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Onyx and Ivory

(Rime Chronicles #1)

Mindee Arnett (Goodreads Author)

3.92 · Rating details · 4,077 ratings · 761 reviews

They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Now Kate lives as an outcast, clinging to the fringes of society as a member of the Relay, the imperial courier service. Only those most skilled in riding and bow hunting ride for the Relay; and only the fastest survive, for when dark fall They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Now Kate lives as an outcast, clinging to the fringes of society as a member of the Relay, the imperial courier service. Only those most skilled in riding and bow hunting ride for the Relay; and only the fastest survive, for when dark falls, the nightdrakes—deadly flightless dragons—come out to hunt. Fortunately, Kate has a secret edge: she is a wilder, born with magic that allows her to influence the minds of animals. But it’s this magic that she needs to keep hidden, as being a wilder is forbidden, punishable by death or exile. And it’s this magic that leads her to a caravan massacred by nightdrakes in broad daylight—the only survivor her childhood friend, her first love, the boy she swore to forget, the boy who broke her heart.

The high king’s second son, Corwin Tormane, never asked to lead. Even as he waits for the uror—the once-in-a-generation ritual to decide which of the king’s children will succeed him—he knows it’s always been his brother who will assume the throne. And that’s fine by him. He’d rather spend his days away from the palace, away from the sight of his father, broken with sickness from the attempt on his life. But the peacekeeping tour Corwin is on has given him too much time to reflect upon the night he saved his father’s life—the night he condemned the would-be killer to death and lost the girl he loved. Which is why he takes it on himself to investigate rumors of unrest in one of the remote city-states, only for his caravan to be attacked—and for him to be saved by Kate.

With their paths once more entangled, Kate and Corwin have to put the past behind them. The threat of drakes who attack in the daylight is only the beginning of a darker menace stirring in the kingdom—one whose origins have dire implications for Kate’s father’s attack upon the king and will thrust them into the middle of a brewing civil war in the kingdom of Rime. ...more

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Hardcover, 500 pages

Published May 15th 2018 by Balzer + Bray

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Community Reviews

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3.92 ·

Rating details

· 4,077 ratings · 761 reviews

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Jun 26, 2018 Katerina rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018-reads, fantasy

UNPUTDOWNABLE YA FANTASY ALERT PEOPLE!!

*clears throat*

The Fairyloot Team has an unparalleled ability to discover hidden treasures (metal detectors or something?). The edition of Onyx and Ivory they included in their May Box (black sprayed pages, oh my) was a feast for the eyes, but also the first book in a while that had me truly immersed in its ~~dark~~ pages. Politics, conspirasies, war, ancient rites, forbidden magic, rebels, wingless dragons and fierce heroes, it was an enchanting adventure that ...more

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May 21, 2018 Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy-all, own

Fairyloot May 2018! It's got sprayed edges! Yay! Click on link after picture for the unboxing.

THE GOODIES

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Sep 19, 2018 jessica rated it really liked it · review of another edition

wow. 2018 has truly blessed us when it comes to new fantasy series, and you can go ahead and add this book to that list of many.

'onyx and ivory' created a unique world filled with a host of interesting characters, hidden magic and dangerous dragons, cunning plots and deception, and not to mention a lovely romance. honestly, this had everything i love in these types of fantasy stories.

but i thought the characters were the most impressive. and honestly, there wasnt one in particular that i prefe ...more

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Aug 18, 2018 Sana rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: badass-chicks, daddies, fantasy, unfinished-series, romance, young-adult

this has deadly flightless dragons with a badass heroine who rescues the prince. holy shit. this was awesome.

3.5 stars. this was really good but it was really uneventful for the first hundred pages. then i was slumping and stopped reading this for five days which made me feel really meh towards this. the ending was really action packed and a big plate of what-the-fuck which i enjoyed though.

buddy read with Rae, Nadhira and Scrill (who i'll tag later)

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Jan 19, 2018 Candace Robinson added it · review of another edition

I don’t know! I just didn’t find anything new here ... which is fine, because even books with cliches I can love. But I didn’t FEEL anything for these characters or the story in itself. The writing is great, but I guess I was expecting more from that cover! This is another book I have read recently that just feels too long and seems to drag. If it had been a little shorter, some of the unnecessary descriptions could have been cut. I think if you haven’t read a ton of fantasy books, you will prob ...more

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May 15, 2018 Camila Roy ••RoyIsReading•• rated it really liked it · review of another edition

RATING: 4/5

ARC provided by Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review

They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Kate is a wilder, born with magic that allows her to influence the minds of animals. But it’s this magic that she needs to keep hidden, as being a wilder is forbidden, punishable by death or exile. And it’s this magic that leads her to a caravan massacred by nightdrakes in broad daylight—the on RATING: 4/5

ARC provided by Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review

They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Kate is a wilder, born with magic that allows her to influence the minds of animals. But it’s this magic that she needs to keep hidden, as being a wilder is forbidden, punishable by death or exile. And it’s this magic that leads her to a caravan massacred by nightdrakes in broad daylight—the only survivor her childhood friend, her first love, the boy she swore to forget, the boy who broke her heart.

The high king’s second son, Corwin Tormane, never asked to lead. He’d rather spend his days away from the palace, away from the sight of his father, broken with sickness from the attempt on his life. But the peacekeeping tour Corwin is on has given him too much time to reflect upon the night he saved his father’s life—the night he condemned the would-be killer to death and lost the girl he loved. Which is why he takes it on himself to investigate rumors of unrest in one of the remote city-states, only for his caravan to be attacked—and for him to be saved by Kate.

With their paths once more entangled, Kate and Corwin have to put the past behind them. The threat of drakes who attack in the daylight is only the beginning.

This is the longest book I've read in a while (I normally get intimidated if it exceeds 350 pages). Thankfully, it never felt dragged on or hard to get through. The writing was great, I liked the characters and the ending was fairly satisfying.

Theoritically, this book should've been amazing. Interesting plot +likable characters+romance+ action= success, right? However, I feel like there was something missing. It needed a special element in order to stand out and not be just another YA fantasy. Also, the two main characters seemed too childish to be 19 and 20, in my opinion. Maybe if they had shown a little more maturity, I would've connected more with them.

Overall, enjoyable and I would recommend it!

EDIT: Just realized this is getting a sequel. I’m definitely into the idea. The story has a lot of potential. ...more

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Jun 11, 2018 Abbie (boneseasonofglass) rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, arcs

Overall this was a really solid first book in a series! It started off a little slow, but that's understandable, as there was a lot of world building to be done, scene setting, an introducing characters and whatnot.

This book is written in a split perspective (3rd person) between the 2 main characters, Corwin & Kate, which I really enjoyed! It's nice seeing how they both think and feel and what they're up to when they'er not together. I did really like both of the characters, but I would've ...more

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Oct 27, 2017 Anissa (FairyLoot) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-release

So much yes! Loved this.

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Dec 20, 2018 Umairah | Sereadipity rated it really liked it · review of another edition

4.5 stars
Plot: 4/5 Characters: 4.5/5 Writing: 4/5

Onyx and Ivory was a compelling and original tale that emphasised the importance of friendship and family.

It's tiring hearing about the same types of magic system again and again where giant fire balls, ice-swords or air shields are just conjured up on demand, no restrictions, all-inclusive with a fancy magical amulet, free of charge.That's why I liked Onyx and Ivory, the magic system was really well explained and it was different.

There were two t ...more

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Jun 02, 2018 nat. (semi-hiatus) rated it it was amazing

❝betrayer of her prince, her kingdom, and her friends.❞

everyone should read this and then talk to me about it because ok wow

can’t even talk without spoilers because all I want to do is talk about those said spoilers *bites nails nervously*

told through Kate’s and Corwin’s perspectives, we ventured into a world pretty much ruled by drakes, these dragon-like creatures (who in my most humble opinion, are victims here too. just saying 😉) magic ruled by some and others condemned for it and a much ...more

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Jun 10, 2018 Elizabeth Sagan rated it liked it · review of another edition

3.5

Nice, enjoyable fantasy. I couldn't stand the main male character until the very end (because not even once has he thought about offering an apology!), but we're good now. Good character development. There were a few moments when I felt like the villain got his inspiration from The Villain's Guide (it wasn't his fault though, it was more about how other characters described him).

All in all a good book.

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Aug 15, 2018 Rae rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Buddy Read with these lovelies Scrill Nadhira & Sana :)

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Feb 14, 2018 Danielle (Life of a Literary Nerd) rated it liked it · review of another edition

“Out here, darkness meant death.”

I have two incredibly shallow reasons for picking up this book: I thought the cover was gorgeous- it’s a bit spooky but gilded at the same time- and I really love ampersands. Thankfully, Onyx & Ivory delivered beyond a pretty cover. We follow disgraced outcast Kate Brighton as she is brought back to palace life after she saves prince Corwin Tormaine from the deadly nightdrakes, which have somehow begun to attack during the day, by using her forbidden wild ...more

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Aug 15, 2018 Nadhira Satria rated it it was ok

Bored out of my mind. RTC

Buddy read with this wild ass emo chick , this total badass, this total sweetheart, and a clarinet

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Jan 09, 2018 Aila rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-release, arc, cliche-galore, cliffhanger, enjoyable, fantasy-magic, netgalley-edelweiss, romance

Every time the book had “Traitor Kate” (especially when it was trying to be dramatic), all I could think of was “Trader Joe’s.” Maybe I’m just hungry.

The thing with the fantasy genre is that it’s hard to make a plot that has been written millions of times before unique. Onyx and Ivory has great writing, pretty swell characters, and a decent setting, but its major drawback was how predictable the plot was. It follows many traits of the numerous fantasies I’ve read before, and because of that I w Every time the book had “Traitor Kate” (especially when it was trying to be dramatic), all I could think of was “Trader Joe’s.” Maybe I’m just hungry.

The thing with the fantasy genre is that it’s hard to make a plot that has been written millions of times before unique. Onyx and Ivory has great writing, pretty swell characters, and a decent setting, but its major drawback was how predictable the plot was. It follows many traits of the numerous fantasies I’ve read before, and because of that I wasn’t quite excited for the twists. Here are bullet points of some of these familiar tropes:

- Schism between different magic users. In this book “wilder” magic is seen as illegal and worthy of death, while “magist” magic is used for law-enforcing.
- Main character has illegal type of magic. Kate has a power called sway, where she can push/pull ideas from animals’ minds. Other wilder magic include the elements.
- Corrupt monarchy. The king cannot make decisions for himself, so the ministers and princes decide things. Of course, a couple of them are not as nice as they seem.
- Hidden rebellion that comes into contact with main characters. The Rising are the wilder citizens who have been in-hiding, but want to come out and rebel so they and their children do not have to live in fear.
- Second-son prince who has sympathy for wilder magic-users. This is Corwin, the other main character. And of course he’s put in contrast to the first-born son, who is power-hungry.
- Forbidden romance between prince and girl. Kate’s father tried to kill the king years ago for some reason, and he was led to execution because of that. Although Kate and Corwin are first-loves, there is bad blood between them.
- Rekindled, lost first love. Circumstances put Kate and Corwin together and they find that their chemistry did not dim. It follows a (thankfully) linear romance that is light in the book.
- Mysterious monsters that threaten humanity. Drakes are dragon-like monsters that cannot fly and hunt for human flesh at night. However, new discoveries have seen drakes that can come out in the day, making them more dangerous to civilization than ever. What must these characters dooo?
- Trials to choose the next king. The tradition is that the sons of the king have to complete trials of the uror to see who is the most worthy.

Review to come, but above listed are things to expect.
...more

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May 19, 2018 K8 rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

I read most of Onyx and Ivory in a hospital. It's the sole reason I'm still alive to write this review. Between the stale oatmeal characters, the plodding plot, the wall after wall of bland text and the dry heterosexual nonsense, some vital part in the core of my being simply shut off. A battalion of medical staff encircled me as my will to live filtered from my body and into the standard just-comfortable-enough-for-torture waiting room chairs. An onlooker rushed to turn the TV to daytime soaps. ...more

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Feb 12, 2018 Sabrina The Trash Queen marked it as to-read · review of another edition

✨Badass female? Who saves the Prince? And who doesn't need a prince to save her? I’m sold.
✨I really hope to love this book. It seems promising. ✨I'm very excited (like always when it comes to books).

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Jan 05, 2018 mith rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-publication, fantasy, in-betweeners, maaaagic, male-mains, royalty, series, supernatural-creatures

Wooooow. Arnett's best book yet, easily. Onyx & Ivory definitely deserves to be on your radar.

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Sep 10, 2018 Ashlee » Library In The Country rated it it was amazing

This is one of those books that leaves you with the question: why didn’t I read this sooner!?

Onyx & Ivory is a truly stunning story that captivated me from the moment Kate and her steed Pip were introduced. Mindee Arnett has created a fascinating and complex world with the Kingdom of Rime, it’s history rich and it’s people full of passion for their causes.

I loved the representations of friendship, love and family we see in this story, for there are many forms present - each one driving the c ...more

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Jul 13, 2018 Georgina rated it liked it

✨3 stars✨
It doesn’t usually take me that long to read books, but this one took me forever to get through. I think I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump, and life has been quite busy recently too, but even so, at times it felt like I would never finish this book. It isn’t boring, it just isn’t what I wanted it to be; I didn’t hate it, I just didn’t love it. Which is a bit disappointing because it’s my 50th book of the year (meaning I’ve completed my 2018 reading challenge of 50 books!!) and it wa ✨3 stars✨
It doesn’t usually take me that long to read books, but this one took me forever to get through. I think I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump, and life has been quite busy recently too, but even so, at times it felt like I would never finish this book. It isn’t boring, it just isn’t what I wanted it to be; I didn’t hate it, I just didn’t love it. Which is a bit disappointing because it’s my 50th book of the year (meaning I’ve completed my 2018 reading challenge of 50 books!!) and it was a pretty ‘meh’ book to hit that with, ya know what I mean?!

I really enjoyed Kate and Corwin’s contrasting perspectives throughout the book as it really helped to keep it that bit more interesting- if it had just been Kate’s perspective for the whole thing then it’s entirely possible I may never have finished it. I liked Kate, and her journey to finding out more about her father (and discovering Kiran) was so unique and intriguing, but I didn’t find her personality to be all that special- she kind of just felt the same as a lot of other female YA characters who ‘don’t quite fit into society’ and ‘rebel against the system’. Corwin definitely had more of a defined and specific personality, and I absolutely loved finding out more about his past, why he's referred to as the Errant Prince, and why he left in the first place. HOWEVER (and this is a big however), the whole book really would have benefitted from more character development. Tell me more about how Dal and Corwin met, tell me more about Kate and Corwin’s childhood, tell me more about Kate’s relationship with her father, tell me more about Corwin’s mother, T E L L. M E. M O R E !!!

Highlight of this book is definitely Signe and Dal, I neeeeed more about them, I could happily have had this whole book be about them instead of Kate and Corwin, they’re the only reason I might pick up the sequel (I’m assuming there’s going to be a sequel, right? Since it ends right as the action finally starts happening?? Right???). I adore Signe’s fabrications about herself, the ambiguity tied to basically everything she reveals about herself, and she really stood out as a wickedly strong character that wasn’t delved into nearly enough. Dal, too. We hear so many things about him in passing, and I would have loved for his character and personality to have been explored in more depth.

I really did like the concept of this book, it just ended up following a bit too much of a typical and slightly overdone YA formula for me at times- ‘Girl is different, she is part of something that society shuns, she joins uprising and rebels, and she also falls in love too because hey why not’- I could name atleast a million other YA books that follow this exact structure. Also, it was so slow to start with, and then when the pace finally started to pick up, the book ended, which just felt a bit frustrating, honestly. I still enjoyed it, it just wasn’t what I was expecting or hoping it to be. I thought that the Relay would play a bigger part in the story (or any real part in the story, to be honest), although I did really adore the uror trials aspect of it. Trials are a plot point that I always find extremely fun for some reason, and that element really didn’t let me down. Like I said, I didn’t hate it, I just didn’t love it. It could have been because of the reading slump, and maybe I’ll reread it one day and love it, who knows. For now though, it was pretty average and I’m hoping I like my next read more!😂 ...more

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May 02, 2018 Christine (allthingschristine) rated it liked it

Shelves: anticipated-2018-reads, young-adult, romance, fantasy-magic, arc-wishlist, balzer-and-bray, frenzy-presents-spring-2018

Actual Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars

Disclaimer: I won this ARC in a giveaway from the author. Neither the author, nor the publisher have influenced my review in any way. THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.

This was a solid start to a new fantasy series from Mindee Arnett. It reminded me of Tamora Pierce’s The Immortals Series meets the Red Queen Series. While I have my issues with the pacing and length of the book, the story and world created within are interesting enough to surpass any problems I have with i Actual Rating: 3.5 / 5 Stars

Disclaimer: I won this ARC in a giveaway from the author. Neither the author, nor the publisher have influenced my review in any way. THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS.

This was a solid start to a new fantasy series from Mindee Arnett. It reminded me of Tamora Pierce’s The Immortals Series meets the Red Queen Series. While I have my issues with the pacing and length of the book, the story and world created within are interesting enough to surpass any problems I have with it.

This book is quite the chunker, at 512 pages it covers a lot. For me, although something was always happening it felt like the story was dragging and just tried to cover too much in one book. The story was a bit too ambitious in my opinion and some of the stuff towards the beginning/middle of the book could have been cut out. I ended up taking a two week break reading this book because I got bored and couldn’t bring myself to continue. I regretted putting it down later though because the story started to pick up again and I loved the ending.

Kate at the beginning was just kind of just a blah character; I didn’t love her and I didn’t hate her. It wasn’t until she started to explore more of her power and the extent of it that she really started to interest me. At the end of the book I loved her because she has explored her dark side, and although she did give in to it she wants to do the right thing and not let herself go again. The only thing that really frustrated me about her was how she idolized her father to the point that he could do no wrong. I don’t understand that she wasn’t more upset when she found out her father had a secret life and another family that she was unaware of. Also, why wasn’t she more appalled that he father tried to use their power on another person? He had other choices he could’ve made, whereas when Kate used that same power on a person (other than Vikras) she used it to protect people and she had no other choice. I just felt like she hero-worshiped her father and didn’t really see him as a person with faults. I love that Kate doesn’t need anybody to save her and she is badass in her own right.

Corwin’s character quite annoyed me towards the start of the book, but I liked him much more towards the end. It really bothered me how Corwin liked to just blame all of the evil deeds done in the kingdom on the wilders. Just because of one incident, which granted did kill his mother he decided that wilders were the main evil in the kingdom. Even when common sense told him that children didn’t deserve to be arrested and killed, he willfully made himself ignorant to their plight. He also had a really defeatist attitude which bothered me. He just took everything he didn’t like in his life and just decided that there was nothing he could do about it anyways so why even care? I found the main factor to change him started with the uror trial. I also felt like the trial was kind of a side story that merely existed to protect him so he couldn’t be killed and to progress his character development though. It was so satisfying to see his change throughout the book.

Minister Rendborne was around too often, so I started to get suspicious. Is he behind the daydrakes? Or is he a part of the Rising? It turns out that he was the “Big Bad” for the book. I knew he was no side character because he popped up in the story too often to not be more important. I didn’t see that he was the Nameless one and a previous uror participant.

Something I really loved in this book is that we get actual character development throughout the story. And not minor developments either, Kate and Corwin changed their life views on the journey through the book. Corwin went from a spoiled prince who only saw the world as not perfect, but unchangeable and blaming the wilders for all the evil happening to seeing that not all rules should be followed and the world is more of a greyscale and all people have good and evil in them. Kate on the other hand was all about getting revenge for her father and hiding the fact that she’s a wilder but at the end of the book she’s decided she is no longer going to hide the fact that she’s a wilder and she doesn’t want anyone else to hide either as well as that getting revenge isn’t all it is cracked up to be. She got her revenge on Vikras, but it didn’t make her feel any better afterwards and in fact opened her up to the darkness inside herself and her power. Even the side characters like Dal, Signe, and Bonner have major character developments at the end and are no longer the same people they were at the beginning. It was one of my favourite parts of this book and I am looking forward to seeing who they become as they go further on their journey.

I absolutely adored how this book ended. I really liked that the story didn’t just end with the wilder revolution and the Rising. It expanded into a bigger tale with saving all of the wilders shipped off and stoping a massive war that could destroy the kingdom. Kate is focused on saving her brother and making it so the wilders no longer have to hide who they are and Corwin is focused on saving the wilders to prevent his kingdom from collapsing and warring with the Godking. Both have the power to protect and have the darkness inside of them and it will be interesting to see how far they will go to protect or save those they love. I was going to be so disappointed if this turned into another book about a girl saving her people, but I a,pm so pleased with how it ended.

There are things that I am interested in getting some answers. From the mundane like linked names (Edwin and Corwin), was this just coincidence or is it a trait in this world? To more serious questions like does Corwin actually have magic, or is it the uror magic working through his mark? I think the latter is more likely to be honest. Also, is this series going to deal with core problem of the daydrakes/nightdrakes and how to get rid of them for good? I would love to learn more of the history and how they came to be in the kingdom and just more worldbuilding and learning new things about the history and this world in general.

Overall this book is a great start to a new fantasy series and I am looking forward to where the story goes next. I can’t wait to see where the characters go and how they are going to further change and meet the Godking. There is so much left to explore in this world and I can’t wait to go on the journey! ...more

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Mar 21, 2019 Athena Elizabeth rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This book is a solid 4 stars for me. I enjoyed it especially because the author is a horsewoman, and threw us a lot of relatable little equestrian moments! The colt blowing snot all over the prince and Kate kind of put the book into my heart.
🐴
The worldbuilding and characters both were pretty great too. I liked all the history and geography and history of magic that was given. I could have cut 100 pages out with no trouble though - not that we don't love endless banter and background, but it was ...more

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Oct 14, 2018 ℓуηη, ℓσкιѕℓутнєя¢ℓαω rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018-releases, cover-love, fantasy-ya, ya, need-to-own-asap

I'll try to be short and sweet on this. The book gets a 4 - 4.25 stars

Things I liked:
~ The plot was very interesting from the very beginning and I breezed through half of the
book in no time. And other than a little snafu at around 60%, it stayed engaging through to
the end.
~ The characters, especially the secondary ones, were likable and I wanted to know more
about them
~ The pacing was excellent all the way through. There weren't any sluggish points, or
unnecessary bits to mire it
~ It ...more

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Apr 07, 2018 kath | novelandfolk rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: atmospheric, cover-love, fantastic-worlds, fantasy, kickass-female, ya

This was really enjoyable! It’s a high-stakes fantasy with highly fleshed out characters, subversive elements like girls who save princes 🙌🏻, dragons without wings who only come out at night, slow. burn. romance. and tons of satisfying twists and turns! I particularly recommend this if you love horses because it’s clear Arnett has a fondness for them.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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May 30, 2018 Jean rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: high-fantasy

A surprising 3.5 stars!

Wow, I like this more than I initially thought I would! It isn’t so much the characters—the main two PoV Kate and Corwin have generally mild, forgettable personalities, and their romance not quite convincing, but I really enjoy the world building (fairly intricate for a YA fantasy novel), the overall mystery plot and magic system that intertwines with so many other small elements—including the political aspects.

I consider this a rather calm, slow burn type of novel, with ...more

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Jun 17, 2018 Samm | Sassenach the Book Wizard rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2018, best-of-2018, favorites, own

HOLY CRAP! I've read 125 books so far this year and this is definitely one of my favourites! so good! I am absolutely in love with the magic, politics and characters. The villain reveal COMPLETELY blindsided me! I adored the romance.

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Apr 21, 2018 Lea (drumsofautumn) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: no-physical-copy-liked, arcs-done

♦ Video Review ♦

"The world changes, the wheel spins, and so we must change as well. That is what it means to lead - finding the wisdom to bring change when it's needed and to hold fast when it's not."

Onyx & Ivory was an overall very enjoyable reading experience for me. While it's a little bit slow in parts and tends to fall into old YA Fantasy cliches, it also offers some unique and fresh aspects.

The characters were definitely my favourite part. I liked both the main characters, Kate a ...more

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Jul 09, 2018 The Captain rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

Ahoy there me mateys! So this book be a young adult fantasy novel that was just an okay read for me. I be conflicted. Overall it was enjoyable, but I wish it had been much better.

This was one of those instances where there were too many plot-lines. Ye have a) the romance subplot; b) the civil unrest based on types of magic subplot; c) the two princes' god-driven contest for the right to rule subplot; d) main girl trying to overcome her father's traitorous behavior and solve the mystery of his Ahoy there me mateys! So this book be a young adult fantasy novel that was just an okay read for me. I be conflicted. Overall it was enjoyable, but I wish it had been much better.

This was one of those instances where there were too many plot-lines. Ye have a) the romance subplot; b) the civil unrest based on types of magic subplot; c) the two princes' god-driven contest for the right to rule subplot; d) main girl trying to overcome her father's traitorous behavior and solve the mystery of his death subplot; e) the main prince dude's self-esteem over the right to rule subplot; and f) the drake subplot. Of course they all tie together in some fashion. The problem is that at 500 pages, the plot meandered in unreasonable fashion and yet for all those subplots, there was a ton of time where nothing was really happening except romantic angst. Or too much was happening where ye got glimpses of fun stuff and then immediately jumped topics.

And yet I loved the set-up to the story. Kate is in disgrace at the capital due to her father's assassination attempt. So she flees to the outskirts of the kingdom where she is tenaciously hanging onto a post with the royal courier service. A position she earned. She is trying to hide her forbidden, if cool, magic because it would mean death. Besides trying to survive folk calling her "Traitor Kate" and trying to sabotage her job, she is also dealing with the fallout from losing her noble title and the consequences of commoner life. Oh and drakes. Nasty non-flying dragons that hunt at night. Awesome right? Well the author sets up this fantastic scenario only to have her save the prince i.e. her old flame. And then the author shifts the entire story and setting. It is the right of the author to chose where to take her own story. I just wish it didn't go there.

So while I was miffed, I still wanted to know where it was going to go. So I kept readin' and grumblin'. And loving the magic systems. And loving the horses. And being intrigued by the contest between the brothers. I was less fascinated by the boring romance that took over, the stupidity of Kate's ridiculous tactics of spying, the plot twists behind the bad guys, and lack of use of the better side characters. In fact, at one plot reveal, I was so annoyed at the silliness involved that I put the book down. And left it there for several weeks. I wasn't sure if I was going to pick it up but I was so close to the end that I picked it back up when I had a small reading time-frame. Mostly because I didn't have the time to start something new.

So I read to the end and found meself a little cheerier. Much of this cheer came from the fact that ye have YA characters sharing their feelings, offering apologies, and listening to the other's point-of-view. I hate when all could be solved by just talking to one another and then they don't.

I continued to dislike the direction the author took the story though the various plot points do seem to coalesce at the end albeit unsatisfactorily. I do enjoy the magic system, and I would like to see more of it. I thought the character of Signe was wonderful and wish I could read a book about her instead. Kate continued to annoy me with her brashness and hardheadedness. Prince-lover-boy was stereotypical in general and a bit too mopey. And it needed a lot more drakes.

I do not regret this book but I am not feeling particularly hopeful for the next in the series. Time will tell if I read it or not. Arrr!! ...more

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Jan 28, 2019 Tracy (Cornerfolds) rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy, read-2019, romance, ya

Read more of my reviews at Cornerfolds.com!

Onyx and Ivory has been on my shelf since before it was published. I kept intending to read it, but it's just SO long that I never committed. Recently I joined a local YA book club and our first read was this book, which finally gave me a good reason to pick it up. I'm glad I started early because it took me a solid 3 weeks to get through this 15 hour audiobook.

Kate, also known as Traitor Kate, is the main character of this story. After her father was e Read more of my reviews at Cornerfolds.com!

Onyx and Ivory has been on my shelf since before it was published. I kept intending to read it, but it's just SO long that I never committed. Recently I joined a local YA book club and our first read was this book, which finally gave me a good reason to pick it up. I'm glad I started early because it took me a solid 3 weeks to get through this 15 hour audiobook.

Kate, also known as Traitor Kate, is the main character of this story. After her father was executed for being a traitor, she left her town and began a new life with new friends and a new job. She also has wilder magic that could get her killed if found out. When Kate's childhood friend Prince Corwin reappears in her life, things begin to spiral and she finds herself in one dangerous situation after another.

I mostly enjoyed Kate and Corwin and their romance. Kate was the kind of strong heroine I like reading about and it was easy to sympathize with her tragic backstory. Corwin was probably my favorite character in this story. I enjoyed seeing him grow as a character, especially towards the end of the book. The romance between the two was okay, but needed something more. It seemed almost like an afterthought, and wasn't really given enough of the story to develop into something amazing. Perhaps these two will be more fleshed out in the next book. Overall, no strong feelings about either of these characters.

My biggest gripe about Onyx and Ivory is the length. Somehow it managed to be massive at 500 pages, while also taking forever to get anything done, AND cramming in a ridiculous amount of plot points. There were so many silly side plots that really don't need to exist at all. It's both way too much and not enough. I was legitimately bored through most of the first half, though it thankfully picks up later on. Thankfully it did have a pretty good plot twist towards the end.

Another issue is the lack of world building. This book focuses on one kingdom and mostly one town in that kingdom and there's really no mention of the outside world or how they function. The main threat from the beginning are the nightdrakes, which develop a bit throughout the book. I wish more had been written about how they're handled in other kingdoms. Are they a threat everywhere? Is wilder magic a threat everywhere? How do other kingdoms manage these threats? There was a lot that was unclear. Again, maybe things will be further explained in the coming books, but I feel like 500 pages should be enough to make the world pretty clear.

I really wanted to love Onyx and Ivory and really expected to! Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me. I was bored and confused. I wanted more world building and character development and less random side plots. The other two girls who read it for the book club really enjoyed it! Sadly, I doubt I'll be picking up the next book in the series.
...more

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Jul 17, 2018 Wing-yee (bibliomeds) rated it really liked it

Nice read with imaginative world building!!! love the magical system, love the characters! (would have been a five star if it was just a tad bit faster at the first 100 pages - but overall still very good!)

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Fantasy Buddy Reads: Onyx and Ivory [November 2018]	16	13	Dec 07, 2018 01:09AM
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Fallen Into Tijan...: Onyx & Ivory by Mindee Arnett (July - Auxiliary Challenge)	1	5	Jun 30, 2018 04:31PM
YA Buddy Readers'...: Onyx and Ivory (Rime Chronicles #1) by Mindee Arnett - Starting April 3rd 2019	1	9	Apr 28, 2018 11:11AM

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About Mindee Arnett

Mindee Arnett

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YA Author of THE NIGHTMARE AFFAIR, a contemporary fantasy coming March 5, 2013 from Tor Teen (Macmillan) and AVALON, a YA sci-fi thriller coming Winter 2014 from Balzer+Bray (HarperCollins). Represented by the fabulous Suzie Townsend of New Leaf Literary. Addicted to jumping horses and telling tales of magic, the macabre, and outer space.