Serpent & Dove (Serpent & Dove, #1) in SpecFic Buddy Reads

Oct 18, 2019 Emma rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, magic, re-read, witches

September 2020 Reread.
Well I’ve actually knocked this down from 5 to 4.5 stars on a reread because I found one part of the book particularly angst Laden. I still loved it though. Ready for Blood & Honey.
October 2019
This was literally magical! I liked the magical world described and the counterbalance of the chasseurs and how this meant the monarchy, the witches and the Church were interwoven. The author took care to develop all the characters and by the end had created a wonderful motley crew wh ...more

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Apr 06, 2021 Di Maitland rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: titled-characters, fantasy, romance, audiobook, alpha-male, magic, witches-wizards, action-girl, fantasy-romance, love-hate

This book was enjoyable enough but if I had to pick it out of a line of young adult fantasy books, I'm not sure I could do it.

'Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.'

Lou is eighteen and a witch. She's spent the last two years hiding in the city of Cesarine, surviving on what she can steal or con others to give her. Reid is twenty and a Chasseur, or witch hunter. Found as a baby and adopted by the Church, he believes in his mission completely. When Reid recognises Lou from a recent robbery and ch This book was enjoyable enough but if I had to pick it out of a line of young adult fantasy books, I'm not sure I could do it.

'Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.'

Lou is eighteen and a witch. She's spent the last two years hiding in the city of Cesarine, surviving on what she can steal or con others to give her. Reid is twenty and a Chasseur, or witch hunter. Found as a baby and adopted by the Church, he believes in his mission completely. When Reid recognises Lou from a recent robbery and chases her, a misunderstanding ensues and the only solution is for them to marry (well that's the story anyway). The union will save Reid's reputation and his job whilst offering Lou protection from her many enemies - if she can keep her true identity a secret. Hate turns to love, twists ramp up the tension and all of a sudden the whole of Belterra could rise or fall with their choices.

"Do you promise to behave yourself?" "Of course not. That would ruin the fun."

The first half was pretty generic. In fact, it could have been a fan-fiction retelling of Nina and Matthias' relationship from Six of Crows (a much better book incidentally). Lou is your generic snarky heroine who thrives on life and rebels at the hint of a rule. Reid is your generic golden boy, raised on routine and self-denial, he eats rules for breakfast. Fortunately, in the second half we get to know the characters better and can enjoy the slow softening of each of their personalities as the rising stakes force them to rely on each other. A few of the twists and turns moderately surprised me but on the whole the story goes much as you'd imagine, over-dramatic proclamations of love and all.

"You're to be my wife [...] that means you'll obey me." "Does it? [...] I suppose that means you'll honor and protect me, then? If we're adhering to the dusty old roles of your patriarchy?" I shortened my pace to match hers. "Yes." She clapped her hands together. "Excellent. At least this will be entertaining. I have many enemies."

The world of Belterra takes inspiration from medieval France and uses a number of French names and terms: Chasseurs, Dames Blanches, Les Forêts des Yeux etc. I found it all quite charming to be honest and a nice change from medieval England. Witches are divided into either Dames Blanches, who take power from the Earth, or Dames Rouges, who take power from blood. I am still unsure as to the exact way in which a Dame Blanche casts a spell, other than that it has something to do with patterns. Most excitedly, we're given a single tasty mention of Loup Garou, or werewolves. Hopefully we'll see more of these in later volumes.

"You're my husband now, dear. What sort of wife would I be if I couldn't speak your language?" "My language?" "Silence. You're well versed in it."

In terms of audio narration, I liked the female narrator, Saskia Maarleveld, whose wonderful lilting French added additional romanticism to the story. The male narrator, Holter Graham, I had a few issues with. I found his intonation annoying and his over-dramatic narration, couple with the over-dramatic prose, all got a bit much at times. Not terrible, just not fantastic.

Will this book blow you away? No, sadly not, but it's enjoyable enough. Would I recommend it? Maybe; if you'd already read Six of Crows and Throne of Glass and wanted something similar. Will I be reading the next? Sure, why not, the first made me smile. ...more

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Oct 17, 2019 Amanda rated it it was amazing

Absolutely loved this one. Worth every bit of the hype. Can’t wait for the next book.

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Dec 02, 2019 Lindsay rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult

In this secondary world fantasy witch and a witch hunter get married against their will and somehow have to survive each other.

Louise le Blanc is a thief, surviving on her wits since she fled her fellow Dames Blanches witches. Her friendship with a Dame Rouge witch brings her to the attention of the Chasseurs, a holy order of witch hunters. When Lou is caught in a compromising position with Captain Reid Diggory, they're forced to marry, even though Reid is unaware of Lou's true nature and that s ...more

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Apr 20, 2021 Lata rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sf-f-h, auth-f, x2021-read

I liked this book until, abruptly, I was bored at the ¾ mark.
I liked the sort of France setting, and the murderous witches and evil church. Oh wait, the evil church thing isn't that original....
Anyway, I liked Lou and Coco and their friendship.
I found the overt and constant misogyny tedious, even though it was central to the story and Reid's personal development. But, I did not think Reid and Anselm’s turn from the dark side was credible, especially in Reid's case, who was steeped in the ways ...more

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Dec 06, 2023 Susy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, audio-finished, ya, paranormal, romance

3.5 stars
This book had me hooked from the start: interesting premise/plot and characters, dark vibes. But the last part was disappointing. It lost it's originality and thoroughness, felt rushed. Giving it the benefit of the doubt seeing I really liked most of it and rounding my rating up to 4 stars.

Characters 8
Atmosphere 8
Writing Style 7
Premise/Plot 8
Execution/Setup 6
Enjoyment/Engrossment 7
Narration 8(female), 6(male) ...more

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