Talon

14 year old me would've loved this but it was pretty average to read as a 23 year old. I don't care for ‘his smirk and dark hair ruined my life” type of YA books because.. cringe but idk this was kinda fun to read. I hated whenever they were dragons because the audiobook still voiced the characters with high pitched sassy teen voices and idk its kinda silly for a huge badass looking dragon to be sounding like a child

Well that was fun! I haven't read a Pied Piper retelling before and this was much better than I expected. I loved this one so much I finished in under two days.

This did start off a tad slow but as it went along, it just got better and better. By the end I was thoroughly in love and can't wait to see where this goes next.

I sincerely appreciate Entangled Teen for the review copy. All opinions expressed herein are my own

Probably more of a 3.5 but I'm rounding up.

The first time I saw this cover, I was immediately intrigued but I wasn't sure if I wanted to read it. But when the arcs became available, I couldn't resist requesting and it's almost relieving that I've managed to finish an arc before the release after quite a while.

I'm in the middle of a reading slump, so I was actually glad to have both the digital and audio arcs as I felt it easier to navigate the two based on my mood. I however do have to mention that there was a strange echo throughout the audio production, and I don't know if it'll be present in the final audiobook. The book starts off in a pretty intense manner and I felt like that tone remained all through, with the stakes always being high. The world building is also pretty cool with Korean inspired gods and mythology, a whole new realm of Gyeulcheon where the Dokkaebi live and their powers and motivations. I also liked how the mortal realm is kind of modern with their technology which makes it feel almost like a contemporary fantasy, which isn't usually my cup of tea, but it worked well here. I will agree that it took me a few chapters to get into the groove of things, but once our main character moved to the Dokkaebi realm, things got very cool and intense.

Lina is the reaper, or a highly skilled assassin, working for a gang lord against her will. Her character is defined by the self loathing and guilt she has for the death of her group, Talons, and how much she adores her baby sister Eunbi. She will do anything for her sake, including saving her boss whom she hates by killing the Dokkaebi Emperor, Rui. She is quick thinking and full of anger about her circumstances, and can get impulsive at times, but is also naive and trusting in ways which surprised me.

Rui on the other hand is a trickster, playful and charming and wants to see if Lina will be able to kill him. But he is also fascinated by her and tries to keep interacting with her even when she only tries to kill him or shows disdain. Theirs is a truly crackling enemies to lovers dynamic with pining as well as hatred (from her side) which turns into something more. It was quite delightful to see the progression of their relationship. It's still obvious that Rui is keeping a lot of secrets related to his realm but I was glad to see that they both could come to some understanding despite both of their differing motivations when it comes to mortals.

There are quite a few side characters but frankly I don't think anyone was fleshed out enough that I cared for them deeply. But I did like Rui's friends, who also happen to be his generals and advisors, and how protective they were about him. The more significant side characters are Lina's dead Talons, her found family, who taught her everything she knew, whose values and teachings and words are still embedded in her mind, and whose deaths still haunt her every night. Their story is all told through flashbacks, which worked well in some moments, but also pulled me away from the current storyline at other times.

Overall this was a fun read. Fast paced, intense and emotional, charismatic main characters, and a very fascinating mythology make this an easy book to enjoy, and might also be just what you need if you are in a slump like me. Jaine Ye narrates the book matching the intensity of the main character Lina, and I did enjoy listening to her narration, if only a bit peeved by the strange echo. The climax action sequences and the surprises we get were very enjoyable, which has definitely made me much more interested in the sequel.

Fun and action packed! Enjoyed the audiobook narration.

This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Talon by Julie Kagawa

An underground war has been waging for centuries between the dragons of Talon and the humans of St. George. Ember is one of the latest hatchlings to begin assimilation. She must learn how to blend in with human society and keep her dragon side contained. But left in the human world, fighting against her dragon instincts, the human side of her begins to take over. As she gathers a group of friends around her, she begins to question why Talon wants to destroy them all. And to question Talon is heresy.

One of the top soldiers of St. George, Garret is sent to hunt down the latest dragon sleeper. Used to the life of a soldier, he must learn how to relax and fit in with civilians. When he targets Ember and her friends, he starts to ease his way into their group. As he researches and tests each one, Ember catches his eye. But even as he starts to doubt her humanity, the way she behaves leaves him confused. Can she truly be a dragon when she seems to care for the humans around her? Or is it just a well-placed disguise?

The concept of this story caught my eye. Dragons assimilating to human life, hiding among us to overcome a hidden militia filled with dragon slayers. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? And to make it even better, one side of the story is told from a dragon's point of view by Ember, while the St. George side is told by Garret. But while this intense story line seems to be the focus of the book, it took a turn into romance and forbidden love instead. A version of Romeo and Juliet with dragons. Now some readers may enjoy this angle, but I was looking for a more detailed look into the Talon organization and St. George.

There is very little information given on the two organizations. There is a brief overview of how Ember grew up in Talon and how the organization is run. The reader is told what different jobs the dragons can have, and that most of the older dragons are in hiding for their own safety. And yes, it is told many times what happens if a dragon goes against Talon. But I wanted to know more about their day to day. And I wanted more of their history. I wanted more details of the secret war's origin. Why do all humans have to die? And as for St. George, the reader is pulled into a single battle with an older dragon. During this, the gear used by the organization is explained, but again there is next to no history told. Why did St. George decide to start hunting dragons? How did they become a set organization?

I was also left rather confused when the second half of the book introduced a new point of view since the character of Riley was barely mentioned in the first half of the book. When his viewpoint popped up, I paused and tried to remember the last time he even appeared. But then again, this happened a lot. Certain characters seemed to only have page time when they needed to progress the story. Ember's brother was built up to be someone Ember was always with. Ember mentioned many times that they did everything together, and yet he was rarely ever with Ember during the story.

I would have enjoyed this book more if there had been more balance between characters. The secondary characters in this book seemed to be plot devices more so than actual fleshed out characters. And this is certainly a book for those who prefer the focus to be on the romance aspect of the young adult genre.

For my move across the country, I decided to download some audiobooks and hope that 1) my fiance would be willing to give them a try and 2) we'd feel up to listening to them. I usually have to push myself into an audiobook and then I'll keep listening, but it is the starting that is difficult.

So, first up, I thought dragons would be super cool to listen/read about and would interest my man, and it did, YAY! In fact, he ended up liking this book much more than I did. Honestly, I think it is because I'm a bit tired of YA tropes. Did I see everything coming? No, but many of the things that did happen made me roll my eyes. After 2 hours, I was ready to call the book quits, but the fiance actually liked it, so I couldn't just say no when he actually found a book he'd listen to.
I will admit, that the book did get better.

There are some funny moments, some ‘OMG how could she be so dense' moments, and ‘ugh really??' moments.

This book is about Ember, not Dante... even though it says it is about him too. He gets one chapter of POV at the very end. I was kinda hoping for siblings against the world, but got a love story... a LOVE TRIANGLE story, which, surprisingly, I don't know how it will work out. I'm pretty sure I know which way it will go, but I don't know how it would work, which is why I think I might be surprised. In fact, both love interests get POV chapters, BUT NOT DANTE. So... bummer there.

I really thought this would be about the dragons more and that lifestyle and about the siblings, but Dante kind of disappears??? We are told they always hang out together, yet once they get different instructors they pretty much stop hanging out. Girls hang with girls, the guys hang with the guys. Also, all the dragon stuff is hush hush and never told to Ember because she doesn't need to know, which is both frustrating for the character and the reader.

Which brings me to the side characters. There was so much potential there, but the guys are rarely in the picture and the group of girls is only there to talk about guys. All the friendship moments are hidden and I would have read more of those in order to see how Ember learned to fit into society. I did like some of them though.

...okay this is turning into a rant, isn't it?
I just really wanted to love this book. I like reading about dragons.

I am interested in where the series is going. With the intro work out of the way, the siblings set up, and future objectives in the making, I think the next books will be better– especially since I think the side characters present will stick around.
I'll try reading it rather than listening to the audio and see if that makes a difference. The ‘s' sound some of the narrators made was pretty harsh to my ears as well.

Now after all that ranting, I will say this is a book I totally would recommend a teen. I think they would totally relate to the things Ember is going through– wanting independence, trying to form an identity, and forming personal opinions about the world and those in authority. I am interested in reading the sequel and already have a hold on it.

Really good book, love story and adventure. Sometimes a bit unbelievable, but still enjoyable.

There are a few minor spoilers in this, but they really don't give enough of the book to deserve a tag. You've been warned, though.

Honestly, Alex knows how disappointed I was in this book, so I'm not going to bore anyone with my slow and painful descent into my disappointment.

Really, I had so many problems with this book. So. Many. For one, I really didn't like any of the characters. If there was one character I liked, it was Dante, because his actions made sense with his character.

Dante = basically brainwashed = obeys Talon's every desire

Logical, right? Others were not as logical. Ember, the main character, really pissed me off. She was selfish and, to be frank, pretty stupid. Proof, you ask? Well, she immediately trusted Riley despite the fact that he was hella creepy and stalkerish. I mean, seriously, this lad was raising all of the red flags. And yet she did it anyway. Garret, as a character, didn't make my head throb as much as Ember and Riley, but he wasn't perfect. The problem was, it seemed like he had two character traits and... nothing more. He was either St. George-Garret or in-love-with-Ember-Garret. There was no in between or anything more.

Besides the characters, I had other issues with this book. Unfortunately.

The romance made me want to gag. We've all heard the expression “insta-love” before. However, if you want the definition, you don't need to look any farther than this book. The second Ember and Garret looked at each other, they were kind of like “omg this person is so beautiful, and hot, and gorgeous, I have this strange feeling in my gut, they're beautiful, I'm basically in love, did I say they were beautiful?”

And it was the same way with Riley. Because, of course, it was a love triangle. Now, I am not someone who loathes every love triangle I come across. Some of them are really well-written. This one was not one of those. Mostly, it was 90% Garret, except for the times when Riley popped in. And when that happened, he was more of a predator than a love interest. She clearly didn't ask for his interventions, but he was all “She wants it, I can see it in her eyes.

How about no??

Finally, the thing that killed me most about the book was the plot. The plot seemed so good. It has so much potential. I mean we're talking dragons here! What's not to love? The problem is that the plot is completely drowned out by the romance. It simply reads like a romance novel. Practically every other chapter, Ember was on a date. And maybe her training sucked or Dante was acting like a prick (still loved him, no shame), but that was just mentioned as an after-thought. I wanted drama and just more. Before the romance, these elements were there. But after it was introduced, it simply fell apart.

Long story short, I wasn't impressed. I just don't think Julie Kagawa is the author for me.

signs up for me pain + anguish after reading the first page
gods . oh my gods. that was something else entirely . I loved how it ripped out my heart and made me run out of tears so that I had to drink water,so I could cry more.

The world was beautiful despite it being modern it was so interesting!!
why i cried and died :

• GARRET XAVIER SEBASTIAN , YOU BAMF ! excuse the language I am still heartbroken. HE an absolute angel, forget ST.george.


• DRAGONS EXIST, WAIT FOR IT , ALONGSIDE HUMANS. I KNOW GUYS,I KNOW.


• Ember, our main character, wants to be free and break free from the evil TAlon and Scary Talon Lady ( she lives up to that name. trust . me on this beans.


• RILEY IS A ROUGE ( dragon how broke free from talon and is being hunted by assassin dragons!!!

Was een leuk boek, niet heel erg spectaculair maar ik wil wel de vervolgdelen lezen

I just quote and share this blogger's review because it's exactly what I think of Talon, too.http://jennadoesbooks.com/talon-by-julie-kagawa/I've never read other Kagawa's books, even though they inspire me, especially The Blood of Eden trilogy, so I can't make a comparison. I simply trust readers' opinions.I found this one very predictable and banal. Dragons? Where are dragons? Where are dragonshifters? The protagonist Ember acts like a normal teen chick and she repeats over and over how much she likes the ocean and so on. If you are supposed to be a dragon, first of all you are supposed to have a sort of feral instincts and since you have to blend to the humankind, you are supposed to defy them.Another main negative aspect is the love triangle. You simply know there will be one since the second chapter.If you like it, go for it. But this is not for me.I don't even like the fact that the militants of St. George's Order were teenagers. They were supposed to be adult. It just doesn't seem likely.So, I'm going to be one further reader (in a quite long list of disappointed ones) who couldn't finish this book and ended up not caring of the whole story, because, as the blogger said, nothing has a precise explanation. Everybody acts because they have to act that way without asking why.PS. If you like dragon shapeshifters with the add of romance, please give a try to [b:Dragon Bound 9637479 Dragon Bound (Elder Races, #1) Thea Harrison https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1312822853s/9637479.jpg 14524855]. I really enjoyed that story.