to enjoy this. You are whisked in to an action packed start as magicians attack the brothers and the story works from there. This cleverly plotted read feels like an adult urban fantasy just with young adult characters and I love it for bridging the gap between two of my favourite genres.

After the action at the beginning, the pace of the book slackens and I did see a bit of first-book-itis while the world was being developed. That said the world building is excellent with a fully fleshed out mythology and the pace picks up again quickly building to a shocking action packed finale. The vivid descriptions make the settings of the book come to life on the page and it's as easy to visualise the exotic Goblin Market as the simple ferry to the Isle of Wight.

I had a bit of a hard time sympathising with the lead character Nick. The book is told from his perspective and while I loved his acerbic wit and sarcasm, he did at times become a bit too dark and unfeeling. I really liked him despite his darkness, and he provides a great contrast to Alan. While Alan seems like a really nice guy he admits to lying freely which means that Nick's brutal honesty becomes even more apparent and appreciated.

The two "normal" characters Mae and Jamie grew on me as the book progressed. At first I didn't really like them as they seemed to want Jamie's mark removed with no care to the consequences, but as time went on their characters began to develop and they learned about the consequences alongside the facts of the magical world. They really grew as characters and I'm looking forward to seeing where they go next.

All in all this was an awesome read and I can't wait for The Demon's Covenant.

Plot: 10/10
Characters: 9/10
Ending: 10/10
Enjoyment: 8/10
Cover: 8/10

Overall: 45/50