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Death Marked (2000)

by Leah Cypess(Favorite Author)

3.81 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0062221248 (ISBN13: 9780062221247)

languge

English

genre

Romance

series

Death Sworn

review 1: My Rating: 3.5/5A great sequel full of secrets and unexpected twists, Death Marked was an enjoyable YA read. It wasn't quite as good as I'd hoped it would be, but I still really liked it.Ileni was forced to face a lot of hard truths in this book, mainly that the black and white world she believed in was actually filled with shades of gray. She had to adapt to those new truths and struggled to find out which way was right. I understood her struggle, but I also got frustrated with it. She just spent so much of the book being indecisive. I wanted to see her actively seeking out the truth and making a decision when she had all the facts. Her inability to make that decision got old really fast and kept the book from being as interesting as it could be. Rather than getting actio... moren from her, I was getting a whole bunch of wavering. It wasn't to the point that she became a bad character, but it made me like her less than I originally did.Sorin was featured less in this book, though we got a little of his POV. He had his own battle and his own views and, though he loved Ileni, those views were increasingly misaligned with hers. I wasn't quite sure how I felt about his character in this book. But, I still liked him and I understood why his character took the path that it did.There were a few new characters introduced, sorcerers of the Empire who were much more than what they were made out to be by their enemies. I thought Evin and his little brother was adorable. The others were interesting as well. The plot was steadily paced and it dragged a bit in a few places because of Ileni's aforementioned indecisiveness. There were plenty of secrets revealed and nothing was quite what it seemed. I definitely wasn't expecting where the story was going to end up, but it was fitting for the characters.Death Marked was a great YA fantasy. It had some flaws, but I still liked it. It was definitely a book that kept me guessing. YA lovers, this is a book worth looking up.*I received a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
review 2: The second book of the Death Sworn series follows Ileni, the young sorceress who lost her powers and now has left the assassins’ cave. As she leaves, an evil sorceress captures her and takes her to the Empire’s main city. In the first book she was forced to live with the assassins as a teacher of magic and she thought she would be killed as her predecessors were. She fell in love with Sorin, one of the assassins, but the assassins’ leader concocted a plan to make her a vessel to be used to destroy the Empire. Much as this appealed to her, it involved the sacrifice of many lives and she could not comply. Now, she has left Sorin behind and has set her mind to figuring out a way to crush the Empire from within. Just as in the caves, she’s in mortal danger and wanted once again as a weapon, but this time for the Empire. Her peaceful nature refuses to cooperate with either side but it may truly cost her her own life. The plot is not quite as intense as the first book, missing the sparks and heat of the budding romance of the earlier story. Still, the intrigue and danger that face Ileni keeps the book moving at a fast pace. Cypress does a good job at world building, giving more depth to the evil Empire in this sequel. Ileni is torn by her allegiance to her personal beliefs, her love of Sorin and her new friends among the Empire’s sorcerers-in-training. Her plans switch back and forth as she tries to find out the truth about the source of the Empire’s magical power. Once she discovers where they derive their power from, she hopes to devise a plot to stop them. The sequel is high powered and full of twists and turns. The ending is intended to complete the story yet it leaves the reader hoping for more. This series is sure to win followers among those who like their books action-packed and unpredictable. Cypress should consider finishing Ileni’s story with further installments. less

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