REVIEW: Song of Blood & Stone

Song of Blood & Stone
Author: L. Penelope

Jasminda has lost her entire family. She now lives alone in Elsira, where her powers as an Earthsinger are met with fear and disdain. She keeps to herself, avoiding the nearby village as much as possible. The people there dislike her because of her magic, and also because of who here parents were. Her mother was Elsiran and her father was from Lagamiri. The two lands are separated by a magical mantle, which has only been breached a few times in history. Every time, a breach was followed by war and death. One day while walking home after an agonizingly awful trip to the village, Jasminda sees soldiers with a prisoner. Jasminda realizes that they are from Lagamiri and don't realize they have crossed the mantle into Elsira. They have been ordered to bring the prisoner, Jack, back with them. In talking to Jack, Jasminda learns that the mantle between the two countries will soon fall and that the True Father plans to attack and destroy Elsira. The True Father already takes the Earthsong of his people to make himself stronger. Ancient evil gains strength and threatens the lives of everyone. Can Jack and Jasminda discover how to stop the coming destruction?

I enjoyed this book. It was a magical fantasy story, with some very interesting world building. The idea of Earthsong powers is so creative and beautiful! I definitely like the creative story idea. At times I felt the story got a bit confused....like a few too many ideas got mixed into the pot. And I found myself wondering why the story seemed a lot like a medieval type fantasy but then threw modern technologies like telephones into the mix. But, those little things really didn't pull me away from the story. I enjoyed the action, the mystery of the magic, the stones and the backstory of the two different cultures.

Song of Blood & Stone is the first novel in the Earthsinger Chronicles. There are three books, but each one is a stand alone story. This book was first independently published in 2015, and is now being re-released by St. Martin's Press. The cover art is gorgeous!! The artwork definitely is what first drew me to this book....then the fantasy theme pulled me the rest of the way in.

I very much enjoyed this book! I definitely want to read more by L. Penelope. I'm definitely very curious what the other two stories bring to this series. I liked the characters in this first book. I hope the other characters are just as interesting and varied.

**I voluntarily read an advance readers copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**