Joint Review – Silent Warrior by Lindsey Piper

Publisher: Pocket Star

Release date: April 22nd

Where did you get the book: Edelweiss

 

 

An exciting, emotionally charged prequel to “The Dragon Kings” trilogy, featuring warriors fighting for their lives in violent Cage matches to guarantee their clans’ survival.

A silent woman ashamed of her criminal background becomes a Cage warrior to seek redemption. An unrepentant fortune hunter chooses combat over death to appease a mafia family. Although rivals in battle, they find common ground when seeking their clan’s stolen idol, but for vastly different reasons. Neither one suspects that love will begin when he becomes the first man in five years to hear her speak.

 

 

Has: Silence is a caged warrior  and is collared by a clan called the Asters which she follows their orders in capturing other Dragon Warriors and other errands. SIlence also dabbles in cage fighting which helps her to release some pent up steam and to help her own personal quest to find an icon which was lost centuries ago. But during one mission she enters a cage match that has a fellow Dragon Warrior from the same clan as hers and she finds herself opening up to him even though her past made her closed off to others for so long.

When I first came across this series I was instantly intrigued by the premise of cage fighting warriors in a dark and dystopic world. However, in this prequel which introduces The Dragon King warriors, I was pretty confused about the world-building and the setting although I loved the gritty and dark tone which permeates throughout the novella. However although the main story and romance was fast pace and I enjoyed the love the story, the problem for me was trying to understand the rules of the world-building and the setting. I had to reread a few passages and even then some aspects of it such as the different classes of warrior dragons were vague. I was also left wondering about the world, was this modern or post apocalyptic, and what time period was it set. Yet the most important element of the story was the nature of the Dragon Warriors, they were set up as paranormal beings with healing powers and certain magical talents linked with their classes. I think I figured out the major aspects of the world-building, but I was left with a lot of questions and I wanted more clarification about the premise because it was interesting. It was semi-disappointing that I had so much trouble trying to figure things out.

 

MinnChica: I was really excited about the series. What’s not to love about supernatural underground cage fighters? However, for me the execution just didn’t really work. I was really confused about the world-building and was conflicted about how I felt about this book. On one hand, I was drawn in by the nitty gritty world that Piper created. It was dark and devious and I liked that. On the other hand, I was so confused about what was going on, who was who, what the Dragon Kings really are, what the Clans represent, and many of big factors to the world itself. When I closed the ebook, I was left with more questions than when I started, and that left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.

 

Has: And that sums up how I feel about the too. I loved the grittiness and stark tone and the romance was fun and sexy which balanced out the darkness. I also enjoyed Silence who was stoic and quiet and how that would unnerve her opponents when she is engaging them in the cage fights and yet Hark who is the opposite broke through her walls. I also loved the scene where he got  her to admit her real name, which was my favourite scene in the book. I also liked that he was such a hyper and snarky chatterbox and their chemistry really gelled because they were such opposites and it was enjoyable to see them interacting.

 

MinnChica: I liked the romance a little, but it as much as I wanted it to work, there was something missing there as well. I liked the way their romance developed over the course of the whole book, and that it didn’t feel rushed. The attraction between Silence and Hark was obvious, and I thought their sexy times were just that, very sexy. Like Has said, the difference between Hark and his talkative ways and Silence and her quiet manner was a wonderful juxtaposition. I liked the Dragon Kings ceremony of “mating” and hope we get to see more of that in future books.

 

Has: I found the romance the strongest aspect of the book, and although I really liked the tone of the world-building, I wished it was explained more because it was the weakest factor in the story. I have so much mixed feelings about this novella because while I liked the love story and I definitely agree the ‘mating ceremony’ was one of the most unique scenes I’ve read and definitely fitting to the characters and the premise. But I was left with so much confusion because this was jam packed with a lot of backstory and so much world-building but it was also vague and it affected my enjoyment of the novella. I do plan to pick up the next book, CAGED WARRIOR but I really hope it avoids the pitfalls of this story and expands on the world-building.

I give Silent Warrior a C-

 

MinnChica: All in all I was disappointed by Silent Warrior. I hoped for something a little more cohesive in the world-building. Like Has, for me, the best part was the romance. I still wanted something more, especially since their happily ever after seemed to be something no one would want – more time in the Cage. I will most likely pick up the next book in the series, but I’m hoping that it doesn’t fall into the same problems that this novella did.

I give Silent Warrior a C-

Kindle iTunes Nook Sony Kobo