Review ~ Song of Blood & Stone by L. Penelope (Happy Release Day!)

Happy May 1st!! I can't believe that it's May already... 😱 My birthday is in four days, guys! 

But today is the birthday of a certain book, *cough* this one *cough*! So, happy release day to Song of Blood & Stone!! I loved being able to read an early copy of this through Netgalley and share my thoughts as part of the blog tour, and I'm already so excited for the next one!

About the Book: Orphaned and alone, Jasminda lives in a land where cold whispers of invasion and war linger on the wind. Jasminda herself is an outcast in her homeland of Elsira, where her gift of Earthsong is feared. When ruthless soldiers seek refuge in her isolated cabin, they bring with them a captive - an injured spy who threatens to steal her heart. 

Jack's mission behind enemy lines to prove that the Mantle between Elsira and Lagramar is about to fall nearly cost him his life, but he is saved by the healing Song of a mysterious young woman. Now he must do whatever it takes to save Elsira and its people from the True Father and he needs Jasminda's Earthsong to do it. They escape their ruthless captors and together embark on a perilous journey to save Elsira and to uncover the secrets of The Queen Who Sleeps. 

Thrust into a hostile society, Jasminda and Jack must rely on one another even as secrets jeopardize their bond. As an ancient evil gains power, Jasminda races to unlock a mystery that promises salvation. 

The fates of two nations hang in the balance as Jasminda and Jack must choose between love and duty to fulfill their destinies and end the war. 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 

# of Pages: 384 (According to Goodreads. I read it as an e-book.) 

Genre(s): New Adult, Fantasy

Age Range: 17+ (Sexual references/scenes, some language)

Favorite Quote(s)

"Do what you think you can't."

"Woe unto he who trusts the odds. For he is defeated before he is begun."

Pros

• I am the type of person who absolutely loves poetic writing, and parts of this book definitely had it! (ex. "The melody of life and breath and heartbeats and change lay locked in a noiseless hush.")
• I really like how the racial issues between the two countries were addressed throughout the book, from beginning to end. A lot of it was very true to today's society.  
• The folktales at the beginning of each chapter were so unique and I loved so many of the quotes from them! I love the idea of putting them there and it was great how they matched the context of the chapter they started! 
• I absolutely loved all of the names! They were so unique and a lot of fun to say! (Especially Jack's full name. I love it!)
• The flashback chapters were probably some of my favorite scenes. I actually feel like I got attached to those characters faster than the MCs. 
• Just, Osar. 💗 He is the cutest thing!
• The weaponry was really cool! (aka, apple bombs)
• Also, love Usher. He's great. 😂
• This cover is absolutely gorgeous! 😍

Cons

• Though some of the writing was amazingly worded, there were also times when it sounded kind of amateurish. 
• I was very confused at first as to which country Jasminda was in and which country Jack was running away from. It took a few chapters for it to be clarified. 
• I honestly would have loved for this book to come with a map. This world sounds so cool and I'm really curious about the geography, but the way it's described makes it difficult to picture. 
• The love story in this book started out very much like instalove... While I can totally understand being attracted to someone immediately, I'm not a very big fan of suddenly being unable to stop thinking about someone that you've only exchanged a few sentences with, even if they did save your life. 
• From the synopsis, this book sounds like a YA, but I quickly figured out that it's NA by learning the MCs' ages and reaching some... interesting... scenes between the soldiers and the MCs... (two occurrences of attempted rape within nine chapters)
• Unfortunately, I was able to guess some of the plot twists... Though there were also some that I wasn't expecting, so that's a pro!
• I wish the book would have explained what "grol" meant. It's obviously an insult, but it never explains what the word means or why it's so offensive. 
• I really wasn't a fan of the amount of detail put into the love scenes, but I also haven't read many books with those scenes in them, so maybe that's why. I don't mind the love scenes, I would just prefer it to be a bit less detailed. (Though I did like that Jack was at least a gentleman and made sure she was okay with everything.) 

(Also, not a pro or a con, just something funny, but the number of times Jack was knocked out in this book was honestly hilarious. 😂😂)

Overall Thoughts 

Overall, this book wasn't entirely what I was expecting at first, but it steadily grew on me the further in I got! I actually ended up staying up until 5 AM in order to finish this book because I was so into it. 😂 The characters were amazing and I love how the ending seemed like a lot was wrapped up nicely and then all of a sudden there's a plot twist that changes everything. I am so excited to see where Jack and Jasminda's story (and just the story in general) goes through the rest of the series!