Before the Broken Star

„Miracles are forged in the heart.“ These are Father Time’s words, a mysterious character who is starring in this book, and I think they have a true ring to them. They certainly fit the main character Everley with her clock heart because she doesn’t feel like the typical heroine. She is far more focused on revenge than saving the world and seems to be pretty cold at first. Making friends is not really her goal which reminded me a bit of Katniss Everdeen who had an equally prickly personality. Still, I’m rather fond of both of them. Everley undergoes some changes throughout the novel; blind revenge is replaced by a more thoughtful approach as she begins to question herself if the path she has chosen, is truly the right one, as the people around her become more important to her. I really enjoyed being able to observe her on her journey and to experience all her doubts with her. These doubts about the enigmatic governor Killian Markham were one of many interesting aspects about this story. I had a hard but fun time puzzling over his motives. Is he the bad guy or not? You will find out for sure somewhere very close to the end. I was quite surprised by this turn of events for sure. What I didn’t like though, were the battle at the end and all the other bigger fighting scenes. There are not that many to find in this book but it was difficult to follow what was going on. I’m not a huge fan of such scenes in general but I think they could have been conveyed in a clearer, more picturesque way that doesn’t leave me confused who is doing what. In contrast to that I loved the legends and creation stories especially the legend of Princess Amadara. I wanted to find out if there was some truth to them and how they fit into the story as a whole. And I was not disappointed. In addition to that, I like that there are still some parts left about them that are not (yet) fully revealed, or more precisely, if the “author” of the legends hasn’t somehow altered them. I’d like to find out more about that. I quite enjoyed the love story between Everley and Jamison. It doesn’t play a huge role and it is a slow-burn one. They don’t start off on the best of terms, her a convict and him forcing marriage on her, even though it turns out to be mutually beneficial to them. As the need for them arises to work more and more together they can’t help to grow closer. They often go one step forward and two steps back. I think there is a lot of potential left open for however many sequels are planned in this series. All in all, I liked all the riddles, mysteries, legends and magical things that can be discovered in this first instalment. I’d recommend this book to anyone liking fairytales about princes and princesses as well as a unique portrayal of time and some conflict about clashing religious beliefs.