J’ai été super contente de retrouver les péripéties de Gia et des Sentinelles et de me replonger dans leur univers. (Merci d’ailleurs au blog Summaries books pour son résumé détaillé car j’avais complètement oublié je premier tome que j’avais pourtant beaucoup aimé !) J’ai cependant préféré le premier tome, comme la plupart des trilogies. Toutefois ce tome a réussi à me surprendre dans les événements (et j’ai même faillit verser ma petite larme à la fin). D’ailleurs ce tome annonce un dernier tome prometteur et (je l’espère) un brillant final comme pas mal de choses restent en suspens à la fin de ce tome.

Guardian of Secrets is the fast paced sequel to Thief of Lies. As the story continues and the battle of evil progresses we form a stronger bond with the characters.

I really like the focus on friendship. Gia and Nick’s friendship especially but I liked how Gia is not always hanging out with the same person. She often spends time with different Sentinels which allows the reader to get to know their personalities better. The plot is fast paced and there is no time for crying. Battles are happening around every corner, you are never sure who you are supposed to trust. Again the crazy events bring different characters together. Nick’s friendship with Gia, and the fact that she is the only that keeps him grounded as he deals with his adoption and his new powers. Jaran bonds with Gia over broken hearts and moving on. Kale, Lei and Gia learn to count on each other (She almost accidentally killed Kale in the first book) and have each others backs. Gia sees the things that she doesn’t have in common with Arik and realizes she doesn’t know everything about him. Bastien and her form a stronger connection. Of course there is Faith, Uncle Phillip, Nana, Pop, Edgar and so forth. They all have their moments. It’s amazing how it managed to all flawlessly fit together.

I really liked the love triangle in this book. I know people often shy away from them but this one made sense. It wasn’t a girl leading on two guys for a plot device. It felt very natural. As she grew apart from one boy she grew closer to the other and it didn’t happen overnight.

Gia shows character growth. She’s not the same girl that we saw first accidentally stumbled into another library. She is still stubborn and fiercely loyal. She is also growing up and understanding that head first without thinking is not always the best option. She is extremely brave and never backs down from a fight. She refuses to go down easily in any situation.

I still enjoy the magic and hierarchy of the mystik world. It’s always building and expanding as Gia searches for the missing keys. Plus her powers are always growing and changing as well.

Overall I really enjoyed this installment. I might have even enjoyed it more than the first story. I can’t wait to see how it continues in the next book.

3,5 ⭐️

J’avais adoré le premier et j’avoue que je me suis un peu ennuyée avec celui-là, surtout que le triangle amoureux et très présent. Mais il y a tout de même de l’action et je suis intriguée par la suite.

Books acting as portals to libraries around the world, transporting magical knights through them in order to save the world?

Yes, please!

Guardian of Secrets is the second book in the Library Jumpers series, and definitely not the one to start with. There's too much going on, too many characters and plot threads already happening at that point--and book 2 takes everything to an all new level. A major character's going to be under a spell, other characters aren't going to make it into book 3, and Gia's going to be involved in a significant love triangle--so. Much. Going. On. I feel like I need another week to process it all...and I should probably re-read before book 3 comes out...

Rating: 4 stars / B+

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

This became my favorite series with the first novel. I still love the series...but I need to stop getting so emotionally invested in the love lives of fiction characters! This book made my heart ache in so many ways, but I’ve grown to adore the characters so much that I cannot stop reading. This series is so well written that I find myself hoping everything will work out for the best and find myself distraught when things don’t go as planned. I’m currently fighting the urge to start the last one. Partially because I’m told sleep is a thing that is needed, but mostly because I know I’m not stable enough to handle whatever my fictional friends are going to face in the next book after the emotional roller coaster I just rode with them!

okay so this book was basically almost an exact continuation of the first book. when i say this, i mean that it continues in its roller coasterness (in a bad way), its plot twist every other page, the multitude of side characters that didnt have even a paragraph explaining about them, and the way the book tried to be as unpredictable as possible. LOOK THERE'S A NEW LOVE INTEREST OH NO THEY HAVE TO SURVIVE TOGETHER FOR LIKE THREE WEEKS NOW THE MAIN CHARACTER IS MADLY IN LOVE WITH HIM SO UNPREDICTABLE. idk man. i really didnt like how the author just decided to switch her love interest only half way through the second book. anyway, my review on the first book basically sums up how i mostly feel about this book as well so yeah.

I really enjoyed this book. I did. I was just a little disappointed, because of how much I loved the first book. But, I love the characters, and the plot was great, the only problem was that it was a little slow, and I just wasn’t as captivated as I was in Thief of Lies. But it was still a great read!

I love Gia.

In Guardian of Secrets, she’s in hiding. She is a Sentinel, and totally badass. She’s independent and stubborn and really fun to follow. And she continues growing. And I really liked seeing her and Deidre grow closer. What I love about all characters is that they’re not good or bad, it’s not just black or white, but everyone is both good and bad, and a lot of people aren’t quite what they seem. It makes for a much more realistic book; in reality, people are actually good and bad.

There is less Arik!

I absolutely love Arik. I really, really love him. Which is why this book completely broke my heart. Because there is more of a love triangle in Guardian of Secrets. Gia grows closer to Bastien, and, while he’s a nice guy and all, he’s not Arik. So, I’m a bit torn about the next book. On one hand, I feel like it would be annoying if Gia changed her mind about them again. On the other hand, I really need her and Arik to be together!

The plot was a bit slow.

Because of this, it was a bit difficult to get into, and didn’t succeed in keeping my attention as well as Thief of Lies did. But, after about half the book, things got more interesting, there was more action and the last part of the book, I finished very quickly, because I just had to know how things would end.

I absolutely love the world!

I mentioned this in my review of the first book, but the idea behind the world and plot is absolutely amazing! I mean, you can just tell from the title of the series (Library Jumpers) that it’s totally perfect for booklovers. And it is! I love the whole stuff about people jumping through books into different libraries all over the world, and there being people supposed to protect libraries. It’s original and completely unique, and I love it!

Overall, Guardian of Secrets was a great read, and I really enjoyed it! The characters are relatable and realistic, and I’m in love with the world. It’s a totally unique read, and I would definitely recommend it! Don’t give up because it’s slow in the beginning, because it’s so worth finishing it.

Whew GUARDIAN OF SECRETS was an absolute emotional rollercoaster!! I laughed, I seethed, I talked to myself like a crazy person, and I most definitely cried, too. I was 100% wrapped up in the story and didn't want to put it down!

I loved getting back into Gia's world, and really enjoyed the magical aspects just like I did last time. I have to admit that I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first book though. There was a touch of the whole middle-book in a series/trilogy (I think it'll be a trilogy, but I'm not actually positive about that) syndrome going on for me, and I really wasn't happy with the whole love triangle aspect of the story. Other than the romance part, I really liked the mystery surrounding the prophecy and I really enjoyed seeing Gia get more and more comfortable with the Mystik world. I also just loved seeing how her relationships with the other Sentinels have grown! Brenda Drake has crafted some exceptional secondary characters, and I really love whenever Gia interacts with them. :)

Full review to come!

After the craziness that was the first book, I didn't think I'd enjoy this as much as I did. Surprisingly, I really liked this book and I'm surprised at what all happened. So many love interests changing among the craziness that is the Mystik world. I have no idea what will happen next, but I can't wait to find out. Also, I am 200% Team Bastien- fight me.

**You can see this full review and more at Book Briefs: https://bookbriefs.net**
Guardian of Secrets by Brenda Drake is the second book in the Library Jumpers series. The Library Jumpers series is a young adult fantasy series, that I am really enjoying. I loved the first book, Thief of Lies, and I liked this one just as much, if not more! Gia was an even better character than she was in the first book, and I think I overall enjoyed this one even more. Plus, hello they can jump into different libraries. (if you are a library geek like me, you should totally check out Brenda's guest post on her top favorite libraries from around the world! Its awesome. See it HERE)

Guardian of Secrets picks up where Thief of Lies left off, so you do need to read this series in order to fully understand an enjoy it. Gia is our main character, and she has grown so much in this series already! I think that is what I was the most impressed with. She was a bit on the immature side at times in the first book, but she has really grown into herself and matured as she starts to get more comfortable with everything that is going on around her. I love, love love watching a character grow throughout a series. For some reason it is one of the most satisfying things for me to read about. Even more than a romance sometimes.

And speaking of romances, the library jumpers series does feature a love triangle. And I am not going to give too much away about the love triangle, other than to say both of the guys are fantastic and the triangle itself is really well done. So well done, in fact that I don't even know if I am happy with the way it is panning out or not. I just don't know!! but the library jumpers is not all about a great love triangle, there are so many characters and friends in this group, that it is jst as much about the friendships. And it is really refreshing to see positive friendships displayed. Reading about all of the characters really just makes me happy. But that being said, I need the last book now because everything was not all laughing and rainbows. Please give me the next (and I think final) book asap!

Bottom line: Guardian of Secrets was even stronger than the first book, in my opinion. I really loved this one. I love the premise behind the story, I love the characters, I love the friendships and I really love the growth we saw in Gia. Plus, did I mention they can jump into a book and travel to different libraries through books?! How can that not be awesome. I want to do that! If you were on the fence with book 1, give book 2 a try because this one was even better! I really loved Guardian of secrets!

This review was originally posted on Book Briefs