In the first in a new series, Elise Kova takes the reader to with world of the Loom, ruled from above by the Dragon King:

Ari lost everything; friends, her lover, her way of life, when the five guilds resistance fell to the Dragon King. Now she uses the skills she learned in the resistance, her ability as an engineer and magical talents to be the White Wrath enemy to every dragon and known for contributing to a thriving underground Dragon organ market. That is until she meets Cvareh, a Dragon who claims to be on the side of those in Loom and he is willing to bargain something very precious, a wish,  if Ari is able to get him to the alchemists so that the resistance can start again. Ari knows she cannot trust Cvareh, and that the task may be near impossible as assassin after assassin is sent after Cvareh by the Dragon King, but a wish from a Dragon can give Ari the one thing that she desires most and hopefully the freedom for Loom.

I do not read many fantasy genre novles, but I was drawn to this book first for by the cover, second by the description of the book and third I haven't read a fantasy book in quite some time so I was excited to try something different. Kova uses a tried and true premise to frame the world and story around; one society/culture/people oppressing and abusing the other and those that try to take the power back. This is done in a completely fantasy world that had some very interesting and disturbing elements (think Frankenstein/plastic surgery to the extreme) and the thirst for power that goes along with it. Loom is divided into 5 different Guilds (Raven, Rivet, Alchemist, Revolver and Harvesters) and where you are born is what specialty you will grow up perfecting, if you show any sign of weakness or do not live up to the Dragon's standards you are killed (this mainly happens to children). Loom supports The Dragon's world above with the introduction of machinery and some magic, it were these aspects that the Dragons became aware of Loom and wanting to possess and control it. With all the machinery and magic this novel does have a very steampunk feel to it, especially with Ari and her engineer abilities.

I really like Ari as a main character, she is strong, confident, smart, often thinks the worst about people, has a past that we don't know too much about but she has a caring side especially when it comes to Florence. Florence is an awesome sidekick to Ari, she just needs to gain confidence in herself. She is probably the character that grows the most in this book, as she is forced in to circumstances that she has never been in before and many of them are a true test for her character both physically and morally. Cvareh is a good counter point to Ari with his obsession with things that are pretty and complaining about his clothes getting dirty or having to wear clothes out of fashion. He truly shows the differences between Loom and Nova. It is also interesting to watch Cvareh grow as a character as he tries to survive not only the threats on his life from other Dragons and Ari but also trying to navigate a new world in Loom.

I find that Dragons does not seem to be an apt description of the characters just based on the cover art of the books in this series, but also how they are described in the book. To me they seem that they would be more of Elfin or Fae or some other magic creature that Kova could have created. Based upon descriptors and the fact that they do not have wings or the ability to fly or shape shift in to what I would call traditional Dragon form. You say Dragon to someone we will probably all come up with some sort of similar image, and what is presented in this book is not that image. Maybe the reason they are called dragon is explained in the next books in this series but I think that is a slightly misrepresentation of these individuals.

I also could have done without the romance aspect that is hinted at. I mean why does there have to be a romance element? Ari and Cvareh they dislike each other in every way, yet drawn to the other individual as well. Why cant they just not like each other but are forced to work together for a common goal, why does that have to lead to attraction????

I still have a lot of Why questions after reading this book, which is not a bad thing as I know this is a series, however, quite a few of those questions are world based, so there are a few things that are not so clearly set out. I found the characters in this book to be very interesting and why I kept turning the pages to see what they would do next. I look forward to reading the second book in the series and hoping some of my questions are answered. 

Enjoy!!!

   

Per FictFact.com's Book Release Calendar.

Circle of Ashes - Elise Kova, Lynn Larsh   #2 in Wish Quartet
Peachy Flippin' Keen - Molly Harper   #3 in Southern Eclectic
The Italian's Marriage Bargain - Annie West   #7 in Hot Italian Nights

Steampunk isn't one of my favorite genres, but it might just become one if all books are just like this one. I've heard a lot of great things about Kova's books, and I've decided to give this one a try.

There's something incredibly magical about this book, and it's truly amazing to experience. First of all, the world of Loom is really interesting, with steampunk themes blending perfectly with fantasy, in a way I hadn't quite imagined. There's magic, dragons, and technology that, strangely, work just fine together. The world itself is really complex, with a lot of stuff to understand, and a lot of stuff that I didn't quite understood at first. I kind of felt a lot like Cvareh, being thrown into an unknown world and trying to understand it. At times that proved a bit difficult, especially since there's a lot of stuff that we don't know about what happened in the bast, way before the events in the book started.

I also liked having the book told from different POVs. It helped show a bigger picture than what one side would have shown, and I loved that we got even the villain's side of things.

Ari was a really interesting heroine. She is definitely not an easy person to understand, or even like. She has a lot of secrets, and the more I read about her, the more intrigued I became. I wonder if in the future we'll get to fully know who Ari is, what her motives for hating the dragons are, and if she'll get some kind of closure. But I did respect her, to be really honest, because as cold as she wanted others to see her as, she was truly loyal to her friend, even though that put her in a lot of danger.

Florence was one character that I loved from the very start. She was witty, funny, and kind of impossible to resist. I can understand why Ari wanted to protect her at all costs and why she rescued her when she did. I also liked that even though Florence had a pureness and tenderness that made her seem soft and breakable, she found it in herself to make the hard decisions, even though she was truly scared of the outcome.

Cvareh was the character that, much like Ari, was interesting, but it took me a while to understand. I still feel like there's a lot about him that we don't know, that he's keeping a lot of things about himself hidden, and I'm curious how that will work out in the next book. But as I said, having different POVs in this book made it difficult to decide which side of the war to sympathize with, because contrary to what Ari believes, Cvareh didn't seem so bad.

The more I read, the more I understood why I had so many people urging me to read Kova's works, mainly because she managed to get me to like a story in a genre that I don't normally connect with. The only thing I would have wanted was to have more background information, to maybe understand how to navigate the world of Loom better, but all in all this book was a great series-started, and I'll definitely read the next book in the series.

    I have to say I really enjoyed this sequel to The Alchemists of Loom! It had everything I look for in a sequel, compelling character development and riveting plot progression. I liked the Alchemists of Loom, but I LOVED The Dragons of Nova. 

I am so happy we got a better view of Nova in this one, and all the juicy dragonian politics that come along with it. I found Arianna's time there so engrossing, being completely surrounded by the dragons she despises, even (if rather reluctantly) working with them to bring down the biggest, baddest one of them all. Seeing Cvareh in his natural habitat was also a treat. I think that he was so out of his element in the first book that often he seemed to be floundering, but in Nova we got to see this other side to him, one where he is well respected and a real pillar of strength to his people. 

As much as I liked Nova, I was also glad to continue Florence's journey with the rebels, and even more so her personal journey. It was nice to see her stepping out of Ari's shadow and really coming into her own. Florence had learned a lot of invaluable things from Ari, but watching her discover the world around her for herself and deciding on her own what is important to her and what to fight for. 

That ending was EXPLOSIVE, and I am dying to know what is going to happen next. I honestly can't wait to get my hands on the next book! 

  I am so excited to share the cover reveal for The Rebels of Gold by Elise Kova! I am dying to get my hands on this book, and I promise you this cover is just as stunning as the others!

Title: The Rebels of Gold

Series: The Loom Saga (Book Three) – Final book!

Release Date: December 5, 2017

Goodreads Link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/34503713-the-rebels-of-gold

The Cover:

Cover illustration by Nick D. Grey

Synopsis:

A new rebellion rises from the still-smoldering remnants of the five guilds of Loom to stand against Dragon tyranny. Meanwhile, on Nova, those same Dragons fight amongst themselves, as age-old power struggles shift the political landscape in fateful and unexpected ways. Unlikely leaders vie for the opportunity to shape a new world order from the perfect clockwork designs of one temperamental engineer.

This is the final installment of USA Today bestselling author Elise Kova’s Loom Saga, THE REBELS OF GOLD will reveal the fate of Loom’s brilliantly contrasting world and its beloved inhabitants.

Preorder Links:

As if you need any further incentive to pre-order this gem…but lucky for you there is!

Preorder Swag:

For those who preorder THE REBELS OF GOLD, they can get exclusive swag for submitting their preorder. More info here: http://elisekova.com/pre-order/

If you haven’t started The Loom Saga yet, now is the perfect time to start before Rebels of Gold is here!

Books in the Loom Saga:

THE ALCHEMISTS OF LOOM

THE DRAGONS OF NOVA

THE REBELS OF GOLD

THE ALCHEMISTS OF LOOM is on Sale!

To celebrate the final book in the Loom Saga, the first book, THE ALCHEMISTS OF LOOM, is on sale! The eBook is on sale for $3.99 (regular price – $6.99).

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