Novella Review: Stolen Threadwitch Bride (Stolen Brides of the Fae #6)

Stolen Threadwitch Bride

Clare Sager

Overall: 5/5

Plot and themes: 5/5

Characters: 5/5

Writing style: 5/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

Stolen Threadwitch Bride is the sixth installment in the Stolen Brides of the Fae novella series, a fantasy romance collaboration that doesn't have to be read in any particular order. Before I start, I'd like to thank Clare Sager for sending me a free ARC of this novella in exchange for an honest review! Ariadne has grown up alienated in her village, first for the color of her skin and then for the nature of her fae-blessing. But she loves to sew and the quality of her craftsmanship combined with her gift for enchantments is close to winning her a contract and security. Until she's selected to be the tithe for a system that hasn't been used in a century. Now she's gotta learn how to get along with the fae lord she's stuck with or else figure out how to outmaneuver him and win her freedom. 

This is set in the same universe as Beneath Black Sails but you definitely don't have to read those to enjoy it. It's pretty exclusive in it's depiction of the function of magic and everything going on and it makes for a super easy to read novella. The whole "stolen" element is a little questionable and I've really appreciated how the different authors have been twisting it in different ways. Like Lysander was required to take a bride, he took Ariadne despite their being other more willing humans. But he wasn't horrible about it and it ultimately came down to Ariadne's choices and where she wanted to be. 

Their romance is cute and perfectly paced, even probably for a full-length standalone. I really appreciated the development that both of these characters were able to experience in such a limited span of time. I don't know if we'll ever see more of these two, but I definitely wouldn't mind!

Book Review: Scorched Heart (Firebrand #4)

Scorched Heart

Helen Harper

Overall: 5/5

Plot and themes: 4/5

Characters: 5/5

Writing style: 5/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

This is the fourth and most recent addition in the Firebrand series following the adventures of Emma, a detective for the Supernatural Squad and a supernatural entity all on her own. She's finally decided it's time to investigate the tragedy of her parents murder, but she's quick to discover that the clean-cut confession from 25 years prior could have been all an elaborate mistake. With more murders cropping up in the same fashion, she takes it upon herself to right the wrongs that set her whole supernatural journey into motion. 

I like paranormal books well enough, but there's a thin line that they're usually walking between funny and overdone. This series has really nailed the balance between that kind of sardonic humor of urban fantasy protagonists with a serious plot. It's also more of an adventure with romance rather than a romance with adventure, enough to satisfy the fact that I basically can't read books without romance at this point but not to overdone to ruin it for readers who prefer action. I think that this whole series has been so well-written and all of the mysteries have been so well-constructed. It has the real potential to be an extended series of mysteries with really infinite volumes in my opinion. 

The only thing I was a little disappointed with was the revelation of the nature of her phoenix powers. I don't know, it's probably more like my preference in the characters I read but the nature of the right-place-right-time thing just felt weird. I didn't hate it completely, but I'm definitely looking forward to future additions to give more of an explanation into the mythology of it all. I don't know if a fifth book has been announced, I know there's another series coming out but I don't know if I'll read it. I just want more of Emma and Lukas to be honest, their relationship is really shaping up with the progression of the mysteries.

Book Review: Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity #2)

Our Dark Duet

Victoria Schwab

Rating System:

Overall: 5/5

Plot and themes: 4/5

Characters: 5/5

Writing style: 5/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

This is the second and final book in the Monster of Verity duology following the stories of Kate Harker and August Flynn. Kate is the daughter of a recently deceased kingpin and she's steering clear of the city he used to run and the monsters whom they've both angered. August is a Sunai, destined to identify the purity of humans' souls and weigh their right to live as he tries to save a city that has fallen into chaos. Both are struggling to balance their trauma and their desire to pave the way for a better world. 

Shoutout to VE Schwab because she rarely if ever fails to make me cry. This book literally traumatized me, I finished it and sat at my desk for the rest of the day with resting anxiety. This is such a beautifully written sequel, I was on the fence for a bit but the characters really won me over. They really developed so much in such a short period of time. I loved how it played with the idea of innate goodness, both in what the Sunai could understand as the tainting of a soul and the destiny which you are given based on your upbringing or familial ties. 

The only problem I had was with the pacing. The last hundred or two hundred pages were amazing but there were a lot of characters introduced at the beginning that didn't get the exposition that they deserved for the sake of keeping it to a duology. It just felt like it was leading up to a lot more but also maybe I'm just used to extended series. The ending wrapped up the main characters' extremely well but just lost me on a lot of other conflicts. 

All in all though it was an amazing duology! I didn't think I would ever like it as much as her other books but frankly it really got me. I'll be depressed for a while but at least I'm depressed with the understanding that it was an amazing journey.

Book Review: Midnight Smoke (Firebrand #3)

Midnight Smoke

Helen Harper

Rating System:

Overall: 4.5/5

Plot and themes: 5/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing style: 4/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

This is the third book in the Firebrand series following the adventures of Detective Constable Emma Bellamy. She's been a detective for a few months now and has made great strides in the supernatural community. But a series of impersonations and a bank robbery could destroy all that progress and have especially caustic effects on her relationship with Lukas. Desperate to solve it all, she drinks a potion that gives her three attempts at redoing the horrible day and fixing all of its consequences.

I loved the whole Groundhog's Day idea, it's such a fun quirky paranormal take on crime. I said in my review of the other book that this was the perfect urban fantasy spin on a traditional detective or crime novel and yeah that stands. It has the whodunnit element but it also has the monsters and the magic. We didn't get much insight into Emma's whole backstory, or why she's the phoenix and what actually happened with her family. But I'll forgive that for the unique combination of magic and romance that occurred in this edition. 

This is a definite must-read if you're a fan of easy reads that still grab your attention and keep you reading. I love the mysteries, I love the romance, and I love the arcs that we've seen so far and I can't wait to read more.

Book Review: Infernal Enchantment (Firebrand #2)

Infernal Enchantment

Helen Harper

Rating System:

Overall: 4/5

Plot and themes: 4/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing style: 4/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

This is the second book in the Firebrand series, Emma has been a detective for the Supernatural Squad for a few weeks now and she's kind of getting the hang of it? Except also she's not because everyone is also testing her and trying to figure out her boundaries. Within the first hundred pages, she's attacked by a vampire and a werewolf and the whole book covers multiple deaths. Even with these people testing her limits, she has crimes to solve and the fragile balance of the supernatural community to maintain. 

I would say this book is a step down from the first one in terms of plot because it just wasn't as exciting and there weren't as many plot twists. That being said though, I still think it was a valuable mystery in its own right. I think that this is really a perfectly set supernatural detective series, everything you would expect from a detective series with the addition of werewolves, vampires, and goblins. 

I don't have all that much to say on it because I lowkey already finished the next book. So if you're looking for something short and addicting, this one will really hit.

Book Review: Brimstone Bound (Firebrand #1)

 

Brimstone Bound

Helen Harper

Rating System:

Overall: 4.5/5

Plot and themes: 5/5

Characters: 4/5

Writing style: 4/5

Attention-grabbing: 5/5

Emma Bellamy is a police officer one step away from detective. She thinks she's doing great until she's relegated to the Supernatural Squad, where reputation says only screwups are sent. On her first night on the job she gets her throat slit and it should be the end. But it's not, because Emma reincarnates perfectly fine. Now she has to figure out who killed her while also trying to figure out what exactly she is and prevent a total all out war. 

This is hardcore paranormal urban fantasy, the kind with a comedic protagonist that narrates her thought process kind of literally. But I loved it. It's quirky and easy to understand without being too straightforward, the mystery of her murderer really stumped me. I should've seen it coming but frankly I had no idea that what was going to happen was a given. I was expecting something completely different because I was expecting only two ways that the story could've ended so I was truly surprised. I loved it and I'm already halfway into the sequel. 

If you're looking for one of those books like something Jennifer Armentrout would write (pre FBAA) then this is the read for you. I can see the budding romance coming up, which will definitely be perfect, but it's not overly lewd or trying to be shocking in that way. Definitely looking forward to reading this series through. 

Book Review: Etched in Bone (The Others #5)

Etched in Bone

Anne Bishop

Rating System:

Overall: 3/5

Plot and themes: 2/5

Characters: 3/5

Writing style: 2/5

Attention-grabbing: 2/5

Etched in Bone is the fifth book in the Others series, I reread it I don't know just to torture myself from the general lack of resolution. We spend four books building up to both Simon and Meg's relationship and the greater understanding of her powers of prophecy only for it to end with a shoddily written kidnapping story and just an agreement on where there relationship is going to go. There are a million loose ends and a trillion things that could have been written into the sequel series rather than what was written about. 

I rated up to give it three stars just because I'm still so attached to this series that I'm biased into liking it. In reality, I don't feel like you should tell us that someone is a low-life villain the whole time and then make the biggest climax of the novel being them being a low-life villain. They said, oh no what if he finds Meg he'll definitely do some bad stuff, then he found Meg and did some bad stuff. I love Meg as a character, I think she's so resilient and I think she handled everything very well but we were already pulling away from her perspective here and so her being in trouble being the main plotline just felt so off. 

Again, this is like my third or fourth time re-reading this book so I definitely don't have any room to complain I obviously like it well enough. I'm just constantly disappointed and looking for more from it. If Anne Bishop could write a book six within Lakeside specifically I think that would be the most satisfying route for me.