Challenge Corner discussion

In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten. And while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest now simmers below the surface.

As the rulers of each kingdom grapple for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed... and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia, and Magnus are caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and even unforeseen love.

The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed?

It's the eve of war.... Choose your side.

Princess: Raised in pampered luxury, Cleo must now embark on a rough and treacherous journey into enemy territory in search of magic long thought extinct.

Rebel: Jonas, enraged at injustice, lashes out against the forces of oppression that have kept his country cruelly impoverished. To his shock, he finds himself the leader of a people's revolution centuries in the making.

Sorceress: Lucia, adopted at birth into the royal family, discovers the truth about her past—and the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.

Heir: Bred for aggression and trained to conquer, firstborn son Magnus begins to realize that the heart can be more lethal than the sword....

I didn't get a chance to read FROSTBITE yesterday, so I'll probably be starting REBEL SPRINGS on Friday night or maybe Saturday. Super excited!

No worries. I was supposed to finish Night Circus last night so I could start this one on lunch today. But my sister coaxed me into playing Xbox with her. So I didn't have as much read time last night. I will finish it tonight and start on Falling Kingdoms tomorrow. :D

Finally started this one. 😁 (view spoiler)[ I forgot how much I absolutely hate Aron. He’s such an ass. And my Magnus baby, oh how I have missed him. ☺️ (hide spoiler)]

So I’m about 60% done with the book

(view spoiler)[the farther I get into the book and the more I read, the more I remember about what happens in the next books. I can’t believe I waited so long to reread this series! It’s one of my favorites. I just want to get to the parts hat are like engraved in my mind that I never forgot about this series. Lol.

I still love Jonas. And Cleo, in this book she annoyed me the first time and she is annoying again this time. But she also gets better with time. Lol. And my baby Magnus. Gosh I just love him. Lucia is just eh for me. Throughout the entire series. She never became a character that I adored. I kinda just tolerated her. 😑

I can’t wait for you to start again and move on to the second book. I promise it gets so much better. 😁 (hide spoiler)]

I’m at 70% now.
(view spoiler)[ I’m coming up to the part where Magnus goes to fetch Cleo and kills Theon. 😩😩 Poor Theon. (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "I’m at 70% now.
[spoilers removed]"

He really didn't deserve it!! 😭

(view spoiler)[I will also never understand that kiss. Between Magnus and Lucia. I mean how can he even let himself feel that way towards his sister? Because he started feeling that way when he thought she was his blood sister. So gross. (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "[spoilers removed]"

RIGHT?! eeeeew. (view spoiler)[What bothers me most about it is that *she* didn't know. He repressed those feelings for a long time, and suddenly he knew the truth. But she had NO idea! Super NOT COOL OF YOU, MAGNUS. At least get excited and feel unable to hold in the news and tell her - but at least tell her first. Sheesh. (hide spoiler)]

(view spoiler)[Exactly! Lmao. Like he just randomly kissed her. His freaking sister! Like whaaaat. Incredibly gross.

But I still love him. And I just grew more and more in love with him throughout the series. And I still love him even though it's been like over a year since I read the series. Lol. :D (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "Exactly! Lmao. Like he just randomly kissed her. His freaking sister! Like whaaaat. Incredibly gross.

But I still love him. And I just grew more and more in love with him throughout the series. An..."

Yes!! that's his charm: despite what mistakes he makes, I still love him. I can't wait to watch his character growth in the rest of the series!

Sierra wrote: "Felicia wrote: "Exactly! Lmao. Like he just randomly kissed her. His freaking sister! Like whaaaat. Incredibly gross.

But I still love him. And I just grew more and more in love with him throughou..."

If you love him now you are just gonna keep falling more and more for him. He grows into such a good character. All of the characters do actually. In the first book it seemed very thrown together. Like you don't really learn about the characters at all. But they definitely grow.

Finished! :D Gonna move on to Rebel Spring either tonight or tomorrow. (:

(view spoiler)[I remembered that Cleo was in Auranos like with King Gaius and them inside Castle Bellos. But I forgot how she was brought in after her escape from the palace. And I also forgot that she was found by Magnus while his father was talking on the balcony!

Gosh, I love this series. I really hope you end up loving it and reading the whole series with me. :D (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "Finished! :D Gonna move on to Rebel Spring either tonight or tomorrow. (:

I remembered that Cleo was in Auranos like with King Gaius and them inside Castle Bellos. But I forgot how she was brought..."

Dude, I'm totally speeding through Rebel Spring! I haven't had much time today so far but I sped through 100 pages last night.

I finally am loving Cleo's character, and Magnus makes my heart ACHE. 😭 So excited to keep reading! I'll hopefully finish tomorrow!

If you guys get to Immortal Reign after it comes out I'll try to join for that one.

I started Rebel Spring. I’m at page 50. (view spoiler)[
Magnus is just so adorable right?! You just can’t help but love him even when he’s trying to be a badass. I mean he is a badass. But like he’s just a giant cinnamon roll. 😍

And I still effing love Jonas. ❤️

Out of all the characters Lucia is my least favorite. I’ve gotten to my first chapter in her POV and I just can’t wait for it to be over with. It’s the same as when I first read this series. Her chapters are just so boring. 😩 Her chapters are my least favorite until another character comes into play. And then that characters chapters annoy me. 😑 (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "I started Rebel Spring. I’m at page 50.
Magnus is just so adorable right?! You just can’t help but love him even when he’s trying to be a badass. I mean he is a badass. But like he’s just a giant ..."

(view spoiler)[So funny, because as of now, I'm sooooo intrigued by Lucia's chapters! It might change of course but I want to understand where this place is! What it is! Like omg 😱

And I really am enjoying Jonas's character so much more. I'm also surprised because ever since the end of book 1 I've been skeptical of a ship between him and Cleo.....and I like it. 😂

I'm going to read more today! so excited! (hide spoiler)]

I just can’t wsit for you to know everything that I do! Lmao.

I bought Cruel Prince. I need to read that before The end of the month for the BOTM.

Felicia wrote: "I just can’t wsit for you to know everything that I do! Lmao.

I bought Cruel Prince. I need to read that before The end of the month for the BOTM."

Omg! I need to read that before the end of the month too. I dunno if I can do it.....😱😱😱

I'm on 225 of REBEL now!!

On page 334 now...I'm getting ready to just finish this tonight XD

(view spoiler)[Arom just killed Brion!! UGH HE MAKES ME SO ANGRY. I can't believe how insolent he is sometimes. (hide spoiler)]

Oh man. The scene between Cleo and Lucia at 350 is my favorite scene in the series so far. So many lies, such tension!

Sierra wrote: "Oh man. The scene between Cleo and Lucia at 350 is my favorite scene in the series so far. So many lies, such tension!"

(view spoiler)[Aron is definitely a little skuz-bucket. Lol. I hate him so much. Brion's death was so sad! My poor baby Jonas is just losing everyone. D:

Cleo and Lucia's friendship took me by surprise when I first started reading. I wasn't expecting Cleo to go that route while at the castle.

I don't remember exactly what happens at the end of this book. But has shit hit the fan yet!?

Do you like Alexius? (hide spoiler)]

Felicia wrote: "Sierra wrote: "Oh man. The scene between Cleo and Lucia at 350 is my favorite scene in the series so far. So many lies, such tension!"

Aron is definitely a little skuz-bucket. Lol. I hate him so m..."

I finished last night!! It was too late to update here tho. So sleepy 😅 I enjoyed it more than the first, but it still had a few issues (imo) so I gave it a 3.5. I don't have the next book handy, but I might read that one in early February.

(view spoiler)[Things are definitely heating up now. I loved Cleo and Lucia becoming friends, and I think the Magnus/Cleo marriage dynamic is amazing. Aron is dead !!!! thank God. And Jonas is a great character ugh. I love him. And I'm not sure how I feel about Alexius??? Hmmm..... (hide spoiler)]

Sierra wrote: "Felicia wrote: "Sierra wrote: "Oh man. The scene between Cleo and Lucia at 350 is my favorite scene in the series so far. So many lies, such tension!"

Aron is definitely a little skuz-bucket. Lol...."

No worries! I still have to finish The Cruel Prince before getting back into Rebel Spring. So I probably won't get into Gathering Darkness until this weekend. Are you going to try to get it from a library or are you gonna buy it?

If you do the free trial of Audible, you can listen to the books for free. (:

(view spoiler)[There is so much death in this series. It's crazy! Lol. I can't wait for Aron to die. Haha. I knew he did, obviously. But I just couldn't wait for you to get there! Because you hate him just as much as me. It was a celebratory death though. Lmao.

How are you feeling about Lucia's chapters now that you've finished the book?

Jonas, gosh, he is just a little ham. I freakin' love him. He is so authentic in my opinion. If I didn't absolutely love Magnus so much, Jonas would be my favorite character. But Magnus is my fave. And Jonas is a close second. :D (hide spoiler)]

So I've kinda been a bad book buddy but not at the same time. I finished Rebel Spring late Friday night and I finished Gathering Darkness this morning. But I totally forgot to write on here. My wifi went out in my house and I had to have a tech come fix it. -.-

But here is the finish of Rebel Spring.
(view spoiler)[So much happened in this book! It's crazy. Aron died, Brion died, the Queen died,. Just everyone is dying! Lol.

I love my little cinnamon roll Jonas. :D

And that kiss between Cleo and Magnus! And the one between her and Jonas! Effing loveeeeeeeeee!

I still find Lucia so incredibly boring. And I totally forgot that Alexius was working with Melenia!! I remembered she fell in love with him in her dreams. But I totally forgot he was a backstabber! Lol.

I'm sorry I can't write more. After reading the third book too, I forget where one ended and the next began. And I don't want to ruin anything for you. (hide spoiler)]

Now here are my updates for Gathering Darkness. Please remember these percentages might be off. I'm going off of memory from yesterday. I don't know if exactly what I talk about is in those percentages of the book or not.

20%(view spoiler)[I totally forgot about Felix! Yeesh. What a few years can do to someone's memory! Lmao.

I love Ashur my first time reading and that hasn't changed! I also love him with Nic. They're so incredibly adorable! :D

And poor Lysandra. Seeing her brother killed. -.-

And Sabina was Magnus's real mother! I totally forgot that was a thing! (hide spoiler)]

40%(view spoiler)[Amara is a fucking bitch. She's just so fake. And she killed that poor boy. D:

Alexius is also a total douche bag for messing around with Lucia. And Melenia is still a major bitch too. I feel like I grew to hate a lot of characters in this book. Lmao. (hide spoiler)]

60%(view spoiler)[My Magnus and Cleo! Working together. Who would've thought that that would happen right?! Lol.

Amara, still a damn bitch. -.-

And in forgetting about Felix, I forgot about this whole story line where Felix was working for the King! (hide spoiler)]

80%(view spoiler)[Blehhhhhhhh! I remembered that Alexius died here. But totally forgot that he tried to kill Lucia as well. I liked him but didn't at the same time because he was working for Melenia but he was under her spell. But I think Alexius did love her because he stabbed himself. Poor guy.

Amara is still a back stabbing bitch. Killed her brother! And now she has the stone. Could anything else go wrong!? (hide spoiler)]

Finish.(view spoiler)[Cleo saved Magnus! :D

And Lucia, poor Lucia. Betrayed and heart broken. Melenia deserved what she got! Stupid bitch.

And now the Fire Kindred is out! OMGGGGGGGGG. :D (hide spoiler)]

***Restarting August 8th 2018***

Ohhhhhh. I might get in on this. Maybe.

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RESTARTING SEPTEMBER 1ST, 2019

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Yay!!

Started today!

(view spoiler)[Honestly I’m not off to a great start with this one because now that I’ve been removed from the series for so long, I’m remembering all the things I didn’t love about the series before. I have a feeling it will get better once I get durtber in but.....I’m a little nervous going into it 😅 (hide spoiler)]

Gathering Darkness Chapters 2-10
(view spoiler)[I’m starting to get sucked in again. I think at this rate the whole series is going to be a 3 star read for me, but you never know! The last 3 books could surprise me. I’m just not a huge fan of her writing and her characters don’t, like.....reach out and grab me. Magnus is probably my fave character atm (he has been since the beginning). (hide spoiler)]

I just finished Rebel Spring today. I’ll get my comments up tomorrow morning and should be able to start Gathering Darkness by the weekend.

Jennifer wrote: "I just finished Rebel Spring today. I’ll get my comments up tomorrow morning and should be able to start Gathering Darkness by the weekend."

Yay! Excited to read/discuss with you!

Ch 7 - (view spoiler)[ Wow, I actually feel a little bad for Magnus. (hide spoiler)]
Ch 16 - (view spoiler)[ I suppose that taking Lucia out would have been a good strategy. How much do you want to bet that the King had his own wife murdered?? (hide spoiler)]
Ch 24 - (view spoiler)[ Oh the tangled web the author is weaving! Lysandra in love with Jonas, Jonas in love with Cleo, maybe Magnus in love with Cleo, Magnus still in love with Lucia, Lucia in love with a watcher. How delightful. (hide spoiler)]
Finished - (view spoiler)[ Huh. Ok, so the "evil" that Lucia is struggling with is because of the blood magic that her mother was unknowingly giving her, right? And in theory, the ring will help her control it?? But if Cleo gives her the ring, how will Cleo guarantee Lucia's help? Eventually, she will have to go against her father in order to help Cleo and I don't think she will ever do that. I suppose Cleo can't keep the ring hidden any longer, too many people know about it. That part with Nick and the Prince from overseas was interesting! I wonder what will become of their partnership?? (hide spoiler)] Looking forward to the next book!

Gathering Darkness Chapters 11-17

(view spoiler)[AAAAH!!!! I forgot how much I ship Cleo and Magnus OMG 😭 Their chemistry is great and I like what they could possibly mean to each other/be for each other..... I’m excited to see where this goes omg (hide spoiler)]

Gathering Darkness Chapters 18 - End

(view spoiler)[Honestly, I’m just not impressed with the series overall. There are things I like but then there are things I Really Don’t Like. I’m going to do my best to finish the whole series, because I’m heavily invested in Magnus and Cleo - as a ship as as separate people - but whew. I hope it gets better 😂 (hide spoiler)]

UGH! Remember when I was supposed to read this with you Sierra? Lol. I STILL have not read the final book. Hahaha.

Felicia wrote: "UGH! Remember when I was supposed to read this with you Sierra? Lol. I STILL have not read the final book. Hahaha."

OMG! I do remember. I think something happened irl and I couldn’t read anything for a while..... That made me so sad bc I was totally enjoying our readalong! If you wanna hop in with the last book I’d love that!

I would have to read the whole series again. I remember stuff but probably not enough. I do remember the end of the 2nd to last book though! Lol. I'll have to try to get to it eventually.

Ch 10 (27%) - (view spoiler)[ At this point, I am just laughing at how horny all these characters are. It's like a freakin soap opera. (hide spoiler)]

Jennifer wrote: "
Ch 10 (27%) - [spoilers removed]"

HAHAHA I felt the same way 😂

Chapters 1-5
(view spoiler)[Uuuugh this is really going downhill for me. I’m going to do my best to finish this one but I’m incredibly BORED. My desire to know what happens to Magnus and Cleo is dwindling because of how bored I am. If I end up rating this one less than 3 stars I’ll probably just stopr eading the series. I keep trying and keep feeling disappointed. 😭 (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 6-18
(view spoiler)[Uuuugh I’m literally so bored now. I don’t care about 90% of the characters, and I particularly despise Lucia and Amara. They’re just not well-written characters IMO. And I really love Cleo and Magnus still but I have reached maximum level of bored and dislike of her writing..... This will probably be my last book in the series. (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 19-27
(view spoiler)[I truly hate the ups and downs. The characters have become despicable to me by now. I literally don’t care about any of this. Maybe a smidgeon of my desire to see Cleo and Magnus together is saving me from DNFing this, but at this point the main reason I stick around is for the buddy read points 😂 (hide spoiler)]

Chapters 28- End
(view spoiler)[Yep. I hated it. Like oh my God I hated this book. I didnt like any of the charafters, they all made stupid decisions, everyone was horny 24/7, they fall in and out of love with the snap of a finger....... i’m sad (but not really) to say that I won’t be joining for the rest of the buddy read but I WILL stick around to read/interact with all comments. (hide spoiler)]

Ch 17 - (view spoiler)[ Oh come on! Magnus and Amara? What a devious girl she is! And why is it ok for her to not be chaste, but it was such a big deal when Cleo wasn't a virgin. Huh, huh? (hide spoiler)]
Ch 26 - (view spoiler)[ I'm confused about Alexius too. I truly believe he actually loves her, but that compulsion spell makes me doubt everything he does and says. I think Lucia is in big trouble. Could his future betrayal be what turns her evil? (hide spoiler)]
Finished - (view spoiler)[ Huh. Ok. I'm totally clapping my hands that Cleo and Magnus decided they love each other. I think if they actually team up, they will be hard to beat. I'm so devastated that Nick lost Prince Asher before things got interesting between the two of them. Amara just needs to die like Melenia - at least we don't have to worry about her anymore! I like the idea of all these elemental gods being awakened. Talk about bringing magic back to the land! (hide spoiler)] I'm eager to start the next one, but I have a few other things I need to finish up first. I don't want to hold you back though if you are ready to keep going, go ahead. I'll try to catch up as I am able.

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RESTARTING MAY 4TH 2020

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starting the first book now!