Book Recap: Rift by Andrea Cremer

Cover Inspection: 
The cover doesn't look medieval at all
in full contrast to the story itself.

SUMMARY (book description based on GoodReads):

Chronicling the rise of the Keepers, this is the stunning prequel to Andrea Cremer's internationally bestselling Nightshade trilogy!

Sixteen-year-old Ember Morrow is promised to a group called Conatus after one of their healers saves her mother's life. Once she arrives, Ember finds joy in wielding swords, learning magic, and fighting the encroaching darkness loose in the world. She also finds herself falling in love with her mentor, the dashing, brooding, and powerful Barrow Hess. When the knights realize Eira, one of their leaders, is dabbling in dark magic, Ember and Barrow must choose whether to follow Eira into the nether realm or to pledge their lives to destroying her and her kind.

With action, adventure, magic, and tantalizing sensuality, this book is as fast-paced and breathtaking as the Nightshade novels.

BOOK REPORT CARD:

Cover	2.5
Plot	3.0
Writing	3.5
Characters	2.5
Ending	3.0
Overall Rating	3.0 Very Good! (89% to 92%) * highest rating possible is 4.0

LOCATION/SETTING:
The story is set in 1400s Scotland, where women warriors were considered abberations. Women were meant to weave, spin, and do needlework.

MAIN CHARACTERS:
The main character is Ember. She is a daughter of a nobleman. Basically, she's a tomboy as she prefers sparring than needlework. She loves adventure. She is the kind of girl who would feel suffocated by just becoming someone's wife.

WHAT THE BOOK IS ABOUT:
There was a contract between Ember's father and the Conatus that Ember was to be given to Conatus upon reaching her sixteenth year. She was to become a guard, and will be trained by the powerful (and handsome) Barrow Hess. But little do they know that one of the leaders of Conatus was using dark magic. Now Ember must choose whether or not to follow.

LOVE:
As with Cremer's other works, the story is rich with details. The story is supplemented by history and the story of the Templars. I am actually impressed with the amount of details in this book, and can only imagine the kind of research that the author has done!

I also loved the language in this book - no slang and smartly written. It fits the setting well, and it's not dumbed down at all.

I am one of those people who are fascinated with mentor-student relationships in stories, like in Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead. Rift has that element.

Speaking of Barrow, his "smiles, but not quite smiles" were mentioned quite a lot, and I can't help but be intrigued with these half smiles. I can imagine just how sexy that is.... Here's a scene:

Ember reached up, gingerly running her hands over her tangled locks. Blushing more deeply, she picked several pieces of straw from her hair. The stranger watched her closely, and Ember thought he might be on the verge of smiling. 

Another thing I loved about Cremer's writing is that she can make an ordinary, non-sexual scene into a very sensual one. Here's an example:

“Do it now.” Barrow removed the tattered cloth and bright red blood seeped down his skin. He drew a sharp breath when she began to spread the salve over the gashes.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Don’t be. It has to penetrate the wound, so you mustn’t worry about hurting me.” He was propped on his elbows, watching as she scooped more salve from the jar.
Her fingers moved over his abdomen, running across hard muscle between the claw marks. Her pulse jumped wildly each time she touched him, especially when her hand brushed over the depression close to his hip where his skin disappeared beneath the fabric of his trousers.
Suddenly his hand was over hers, pulling it away.
“That’s enough.” His voice was rough, and he wouldn’t meet her eyes. “Thank you.”

I know that this is prequel, and as such, it necessarily connected to the Nightshade Series, but as I was reading, I honestly could not see how the story will go and how it relates to Nightshade. But surprisingly, Cremer was able to weave the two stories together seamlessly in the end. And she did it flawlessly and perfectly, making me ache to read the sequel.

NO LOVE:

There was a scene about binding women's breasts because they "got in way" when women fight. They dangle. Because of this, Emeber was told by another woman fighter that some women warriors chop them off. I was bit bothered by this. But don't worry, there was no chopping scene. The characters were merely discussing clothing.

I said earlier that I love mentor-student relationships. I'm happy that there is one here, however, there weren't many scenes where Barrow taught Ember. Somehow, it felt like Ember sped through her training. She went from being "just a woman" to a "warrior."

Ember is the kind of character that is very difficult to get acquainted with. I didn't really get to know her until about a third of the book. And just when I got ahold of her personality and quirks, the story ended. It was a bit frustrating.

While I loved the history in this book, I believe that there was too many details and too little dialogue in some parts of the story. Don't get me wrong, I love details. But I believe that the dialogue is what brings the characters to life, and lack of it makes the story dull. For this reason, some parts of the story were dragging.

FAVORITE CHARACTER:

I'm afraid I would have to withhold my take on this one. Like I said, I really wasn't able to get to know the characters as much as I wanted to.

MUSINGS:
The thing I truly loved about the Nightshade series is the love triangle and sensuality in Cremer's writing. With respect to the love triangle, I would say that there is none in Rift. It's apparent from the beginning that Ember favors only one man. But I have to say that the leading man isn't as hot as Ren (yeah, yeah, I'm Team Ren). Barrow Hess is a medieval knight through and through. He's all about duty and honor. He's a gentleman who wouldn't take advantage of his authority to get the girl. He is so full of self control, it's frustrating. I can't wait to read the next book to see if the dam breaks and Barrow would finally let out his passion.

All in all, although Rift is related to the Nightshade series, it is a completely different story. Almost everything about it is new - the setting, the characters (some of them, at least), the language, and the atmosphere. It's dark, decadent, and detailed that would be devoured by Cremer's fans.

DOODLES:

AUTHOR'S WEBSITE:
Andrea Cremer

SIMILAR READS:
The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare

CONTENT REVIEW:
profanity: mild
violence: moderate
sexual content: moderate
mature themes: mild
age recommendation: 13+