I began this book incredibly excited. However, I was quickly pulled out of the story by the writing which wasn't clicking with me. I keep intending to go back and try again, but it feels too similar to so many things I've read before and I'm just not in the place anymore.

This book was certainly a solid start to a new series. It took a little bit to warm up to the characters and there was a lot of world building built in, which slowed things down at the beginning. Once I got through that, though, the pacing was really good and the characters really came into their own through the events happening around them. Overall, I greatly enjoyed this book and will definitely be picking up the next in the series.

It took me awhile to get into it but once I did, I enjoyed the story and the characters. The worldbuilding is quite unique. the author did not spend much time telling about the world but drops you in the middle of it and letting you experience everything along with characters.

Due to a problem with send to kindle I was unable to read the title. I realized this problem only now, but it seems there was no sychronization for the past two months.

The Witcher goes fiercely feminist in this gripping paranormal romance from noted author Isabel Cooper.

Raised from childhood to be weapons against the darkness, Sentinels spend their lives fighting the storm-born monsters that prey upon humanity. They alone can stare down the Traitor God. Their hands will shape the world, and their swords will seal its fate.

Amris has been trapped in dreamless sleep since the final battle raged centuries ago. Now he is awake...and so, it seems, is the Traitor God. Determined to save the world from being swallowed by the oncoming storm, Amris and fierce Sentinel Darya must learn to trust each other as they fight their way through a ruined city swarming with monsters in a last desperate bid to get word back to their allies before it's too late...

Isabel Cooper is one of my comfort reads: everything she does is fun, adventurous, and a good relaxing time. Really needed during this year especially.

Had a lot of fun in reading this book. Good world building and character development, a well developed plot that kept me hooked.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book was so entertaining. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and was involved until the end. The characters were complex and interesting. I found the story to be well paced and engrossing throughout the whole book. I was invested in the couple throughout the book and felt all the emotions through both the highs and lows of the story.The side characters were such an integral part of this story as well. This is the love story i needed to read at this time. If you want an entertaining and well written book this is it for you

I was provided with a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

At first I was a little confused with the plot and what was happening.
However, after a while I was able to grasp the plot and in the end I really enjoyed it.

As for the characters, I think they were interesting but I think they could have been developed a little more.

Again, I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

The Stormbringer is the first I've read of Isabel Cooper. She paints a vivid picture of the fantasy worlds and creatures/beings. Lots of great things about this book - Darya as a strong female heroine; the slow burn romance between herself and Amris, with the added twist of Amris' former lover, Gerant's spirit being preserved in Darya's sword and battle scenes with fantastical creatures like a cockatrice, twistedmen and more.

Stormbringer is the first book in the Stormbringer series by Isabel Cooper.

Darya is a Sentinel. A Sentinel who was created to fight the monsters that prey upon the humans of the world. She and her sword defend and fight against those who would destroy life. During one such pursuit, she stumbles across a man frozen in time. A man, a warrior who is not from her time, but the history that is passed down through generations.

His name is Amris. Amris is a warrior, a leader who sacrificed his life to freeze, and he hoped, defeat the Traitor god. Darya has a weapon that has a soul. A soul which knows Amris intimately, and through the knowledge of her sword, Darya releases Amris.

Amris and Darya have to work together to defeat an enemy that seems to be everywhere and has creatures that seem to multiply and are invincible. They have to defend and protect a city that is vital to keeping the Traitor god out of the land.

At first it took me a while to visualize the world the author created since the creatures are a part of their imagination. After I opened my mind to “see” the world, I almost wished I wouldn’t have. The world Isabel Cooper created is out of my worst nightmares, but the way she wrote the characters and their lives and hopes drew me in. The battle was a little long, but we needed to know what happened to the characters of Darya and Amris.

I wanted so badly to like this story, but I just didn't. I had to force myself to finish it which surprised me because the blurb was so intriguing to me. So let me just say, this book almost feels like it starts in the middle of the series. You're thrown in right in the middle of a fight scene, with no real back story on anything that is going on. So I was already confused right from the start. And it never truly went over anything that the story around to that, not in my opinion anyway. So there are several gods, and the main character has been trained to fight against these monsters that fight for the traitor god. On one of her patrols she comes across someone who was frozen in time while also freezing the traitor god, who is now also loose (see what I mean about it gets very confusing?). Her sword also has the soul of this other fighter's previous lover. I normally love PNR and sci-fi romances, and all of it. I honestly did not even like this one, and I really wanted to. I am sure some people will really love it, and they may understand more than I did. But it left me more confused after reading the whole thing than when I started. I doubt I would read any more in the series or even by this author because of it, unfortunately.

This is true urban fantasy with a very light touch of romance. The story could have existed without the romance factor as it would have worked just as well as friends between Amris and Darya. This was a disappointment to me because I'm a romance reader first. I've read other books by Isabel Cooper and they were romance and highland type stories and I expected that again.

For those who like urban fantasy it might be a good introduction to the series. It was an intriguing story full of gruesome bad guys that were worthy of a horror story. Darya is a Sentinel, a warrior trained since childhood and given special giftings from the gods. She's armed with a soul sword that has the soul of the wizard Gerant who aids in her quests. It sets up the characters for the upcoming books pretty well. Amris is a General from 105 years ago who with his lover Gerant's help trapped Thyran (the bad guy) in an enchanted sleep with him. Darya wakes Amris and they discover Thyran has been awakened several days to weeks before.

My biggest problem with the story was that it just moved so slow. The first third plus of the book was an unexpected rescue and journey home filled with deadly foes that had to be kill to get past. The center of the book was preparation for the probable coming battle. The last quarter of the book was the unending battle with the evil wizard-warlord Thyran of Heliodar.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced readers copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Isabel Cooper created magic when infusing this book with the perfect mix of paranormal, fantasy, and romance. It hits all the good spots of all three in such an organic way that the plot flows perfectly from one element to another. Plus the battle at the end is a total page-turner that totally had my heart racing.
Both Darya and Amris are engaging characters with believable personalities and quirks that make the bizarre situation they find themselves in somehow make perfect sense. The fact that they're surrounded by characters whose own stories I would love to know more of only adds to the appeal of this book.
It's definitely a very strong beginning to what is sure to be an action-packed series that I can't wait to read more of.

Many happy thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the introduction to a great series!

A hundred years ago, General Amris saved the world from the inexorable advances of the dark sorcerer Thyran’s horrifying army of monstrous constructs and undead soldiers by using a spell created by his lover Gerant to freeze both Amris and Thyran in time.

Now, Amris has been awakened from his long sleep by Dayna, a Sentinel warrior hunting a cockatrice through the ruined city. But Thyran is already gone, unfrozen from time and free to wreak havoc once more. It’s a race against time for Amris and Dayna to get warning out, to try and prepare their people for the horrors that will soon be descending on them.

There’s an added complication in that the soul inside the soulsword bonded to Dayna belongs to none other than Gerant - Amris’ lost love. Both Dayna and Amris are battling against an attraction to each other from the beginning, both convinced they’d be wronging Gerant by acting on it - until Gerant intervenes in a rather amusing and unexpected way. You’ll find a couple of fairly explicit sex scenes here which might be unexpected if you were just expecting ‘fantasy’ rather than ‘fantasy romance’. The series looks like it will have a different couple as the focus of each even as the overarching plot focuses on the battle against Thyran and his minions.

I thoroughly enjoyed this. The worldbuilding is excellent and we are plunged right into the action from the first moment, riding along with Amris as he goes without hesitation into a battle he knows he cannot win. Both he and Dayna are intriguing characters, with a lot of backstory to explore. Battle scenes in particular are very well done, with steadily escalating foes and stakes until a climactic confrontation which sets up nicely for the next in the series while still giving this one a good completion point. No doubt if you follow along with the series, you’ll be seeing Amris and Dayna again as I’m sure they’ll both have big parts to play before it’s all over.

Five stars for a tremendous start to a fascinating new fantasy romance series. I’m looking forward to Book 2.

2 stars

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

I couldn't get into this fantasy/romance book. The story didn't interest me. The book goes from one fight scene to another, with little story in between. The writing is clunky and stilted. There is probably an audience for this book, it just wasn't for me.

Darya is a Sentinel, a person trained from youth to be a fighter against storm-born monsters that prey on people. There are several gods, and one of them, called the Traitor God, turned on the others and waged war. Amaris was a fighter over a hundred years ago and helped freeze the Traitor God, freezing himself as well. The Traitor God is now free. Darya finds Amaris during her patrol and wakes him from his deep sleep. Darya's sword has the soul of Amaris's former lover instilled in it, and she can communicate with the soul. (confused yet?) The book is basically a description of Darya and Amaris fighting the monsters created by the Traitor God. Oh, and there is an awkward romance story between the two characters.

There isn't much worldbuilding, so I didn't really understand why the world was the way it was. I felt like the book started in the middle of the story. Again, maybe others will enjoy this book. I just couldn't get into it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the free digital copy of this book.

Will they be able to hold back the dark forces in league against them ...

This was my first read by the author and even if it was noted as a first in a series, the beginning confused me a lot.
Yet, over the pages, this unknown world to me is slowly explained. It is quite complex and different, a real fantasy land bordering horror with the creatures born and altered by the forces ruling it.
I can not fault the author’s talent, her vivid description of fights, it was like being part of them. Nor her many characters rendered flesh and blood by her words.
Part of what bothered me was as Amris had been asleep/dead for the world for over a century, so he never mourned the loss of his lover, so entering a new relationship so soon after been awaken and upon learning the death of his paramour, it was too fast a move for me.
Even more peculiar when said departed lover is haunting the sword of his new love interest.
I do not know in fact if it was a threesome or a love triangle.
Darya is the one holding back with reason, she is the holder of the sword with Gendar’s spirit, Amris’ late lover. She is a strong woman, taking matter in hand, not afraid to go for what she wants but she too has her limits.
I liked Gendar, he is fun and moving, older too as he lived a full life before his next step.

And while I labored to enter this book, it has great elements for lovers of epic tales and fantasy worlds.
3.5 rounded up to 4 stars .

𝗦𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 : one detailed onscreen lovemaking scene.

I have been granted an advance copy by the publisher Sourcebooks Casablanca, here is my true and unbiased opinion.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I was excited to read The Stormbringer, because not only was it another Isabel Cooper book, but it was also pitched as a a “fiercely feminist” twist on The Witcher, a series I had mixed feelings about trying for various reasons. And while it was different from what I’d previously tried from Cooper, being more epic fantasy romance than historical paranormal, Cooper navigates the genre fairly well.

The world is intriguing and unique and one I enjoyed exploring. While I did worry about lacking context at first, the relevant history as it impacts the present storyline is well conveyed.

The cast of characters is also really intriguing and fresh. I liked the diversity, with inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters I’d love to get to know more about, tearing down toxic masculinity with the sensitive male warrior not afraid to cry, and, of course, compelling lead characters dealing with high stakes.

I did feel the romance was a bit underwhelming and even disconcerting. Amris was bonded with Gerant, but was frozen in time, comes back to life, finds out Gerant died, and is very quickly ready for a new relationship with Darya. But Gerant’s also happens to reside in Darya’s sword, so he’s still around? I guess in a way, it’s kinda a poly thing, and that’s fine if that’s what Cooper wanted to do, but I think it should have been made that way more explicitly, rather than being like, “Amris and Darya are the main couple, but hey, Gerant’s still here and I don’t know what to think!”

While the romance is a bit weird, I still enjoyed it and can’t wait to read the next two books. If you’re looking for an epic fantasy romance, I think you’ll enjoy this one.

A good story all in all. Good magic and characters. Took a little bit to get into. Very slow moving for my liking.

Darya is a sentinel on a mission. When she runs across an ancient warrior who was given up for dead 100 years ago, she frees him from the magic that put him to sleep. To prevent one of the greatest foes of his time from killing all Amris uses a enchanted rose to end his reign of terror. When Darya and Amris are faced with that foe once again can they defeat him?


I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own