Month: September 2025

Elegy For a Lost Star – Symphony of the Ages #5 by Elizabeth Haydon

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Title: Elegy For a Lost Star

Author: Elizabeth Haydon

Series: Symphony of Ages

Sexual Content: Minimal

Objectional Content: Violence

Synopsis (From Goodreads🙂 Elegy for a Lost Star sets the stage for a major turning point in the Symphony of Ages series. The dragon Anwyn–who has lain for three years in deathlike sleep in a grave of rock and black coal is freed by the cataclysm that concluded Requiem for the Sun . Disoriented and confused, she remembers only the person who trapped her in dragon form and locked her in a rocky grave–Rhapsody; and an all-encompassing desire to wreak vengeance. Meanwhile, Achmed, the Firbolg king, resumes rebuilding his shattered home, while a guild of merciless assassins set about taking revenge on him for the killing of their leader. A horribly deformed but magical being finds its way through a carnival of freaks to the palace of an evil despot, who sees in it the potential to be the instrument by which his plans of conquest and brutal domination of a continent will be realized. With the rise of new leaders, good and evil, the long-awaited birth of the Child of Time, the dark plans of assassins and rulers, a confrontation that shakes the relationship of the Three, and a battle to the death between two dragons of unimaginable elemental power, the seeds of chaos are planted for a war that will, by its end, consume half of the world.

My Review

Picking up shortly after Requiem for a Dream ended, Elegy for a Star begins with Gwydion Navarne being invested as Duke. With the impending birth of their baby, Rhapsody and Ashe plan to move to their own keep. After the explosion that nearly destroyed the Firbolg kingdom, the dragon Anwyn, believed to be dead, has been awoken. Though her memories are fragmented, the one thing she does remember is her hatred for Rhapsody and begins to hunt her down.

Faron, the child of the F’Dor host Michael, is now adrift in this world. Found by a pair of fishermen, it is sold to a passing carnival as a “freak.” When the carnival makes it’s way to Sorbold, Faron comes under the notice of the emperor to be. Unfortunately, the would be emperor notices the scales Faron tries to hide and immediately buys it from the carnival for his own twisted purposes.

Unaware that Anwyn is alive and hunting her, Rhapsody goes to the dragon Elysynos during her pregnancy. As no one really knows what to expect with such a child, the dragon’s lair seems the safest place.

Elegy for a Lost Star very much feels like a “staging novel.” By this I mean that it’s setting up a great deal to be resolved in the next book. Other than Anwyn, there isn’t really a central antagonist to be fought against. Everything is ramping up for the next book.

The focus in this book has somewhat shifted away from the Three, following other characters to show what is happening in other parts of the continent. This is fine of course, not everything has to focus on Rhapsody, Achmed and Grunthor. Although, Achmed is getting more focus as of late.

This book is enjoyable and a must read if you read Requiem for the Sun. My rating for Elegy for a Lost Star is 4 out of 5 stars and I look forward to the next book in the series.

The Scholar Who Walks at Night – Review

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Title: The Scholar Who Walks at Night

Language: Korean

Genres: Historical, Mystery, Romance, Fantasy

Objectional Content: Violence, Death

Synopsis: from MyDramaList: In Joseon Dynasty, immaculately dressed in scholarly robes, the young nobleman Kim Sung Yeol lives as a vampire to keep his promise to his friends. When Sung Yeol still was a human, he found out about the vampire Gwi who sits above the King deciding the next royal line and has resurrected as a vampire trying to fight against Gwi. And now, he is living as a guardian vampire fighting against the evil vampire without losing his human nature.

My Review

I found this drama after I watched Tomorrow. I loved Lee Soo Hyuk in that show so much I wanted to know what else he was in. Thus I came across the Scholar Who Walks at Night. I wanted so much to like this drama, and at first it was pretty good. The vampire acting and some of the special affects are a bit cheesy, but I could look past that. The problem is, it just goes on for too long.

Most of the show is spent looking for the “secret plan” to kill the vampire Gwi. Then, once they finally get it, they spend multiple episodes agonizing over how it’s to be used. How the plan is to be used is even misinterpreted, resulting in the belief that the Female Lead needs to be sacrificed to Gwi in order to kill him. Even after they realize that is incorrect, it still takes them forever to come up with a plan.

Kin Sung Yeol started out as a pretty cool character. He has been living as a vampire for 120 years, searching for the way to kill Gwi and free the country from the vampire’s grasp. He is mostly closed off and stoic when he first meets Jo Yang Seon, who is working as a bookseller. As Sung Yeol begins to develop feelings for Yang Seon, he becomes annoyingly whiney. He believes himself to be a horrible beast that may lose control and attack Yang Seon.

In turn, Yang Seon is basically useless. She doesn’t do much except need to be saved constantly. She couldn’t even sacrifice herself for the greater good properly.

Truly, Gwi is the only character that I really liked. The Crown Prince wasn’t bad, but not my favorite. Gwi is a straight forward character. You know what his motives are and how he’s likely to react to certain situations. Yes, he a monster that survives on human blood, but I think in the end he was kind of lonely. I wanted so much for Gwi to win, but I knew that was never going to happen. If you’ve seen any amount of Kdramas in your life, you will know what I mean. The ending was also very cliche.

At one point I considered giving up on this drama, but since I only had a few episodes left, I decided to stick it out.

My rating for the Scholar Who Walks At Night is 3 out of 5 stars. If you enjoy historical dramas with overly sensitive male leads, than this may be a drama for you.

Thanks for reading!

Weak Hero: Class 1 – Review

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Title: Weak Hero: Class 1

Language: Korean

Genres: Action, Youth, Drama

Objectional Content: Violence, Bullying

Synopsis: from MyDramaList: Yeon Shi Eun is a model student who ranks at the top of his high school. Physically, Yeon Shi Eun appears weak, but by using his wits and psychology, he fights against the violence that takes place inside and outside of his school.

My Review

I honestly don’t know what to make of this drama. Is it supposed to be against bullying? Is it showing what happens if you stand up to bullies? Or is it highlighting what Korean society is like?

Our main character, Shi-Eun, seems like a quiet person who keeps to himself and spends all of his time studying. This, apparently, is not acceptable to the school bullies and they begin to harass him. However, because he doesn’t react to being threatened, they instead try to mess with his grades. Using a new student to put a fentanyl patch on Shi-Eun’s neck results in him incorrectly answering a question on an exam. This causes Shi-Eun to lose it and attacks the bully. Everything escalates from there.

The bullies can’t accept that they were beaten and need to get revenge, which leads to involvement with a dangerous gang and everything escalates out of control. Resentment flies all over the place and everyone is getting beaten mercilessly.

The show is very well done. The acting is spot on and the production is great. But, as I said at the beginning of this, I’m not sure what to take away from it.

If you have seen this show, I would really love to know your opinion on it as well. So if you have seen it, please leave your thoughts in the comments. If not, give it a watch and see what you think for yourself.

My rating for Weak Hero Class 1 is 4 out of 5 stars. There is a second season but I have yet to watch it. I needed a palate cleanser after finishing the first season.

Vincenzo – KDrama Review

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Title: Vincenzo

Language: Korean, Italian, English

Genres: Comedy, Law, Crime, Drama

Objectional Content: Violence, Murder

Synopsis: from (MyDramaList): At the age of eight, Park Joo Hyeong left for Italy after being adopted. Now an adult, he is known as Vincenzo Cassano and employed by a Mafia family as a consigliere. Due to warring Mafia factions, he flies to South Korea where he gets involved with lawyer Hong Cha Young. She is the type of attorney who will do anything to win a case. Now back in his motherland, he gives an unrivalled conglomerate a taste of his own medicine—with a side of his own version of justice.

My Review

Vincenzo begins in spectacular fashion when Vincenzo, the character, takes revenge on a rival Mafia family after the death of his boss. Refusing to serve the new boss, Vincenzo flies back to his motherland of Korea. There, safely hidden below and old building, is 15 tons of gold. The rightful owner has passed away and the only people who know about the gold are Vincenzo himself and a friend who helped hide the gold. Unfortunately, the building is bought by illegal means, forcing Vincenzo to become involved in with the building’s tenants and their fight to keep the building from being demolished.

Vincenzo as a character is just amazing. He is calm and collected, even when when being insulted to his face or having his life threatened. He doesn’t give in to his emotions and never acts rashly. He is very good at playing the long game. If someone crosses this man, they will pay for it dearly, but stay on his good side and he will protect you when needed. He is truly a scary type of person. Knowing full well he is not any type of hero for justice, he is a villain that will use what he knows to get what he wants.

In the beginning, I didn’t much like Hong Cha-Young. She is arrogant, loud, and has a weird way of walking like she’s better than those around here. However, after he father is murdered, she quits her high profile law firm to fight again Babel and bring down it’s evil CEO. She kind of grew on me by the end.

Jang Han-Seok is a true psychopath as the true villain of this show. One moment he can be all smiles and innocence, the next he’ll be beating someone with a hockey stick. This man is even more terrifying than Vincenzo because he enjoys the pain he inflicts. I don’t want to spoil anything, but he most definitely gets what he deserves in the end.

This drama has so many twists and turns. There were some genuinely jaw dropping moments and times when I cried. I could barely predict what was to come next. Some dramas can be very formulaic, but not this one. Thankfully, the last episode also wasn’t some stupid kind of filler episode with like a dumb amnesia plot or something.

Although it was slightly open ended in it’s last moments, I’d say this show wrapped up quite nicely, with no loose ends to really wonder about. Considering its been 4 years since it was released, I’d be surprised if they suddenly decided to do a season 2.

My rating for Vincenzo is 4.5 stars out of 5 and I’d recommend it to anyone who is looking for a somewhat intense, but also slow burn story about crime and how people will try to cheat the law.

Thanks for reading!

Requiem for the Sun – Symphony of the Ages #4 by Elizabeth Haydon

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Title: Requiem for the Sun

Author: Elizabeth Haydon

Series: Symphony of Ages

Sexual Content: Minimal

Objectional Content: Violence, Sexual violence, violence against children

Synopsis (From Goodreads): Requiem for the Sun , Sequel to the USA Today bestselling Rhapsody Trilogy

It has been three years since their devastating battle, and peace has settled across their land. But to the south an empire lies ready to crumble. When the Dowager Empress dies, along with her successor, a great war breaks out, threatening to overwhelm the known world.

And an old nemesis of Rhapsody’s–presumed dead for centuries–resurfaces, forcing her to choose between facing his depravity or sacrificing her own life . . . and that of her unborn child.

My Review

Requiem for the Sun starts off three years after the end of Destiny. Rhapsody and Ashe are married, and Lord and Lady Cymrian. During those three years, there has been relative peace in the Alliance. As the happy couple decide it’s time to have a baby, the Dowager Empress of Sorbold and her son die. Rhapsody, too ill from her pregnancy to attend the funeral, travels back to Haguefort, while Ashe goes to the funeral.

After leaving Haguefort, Rhapsody intends to travel to see the dragon Elysynos, but on the way she is ambushed by an old foe and taken prisoner. The moment it is known Rhapsody is missing, both Ashe and Achmed begin searching for her immediately.

Rhapsody continues to be an amazing character. Her resilience and determination is unmatched. I think many people in her situation may have given up and died, unable to find a way out of the predicament. With the life of her unborn child on the line, giving up is not an option in Rhapsody’s mind. One way or another, she will get out and she will be free.

When with his wife, Ashe can be unsufferable. His obsession with Rhapsody is rather irritating. However, separate the two, and suddenly he’s a likable character, doing whatever he must to get his wife back. It’s at times like these that his badassery shines.

I felt like Grunthor didn’t get as much page time time in this novel, but he is definitely still there and just the same as ever. In fact we do find out an interesting tid bit about Grunthor that I thought was fantastic.

One thing that bothered me about this book, and may be a bit of a SPOILER, is that Rhapsody is trapped in a cave for days on end. A cave that fills with water when the tide comes in. Her husband is literally tied to the element of water. Was there not some way she could have called to him through the water? That made no sense to me. END SPOILER

Overall, Requiem for the Sun is a fantastic addition to the Symphony of Ages series, and a good start on a new trilogy. My rating for this book is 4 out of 5 stars. I recommend it to anyone who has read the original trilogy. If you haven’t read the original trilogy, I suggest you read that first.

Thanks for reading!