#talaysn

[tang-wei]

The Hurricane Wars (sfw) Headcanons

I can't get these two idiots out of my head - someone please talk to me about this book!!!

Alaric's got a sweet tooth (that's canon ig) but Talaysn will chew chillies for fun and say it's not spicy (it's the Nenvare blood in her)

Alaric cooking = frying an egg

Talaysn cooking = boiling water for instant noodles

Alaric's favourite weapon is the scythe and that's because at age 14 he had an emo phase and a jet-black scythe made of shadows is the coolest thing ever

In a moment of brevity where they are not really trying to kill each other, Talaysn asks Alaric why he's got a farming tool for his weapon and Alaric is offended

Likes mint chocolate = Alaric, Khaede

Thinks mint chocolates are basically toothpaste = Talaysn (she will never turn down food though!), Sevarim

Alaric's favourite color is red. He'd wear red robes except his dad thought red was not the night empire VibeTM and decreed black robes for all

Sevarim's pansexsual

Sevarim has rizz but does not know what to do when people start rizzing back. Will probably reboot with the windows shut down sound in his head tbh

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🦇 A Monsoon Rising Book Review 🦇

❓ #QOTD What's your favorite enemies-to-lovers story? 🦇 Even after a lifetime of war, being married to a sworn foe feels far from peaceful. Talasyn must play the part of Alaric’s willing empress while her allies secretly plot to overthrow his reign. But the longer the couple are forced together, the harder it becomes to deny the feelings crackling like lightning between them. When the time comes to act, can she trust him, or must she ignore her heart for the sake of so many others?

💜 The second book of The Hurricane Wars trilogy starts exactly where the first leaves off. Let's break it down:

✨ Characters: As the second book in the trilogy, we should see the bulk of character development in this novel--moments that hint at Talasyn & Alaric seeing one another's perspectives to the point of changing their ideologies about the world & how it should operate. While we are given those moments, they're nearly always rooted in lust (namely, throughout the second half of the novel). The tension I loved so much in the first book still holds, but the pattern starts to become repetitive: an argument, a heated kiss, no real discussion of their feelings & thoughts. Yes, the third book requires Talaysn & Alaric to hold steadfast to their secrets (& potential betrayals), but they could have at least been honest about their messy feelings for one another. The cast grows a little in this book, but we barely see any real characterization for the supporting cast.

✨ Plot and Pacing: This novel focuses on the cataclysmic event, the Moonless Dark, that partially drove Talaysn & Alaric's political marriage. It takes place over the span of four months, with multiple time jumps. Still, the pace seems to drag at times. It's the action-packed scenes that drive the pacing (as they should). More reveals (political secrets, information about Talaysn's mother) would have allowed suspense to drive the pacing faster.

✨ World-Building: Just as before, Guanzon's descriptions of this world are beautiful & descriptive. I can't believe I'm typing this, but I wish there were fewer descriptions & more INFORMATION. What about the universe beyond the Continent and Nenavar? What about Nenavar's culture & history? There are small hints, but not enough to expand this universe.

✨ Romance: You bookish bats wanted more smut from this trilogy, & you got it. The spice definitely amps up in this one, but again, it becomes a distraction for Alaric & Talasyn when there's SO much more going on. That tension between them remains, the sassy banter still builds toward eruptive moments, & they're both definitely falling for one another. It wasn't the smut that caught my attention, but the soft intimacies between them that REALLY mattered. They start opening up to one another in ways that MATTER--I just wish there was more of THAT than the mindless, poorly timed, frenzy of smut.

✨ Mystery/Suspense: There's DEFINITELY a reveal lurking in the shadows of book three, namely, about Talaysn's mother, Hanan (my mom's name, which throws me out of the story EVERY time I see it). This story DOES end on a cliffhanger, albeit an awkward one, so we'll see where it goes.

🦇 Recommended to fans of Avatar the Last Airbender (or Zutara and Rylo shippers), Fourth Wing, and ACOTAR.

✨ The Vibes ✨ 🌀 Romantic Fantasy Trilogy 🌀 Enemies to Lovers 🌀 Forced Proximity 🌀 War/Occupation 🌀 Southeast Asian/BIPOC 🌀 Marriage of Convenience 🌀 Slow Burn 🌀 Feminine Rage

🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

💬 Quotes ❝ “His Majesty ought to grant me a title.” “On top of all the other names I already call you?” ❞ ❝ “Little hellcat,” he muttered, lost in her narrowed eyes flashing with hints of gold. “Claws out even while you purr.” ❞ ❝ “Deadly. Magnificent. The prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.” ❞ ❝ Just him and me and the monsoon. ❞ ❝ Ever since we met, I have lived in a dream of what could be. ❞

[a-skirmish-of-wit-and-lit]

Book Review: The Hurricane Wars (The Hurricane Wars #1) by Thea Guanzon

The Hurricane Wars is a heady, political, action-packed fantasy with two characters who are forced into an alliance (aka: an arranged marriage) even though they're heirs poised on opposite sides of a decades-long war, and despite having started out intent on destroying one another. Talaysn is a wily solider who can access light magic. Alaric is an inscrutable prince of the Night Empire who can summon shadows. Similar to The Bridge Kingdom, the two of them are brought together by circumstance and necessity, forcing them to band together for the peaceful survival of The Continent.

However, things are never as simple or as smooth as they seem. Not only are there secrets to unravel, political schemes to dodge, and rustling feelings to subdue, but there is a magical storm brewing in this world that Talaysn and Alaric must learn how fight. Not to mention win. And soon...or else they'll all be doomed.

I found this to be engrossing for the most part. I particularly liked the Filipino history that was infused into the setting and climate. There was also some satisfying commentary on the sacrifices of war, the degradation of colonization, the drive to protect and preserve culture. I liked the enemies to reluctant allies to lovers of it all too, of course. That's my literary catnip!

I did struggle to fully settle into the world building, though. It felt a little helter-skelter at times, with there being too much information dispensed at once sometimes and then at other times not enough. The bare bones of the magic system were there, rife with names, with functions, with potential, but it never took off or developed to the extent that I was hoping it would. That made it hard to fully immerse myself in this world.

That said, this was an enjoyable read overall and it had a lot of tropes that will resonate with folks. And that cliffhanger! Oof! You'll be clamoring to know what happens to Talaysn and Alaric next!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC in exchange for my review.

3.5/5 stars

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