Now that was a fun book. I love the beginning of it. It's rare to read a book where you follow the main characters from childhood into adulthood. The way you see Hope and Red early years affect who they become was very well done. That said, the last few chapters don't stick the landing for me. I felt the book had some characters that were archetypes. I was fine with that. Red is the lovable rogue with a heart of cold behind his mischievous grin. Hope is the honorable warrior out for revenge. Thats all fine but near the end one character goes Mad Max; Fury Road on us. Thats when it becomes Star Wars.

The dark side versus the light side of the force ending doesn't work for me. I enjoyed those movies but I didn't want to see parts of them confiscated for this story. There's also the feeling of pandering when one characters changes themselves to get more power. The change happens but I didn't know or care about the character so the significance of the change was minimal. Plus the feeling that this character will now have a relationship with another character who entered the story late felt obvious. I don't know what the big threat is but hopefully it's not a giant space cloud. Otherwise all the evil that the evil doers do in this book will be for nothing. That said I'm really looking forward to read what happens in the next book. Hopefully that ending won't be so over the top as this one was.

I read this book via NetGalley. I thank them for this book. I will also thank Orbit for fulfilling my wish for this book. It was available to UK members but I wished for it and my wish was granted. Thank You for your kindness Orbit.

#NetGalley #OrbitBooks ( )

In many ways, this is rollicking-good-read fantasy with low effort required. It was pacey, interesting, full of grimy thief-and-ninja derring-do, and held up by some big fantasy ideas. I don't mind a bit of that sort of thing now and then; it's not my favourite sort of reading; this was done pretty well for what it is. Within that, there one surprising positive, balanced out by a key and unfortunate negative.

On the positive: the gender balance of the worldbuilding. The book first grabbed my attention when it introduces the background of one of our orphan protags; he's the child of a whore and a noble-turned-slumming-it-artist... it's just that the mother's the artist and the father's the whore. Our hero's first love-interest (who likes him heaps but isn't a settling-down sort of girl, whereas he's figuring out how to hyphenate their names) works security at a brothel; we see her at one point acting in defense of a male whore. And the thieves-cant of their slum is charmingly gender balanced, reflecting the fact that everyone fights hard regardless of gender. (This is all lowest-rung stuff. High society and official organisations are reliably and familiarly misogynist, but that's a key plot element. And sure, the sailors around the Southern isles are nervous about having women on board, but the reason is that it attracts sea monsters, something that we are given reason to suppose might just be true. It would be far from the weirdest thing the magically-messed-with fauna of this world can do.)

On the negative: the pacing. The book takes its time establishing our two main characters (Hope and Red) through their youths, before they finally meet as established if young adults. There's plenty of interesting stuff going on here, but when the final half of the book seems to rush through all of the actual plot, it leaves me wondering whether the author shouldn't have been a touch less indulgent about all that opening material. Moreover, there's a third key character who barely gets any screentime before she's essential to the finale (and the story ongoing at the book's close), and I really wanted to see more of her. (Especially since a big part of her story is her transition from male-bodied to female-bodied, and I am uneasy about the peremptory nature of that significant shift. Having her be a fully explored and thoroughly known character would make it feel less blithe.)

I think I'm going to read more, and if you like some social conscience with your thiefly grim-fantasy hijinks, perhaps have a crack at this one. ( )

Review from Tenacious Reader: http://www.tenaciousreader.com/2016/06/06/review-hope-and-red-by-jon-skovron/

Hope and Red could be the fun read you are looking for, especially if you love stories about thieves and vengeance, and warrior women. The two main characters are in quite different settings, each with intriguing elements. The story follows these two characters whose lives are both shattered from what they knew when they were young. Their paths after their tragedies are very different, yet similar in some ways. Here is the thing about this book. It is full of familiarity and predictability. These are not necessarily bad, depending on what you are looking for. I mean, there is a reason certain elements become familiar and predictable. It’s because generally, people enjoy them! If you are craving an easy, fun read with adventure and ups and downs, this could be good.

I am always a sucker for stories of women who break the normal gender barriers. So, for this, I love that Hope is being trained to be a Vinchen warrior. This training is not easy, and she is certainly not accepted among the men of the order. But she powers through with dedication and becomes a fierce warrior. She becomes proof that, given the chance, there are some women who can accomplish the same levels (or greater) as men. Hope faces some interesting dilemmas as she is so driven by vengeance, she has to at some point evaluate that. At what point does vengeance cost you more than it will gain?

Now, another thing that I noticed was Hope’s inconsistent adherence to a code of honor that she followed as part of her warrior training. This is a hard one to explain without an example, but I usually try to not go into too many concrete details in my reviews. So, while I don’t really think this is a major spoiler, I will put it in spoiler tags just in case. View Spoiler » Maybe there are just some nuances to the warrior code that differentiates these scenarios and I just missed it.

Honestly, while the books characters go by “Hope” and “Red” they are really “Mary Sue” and “Gary Stu”. These two characters accomplish amazing things through the greatest odds. Really, its kind of unbelievable what they can do, but I think that is also the point. This is a fantastical tale of two characters that are in many ways larger than life. This is one of those things that can come down to reader preference, because sometimes it is just plain fun reading about a character doing the impossible and somehow always managing to come out on top. There’s a reason why you see that in books, it can be very fun! I think it is just better to know upfront, because I know that I, personally, have to be in the mood for that when I pick up a book.

I found Red to be a very likable character. He did not grow up in the rough part of town he lives in now, and had a softer, kinder life for his first few years. This seemed to give him a little bit different perspective. But life can be unexpected, and he found himself a very unlikely mother figure. It was interesting seeing his determination to make a name for himself, and see his skill make it seem feasible. Like I said earlier, he is definitely a bit of a Gary Stu, but he is at least a fun Gary Stu. The kind I don’t mind inviting into my books.

And lastly, I don’t really want to make this a major point, but decided to bring it up. I am usually quite accepting of whatever lingo an author wants to use. I am far from easily offended or put off. But I have to be honest. The term “cunt-droppings” (which refers to foolish people) really started to annoy me. The first time, I confess, I actually chuckled a little. The second time I was ambivalent. But the third time I decided it irked me. And every instance of it after that bothered me more. I think part of it was I never liked the term “slice” that is used for women in this book. Its usually a derogatory term (depending on who is using it). That in and of itself is not the issue for me. I just didn’t like it because it felt a little too visually representative of the female genitalia. Maybe that is a short coming on part, but it is my honest reaction. So, pair that with referring to people as “cunt-droppings” (also a little too visual) and I just about had it. Maybe others won’t have these hang ups. I usually don’t, so I was surprised to struggle with these terms in this book.

Overall, this can be a fun read for the right reader. There is plenty of action and fun. I may have had a few issues, but I don’t think they will be universal problems for all readers. If it sounds interesting, I think it is worth giving a read.

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I would like to thank Orbit & NetGalley, for a copy of this e-ARC to review. While I received this ebook for free, that has no impact upon the honesty of my review.

Goodreads Teaser: "In a fracturing empire spread across savage seas, two young people from different cultures find common purpose. A nameless girl is the lone survivor when her village is massacred by biomancers, mystical servants of the emperor. Named after her lost village, Bleak Hope is secretly trained by a master Vinchen warrior as an instrument of vengeance. A boy becomes an orphan on the squalid streets of New Lavender and is adopted by one of the most notorious women of the criminal underworld, given the name Red, and trained as a thief and con artist. When a gang lord named Dreadface Drem strikes a bargain with the biomancers to consolidate and rule all the slums of New Laven, the world's of Hope and Red come crashing together, and their unlikely alliance takes them further than either could have dreamed possible."

I read the teaser for this book and expected I'd probably enjoy it, but that it'd be mighty similar to several other books I've already read. I was right and wrong. I completely enjoyed this book, more each minute - and while there are always going to be similarities between stories, this one stands apart, unique unto itself. Partly because of the characters and situations, and also simply the author's voice is so very distinct.

The beginning of the book bounces between Red's story and Hope's. And as they get older life finds a way to have their paths cross. Only they don't complete the cross, for once they meet they end up partnering with each other in their mutual quest for vengeance. And they want more than their pound of flesh for the emperor's biomancers. Each has suffered deep loss of one kind or another thanks to the nefarious biomancers.

Hope and Red and an excellent blend of personalities. Between them they are brash, levelheaded, prone to acting without any plan, being methodical in their reasoning for all that they do and how their world view is impacted by all they see, hear, and do. And those are just a few days thing. Other labels can be slapped on them as well: artist, student, leader, follower, romantic, pragmatist, charming, slick, inexperienced, passionate, worldly. . . They are the perfect compliments to one another, even if at least one of them may not yet know it.

I also got a real kick out of many supporting characters. Sadie the Goat, Nettles, Captain Carmichael, Filler, and Hurlo the Cunning are just amazing secondary characters, and they are by no means the complete list. Among them is a salty woman with a well-earned reputation, by turns endearing, irascible, and abrasive. An enforcer at a brothel, protecting the whores from the less 'savory' clients. A good man turned from his path by circumstances beyond his control, yet still dependable and decent. A best friend who'll do anything for his best wag. A man of honor whose inner wisdom forces him to defy the very rules his entire life has been guided by . And those are just a few of the charming companions kept by the redoubtable Hope and Red. Each with their own tale to share, for good or ill.

Although this story not only has to create the world for us, set the tone, introduce all the players, and then pull it all together to get us started on this adventure, never once did it feel as if the action stopped to allow for all that to happen. Instead it was very smoothly blended into the story, with everything laid out neatly and while keeping pace with the story being told. Without a doubt I fully expect this to develop into an incredible trilogy before all is said and done, and if this first book is anything to judge by, it's off to an amazing start! If I could, I'd give it 4.5 stars!! ( )