Book Review: Knife of Dreams (The Wheel of Time #11) by Robert Jordan

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Fantasy
Length: 860 pages
Author: Robert Jordan
Publisher: Tor
Release Date: December 1st, 2006
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The dead are walking, men die impossible deaths, and it seems as though reality itself has become unstable: All are signs of the imminence of Tarmon Gai’don, the Last Battle, when Rand al’Thor, the Dragon Reborn, must confront the Dark One as humanity’s only hope. But Rand dares not fight until he possesses all the surviving seals on the Dark One’s prison and has dealt with the Seanchan, who threaten to overrun all nations this side of the Aryth Ocean and increasingly seem too entrenched to be fought off. But his attempt to make a truce with the Seanchan is shadowed by treachery that may cost him everything. Whatever the price, though, he must have that truce. And he faces other dangers.

The winds of time have become a storm, and things that everyone believes are fixed in place forever are changing before their eyes. Even the White Tower itself is no longer a place of safety. Now Rand, Perrin and Mat, Egwene and Elayne, Nynaeve and Lan, and even Loial, must ride those storm winds, or the Dark One will triumph.

I MADE IT.

I seriously have only been reading this series purely to cross off all of Sanderson’s book and HALLELUJAH I have made it. I just don’t think Robert Jordan’s writing style and fantasy composition is for me (and that’s okay).

While the story progressed and it was better than the previous installments I still wasn’t enamored. A lot of the time I spend wondering how much of this information is actually pertinent? And when I go an read a summarized version after to make sure I’ve caught everything I need to, I remember that stuff! So the rest…is a lot of unnecessary hoopla.

And there’s not a lot I can say that won’t be spoilery so, moving on. I’ve read it. It was fine and I can’t wait to finish this series now.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: high

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Book Review: The Cheerleaders (The Cheerleaders #1) by Kara Thomas

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Thriller
Length: 384 pages
Author: Kara Thomas
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: July 31st, 2018
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

There are no more cheerleaders in the town of Sunnybrook.

First there was the car accident—two girls gone after hitting a tree on a rainy night. Not long after, the murders happened. Those two girls were killed by the man next door. The police shot him, so no one will ever know why he did it. Monica’s sister was the last cheerleader to die. After her suicide, Sunnybrook High disbanded the cheer squad. No one wanted to be reminded of the girls they lost.

That was five years ago. Now the faculty and students at Sunnybrook High want to remember the lost cheerleaders. But for Monica, it’s not that easy. She just wants to forget. Only, Monica’s world is starting to unravel. There are the letters in her stepdad’s desk, an unearthed, years-old cell phone, a strange new friend at school. . . . Whatever happened five years ago isn’t over. Some people in town know more than they’re saying. And somehow Monica is at the center of it all.

There are no more cheerleaders in Sunnybrook, but that doesn’t mean anyone else is safe.

Thank you Get Underlined for the gifted copy.

GOOD ENDING.

That ending really brought this whole book together for me. Gosh I’m still thinking about it. This is the way I enjoy thrillers coming to a close, with that last gasp scene that makes you look at the story/a character in a different light.

There was one plot point I didn’t love in this book that still doesn’t feel like it was a necessary aspect. Luckily it was a small piece or I think I would have had a harder time reading. It’s a great and fast paced audiobook. One that I got through in a day.

I liked the complexity of the story and wow it hits some hard themes too. It’s messy and filled with characters that you can’t decide whether you like them or not. I’ve really enjoyed reading through multiple Kara Thomas books and plan to continue with new releases. I like the way she crafts thrillers a lot.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Thriller
  • Language: low
  • Romance: innuendo, mentions of nights together
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content Warnings: murder, suicide (off page, recounted), statutory rape, pedophilia, abortion, death of loved ones, gun violence, car accident, domestic violence

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Book Review: Savage Bred (The Royal Rose Chronicles #3) by Victoria McCombs

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 256 pages
Author: Victoria McCombs
Publisher: Enclave Publishing
Release Date: August 1st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

It’s dangerous to be a pirate.

The seas have become more threatening than ever, with enemies closing in on all sides. War isn’t just brewing—it’s here, knocking on their doorsteps, threatening to devour them all. And just as she was warned, Emme might have been the one to create the chaos.

In her desperate attempt to keep the fight away, Emme hatches a plan that involves trapping the only one who can put an end to the battles. But as plans go awry, she discovers she’s not the only one scheming. Eventually she’ll have to accept that she’s no longer playing a role: She’s a pirate now. A pirate who will do what it takes to save her crew, even if it means oathbinding herself one final time.

A SIMPLE CONCLUSION.

With how short this book was I am almost leaning towards it working better if it had been a duology. I enjoyed it, but just needed more.

I do like these characters and it’s a great TRUE young adult series and that’s always a big bonus. The romance is sweet and I wish they had some more page time together as they fought their way back to each other. I am intrigued by how some of the story lines felt a little open and if there’s some kind of spin off coming?

It’s a quick audio book (7 hours) and if you’ve been enjoying the series so far I think you’ll like this conclusion too. This wasn’t initially on my radar and I am happy that I picked them up! Another solid seafaring adventure read.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of life, weapons violence, near death experiences

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Book Review: The Champions by Kara Thomas

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 336 pages
Author: Kara Thomas
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: August 27th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the author of The Cheerleaders comes another dark YA thriller set in the same town of Sunnybrook. When a mysterious accident befalls a member of the all-star high school football team, the town’s deadly history stands to repeat itself—and the price of discovering the truth is higher than anyone could imagine.

It was the deaths of five cheerleaders that made the town of Sunnybrook infamous. Eleven years later, the girls’ killer has been brought to justice, and the town just wants to move on. By the time Hadley moves to Sunnybrook, though, the locals are more interested in the Tigers, the high school’s championship-winning football team. The Tigers are Sunnybrook’s homegrown heroes–something positive in a town with so much darkness in its past.

Hadley could care less about football, but shortly after she gets assigned to cover the team’s latest championship bid for the school newspaper, one of the Tigers is poisoned at a party, and almost immediately after, Hadley starts getting strange emails warning her to stay far away from the football team.

It’s becoming clear Sunnybrook’s golden boys have secrets, and after a second player is mysteriously killed, Hadley’s beginning to suspect that someone wants the team to pay for their sins. Or does this new target on the football team have something to do with what happened to the cheerleaders all those years ago?

As an outsider in Sunnybrook, Hadley feels like she’s the only one who can see the present clearly, but it looks like she’s going to have to dig up the darkness of the past to get to the bottom of what’s happening now. Luckily, there are still some Sunnybrook High grads who never left–people who were around eleven years ago—and if she can just convince them to talk, she might be able stop a killer before another Tiger dies.

Thank you GetUnderlined for the gifted copy!

NEW FAVORITE.

This is easily my current favorite Kara Thomas book. I was hooked from this book from the beginning. It’s a complex story with some heavy themes and topics and wow did it hit me with a gut punch as the reveals started coming out.

I really liked the main character, Hadley. I enjoy a thriller book that has a character you don’t feel forced to hate. Hadley didn’t do everything right, but she did try and worked hard to find the truth.

It’s a short audiobook with another fast paced timeline. I love that Thomas writes short books because the story is not bogged down by side quests that don’t fulfill the full plot line. It’s easy to binge read and great for fall.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery
  • Language: low
  • Romance: none
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content Warnings: gang rape, cheating (in school and on people), seizure, hit and run (resulting in a death), domestic violence, hazing, underage drinking

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