I have thoughts.

Review also available on Goodreads here:  https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6460920760 This book stuck in my brain like a caramel in my back tooth, and I couldn't tell you entirely why. Some combination of the cover, the pitch, and the writing made me love it and reach for it over several other similar and/or more popular books. The book is marketed as a war story romantasy, but in practice most of the book plays out like a political drama with a romantic subplot. Which is awesome for me, because I love fantasy political drama. SPOILERS AHEAD. The titular Hurricane Wars end around the one-third mark in the book, which threw me for a loop. For a brief period the book felt aimless, but that period ended pretty quickly when our main character Talasyn/Alunsina suggested they head for the Dominion. After that point the book scooped me up and swept me along in a current of political intrigue and manipulations and maneuvering and magic, all peppered with the irresistible attraction th...

Review also available on Goodreads here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6436741002 Thanks go to NetGalley and Penguin Group for providing an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. THE TL;DR: This is a solid read that struggles from some book one blues before picking up like a rollercoaster at the halfway mark and not letting up until the end. 3.75* Recommended. THE SPOILER FREE REVIEW First things first: Forget the "Avatar" comp title. I don't know who picked it, but the only thing that reminded me of it is in the spoiler section of this review. "Naruto" is a better comp, if only for the training sequences. Now, on to the meat of the review. A. A. Vora credits her editor in the acknowledgements for the focus on the character relationships, and that paid off. Those relationships and interactions are what carry the book through some significant pacing issues and what I can only call major "book one of a trilogy" vibes. It's thanks...