In the Forest of the Dead, where the empire’s worst criminals are exiled, twin sisters Moria and Ashyn are charged with a dangerous task. For they are the Keeper and the Seeker, and each year they must quiet the enraged souls of the damned.
Only this year, the souls will not be quieted.
Ambushed and separated by an ancient evil, the sisters’ journey to find each other sends them far from the only home they’ve ever known. Accompanied by a stubborn imperial guard and a dashing condemned thief, the girls cross a once-empty wasteland, now filled with reawakened monsters of legend, as they travel to warn the emperor. But a terrible secret awaits them at court—one that will alter the balance of their world forever. --Goodreads on The Sea of Shadows
The Good:
The bond between the two sisters was wonderful. It was a relationship that I wish I had with my sister. I don't doubt that my sister and I would journey miles to find each other but these sisters couldn't be separated before this incident.
There was a sense of hope, even when faced with dire circumstances, which made me continue to read. On the flipside, and this is going to sound contradictory, the overwhelming sense of hopelessness also made me keep reading. It's no secret that I'm drawn to dystopian lit and book reminiscent of this genre have just under enough hope to keep you reading. If I thought the sisters had nothing to live for, there would be no sense in reading the book
There was incredible character growth--of a sort. It focused mainly on each sister's relationships with the men that accompanied them. The women were close enough to each other already that they didn't share an even closer bond than what they had before, the only change was their relationship in light of the men. This could go in the "bad" section, too. In fact, I think it will. While the main focus of the book was each sister's quest to find each other, most of the book centered around the borderline romantic relationship they had with the men who, unfortunately, saved them several times over; they were definitely strong leads, though.
I was also pleased that the book volleyed between the two 3rd person perspectives of the sisters as the book progressed. Armstrong did a tremendous job keeping each sisters stories separate from the other so every time you switched sister you were unaware of what had taken place in the time you were visiting, say, Moria and then Ashyn.
The Bad: There were not a lot of negative about this book, which is awesome because who likes to read a bad book? However, I did have some complaints. It went on and on and on and it wasn't necessary at all. We didn't need to spend half the flipping book on their journey through the desert. Because, you know, it was a desert and, after reading this book, I've discovered that there's nothing fun about deserts (except maybe giant worms that will eat you if you step wrong).
Please, sweetie, you don't need a man to protect you, not when you're one of the most powerful girls in the little nation in which you live. The sisters have powers of their own yet the men keep saving them. While this isn't a fairy tale that leaves the sisters in towers with no hope unless a man were there to rescue them, the young women were repeatedly saved when they could have easily saved themselves. That being said, there were plenty of times they were strong, they saved themselves (I'm not over using the word "save", they really were in that much danger repeatedly) but that didn't override the powerlessness they often faced with their men.
What did I really think? Read this book if you liked Throne of Glass (for the fantastical elements and strong female lead) or Rot and Ruin (for the sibling relationship that flourishes in the land of the dead).
Rating:
(For other Goodreads ratings click above. If you'd like to purchase any of these books, click the links/pictures provided. I'll get a little bit of le purchase.)
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