User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
We've fast-forwarded four years from book one. Sera and Cettie are best friends attending school at Muirwood and learning the Mysteries. Despite being the princess, Sera struggles in her studies while Cettie of the Fells excels. When the Emperor dies, Sera is coerced to return to court to participate in the selection proceedings for the new leader. Her father seems to be plotting to marry her off to a visiting prince from Kingfountain. Sera struggles to play the games at court without making a mistake but (view spoiler)
[ ends up trusting the wrong people. She loses the bid for the empire and the country is plunged into war. (hide spoiler)] Meanwhile, Cettie has remained at Muirwood to study for the Maston's test. The stranger that has been following her attempts to kidnap her and reveals that an evil force has infiltrated Muirwood. Cettie has to face her deepest fears to keep her loved ones safe.
Finally, we are getting somewhere. It was nice to finally see the ties with the previous series, though obviously there has been some passage of time. I've also managed to miss a series in between, so I'm going to have to go back and read it soon - I have a few questions that I suspect are answered there. Anyhow, Sera and Cettie have grown up a bit. They are now 16 and their emotions come into play a little more predominately. Ironically, Sera who was born to rule seems ill-equipped to do so despite a strong desire to right the wrongs of society. While Cettie is strong with the Mysteries and has a level head. It will be interesting to see how their paths intersect again now that they are separated and war is raging.
Rating: really liked it
Disclaimer: I received this book free from NetgalleyHonestly, I can’t say enough about this series. I love the characters, I love the series, I love the way it ties into his other novels (oh heck! spoiler!!) Being as this is the second book in the series it’s kind of hard to avoid spoiling at least little things, so I’m going to try to be as vague as possible, but you are warned.
In book two of the Harbinger series we return to Sera and Cettie. The two young girls with an affinity for “the Mysteries” of this world, have been training and growing in the years that have passed since the first book,
Storm Glass. While Cettie has proven to be a natural at connecting to the magical forces around them, Sera is having a difficult time. As the daughter of the Prince Regent she is beset with political intrigue and is unprepared to deal with those already moving to do her harm. Cettie also finds herself the target of a particularly dangerous foe (friend? family?). I’m not sure how things will turn out for the girls, but I can’t tell you how happy I was to hear that book three is coming out later this year, so I won’t have to wait too long! Mr. Wheeler is showering us with riches this year!
I have to admit that Cettie is still my favorite. Last book I saw her as a Jane Eyre type character, but this book I am definitely getting some Esther Summerson (
Bleak House) vibes from her. She even has her own Mr. Guppy hanging about, causing her consternation with his absolute adoration. I love a Charles Dickens nod! Another character I adore unabashedly is Lord Fitzroy. I do love a book with grey characters, those who are not 100% good or bad, but one thing I love about this series is there are characters who really are a white knight, 100% on the side of the angels. Fitzroy is someone you can you can just love and that feels almost like a relief to this reader.
I will warn you, this paragraph contains a BIG spoiler as we are starting to see some connection … to Kingfountain. In Storm Glass, we found our way to Muirwood (which felt like a homecoming), so this is an exciting new development that ties us even closer to the original books by Mr. Wheeler.
If you couldn’t tell I really enjoy these books, and if you like fantasy, especially clean fantasy then this is the series for you. Book three is coming soon and I can’t wait to see what happens to Cettie and Sera, as well as see how they tie into the larger history of these worlds. I’m holding my breath for an ARC. I’ve been lucky so far. May the Mysteries provide!
Rating: really liked it
Mirror Gate is the second instalment of Jeff Wheeler's planned five book Harbinger series.
Our two young female protoganists, Sera and Cettie continue their respective journeys of self-discovery, while navigating societal strictures and political intrigue.
This is a kingdom that is outwardly being slowly ravaged by a seemingly incurable sickness, but it is the rot from within that is truly corrupting the bona mores of a society that is teetering on the brink of war.
Jeff Wheeler has continued strongly from Storm Glass and expanded upon his wonderfully accessible world building with identifiable, deep characters that are a joy to read from beginning to end.
If you are looking for a fantasy series with strong, young female protoganists, then you can't go wrong with The Harbinger.
The only criticism that I have is that the ending of Mirror Gate was rather muted considering the preceding action. The so-called big reveal was clearly telegraphed by the title of the series, which somewhat deflated this revelation.
That minor gripe aside, a thoroughly enjoyable series so far and I am really looking forward to reading Iron Garland.
Rating: really liked it
Super cute. Each book seems like a few chapters rather than a complete story.
Rating: really liked it
Yay Kingfountain is in this too! This series should really be called Colliding Worlds lol. We have alot happening here in the second book of the Harvinger series. Both of our heroine's, Sera and Cettie, stories are spiraling. Although they start out together soon they are separated due to their decisions and I just can't help but think they definitely should have stayed together.
As the Emperor passes away Sera and her father race to become the next to the crown. Sera bless her heart she just is not ready yet really. She does not have the confidence nor the discernment yet for this position. When the prince of kingfountain shows up I just knew there was going to be a wizr game or too but alas, the machinations of others prevented them from really even getting others. What Sera really needs is a strategist someone like Owen on her team. Her team so far is made up of a bunch of people with their own motives in mind. Not looking good here for Sera.
Cettie once again haunted by her past and her ghosts. Something is happening and its a really slow reveal. Who is Cettie, I wish we could get that bit of intrigue out of the way. I know Cettie has a little crush on Adam but I just cant help but feel like the new Forshee is her destiny but of course I am biased. There is just too much unknown at this point I really wish we could get some things out of the way so we could focus on the end game.
Loving this so far, I am afraid I am now hoping our worlds join together and will be bitterly disappointed if that does not happen. Still waiting on Maderos to pop up....
Rating: really liked it
Just a few thoughts on this one. I overall enjoyed it more than the first book, but it has a few minor problems I couldn't let go without mentioning
First of all, I don't really believe the friendship between Sera and Cettie. In the first book Sera was obsessed with Cettie despite never meeting her throughout the entirety of the freaking book until the very, very last page. Cettie never even knew Sera existed through that whole book until they met on that very, very last page. And in this book, we're told that they're the best of friends without ever actually seeing them being friends with each other. We never saw the friendship develop, and we never see them being very friendly together. The author keeps telling us they're great friends though, so I guess we're just supposed to take his word for it.
Next, I'm not really all that interested in Sera's story. Her entire character feels so fake to me. Probably because of how fixated she was on Cettie in the first book. That obsession was just un-freaking-natural as hell, and really kind of strayed into WTF territory. I just can't take anything in her storyline seriously, because she doesn't really feel like a real person. Just an extension of the author's will. When you can actively see the author's hand at work, I find it very distracting, and hard to enjoy. Her entire identity as a character is built around this unnatural-feeling obsession, and when the character is built around something that doesn't feel natural, neither does the character. And. I mean. The whole, I wanna be empress thing, even though she's very inexperienced, extraordinarily naive, and really just not suited to it in any real way is just kind of really annoying. I know that people like to nitpick children doing stupid things in books. But that is probably the one and only realistic trait that she is given in this entire thing. She makes stupid mistakes. Just like someone her age would And it costs her exactly what it should cost her. I was actually pleased with the resolution of this storyline in the end, even if it wasn't very compelling up to that point. I always enjoy seeing characters get exactly what they have earned, even when those characters are supposed to be the heroes of the story.
I really, really like Cettie's storyline though. All my little complaints and annoyances with the book don't really make much of a dent in how much I enjoy Cettie's story. The mystery surrounding her and her powers is compelling, and interesting, and brings some really cool mystical stuff into the book. I kind of wish that this entire book had been about her, and Sera's story completely removed from it. But if that happened we'd probably have gotten an entire book just about Sera next and that probably wouldn't have been great.
All in all, I really enjoyed this book. Even if it is not without its flaws.
Rating: really liked it
4+
The story and characters are exceptionally compelling. I must confess to some trepidation about the religious overtones in the storyline, albeit artfully subtle. I am enjoying it well enough to see how it goes though.
Rating: really liked it
3.5 but rounding up...
This second installment was good, for sure, but didn't WOW me like the first
I think the primary reason for that is how I have come to expect new and dazzling worlds from Wheeler, while this one brought back a lot of Muirwood lore and didn't introduce a lot of new Harbinger ideas.
I liked seeing Cettie and Sera but think the page time recapping Muirwood lore would have been better spent showing their growing relationship or time at the Abbey, vs catapulting them 4 years ahead to BFF status.
Betrayal, political machinations galore, more betrayal, and all of the above is exactly what I love about these books though
It's kind of hard to see Kingfountain as a conquering nation of zealots though, what era is this in the Kingfountain world?? Submarines and what?
One new character introduced was Juliana and I absolutely loved her. I think Forshee will be a character moving forward too. I'm super excited to see where Wheeler takes this series from here
Rating: really liked it
Engaging as expected I think that the way Jeff Wheeler writes up the ground rules in the world of mysteries makes an impact to the way I am seeing situations in the real world. The story itself has it’s turns and tricks and is good. The 2nd book is still engaging :) I am not saying that this will work like that for everyone for sure, but I admire the idea of self-control and the way to work with a thought and be able to fight your fears or worries. As it was said: “One of the strangest things about life is that we are as much defined by our hopes as we are our secret fears. We are, for the most part, the product of what we think about the most.” There are so many simple life truths in the book put in plain simple language. I like that fact. It is curious to see how main characters grow and develop, and how they unfold the world and mature with it. It happens naturally here. I was not expecting that the 2nd book would be still a 5 start review, but I guess I just admire the new world to get lost in.
Rating: really liked it
If you’re a zealous Christian who prefers any media or entertainment they partake in to have God as the center, I’m sure this book will be 5 stars for you. If you prefer your fantasy without being 75% religious lecture, you won’t enjoy half of this book. To each their own.
I really enjoyed Storm Glass. It was a delightful read and I was looking forward to Mirror Gate. But Mirror Gate takes a hard turn towards Christian proselytizing with the subtlety of a wrecking ball. The world building and story were fascinating in Storm Glass, but in Mirror Gate the story feels like an afterthought to a long winded sermon. I was originally planning to give the book 3 stars, but decided to knock another one off after a melodramatic “exorcism” in a forest and the “knowledge” imparted before the Test. I love C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia and think there are ways to write Christian fiction without beating the reader over the head with a religious lecture, but this book is so heavy handed that it was off putting. I almost believe the first book was intentionally written to “hook” readers to the series before showing the true colors of Christian religious obsession in the second book because the shift between the two was so dramatic. It feels like being befriended by someone who pretended to care about you, but in reality the only reason they talked to you is to try to get you to attend their church.
Also, was it really necessary to comment on Sera’s breasts being squished as she squeezed through a fence? Like the whole book is preaching about modesty and chastity and low key references the Ten Commandments, but *that’s* the body part that’s pointed out as being squashed? You expect me to believe she’s so small framed and looks so much younger than she is (I honestly lost count of how many times her smallness is commented on) but it’s her *breasts* that give her trouble getting through a fence? Come on.
Rating: really liked it
I received an ARC from Netgalley with the option of a voluntary review.
I previously reviewed the first in the series, Storm Glass, here - http://bit.ly/2ogMHh8
If you bothered clicking the link, you'll notice I really liked it. I really liked this one too. "Why four stars instead of five?" you say (conversation may not have happened.)
Well, here goes. The first in the series was quite unique, a steam-punk Victorian world with a mysterious magic system and interesting characters. It's still here, but less unique (obviously). My problem is with the first third or so of the book. The time has jumped four years, with nary a hint of what went on it time. In fact, hardly anything goes on in that first third at all, I was struggling to maintain my interest. Cettie and Sera had been roomies at Muirwood Abbey for four years, with little but some hints at Cettie being awesome controlling the Mysteries, while poor ol' Sera being a bit of a lame duck.
Then...
After dozing through 100 or so pages, Wheeler ramps up the pace - a lot. One of the girls is attacked, Sera's grandfather pops his clogs, opening up a vacancy at Emperor, one Sera is in the running for. There are rumours of war with Kingfountain, who seem to have improved their technology to an advanced state. Throw in the standard politicking and social one-upping, along with Cettie's discovering a lot more about her ghosts, old flames showing up at inopportune moments and the rest of the book is a rip.
Wheeler has ramped up the stakes for everyone involved (including the reader) and I find it hard to believe that the majority of those who read book two, will not be interested in reading book three. There is some fine world-building and storytelling going on here. Give it 4.4/5
Rating: really liked it
04/08/2019 Storm Glass⭐⭐⭐⭐
Mirror Gate⭐⭐⭐⭐
Newts
✔️history of magic, acceptable: read a fantasy
The truth will always make the ignorant angry, whether they be ignorant out of choice or lack of opportunityI enjoyed this one more than the first one! I was a bit confused in the beginning, since there was a timejump of 4 years. At the end of the first book I had hoped that this book would have a fun schoolsetting and that we would see the friendship between Sera and Cettie blossom. This was not the case, we don't see them together much, since Sera leaves. That was a bit dissapointing. I hope the next book doesn't again have a giant timejump, because it makes it hard to get to know the characters well. Between 12 and 16 a lot changes, and we missed that part.
These books are short, and not a giant bunch happened in this (but that was the same in book one), but that doesn't bother me. I like that the politics got bigger, the stakes got a bit higher and holes from the first book got filled a little. Can't wait to see what happens in the next one! It's not the best series I've read, but it's fun enough. I'm more interested in Cettie's story than Sera's, so I'm very hyped to see how her story continues.
One of the strangest things about life is that we are as much defined by our hopes as we are our secret fears. We are, for the most part, the product of what we think about the most. Our minds are fertile beds, like these flower boxes. What would happen if the gardener did not pull out the weeds?
Rating: really liked it
Really enjoying this series, Mr Wheelers best so far I believe, although I did enjoy the first Kingfountain book. Can't wait to see what Cettie and Sera get up to next, such different but great characters.
Rating: really liked it
Vote: 3,85
Class: L-A3 (FP)
(second book out of five)I was pleasantry surprised by the first book and this second one totally confirmed my feeling: this is a really good fantasy series (of the classic-fantasy sub-genre).
It has a really good setting and a well done magical system that you learn little by little as the story goes on. The set of characters are mostly young ones and yes, you just know they're destined to greatness, etc., etc... But it's really well done: you come to know them, care for them, fear with them and see them grow day by day and year by year.
The world is solid and the story is really epic and slowly growing with our characters.
Like in the previous book, the ending is not a cliffhanger but you clearly have to read the next ones to know how the story is going to end.
I like the genre. I like the setting. I like more and more the story and its wonderful characters.
See you all in the next book!
Rating: really liked it
This story jumps ahead four years from where Storm Glass left off. Sera and Cettie’s paths have now crossed, but unfortunately we only see them together for the first small portion of this book before they are separated again. I’m still very much enjoying the series. One criticism is that the characters seem a little one dimensional. The “good” characters often seem to not having any flaws and the “bad” characters don’t have any redeeming qualities. Some of the characters involved with the ending part involving Sera also seemed to be acting out of character, although maybe more will be revealed in future books that will prove otherwise. But overall, still a very enjoyable read/series.
