Book Review: City of Ghosts (Cassidy Blake #1)

City of Ghosts

Victoria Schwab

Rating System:

Overall: 4/5

Plot and themes: 4/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing style: 4/5

Attention-grabbing: 4/5

City of Ghosts is a middle grade paranormal urban fantasy by Victoria Schwab, one of the many books I've committed to on my quest to read all of her books. It's written for a younger audience which is obvious all the way through but it's super cute and just easy to read. Cassidy has been able to see ghosts for the past year ever since a near-death experience gave her the unique ability along with a ghost best friend, Jacob. She's never known the purpose of this gift, but when her parents take her to Edinburgh on a ghost hunting trip she starts seeing things that are terrifying and unexplained even to her. 

I don't know if middle grade is like an appropriate term because I was definitely reading a much different sort of book in middle school. It wasn't super scary but for like a third or fourth grader? It would still probably be very fun. It really made me nostalgic for my Battle of the Books days, this book even smelled like what you would expect from your elementary school library. I'm starting to think that's maybe just a Scholastic smell though. 

I wish that I had been allowed to run the streets of Scotland with my vintage camera and ghost bestie when I was a twelve year old and I'm jealous that Cassidy gets the powers and the mobility. The banter between her and Jacob was super cute, felt very reminiscent of like 39 Clues type conversations. I will say that the one negative was how many times Harry Potter was referenced, I realize that was her thing but it felt oversaturated and overdone to me. Different times now though, I can understand how it would have felt better placed in 2018. 

Definitely building a repertoire of books to recommend to children/niece and nephews if I ever have them to force them into being readers and this one would make the list. If you want a cute read to see what the kids are into these days, you could probably get through this one in a couple of hours if you read it all at once. Looking forward to seeing how the series goes on!

Novella Review: Stolen Midsummer Bride (Stolen Brides of the Fae #3)

Stolen Midsummer Bride

Tara Grayce

Rating System:

Overall: 2/5

Plot and themes: 2/5

Characters: 2/5

Writing style: 3/5

Attention-grabbing: 2/5

This is the third book in the Stolen Bride of the Fae novella series, a fun partnership by a bunch of indie romance authors. I've read Tara Grayce before and I've liked what I've seen. In this novella, Basil is a librarians assistant who has risen from pretty impoverished circumstances. He's lonely though, so he journeys to the human world to "steal" a bride which is really only walking past the barrier and finding a girl waiting in the forest to travel to the fae realm. They have to figure out how to combine their interests and make their lives work together. 

Maybe it's just because it's a novella, but everything was pretty poorly defined here. The rise and fall of the conflict was too simple and boring. Everything was so quickly resolved despite no information really being provided about it. Meg and her family is hungry? Walk into the woods and offer yourself even though there's not really any information on that. And luckily, there just happens to be someone there to marry her on the one night she goes out even though it's a fairly uncommon situation. I realize that was the whole plot motivator but it felt like no consideration was given to just how lazy it all was. 

The writing was better than anything and yes I know it's not meant to be super complicated, it just wasn't as enjoyable for me as the last one was. I'll still probably read the next and all and it's a fun way to get to know a bunch of authors. This one was just a little too little.

Book Review: Cast in Firelight (Wickery #1)

Cast in Firelight

Dana Swift

Rating System:

Overall: 3.5/5

Plot and themes: 3/5

Characters: 3/5

Writing style: 4/5

Attention-grabbing: 4/5

 

I'm going to try this new rating system and see how it goes. Cast in Firelight covers the journey of Adraa and Jatin, two heirs who have been betrothed nearly their entire lives. But they're incredibly competitive, they have built the relationship they have based on rivalry and the need to outdo each other. When they are supposed to finally meet again after ten years of only letters, a mix-up gives them time to get to know each other outside of their titles. Their marriage should unite their kingdoms against conflict and encourage a more peaceful age, but there are dark forces at work and that common theme of the gods not being able to leave anything alone. 

I think this book was pretty good, if anything it was addicting because it's one of those books where you just want to see the ending. I like the arranged marriage trope, I think it was pretty-well written and easy to follow. I also think that the characters were pretty okay, they did lay it on a little thick with why they hated each other when they didn't have all that much of a reason for such hatred. The whole idea of them not knowing each other at all then expanding to say they had actually sent these competitive letters was also a bit strange. They weren't the best ever but they also weren't the worst. 

There's an issue with this book and some controversy that I've seen with the fact that the author is not a Person of Color. I didn't know that when I picked it up, I kind of just went for the whole arranged marriage plot. I think it can be damaging to write from that perspective without the proper research and consultation, I'm not entirely sure what Dana Swift did to compensate for this. I found this book enjoyable, I felt as though she was being pretty respectful but also it's not my culture so if you found it offensive please let me know! 

Otherwise, if you're into a fluffy arranged marriage scenario with a dash of enemies to lovers, you'll probably enjoy this book. It's again, not the most complicated book ever but it's a fun read. 

Book Review: Fly with the Arrow (Bluebeard's Secret #1)

Fly with the Arrow

Sarah Wilson

3/5

Izolda goes to the royal court knowing that she will probably need to be married by the end of her trip. She has accepted that her role has to be making a strong marriage and she trusts her father to arrange that for her. Her father makes that match and it looks decent until a man shows up and tries to kidnap the princess. She steps up and greets him first to protect her, not knowing the ancient laws that makes her life forfeit. Based on the tale of Bluebeard, she becomes his sixteenth wife and has to enter a world of fae and magic that was never in her wildest dreams. 

I liked it well enough, there were just points of major information dump that made it a little hard to get through. Also the back and forth of the protagonist was super difficult to follow as it didn't really follow a logical sequence. And I didn't understand the whole door thing or anything, it was all a bit confusing and maybe could have been fleshed out a little better. I think one of the points offered by the synopsis was that she would be confused by his attitude when he first appeared as a mass murderer, I don't think he was really all that nice or understanding just momentarily amused by her intelligence. 

I did like that it was such an interesting fusion of different stories. It's the tale of Bluebeard with more of a fae twist, but it also has all kinds of different stories threaded in. I got very Howl's Moving Castle vibes, if Howl had also had a room full of fifteen dead wives and collected the decapitated heads of his victims. Despite all of this, it was a little too predictable for my preference at this point. I'll keep an eye out for the sequel as I think I'm kind of hooked on the plot or that I could be with a little more of a push, but it was also kind of hard to make it through.

Book Review: Unravel Me (Shatter Me #2)

Unravel Me

Tahereh Mafi

5/5

This is the second book in the Shatter Me series. Juliette has escaped from the clutches of the Reestablishment and found a group of rebels who she has a lot in common with. For the first time in her life she's around other people with superpowers, individuals who have faced similar alienation. She's desperate to shed the fears and insecurities which she's held so close her entire life and be a real asset to this revolution. 

A lot of people come after Juliette. She has a lot of baggage, which I think is fair considering the weight of her backstory. I read this book for the first time as a 12-13 year old and I liked it but I was annoyed by the characters. I think I understand it a lot better now, not that I have similar traumas but just trying to understand where they're coming from and how they interact with each other. I was mad that Adam got ditched the first time I read it, rereading the dialogue between her and Warner though had me real emotional and nostalgic and I really could understand it. Also I think it's a better representation of a normal teenage condition and the idea that your "first love" isn't going to necessarily be the person who's best for you. 

This is also much better to read knowing it's six books. I think that the first time I read it I was mad about how easy and convenient everything was. But seeing it from this new perspective and knowing the extent which the plot is going to go makes it a lot easier to get behind. I also think, for whatever weird reason, I was trying to read critically in eighth grade and not get invested in characters who felt toxic? Honestly though, it feels a lot less toxic and more tragic reading it the second time around. I really appreciate their arcs and how awkward they are, I don't think someone who has been raised to be anti-social would have an easy time in being social. But also I can totally see where Castle and Kenji are coming from, they're great characters to call her out on her bullshit and tell her to get her life together.

So all in all, it's just a really great book to read. It's almost a comfort read because it has exactly what you would want from a kind of romantic dystopian. It's not too heavy on the plot and not too heavy on the romance and really the perfect balance. I can't wait to finish the rest of my reread and see more from all my faves.

Book Review: Curse of the Wolf King (Entangled with the Fae #1)

Entangled with the Fae

Tessonja Odette

3/5

Gemma Bellefleur is sick of being under her father's thumb. After a scandal forced them to move, she is focused on securing employment in their new town and living her life the way she wants to live it. When she gets tricked into working for an unseelie king, she thinks that she can figure out how to make it work best for the both of them. The two work together to trick another villager in need of humbling into falling in love to break his curse and save his people. 

It's a pretty classic Beauty and the Beast retelling. There are some fun twists and it's definitely modernized in both content and viewpoints to give it more appeal. There are also some super comical situations that take away from the whole possibility of perceived Stockholm Syndrome. It's not traditional B&B as the main protagonist has complete autonomy away from the "beast", they're really more like business partners. He tries to trick her into helping him by staging a fight scene and actually using tomato sauce to imitate injury. It was a bit farfetched but also I think it made it a lot more lighthearted and more fun to read. 

My real problem came from the timeline. I just think we could have extended it to span even the three months or something instead of the two weeks. So it felt a little instalove in that respect. Though I did appreciate how their separate animosities were expressed not through violence or something but rather you could just feel like Elliot really hated humans and Gemma hated relationships. It was a nice balance and not to overdone. I also think that the whole fae thing should have been explained a bit better. Especially regarding their immortality, the epilogue gave me no insight to the duration of their relationship and that just feels like a major oversight. 

All in all though it's a pretty enjoyable retelling. It's short and fun, definitely perfect for breaking you out of a reading slump or if you just read a heavy book and wanted a tastebreaker like me. 

Book Review: Sing Me Forgotten

Sing Me Forgotten

Jessica S. Olson

4/5

Isda has lived in the shadows of an opera house her entire life. Haunting the rafters, pillaging the dressing rooms after sets to take leftover props. Raised by the opera house owner to never reveal herself, she has never expected anything more. She is a gravoir, cursed from birth with terrifying abilities that make her kind nearly extinct through persecution. Though she longs to perform on stage, she knows that the closest she could possibly get is through coaching a young singer to stardom. As she craves more and more measures of such freedom, she finds that there's a reason that so many people fear her kind. 

This is a Phantom of the Opera retelling(?) kind of, but I really feel like it's almost a Phantom Hunchback fusion and it's gender swapped. It's very original as it takes elements of a very established story and twists them to being fantastical and much more romantic. But the foundation for Phantom is the darkness within and the inability to ignore the dangerous call of music, the same as the foundation for this book mixed in with some magic. Also the idea of obsession and fixation and a desire for power. It's a lot to deal with in this short 330 page standalone, but I think that it really covers a lot of emotion.

I wish that it had been more developed, there were many elements that were just kind of dropped and expected for us to understand and go with. All of the symbols and everything, haphazard at best. There's a whole revolution that is mentioned in passing and then not brought up again. I know that's the risk with standalones, they aren't really designed to answer all of your questions and they leave you wanting more. But it detracted a bit from the impact of the societal factors of the fallout. 

Still though, it was a pretty amazing book. I loved the world, the romance, and the conflicts of morality than ran through it all. I think that it could be enjoyable for people who just like a good fantasy but also for fans of the Phantom of the Opera, because I know the retellings are few and far between. A tiny bit of a spoiler to close with, the ending might drive you a little crazy.

Book Review: The Archived (The Archived #1)

The Archived

Victoria Schwab

5/5

For the past four years, Mackenzie has had the title of Keeper. As such, she has a key that transports her into a secret Archive where the memories of the dead are kept. Not so much memories, more like ghosts. And when those ghost wake, it's up to her to guide them back to their drawers and resting places. After the death of her brother, her family decides to move to a new location with a higher traffic for these Histories and more confusion than she's ever known as a Keeper. 

This book was way better than I expected it to be. Think of it as like Ninth House but with a more YA spin. It had the intricate and beautiful worldbuilding that you would expect from a VE Schwab book while being aimed for a younger audience. There's definitely a huge difference in being aimed for a young audience and being well-written though, and this book definitely highlights that. It's made me super nostalgic because this is exactly the kind of thing that I would have read and loved in middle or high school. Didn't make me love it any less now. 

I'm excited to see how the duology concludes, it's definitely up there with my favorite VE Schwab books and I've read quite a few at this point. If you're a big fan of the paranormal then I can't recommend this book strongly enough. Also it made me cry so it definitely has a great emotional impact.

Book Review: Under Black Skies (Beneath Black Sails #3)

Under Black Skies

Clare Sager

4/5

I'll start by saying I received a free ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. So we're back at it again with more Knigh and Vice. They're inching closer and closer to Drake's treasure, sought after by pirates for centuries and promised to be of value beyond comprehension. They're also struggling with their feelings, after hurting each other in all kinds of ways they've decided it's best if they're just friends. Cause that always works out well for people with that kind of chemistry.

You can definitely see the character growth in both Knigh and Vice. In book one I wasn't sure how their relationship was going to work with all of their separate traumas and inabilities to commit but they're really pulling through. I love the romance because neither of them is satisfied to let the other be unhappy and they're so good at acknowledging when the other is suffering. They're getting so much better at knowing one another and pushing themselves to be better about it. Yet they're also simultaneously both so ignorant of their own issues which is the perfect combination for angst.

My only criticism would be the back and forth being a bit heavy towards the middle. They rehashed their feelings so many times that it felt a little repetitive. That's definitely not a bad thing for everyone, but I think compared to the last book I was just expecting a lot more pirate action. I do understand that there are four books in this series though and we can't just rush into a whole war and everything. I think that the ending also made up for some of the middle that I struggled through.

Now I don't want to spoil anything because I definitely think this whole series is worth the read but I will say I feel GUTTED by that ending. I didn't know I was signing up for a top tier cliffhanger but I did ask for the angst so I don't know what I expected. I'm very excited to see how everything gets pulled together in the finale (I'm pretty sure this is a four book series but I could be wrong). If you're a fan of fantasy, romance, pirates, or fae, this series really just has it all and should be on your shelf ASAP. 

Oh yeah even with the great romance and all the pirate battles, my favorite characters are probably Barnacles and her whole squad and I demand more page-time for them.

Book Review: The Hummingbird Dagger

The Hummingbird Dagger

Cindy Anstey

3/5

Lord Ellerby feels as though he's been scrambling after his little brother since their father's death last year. When he gets into a curricle race that drives a carriage off the world and injures a young woman, he feels it is his responsibility to take her in until she recovers. Unfortunately, she has amnesia and can't remember her name or where she came from and no one has come forward to claim her. It soon becomes evident that her origins are more nefarious than they first appeared and that she and the family that helped her is in danger. 

It was good, it was better at the beginning but was pretty interesting all the way through. The real problem was that it's definitely a book you read once, you solve, and then you never pick up again. I was intrigued and I pushed through it all in a couple of hours but I wasn't really asking for more. The ending felt particularly rushed in the idea that the relationship was just fine. I hate it when author's write characters and they're like "oh wow no one else has ever interested her so you're special..." when she was interested from like the first two minutes. The romance was just so obvious and straightforward. 

So yeah, average but still enjoyable. If you're in a reading slump and you like historical mysteries, this one would yank you out by how easy it reads. But if you're a fan of intricate historical romances with a scary twist, it would probably be a bit bland.

Book Review: This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity #1)

This Savage Song

Victoria Schwab

4/5

Kate Harker has spent the last five years destroying things and getting kicked out of school so that her father would bring her back to him and the city he runs. She finally gets brought back into the fold, but being the daughter of a basic mafia leader isn't exactly the easiest life. August Flynn is the adopted son of Kate's father's biggest rival, he goes undercover at her school to guarantee possible leverage. The two meet and are met with a subsequent series of betrayals. Everything is up in the air and they can really only rely on each other- if that.

The first half of the book was a little boring. Very reminiscent of those books we all read in middle school that were like edgy girl goes to boarding school and meets mysterious dude only to have everything fall apart. I liked the world-building though and the whole idea of human-like monsters born from chaos and bloodshed. VE Schwab is really so good at creating universes that are close enough to contemporary to feel comfortable but far enough away that you feel like you're on an adventure. 

The dichotomy of August and Kate as characters also hit really hard. This isn't really much of a romance at this point though I could definitely see it shaping up to that. But the desperation of a human girl to be a monster and a monster to be a human that created this friendship? Chef's kiss, unmatched in its execution. There aren't like underlying motivations or anything either, it's the perfect coming of age in bizarre circumstances. 

So yeah, it may take you a minute to get into it but I think it's definitely worth the read. It's not on Vicious or Darker Shade level but it's still a great Schwab read.

Book Review: Seven Devils (Seven Devils #1)

Seven Devils

Laura Lam and Elizabeth May

3/5

Eris faked her death to escape from an empire that controlled her her entire life. But it's also an empire that is controlling everyone and she has committed herself to taking it down. Joined by several other defectors and military masterminds, they form a group designed for that very purpose. It's a combination of flashbacks and present day, blending it all together to create a narrative of betrayal and rising above the predestined paths of life. 

I'm going to be honest, I lost focus for a lot of this book. That's probably mostly on me for not being much of a sci-fi person and for being lazy, but it was on the progression of the novel too. I think that there were great bones to it but the flashbacks made it feel like we weren't spending enough time developing the current dynamic of the team. They all just felt way more invested in each other than I had any reason to believe they were as a reader. Three stars because I think my tendency to hate multiple POVs and just space stuff got the best of me (this was my book club read for the month so I finished it through obligation). But using nanites and biomechanics as a blanket explanation for everything really doesn't fly for a 400+ book. The pacing was just off. 85 percent boring, the last 15 percent really saved the rating because that's where the action really was.

Characters I could've done without: Clo and Ariadne. POVs I could've done without: Clo and Ariadne of course plus Nyx. I was living for Eris and really only Eris. But Clo was the biggest queen of double standards I've ever met and it was beyond frustrating. Going along with the plot pacing, the pacing of their characterization was also thrown off by the flashbacks. I didn't see any growth on the page and then I was just being told that they had grown. Their tragic backstories were also way overhyped and boring in actuality. 

Sorry I roasted it, it's easier to roast than to compliment. It was a good representation of a female-driven space opera, definitely liked it more than some of the Star Wars stuff I've read/watched. If you're a fan of sci-fi, you would probably be a fan of many of the elements of this story. If you're not though, I would steer clear.

Novella Review: Stolen Mage Bride (Stolen Brides of the Fae #2)

Stolen Mage Bride

Sylvia Mercedes

4/5

This is the second story in a series of novellas that a bunch of fantasy romance authors have teamed together to publish. It follows the story of King Lodirhal and Mage Dasyra, one of them was supposed to kill the other on the battlefield in a champion challenge to determine the ownership of a key military fortress. But when they meet face to face, they realize that there's a whole fated bond thing going on that basically ruins everything they each stand for. 

I think it was cute. It would be great especially if you're trying to get out of a reading slump because as stated it's a novella under 200 pages. As such though, it's designed to be condensed into a small space and give us an intro and a happily ever after. Thus it's straightforward in its execution. Read the synopsis, that's exactly what you should expect. I don't have much against that because sometimes I read just to read and this has a nice ring to it. If you're looking for complicated fantasy though this probably won't interest you at all. 

I'm looking forward to reading the other novellas. Short, easily digestible, and nice introduction to authors I haven't read before. I also saw that this is an introduction to another book series that's going to feature the child of the protags, don't know how I feel about that as a staunch enemy of reading about protags' kids but we'll see.

Book Review: A Kiss of Treason (The Kingmakers' War #3)

A Kiss of Treason

Kate Avery Ellison

3/5

The third book in the Kingmakers' War fortunately doesn't skip another two years. It starts nearly immediately after the conclusion of book two, Briand is burned and split between her loyalties to herself and the loyalty to the monarchy which everyone thinks she should have. Also, we've had that very cliche and traditional reversal of affection that occurs sometimes when authors want to make us wait for something as Kael suddenly decides that his random attachment is a threat to his military duties. It's everything you would expect from a middle book in a series. 

I would appreciate if there was a better indication of when the POVs were going to switch cause they kind of just went for it. Though I think overall, the mechanics of the writing has made significant improvements. I'm especially thankful for the reduction in the use of the term "guttersnipe". I'm also glad that we're addressing her lineage, I feel like we've just chosen to focus on her uncle's negligence that motivated the broad resentment of his people. Don't know why that's still a thing at all. 

I don't know if I'll go on cause it's gotten a bit hard to follow with all the POV switches and changes in allegiance. Not to mention the two year time jump that we're kind of just glazing over to push the romance forward. I could respect it as an action pusher if it was actually pushing the action. At this point though I'm just confused on all that.

Book Review: Reign of Mist (The Oremere Chronicles #2)

 

Reign of Mist

Helen Scheuerer

4/5

Bleak managed to overtake the crew of soldiers designated to take her to prison. Now she's washed up on a continent that no one remembers existed, with a group of people that many assumed to be dead. Everyone else is scrambling for war in similar ways, knowing that it can't be won without allies but not being sure who to trust. 

Bleak is the most interesting of the characters to me. I didn't like how easily her loyalties were changed in book 1, specifically regarding her only friend Bren. But I think she redeemed herself here and proved that she is the kind of person who can be counted on. I'm glad she got her little squad of panthers, I do think she interacts better with them than she does with real people but she's definitely working on it. 

I'm not sure why this series is continuously labeled romantic though. There's Olena and Nazuri which I suppose is fine unless you remember the nine year age gap and there's the whole thing with Athene that was a total trap. I'm obviously more of a romance reader so I'm waiting for it to happen. I thought that maybe her and Bren would have a thing but you know how that's working out right now- not that I can really blame him I guess it's just sad. Also Dash got weird but I'll be interested to see how it plays out as long as it's done in a considerate manner that doesn't gloss over the drama of lost time/education.

There were some dull points that were a little word-dump but all in all it was a pretty entertaining read. I think the series is more high fantasy than anything else, closer to like Tamora Pierce or maybe even to like C.S. Lewis but it's been alright. Don't read if you want a traditional fantasy romance though because like I said, romance isn't the center of really any of the plot lines. 

Book Review: Heart of Mist (The Oremere Chronicles #1)

Heart of Mist

Helen Scheurer

4/5

Bleak has spent the past couple of years looking for a cure to her powers. She hears people's thoughts and she has no control over whose mind she's reading and it's driving her to insanity, alcohol being her own reprieve. When the king has her captured for illegal use of magic, she has no idea how things could get worse. She's soon pulled into a world of politics and magical maneuvering where she's a key player.

Sometimes the book got weighed down with scenes that felt a little extra, but all in all I think it laid the groundwork for an interesting plot with amazing characters. Also, I never know what's going to happen next or how everyone's really related. I know there's going to be some kind of reveal of Bleak's heritage but I'm not really sure how that's going to go and it's really keeping me invested. I think Bleak's character is special because she's not trying to be that pick me heroine, she's suffering from addiction and she's trying to forge her own place specifically for herself. She has some growth but you know I'm excited to see where she goes. 

The side characters weren't as interesting but I think they also have some room to become fantastic. I'm looking forward to a bunch of plot twists and just ways that the book gets more complicated and more exciting in the sequels. Also I saw this tagged as a fantasy romance and I don't really think it has all that many romantic elements at all, so don't be tricked. It's valuable for other reasons.

Book Review: Promises and Pixie Dust (Unfabled #1)

Promises and Pixie Dust

Elle Madison and Robin D. Mahle

4/5

I feel like in my fairly extensive career of reading fairy tale retellings, I've never read a Thumbelina retelling. Lina has spent her entire life living in a village where everything was designed for normal-sized people, and as you might assume from a Thumbelina retelling she is in fact thumb sized. When her mother dies, she decides that she finally wants to seek out the fairies and a world that's built more to her scale. She coerces her childhood friend into going on a quest through the enchanted forest to her as she tries to figure out her past. 

I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. It's a little strange when you think about the differences in their heights, traditional Thumbelina has her meeting a fairy prince and finally joining a society that she belongs in. This one's a bit different, with a relationship between a tiny girl and a normal sized guy. Like not in the way you might think or anything, it's more of a very drastic statement of looks don't matter when you really click with someone. In that respect, it's sweet and entertaining as you think about all the funny situations they get into (AKA him putting her into his pocket like I laughed a lot). 

There were some issues with the dialogue where I felt like it was a bit forced, but all in all it was a short and fun read. I feel like these Kindle Unlimited reads are just built different they're always so quick and just like fulfilling in their duration. Would recommend if you want a fairy tale rewrite that's a little different from the traditional one.

Book Review: A Bed of Blades (The Kingmakers' War #2)

A Bed of Blades

Kate Avery Ellison

3/5

Do you hate sequels that start up immediately after the last book ended? Then this is the sequel for you because I'm still unsure on the timeline. Synopsis says two years after the end of book one so we'll go with that, but yes they told Briand they would be coming back but plot twist they didn't and she's been on her own for over a year now. When her paths cross with Kael again, she's quickly thrown back into her role working with a cause she really isn't all that passionate about. She has to choose where her loyalties lay and decide how best to use her powers. 

I don't think I liked this book all that much more than the first, but I boosted it to three stars because Briand was a lot easier to handle. Everyone didn't just hate her for no reason, a lot of the characters actually liked her. I wish everyone would stop calling her a guttersnipe as that's not really all that congruent with her mannerism nor her familial ties but you win some you lose some. 

I'm still not sure if I would call it a fantasy romance because the romance doesn't even really start till like 70 percent into the book. It's essential to the story line but also somehow simultaneously non-essential. All, props to this book because I don't find the characters particularly lovable but I'm desperate to know Kael's identity/what happened with the Hermit so I'm definitely going to keep reading despite the flaws. I think there's a lot of potential for the story could go if we commit to the plot progression a little more firmly. Also, these are ten pretty short books and I think a lot more could be accomplished with like four or five average length books. If they all weren't immediately available to me on KU it would be a lot more annoying though. I'm not sure if I'm recommending the series, it's great for unfocused reading but a little weak regarding fantasy.

Book Review: A Gift of Poison (The Kingmakers' War #1)

A Gift of Poison

Kate Avery Ellison

2/5

Briand has lived with her uncle since she was six. It was her father's home and her uncle resents her for that. The rest of the castle isn't much better, and right when she's on the brink of exile she discovers a hidden magic and sets off on a dangerous quest. Her life is on the line and she's risking everything to try to restore the rightful prince and end the Seeker reign of terror. 

I will say that the book was keeping me reading just because I wanted to see the resolution. But like, there were so many things that were just so poorly explained. The entire castle hated her because her uncle told them that they could, but like why? They called her annoying, but no one could be so annoying that they would lose all their allies like that? Literally everyone aside from her cousin hated her and for no particular reason. No one in the castle that her father owned had any loyalty to their prior master who Briand remembered as a decent man? Didn't make sense and they kept bringing it up, none of these people who she was supposed to rely on or be friends with had any trust or kinship with her at all and it was way overdone. 

The ending was the worst part too. We had some things building up, it wasn't the best plot ever but it was interesting enough. Then all the sudden they were like nope no thanks whatever I gotta go on another quest. I read the synopsis for the next book and it's set two years in the future? There definitely wasn't enough friendship between them to motivate the continuation of their relationships past that point, if I were Briand I would be working on trying to find people who didn't insta-hate me for absolutely no reason. Kindle Unlimited books can be kind of hit or miss or watered down, this one was probably the kind of miss that's just bearable enough to get to the end of.

Book Review: Bloodleaf (Bloodleaf #1)

Bloodleaf

Crystal Smith

4/5

Aurelia has been bullied and resented by her kingdom for her entire life. She is the first princess born to the kingdom in hundreds of years, at least the first that wasn't hastily hidden away and adopted by another family. But the prophecy says that she will marry a foreign prince and end their feud, unfortunately the people don't really want the feud to end. Accusations of heresy and witchcraft get women burnt alive, and Aurelia is in fact a witch. When she tries to run away from her accidental exposure, an attempt on her life forces her into hiding. 

It was entertaining and had a lot of the elements of books I love. It also made me cry twice so it's definitely not lacking in emotion. It's a very rough retelling of the Goose Girl fairy tale, kind of a lesser known story so not bad. It also features a lot of magic, witchcraft and blood magic and so on. It's pretty unique in terms of magical systems but it also could be developed a lot better. 

I'm a little conflicted in the rating because the thing is that I liked it well enough while reading it but upon reflection all of it's shortcomings become super obvious. The characters were a little weak, the relationship was kind of insta-love and forgettable, but it had some nice underlying messages. I wanted to give it five stars but then I was like, okay no it's four, then I was thinking of three but honestly it's very entertaining so I think it deserves the four at least. I don't know if I'll go for the sequel because I feel like things were pretty nicely summed up at the end. 

Book Review: Gods of Jade and Shadow

Gods of Jade and Shadow

Silvia Moreno-Garcia

5/5

So you've awoken an ancient god who is desperate to get vengeance upon the brother who betrayed him and now your fates are tied, what do you do? Go on a series of quests to retrieve his stolen body parts and help him reclaim his throne obviously. Casiopea is used to men pushing her around, her grandfather and her cousin have lorded her inferior status as a poor relation over her since her father died and her and her mother were forced to seek refuge. When she finds out that her grandfather's fortune was built on the capture of a god and that she has to help him, she doesn't really have a problem doing so. 

Casiopea is one of those unique protagonists who just makes intrinsically good choices. She doesn't know all the answers, but she's good to her core and that reflects in everything she does. She seems like the perfect person to take along with her on a quest and she really fulfills that realistic heroine role. She's facing things she's never faced before, while she fears them and speaks on this fear she really does what she has to do. 

Now some spoilers, I'm a big fan of HEA. I tend to read stories where the romantic pair ends up together, though I pepper in a few tragedies here and there. This is a unique book because it's not a tragedy, it's not some horrible breakup or something. It's a simple matter of being realistic. Two people who care deeply for each other and are willing to give up everything for one another but put it aside because of their consciousness of their duties and their disparities in life. I think it was a beautiful story of growth and forgiveness and aside from the beautiful setting it really just deserves the five stars for that alone. 

Yeah I'm recommending this book a hundred percent. It's set in Mexico in the 1920s, a unique blend of historical fiction and mythology that give it a sort of gritty romanticism. I loved it and I can't wait to read more by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

Book Review: The Heir (The Twisted Kingdoms #3)

The Heir

Frost Kay

2/5

This is the third book in the Twisted Kingdoms series, I don't think it's the last one because two random POVs were introduced but we definitely get some closure on Tempest's story- however abrupt that closure was. Tempest starts the book engaged to her enemy, it's a dangerous position for her to be in but she's doing it to better the lives of those around her. She can't help but regret her choices though as she finds her well-being and safety constantly on the line.

So I was hesitant to call the first books in the series enemies to lovers just because there was so little real interactions between the protagonists. It's like the author finally realized that in this book and decided to do a whole 180 and dive deep into that whole overprotective alpha male thing that YA loves so much. Which doesn't really work on the premise of the other books, he considered her a dangerous enemy to the point that he might try to murder her to silence her as a threat but then he's like oops just kidding she's a maiden in need of protecting. I just didn't vibe with it all that much. 

It felt like everything that was so hyped up in the previous books was just kind of closed in the last twenty pages. Her father? Resolved just like that. The kingdom? Placed into safe hands in the blink of an eye. I just wanted more than this book was giving me. It wasn't the worst thing to read it was just a lot of dropped plot lines and failed expectations.