Tag: young adult fantasy

ARC Book Review: The Silvered Serpents (The Gilded Wolves #2) by Roshani Chokshi

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆  
Audience: Young adult fantasy + historical fiction
Length: 416 pages
Author: Roshani Chokshi
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: September 22nd, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Returning to the dark and glamorous world of her New York Times instant bestseller, The Gilded Wolves, Roshani Chokshi dazzles us with another riveting tale as full of mystery and danger as ever.

They are each other’s fiercest love, greatest danger, and only hope.

Séverin and his team members might have successfully thwarted the Fallen House, but victory came at a terrible cost ― one that still haunts all of them. Desperate to make amends, Séverin pursues a dangerous lead to find a long lost artifact rumored to grant its possessor the power of God.

Their hunt lures them far from Paris, and into icy heart of Russia where crystalline ice animals stalk forgotten mansions, broken goddesses carry deadly secrets, and a string of unsolved murders makes the crew question whether an ancient myth is a myth after all.

As hidden secrets come to the light and the ghosts of the past catch up to them, the crew will discover new dimensions of themselves. But what they find out may lead them down paths they never imagined.

A tale of love and betrayal as the crew risks their lives for one last job.

Thank you to Wednesday Books, and Netgalley for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own!

MY SOUL IS IN TORMENT.

Why you may ask? Well because THAT ENDING HURT ME. It was exactly what the book called for though. Not really a cliffhanger, but feeling a desperate need to see how everything is resolved in the last book. Ohhhhh how I need the last book. If these first two books are any indication (The Gilded Wolves review here!), this finale will rock.

The ANGST I felt in this book for Laila and Severin was on another level. Oh em gee. It was the kinda of slow fire, second chance, enemies to lovers-ish vibe that I was ALL OVER. My cinnamon roll Severin who is struggling to work through some things has caused him to push people away. This hard outer shell only makes me love him more. Seeing his inner dialogue is wonderful. I love the rotating chapter POVs because I truly feel for all of these characters now. I want to be apart of this dysfunctional family too.

I liked the way the story moved. I felt there was a steady flow of action, then a lull, then back up again, all at the right times. I was never bored because things were constantly moving. If they weren’t solving a mystery, someone or another was having a tender moment. This gave me a lot of scenes that brought this installment home. The writing was beautiful with plenty of sentences I wanted to highlight and save for later.

The villains are pretty easy to spot, but are quirky and have many layers that I need to sift through. They were a bit creepy and kept me on my toes, especially in the last 20%. I flew through pages trying to figure out what was going to happen next. While my heart shattered at some point, the pieces were picked back up and put in a jar for further introspection. Everything in this book is a few shades darker. There is a lot of pain, inner turmoil, and I feel like I’m waiting on half the cast to apologize to the other half. It’s forming great characters arcs though and I am appreciating watching everyone grow.

Still, I have so many questions!! There is a vast amount of open-ended issues when it comes to everyone. Who is into who? Who is upset with who? Who is alive? Where is who? Why can who do this? I barely had questions answered before I thought of a thousand more. While sometimes too many unknowns can be a bother, I felt this really convinced me I want book three (which I don’t mind in the slightest). I think everything will be answered and while I have no idea how this well end, I am here for it all.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult fantasy + historical fiction
  • Language: some language
  • Romance: a few kisses, make-outs, a no detailed quick fade to black, but mentioned love scene (very appropriate for a true YA book)
  • Violence: poison, animal attacks, magic, fire, knives, murder
  • Trigger warnings: a person disguises themselves as someone else with intent to do sexual things, mentions of child abuse, drugging people without consent

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ARC Book Review: Fable (Fable #1) by Adrienne Young

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 368 pages
Author: Adrienne Young
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: September 1st, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

As the daughter of the most powerful trader in the Narrows, the sea is the only home seventeen-year-old Fable has ever known. It’s been four years since the night she watched her mother drown during an unforgiving storm. The next day her father abandoned her on a legendary island filled with thieves and little food. To survive she must keep to herself, learn to trust no one and rely on the unique skills her mother taught her. The only thing that keeps her going is the goal of getting off the island, finding her father and demanding her rightful place beside him and his crew. To do so Fable enlists the help of a young trader named West to get her off the island and across the Narrows to her father.

But her father’s rivalries and the dangers of his trading enterprise have only multiplied since she last saw him and Fable soon finds that West isn’t who he seems. Together, they will have to survive more than the treacherous storms that haunt the Narrows if they’re going to stay alive.

Welcome to a world made dangerous by the sea and by those who wish to profit from it. Where a young girl must find her place and her family while trying to survive in a world built for men.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own!

YES.

That’s how I feel about reading Adrienne Young’s newest book. Just, YES.

Lets start off talking about the setting, ships, islands, deep-sea diving, pirates, OH MY. I loved it. I’m a huge fan of all things water related and getting another book with that setting made me beyond excited. The way the land was separated, how the dynamics of the world worked, character interactions, all of it.

Fable is a fav. Loved her as our heroine. Her resiliency and ability to adapt to whatever situation was in front of her was bar none. Because wow, she was thrown into a rough situation that I’m still trying to grasp the point of (who abandons their child on an island?). She’s a bit rough around the edges from not having any positive interactions with those around her. But, Fable persists, and finding her family was one of the best parts of this book. I love the crew she ends up with and am so excited this book has a sequel.

The only small issue I struggled with (and why I gave it four stars) is that I had a hard time finding the full plot. Things were happening and the story was moving, and yet I didn’t see where it was all going. I guess that’s kind of how it still went about by the end, but the ending was filled with so much I overlooked a lot of it. The amount of action turned out in Fable keeps you on your toes.

I loooove the dash of romance here. It reminds me of how she wrote it in The Sky in the Deep (another fav). It doesn’t take up a lot of pages and it isn’t in your face. The subtle interactions and looks across the way totally add to the vibe between Fable and West. I adored the way it worked out and like how it only enhanced the story. Fable and her quest for her own place to be remained at the forefront.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult fantasy
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses, one closed door scene
  • Violence: guns, physical, fires, murder, drowning, storms
  • Trigger warnings: child abandonment, loss of a loved one

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ARC Book Review & Blog Tour: Where Dreams Descend (Kingdom of Cards #1) by Janella Angeles

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Young adult fantasy
Length: 464 pages
Author: Janella Angeles
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: August 25th, 2020
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In a city covered in ice and ruin, a group of magicians face off in a daring game of magical feats to find the next headliner of the Conquering Circus, only to find themselves under the threat of an unseen danger striking behind the scenes.

As each act becomes more and more risky and the number of missing magicians piles up, three are forced to reckon with their secrets before the darkness comes for them next.

The Star: Kallia, a powerful showgirl out to prove she’s the best no matter the cost

The Master: Jack, the enigmatic keeper of the club, and more than one lie told

The Magician: Demarco, the brooding judge with a dark past he can no longer hide

Where Dreams Descend is the startling and romantic first book in Janella Angeles’ debut Kingdom of Cards fantasy duology where magic is both celebrated and feared, and no heart is left unscathed.

Thank you to Wednesday books for the eARC. All opinions are my own!

WONDERFUL DEBUT.

You hear this has some The Night Circus aspects and you’re immediately drawn in. I am definitely in agreement. The magician, circus, and romance aspects were soooo good. Soooo good that I can’t wait for book two. There’s a lot here to unfold!

One of my favorite pieces is that I still haven’t decided who’s on what side. The ambiguity of characters and story leave much open to interpretation (in a good way). While plenty is revealed and you’re not left hanging, I love how much isn’t revealed.

Since I’m always a fan of romance in books, I am setting sail of Kallia and Demarco’s ship. I absolutely LOVED how this relationship moved. It’s one of the textbook slow-burns that are my faaaavorite. It was believable and they have true chemistry between them. I really can’t wait to see where they move on next.

Kallia is an amazing heroine. Goodness, I thought she was spectacular. Kallia was brave and bold, confident in her abilities and was striving to better her life. She was also flawed, and got herself wrapped up in tough situations. The conflict made her seem real and truly like someone you can root for her, and root for her I did!

This book reminded me why I love reading young adult fantasy. I would love to see a map to further expound on the world, but I thought the overall development was good. The magic system was interesting and all of the mystery kept me on my toes. The atmosphere and creepy vibes were some of favorite aspects.

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult fantasy
  • Language: very little light
  • Romance: kisses / make-outs
  • Violence: physical, magic, elements

Author Bio:

JANELLA ANGELES is a Filipino-American author who got her start in writing through consuming glorious amounts of fanfiction at a young age — which eventually led to penning a few of her own, and later on, creating original stories from her imagination. A lifelong lover of books, she’s lucky enough to be working in the business of publishing them on top of writing them. She currently resides in Massachusetts, where she’s most likely to be found listening to musicals on repeat and daydreaming too much for her own good. Where Dreams Descend is her first book.

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Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: July 2020

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REVIVAL.

I have come back from the depths of morning sickness + reading slump to read EIGHTEEN books for July! And I even had some five stars and some really great four stars and this sentence is running on because I’m so relieved to have some “normalcy” right now.

Below are my reads! I read lots of ARCs this month that will have reviews soon and I recommend all of them for your TBR!

Favorites: Clap When You Land, The Empire of Gold, and Far From Normal
Least Favorites: Once More Upon a Time, What I Like About You, and Unravel the Dusk

  • [ARC] Where Dreams Descend (Kingdom of Cards #1) by Janella Angeles – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Clap When You Land by Elizaveth Acevedo – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Miracle Creek Christmas by Krista Jensen – (☆☆☆☆)
  • The Happy Ever After Playlist (The Friend Zone #2) by Abby Jimenez – (☆☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Fable (Fable #1) by Adrienne Young – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi – (☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] Well Played (Well Met #2) by Jen DeLuca – (☆☆☆☆)
  • The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata – (☆☆☆☆)
  • The Empire of Gold (The Daevabad Trilogy #3) by S.A. Chakraborty – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • Not Like the Movies (Waiting for Tom Hanks #2) by Kerry Winfrey – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • What I Like About You by Marisa Kanter – (☆☆☆)
  • [ARC] The Hunter and the Mage (The Raven and the Dove #2) by Kaitlyn Davis – (☆☆☆☆)
  • Unravel the Dusk (The Blood of the Stars #2) by Elizabeth Lim – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • [ARC] Far From Normal by Becky Wallace – (☆☆☆☆☆)
  • Party of Two (The Wedding Date #5) by Jasmine Guillory – (☆☆☆☆)
  • The Distance Between Us by Kasie West – (☆☆☆☆)
  • The Match (It Happened in Charleston #1) by Sarah Adams – (☆☆☆ 1/2)
  • A Song of Wraiths and Ruin (A Song of Wraiths and Ruin #1) by Roseanna A. Brown – (☆☆☆☆)

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