Title: This Crumbling Pageant
Author: Patricia Burroughs
Series: The Fury Triad (Vol 1)
Publisher: Story Spring Publishing
Publication Date: May 6th, 2014
Page count: 608 Pages
Format: eARC
Source: CBB Book Promotions & Publisher
Book Summary:
Persephone Fury is the Dark daughter, the one they hide.England, 1811. Few are aware of a hidden magical England, a people not ruled by poor mad George, but the dying King Pellinore of the House of Pendragon.
The Furys are known for their music, their magic, and their historic role as kingmakers. When Fury ambitions demand a political marriage, Persephone is drugged and presented to Society–
Only to be abducted from the man she loves by the man she loathes.But devious and ruthless, Persephone must defy ancient prophecy, embrace her Dark magic, and seize her own fate.
Be swept away into the first book of a dark fantasy series combining swashbuckling adventure, heart-pounding romance, and plot-twisting suspense.
*The Reader’s Review*
My rating: 5/5 stars!
“So when the last and dreadful hour
This crumbling pageant shall devour,
The trumpet shall be heard on high,
The dead shall live, the living die,
And music shall untune the sky.“
John Dryden, 1687
YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK! This Crumbling Pageant just might be the book you have been waiting for a very long time. I have so many feels for this one for everything it made me go through. The romance was heart-robbing, the plot was shocking and everything in between was simply stunning. This book was very hard for me to put down.
Persephone Fury possesses a power so dark and wild that her whole family has tried to conceal from Magi London’s society in fear for her safety and humiliation. Shadow magic flows in her veins, strong and very dangerous. Everyone says she is evil in the flesh. Yet, she is not the only one. Vespasian Jones, her brothers’ abominable tutor, wields a power similar to hers and is threatening to use this against her beloved society and the throne of the Magi, only that no one believes her, leaving her no choice but to take matters in her own hands when thrown in his way…
And that is all I’m going to say because instead of focusing on what this story is about, I’ll just tell you what I loved about This Crumbling Pageant without ruining it for you. First, The Characters. Oh my god, they are fantastic! From Persephone to the dreadful Vespasian Jones, I was captivated with each unique character inside this book. They are fierce, passionate, talented and deadly. There’s fire in each and every one of them, and I loved when they burned with purpose. Even when they lied.
The plot is wickedly complex and I adored every time I got surprised with unexpected twist and turns. The elaborate web the author created is like an intricate musical composition: it transitions from a fairly simple rhythm into a complicated medley of every musical piece ever created. I’m still marveling how everything I thought was right and wrong turns out to be far from what it really turns out to be. Pretty genius.
As for the setting, you can’t go wrong with the London of 1811, be it Ordinary or Magi. Social manners and conduct have a heavy weight with the lives of these people. Women are expected to marry well and dress according to the latest fashion, to listen and do what men say, as they are the ones with the absolute power to participate in politics. Leave it to Persephone to be the one to question and challenge all of them!
And this is only a fraction of what This Crumbling Pageant has in store for every reader that decides to open its pages. There’s so much in this book that, despite it being a long read, I was actually wishing for it to be longer, much much longer. I can’t wait for the next book in the series!
*Note: I received an eArc in exchange for an honest review, so I assure all thoughts shared in this review are 100% my own.*
About the Author:
Award-winning screenwriter and best selling novelist Patricia Burroughs loves dogs, books, movies, and football. A lifelong Anglophile, she treasures her frequent travels in the British Isles researching The Fury Triad, the epic fantasy that has taken over her life and heart. She and her high school sweetheart husband are living happily ever after in their hometown of Dallas, Texas.
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Giveaway:
The Author is giving you a chance to win a $25 Amazon Gift Card! This giveaway is open to EVERYONE so make sure you enter. Good luck! 🙂
So glad you loved this one! Love your review, the excitement is contagious! Thanks so much for giving this one a try and reviewing it!
Thanks Candace, I'm so glad I got the chance to read it! Definitely joins my favorites list. 🙂