"Tell me about this place. This...Arcania."
What if your life as you knew it ceased to exist?
That is the question Naeve Brannigan and her three sisters are faced with on the eve of their 25th birthday. Continuing a tradition they've hidden from their mother for years, the four women arrive at a tarot shop to have their futures told. Only this time, their futures aren't predicted -- they're forever changed.
They've awoken in a strange time and place with no knowledge of how they got there. All they have to go by is the word of a man who claims to be family -- a family they've never heard of. He tells them of a world they could never have imagined. One that has been cursed by an Empress fueled by old revenge -- revenge their mother appears to be at the center of.
As they fight to survive the people and dangers of an unknown land, they slowly begin to unravel its mysteries to find that they hold the key to saving this world...this Arcania.
The question that remains for each of them is: Who do you become when the you that you always were is no longer?
“Don’t. Make. A. Sound.”
The low, gravelly voice reverberated through her as she
felt a tear escape the corner of her eye. The arm that was banded across her
chest was full-on muscle as it easily held her in place against a body that was
as impenetrable as a brick wall.
Naeve didn’t move a muscle, but she lowered her eyes the
best she could and saw a black leather glove that went halfway up that thick
forearm. As the hand on her right shoulder tightened, she grimaced and felt the
tip of the knife press against her throat.
“Where is your other sister?”
Naeve remained silent, not sure she could even remember
how to speak, and then she felt those fingers grip her shoulder harder as they
spun her around and pulled her up close.
The sight that greeted her was like something from her
worst nightmare.
She couldn’t have imagined ever feeling the terror she
felt right then. For that reason alone, she’d never known that her response
would be to become one hundred percent paralyzed.
As she stared up at the towering figure before her, she
had to wonder if maybe she was already dead and he’d been sent to collect her.
Cloaked from head to toe in nothing but black, he almost blended into the
shadows except for the shiny blade he had pointed at her throat. She couldn’t
make out a face behind the hood and mask, but all she continued to hope was
that, if he planned to kill her, he’d do it fast.
As you may or may not know, I took a break from reviewing
for the last six months. I needed to step back, and just breathe for a little
while. I started to lose my love of reading, and I refused to let blogging
completely temper that passion in my life. I didn’t set a date as to when I
would come back to the world of reviewing and blogging, because I didn’t know
when I would even want to; I kept
telling myself that I would just know.
And then my lovely friend, Stacy, mentioned adding me to
Ella’s blog tour for her new fantasy romance. To be honest, I was so out of the
book loop that I wasn’t even sure what this new book really entailed (*cringes* don’t throw tomatoes at
me…please!) but considering how Ella was (and still is) one of my favorite
authors, I decided what a better time to dip my feet back into the review
world. And you know what? I am SO fucking
glad I did, because this book…this book is absolutely phenomenal.
Temperance takes
you between Wilmington, NC and the magical land of Arcania, where a merciless
sensualeer Empress has plagued the land due to, what she views, a sisterly
betrayal. Seraphine has been plotting her revenge for years, and even though
she no longer knows the whereabouts of her sister, she knows exactly what will
force her hand and leave her no choice but to show herself…
Bring her 4 daughters to Arcania.
On their 25th birthday, Naeve, Siobhan, Fiona,
and Audra are transported into a mysterious forest without any recognition as
to how they got there. After their eventual capture, they slowly find out
information about their mother and father that will leave them questioning
everything they thought they knew, and in turn, this magical land of Arcania
starts to appear like less of a dream, and more and more like a reality. But
with the Empress forging on with her plan to exact revenge on the girls’ mother,
they have no idea just what kind of force they are up against, and if they ever
do get back to “the real world”, they may not return as the same girls that
disappeared that fateful afternoon.
I am honestly not even sure where to start with this
review. My mind is still reeling from the sheer brilliance of Ella Frank's
latest novel, and I can't remember the last time a book left me with a hangover
of this proportion. I finished Temperance
two days ago, and it still consumes my thoughts to the point where I
already want to do a re-read. It's just absolutely magnificent. I really enjoy
fantasy romances, but it has been quite a while since I’ve not only read one,
but found one that truly captivated me. Until now. Ella paints such a vivid,
magical masterpiece throughout these pages that you can’t help but feel as
though you’ve somehow been teleported to Arcania right alongside the Brannigan
sisters. With this being the first book in the series, there is quite a bit of
backstory and plot development, but there isn’t a moment where you feel as
though the story is beginning to drag. Every small detail plays a part in this
story and how the characters are connected, so it was impossible for me to not
hang on every single sentence.
Now, I’ll admit something. I had a bit of trouble keeping
the relationships between the characters straight for a little while. I know, I
suck. But once I finally drilled it into my head, I was able to fully submerse
myself in the plot and just enjoy the fantasy and mystery that lurks in every
crevice of Arcania. The character development was outstanding, and I feel like
this deserves some extra attention considering the amount of characters this
story revolves around. While Naeve is at the forefront, we are well introduced
to all three of her sisters, and several residents of Arcania -- though Kai, Ry’Ker,
and Bastian overshadow the rest in this particular installment. The personalities
of each character were projected marvelously, and in a way that allowed the
reader to feel as though they know each
of these individuals, even if they didn’t stand in the forefront. I fell in
love with these characters hard, and
the only other time I have thoroughly loved an entire ensemble this much was when
I read the Addicted series by Krista and Becca Ritchie.
I could go on and on about the phenomenal brilliance of
this magical novel filled with love, hate, revenge, survival, family, and the
curse of power falling into the wrong hands…but no matter what I say, I won’t
do it justice. So just read it. Temperance
has forever planted itself on my all-time favorites shelf, and there is no
doubt that I will find myself going back to the world of Arcania time and time
again. Ella Frank never ceases to amaze me, and after finishing her first
fantasy novel, it’s official…
There is absolutely nothing that this woman can’t write. Absolutely.
Nothing.
My Casting Picks
5 STARS
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