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Moon Sworn by Keri Arthur
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Riley Jenson's life takes a dramatic turn when she awakes in the desert, confused and alone. She can't remember who she is, or who to trust, even when her so-called brother rescues her. Everything feels so wrong, from her very name to specific details of her past. If only her memories would return, she'd be able to tell truth from lie, and friend from foe.
(WARNING: This review contains MAJOR spoilers.)
After nine books in total, read over the space of three years (because admittedly I can be a super slow reader), I've finally finished the Riley Jensen Guardian series! It had its up and downs like any series of course, but overall I believe it was worth the read and more importantly, I'm glad I stuck through the difficult moments, which were unfortunately in abundance at times. Moon Sworn definitely offered a pleasant ending, what with tying up loose ends and giving Riley her desired happiness. Sure, it could've been better, perhaps less rushed at the final confrontation with Blake, but it didn't disappoint as much as the last book, which left me frustrated as all hell. I hated Kye with every fibre of my being and despised how Riley failed as the character I thought she was, so I didn't want a repeat, but thankfully she had very little time to sulk over her dead psychotic soulmate.
The plot was surprisingly refreshing, or at least one half of the plot; Riley separated from her people, her memories tampered with and essentially, it was up to her alone to figure it all out. I think it should've dominated most of the book, without the sidetracking vengeance case, as I didn't particularly care for that side of things at all. Kade's death shoved Riley right back to her old way of thinking, which I suppose I should've seen coming; she was never going to remain happy being a guardian. She had recently admitted to herself she enjoyed the hunt and excitement of it all, which I appreciated as character progression, but to achieve a HEA (happily-ever-after), that the majority of readers seem to prefer in books these days, her acceptance needed to crumble. I didn't mind, even if I believe it was a bit too easy for her escape the Directorate. It was always a set in stone choice - military or the Directorate. The possibility of being a consultant was never even mentioned before, at least if my memory is correct.
I may have been too hard on Quinn in the past; he rubbed me the wrong way when he was messing with Riley's mind, but he grew on me in this one. I couldn't help but think; "He's actually not so bad", so I guess it was better late than never. I still would've preferred Cole as a romance option however, as the chemistry between the two was obvious from early on. I also believed Cole to have more sex appeal than Quinn, or any of her partners, ever had. The rest of the characters, whilst likeable, were nothing I found particularly memorable. I didn't fall madly in love with any of them. I will miss the lady herself though, but I'm hoping she'll at least make appearances in the spinoff series, Dark Angels. Riley is a good character, even if she hit ridiculous levels of stupidity in the past. If you look back to the first book, then look at her here, she's certainly grown as an individual, which is something I really highly favour in series'.
In conclusion: This was definitely one of the better additions, but overall I'd consider the whole experience to be an average one. I neither rated any instalments one star or five stars, it was purely in the middle. I find Arthur to be a good writer, so I'll surely pick up more of her works in the future.
Notable Scene:
"For fuck's sake, what's happened to you?" He scrubbed a hand across his face. "I'm Evin. Your brother."
My brother.
No, I thought, staring at him. He wasn't my brother. Not the brother I wanted, nor the brother I was expecting.
© Red Lace 2015
