ARC Review--The Study of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

 

Frankly, I think death is the best cure for stupidity.

As Chief of Ixia’s Security, Valek’s work is never done. After rescuing Commander Ambrose with, Yelena, his heartmate’s, help and seeing her off to Sitia, Valek discovers the nefarious scheme to overthrow their country is far more complex and far reaching than anyone could have guessed.

Valek must discover who is continuing with Brazell and Mogkan’s conniving plans, all while dealing with a tense political situation. The Ixian generals are questioning his abilities to keep the Commander safe, and whispers of a possible coup are circulating.

Will Valek be able to survive a plot that seeks to sabotage all he and the Commander have worked for? Also, having opened his heart to love, will Yelena still wish to be with him when all is said and done?

A companion novel to Magic Study, The Study of Magic reveals Valek’s side of the story. Find out what hazards Valek encounters and survives before he and Yelena are reunited once more.

 

 

 

I received this ARC from the author in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I was in no way compensated for this review. 

 

Journey back to Magic Study through Valek’s eyes with The Study of Magic by Maria V. Snyder. Having read The Study of Poison last year, I was ecstatic to hear Maria would continue the original Study trilogy through Valek’s eyes! The man of mystery finally opens up and all those questions of “Where’s Valek?” are answered! And boy, was Valek busy during these events!

Valek is basically still trying to protect the Commander in this one. After the events with Mogkan and Brazell things are tense through the MD. Many think the Commander might not be quite himself still and could be making hasty decisions such as promoting a woman to be a MD leader. 

We basically to get to see Valek in action throughout this one! All the various secret missions, his disguises, his cunning knowledge…it was quite the thing to see in action after only vaguely hearing of some of his exploits. Valek is a force to be reckoned with and it always amazes me when villains think they have the upper hand or can take him on! 

I was also thrilled to see more with Ari and Janco, my favorite literary duo ever! I feel like this is almost the origin story of the two. We do get more on their history of who they were before meeting Valek, but seeing what they were up to before interacting with Yelena is just so exciting! Janco never ceases to amaze me! This is a character who can literally making me LOL! Thankfully I was reading at home for this one so laughter isn’t out of the ordinary here. 

Valek and Yelena are pretty much separated for the whole novel until the very end. Which I can recall this from Magic Study, but still, it was hard seeing the separation when these two just found each other in Poison Study. But I have to admit, I did like following Valek around. 

It’s hard to get into all his missions without getting too close to spoilers but basically there is quite a bit of fallout from Brazell and Mogkan’s plans. Criollo is still an issue as it seems many of the MD leaders have a supply of it that was gifted to them. It also seems that some of the leaders maybe convoluting with one another. Who the driving force is, is not clear, but you can bet Valek will take care of any traitors. 

From start to finish, The Study of Magic was a never ending delight! I mean I know sometimes people don’t like going back and rereading the same book from another point of view, but if you loved the original book, chances are you already want to read it again but through another point of view! Valek was a very secretive hero in the series and being able to go back and see what he was thinking and feeling (and doing for that matter!) is a dream come true! 

The ending to this one was much the same as it was the first go around, but naturally we’re on the other side of the page with Valek’s point of view. Things end in a relatively happier place you could say, as things don’t seem as heartbreaking! The new idea of rewriting the story from another point of view almost makes me curious about her other trilogies, but honestly I’d be happy either way be it a new story or a story newly retold! 

If you’re a fan of fantasy and magical stories with romance than I highly recommend checking out Snyder’s Study series or any of her series! I’d say she is an OG author of Romantasy before we even coined the term as her books fit the criteria in my book. Regardless of the term, you’re getting a romance filled with magic and fantasy’s which are all the makings of a GREAT read from this reader and I cannot recommend her books enough! If you do decide to take this trip, I can honesty say starting with either Valek or Yelena’s points of view should not matter, I just would read them back to back and stay in the overall trilogy order for spoiler reasons of course! But either point of view will tell you the different sides of the same fantastic story! 

 

Overall Rating 5/5 stars 

 

 

The Study of Magic releases April 19, 2024