Prophecy by Ellen Oh
The greatest warrior in all of the Seven Kingdoms... is a girl with yellow eyes.
Kira’s the only female in the king’s army, and the prince’s bodyguard. She’s a demon slayer and an outcast, hated by nearly everyone in her home city of Hansong. And, she’s their only hope...
Murdered kings and discovered traitors point to a demon invasion, sending Kira on the run with the young prince. He may be the savior predicted in the Dragon King Prophecy, but the missing treasure of myth may be the true key. With only the guidance of the cryptic prophecy, Kira must battle demon soldiers, evil shaman, and the Demon Lord himself to find what was once lost and raise a prince into a king.
Intrigue and mystery, ancient lore and action-packed fantasy come together in this heart-stopping first book in a trilogy
Publishes in US: Jan 2
Source: HarperTeen Via Edelweiss
Series? Yes. 1st in The Dragon King Chronicles. The 2nd Dragon King Chronicles #2 : Warrior is due out in 2014
Find Ellen:
Site Twitter Facebook BlogBuy It::
 |  |  |  |  |
 |  |
I liked Kira, she is definitely a confidant and capable main character. I like it when a lady knows what she wants, knows how to take care of herself, and kicks ass.
What I didn't like about Prophecy was that I was thrown in with a bunch of unfamiliar terminology and places, and politics are not my thing, and it seemed that it took more of a center stage than I expected. I think that is my fault though, because while I like some fantasy, it has to be pulled off a certain way, and it is not flaw to the book when I can't get fully immersed.
There are plenty of action scenes and I also liked the build up with her protecting the prince as well as her sarcastic interactions with Shin. That is what made the beginning, and all of the politics okay for me. I think another thing that kept me from fully diving is is how Kira guarded her heart and that there wasn't any romance. Don't get me wrong, I don't think that a book has to have romance, or that a girl/woman should think that they need a man to be complete, BUT that is just my reading preferences.
Bottom Line: I read for Kira and those scenes. In the end, I think that this was just not exactly what I was expecting, but it was a quality enough book.
What I didn't like about Prophecy was that I was thrown in with a bunch of unfamiliar terminology and places, and politics are not my thing, and it seemed that it took more of a center stage than I expected. I think that is my fault though, because while I like some fantasy, it has to be pulled off a certain way, and it is not flaw to the book when I can't get fully immersed.
There are plenty of action scenes and I also liked the build up with her protecting the prince as well as her sarcastic interactions with Shin. That is what made the beginning, and all of the politics okay for me. I think another thing that kept me from fully diving is is how Kira guarded her heart and that there wasn't any romance. Don't get me wrong, I don't think that a book has to have romance, or that a girl/woman should think that they need a man to be complete, BUT that is just my reading preferences.
Bottom Line: I read for Kira and those scenes. In the end, I think that this was just not exactly what I was expecting, but it was a quality enough book.
My question to you, my lovely readers:
Have you ever felt at disadvantage due to gender?
I'm with you, fantasy has to be pulled off a certain way to keep me interested, and I much prefer when there is a bit of romance thrown in! Watching the x-files for all those years with nothing happening between mulder and scully was so frustrating!
ReplyDeleteI'm steering away from fantasy books at the moment cause the last few I read I didn't enjoy, so I very much doubt I'll read this one - good to know that I'm not missing something awesome though!
Have I ever felt at a disadvantage because of my gender? I'm not sure, I generally get on better with boys than girls so I don't think it's really been an issue, although at uni girls were way outnumbered by boys!
I very much agree. I loved the action and adventure. The politics -- too many place names and character names. I had difficulty keeping track.
ReplyDeleteSince I'm in a largely female career, I can't think of any time my gender has left me feeling disadvantaged.
Sorry this wasn't entirely satisfactory. I'm not a huge fantasy lover, so I probably wouldn't enjoy it. But I do really like a kick-ass MC.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
I'm with you too, LOL. Fantasy isn't a genre I'm very comfortable reading, because I never really get as pulled into as with Contemporary. Fantasy just isn't me.
ReplyDeleteAnd I thought the same about PROPHECY. Fantasy really isn't me, and there wasn't any romance, so I wasn't kept entertained long enough to really have any good points (for me).
Kira wasn't a character I identified with, and...PROPHECY just simply wasn't me. I see that you feel similar! (:
Your question: No. I get along so much better with boys, so it's never really been an issue. (:
Loves,
Megan@The Book Babe
Gender Equality: Of course but what pisses me off is some women are taking it to the extreme. Feminism is empowerment that doesn't necessarily mean emasculation.
ReplyDeleteI just read another review for this and she said more or less the same thing you did. She said it fell a little short of her expectations too.
I agree, I definitely like romance in a book. I don't think I would have handled all the political talk very well either.
ReplyDeleteI am unsure, still it is fantasy and I do love fantasy
ReplyDeleteThis one has been high on my TBR list as well, I think I might be expecting too much out of it though. As far as gender, oh yeah, being a female nurse still makes some male doctors think I'm just a babysitter. Ergh!
ReplyDelete- Jessica @ Book Sake
it must be difficult to have this kind of story to really understand everything but glad you liked it though.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree, that anyone shouldn't expect another to make them complete, but to compliment. Oh well...
ReplyDeleteI've been contemplating getting this one. I don't like when books use terminology like how you mentioned. I still might pick this one up, but do like a tad bit of romance in the books I read. Awesome review!
ReplyDeleteJanina @ Synchronized Reading
Ok, so this one is one that I'm TOTALLY picking up now, because there's no romance. I feel like there needs to be confetti or something, because I'm a person that believes that romance isn't necessary in YA. But Kira does sound lovely, and I do love my action scenes. ;) However, I can get easily confused by too many unfamiliar terms as well, and I dislike it when I can't get immersed in a story. That may not be your fault, actually, it really may be the author's.
ReplyDeleteAnyways, I'm definitely going to pick this one up now, after all, there are so few romance-less books. <3 Thanks for such a helpful review!
I haven't really heard great reviews for this, it's too bad because the synopsis sounds bad a** and following the author I know she has written great posts, still debating if I'll read this... Thanks for the honest review :)
ReplyDeleteSeems like the book may not be for everyone although I think Kira is an interesting character. I guess depends on the situation, gender can sometimes be our advantage :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts!
Kara sounds great bummer that the world-building, terminology and political angst kept you from really enjoying this tale. Awesome review!
ReplyDeleteGreat review, Brandi. I agree with you completely! I wanted to love this book (especially because Ellen is SUCH a sweetheart! ♥), but I agree with your points. The terminology was really overwhelming and I didn't like that there was no romance. :( Some people find it refreshing when there's no romance, but I'm just the person who always loves to have romance in a book and it disappoints me when there isn't one.
ReplyDeleteLove your review!
I have read a lot of reviews for this book, many by people that are huge fantasy readers, and the consensus seems to be that it's good, but it's not GREAT. Some have leaned on the more negative side as well. I'm glad that you were able to still enjoy the book even if you didn't love it.
ReplyDeleteI have been looking at this one, but I think we have some of the same things in common that we look for in a book and things that can turn us out of one. I don't like getting lost in the terminology and politics...I feel like it is one of those things that would bring about the yawns. I'm glad Kira was a pleasure at least. Thank you for a great review!
ReplyDeleteI was looking forward to this book. I like the premise and after reading your review I definitely like the main character and I don't mind all the fun action scenes but a book has to have more in order to be appealing. Maybe I will give this a try sometime late on, but I'm in no rush to pick it up any time soon. Thanks for the honest review! :)
ReplyDeleteI hate confusing terminology and politics are not my thing either. It sucks it didn't have the kind of romance you like.
ReplyDeleteGreat review anyway.
Great review! I'm definitely interested in this one but I've heard from a few people that it wasn't exactly what they expected.
ReplyDeleteHi Brandi, hmmm I have this one to read too. I hear you with terminology at best times I have trouble getting my mouth around some words, just a thing with me. I can read something /say something out loud the complete wrong way. I love books that have the pronunciation pages so I can make the noises and I get it right. Now terminology that gets tricky if we don't get it. I liked your thoughts on this book. I am willing to give it a read:D
ReplyDeleteMich
I want to read this since the premise of the story is very interesting. Plus the fact that it is set in Asia and all that. I also love kick ass heroines and that's what I'm expecting from this one. Hopefully this gets published here in the Philippines as well. Might just give it a try.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry you were a little put off by some terminologies. Hopefully I can appreciate this more since I took up Philosophy in college and was exposed to a lot of political terms. The plot is very interesting and I do love novels with female protagonist that kicks ass.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! I like a little bit of romance in my books, but it doesn't have to be all the plot :P
ReplyDeleteSounds interesting, I'll keep it in mind
Hum... too much politics, huh? Not really what I look for in a book.
ReplyDeleteThis wasn't a favorite of mine either but it definitely had some redeeming traits. Great review, Brandi.
ReplyDeleteJoy