ARC Book Review: Entwined Paths (Swift Shadows #2) by M.L. Greye

January 1, 2020January 30, 2020 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Fantasy + romance
Length: 664 pages
Author: M.L. Greye
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: January 3rd, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: To be added after release date

BOOK SUMMARY:

Five years ago, Emry was mourning the loss of her only brother and feeling utterly helpless. When the opportunity arose to travel to the exotic nation of Heerth, Emry jumped on it. Through the help of her friend, Trezim, she learned the skills needed to protect herself and possibly save her country.

The past five years have gone a little differently for Declan. He has been kidnapped, beaten, stolen, robbed of all that he had … and trained to become the fastest man in history. But was it all worth it in the end?

Set in a world where eye color determines one’s abilities, Emry and Declan must discover the hard way that not all eyes are created equally. Yet, when they do find their perfect match, everything seems to pair up nicely.

Thank you to the author for an eARC. All opinions are my own!

HIT REWIND.

Another great installment for this series! I am dying for book three and can’t wait to see how it ends. This was actually more of a prequel book rather than a book two. This was definitely a unique choice for the series, but I found myself enjoying it overall.

The entire book is set five years prior and we get a real in-depth background on Emry and Declan. The skimming over that happened in Of Rioters & Royals is nothing compared to this story. It’s long, detailed and gives you plenty of more reasons to love these two main characters.

There is a lot more heartache and emotions throughout this book compared to the previous as well. Getting the full story of when Declan was a Stolen about ripped my heart out. So many horrors and having only a tiny bit of light to cling on to. I love that changes that his character went through and the type of person it made him after. No, he didn’t make good decisions, but he made decisions to survive and still kept his humanity.

Emry went through a lot of growth in this time frame too. Not only physically growing up, but mentally. Her eyes were opened up to her kingdom in ways she didn’t know existed. Being sheltered was no longer an option for her. I love Emry and have bold and brave she is to help her kingdom. She has taken on vast amounts in order to save her kingdom.

I liked that I also got to know more about some side characters that I know will play a part in the third book. Trezim, Rand, and Fiona especially. I love the uniqueness and differences in their personalities. They all leaped off the page and had me loving them just as much as Declan and Emry. Honestly, there could be spin-off books about them and I would definitely be interested. I love when side characters don’t steal the show, but greatly add to it.

An amazing world where eye color determines your powers (still thinks this is so cool). It’s easy to follow and not get bogged down by information. Nor is their info dumping. Things come out organically and help grown everything around the plot. There were lots of different areas that Declan and Emry traveled too really broadening the map.

Overall audience notes:

Young adult fantasy
Language: none
Romance: kisses
Violence: skirmishes, physical, torture, magic
Trigger warnings: depression, discussion of suicide, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: Lovely War by Julie Berry

December 27, 2019November 1, 2019 GoodeyReads1 Comment

Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: Young adult historical fiction + romance
Length: 480 pages
Author: Julie Berry
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 5th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A sweeping, multi-layered romance with a divine twist, by the Printz Honor-winning author of The Passion of Dolssa, set in the perilous days of World Wars I and II.

It’s 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She’s a shy and talented pianist; he’s a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it’s immediate and deep—and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields.

Aubrey Edwards is also headed toward the trenches. A gifted musician who’s played Carnegie Hall, he’s a member of the 15th New York Infantry, an all-African-American regiment being sent to Europe to help end the Great War. Love is the last thing on his mind. But that’s before he meets Colette Fournier, a Belgian chanteuse who’s already survived unspeakable tragedy at the hands of the Germans.

Thirty years after these four lovers’ fates collide, the Greek goddess Aphrodite tells their stories to her husband, Hephaestus, and her lover, Ares, in a luxe Manhattan hotel room at the height of World War II. She seeks to answer the age-old question: Why are Love and War eternally drawn to one another? But her quest for a conclusion that will satisfy her jealous husband uncovers a multi-threaded tale of prejudice, trauma, and music and reveals that War is no match for the power of Love.

CLOSED THE BOOK WITH TEARS IN MY EYES.

Y’all. When I first read the synopsis I thought it was a bit curious to combine Greek mythology with World War 1. I have heard good things about this book and decided to give it a shot, IT WAS AMAZING. SERIOUSLY.

The writing was absolutely beautiful. This had some insta-love that we all know I’m weary of. This is one of those times when it worked out flawlessly. The writing really captured my soul and it had me cheering on both of these couples through their trials.

Hazel and James were my precious broken souls. Oh how I love them. I was most involved in their story and was wrapped up in the nuances of the few chance meetings they got over the months while James was in the trenches of France. Lovely War showed a lot about the human condition. Struggling with having to kill others, PTSD, explosions, loss of friends and family. I felt the atrocities of war brought to an awful light.

Aubrey and Coletter were a wonderful relationship to watch flourish too. As an inter-racial couple in this time period the amount of awful things they had to deal with just to be together makes my stomach turn. They both had the hope and fight to be with one another and I begged for them to get a happy ending.

The narration of the story by the gods (mostly Aphrodite) was definitely unique. Thought it was a bit odd at first, but the deeper I got into the story, the more it all made sense. Bringing in Ares, Apollo and Hades brought new point of views. By the end their was an even bigger love story between Aphrodite and Hephaestus. I thought this played out beautifully and connected all the dots in the end.

One of my favorite tidbits was that it’s mostly set in World War 1. I’m always looking for different historical fiction books set in time periods I don’t normally read about.

Overall audience notes:

Young adult historical fiction + romance
Language: a few words
Romance: some kisses
Violence: war, physical, guns, see trigger warnings for more
Trigger warnings: racism, hate crime, PTSD, sexual assault (unwanted grab and kissing), descriptions of the trenches and battle scenes

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Book Review: Of Rioters & Royals (Swift Shadows #1) by M.L. Greye

December 26, 2019December 7, 2019 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Young adult fantasy
Length: 421 pages
Author: M.L. Greye
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: January 18th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Emry is a Royal – a princess of Enlennd. As is tradition, she must have a knight at her side as her protector. The only way to appoint one is through The Trials. Her Challengers from the five regions of Enlennd must compete for the infamous title of Princess’s Knight. The problem, though, is that the people of Enlennd are split into two categories: Rioters and Royals. Finding the perfect knight may be the last of her worries. War is coming to Enlennd.

Declan is a Rioter. An upriser. An anarchist. He mistrusts the Jewels – the sovereign family of Enlennd. Yet, he is offering himself up as a Challenger in The Trials. The Mistress, leader of the Rioters, has a mission for him. The first step is for him to become the Princess’s Knight. He is ready for the task, until he actually meets Emry and discovers that betraying her would be much more difficult than he’d thought.

Thank you to the author for a digital copy of the book in exchange for a review! All opinions are my own.

I’M INTO THIS.

I really adored this book y’all.

The world building had a unique point that I hadn’t seen so woven through the story before. Color defining eyes. All sorts of crazy colors and combinations that give the person with those eyes a unique set of skills. I thought this was fascinating and loved learning all of the different gifts it allow a person to have. It was easy to follow the differing nations and even though a third party was thrown in at the end I believe they’ll really play a part in book two allowing this story to grow even larger.

I was smitten with the romance too. Declan and Emry were such a sweet and precious couple. The trope was along the lines of a childhood romance. They had known each other prior then were separated for years to be thrown back together when Emry was in search for a Knight. I enjoyed their banter and watching them come together as a power couple. They were able to communicate and love one another for who they are. The idea of pairs (a play on mates) worked really well for this too.

At times I felt there was too much focus on describing rooms, landscapes, etc. I personally don’t like having a lot of flowery writing and want to get to the heart of the story and narrative. By the second half of the book I felt this was really the case. I also noticed that somethings were along the lines of ACOTAR Series (A Court of Thorns and Roses). Which was very interesting to me. I have no idea if this was inspired by that or anything, I just noticed some quirks that were familiar. This didn’t stop me from loving the story on its own though.

I appreciated that the plot kept moving forward with steady action, but also the quiet moments that I love so much. I love watching relationships form, families get some time together, and friendships bond. This had all of that and more. I can’t wait to read book two!

Overall audience notes:

Young adult fantasy
Language: none
Romance: kisses, a no-detailed fade to black scene
Violence: physical, mentions of past torture, magic, fires, drownings, explosions, skirmishes

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Book Review: The Boy Who Steals Houses by C.G. Drews

December 23, 2019October 28, 2019 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2
Audience: Young adult contemporary
Length: 347 pages
Author: C.G. Drews
Publisher: Orchard Books
Release Date: April 4th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Can two broken boys find their perfect home?

Sam is only fifteen but he and his autistic older brother, Avery, have been abandoned by every relative he’s ever known. Now Sam’s trying to build a new life for them. He survives by breaking into empty houses when their owners are away, until one day he’s caught out when a family returns home. To his amazement this large, chaotic family takes him under their wing – each teenager assuming Sam is a friend of another sibling. Sam finds himself inextricably caught up in their life, and falling for the beautiful Moxie.

But Sam has a secret, and his past is about to catch up with him.

ALL THE FEELS.

I devoured this book in hours y’all. It was a quick read, with lots of emotions and a cute love story too. It’s a loose Goldilocks and the three bears retelling and I thought it did that service well.

The story itself started out a little slow, but the more I got to know Sam, Avery and the De Lainey family I was smitten by them. This is a dark contemporary though. It is not going to be a fluffy read (though there were a few fluffy moments). Sam is a very well fleshed out character who has some personal troubles from his past that he’s running away from rather than trying to work through. He’s never had anyone support him while he’s been supporting his older brother who has autism. This is really a journey for Sam as he finally learns what it feels like to have people take care of you.

You won’t even get a CRAZY HAPPY ENDING. You will get the ending this book should have. As I already mentioned it’s not a fluffy contemporary. Sam (with his new support system) has to confront his past to move on from it. I love the hopeful message it gave.

The bond between brothers was amazing. Most of the books I read are love stories, so the focus on brothers was different for me. I adored the way it was written. I found myself completely caught up in their lives and the flashback chapters shook me every time. I love how deeply Avery and Sam love each other (even when fighting).

This does have a touch of romance that took up the perfect amount of page time. It wasn’t the focus. It was stinkin’ cute though to watch Sam try to flirt and apologize to Moxie. He was precious and maybe a bit desperate. Moxie was bold and I love watching their interactions. It was sweet and endearing.

Overall audience notes: