Tag Archives: goddess

Review: Breaking Time by Sasha Alsberg

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,
Breaking Time by Sasha Alsberg

Breaking Time
Sasha Alsberg
Inkyard Press
Published June 14, 2022

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About Breaking Time

Fate brought them together. Time will tear them apart.

When a mysterious Scotsman appears out of nowhere in the middle of the road, Klara thinks the biggest problem is whether she hit him with her car. But, as impossible as it sounds, Callum has stepped out of another time, and it’s just the beginning of a deadly adventure. 

Klara will soon learn that she is the last Pillar of Time—an anchor point in the timeline of the world and a hiding place for a rogue goddess’s magic. Callum is fated to protect her at all costs. A dark force is hunting for the Pillars, to claim the power of the goddess—and Klara and Callum are the only two standing in the way. Thrown together by fate, the two have to learn to trust one another and work together…but they’ll need to protect their hearts from one another if they’re going to survive.

My Review

I think I was hoping for a SEEKER vibe from this book. Long tradition of people trained to protect a magical portal or something. Time travel to stop the bad buy from stealing the magic. Something like that. BREAKING TIME isn’t that story, not exactly. Which is okay. I made assumptions from the cover copy that turned out to be inaccurate.

At the beginning of the story, Klara doesn’t know she’s anybody important. She doesn’t believe in spiritual stuff– she’s much more comfortable with things being explained by science. Then a sixteenth century Scotsman pretty much tumbles into her life, and suddenly her scientific explanations come up empty.

I liked the story and the tension between Callum and Klara. I wish that some questions would have been answered, though. Like, Callum travels in time, but how? The story didn’t explain that. Also, it seems like someone else killing Klara (or maybe even her doing that herself) would have also resolved the magical problem they faced, but that idea never came up, either. I wouldn’t have wanted that to happen, of course, but it seemed weird that the whole magic system that’s set up left that loophole wide open and no one ever addressed it.

BREAKING TIME ends in a whirlwind followed by a pretty steep cliffhanger, so I expect there will be a follow-up novel. Initially I’d assumed this was a standalone, but judging from the ending, I think it’s not.

On the whole, I liked Klara and Callum’s relationship and some of the historical details, but I wish there had been more explanation holding the pieces of the story together. I enjoyed reading it, but I’m not sure I would continue the series.

Fans of The Falconer series by Elizabeth May might enjoy this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Both main characters are white.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Strong profanity used somewhat frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Lots of kissing between boy and girl.

Spiritual Content
Some characters are able to travel in time or manipulate time. Klara and Callum have encounters with monsters, spiritual beings, and a goddess. Some references to pagan or druid traditions.

Violent Content
Situations of peril. Battle scenes with some gory descriptions.

Drug Content
References to drinking alcohol. One character appears to be drunk in one scene. Klara remembers her grandmother smoking a joint.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use, but which help support this blog. I received a free copy of BREAKING TIME in exchange for my honest review.

Review: Swallow’s Dance by Wendy Orr

Book Review and Content, Historical, Middle Grade 8-12, , , , , , , ,

Swallow’s Dance
Wendy Orr
Allen and Unwin
Published on June 27, 2018

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About Swallow’s Dance
I wonder if the first day of Learning is always like this – do the girls on the hill always feel the ground tremble under their feet? Leira is about to start her initiation as a priestess when her world is turned upside down. A violent earthquake leaves her home – and her family – in pieces. And the goddess hasn’t finished with the island yet.

With her family, Leira flees across the sea to Crete, expecting sanctuary. But a volcanic eruption throws the entire world into darkness. After the resulting tsunami, society descends into chaos; the status and privilege of being noble-born reduced to nothing. With her injured mother and elderly nurse, Leira has only the strength and resourcefulness within herself to find safety.

My Review
I wanted to read Swallow’s Dance because something about the story reminded me of Tracy Higley’s City on Fire. Like City on Fire, Swallow’s Dance is the story of a family who flee from a natural disaster. Leira’s family loses everything when a tsunami and volcanic eruption devour her home and village. But Leira’s unconquerable spirit drives her onward, fighting to survive in places where her once prestigious heritage is spurned. Her strength and fierceness made me invest so much in the book. I found myself really wanting her to find peace and happiness.

Honestly, I found it easy to invest in all of the major characters. Even though Leira’s mom suffers a brain injury and barely speaks, she’s a colorful character and never has trouble expressing her emotions. Even the cranky Nunu won me over with her devotion to Leira and her mom.

The cultural details about the girls studying to serve their goddess and gathering saffron all added a richness to Swallow’s Dance. I don’t normally read historical fiction and I don’t know much about this time period, so I can’t weigh in on how accurate the details are, but it all felt very well-researched and I found it easy to get lost in the vivid setting.

I liked the way the story blended prose and poetry, too. I’ve never seen that done before, but often I didn’t notice the transitions. I read the poetry faster, so it really worked to have that in the higher action parts of the story, because it felt like things sped up since I was literally reading faster.

Historical fans and readers who enjoy female-centered books like A Single Stone by Meg McKinlay will love Swallow’s Dance.

Recommended for Ages 10 up.

Cultural Elements
All characters are Mediterranean.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
A couple very vague references to sex (like acknowledging that it’s a thing married people do which makes babies). Leira’s people wear ceremonial dress which leaves their painted breasts exposed.

Spiritual Content
Leira’s people worship an earthmother goddess personified by a volcano. Priestesses serve the goddess. Each town seems to have its own god and rituals. Some of these are described in more detail than others. At one point Leira witnesses a girl being carried off to be sacrificed to a local god.

Violent Content
Some scary or intense descriptions of earthquakes and injuries caused by falling rocks or buildings. Descriptions of the aftermath – references to bodies being found (no descriptions other than that they smell bad). Brief descriptions of slaves being beaten for disobedience.

Drug Content
Some references to ale being served as a beverage with food, not for the purpose of getting drunk.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.