A quick read, but I struggled to connect to it.

Sorry for the long delay in feedback. I'm working on clearing out my Netgalley backlog. Trying to find the joy in reading again by going through the hundreds of abandoned books here.

The Waking Land by Callie Bates

402 Pages
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine Books, Del Rey
Release Date: June 27, 2017

Fiction, Sci Fi, Fantasy, Teen, Young Adult

Lady Elanna was taken hostage as a young child so her father, the opposing king, would not attack. Now the king who raised her has been poisoned and she is being blamed for his death. She goes on the run which only makes her look guilty. She believes she knows who is responsible but has no way to prove it. She also has magic over the land which makes her an outcast and a criminal. Everyone is after her now.

The book is a bit slow; the characters are somewhat developed, and it is written in the first person point of view. This book had a lot of promise, but I could not connect with the characters. If you like young adult fantasy books, you may enjoy reading this

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! A good fantasy tale (though the love story was predictable). I'm a little sad that this will be a trilogy, because it would be nice to have a good stand alone fantasy story. I don't want to get sucked into another trilogy/ongoing series.

Liked this more than loved it. A fresh fantasy, with echoes of Great Britain/Scotland/Wales. Good but can be bit repetitive and also given to using way too many predictable genre tropes

Couldn't really get into this one but it was generally a quick read. Would recommend to anyone who enjoys the genre and is looking for a short read.

The Waking Land by Callie Bates has some gorgeous worldbuilding and provides a magical reading experience to readers. Very enjoyable and unique!

Utterly ordinary, nothing excited me about this book. I was hoping for more action. . . more dialogue, more character development. Nothing seemed to really jump off the page. By the end I wasn't invested in the story at all.

I wanted to like this one so much, so I'm really disappointed that I didn't. I didn't hate it by any means. It just bored me. The main character wasn't relatable for me, and the insta-love grated. I'm a bit of a fantasy snob at this point though, so I think there are plenty of readers who could really enjoy this. I'd even go so far as to recommend it to fans of Finnikin of the Rock or Graceling. It just wasn't for me.

A solid, interesting fantasy story. There's magic (which of course, is outlawed), and there is political intrigue (which I don't like a lot of, but it was well done), and there is a touch of romance and vengeance. Overall, everything combined to make an story that kept me eager to find out how it would end. Good characters, clean writing, and an intriguing world.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the magical aspects and couldn't stop reading it due to how the twists and turns made it better!

I think it was Robin Hobb who said that she thought this novel is an exploration of Stockholm Syndrome, and how you move out of it. If that's really what this is, then I think it's an unusual and pretty great book. However - I just don't quite see it; the YA tropes really counter any serious exploration of Stockholm Syndrome, and the result is uneven. Not quite my thing.

The Waking Land by Callie Bates is the first book in a series by the same name. Lady Elanna Valtai is fiercely devoted to the King who raised her like a daughter. But when he dies under mysterious circumstances, Elanna is accused of his murder and must flee for her life. Returning to the homeland of magical legends she has forsaken, Elanna is forced to reckon with her despised, estranged father, branded a traitor long ago. Feeling a strange, deep connection to the natural world, she also must face the truth about the forces she has always denied or disdained as superstition powers that suddenly stir within her. But an all-too-human threat is drawing near, determined to exact vengeance. Now Elanna has no choice but to lead a rebellion against the kingdom to which she once gave her allegiance. Trapped between divided loyalties, she must summon the courage to confront a destiny that could tear her apart.

The Waking Land is a well built fantasy story with world and character development paced just about perfectly. Elanna is still a little niave- even after being kidnapped and raised in a corrupt court. She is a flawed character, but doing her best in the positions she finds herself in. My only issue with her was that she tended to be reactive rather than making her own choices. There are instances where that changes, but for the most par she is forced into action, which bothered me and made her a weaker lead in my eyes. I did think that the magic and political conflicts were very well handled, and twisted and complicated enough to keep interest, but not so complicated that I could not keep it all straight. I highly enjoyed the efforts of the secondary characters, and in some cases found them to be more interesting and strong willed than Elanna and her love interest. I think the romance was unnecessary- and I would have enjoyed more time with Rhia, Sophie, and Victorie- the secondary characters that really stole the show for me. I wanted to love the story, but bits of it just felt off or made me uncomfortable (like marrying the land) and Elanna's personality. The premise had real promise, and there is much that I can see in the author's voice that I like, but this book left me a little disappointed.

The Waking Land is an okay fantasy following the 'chosen one' trope. I think there is a market for it, but readers looking for something on par with Tamara Pierce will be left wanting. However, I see promise in the author's voice and will be willing to pick up a different series from Bates once this one is finished.

This was a very interesting book. The world has this history of magic that was practically a living thing in itself. I enjoyed the characters for the most part as they had some depth and the plot was very compelling. However, the whole thing seemed to drag on a bit. There's an urgency to the situation throughout the book, yet they sometimes just take their time or make a side trip and it was frustrating at times. The magic, while neat, was often very confusing. The ending was satisfying, though leaves room for a sequel that I don't know I necessarily want.

The Waking Land is a fascinating journey through a world divided over magic that will keep you turning pages.

The Waking Land is a gorgeous new fantasy novel from debut author Callie Bates, and it was on my wishlist long before I had the opportunity to read it. There are just certain types of stories, while not entirely groundbreaking or new to the genre, that are just irresistible to me, and this is one of them.

Opening line:
"I felt safe that night in Laon, safer than I had any night before in the city."

Magic, royalty and romance fill this story.

I really enjoyed this story and cared for Elanna and her world until a certain point. She's the Chosen One but she doesn't want to be then as she comes to love her country, she wants to be the Chosen One to save her family, country and maybe all the kingdoms.
Elanna questions everything, thinks through everything, wonders about what to do, what not to do, and will anything she chooses matter.
There are a lot people, towns, castles, etc and I found it hard to keep it all straight in my head as I listened. I think this book could be at least two books and the story/world/plot could be strengthened and filled out more.

One scene took me out of the story...I wish YA stories didn't have a sex scene. I don't think it adds to the story. We want to teens to be responsible with sex and want to lower teen pregnancy and yet sex is in more and more YA books.

Thank you to netgalley for the early read.

THE WAKING LAND is a lovely fantasy novel that deftly merges familiar motifs in innovative ways. Elanna, daughter of the head of the rebel forces, has been raised by the king ever since she was kidnapped at a young age. Now that the king has been poisoned, all eyes turn to her as she tries to piece together what is true and what are lies. Bates portrays Elanna's struggle to find where she belongs very carefully--what could have easily been overdramatic teenage angst is instead a seemingly effortless examination of the grief of losing everything.

Elanna Valtai is a hostage in the court of the Ereni. Taken as a child to stop her father from leading a revolution for new king, Elanna regards her father as a traitor and the king as surrogate parent. The court is poisonous and all Elanna wants to do is travel to the empire and become a botanist. When the king is murdered Elanna is framed and ends up fleeing for her life straight back to the land of her birth. With her awakening powers and revolution rising up around Elanna must decide which country she stands with.

I ended up really liking this book. The beginning was the slowest part for me because Elanna drove me nuts. She has abandonment issues, trusts all the wrong people, suppresses her powers and constantly longs to run back to what she knows. I got annoyed. Thankfully as the the story progresses so does Elanna. She comes to the realization that duty has a price and magic cannot be suppressed and maybe, maybe being what she was born to be isn't all that bad.

I enjoyed the cast of supporting characters, particularity Victoire and Rhia. I want to spend more time with Sophy. Finn is complicated in the best way torn between duty and responsibility and what he wants.

I think my favorite thing about this book was the history and the magic. I really liked how the earth magic was explained and experienced. I also loved how the history of the land is complicated and not the same depending on the country and full of bitterness. I loved the rich magical history that has practically been destroyed and only pieces and guesswork remain. I so look forward to more of that being reveled.

I enjoyed this book and I look forward to the next one.

This was pretty good. Elanna has a way with plants and other living things and magic powers that she must keep hidden in order to protect her life. When the king, who is holding her hostage, is murdered, she needs to run. Because her enemies are trying to cover their misdeeds by framing her. It goes from there. They flee, are pursued, captured, freed, escaped, jailed, etc. It's quite a riveting story. If you like fantasy, this may be just the thing for you.

I really wanted to like this book. The plot sounded interesting but I could not get passed the main character. She was just so annoying to me.

It was fine. If I hadn't read so much Chosen-One fantasy already, it would have been just fine. If I hadn't read a book about a spirited heroine who must answer the Call, it would have been more fine. If you like nature pseudo-celtic fantasy (which I do) it will definitely be fine. It just didn't stand out to me in any way.