Review: The Falconer by Elizabeth May

Title:  The Falconer (The Falconer book #1)

Author: Elizabeth May

My Rating:

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones – Buy from The Book Depository

Heiress. Debutant. Murderer. A new generation of heroines has arrived.

Edinburgh, Scotland, 1844

Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, was destined for a life carefully planned around Edinburgh’s social events – right up until a faery killed her mother.

Now it’s the 1844 winter season and Aileana slaughters faeries in secret, in between the endless round of parties, tea and balls. Armed with modified percussion pistols and explosives, she sheds her aristocratic facade every night to go hunting. She’s determined to track down the faery who murdered her mother, and to destroy any who prey on humans in the city’s many dark alleyways.

But the balance between high society and her private war is a delicate one, and as the fae infiltrate the ballroom and Aileana’s father returns home, she has decisions to make. How much is she willing to lose – and just how far will Aileana go for revenge?

– Summary not mine; taken from The Falconer’s Goodreads page. 

If I had to describe this book in three words, I would choose the first words that left my mouth as I finished the last page:
Oh. My. GOD.

To say the least, Elizabeth May knows how to craft a story, or she has some magical power that allows her to hold her reader’s heart in her hand, slowly cradling it at the beginning, gently carressing, and then, by the end, throwing it into a pit of alligators.
At least, that’s how I felt.

Aileana was the kind of kick-ass, sassy lead-role female I absolutely loved. I loved hearing about her fighting abilities, and her training, and her general skill in torching faery butt. I also liked how to herself, she was never strong enough. Then, when we meet Gavin and he witnesses her fighting for the first time, we learn that actually, she has some incredible talent. To put the icing on the cake, the fighting scenes were very well described and very vivid.
One of the other things that I loved about the book was something that was so incredibly unique and fulfilling, that I actually screamed with delight:
Both love interests were present in the story before the actual narrative began.
Aileana had known these people for at least one year. That meant no awkward and vomit inducing love-at-first-sight meetings, and a big thumbs up from me.

The steampunk elements of the story weren’t that much of a prominent interest to me, but I know that a lot of other readers would really like it. I simply saw it as an extra oddity in Aileana’s world.

The bestiary at the back was a wonderful addition to the book, and added a little fun to it. But, be warned. If, like me, you were looking the creatures up in the back whenever they were happened across in the story, you will come across spoilers. Minuscule ones, but still. I’m probably a minority that did this, so it probably doesn’t matter that much.

Now, for my only complaint about the book, which isn’t really a complaint, and isn’t really about the book. The blurb was awful. Simply, awful. If I had never heard of this book, and was simply deciding on the blurb alone, I probably wouldn’t read this book. Thankfully, I had heard wonders about the book, and I simply scoffed at the blurb and opened it up.

That ending though. Oh my.

Review: Geek Girl by Holly Smale

 

Title:  Geek Girl (Geek Girl book #1)

Author: Holly Smale

My Rating: 

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones – Buy from The Book Depository

She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a “jiffy” lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn’t quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she’s spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend’s dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn’t seem to like her any more than the real world did.

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

– Summary not mine;  taken from Geek Girl’s Goodreads page.

This is a more of a mini-review because while I really liked Geek Girl, there wasn’t really anything different, unusual or really striking that I could say about the book.

Geek Girl is one of those ridiculously funny books, that often you have to pause reading for, because some scenes are just so embarrassing (and hilarious) it’s like you can’t watch. But, it’s a book, so of course you have to read on. Thankfully, the humour makes this book an effortless read and so the pages fly by faster than a jetplane. The humour also makes this book accessible to anyone. Even though my boyfriend turned his nose up at what he clearly thought was a ‘girl’s book’ (he’s very scared of cooties), when I read some parts to him, he would snort with laughter.
This book isn’t something I would normally read (at all). I’m more of a fantasy, sci-fi chick, hence why those are the genres my blog focuses around. But I tried something different with Holly Smale’s book, and I can’t say I was disappointed, or felt that it was a waste of my precious reading time.

While Geek Girl is a mostly lighthearted book that aims to please, there are also some harder themes tackled in the book, such as bullying. Now, this is where my one discomfort arises. In the novel, Harriet is encouraged not to eat. And while she never gives in to this pressure, it isn’t addressed as an issue. It’s not pointed out that telling someone to lose weight is wrong. It’s simply brushed over, and I think that in a book aimed at young girls (the book has 11+ stamped on the back) this probably should have been covered, or at least Harriet should have shown her discomfort in the narrative.

Review: Banished by Liz De Jager

 

Title:  Banished (The Blackhart Legacy book #1)

Author: Liz De Jager

My Rating: 

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones – Buy from The Book Depository

Kit is proud to be a Blackhart, now she’s encountered her unorthodox cousins and their strange lives. And her home-schooling now includes spells, fighting enemy fae and using ancient weapons. But it’s not until she rescues a rather handsome fae prince, fighting for his life on the edge of Blackhart Manor, that her training really kicks in. With her family away on various missions, Kit must protect Prince Thorn, rely on new friends and use her own unfamiliar magic to stay ahead of Thorn’s enemies. As things go from bad to apocalyptic, fae battle fae in a war that threatens to spill into the human world. Then Kit pits herself against the Elder Gods themselves – it’s that or lose everyone she’s learnt to love.

– Summary not mine; taken from Banished’s goodreads page.

Banished is one of those books that is simply so awesome, so enjoyable, and so imaginative, that you have to take a break every hour or so while reading to just absorb its beauty. With a soul-gripping beginning, and amazing characters, this book will quickly rise up onto your favourites list whilst reading.

One thing that I really enjoyed were the excerpts of what seemed like lore books, or some kind of text book Kit might have studied from. It added to the story without adding too much, or spoiling anything. It gave the reader a better sense of Kit’s world, making it feel more whole and more enjoyable. Because of this, you can easily get lost in the story.

Another of Banished’s strengths is its amazing cast of characters. There’s Kit, main girl, who’s perfectly trained in kicking butt. Then there’s Thorn, faery prince, who you wouldn’t want to give coffee to (well actually, you might). There’s also Aiden, the sassy werewolf. Each quickly gained a place in my reading heart.

To break it down, Banished has everything a good story needs – mystery, the right kind of drama, the perfect amount of action, and the kisses that had to happen sometime (or risk the reader having a heart attack from the stress). The ending will leave you baffled, and at a loss, and most importantly, crying desperately for more.

However, when you try and review this book, you will come up short. It’s hard to formulate thoughts on something you loved so much.

 

 

Review: Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

 

Title:  Hollow City (Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children book #2)

Author: Ransom Riggs

My Rating:

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones– Buy from The Book Depository

 

The extraordinary journey that began in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children continues as Jacob Portman and his newfound friends journey to London the peculiar capital of the world. But in this war-torn city, hideous surprises lurk around every corner. Like its predecessor, this second novel in the Peculiar Children series blends thrilling fantasy with never-before-published vintage photography to create a one-of-a-kind reacting experience.

– Summary not mine; taken from Hollow City’s Goodreads page.

Ransom Riggs is one of those wonderful writers where it doesn’t matter how much time passes between reading the first and second book – I easily fell straight into the story again, and before I knew it, I was 100+ pages into the book.

I felt exactly the same with the first book in that I loved the combination of vintage photos and the story. I think it’s one of the books major strengths, since it the story becomes more real and unique. In a way I like that it doesn’t tell you which photos are shopped and which ones aren’t, as it adds an air of mystery to the photos, and makes you question those strange looking photos that could go either way. Some are fairly obvious though, like the picture of the Emu-Raffe (which I found terrifying, by the way. And you can go ahead and laugh about that). I also love the style of the actual book – ridiculously gorgeous.

I have nothing but praise for Ransom and his writing. I love that the children weren’t all likable all the time, since I just felt closer to them. They felt like brothers and sisters. I also really commend Ransom’s ability to write about so many characters at once. Often characters can be left out of conversations, or forgotten about, only to reappear later on. This isn’t the case in Ransom’s writing; all of the dialogue is just right.

I love that this is pitched as a YA novel, when really it could be enjoyed by just about anyone (I’m going to run an experiment – push these on my mum, who isn’t a big reader and see what happens). I just want to run in the street throwing nicely passing copies of the book out to people. If that’s not a sign of a good book, I don’t know what is.

When I said I had no criticism for Ransom, I may have lied. Just a tiny bit. Here’s a few pointers I’d love for him to respond to:
1.The book was over way too soon. Why not 700 pages? Better, 1000?
2.I loved your book so much its nigh on impossible to form a proper review. Please fix this in the next book.
3.When is the next one?

Review: Deadly Delicious by K. L. Kincy

Title: Deadly Delicious

Author: K. L. Kincy

My Rating:

Buy from Amazon – Buy from The Book Depository

 

An awful cook, she ruins recipes left and right, and she certainly can’t compete with her family’s reputation for extraordinary food. Her daddy’s parents ran one of the best restaurants in all of Paris, but Josephine lives in Paris, Missouri. On her mama’s side, she’s up against a long tradition of sinfully delicious soul food. Rumor has it, her Creole ancestors cooked up some voodoo to make tasty even tastier. Josephine knows the secret ingredient: she comes from a long line of conjure witches with spellbinding culinary skills.

Disenchanted, Josephine works as a carhop at Carl and Earl’s Drive-In. Just plain old hamburgers, hot dogs, and curly fries, nothing magical about them. She’s got bigger fish to fry, though, when a grease fire erupts into a devilish creature who hisses her name with desire. Turns out he’s the Ravenous One, the granddaddy of all voodoo spirits, and he’s hungry for her soul. Josephine thinks he’s got the wrong girl-she’s no witch-but a gorgeous, dangerous night-skinned lady named Shaula sets her straight. Josephine is one of the most powerful witches alive, so overflowing with conjure that her out-of-control cooking simply catches fire.

Josephine would love to laugh this off, but Shaula warns her that she must learn to master her magic before the Ravenous One devours her soul. Spurred into action, Josephine breaks out her grandma’s old conjure cookbook and starts cooking. Nothing grand, just the usual recipes for undying friendship and revenge. But soon Josephine can’t escape the consequences of her conjure. When the people of Paris start turning into zombies with a strange fondness for cake, Josephine looks pretty responsible for their undead reawakening…

– Summary from the Deadly Delicous Goodreads page.

When Karen Kincy posted on twitter asking for reviewers to look at her witchy MG novel, I jumped at the chance. I had read one of Karen Kincy’s books before, and I had really enjoyed it, so I was thrilled when right away she agreed to send me a review copy. Due to exams at the time, I wasn’t able to give my attention as quickly to the book as I would have liked, but soon I found myself unable to resist and started reading it.

I soon discovered that Deadly Delicious is a wonderfully fun read, one that I would have definitely eaten up as a middle grade reader (like I did as a young adult one…) and one that I couldn’t recommend enough. Age boundaries were pushed out of the way as I was reading, and I was soon absorbed into the 1950’s, accompanying MC Josephine on her tasty adventures.

I loved being able to hear the character’s accents as I was reading, and being fully absorbed into the conjure cooking culture of Josephine and her family, and the other witches in the novel. Whilst remaining unique and apart from the traditional idea of witches, it still plays on the stereotype with certain ingredients, like moon butter and twisted nails.

Josephine was a very lovable main character, and most certainly a good witch, but there were times where I couldn’t help but wonder about Authelia and her side of the story. Just why had these girls fallen out? Why did Authelia and her friends feel the need to pick on Josephine? I’m hoping that these questions will be answered in future books, if Karen Kincy is planning on turning this into a series.

One of the main strengths of Karen Kincy’s writing was that it wasn’t patronising or ‘dumbed down’ to appeal to children. It was simply a fun and vibrant read, filled with tasty recipes and sassy grandmas.

Review: Half Bad by Sally Green

Title: Half Bad (Half Life Trilogy #1)

Author: Sally Green

My Rating:

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones – Buy from The Book Depository

Half Bad by Sally Green is a breathtaking debut novel about one boy’s struggle for survival in a hidden society of witches.

You can’t read, can’t write, but you heal fast, even for a witch.

You get sick if you stay indoors after dark.

You hate White Witches but love Annalise, who is one.

You’ve been kept in a cage since you were fourteen.

All you’ve got to do is escape and find Mercury, the Black Witch who eats boys. And do that before your seventeenth birthday.

– Summary not mine; taken from Half Bad’s Goodreads page.

I received Half Bad as a gift from a friend, as a very early birthday present. I was given the choice to have it early or to wait, and I chose to have it early – some time later, the book was read, but my birthday was still distant on the horizon. Needless to say, I enjoyed the book an incredible amount.

Half Bad had me gripped from the first page – the first person, present tense that is rarely used in books really surprised me, and set Half Bad apart from other books right away. I was curious to see whether the entire book was written this way, but when main character Nathan reminisces of his past life, the tense changes to fit this. This immediately caused Half Bad to strike me as a unique and very enjoyable book.
Do not be fooled by the use of the trope of white and black magic, because the world of Half Bad is still very unique. As I read on, I discovered that Half Bad was literally my perfect type of book. There was a lot of action, a fantasy world that absorbed me, and just the right amount of focus on the romance. There were also so many hints at things that made me want to read on, and the interesting characters really helped make the story come together.
I didn’t find Nathan’s father, Marcus, as menacing as he was made out to be, though. Don’t get me wrong, he was very menacing, but when he actually turns up in the book, he’s not the big raging ball of hellfire I was expecting. This may all change in the sequel though, and I may be forced to eat my own words.
One thing I really enjoyed was the family relationships in this book. Nathan is close to his grandma, but even closer to his half-brother, Arran. The bond between them is very strong and there were more than a few heart-wrenching moments between them, which only added to the pain and difficulty Nathan is forced to go through. These aren’t the only interesting characters though – Celia was also a favourite of mine, because even though she’s portrayed as a very evil, horrible person, there’s also a strange kind of bond between her and Nathan. Their relationship is incredibly complicated, but I hope something good will come of it.

When I finished this book, I just wanted to scream and through it across the room. I loved the ending, but I also really hated it because I wanted more of the story. It will be a long wait for Half Wild, though, and I might just go mad in the time it takes for a copy to reach my hands.

ARC Review: Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

Title: Prisoner of Night and Fog (Prisoner of Night and Fog, Book #1)

Author: Anne Blankman

My Rating:

Buy from Amazon – Buy from Waterstones – Buy from The Book Depository

 

In 1930s Munich, danger lurks behind dark corners, and secrets are buried deep within the city. But Gretchen Müller, who grew up in the National Socialist Party under the wing of her “uncle” Dolf, has been shielded from that side of society ever since her father traded his life for Dolf’s, and Gretchen is his favorite, his pet.

Uncle Dolf is none other than Adolf Hitler. And Gretchen follows his every command.

Until she meets a fearless and handsome young Jewish reporter named Daniel Cohen. Gretchen should despise Daniel, yet she can’t stop herself from listening to his story: that her father, the adored Nazi martyr, was actually murdered by an unknown comrade. She also can’t help the fierce attraction brewing between them, despite everything she’s been taught to believe about Jews.

As Gretchen investigates the very people she’s always considered friends, she must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she choose the safety of her former life as a Nazi darling, or will she dare to dig up the truth—even if it could get her and Daniel killed?

From debut author Anne Blankman comes this harrowing and evocative story about an ordinary girl faced with the extraordinary decision to give up everything she’s ever believed . . . and to trust her own heart instead.

 

– summary from Prisoner of Night and Fog’s Goodreads page

I did enjoy Prisoner of Night and Fog, but at the same time it was a very mixed book. I had quite high expectations since this was my first physical ARC, and since I was studying the time period whilst reading it. However, Prisoner of Night and Fog has proved to be a hard book for me to review. Whilst I did enjoy it, it wasn’t the all enrapturing, unputdownable enjoyment that I had been expecting.

I thought that the beginning of the novel set the scene of what life in Nazi Germany was like, and soon I found myself uncovering more about the developing plot. One of the major strengths of this book is that it prides itself with being filled with historical knowledge and context. However, this could also be read as a bad point since a few times it felt like I was reading one of my History textbooks. At the time, I didn’t mind since I had my exam coming up and I could use it as a cheat to say I was revising, but I could see why it would annoy other people.
Another reason that I really enjoyed this book is that it was so atmospherical. There was a huge sense of foreboding throughout, and at some points I could feel myself literally cringing at the thought of Gretchen’s secrets being found out the the repercussions of her actions coming down on her.
This made reading the novel slightly unsettling, but the fact that hit me the hardest was that it took so long for Gretchen to realise Hitler’s plans and how wrong his actions were. I often wanted to scream at Gretchen in the beginning because of how easily she accepted Hitler and how much she loved him – however, this only made the novel more hard-hitting and uncomfortable to read. It also made it a lot more realistic, because even though the beginning shows Gretchen helping a Jew, and going against Nazi ideals at the time, she was not a stereotypical hero that was amazing and totally good right from the start. However, by the end of the novel I found myself wishing that Gretchen’s character development hadn’t been so obvious, and so quick.
One thing that did stand out to me was that I read this right after Patrick Ness’s The Knife of Never Letting Go, and all I will say is this… What is it with books and killing off animals? And the deaths being horribly heartbreaking.

I would recommend Prisoner of Night and Fog, but mostly because of the high amounts of research that had clearly gone into the novel, and for if the person is looking for a historical but fictional novel with a lot of mystery, and the right amount of romance.

Release Day: The Luthier’s Apprentice by Mayra Calvani

 

The Luthier’s Apprentice by Mayra Calvani

Niccolò Paganini (1782-1840), one of the greatest violinists who ever lived and rumored to have made a pact with the devil, has somehow transferred unique powers to another…

When violinists around the world mysteriously vanish, 16-year-old Emma Braun takes notice. But when her beloved violin teacher disappears… Emma takes charge. With Sherlock Holmes fanatic, not to mention gorgeous Corey Fletcher, Emma discovers a parallel world ruled by an ex-violinist turned evil sorceress who wants to rule the music world on her own terms.

But why are only men violinists captured and not women? What is the connection between Emma’s family, the sorceress, and the infamous Niccolò Paganini?

Emma must unravel the mystery in order to save her teacher from the fatal destiny that awaits him. And undo the curse that torments her family—before evil wins and she becomes the next luthier’s apprentice…

Purchase for $3.99:

About The Author

Mayra Calvani writes fiction and nonfiction for children and adults and has authored over a dozen books, some of which have won awards. Her stories, reviews, interviews and articles have appeared on numerous publications such as The Writer, Writer’s Journal, Multicultural Review, and Bloomsbury Review, among many others. When she’s not writing, reading, editing or reviewing, she enjoys walking her dog, traveling, and spending time with her family. Represented by Serendipity Literary.

 

Website Blog / Facebook / Twitter /  Goodreads

 

Neverland Blog Tours: The Star Child by Stephanie Keyes‏

 

 

 

 

This post is a little long, so here’s a tiny contents:

First up is my review, including a summary of the wonderful The Star Child, followed by a short bio of the author, then there’s a chance for you guys to enter a giveaway with some great prizes, and finally, more details on who’s posting for the rest of the tour! Enjoy!

 

Title: The Star Child (The Star Child, Book #1)

Author: Stephanie Keyes

My Rating:

Links:

Website: http://www.stephaniekeyes.com – Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/StephanieKeyes – Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/stephaniekeyes/ – Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/dashboard

The world is about to be cloaked in darkness. Only one can stop the night. Kellen St. James has spent his entire life being overlooked as an unwanted, ordinary, slightly geeky kid. That is until a beautiful girl, one who has haunted his dreams for the past eleven years of his life, shows up spinning tales of a prophecy. Not just any old prophecy either, but one in which Kellen plays a key role. Suddenly, Kellen finds himself on the run through a Celtic underworld of faeries and demons, angels and gods, not to mention a really ticked off pack of hellhounds, all in order to save the world from darkness. But will they make it in time?

 

When I first started reading The Star Child, I found that right away I knew it was going to be a gripping story. One of the many things that I loved about the novel was how indulgent the story was giving details about the main character, Kellen, and his life before the real action starts. The story was very intense and wholesome, and what I particularly enjoyed was the fact that there was no gaps in the story telling, and no patchiness in the plot or world. I loved learning about Kellen’s family (even if a few of them just made me angry), especially his mother. I knew that there were going to be a lot of questions that needed answering. There’s a lot of characters in this book that all have their own stories, which are hinted at but never quite revealed, which just makes me want to read more! The only slightly negative point that I have about this book is that I wanted to learn more about Kellen’s father – though, with that ending, I’m pretty sure my request will be granted in the next book.
The introduction to Calienta was written in such a lovely way. Ignore all you’ve heard about dreamscapes being a ‘cop-out’, in this story they make perfect sense, and if reading the dreamy, ethereal prose that is written in these parts doesn’t make you melt, then I’m not sure what will.
Though the romance side of the story didn’t really interest me, I couldn’t help but see why others would love it – the love between the two characters (not sure if this is spoilery so I won’t mention who!) is so all-encompassing, and so meant-to-be, that even I felt my heart warming a little. It was wonderful to read about them once they found each other, and though the romance was a little rushed, there was reason for it. They didn’t have time to get to know each other, fate literally rested on whether they would feel the connection instantly or not.
I loved that The Star Child was such a lighthearted, funny read that just kept me turning the pages. The novel is a good fantasy, filled with Irish folklore which really grabs the reader’s attention (and doesn’t let go).
A more personal enjoyment of mine about the book was that I loved reading from a male perspective. So many other fantasy books with vaguely similar plotlines are out there but they all have female protagonists, and it gets a bit repetitive reading about another girl. It was very refreshing to read about a boy.
Also, I LOVED that there was music sheets at the back, so that if the reader was musically talented (unlike me) they could learn to play and listen to melodies that inspired the story and fitted the characters. We also got to learn a bit more about the author, which is always nice!

 

Stephanie Keyes grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and spent years traveling and working as a Corporate Trainer before she made the decision to pen her first novel. As a teen, her family always accused her of having an “overactive imagination.” Now, she’s encouraged to keep her head in the clouds and share her world with readers. Still a resident of the ‘Burgh, Steph is now Mom to two little boys who constantly keep her on her toes. In addition, she’s best friend to her incredible rockstar of a

husband. She is an active member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), a speaker and teacher, as well as a featured author for Love a Happy Ending Lifestyle e-magazine. Keyes is the author of the YA Fantasy series, The Star Child, which currently includes The Star Child, After Faerie, The Fallen Stars, and The Star Catcher, all from by Inkspell Publishing. The Fallen Stars was a 2013 semi-finalist in the Kindle Book Awards. The Star Child has topped the Amazon best-seller list several times since its 2012 release. Steph writes YA novels because she’s a hopeless romantic who lives to believe that Magick truly does exist. She is hard at work on a new YA novel.

GIVEAWAY

Want to win…1st Prize-Book boyfriend bag

2nd Prize-The Star Catcher playlist on iTunes.

3rd Prize-New swag pack? If so, enter here!

The Star Child Blog Tour’s next stop is… A review on Sim’s Bookish Thoughts! Check out their blog tomorrow to see what they thought of the book. Bloggers also taking part in the tour are:

Reviewed the Book, The Book Cwtch, Booktuation, Aisha Reads Books, Green Embers, Lynsey James, She Loves to Read, Best Chick Lit

Bout of Books 10 – Sign Up & Goals Post!

Hello everyone! I’m going to be taking part in Bout of Books again. However, since it’s during exam time I have a tiny goal of just 2 books. My normal pace is about 1 book a week, so I’m hoping to double that. Before I show you the books I’m hoping to read though, here’s where you can find everything about Bout of Books.

Fire and Flood by Victoria Scott

I’ve been wanting to read this one ever since it came out, and after hearing a friend rave about it, I think it’s about time I read it!

Summary: Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can’t determine what’s wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She’s lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she’s helpless to change anything.

Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It’s an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother’s illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there’s no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.

The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can’t trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?

Victoria Scott’s breathtaking novel grabs readers by the throat and doesn’t let go.

– from Goodreads

Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop

I’ve had this as an ARC for quite a while, and after starting it a little bit I feel bad about taking so long to read it. Hopefully I can get it read!

Summary: The Darkness has had a Prince for a long, long time. Now the Queen is coming.

For years the realm of Terreille has been falling into corruption, as the powerful Queens who rule it have turned to cruelty.

But there is hope – a prophetic vision has revealed the coming of a Queen more powerful than any other. And once the foundations of her power – father, brother, lover – are in place, she will emerge from the darkness, bringing freedom.

For she is the living myth, dreams made flesh; not just any witch, but Witch.

– from Goodreads