by Francesca Flores
Series: Diamond City #1
Published on January 28, 2020 by Wednesday Books
ISBN: 9781250220448
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 400
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Good things don't happen to girls who come from nothing...unless they risk everything.
Fierce and ambitious, Aina Solís as sharp as her blade and as mysterious as the blood magic she protects. After the murder of her parents, Aina takes a job as an assassin to survive and finds a new family in those like her: the unwanted and forgotten.
Her boss is brutal and cold, with a questionable sense of morality, but he provides a place for people with nowhere else to go. And makes sure they stay there.
DIAMOND CITY: built by magic, ruled by tyrants, and in desperate need of saving. It is a world full of dark forces and hidden agendas, old rivalries and lethal new enemies.
To claim a future for herself in a world that doesn't want her to survive, Aina will have to win a game of murder and conspiracy—and risk losing everything.
Full of action, romance and dark magic, book one of Francesca Flores' breathtaking fantasy duology will leave readers eager for more!
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As I finish Diamond City, I think I’m officially over assassin books.
Or at least MUCH pickier about the ones I actually enjoy. This YA fantasy fell firmly in the category of “just okay.” I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it. I didn’t really feel anything toward it.
Aina, the assassin in question, came off as all that and a bag of chips but I wasn’t buying it. She’s in with a criminal gang that reminded me a bit of Ace of Shades or Six of Crows, but not as good as either of those stories. And she’s thrown into the midst of a bunch of action.
Cool. But I don’t care about any of that.
And maybe that’s more a comment on my reading tastes rather than the book. I struggled to find what made this book special, why I should love this character. Aina was broadcasted as this amazing assassin but that’s not what came off the page.
Combined with muddled world-building, I struggled to lock onto anything in Diamond City that would make me say “yes, I totally recommend this book.” The world Flores creates had the potential to be so much more than a backdrop for an assassin to show off. By the halfway point, I didn’t even want to read about her anymore, but I could see myself reading a book set in this world but following another character. It was almost dark and gritty, almost interesting. But the details were overshadowed by Aina.
Just not a good fit. Diamond City bored me and left me with little more than annoyance for the hours I put into pushing through it. I’ll definitely check out future works by this author but not in this series.
About Austine
I'm a 20-something research proposal developer with a background in the life sciences and education. Reviewer of books since 2011, amateur photographer by day, and aspiring author by night. I believe animals (and books) are better than people.
Good to know as I was contemplating trying to fit this one into my schedule. I feel like I’m ok to wait or even skip this one. Thanks for sharing!
I didn’t even know how to write this review. I felt absolutely nothing for this book. Such a weird experience. If you’re looking for an assassin story, I wouldn’t recommend this one, but if you do end up reading it I hope you enjoy it more than I did!