Thia, her allies and her crow Res plan to defeat Queen Razel with the aid of neighboring kingdoms, if she can convince them to join the fight. There are obstacles in the way, including Res' unstable magic and Thia being pursued by the crown prince of Illucia.

This is the second of the Storm Crow duology, and I actually missed the first book. As a result, I missed all of the descriptions of the characters, what they meant to each other, and the horrors that happened in the first novel. In that one, Princess Anthia of Rhodaire and her sister found a crow egg in the rookery and plot to hatch it in secret to bring back the elemental crows that Illucia had destroyed. That novel has warning for grief, depression and self harm, as Thia grieved her mother and the loss of the life she expected to have as a crow rider. There was also a lot of diverse representation for color, gender and sexual orientation. This novel, being in the same universe, still references all of those things.

Because I missed the first novel, I did miss a huge chunk of exposition regarding the different kingdoms, the way magic works, and that crows normally have only one kind of magic. They control earth, water/weather, fire, air, sun/healing, shadows, and battle. Res doesn't know how to really use his powers, so we do have a training montage of sorts as Thia tries to find support in waging a war against Razel. She wants to be a leader, but is a teenage princess with few opportunities for prior experience. Because of that, the more she tries to make people respect her, the more it backfires.

There's a lot of hype and interest for this book online, as the first novel attracted a lot of attention. This is one that teens will enjoy, especially those that like crows.

This was an epic conclusion to a fast paced and fun fantasy. I really loved how the love triangle worked out, there were important discussions of mental health and the action scenes intense! Definitely recommend this one!

*eARC provided in exchange for an honest review*

I have to say that I wasn't super impressed by the first book in this series, The Storm Crow. The mere amount of times the word 'crow' is said in the first few chapters was enough for me to tear my hair out. However, I definitely appreciated it more the second time, so maybe I wasn't in the right mood when I read it the first time.

This is not a review of The Storm Crow though. This is a review of The Crow Rider. 

The Crow Rider starts where The Storm Crow left off, as Thia and crew flees the kingdom of her enemies to start a rebellion. 

There are a lot of mythological elements in this story, which I love! Such as going into greater detail on the origin of the crows, Res's abilities, and the 'gods.' 

The romance also continues! And guess who starts popping up in various places? My favorite seemingly dark-hearted prince. 

Plot-wise, it continues from The Storm Crow, fighting the good fight, war, gathering allies. It's a pretty standard YA plot, so nothing too extraordinary there. 

Final thoughts: This is a short and sweet duology (both books are under 400 pages, I believe). The author has skill, and I'll gladly read whatever she writes next, but the plot isn't anything special.

Thankfully I reread book 1 before starting this book.  It literally picks up where book 1 ends, which if you've just read Storm Crow, is awesome!  If it's been awhile, stop, reread book 1, then pick this book back up.
It took me a it to get into the rhythm of this book, but once I did, I could not put it down and finished in the wee hours of the morning.  I love that you get to see the broken parts of these characters, especially Anthia and even Res, and their journey into what the flames of war created them to be. 
The bond Anthia has with Res reminds me of the Companions of Valdemar and Abraxsos, and he is such a character!  I love books that have that bond between humans and animals.  And the journey with Ericen!!  Their banter (with Thia,) and whether he was on her side or not... so many ups and downs!
The world building could have been better and the glossary helped fill in those gaps, but it would be been better had that information been flushed into the story.
4.7

This book was so good! I thought it was an amazing ending to the duology. I could not put it down! I loved the pacing of it. It was such a quick read. There was such good character development throughout this. And so many twists and turns that left me shocked!

I loved all of the characters! I felt so attached to them all, and I loved being able to relate to some of them. The plot went ways that I was not expecting, and I loved it!

If you haven't read this duology yet, I highly recommend it! I thought the writing style was so captivating. I can't wait to see more from this author!

Not enough world-building. It takes awhile for things to get going too. 

I was hoping to love this, but I didn’t. It was good. 

I haven’t fully connected to any character. So it’s harder for me to feel emotionally invested in the story. 

I think most people will like it, and while it’s a good conclusion, I wish I’d have enjoyed it more.

I absolutely loved The Crow Rider. The ending was perfect and it was everything I wanted. I must say I enjoyed the second book more than the first one! Also the romance!! It was just perfect. I already purchased a physical copy because I loved it so much. Thank you Netgalley  for giving me the opportunity to read this amazing book!

When I read The Storm Crow, I fell in love with the story and the characters. After the way the first book ended, I was really interested in seeing how things were dealt with in this novel. I do think that I liked the first book a little bit more, but I still really enjoyed this finale.

One of the things that I like most about these books is how easy it is to fall into them. Kalyn's writing is so wonderful and I've never had any issue with becoming engaged with her stories. One of the things I like about this duology is that we get an engaging high fantasy with wonderful characters but it's not dense, overly-complicated, or super long. While I do like dense fantasies some of the time, I also really love ones like these books. For me, this duology is the epitome of a good Young Adult Fantasy in that it's accessible for younger readers but engaging for those who like a bit of a grittier premise.

I adored the characters just as much this time around. There were a few side characters who were featured heavily in book one that didn't get as much page time in this one that I wished I'd seen more of. However, there were some new characters that were introduced that I really connected with.

Obviously, I love our main character more than the rest. Thia is just so strong and complex. Her bonds with the other characters as well as her internal struggles added such great depth to the story. Additionally, one of the things I liked most about the first book is that it included Thia's mental health journey. I was really glad to see that not only do we get the continuation of her growth and journey, but we also get to see other characters' also healing from trauma and pain.

As much as I loved this book, I'm also really left wanting more. I want more of these characters, more of the world and lore, and so much more of the crows and magic! I would love if the author revisited this world following a different character (or even a continuation of Thia's story) because I just am so intrigued by everything in it. I really wish I'd gotten to see even more of the different magic systems and history but I also feel that I was never confused due to lack of information. Overall, I wish there was more of everything because I just really liked this duology!

I appreciated the first book in this series, The Storm Crow, because of its unique and beautiful blend of YA fantasy world building and plotting, along with a heart-wrenching portrayal of depression. I found the story unique - because YA fantasy does not typically delve into those topics as much as other genres. The Crow Rider did not disappoint when it came to building upon the themes from the first book. I appreciated the character growth within the sequel - we see setbacks and failures, but also triumphs and great moments of happiness. I loved the realness of it, and the gentle honesty of characters finding love regardless, and because of, their imperfections and flaws. The Crow Rider was a beautiful story of redemption, healing, and finding the beauty in our imperfect selves and imperfect world. The action built and carried well from the first book and the finale felt exciting and satisfying. An overall pleasing and great conclusion, and a book I really enjoyed reading.

I definitely prefer the sequel to this duology than the first.
The relationships were way more realistic and natural in this installment than the previous, and I was actually able to feel for this characters this time around. Res especially was a high point because he's just the cutest little crow baby in all the land. I think it would have been more successful to have more scenes with Res in the last book, so we don't have to play catch up in this one since he's been in the series for such a short amount of time.
Moreover, I really like how Kalyn writes battle scenes. She's successful at creating a detailed scene for me to picture, and I think it's one of her strong suits as a writer. Those scenes, specifically at the end, were such a joy to read and picture. I don't think anybody would deny that her descriptions of Thia and Res in the sky aren't out of this world. You can feel the moments of peace when its just Thia and res, but when there's tension when they're flying- it's pungent.
To be honest, there needed to be a larger page count to this duology overall. The 350-ish count did not do this story justice. Res learns more about his abilities at the start and middle portions of this finale, and we just flickered over it as if it was not that important in the grand scheme of things. It was disappointing because Res was one of the shining lights to this duology, and I was sad that his development was stunted.
Overall, I think the weakest point to this story was the lack of world building. We didn't really have any of it in the first book, and Kalyn had to do a lot of info dumping in this installment, which was confusing in and of itself because she didn't give enough even then. The Sellas were sooo interesting, and I'm sad they were such a big part of this novel, but we still know/ saw little to basically no parts of their abilities/ folklore. It felt like a constant tease. I wish the Sella folklore had been a larger portion to the first book, so we, as readers, did not have to filter through/ understand these new characters/ villains in such a short amount of time.
We were left with more questions then answers.
I will certainly look into Kalyn's next books because she is a fantastic scene writer, and I'm hoping some of these issues I had could be resolved in future projects because she has a lot of talent.
I may come back to this review sometime because there's more I'd like to say, but here is the largest summary of my feelings post-reading that I could think of.
Thank you to SourceBooks for sending me an eARC to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The Crow Rider is the fact paced, action packed conclusion to the Crow Rider Duology. I was a little hesitant going into the book after the first one left me a bit wanting but I am glad I gave it another shot.  We pick up right where the first one left off with Thia, Res and the crew escaping Illucia and headed to meet potential rebel allies to save their world. Josephson started such a unique world and magic system, so I really enjoyed the further world building and getting to know the characters more. I really wish this story had been a bit longer to go into more detail but was still entertaining and look forward to seeing how Josephson grows in her writing in future novels….hopefully more in this world!

I really wanted a quicker pace with book two. Sadly I was still a little bored. I just don’t think it’s a good fit for me personally.   I do think a lot of readers will like this. Strong characters just a little slower paced than I prefer.  I was happy to see more crows at the end!

Every since I finished The Storm Crow, I know that I needed to read The Crow Rider. One thing that I am loving more than anything right now when it comes to YA is the accurate portrayal of mental illness, which was done beautifully in book one with Princess Thia. 

Princess Thia still has her own inner demons to work out, but she refuses to let her sister fall prey to the same enemies that claimed the life of their mother. While everyone thought the crows were dead, Thia was able to rescue her storm crow Res. Now, Res and Thia must work together to save their kingdom. 

Y'all, I loved Res. I know that he went through some things especially since his powers weren't the traditional powers of storm crows, but I don't care. He was amazing, and I refuse to allow anyone to hurt him. Just saying. 

I loved that the author continued the importance of mental health in The Crow Rider. You don't see this in YA fantasy typically, so I can't rave about this enough. 

I thought The Crow Rider was much more propulsive in terms of action. Honestly, I just really enjoyed this series.

I was pleased to be able to continue reading this series having just re-read the first book and I was glad that the action picked up from straight where it had left off. I was looking forward to getting answers and conclusions to those set out in the first book. 

This book started off strong and we learnt more about the main characters and I definitely felt there was more of a connection to the main characters, and we saw them coming to life a bit more. However, as the book went on I got fed up with the repetitiveness of it all, and I felt like the story was moving very slowly. 

The story of this book was slightly more interesting than the first as we knew from the first book that there were certainly going to be more battles and more excitement. I wish that we had had more about the crows generally in this one, and I found that we only got that towards the end by which time the story was being wrapped up. 

Overall, I thought for a sequel to a debut novel this was good, it didn't wow me but it wasn't bad. I would have just liked a bit more in terms of plot. I can't fault the writing style or the characters.

The Crow Rider is the conclusion to The Storm Crow and it did a great job at wrapping everything up! I would love to see more set in this world, maybe a novella in the future.

The first thing I loved was Res and Thia’s bond. Res added so much to the story. He had a big personality for a crow, and his scenes were always fun to read.

Every character was necessary for this book. I especially loved Samra and her cat! Ericen remained a strong character and one of my favorites. Elko and Kiva were also excellent characters and I wish we had seen more of them.

One thing I hadn’t liked in the previous book was the romance between Thia and Caylus and the love triangle, which both promptly ended in this one. I’m glad Thia didn’t end up with the first guy she liked/dated, even if she did have feelings for Ericen in the beginning.

Caylus wasn’t my favorite character in the first book, but I liked him in this one and I think he had potential that was left unexplored.

In The Crow Rider, the world is expanded upon and explored more, which I loved. The world-building was imaginative and fun to learn about. I do wish the author had delved into the magic more because it was so interesting. Overall a great and satisfying conclusion.

‘The Crow Rider’ is the sequel to the 2019 book ‘The Storm Crow’, and it was one of the most unique books I read last year. I had never read - or heard of- a book in which crows are magic. The first book was a 5 star read for me, and the sequel was no different. Fast paced and descriptive, ‘The Storm Crow’ tied up the duology nicely-BUT I’d love to read other stories in this world. The author also did a fantastic job writing about Mental Health. They way it was presented and treated was so realistic. I love how the author didn’t just write away the trauma characters faced, but instead showed them learning how to cope in healthy ways. 
One of my favorite details of the book was the crow Res and the fact that he had a personality. I’ve read so many books where an animal is just kind of ~there~, but the author did a fantastic job of giving Res his own personality. He begs, he teases other characters, and in several scenes, it’s almost as if he’s actually laughing the way a human would. The fact that the author was able to convey all of this without Res saying a word is a sign of true writing ability and talent. I also loved that the author wrote the final big battle  over multiple chapters instead of one. It made it seem more realistic, with both sides going back and forth and actual battle strategies being used. The author drew out the suspense, and it made me turn the pages that much faster. 
My only question is: where can I find a magical Crow for myself?

This review has taken longer to write because I've been trying to process my thoughts on what I read. I was excited to read this sequel because I loved the first book, but I struggled with this. The first book was captivating, unique, intriguing, and engaging. This felt like it took the first half of the book to get to the point of the actual book. If I am not feeling a book, I quit after 100 pages but I pushed through. I probably should have stopped at 100 pages.

This book started exactly where the first book left off and with no recap, I felt lost. It had been a year since I read the first book that I forgot a lot of the details. A little subtle reminder of what already took place would have been helpful.

The other thing that stood out to me was how much action and how little world building was put into this book. Action scenes are always welcome but so is world building, character development/arc, plots, and the like. This book was more action than anything else and it was confusing.

The Crow Rider is a satisfying conclusion to Kalyn Josephson’s Storm Crow duology. 

Josephson doubles down on several elements that made the first book successful. The depression and PTSD representation are incredibly compelling and some of the best I’ve ever seen in YA fantasy. The female empowerment (even in the face of that depression) continues to be pretty badass. And, my personal favorite, the casual diversity and queerness of the book’s characters is so real and so delightful. I love that the characters are just accepted for their identities without any question. We are introduced to a nonbinary character simply by their use of pronouns. We are introduced to an asexual character. There are fully queer relationships that continue from the first book. It’s so great. 

I also liked the balance of humor.  Sometimes, when YA fantasies tackle topics like mental health, the books can get a little too dark. Res, the titular Storm Crow that is literally essential to the entire continent’s survival, would rather flop around and beg for treats than rain lighting down upon his enemies. Kiva and Ericen’s quips (with Thia, with Res, and with each other) were always a bright spot. My biggest critique of the first book was that I was disappointed that we didn’t get to explore more of the crow’s magic system. I was really glad that this book delved more into the history of the crows and how that magic might work (in a surprising, but still satisfying, way). 

Ultimately, this series is about the battle for inner strength, even when everything seems lost. I think these books are going to be really important to a number of young people who are struggling with mental health issues, and possible may not even know it yet. While I don’t think the second-world fantasy elements were incredibly original, Josephson’s deft hand in tying those elements to real world issues make this a series I will definitely recommend. 

Also, I love Res and Ericen with my whole heart. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

A gripping ending to a fantastic duology! 

While I believe The Storm Crow to be the stronger of the two books, The Crow Rider was still a well-rounded ending to a unique series that built on the foundations of the 'strong female protagonist'and made the female feel more real, I particularly found the inclusion of mental health within themes of politics and war a well-thought out and realistic addition to the story that not many books even think about.

I am so glad I decided to read this series as its now a favourite. This world, these characters and the magic that Kalyn Josephson has created is unbelievable and I’m honestly gutted it’s only a duology as I could happily read more books set in this world. 

The portrayal of mental illness was done perfectly, and I was so happy to see it represented in YA Fantasy. I also respected its reflection of PTSD from an outsider’s perspective, I’m so use to seeing this from a single point of view so it was interesting to see how Thia watches how someone else deals with it. 

I loved watching Thia grow in this series and how strong she became alongside the help of her closest friends and family. I love her connection to Res and how beautiful their bond is. Res himself is such an interesting character with his own personality that I couldn’t help but love. I want my own Res with magical powers please. 

It’s hard to talk about this book without spoiling the plot and I honestly want you to read this book if you enjoyed the first one. Whilst I enjoyed the first book a lot, I found myself loving this book more. I liked how it ultimately fixed the romance that I somewhat disliked in the first book (I’m not a massive fan of love triangles, they give me anxiety!) and introduced more magic. 

This was an extremely powerful conclusion to an epic, action-packed and magic filled duology that everyone should read if they love YA Fantasy! 

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.