"Sybella arrives at the convent’s doorstep half mad with grief and despair. Those that serve Death are only too happy to offer her refuge—but at a price. The convent views Sybella, naturally skilled in the arts of both death and seduction, as one of their most dangerous weapons. But those assassin's skills are little comfort when the convent returns her to a life that nearly drove her mad. And while Sybella is a weapon of justice wrought by the god of Death himself, He must give her a reason to live. When she discovers an unexpected ally imprisoned in the dungeons, will a daughter of Death find something other than vengeance to live for?"
Wow! Dark Triumph is a darkest book (so far) in the His Fair Assassin series. Readers should know that Dark Triumph is not for young children. I'll recommended this book to children fourteen and up because of how descriptive and creepy the book is. (After all D'Albert is one of the major characters that frequently and annoying appear in this book.)
The plot of Dark Triumph is dark and exciting. Every little thing Sybella reveals is amazing and so stunning. Dark Triumph is as good as Grave Mercy. I can't choose between them! The writing empathized the darkness and tone of Dark Triumph which makes the book more realistic and awesome. All these tiny but meaningful chapters are amazing! I can't wait for the next book! Dark Triumph's dialects of the 1400s are dream worthy. If only guys with these dialects (and manners) exist in the modern world...
The ending. Why does the ending have to be like that? I'm like, that's it? What happen to them? I know they didn't die, but will D'Albert's men catch up with them or what? What kind of ending is that? Oh wait. I do know. It's an annoying cliffhanger for the next book.
Duval's POV or Beast's POV. That's all I need to say.
Characters:
Dark Triumph is mainly centered on Sybella. It's a great shock to find out that Sybella is one of the seven children of D'Albert. (the pig) We learn of Sybella's broken past. We learn why she is mad/insane in the beginning of Grave Mercy. Sybella is a more interesting character than Ismae, but Ismae has a prettier past than Sybella. In the court of D'Albert, one is expected to be fearless and terrorizing, and girls are often raped by D'Albert's men or even D'Albert himself. Sybella uses her wits, talents, and words to protect herself. It doesn't hurt that D'Albert is her "father." Sybella constantly struggles with the convent and her beliefs. She truly doesn't believe in Mortain. Dark Triumph is mainly her struggles with her past, happiness, and insane/suicidal thoughts. Sybella serves as His Justice. (Ismae is His Mercy.)
We see more of Beast/Sir Benebic de Waroch. Beast is hard and scarred on the outside, but the inside is soft and sweet. He's quite tough (of course he is) and will do anything to protect his Duchess. (Like Duval.) Beast is an good example of the quote "Don't judge a book by its cover." He may be ugly on the outside, but what is he on the inside? So don't judge Beast. He's awesome.
Rating: Five out of Five.
"Why be the sheep, when you can be the wolf?
Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.
Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?"
The synopsis slightly exaggerates the expression "For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?" The book only involves that expression for only one chapter. *raise eyebrows*
Out of all books I love, Grave Mercy is one book of the top of the top. I'm going to add it in to my Recommended List. (That is how much I liked it) Grave Mercy is one of those books readers can't help but read it over and over again. It is so addicting.
Grave Mercy stars Ismae, a girl who is a handmaiden to Death, her father. Her mission is to find the traitor in the court of Anne, Duchess of Brittany. In order to be near the court, she poses as the mistress of Duval, half-brother of Anne, Duchess of Brittany.
The plot was wonderful! Full of surprises and endless delight, the plot was eye candy for me. I gobbled the entire plot up. After reading it once, I read it again. Every time, the plot never failed to shock and surprise me.
The writing. Strong point of Grave Mercy.
The dialects were amazing. Each word brought more of the past alive. It's an interesting characteristic of a historical fiction series.
The ending! Ah! What a wonderful ending. I'm so pleased with the ending. It's so fitting yet also sad. I love how Ismae moved on and just stopped thinking about the convent's ways. Instead, she moved onto a much different path. The road less traveled by.
Characters:
Ismae: She's brave. She is Death's handmaiden. She is an assassin. She is sometimes afraid yet in other times brave. She is intelligent. She has her own scars and is afraid of showing them, because scars are weaknesses, right? (That is what she thinks) Ismae is killer. Sarah Conner bad. Angelina Jolie as Salt bad. She is, after all, helping Death do his duty to all mortals, especially the traitors of Brittany.
Duval: Gorgeous. And awesome character. Unfortunately, he is an old man inside. He is wise and good at chess. Strategy is his game and life. One wrong step made by Duval, he would be dead before he could fix his mistake. He is also good at politics. With his skill and cleverness, Duval helps his sister Anne of Brittany survived through the political world, full of blood thirsty barons and power hungry lords.
The villain: Clever man. Clever man. Sneaky. Cunning. Ingenious. Invisible. All marks of a great villain.
Rating: Five out of Five
