Reviewer: Holly Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen
Series: The Malediction Trilogy #2
Also in this series: Stolen Songbird , Warrior Witch
Publisher: Angry Robot
Publication Date: June 2, 2015
Format: eBook
Source: Purchased
Point-of-View: Alternating First
Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
Content Warning: View Spoiler »
Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 464
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Reading Challenges: Holly's 2020 Goodreads Challenge
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Series Rating:
Beneath the mountain, the king’s reign of tyranny is absolute; the one troll with the capacity to challenge him is imprisoned for treason. Cécile has escaped the darkness of Trollus, but she learns all too quickly that she is not beyond the reach of the king’s power. Or his manipulation.
Recovered from her injuries, she now lives with her mother in Trianon and graces the opera stage every night. But by day she searches for the witch who has eluded the trolls for five hundred years. Whether she succeeds or fails, the costs to those she cares about will be high.
To find Anushka, she must delve into magic that is both dark and deadly. But the witch is a clever creature. And Cécile might not just be the hunter. She might also be the hunted…
Hidden Huntress (The Malediction Trilogy #2) by Danielle L. Jensen picks up shortly after Stolen Songbird ends. I believe this trilogy needs to be read in order. Cécile has escape Trollus and is now living in Trianon, performing at her mother’s opera house while she searches for the witch responsible for cursing Trollus. In the meantime, Tristan is still in Trollus plotting to overthrow his father and free the half-blood trolls.
I enjoyed Stolen Songbird and I immediately jumped into Hidden Huntress because I was anxious to see where the story would go. I found the pace quite a bit slower in this novel and Cécile got on my nerves more. In the first book I felt like she made a lot of bad decisions out of desperation. Here, her bad decisions felt more deliberate. She wanted what she wanted, damn the consequences.
I enjoyed the world and really love the politics and intrigues of the trolls. I also thought Tristan grew quite a bit in this novel. I figured out early who the villain was, and I admit I was impatient for the characters to work it out.
In this book and the previous I really struggled with the romance. I never really felt a connection between Tristan and Cécile outside the metaphysical bond that was forced on them. Their declarations of love didn’t really work for me, and nothing I read here solidified their connection for me. Tristan’s mistrust and Cécile’s insecurities frustrated me.
I liked it enough to start the third book immediately, but it’s not a book I think I’ll ever re-read.
Rating: 3.75 out of 5
The Malediction Trilogy
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