Monday, September 14, 2015

Ward Against Darkness by Melanie Card - Review


Title: Ward Against Darkness (Chronicles of a Reluctant Necromancer #2)
Author: Melanie Card
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Length: 352 pages
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Release Date: August 27, 2013
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by: Jasmyn

The last thing Ward de'Ath wants is more trouble. On the run from both the law and the criminal underworld, Ward and Celia flee Brawenal City only to stumble into the mansion of a powerful evil necromancer. And when Ward discovers the man possesses a dangerous grimoire, his duty leaves him no choice. He can't allow the necromancer to keep the grimoire. But the mansion is filled with monsters--human and undead--and Ward has no way of telling who's friend or foe. The only person he can trust is Celia who dominates more of his thoughts and feelings everyday. But there are still laws in the way of anything but friendship. She's still dead and he's still alive . . . for now.


Picking up just a short time after the very exciting ending of Ward Against Death, Ward and Celia are running for their lives. The book jumps you right into the action as their enemies catch up to them. But what they think is deliverance turns out to be even more danger than when they first began.

The mansion they discover seems like a safe sanctuary to begin with, but once Ward realizes who (and what) lives there, he is totally freaked out. But he has a moral obligation to take care of some things before they can run for their lives. This was were the story got a little fuzzy for me. There were sooo many characters that sort of had a connection to either Ward or Celia, but not really, that they all got a little confused at first. Eventually their very unique personalities pull the apart into their correct places, but the odd connections still felt a little off. Maybe they have some more importance in the next book that I don't know of yet.

Tons of excitement again. Ward is learning new things with his magic - but they are things that he's not completely sure he wants to know. They are dangerous things that almost get him killed on several occasions. Celia doesn't do much better, but at least her skills give her the ability to handle some of it.

I really enjoyed the history of necromancy and learning more about how it worked. It definitely helped to add a very good layer to the world building. Still a great series, but there were some things that just didn't seem to fit in this one.

*This book was received in exchange for an honest review*

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