Wow. I’m still trying to process everything that happened (and a LOT happened). Just be warned that this review may have spoilers for the first book (and you can read my review for Shield of Sparrows here if you want a quick recap of the big things that happened). I’ll also have spoilers for Rites of the Starling, but I’ll put bold text before we get into the spoiler-portion of the review. 

First off, I was kind of nervous when Devney Perry said there would be major new characters introduced in this novel. Our two new characters? Caspia, a Starling from Nelfinex (a place no one in Calandra seems to know about), and Andreas, the man from Calandra that she falls in love with. You get mostly chapters from Odessa and Caspia’s point of views, so introducing her made a huge difference in the novel. Usually, I’m super bad about actually liking dual POVs like this, but Caspia’s story intertwined so freaking well with Odessa’s that, at times, I wanted to hear from Caspia more than Odessa (crazy right??). So, don’t freak out about the new characters and extra world building because they are amazing. 

With the story, I feel like so many questions got answered finally!! It was absolutely awesome getting to know more about the truth and why everything felt so cloaked in the first book. It tied together beautifully, and while this book does end on a cliffhanger, it’s not one that leaves me with a bajillion additional questions. 

Ransom and Odessa still have SO much chemistry on page, but unfortunately, they’re separated until halfway through the book because of everything that went down in Ellder in Shield of Sparrows. Once they do finally get back together, though? Fireworks as per usual. Since they aren’t together until the second half of the book, Caspia and Andreas’ romance takes center stage, and I honestly loved all of it. I really didn’t think I’d bond so well with these new characters, but, wow. I did. 

Spoilers ahead.

Alrightttttt so all of my bookish people obviously need someone to talk to about this book. This is my way of literally spewing all of the thoughts circling in my brain after finishing this book 😊 because, Y’ALL, I am not okay. So many things happened and I really have to write them all out so I can try and process this. I’m going to break it down based off what happens with Caspia first, and then Odessa.

• So, first things first, Caspia is a Starling from Nelfinex with red hair and will eventually be able to transform into any animal she chooses once she goes through her rite. Her sister, Emery, had left her daughter, Graciella (who I definitely think we’ll see more of in the next book), to follow her rite. Capsia has visions that Emery is killed by a silver-eyed man, so she’s traveling to avenge her sister. Xandra, her cousin, stows away to go on this journey across the sea with her. While in Calandra, Xandra’s rite transforms her into a bariwolf and she can’t control herself (even though she’s supposed to be able to), so Caspia must flee. Andreas saves her from a river and they become lovers basically. Andreas brings her to his homeland, Quentis, where she marries him in after he breaks off his betrothal to another woman (that his mother was trying to force him into). Caspia’s visions get worse (and she feels as if her rite is about to make her transform), and she meets a Voster priest who begins trying to tell her how evil other Voster’s are (but can’t say it directly because of a blood oath). Caspia learns that the Vosters (or at least, most of them) are horrible sorcerers who poisoned Calandra with magic. Caspia must find magical objects around Calandra to take their power away and save the Starling and all of Calandra from the Crux. But the Voster find out that she’s getting magical objects and tries to come and kill her and her newborn baby, Odessa. Caspia’s rite happens as they come into the castle, she turns into the Crux, and kills all of the Voster. Then, Andreas kills her so she doesn’t have to be stuck as a monster forever. Andreas is Odessa’s father and the king.

Well, that was a lot, and I probably missed a ton, but here’s Odessa’s side of the story. 

• Odessa travels with a Voster who takes her and Evie to find a magical object that basically hurts Odessa so much that she passes out (this is obviously one of the objects that Caspia was trying to find). After they get the object, the Voster leaves her to fend for herself. She and Evie travel across Calandra to return to Quentis and eventually meet back up with Ransom (I am probably missing something, but a lot didn’t happen on Odessa’s side of the story until she got back with Ransom). In Quentis, Odessa learns that her sister, Mae, and her brother are not actually her siblings. They are Margot’s children. She finds out that the Voster who got her to get the magical object is a traitor to all the other Voster (but ends up actually being the good guys). Her father harbors them because of Caspia’s quest to save Calandra. Her father kept all of this from her because of his deep grief at having to kill Caspia and hoping that Odessa wouldn’t share the same fate (I seriously feel for the man, but he was not very good at showing his love, obviously). Odessa basically takes on her mother’s quest and begins to feel her own rite within her. The Crux that Ransom killed was Emery. The very last chapter is of a vision that Caspia wrote in one of her journals of the silver-eyed man (Ransom) dying at Odessa’s hand. 

Am I shocked at all of these revelations? Absolutely. Will I be staring into space until the next book comes out? Probably. 

Overall, Rites of the Starling did not disappoint and I devoured it just like I did with Shield of Sparrows. I finally got answers to some of my most pressing questions, and even though more questions got added, I still thoroughly enjoyed everything about this novel (even the cliffhanger ending that will be destroying my heart). Definitely pick this book up if you loved Shield of Sparrows! A really great follow-up to an already amazing series. 

Source: Personal Copy

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