The Sky Weaver

The Sky Weaver

by Kristen Ciccarelli

4 out of 5

Synopsis
At the end of one world, there always lies another.

Safire, a soldier, knows her role in this world is to serve the King of Firgaard—helping to maintain the peace in her oft-troubled nation.

Eris, a deadly pirate, has no such conviction. Known as the Death Dancer for her ability to evade even the most determined of pursuers, she possesses a superhuman power to move between worlds.

When one can roam from dimension to dimension, can one ever be home? Can love and loyalty truly exist?

Now Safire and Eris—sworn enemies—find themselves on a common mission: to find Asha, the last Namsara. From the port city of Darmoor to the fabled faraway Star Isles, their search and their stories become woven ever more tightly together as they discover the uncertain fate they’re hurtling towards may just be a shared one. In this world—and the next.



Review
Safire is totally focussed on her job, protecting the Dragon King, and doing her part to save the country from starvation. Things are made more difficult when an annoying thief steals the jewel that was going to fund feeding a nation.

I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I confess that I have read the first book in the series, but haven't got round to the second yet (which follows Dax's story). Knowing Asha's story from The Last Namsara, it was easy to slip back into this world, and I didn't feel at any disadvantage for reading out of order.

The Sky Weaver has two narrators.
Safire is the head of the King's guard (who is also her cousin). She has overcome the awful treatment she received under the rule of the last king - despite her royal blood, she was born to a slave woman and has spent a lifetime being reviled, ignored, and/or beaten.
Only with her cousins, Asha and Dax leading the revolution, has Safire finally become free. She owes them everything, and has devoted her time to enhancing her skill as a fighter.

Eris is a pirate and a legendary thief. She is known as the Death Dancer and has never been caught.
Things have become almost too easy for her, and after yet another successful job, Eris finds something in Safire - a challenge.

I really enjoyed this story. It was a lot of fun to watch Safire and Eris go from enemies, to reluctant allies with the control constantly shifting between them, and finally to lovers. All with the background of dragons, sea monsters, pirates and deceitful gods.
It was great to see diverse characters included in this world, and I liked Safire and Eris' romantic arc so much more than Asha and Torwin's in the first book.
Also, the author continues to weave the myths and stories from this world, into the narrative. I felt it was much more smoothly done in this third book, and seemed to have a much clearer bearing on the story.

That being said, this book didn't have the same of twists that really stood out in The Last Namsara. The betrayals and double-crossing was fairly obvious and didn't have the same clout.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read. Now I'll just have to work backwards and read The Caged Queen!

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