Review: Wild Lands (Savage Lands #2) by Stacey Marie Brown

Title: Wild Lands

Series: Savage Lands #2
Author: Stacey Marie Brown
Publisher: Stacey Marie Brown
Published: February 9, 2021
Pages: 410
Genres: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Source: ARC

Brexley has endured starvation and survived torture and even Warwick Farkas, the brutal legend who still haunts her like a ghost, spilling into her thoughts and life. His betrayal made her a prisoner of Killian, the gorgeous Fae Lord of Budapest.

There her life takes another unforeseen twist, something that will change the fragile alliance between the humans and the fae, and Brexley finds herself in the middle.

As weeks go by, Brexley also discovers Killian isn’t the malicious leader she was told about. As they spend more time together, their relationship begins to shift. However, when an old acquaintance turns up, she is given the chance to escape the sexy fae leader, and her entire world explodes.

Brexley is thrown into a nefarious web of politics, desire, betrayal, lies, and truths that will shatter her foundation and who she is, what she believes, and who can be trusted. No longer is there a clear line between good and bad.

Hunted by both sides, Brexley is on the run and must untangle all the lies, deceit, and deceptions, before she becomes another victim in the wild lands.

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MY REVIEW

Disclaimer: I received an Advance Reader Copy at no cost from the publisher/author. All opinions in my review are my own.

OMG, you guys! I thought that I was ready for this book, but I wasn't. I have been anticipating this book since Savage Lands released and I thought that I was prepared for Stacey Marie Brown's ingenious mindbending plots but I was so wrong. She slayed me with this book. This book will scorch your psyche. When you start this book you will be pulled so far down the rabbit hole that you won't ever want to climb back out again.

In all honesty, there isn't much that I can say in my review that wouldn't be spoilery. But if you are familiar with Brown's writing, then you will be on cloud nine with this book because she delivers the heart-stopping, twisty-turvy plot that you have come to expect from her. And these characters...gah! The way that Brown crafts her characters is nothing short of inspiring and downright genius. The dynamic that she creates with her characters draws the reader in so that the characters consume your every thought. The characters become more than just names on the page. They become your friends, your enemies, your lovers. You aren't just a bystander anymore when you pick up a book by Stacey Marie Brown. The characters become a part of you and you feel everything right along with them. Brown writes her characters so intimately that it is hard to separate your mind from them when you are finished reading. But that is the amazing thing about reading one of her books. The characters stay with you long after you close the book. I really loved all the new characters that are introduced in Wild Lands and I am really excited to see where things go with them.

Again, discussing the character development in this book would be pretty spoilery so I'll just stick with a general observation about Brexley. She definitely had a great character arc in Wild Lands. She is certainly not the same girl in Wild Lands as the girl that went into Halalhaz in Savage Lands. Her experiences in Halalhaz and in the Savage Lands have changed her and, dare I say, awakened her in some ways. She sees things from new perspectives after her experiences and it not only changes her mentality on current events in her world but it changes her very place in that world. Her journey in this book is very inspiring when she finally admits to herself that she won't live by someone else's whims nor will she be controlled by someone else. No matter who it is. There is a lot of self-discovery for her in this book that I can only expect will be even more amazing in the next book.

In short, this book was everything that I expected and more. I am totally blown away each and every time I pick up a book from Stacey Marie Brown. She is my unicorn author. Her ideas are so clever and stimulating and she weaves her stories with a magic that is untouchable. She is a literal goddess with the written word. There is just no one that crafts stories like she can. I am just such a fangirl for this author. Her stories seep into my marrow. They challenge me, warm my heart, make my heart want to break out of my chest, just a gamut of emotions every time I read one of her books. If you enjoyed Savage Lands then you will be over the moon with this book. So many of your questions from book one get answered but you will have just as many new questions upon finishing this book. And you won't even be mad about it because the ride that Stacey takes you on in this book will knock your socks off. If you have not dived into this world yet then you are missing out on an opus of epic proportions. If you are a newbie then I suggest starting with Brown's Darkness series. The Savage Lands series stands on its own and can certainly be read independently but it is set in the same world as her Darkness series, Collector series, and Lightness Saga, and reading them first really compliments and enhances the reading experience of the Savage Lands series. This world that she has created is truly a work of art.

This book is a sequel that I have been looking forward to since last year. What are some sequels that you have your eye on?