“In Light Fighters, Cassidy and Torr are trying to survive on the moon while facing threats from all sides. As their shamanic heritage surfaces and they hone their magical skills, they are hunted for their power, escalating into a tension-filled game of cat and mouse.
Ridge is stuck between the sadistic Balty and the desire to control his own life. His magical gifts become entangled with those around him, pulling him between opposing forces. When his path crosses that of the Star Children, he must decide whose side he is on.”
Title: Light Fighters
Series: Star Children Saga #2
Author: Palmer Pickering
Page Count: 796
Genre: Fantasy / Science Fiction
Rating: 5.0/5.0
Date Read: August 9th, 2022
| Once again Palmer Pickering caught me by surprise with this one! I found this series on NetGalley just simply browsing. Both books one and two were there so I grabbed them in anticipation of getting to them over a couple of months. I ended up getting ahead of my July TBR so went ahead and started and finished book one last month. I really enjoyed it! So much so that I only waited a week before diving into book two. I was going to hold off because I knew I wouldn’t finish it before I had another reading obligation at the beginning of August. I did get half way through and hit the pause button on this one to take care of the other read. As soon as it was done I got right back to Light Fighters! Palmer did warn me before I began book two that there were some triggers and the story was a bit darker than book one. We’ve even had a brief conversation about the main trigger (rape) since finishing the book. I don’t think it’s one to scare away the general reader but for someone who has been through such a tragedy it might be difficult for sure. The incident itself is described fairly graphically but what kept pulling at my heart strings was that the aftermath of that incident continues to surface throughout the story in book two. It never ruined the reading experience for myself it only created more sympathy for her and hatred toward the one who did it to her. Now onto my usual review. Obviously as previously mentioned this was not a book or series I had heard much buzz about prior to picking it up. I honestly picked them up initially just because the author’s name sounded familiar to me and I found out that she hangs out in some of the discord channels that I do. I honestly didn’t even know she was an author. I just thought she was another reading lover like so many of us are. I couldn’t be more pleased that I took the chance and picked these up. The books are amazing and I’ve gotten to know the author quite a bit more and it sounds like she has a lot of work yet to come on this series and others! The pacing was on par or perhaps even slightly better than how I felt towards book one. We definitely have some highs and lows in the story but I didn’t feel at any given time that parts I were reading were a slog or boring though. It’s almost like it was on a curve with medium pace being the low and then escalating to high from there. I felt that the ending of book one seemed a bit more fitting and less abrupt than book one which was a relief for sure! We were left with such a cliffhanger in book one but this one finished smoothly and simply left me wanting more! The world building picks up considerably in book two as well. Obviously in book one we learned quite a bit about Earth and it’s moon because that is where the story takes place. In this one we still continue to learn more about these two environments but the world itself is beginning to open up more as the characters and story starts to learn more about the History of previous Star Children as well as another planet that we are taken to for the first time since arriving on the moon. This new planet was very fascinating along with it’s inhabitants. We also learn much more about Gabira’s cave this time around as well! The character development is great as well. I honestly think its the characters that keep brining me back wanting to keep reading and turning the pages in Light Fighters. We continue to see both Torr and Cass struggle to learn what they are capable of and test the limits of their strength. We also see some supporting characters perform some highly questionable things in book two! And then there is Ridge, I honestly think he is one of if not my favorite character. But as I told Palmer he frustrates me so much! He has many opportunities to try and do the right thing. Often times he does, but then when I think he’s becoming one of our protagonists, he goes against that grain again. I still think he is good at heart and look forward to seeing where his story arc ends up eventually. If you haven’t been able to tell yet, I’ve fallen in love with this series! This truly is one of those rare reads that finds a way to combine science fiction and more traditional fantasy together. I love the space travel along with the more mystical shaman aspects sprinkled throughout. I’ve grown attached to so many of these characters. I will say the author isn’t afraid to break your heart or make you feel for a character before they are either no longer around or they do something to disappoint you. These moments don’t go unexplained though. They are eventually explained quite well as to why these moments happened. As of writing this review Light Fighters is currently my favorite read of 2022!!! It actually ranks up there as one of my favorite reads of all time. To once again use a bit of Palmer’s own words, if you think you’d enjoy an epic fantasy built into a science fiction story, this might be right up your alley! World Building 5/5 Pacing 5/5 Character Development 5/5 |
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