The plot in Ruin of Stars was very complex and the characters were deeply described and helped me come into the story. The writing has a poetical touch what I liked very much. It drives me deeply into the feelings of the character and the energy of the book.

The story is well-builded but the ending was so surprising that I always thought "oh yes, no I know, how it will end" then there was something changing or it turned out to another direction I couldn`t see ... Very well done ... And my favourite: The best epilogue I read in the last few months!!! Thank you so much for this wonderful ebook!

When I received an eARC for Mask of Shadows and finished it, I really enjoyed it and was excited for the next book. I knew that Ruin of Stars had to be better. What we have in the first book, we got in this book and even more. However, did the new stuff added into the story make it seem “more” and better? It’s a yes/no answer.

Yes, magic is introduced. I like magic it as I am always willing to read most stories involving magic. I cannot recall if magic was in the first book. I do not believe any magic was used, but I am not sure whether or not it was mentioned. In this book, the magic was interesting and a little bit shocking.

Yes, we got more world-building and history. Along with the magic, more of the world and history was revealed to understand more of it. The history provided more information and better understanding on how the world works. History is an integral part to world-building and without world-building, a story feels flat. This world-building has definitely improved since Mask of Shadows.

No, there’s more politics than I bargained for. I am not one for plots driven by politics, but when the major characters are in a court and works for the Queen, some politics are bound to happen. I found that if put in good use, I won’t mind the politics at all. This could have been more, but I felt the politics were a bit much and somewhat confusing. In some ways, it overlapped the main plot of the story, which is finally getting revenge on those who done wrong to Sal AKA Opal.

In the end, I enjoyed the characters, the mission for Opal, and some of the scenes (there was one I remember to be a little bit graphic..). As I enjoyed most of the story, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of something letting me down and I believe that was due to what I thought was the politics and the strategy the characters had to go through. Ruin of Stars does live up to Mask of Shadows, but I believe there’s definitely room for improvement where it could have been better.

This is the second book in the Mask of Shadows series, and although it can be read as a standalone I personally would suggest reading the first book, to do the second justice and understand the complex world-building better.

The topic of gender-fluidity is paramount to understanding both the characters and the premise, because it is woven into the culture, moral fibre and laws of the Erlend nobility. A country and people who only recognise the sexual concept, partnership and marriage of man and woman. The rulers and supporters of Erlend become the bible-thumpers of the 21st century. The acknowledgement of gender fluidity or lack of it becomes the cornerstone of their oppression, which also includes destroying those they consider to be Untermenschen in an attempt to gain more power and property.

The main character Sal is a survivor of the massacres put in place by said nobility, and has taken their place as part of an esteemed set of assassins. One of a set of killers who protect their leader and kill without impunity. As Opal, Sal becomes the masked version of revenge, complete with a set of names on a kill list, which is whispered in times of anger or stress.

What’s interesting to me is the suggestion that the lack of conformity when it comes to gender is presented as a personal failure and downfall for that person. If you are not one of the two, you are socially unacceptable, which sort of mirrors the reaction today in our own society.

The story could be written and told without that aspect of fear and hate-mongering, but I think it was important to Miller to show the similarity between the fictional scenario and the hate non-heterosexuals, and gender fluid persons have to deal with. It isn’t a fictional fantasy problem. It’s a real life problem with real repercussions when oppression is part of our daily existence and own identity.

Miller is a creative writer with fascinating ideas, although I could have done with a map of the countries and reading the first book would have spared me a little confusion at the beginning. The end of the book may leave the door open for further ventures into this world of magic, shadows, oppression and murder. Either way Miller has made her mark in the world of fantasy fiction, and writes captivating stories.

Quick Summary:

The conclusion to the Mask of Shadows starts off not long after the first book ended. After winning the competition and becoming one of the Queen’s elite assassins, Sal finally has the power, prestige, and permission to discover who killed their family and hunt them down. While enlisting the help of some old friends and even some enemies Sal realizes there's something terribly wrong in the north. Talk of the return of shadows, missing children, and magic abounds. As Sal takes out the people responsible for their ruined homeland, they learn some truths that just can’t be forgotten or forgiven.

My Thoughts:

This was a thrilling tale of magic, assassins and revenge. I really liked our main character Sal, also known as the Honorable Opal. I thought their genderfluidity and PTSD were well represented. Sals struggle between getting revenge and deciding if that made them a bad person was endearing. I also found their righthous fury and ruthlessness compelling. While trying to prevent another war and learning the shadows who were sent to destroyed their country might be back Sals PTSD is at an all time high. Theres also more focus on Sals genderfluidity and the need to accept everyones identity.

Its like everything I enjoyed in the first book was amplified in this sequel. Besides more focus on the diversity representation we also get more magic and time with some favorite characters from Mask of Shadows. I love seeing more of Sals childhood friend Rath and Maud was still as amazing as ever. She isnt afraid to call Sal out and I just really liked their friendship. We also get to see more of a friendship develop between Sal and Four. I liked getting to know the other queens assassins Emerald and Amethyst better. I also felt like the conflict with Sals love interest Elize was well done. Their relationship was realistic and it didnt over power the story.

When I first picked this up I had a difficult time remembering all the side characters, but I eventually got the hang of it. The world was pretty straight forward, but the magic and shadows were interesting. I really liked the importance of family and how I wasnt able to predict the plot. I loved how the author wasnt afraid to kill people off. For the most part the pace was gripping with a balance of both plot and characters. The writing was alright. We get just enough descriptions to get a picture of the setting, but the time line was a little vague. I thought the ending wrapped up nicely. Ill definitely keep an eye out for any future books by this author.

The action-packed ending to this duology had everything I love in a good fantasy; amazing characters, mysteries unveiled the wonderful Sal to root for and a finale which I didn't expect, yet I loved all the same. Ruin of Stars is a conclusion to a mission full of revenge and anger, a search for the truth and those who would plot to destroy so many lives. A must read for 2018,.

I’ll admit, I had really high expectations of this book. When I read Mask of Shadows last year, I was shocked by how much I loved it, so I expected this one to be just as good. It didn’t disappoint. It was intense, with a lot going on all the time and a lot of action. And I liked seeing how the events of the first book affected Sal in this book, and all the character development they went through.

I love Sal. Okay, there were moments when I kind of wanted to hit them, but out of love. There were moments when they did stupid stuff, but the thing is, they learned from it and grew as a person. Sal went through a lot of character development in this book, and I liked seeing how everything that happened affected them, how their worldview changed and how they really grew up in this book.

The world-building was amazing. I fell in love with the country of Igna in the first book, I fell in love with the magic and all of it. If Mask of Shadows was the start of a relationship, all rainbows and unicorns and wonderful feelings, Ruin of Stars was twenty years later, the married couple who has issues and fights and still stay together. It made me want to hit something at times, but I still love it.

The plot was great. It was fast-paced, with a lot of stuff going on all the time, and it never gave me so much as a second to stop and breathe. It was just bad news on top of bad news on top of bad news on top of bad news. It made it impossible to stop reading, and I finished it in one sitting. And the plot twists. It’s been a long time since I’ve been this blindsided by a book, since I’ve been that surprised by a plot twist. And they just kept coming!

I can’t write a review of this book without mentioning the diversity. Mask of Shadows had a lot of it, but Ruin of Stars deeper explored these themes, and I loved it. It has themes like bigotry and racism, and seeing all of it from the point of view of Sal, who is gender fluid and a minority, was really eye-opening. Reading about how narrow-minded the people of Erlend were, was painful, because the world still has those views.

The Mask of Shadows duology is really one of those series that just stick with you, that change you. It was truly eye-opening, and painful to read because you know that a lot of people are going through what Sal was going through. It really changes the way you see things. Not only that, but it was a fast-paced, amazing fantasy story, and I loved it.

This sequel to one of my favorite books was everything I thought it should be. With that being said, it almost felt like the boxes of controversial subjects were being check off as the story went along. Gender fluidity? Check. Bisexuality? Check. Transphobia? Check. Sexism? Check. Etc. Etc. Some of the battles were a bit hard to follow, but exciting just the same. This one is sort of hard to review because of the mixed emotions I have about it...really enjoyed it but thought it could've been done better.

I lies this story and its was a well written, it’s a sequel and a really good one at that. For me it’s a very emotional one and have a lot of diversity. I can really recommend this book.

I was given this ARC from netgalley to give an honest review.

ruin of stars concludes the story of sal, the gender fluid pickpocket that began in mask of shadows. the series needs to be read in order or it won't make much sense. there's a lot of characters and a lot of world-building mythology and at times i found it confusing.

but sal as a character is so compelling. you can't help rooting for them as they set about avenging their family. the relationship between sal and elise continues to grow and deepen. there are still plenty of twists and turns, but where things end is pretty much exactly where they should.

i recommend binge-reading this series because the two books are so closely linked. but it's enjoyable and the characters are wonderful. you can't help rooting for them.

**ruin of stars will publish on august 28, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/sourcebooks fire in exchange for my honest review.

When Mask of Shadow ended Sal had won the elite position of Opal, one of the Queen’s assasins. This enabled them to legally bring down and kill those responsible for the demise of Sal’s own country. As Sal investigates, they reveal the truth behind the missing children and uncover a surprising betrayal.

What I liked: Just as in Mask of Shadows, I really enjoyed Sal, a gender fluid individual and his romance with Elise. The battle for their country almost seemed to be about not only equality but also for gender rights. There was one scene where Elise describes how another Elena helped her tell her father that she was attracted to both boys and girls and that her feelings were normal. Sal was offended because they don’t think they’re either boy or girl, and Elise was simplifying the issue. I think this is the first time I had read a POV quite like Sal’s and it was eye opening and interesting.

What I didn’t like: Everything else. I LOVED Mask of Shadows. It was new and fresh, the competition to become Opal kept the story moving forward and the action was exciting. Ruin of Stars is an intrigue filled gloom fest. Too much political machinations and not enough character building emotion. Sal felt really flat! Sal’s PTSD from the childhood horror of losing their family came off as depression, lacked emotional depth, and bogged down the story. There were very few highs for Sal and a ton of lows. I don’t know, this one was really difficult for me to get through and I so wanted to love it!

I know there were a LOT of people who did love Mask of Shadows as much as I did. I gave it a five rating! Unfortunately, I can’t do the same with this sequel. I can only give it a three rating and I may be a little generous with that number. ❤️❤️❤️



I was given an ARC of this book through NetGalley for my honest review and it was honest.

I received a digital ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the sequel to Mask of Shadows which was released in 2017 and follows a gender-fluid pick-pocket turned assassin. Ruin of Stars has its fill of blood, violence and murder just like MofS and follows really close to the end in timeline so I would recommend reading them pretty close together.. There wasn't as much connection back to the first book in the way of recapping as I would like so I'm glad I read them back to back.

This book felt a little more choppy and the transitions didn't flow for me. There were at least 4-5 times where I had to go back and reread passages because I didn't know what had just happened. This one had heavier themes and the competition action of the first one was replaced more with Sal on a quest for revenge and struggling with the feelings of right and wrong and how to retain yourself even when doing horrible acts. Do the reasons justify the actions?

There was a heavy dose of diversity (racial, sexual and cultural) but some of it seemed like it was thrown in just in order for it to be present. This book is quite dark compared to most of my recent YA fantasy reads but I think it is important to see the diverse character representations which is gaining in popularity but still not quite mainstream.. What would make it more mainstream though is to not need to mention the gender fluid nature of Sal SO often. Magnus Chase series has a gender fluid character and Alex was blended in to the plot more and it wasn't a defining characteristic.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with this book. I'm just lacking the motivation to pick it up! Hopefully, I'll give it another chance soon! But something about this (and the first book) just always lacks something, and it makes it feel almost like a chore to pick up. I know this book, and this author's voice, is very important. I just wish I could connect and enjoy the story more. I'm sorry.

First of all, thank you to SourceBooks Fire for giving me an exclusive preview for this awesome 2018 YA release.

I was so excited to finish this one since it has been a good ride with the Mask of Shadows (book no. 1) Though I had a hard time flipping the pages of this one until the end for i find it hard to feel the plot, it still did not disappoint and gave me an awesome experience in the end.

In this book, Linsey Miller dealt with the plot revolving Sal's vengeance under the shadows of the Opal. After series of hard-earned fights, her expected come back is now within reach yet the catch is Sal will still be in trouble. Filled with action, magic, romance, and other YA-ish tropes, the book 2 of the Mask of Shadows duology will surely appeal to the fans of YA fantasy such as Dorothy Must Die and Percy Jackson series (since I read both of these series as well).

Finally reaching the goal of one of the Queen's assassins, Sal is free to pursue vengeance and retribution. But at what cost? Can Sal withstand the price weighing on her soul? This was a satisfying conclusion to the duology.

Sal is an intriguing character and Miller has done a nice job exploring a gender fluid protagonist as well as world building.

There are a fair amount of twists, turns and surprise revelations. A recommended read for those who've enjoyed books by Robin LaFevers and Sarah J. Maas.

I received an ARC in exchange for a review from Netgalley and Sourcefire Books.

Final rating: 3 out of 5 stars

When I read Mask of Shadows I was blown away by Linsey Miller's book. I loved Sal and so many of the characters. They were truly lovely. It was horror filled love letter written and I loved everything about it. When I saw that Ruin of Stars was up on NetGalley, I knew that I had to read it! When I was accepted as an ARC reader I did a little jump of joy as well.

Just like Mask of Shadows, Ruin of Stars brings us the wonderful character of Sal. I honestly loved the gender fluid nature of Sal though at times in this book I felt is was a little too preachy on sexuality. What I loved about it is that though slightly preachy at times, Sal is still Sal. Sallot is written well and isn't a gender fluid character just to be gender fluid and I loved that Sal was so beautifully written.

This book revisits all of our favorite & least favorite characters from Mask of Shadows, you see Sal trying to cross off his list. You also see the struggle of all of the characters when it comes to living, dying, and everything in between.

The descriptions, the characters, and everything you loved about Mask of Shadows is here. This is one of my favorite reads so far. I loved it so much, I refused to finish it for the longest of times. If you liked the first one, you'll love this one too.

“‘Well.’ Maud handed me a bandage. 'That was the most foolish thing you’ve ever done.’
'Don’t joke. We both know it isn’t.’”

I received a free e-ARC through NetGalley from the publishers at Sourcebooks Fire. I very much enjoyed Mask of Shadows and its representation of a genderfluid main character in a kickass fantasy world, plus assassins (I have a problem, clearly. But there are so many, who’s counting?). There was a lot of fangirl screeching when I was approved for this title. There are spoilers ahead for Mask of Shadows. Trigger warnings: blood, death, violence.

Sal has earned their place as Opal on the Queen’s Left Hand, which means they’ll finally be able to exact revenge upon the people who killed their family and their entire country, Nacea, when the shadows tore through it. Revenge isn’t as simple as they thought though, as the decade-old country of Igna is balanced precariously on new ideals and old prejudices. Death weighs heavily on their conscience, but in order to make every past death mean something, they have to discover the identities of the three names left on their list among new betrayals and the seeds of a fresh war between Igna and Erlend.

A lot of fantasy novels end up looking alike, but I really love the world that Miller has created. Rather than fighting a dystopian government or trying to overthrow the monarchy, Igna is already in place with a good but flawed Queen, and its people are fighting for a lot of the same things we’re fighting for–respect, equality, the rights to decide our own identities, and the space to live them. As a genderfluid main character, Sal is better placed than most to critique the old Erlend insistence on heterosexuality and binary genders, among other things, and it looks a lot like issues we’re struggling with in the real world. While I’m completely on board with the message, there are places in Ruin of Stars where it begins to overwhelm the plot. At some point, Miller needed to step back and let it stand on its own rather than repeating it at every opportunity. (I know, I know. When you play Chutes and Ladders, do you complain about all the chutes and all the ladders?)

Mask of Shadows is fairly straightforward in terms of plot–Sal has a contest to win at any cost–and the plot of Ruin of Stars is quite a bit messier. It’s been almost a year since I read the first, so I had some difficulty relearning all the names of fantasy places and people, and Sal’s agenda isn’t as clear in this book. All the different threads of the plot do manage to come together, but it’s far from elegant, and I can’t help feeling it could have used a little more time on the editing floor to streamline things. I was also fully expecting a trilogy, not a duology, so I was surprised to see everything come together by the end of the book. After a rather lengthy climax, the end scenes felt a little rushed.

While Mask of Shadows had a few too many characters, Ruin of Stars almost doesn’t have enough. I love Sal; they’re complex and funny, deadly and guilt-ridden, and they feel the burden of every life they take. I didn’t feel we spent enough time with Rath, Adella, and Moira to really get to know them, and Sal is so much in their own head in this novel that they pay little attention to anyone else. I love Elise though, and for me to love both a main character and a love interest is practically unheard of. She’s clever, brave, and honorable, and one of the best things about this book is how Sal and Elise are forced to come to terms with each other’s flaws. I’m not much for romance, but it feels like a necessary (and usually sweet) detour from the blood and bodies of the rest of the book. I was satisfied with the ending, but I feel like I’m going to have to re-read them both to really get a handle on them. I’ll be looking for a copy for my library when the paperback comes out.

I review regularly at brightbeautifulthings.tumblr.com.

I really enjoyed the first book in this duology, and this one did not disappoint either, although I liked it slightly less than the first one. You can see my review of the first book here. The politics got way complicated and started to detract from my enjoyment of the book. I think if I had reread the first book before this one I might have enjoyed it more as some of the background and how the world was laid out would have been a little fresher in my mind. There was very little in the way of reminders of what happened in the first book and who people were, that also added to the confusion.

The story picks up a few months after the first book ended. Sal has recovered and is hell bent on revenge. Sal spends much of the book on the road hunting down all of the Erland Lords who took part in destroying their country and culture. Sal meets others from their homeland in this book, which gave some insight into Nacea’s culture. Sal learns more about what it might have been like to grow up with a family immersed in their culture. Sal’s character doesn’t develop as much in this book, except for maybe learning that even when you trust someone they can still betray you. Sal’s relationship with Elise goes through some growing pains, but they are still good together. Sal’s being gender fluid was not as prominent in this story as it was in the first one, there was not as much emphasis on clothes and which way Sal was feeling.

Maud, Sal’s servant/friend, was not in this book as much as I would have liked. She is still one of my favorite characters, even when I thought she might really be betraying Sal. Her wit and banter with Sal and others is a wonderful and a much needed comic relief in such a dark story.

The one thing I really struggled with in this book was the politics and the way the world was structured. I got that Erland was very male centric and could only view people as either male or female, but the other countries were all sort of jumbled together and were hard to keep straight. Many of the secondary characters were also muddled, they were not fleshed out well and sort of all came under the heading of evil and not much else. Their names kept confusing me as well. There were also some new characters and concepts introduced that added to the general confusion of what was really going on.

The whole magical system was the good part of this story, but could have used a little more clarification on how it worked. I liked how it was intricate to the whole ending of the story though.

This was a good story and good conclusion to the duology. It could have been better with a little more clarity of the world and some of the characters. If I had read the first book again I might not have felt so confused, but I think there still would be some of that. The world the author created was elaborate and therefore needed more explanations than what we got.

This is the second and last book in the Masks of Shadows series by Linsey Miller. It starts right off where the precious book ended, so it is a good idea to read them together. I did, and it made it morw enjoyable since the last book ended with a bit of a cliffhanger.

In this book I finally made sense of what happened at the end exactly. That is my major issue with this book, both books really: the action scenes are really confusing. It’s hard to keep track of what happens and who’s involved, and I often have to read pages twice just to understand what’s happening. That really puts me out of the reading flow. The first book we were introduced to many different and wonderful characters but in this book they really shine. I love how we get to know more of the Left Hand: their fears, dreams and quirks. And other suprising characters as well. Also there is more background and worldbuilding that the first book lacked.

But the character development of Sal is even better. They really grow up in this book and realises the world is not so black and white as they make it out to be - and they’re willing to learn a lot, even on subjects they hated like magic. Revenge might be a bit empty after all. They also struggle with their conscience and killing and wonder what it does to your soul. I loved that internal struggle and the realisations. And Elise&Sal’s relationship is awe inspiring. I never met a couple so understanding and I love how they let each other be free and respect their choices and ask what the other wants. Relationship goals! And the LGBTQ+ rep was amazing, it is what sets this book apart. I especially loved the aro/ace rep since it’s so rare! And the ending is great too. There were twists and turns, some I saw coming and some I didn’t, and it was a very satisfying end to a series.

This copy has been given to me by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review.

This is just as good if not better than the first. I loved the first with Sal the non-binary main character competing for the position of assassin for the queen. This book didnt have the urgency of the first but is just as good.

Thank you to NetGalley, and to Sourcebooks Fire for the fantastic read of Ruin of Stars by Linsey Miller. Thank you!
Ruin of Stars, the anticipated sequel to the Mask of Shadows, did not disappoint. Sal, strong protagonist. Clever writing. Impressive plot twists. Lots to captivate the reader. Great ending.

Has to be read - I am not giving anything away except that it meets all the YA fantasy checks! Highly recommend it as a great YA read.