Stripped of its fancy words**, the world is nothing special really : think PNR blended with Dystopian YA (there's even an attempt at Resistance - I CANNOT STAND RESISTANCE PLOTS ANYMORE. There. I said it). Granted, the magical system is complex and interesting, but it's barely exploited! We have all these different kinds of clairvoyants and for what?? Do their powers count in the end? Barely. Only Paige's counts, because come on, she's the heroine, duh.

After barely escaping with their lives at the end of The Song Rising, Paige and Arcturus are escorted to Paris by the mysterious benefactors of the Domino Program, with the intent of embedding them deep in Scion France for mischief and subterfuge. However, Paige Mahoney is the damn Underqueen of the London syndicate, and she has her own plans with the underground of Paris. The Song Rising: Limited Edition, Signed by the Author". Book Depository . Retrieved 19 August 2020.

This book it took me on this unforgettable and unputdownable journey that had me so intensely trapped that a theory I had since book one flew straight over my head because I was so caught in Paige's experiences, trauma, healing, and reactions. It says a lot about Shannon's writing that I didn't see, not only the ending coming, but also that twist even though it was something I had found myself wondering about for so long. I also had trouble figuring out which characters I could trust and which I couldn't trust, again attributed to Shannon's writing and myself being so caught in Paige's perspective, and also a major factor in what led that twist to flying straight over my head. Are Shannon’s books YA novels or cautionary tales for adults? In some countries her books are published as adult novels and in others they are marketed as YA. Shannon thinks it doesn’t really matter and it’s time to end the snobbery about YA novels. You have risen from the ashes before, Arcturus had told me. The only way to survive is to believe you always will.”

I’d always hated school: the uniform, the dogma. Leaving was the high point of my formative years.I always hate it when characters act stupidly contrary like this. Guess what, Paige? It's life. You are not special. School is expected, as are following the rules. Nobody likes it, but we do it because it's the mature thing to do. Making a character a special snowflake is a surefire way to guarantee that I will not like her. Paige just doesn't feel like she belongs in the average life. She's meant for something more. So instead of settling into a mundane life like the rest of us (and therefore saving me from having to read this book), Paige joins the clairvoyant version of the Mafia. And she's supposed to be so strong. "Oh, she's so strong! So brave! So smart! So cheeky!" And yet she ends up undressing him, and being intimate with a man who OWNS her - not because he's forcing her - but because "he is just misunderstood - everything he did was for my own good - he's really a good man - blah blah blah". Bullshit! You'll want to read this one after reading at least the first book in the series, as, even though this is a prequel, I think this would have been too confusing for anyone who doesn't have prior knowledge of the world and Unnaturalness. As it was, it had been a while since I'd read the first two books, and I found myself trying to remember details. I could have read the third book, The Song Rising, before getting into this one, as I do have it, but I was in the middle of assignment hell and just wanted something short and easy to take my mind off marketing plans and sustainable business. this is the fourth book in the series and we knew it was going to ramp things up but my god this is like...wow. there is SO MUCH expansion of the world - it's all about france and paris - but it also explores more of like...the rephs and a little more of jaxon and ALSO PAIGE PROCESSING TRAUMA anyway getting ahead of myself... Paige Mahoney is our special snowflake of the day. She is the daughter of an eminent scientist within the Scion scientific research division, and has had a very privileged life due to her father's status and importance. She doesn't want it.Arcturus is such a fun guy, really, that is also crazy wise and, on occasion, really dumb, it all just works together really well and ensures that I always have a blast seeing whatever he is up to. Seeing all the ways he has grown, too, is just so rewarding and satisfying that I can't help but feel incredibly proud of them. There is a very large cast of characters about whom I could not care less. Short of a few main characters, the rest of the cast are largely extraneous and utterly forgettable.

The characters are great and the story has enough mystery to not be completely flat or boring in any sense. Really, is a good story, but it did nothing for me. When it's been nearly two months since you read The Song Rising and all you can think about is how you really want TBS4 now. *wishes for a time machine* Being in this syndicate will toughen you up, but don't let it turn you to stone. Don't get too big for your boots. And always question what you're told. Remember what it's like to be an outsider, a nobody. Don't look down on the people who end up at the bottom. Give a bit of coin to thew gutterlings. Stay humble. And keep your mind open. You might find it repays you one day."Paige is recovering from the torture she went through while she was kidnapped—and she has a lot of PTSD to get past—but let me tell you Warden looking after her was adorable!🥺 Paris, as a location, just added to the magic and mysteriousness of the whole ordeal. I can honestly not imagine a more perfect place for all of this to go down and feel as distinctive and alive and magical as it did in this wonderful city.

I am of the considered opinion that for every person, there exists a book that will sing to them. I trust that you will find yours.”BRB gonna go speed REread the second and third books before I snatch this shit up at Barnes & Noble!!