It really threw me off how much the Sons of Dis thing took over the plot here.

The story was very slow at times, especially the beginning. The romance still felt out of place and too forced.

I liked how Thalestris was involved in the betrayal and the inclusion of the actual Amazons. There were a couple things I liked, so I'll put a spoiler tag here. The basis of the story is Fallon and her fellow gladiatrices are faced with a threat to their ludus and the freedom they desire. The Sons of Dis thing where they want to sacrifice fighters to their God Eventually something happens to jumpstart the plot of this sequel, but what's behind the plot was one of my least favorite aspects of book one. In fact.as excited as I was to dive back into this world, the excitement slowly dwindled down as I got into the story and began questioning what I loved so much about the first one. I'm beginning to think this should've been left as a standalone because The Defiant didn't do anything for me. Any predictable moments didn't bother me because the story held its own. The concept was fascinating imagining the existence of a training school devoted to making women into gladiatrices. (Feb.The Valiant was one of my favorite new YA books of 2017.

Agent: Jess Regel, Foundry Literary + Media. A engaging romance develops between Fallon and a young Roman soldier, but this relationship is secondary to that between Fallon and her sister: “Strong and sharp and dangerous as the sword she carried on her hip, Sorcha was my goddess even more than the Morrigan we both worshipped.” Livingston (the Wondrous Strange trilogy) skillfully illustrates Fallon’s emotional growth as she becomes a fearsome gladiatrix, her ties to the sisterhood within the ludus overshadowing her ties to the men that betrayed her. Facing immense danger as a combatant, Fallon quickly realizes that the ruthless politics of Rome are just as deadly. Fallon learns that the school is owned by none other than Julius Caesar, the tyrant who killed her sister and tore her family apart. Furious, Fallon flees, only to be captured by slave traders, taken to Rome, and sold to an elite training school (called a ludus) for female gladiators. On the night of her 17th birthday, Fallon, a Celtic warrior princess, is betrayed by her father when he promises her to her true love’s brother.

The valiant by lesley livingston