Growing Pains: BRIGHTLY WOVEN

I tend to call things as I see 'em, and sometimes that means posting reviews that aren't glowing. I won't ever straight-up diss a book, but my opinion--good and bad--is kinda the whole point of this blog. Don't hate.

BRIGHTLY WOVEN squeezed 3 stars outta me, and that was with every drop of goodwill I could spare.

This is one of those books I wanted to love. I tried, but I only managed to glean a little affection by the end...the spark just wasn't there for me.

Why? Because my writer-brain kicked in. All I could think, constantly, was that this novel needed to be split up. There's too much information, too much going on--it is a cool concept, but there wasn't room for this story.

Part of my discontent, I guess, was a lack of empathy with Sydelle. I wanted to experience more with her, but there was a LOT of "telling" in this novel. We were told she felt this way or didn't feel that way. We were told that she saw so-and-so or wanted a thingy-ma-bob. It got to the point where I wanted to skip chapters because I was frustrated--with the book and myself. Normally I can sync with a book, and really see what an author is going for...you know, like picture everything in my head. I couldn't manage it most of the time with BRIGHTLY WOVEN.

The romance--which is one of the selling points in the blurb--isn't enough to get your panties in a twist. In fact, I didn't get romance vibes for most of the book. I picked up on frustration and anger and confusion and a smidge of attraction....but romance? Not so much.

And let's be honest: North is kind of a douche. He has sweet moments, sure, but he is mostly a wound-up mess of mommy issues and secrets. His curse-thingy sucks, yes, but most of this novel is him covering up the truth and leaving Sydelle in the dark...for no good reason. The ENTIRE plot hinges on him being a liar, basically. (seriously, if he'd told Sydelle why he wanted her to tag along, the book could have been sooooooo much different. And--dare I say it?--more interesting.)

Was the magic cool? Yes. Was the world cool? Also yes. Did we see enough of either? No. This world could have been epic. Sydelle's a literal natural disaster with the ability to weave magic...but we hardly see that because we got bogged down with everything else.

Summary? 
-Hard to connect with main character.
-The romance was lackluster.
-The magic and worldbuilding needed more room to grow.




I gave this 3 stars because the story itself is an awesome concept, even though the final product didn't wet my whistle. But, like with all books, maybe someone else gives this 5/5...gotta love how personal the reading experience is ;)