Ashley's Reviews > Carving Shadows into Gold

Many times, the second book can fall flat. This definitely does not fall victim to that trend. There was action and intrigue, and I fell even more in love with Jax and Tycho. I had hoped we would get many more chapters for them in this installment, and we do! This book has three perspectives: Jax, Tycho, and Callyn. I felt like we got so much more information and progress from Jax and Tycho’s chapters.

What I absolutely loved about this was the fact that there was so much happening. Some people may think the buildup will be slow, but I loved it. I feel like I was allowed to make a stronger connection to Jax, Tycho, and Callyn as individuals. They each had their struggles and needed to find who they were as individuals after something extremely traumatic.

Jax felt like an outsider. Tycho felt like a prisoner. Callyn felt confused about what was right to her.

If you wanted chapters of Jax and Tycho spending time together, you won’t get that exactly. They both have a role to play, and they are separated due to those expectations. Jax has to adjust to life in a place that doesn’t speak his language, a forge he is not used to, and figure out how to cope without Tycho with him. It’s made even more difficult once the Scraver attacks become more prevalent and violent.

Tycho found himself wondering when he was going to be held to his promise to a scraver in the previous book. He is constantly afraid of what is going to be asked of him. The further he travels, the longer he stays in one location, the more he learns about his magic, what the scravers need from him.

Callyn is set up in the palace, as a royal nanny of sorts, and does errands for the queen. She ends up visiting Alek and learning about his mission. Everything comes to a disastrous end when scravers attack.

This was a fantastic read! If you read Forging Silver into Stars, you won’t be let down by book two in the series. By the end, I was on the edge of my seat and in desperate need for the next book!