Book: Girls Of Storm And Shadow by Natasha Ngan

Published November 2019 by Jimmy Patterson Books|403 pages

Where I Got It: I own the hardcover

Series: Girls Of Paper And Fire #2

Genre: YA Fantasy

In this mesmerizing sequel to the New York Times bestselling Girls of Paper and Fire, Lei and Wren have escaped their oppressive lives in the Hidden Palace, but soon learn that freedom comes with a terrible cost.

Lei, the naive country girl who became a royal courtesan, is now known as the Moonchosen, the commoner who managed to do what no one else could. But slaying the cruel Demon King wasn’t the end of the plan—it’s just the beginning. Now Lei and her warrior love Wren must travel the kingdom to gain support from the far-flung rebel clans. The journey is made even more treacherous thanks to a heavy bounty on Lei’s head, as well as insidious doubts that threaten to tear Lei and Wren apart from within.

Meanwhile, an evil plot to eliminate the rebel uprising is taking shape, fueled by dark magic and vengeance. Will Lei succeed in her quest to overthrow the monarchy and protect her love for Wren, or will she fall victim to the sinister magic that seeks to destroy her?

I loved Girls Of Storm And Shadow!  I loved the first book when I read it, and this book didn’t disappoint!  This series is definitely worth reading, and I’m really looking forward to reading the next book.

I really liked Lei in this book.  While the first book was more of the direct aftermath of everything Lei had to deal with, this book is more about dealing with it long-term.  Lei is still dealing with everything that happened, and you really see how it affects her.

I don’t have strong feelings about Wren one way or another, though some of the things we find out towards the end of the book…I don’t know how I feel about it.  I definitely don’t see her the same way, but I can understand why she thought what she was doing was right.

The writing is absolutely beautiful!  There were quite a few times that I paused at her descriptions, and let in sink in.  I loved how she described things, and there were some things that sounded so pretty!  I also feel like there’s a lot of care with how Lei is dealing with everything.

Everything is explained and described so well, and it’s so easy to see why Lei is dealing with things the way she does.  Ngan does such a great job with making the reader care about Lei and what happens to her.  I just want Lei to be both happy and living in a world where she has her own agency, and hopefully, we’ll see that in the next book.

I’m always hesitant with sequels, because they feel like filler before we get to the last book.  This is not one of those books- there’s a lot going on, and it picks up where the first book left off.  Even though this is fantasy, there were parts of the book that felt very real, and there were things that I could totally see happening in our world.  Things were very ground in reality, and yet, I loved the world and how different but similar it is to our own world.

5 stars.  I loved Girls Of Storm And Shadow, and I can’t wait to read the next book.