Book Review: The Harbinger Series

I’ve mentioned The Harbinger series on here before. I included the 2nd book in the 3 book series in my January-April book favs.

The books in the series are: Storm and Fury, Rage and Ruin, and Grace and Glory.

I started the series back in December after finishing Throne of Glass. One of my best friends and reading buddies actually picked it out because she had finished Kingdom of Ash before me. So she started the first book, didn’t like it, and moved on. But, I had started it and got sucked in so I had to finish the series! Honestly, the first couple chapters were not that great, but I wanted to give it a chance since it’s by Jennifer L. Armentrout (author of the super popular From Blood and Ash series) so I figured it had to be somewhat good. The first few chapters really let me know that this was more of a YA fantasy romance series and while I tend to like the more new adult variety of fantasy romance, I had read enough chapters of Storm and Fury to get sucked in and I needed to finish the series to find out what would happen.

Since I’m covering the whole series here, I am going to just give a very general synopsis so as to not give anything away that is revealed in the later books. The novels follow a teenage girl named Trinity Marrow. She has the ability to see and community with ghosts and spirits. But that’s not her real secret. Her secret is something that requires she lives in a compound of Wardens. Wardens are extremely strong, fast, and can fly. When they are in their human form, they look like regular people – just bigger/stronger. But in their warden form, their skin turns stoney and impenetrable to weapons. They look like gargoyles. Trinity lives within a clan of Wardens and she has a protector who is basically her guardian to keep her safe due to her secret. In Storm and Fury members of another clan (the DC clan) come to visit and ask for help. Someone or something is killing Wardens. One of the visitors is Zayne, a Warden who has an interesting past as well. A few things lead to Trinity going with the DC clan to help find out who is targeting their Wardens. Little do they know she may be the key to it all.

The Harbinger series is actually a spinoff of Armentrout’s previous series, The Dark Elements trilogy. I haven’t read that, but the main characters in that are Zayne and a few others who play a role in The Harbinger. It’s not necessary to have read The Dark Elements (I didn’t), but it does serve as more back story to Zayne if you are interested in that.

Anyway, I did enjoy the books. They are definitely a little more YA although there is a little teasing of spice in books 2 and 3, but nothing very explicit. I liked the characters and storyline, but I think that with how long the books are there could have been more action. The twist at the end of book 3 was unexpected and I loved it though! Definitely worth a read if you want to read a YA leaning fantasy romance that features wardens (gargoyles), angels, demons, spirits, etc.

Some quotes I really liked from each book:

“A slow, heart-wrenching smile pulled at his lips. A real one, and it was the kind of smile that could break hearts and rebuild them.”

“You say I have a light about me, but you are my light.”

“You’re two halves meant to be one. Always have been. Always will be.”

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