Bound by Honey

I enjoyed the premise of Bound by Honey — a young librarian working in a magical library befriends a gargoyle and then goes on a quest to cure a prince's curse — as well as the concept of gargoyles being cursed mages who've overexerted their powers. And I liked the idea introduced near the end of the story that dragons are intelligent beings who communicate telepathically via images and emotions rather than words. Unfortunately that's where my enjoyment ends because this book feels like a rough draft and not a polished, fleshed out, published novel.

The prose is okay but frequently lacks detail in character description and setting. All of the male characters are sharp and handsome, the female characters are hardly described beyond their clothes and hair color, and most of the characters have the same bland personality and feel interchangeable, especially the Charming Four. They live on a group of floating islands connected by rope bridges, but nothing is done with this other than providing a moment for Sage to trip and Prince Finn to catch her. 

The setting with the most description is the healing guild's secret garden, which features statues of gods and goddesses (who are never mentioned prior or after this scene — what are they gods of? are they deities from our world, like Greek or Egyptian gods? I'd like to know more about them and their importance to Sage and the other inhabitants) and flowering plants for the bees to pollinate. The rest of the world, like the city and other buildings, is vague and has no character, nothing to distinguish it from any other fantasy setting with forests, villages, and a palace.

I can forgive the pace of the story because it's so short, but the transitions between scenes are jarring. Often Sage would begin to do something or go to sleep and then the scene would jump to her in a new area crossing a bridge or waking in an unknown tent. These location jumps serve the plot but hinder character and setting development. What did the land between the flooded village and the rope bridge look like? Did they have to cross a desert or mountains? What villages did they pass through or animals did they see? Where did they stay the night and how did they pass the time? Did Sage get closer to Prince Finn on this journey by playing a card game, taking a walk, or having a conversation with him?

Spending more time on the journey could help the characters' relationships feel more real. As it is, all the character interactions feel forced and unnatural, especially the romance supposedly forming between Sage and Prince Finn. The Charming Four immediately warm up to Sage and we're told they've formed a protective bond with her, but this is never shown. Just as we are told that Sage and Prince Finn are now in love but we're never shown them falling in love. In fact, they hardly ever speak to each other.

Telling too much and not showing enough is a theme throughout the book. We're told Sage has always liked books instead of shown memories of her mother reading to her as a child or her first trip to the library to check out a magical tome. We're told Sage is swept up in the excitement of the underground guild battle but not shown her heartbeat quickening or her body tensing in anticipation. We're told there's too much history between Sage and Will for her to consider him as a love interest but not shown any events from their childhood that would explain that.

There's also a lack of emotional nuance displayed by the characters. Sage is furious with Prince Finn for taking a book from the restricted section of the library without checking it out, even after learning he's part of the royal family who owns said library. And she continues to hate him for this event despite him returning the book and bearing no ill will towards her. When they reach the flooded village to render aid, Sage notes that “[w]hile this was a devastating moment, she saw smiles on most of the peoples' faces”. To lose your home and your possessions and possible family or pets in the disaster of a flood is horrible and those people would not be smiling. Most likely they'd be tired, hungry, sad, and yes, grateful for the aid, but not cheerful like this line implies.

Though there are many issues with the writing, I do think this could be a good longer fantasy with a lot of revision and help from an editor. Unfortunately I can't recommend it in its unfinished state.

I received a free advanced review copy via BookSirens in return for my honest review.