Blood Song by Rhiannon Hart

A princess with a craving for blood. 

A stranger who knows her secret. 

A land where nothing is as it seems.

When her sister becomes betrothed to a prince in a northern nation, Zeraphina's only consolations are that her loyal animal companions are by her side - and that her burning hunger to travel north is finally being sated.

Already her black hair and pale eyes mark her out as different, but now Zeraphina must be even more careful to keep her secret safe. Craving blood is not considered normal behaviour for anyone, let alone a princess. So when the king's advisor, Rodden, seems to know more about her condition than she does, Zeraphina is determined to find out more.

Zeraphina must be willing to sacrifice everything if she's to uncover the truth - but what if the truth is beyond her worst nightmares?

(what a blurb (!) )

Me + this book: I went to bed around 11pm @ night and thought I’d check out the first chapter of Blood Song before turning out the light. Fast forward 290 pages later and it’s around 3am and I’ve devoured the book in one leaping go. I was so sucked in, so loving everything about this book that I didn’t want to put it down. I spent time over the following week re-reading my favourite passages as I was not ready to let the characters and story go. Just sitting down and writing my review has made me nostalgic all over again :)

The review: Blood Song grabbed me from the start. The thing about this fantasy ~ is Hart writes in such a way that the reading experience was so effortless. Her writing is tight, within pages you have a sense of the world and our heroine. Her world-building is all show (not tell) and Hart masterfully places the reader in the story alongside Zeraphina, letting the world-building evolve as we go along. I marvel at the way she handled it without employing the “awkward info dump” scenario that so often bogs down books in this genre.

I seriously *loved* Zeraphina (& from the first page). She’s spirited without being overly in-your-face-feisty, she’s confident even while aching and confused inside. She’s got a gorgeous persona ~ exactly the kind of character I would love to be friends with. She has a smart sense of humour and she fiercely, spectacularly loves her pets (her cat, Leap, and Griffin, her eagle)

[detouring here to say ~ Leap and Griffin are such fab characters to add to the cast, they’re brought to life with all the nuances of a 3D human character. <3]

The other thing you should absolutely know about this book is it is crazily original. The plot continually heats up and the villains (!) are insanely, genuinely creepy. I had chills even as I couldn’t look away ~ they are fascinating and dark and make for some completely vivid imagery. The stakes are raised and the truth is equal parts creative and horrifying.

Deep into the plot of the book, some of the imagery and scenery depicted reminded me of the way Marianne de Pierre’s crafted such an intense setting in her book Burn Bright. While in Lharmell, the setting was so strongly evoked: ashey and dark and mysterious and incredibly foreboding. There is a kind of cult-esque feel with the Lharmellins which I gave me tiny little sparks of horror (and raised my curiosity ten-fold). Absolutely-deliciously-cannot-look-away-creepy.  

Apart from the all mystery and darkness, there's a lot of fun in the book (including balls, a wedding, and an archery tournament).

So you want to know about the swoon factor ;) ? YOU GUYS. *dies of the swoon* Zeraphina and Rodden have one of those relationships that keep me glued to the pages. Rodden’s 22 years old, dark, broody, effortlessly sexy and impossibly hard to read (oh-so-very-intriguing). He’s enigmatic, charismatic and utterly appealing. And, wow, how he and Zeraphina spar. They have an amazing chemistry even as (okay, especially as) they antagonise each other.

It is the first book in a series, and while it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger, it provides a whole bunch of answers while psyching you up for the next installment.

I can feel my review growing with everything I want to say. But I am worried that the more I ramble on, the more you’ll skim and the less you’ll read ;) So to summarise the essence of my review:

oh my gosh, I loved it so.

Recommended: Blood Song is written with astounding talent, stunning creativity and complete heart. It’s thrilling and mysterious and fun and creepy and dark, (with some sexy undertones). It’s on my favourites list, best of 2011 list and tops my list of fave fantasies. I had no idea I would love this so. I cannot wait to see it in stores (in Australia from Sept 1). I cannot wait for you guys to all read it and see what you think!

... in the meantime ... read the first chapter (!)

Blood Song @ Random House

Blood Song @ goodreads

Rhiannon Hart's blog

thank you ever-so-much to Rhiannon Hart and Random House for providing me with the ARC *grins*