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Book Review: A Duet of Sword and Song (A Tale of Stars and Shadow #4) by Lisa Cassidy

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 568 pages
Author: Lisa Cassidy
Publisher: Tate House
Release Date: April 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The time of the Shadowhawk was gone. Now he needed to be more.

In the space of a night Cuinn Acondor lost his crown and almost his life. Devastated by Talyn’s disappearance, he’s on the run, fleeing from Armun and Shadow hunters who want to destroy everything he stands for. But he won’t give up. Together with the resurgent Wolves, he begins preparing to take back what Azrilan stole from them.

After killing their Shadow betrayer, Talyn is captured and thrown in a Montagni labour camp. With no way of knowing what happened to Cuinn or her Wolves, she fights desperately to find a way out, to return home to them. Like Cuinn, she refuses to give up, no matter what… even if escaping means allying with her greatest enemy.

In the Twin Thrones, the Dumnorix are banding together and marshalling their forces. Firthland has brought war to their shores.

And they intend on fighting back. 

EPIC CONCLUSION.

This series owned me for a month and I am not upset one bit. I devoured all of these audiobooks and they were absolutely amazing.

EVERYONE GO READ THEM NOW PLEASE.

For a book with low romance to wrap me up this much, you know it’s gotta be good. I LOVE these characters!!! Talyn and Cuinn are both wonderful in their own right, and add them together, and the world is in good hands. I love how bada** Talyn is. She takes on thing after thing and I want to be her when I grow up. This is the kind of fierce heroines I want to read about when I pick up a fantasy book. Cuinn goes through the biggest character arc here and I adored him for it. Coming off a wild ending in the previous book he handled a crappy situation beautifully and found a new place for his focus.

Alongside the amazingness of the main characters, the found family is still here and still the best. I love this group of wolves and all they mean to the plot. Everyone is well created and truly adds to the story.

The plot is intense and it’s hard to take a breath. But within those breathes are the perfect little tender moments that help me love this book even more.

Basically I want to beg everyone to get this book in their hands and give it a chance.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: a little mild
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, battle scenes

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Book Review: A King of Masks and Magic (A Tale of Stars and Shadow #3) by Lisa Cassidy

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy + Romance
Length: 554 pages
Author: Lisa Cassidy
Publisher: Tate House
Release Date: April 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Vengeance rises in the shadows

A storm is coming…

The Shadowhawk has been unmasked to those he trusts most. Montagn, the most powerful empire in the world, prepares for invasion. And back in the tangled alleys and dark streets of Dock City, Vengeance lurks.

Badly injured after the ambush that nearly claimed his life, Cuinn Acondor is recovering in the Twin Thrones, determined to grow strong so that he can go home and do more. Be more. Find a way to make a better country for his people. Talyn Dynan, reeling from the news that Montagn has been using Vengeance as a tool to undermine Mithranar from within, has a single purpose… return and raze them to the ground.

But Vengeance isn’t their only enemy. The prince of night grows stronger, his grip on power in Mithranar tightening. A deadly strike to the heart of the Dumnorix family reveals a greater threat than anyone realised.

And when a dangerous revelation sends shockwaves through Mithranan society, Cuinn and Talyn must stand together and fight, or risk losing everything they love.

If you love epic fantasy with magical worlds, clashing cultures and complex, flawed characters, you’ll love this continuation of Talyn and the Shadowhawk’s story! Buy A King of Masks and Magic today!

WORTH THE WAIT.

Y’all know I’m a fantasy ROMANCE lover, and I was told I would have to really wait out the slow burn on this series. AND IT WAS WORTH IT. Ohhhhmygosh I love these two!!! They are my absolute favorite and I can’t get enough of every moment they have together. Lets also acknowledge there’s no third act nonsense here. Together forever.

The plot is still just as intense and wild. I love that this is fast paced and filled with great politicking and action. There’s twists and turns around every corner and a few times where I was completely flipping out needing answers.

I love all of these characters and this book left me in PAIN. PAIN I TELL YOU. Not pulling any punches are we Lisa Cassidy?! It just really makes for a fantastic series whenever I feel this connected to not only the two main leads but to multiple side characters.

I’ll be shouting from the rooftops for everyone else to READ THIS SERIES PLEASE.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: brief fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: near death experiences, physical and weapons altercations, battle scenes, kidnapping, torture, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: The Twelve Dogs of Christmas (Pine Hollow #1) by Lizzie Shane

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Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 357 pages
Author: Lizzie Shane
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: September 29th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A delightful holiday romance about a small-town single dad and an animal rescue owner as they try to find forever homes for a dozen lovable pups before Christmas.

Pine Hollow has everything Ally Gilmore could wish for in a holiday break: gently falling snow in a charming small town and time with her family. Then she learns some Grinch has pulled the funding for her family’s rescue shelter, and now she has only four weeks to find new homes for a dozen dogs! But when she confronts her Scroogey councilman nemesis, Ally finds he’s far more reasonable — and handsome — than she ever expected.

As the guardian of his dog-obsessed ten-year-old niece, Ben West doesn’t have time to build a cuddly reputation. But he does feel guilty about the shelter closing. So he proposes a truce with Ally, agreeing to help her adopt out the pups. As the two spend more time together, the town’s gossip is spreading faster than Santa’s sleigh on Christmas Eve. And soon Ben is hoping he can convince Ally that Pine Hollow is her home for the holidays… and the whole year through.

DID I JUST READ A HALLMARK MOVIE?

The answer to that question would be a resounding YES. That was a positive and a negative for me.

Positive wise it was exactly what I expected and knew going in would bring out all of the Christmas romance vibes. I did like the main characters. There’s even a really cute niece involved. Not to mention, there really were A LOT of dogs and I loved meeting all of them too. I adore a small town set-up and Pine Hollow was what I was looking for.

On the flip side, being Hallmark-esque meant there’d be some come on now issues. One of those being how clueless our love interest was. Ben could not see past his nose about too many things and I wish that hadn’t dragged out so long. JUST KISS HER ALREADY. And the drama was ramped up towards the end when it could have ridden off into the sunset.

The cute pups made me smile and I did enjoy how fast I flew through it. Perfect for the holiday season, and a sweet romance to boot.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: orphaned child (parents died off page, recounted), single guardian

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Book Review: Songs of the Wicked (A Dreamer’s Misfortune #1) by C.A. Farran

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 703 pages
Author: C.A. Farran
Publisher: Sylvan Ink Press LLC
Release Date: January 22nd, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Fear is not my master. I will never submit.

A grave threat looms over the mortal world. The veil that separates the realms has weakened over time, and monsters-Undesirables-claw their way out of the Netherworld to torment the living. What once dwelled in whispered stories now stalks the shadows. The only guard against chaos is balance.

Reapers are duty bound to uphold that balance, tasked with guiding mortal souls to the afterlife. Lark secretly dreams of shedding her immortal chains and forging her own path. She’s captivated by the humans and envies their freedom, their passion, their anguish. Her master, Thanar, god of death, forbids this fascination and demands her utmost loyalty.

When Lark encounters a mortal whose fire and suffering awakens something in her, she denies fate and saves him, refusing to guide him to his death.

To escape Thanar’s wrath, Lark makes a deal with the witch-queen of the Netherworld and is remade as human-trading her power for mortality. She flees through the veil and enters the land of the living, unaware she isn’t the only one freed from the clutches of the Netherworld.

Songs of the Wicked is a New Adult dark reimagining of the Little Mermaid.

STUNNING.

I’m always hesitant to start fantasies over 500 pages (though let’s be honest, that’s also MY JAM). And then most of the time, I find myself completely engrossed in the story not realizing I’ve spent so much time with a new favorite.

This was a fantastic read. Great writing and characterization. I am alllll about the characters and the found family here was WONDERFUL. I loved Lark and her progression throughout everything thrown her way. She was resilient and yet, always remained kind and I can’t get enough of that type of FMC.

Enter in one of the slowest burns ever with Gavriel and I was smitten. If at anytime I here myself say, KISS ALREADY, I know it’s good. And it happened here multiple times. There relationship is so complex and I am very curious how it continues to evolve as the series progresses.

There is a very nuanced Little Mermaid vibe. If you’ve watched the movie enough times it was fun to notice the subtle ways Farran threw in nods and allusions to the tale. While I would have definitely appreciated some actual mermaids, I was pleased with everything else!

The plot is thick with many layers. I thought the world building was written well. Not overly convoluted, but spaced out without info dumping to really allow for the build that this story took. I’m excited to see what book two holds.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy + Romance
  • Language: some
  • Romance: open door
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: mentions of rape (in initial scenes, side character), kidnapping, loss of loved ones, weapons violence, physical altercations, creature attacks, imprisonment

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