Once again, the focus of the story is the characters trying to find a way to break the curse that traps the trolls in Trollus. The story moves very slowly, almost stagnant, until about three-quarters of the way through, and then it takes off like a rocket, with an exciting finish that left me dying to read the next book. I think many of my issues with Hidden Huntress stem from the pacing. But Cécile and Tristan are up against some very powerful trolls-and humans-and it won’t be an easy task.

All Cécile wants is to break the curse and reunite with Tristan. Meanwhile, her mother is controlling her every move and preparing Cécile to take her place in society, something she has absolutely no interest in. He has been imprisoned for treason and is being tortured by none other than his father, the King of Trollus.Ĭécile is determined to save Tristan, as well as all the trolls and half-bloods she’s made friends with, and so she continues to search for Anushka the witch, the only person who can break the curse of the trolls’ imprisonment under the mountain. Cécile is back at home, living with her mother and performing onstage as a singer, which was her dream before she was kidnapped and taken to Trollus. The story picks up three months after the end of the last book. However, I can see the grand scheme of where Jensen is going with her series, and so I’m itching to read the final book, mostly because I finally want some answers! I’ll try to keep spoilers to a minimum, but if you haven’t read Stolen Songbird yet, you may want to skip this review. Hidden Huntress is a darker story with many more obstacles for the characters to overcome, and the happy and magical moments from the first book just weren’t there. I missed their romantic banter, and even when they finally get together, the events that happened while they are separated seem to drive a wedge between them. One of the reasons I had some issues with the story was that our main characters Cécile and Tristan, who were separated at the end of Stolen Songbird, remain separated for more than half of Hidden Huntress. It kills me not to be able to rave about this book, because I so wanted to love it.

I had high hopes for Hidden Huntress, but they were only partly realized, unfortunately.

Stolen Songbird was one of my top ten YA books last year, and I loved it for its unique setting and sparkling writing. **Spoilers ahead if you haven’t read Stolen Songbird!** Oh Hidden Huntress, I wanted to love you more! The nitty-gritty: A slow start but a strong finish, uneven pacing, but still beautifully written. Source: eARC from publisher via NetGalley Hidden Huntress (Malediction Trilogy #2) by Danielle L.

Stolen songbird book