Mortal Heart (His Fair Assassin, #3) in Ultimate Popsugar Reading Challenge

Aug 05, 2012 CrystalIsReading on StoryGraph rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, fantasy, young-adult

What an excellent finish to one of my favorite YA trilogies ever! I'll admit that one of the central mysteries of the story is something that I thought was obvious from the first book. However, there were some complexities I didn't guess, even with that. Lots of history and period detail. Lots of Annith and Balthazaar, and wonderful amounts of Ismae and Sybella too, as well as bits of Duval and Beast. I was so happy to see Annith grow and learn to take care of herself, unashamedly, and find love ...more

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Feb 02, 2015 Nadine in NY Jones rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy-romance, gods-known-and-unknown, young-adult, historical-romance, era-medieval, myth

I REALLY enjoyed reading this book. While I did have a few issues with the plot and characterizations, I LOVED the love story. It is Buffy and Angel all over again. And I realize that may sound trivial to some, but for me the Buffy/Angel story was epic. it was a love story for the ages.

I doubt that the parallel was intentional, I think that the characters are just such powerful archetypes that they appear again and again.

Annith, the heroine, is fair and beautiful, and also a well-trained and hi I REALLY enjoyed reading this book. While I did have a few issues with the plot and characterizations, I LOVED the love story. It is Buffy and Angel all over again. And I realize that may sound trivial to some, but for me the Buffy/Angel story was epic. it was a love story for the ages.

I doubt that the parallel was intentional, I think that the characters are just such powerful archetypes that they appear again and again.

Annith, the heroine, is fair and beautiful, and also a well-trained and highly skilled assassin. Annith longs for love, family, and a place to belong. She has found acceptance in the love and grace she feels from the Lord Mortain, whom she serves as a Handmaiden of Death, and she has also found a mini family of sorts in her fellow assassins Ismae and Sybella. Annith's love for her friends and for Death are powerful.

Balthezaar, the head of the Hellequins that Annith encounters, is all that is dark, mysterious, brooding, wounded, lonely, and lurking. He even admits to it:

“My lord! I am sorry. I did not see you. Normally, you are lurking in the corners or skulking in the shadows, not standing in plain sight.” His mouth quirks, ever so slightly. “I never skulk, and lurk only sometimes.”

I loved everything about their love story. I loved the dark brooding angst, the mossy earthiness of it, the wildness, and the bravery.

He never saw my love as a flaw or a weakness, but instead accepted it, letting it flow into him like a stream tumbling across parched earth. I eased his dreadful aloneness as much as he eased mine, and I welcomed that feeling, that I had something to give him in return. Is that not as good a reason to love someone as any? Is that not, in fact, at the very root of why anyone loves another?/i>

But for all this, I couldn't quite give it 5 stars. More like 4-1/2, but alas there are no half stars.

The thing that bugged me the most about this book is the same thing that I felt weakened the first two: the heroine's voice. Her voice is the same voice, no matter who the heroine is. I struggled mightily to feel the the real difference between the Handmaidens. And it's odd, because I had no trouble whatsoever feeling the subtle and overt differences between Duval and Beast and Balthazaar. Why can Ms LaFevers write different male characters, but seems stuck in a rut on the female character? This would never be a problem in a standalone book, but in a trilogy, it grated on me.

A smaller thing was the silly high school teenager Annith seemed to become halfway through, playfully flirting and shoving. I expected Valley Girl speak to emerge next! It was too much.

And the final small thing that bugged me was how VERY obvious Annith's connection to (view spoiler) was to me, but how very dense Annith herself was about it. I'm not even spoiler-tagging this one, it was so blindingly clear to me. Okay, maybe it's worth a spoiler tag. ...more

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Feb 26, 2015 keri. rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy, youngadult, fiction, historicalfiction, ebook, 2015

okay, thank the lord this was the last book, shit was getting real dumb in here. SHE BONED A GOD. WHAT IS THIS, JACQUELINE CAREY FOR TEENS? okay, NK Jemison's characters boned gods too, but those books were legit GOOD, and these were ... not great, Bob. ...more

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Jul 08, 2013 Celeste rated it really liked it

I loved this series. I liked this book probably the least of the three, but I loved the other two books-it is still a four star book. There was more supernatural elements to this book and at times it was predictable, but I love this writer and love the way she writes with historical settings.

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