by Kristina Pérez
Series: Sweet Black Waves #2
Published on August 27, 2019 by Imprint
Format: ARC
Pages: 384
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult
Inspired by the legend of Tristan and Iseult, Wild Savage Stars is the spellbinding sequel to Sweet Black Waves.
Branwen has a secret powerful enough to destroy two kingdoms.
Her ancient magic led to a terrible betrayal by both her best friend, the princess Essy, and her first love, Tristan. Now this same magic is changing Branwen. Adrift in a rival court, Branwen must hide the truth from the enemy king by protecting the lovers who broke her heart―and finds herself considering a darker path.
Not everyone wants the alliance with Branwen’s kingdom to succeed―peace is balanced on a knife’s edge, and her only chance may be to embrace the darkness within…
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Last summer, Kristina Pérez blew me away with Sweet Black Waves. I had heard great things about it, but when I sat down to finally read it I just couldn’t stop, and it ended up being one of my favorite reads of the year. Needless to say, I’ve been eagerly awaiting the follow-up, Wild Savage Stars, since the moment I was wrecked by the first book. Unsurprisingly, I knew twenty pages in that I was going to love this book just as much.
If the first book was heartbreaking, then I don’t even know what word to use to describe Wild Savage Stars that will convey just how much it hurt me to read. And I mean that in the best way, don’t we just need a book to break us every now and then? Throughout the entire story I just felt an aching for Branwen, for her choices she was forced to make, for her relationships. Pérez really knows how to write a tragedy, and with this story she’s really dug in, no holds barred. I like to think that she’s off somewhere doing that evil author cackle while drinking my tears and reveling in my heartbreak.
I really thought the pacing of this sequel was fantastic. I’m partial to sequels and middle books, and this one hit all the notes that I look for at just the right times. Not once did I find myself bored or my mind drifting as I read. It took me two days to finish, mostly done in two sittings, and honestly I would have read the whole thing in one go if I didn’t have life stuff to do. The pages and chapters just flew by, filled with plenty of action and character development, making reading feel effortless.
Speaking of character development…poor Branwen. I can’t even think about her without my chest feeling tight. This young woman has been through enough, and she’s held her head high the entire time, taking it all like a champ, so can she please catch a break in book three?! I loved seeing her growth over this book, going from already being a strong leading lady to, well, basically I’d pick her to rule the world. The other characters felt nicely fleshed out as well still. I though Iseult in particular had a great arc in this one. There were new characters introduced too, and their introductions didn’t feel rushed, which is something I’ve found to happen when a character isn’t brought in until a later book in a series. After the first book, I was really excited to meet King Marc, and he did not disappoint! I can’t wait to see even more of him in the next book.
Wild Savage Stars is easily one of my favorite reads of the year so far. Kristina Pérez is cementing herself a place on my favorites shelf. With the beautiful writing, emotional story-telling, and excellent characters, I highly recommend this series to anyone who’s a fan of fantasy. It’s also a great retelling of the story of Tristan and Isolde, and as much as I may have enjoyed the 2006 movie version, these books are so much better in my opinion. Seeing that well known story develop from the outside perspective of Branwen’s character is so much fun, even if it hurts. so. much. And I supposed it will keep hurting until next summer when I can get my hands on book three and probably hurt some more.
About Katie
I'm a twenty-something aspiring writer who really, really needs to get back to revisions. I've been reviewing books since 2014, and am determined to somehow make stories my day job. I truly think that every book out there contains something good and is meant for somebody.
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