Sweep in Peace (Innkeeper Chronicles, #2) in Do Better: SFF without Sexual Violence

Feb 10, 2019 Amy rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: what-might-have-been, paranormal-and-urban-fantasy, ilona-andrews

I love how Dina solves everything with tea.
Ruthless warlord at your door? Offer him tea.
Mortal enemies about to kill each other? Suggest a cup of tea.
Pining after a guy you only knew for a week? Drink tea.
TEA SOLVES EVERYTHING.
Except maybe this book.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it. I immediately put the third one on hold and tracked down another series by this author. But this book felt like it could have been...so much more. And disappointed expectations are almost worse than no expectatio I love how Dina solves everything with tea.
Ruthless warlord at your door? Offer him tea.
Mortal enemies about to kill each other? Suggest a cup of tea.
Pining after a guy you only knew for a week? Drink tea.
TEA SOLVES EVERYTHING.
Except maybe this book.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it. I immediately put the third one on hold and tracked down another series by this author. But this book felt like it could have been...so much more. And disappointed expectations are almost worse than no expectations at all.
For a fairly short book, it tackles a potentially giant plot with gumption and does a good job telling the story. I would have liked more about the negotiation because I love political intrigue, but it wasn't super necessary. This was Dina's story and Dina is the neutral innkeeper. She doesn't/shouldn't care about the political machinations of the specific parties.
Two interconnected strands kept pulling me out of the story, however:
1. The book reads like a standalone novel..and not like a standalone. You could probably pick it up without the first book. All the character motivation, memories, etc. get rehashed. And I got bored. Maybe if I didn't just read the first one, it would't feel so over the top. But because I did, I kept releasing aggravated sighs when she mentioned her parents. Paragraph after freakin' paragraph...we get it. They disappeared. She misses them. She is trying to find them.
Further, like in the first book, I kept feeling like I was missing something. A quick skim of other reviews on here tell me certain characters appear from other series. See, I sensed it. I sensed I was supposed to already feel some form of endearment or recognition for characters but I didn't. I don't know them yet. And the plot sort of acts like I should know them...so I got distracted.
2. The romance kept throwing me for a loop. Dina spends far too much time pining over Sean. They spent a week together. One week. That's not enough time to mope for months. The story goes out of its way to try and explain this ('absence makes the heart grow fonder' & when you're far away you need someone to think about!) but again, I just finished the first book. Their relationship was light and flirty. Not heavy and angsty. So suddenly turning it angsty annoyed me. It made it hard for me to swallow Dina's actions. We met a strong, independent heroine in the first book. Now we've got a girl who 'happens' to find herself walking past her ex's house every day...if you know what I mean.

Otherwise, a very fun book full of new characters and old, familiar ones. I really do love the Inkeeper role and the way Dina adds a flair of drama to everything. She comes across experienced and tough but also young and struggling. Not an easy combination, but it generally works. I look forward to further exploring this series and world! ...more

7 likes · Like · see review

May 24, 2023 Jukaschar rated it liked it

While the book ist rather serious in some parts, it still feels very much like the parent of cozy fantasy literature. I'm looking forward to meeting some of the characters the author introduced in this part in the third book (looking at you, Orro, and Nameless Cat). ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jan 18, 2022 A. _____ rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, sci-fi, 2022

The problem with Ilona Andrews, if you can call it a problem, is that one is never enough. Two in a row don't seem to be enough either.

I liked Sweep in Peace better than Clean Sweep. There's almost no romance in this book, which is great really since we get to focus on what Dina can do with the Gertrude Hunt, and what they can do together. We meet a bunch of kickass characters and find out more about the larger world...all excellent things. I bet their worldbuilding brainstorming sessions are m ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jul 18, 2023 ♥Xeni♥ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ebook, fantasy, science-fiction, 2023-books-read

This book showcases the inn and Dina far better than the first one did! Finally the magic of the inn is desired in great quantities: a magical diplomatic summit is here and everyone is at odds with one another! It's the perfect test of all their skills (including how to keep a cool head).

I really liked how this book showed more of the magic of the inn. It gave us so many more species to learn about. We finally learn what happened to werewolf Sean (it's heartbreaking) and revisit with the vampir ...more

Like · see review

Dec 23, 2021 Becca rated it really liked it

This feels much better than the first one--much more information about innkeepers and the world around them, clearer goals, the romance starting to make more sense.

Like · see review