Ironskin by Tina Connolly

Overall Rating: 2 stars

Date Finished: January 29, 2017

I will start by saying that it took me a while to finish this book. The truth is that I was rather bored and there were other books that arrived that interested me more so this kept getting pushed to the side burner. Of course, the breaks in between reading may have affected how I felt about the book, but I never really felt any drive to keep reading either.

Unfortunately, the problems with this book begin with the premise itself. See, this book is premised as a retelling of Jane Eyre but in a world full of the Fae. So, you start off the book with very high expectations which are in all honesty pretty much impossible to meet because in all honesty we all know that it can't ever really compare to Jane Eyre. So the book set itself up but even alluding to it being a Jane Eyre retelling.

The second big thing is the romance. Now, there characters weren't all that great or really hashed out much, but that is unfortunately common in YA novels. The real issue is that the romance was based on absolutely nothing. Jane started falling in love with Edward based on almost no interaction. She would only see him for 5 minutes a week and sometimes less. And  yet, she just couldn't resist him and these deep feeling were developing just based on her obsessing over him? Not quite enough to make for an enjoyable romance.

And there is the main character herself. She was such a downer. Yes, she was injured. Yes, she had reasons to be bitter. But she was obsessed. She spent all of her time moping or obsessing about all the things she didn't have and felt she deserved. And all of this led her ridiculous, vain decision that could have ended everything. 

Towards the end you begin to see a difference in Jane as she grows and yet she is offered the chance to have a mask placed, on that would forever cover her deformity and its ill effects on other people. The catch is that the mask if made from fae mask which means that anyone with a mask can have their body taken over by the fae. Not only has the Queen already been trying to take her over but now she has personally witnessed people being taken over, and yet, despite all the risks, she decides to get a mask but the only thing she cares about is being pretty and special. And of course she is devastated when surprise, surprise it all backfires.

But even in the end she gets a  new mask and the overall message of the whole book is that looks is all that matters and the guy could never love her is she didn't have a normal face again. And of course, its okay to put your life, the life of everyone you care about, and the safety of your whole country in jeopardy just so she an be pretty. 

The Beauty of Darkness (Remnant Chronicles #3) by

Overall Rating: 3.5 stars

Date Finished: December 15, 2016

The last book in a series is always a completely different beast from all the other books because it has to somehow wrap up everything that has happened throughout the series in a satisfying way and that is surprisingly hard to do. I try to reasonable when it comes to last books, but at the same time there are so many amazing series that rock the last book, is that really so much to ask?

And while this book was a pretty good conclusion for the series, there were still some things that I felt were lacking. 

One of those things was the relationship between Lia and Rafe. They kind of ignore the real world while they are crossing the plains and somehow imagine that their love will overcome all politics no matter what. Only to return to civilization and crack within the first few days. She won't change, he tries to cage her, and then when he finally decides to let her go and save her country, even though he provides his support, its at the cost of the relationship. There was no, hey come find me when you're done. It was, if you do this then we're over. Then when he comes to her rescue he's engaged to someone else. And then it isn't until everything is over that they finally decide to make it work. But here's the problem. She's the queen of one country, He's the king of another, and yet no one has any intention of uniting the kingdoms and yet in the last scene they say that they are going to make it work no matter what.

So, let's imagine that for a second. Let's say they chose to get married, or just be lovers if they so choose, without uniting the kingdoms. Both kingdoms are still going to need an heir. Maybe she chooses an heir from among the people, but Rafe will still need an heir. So, does he have an heir with someone from his kingdom or does their child become his heir. Does that then mean that any of their children will be raised with him. Will they spend six months in each country or only live exclusively in the kingdom they will rule? And on and on it goes. There are so many complications that them saying they were going to make it work sounded more like an empty promise to me than anything else. Saying they will work things out just covers up the fact that logistically there is no good way to work it out without one of their kingdoms suffering. 

I will say that I was very happy with how things ended with Kaden. For a while I was worried they would try to complicate the love triangle again but I feel like that worked out the way the author played that all out.

The other thing that left me wanting more was the ending with the Komizar. There was all this build up and then when the big confrontation finally happens there is absolutely no confrontation. He is pushed over the edge of a cliff and that's the end of it. There is no struggle, no fight beforehand, no desperation, nothing. Just, oh no there's the Komizar, oh, and now it's over. 

And yet, despite these things that frustrated me, there were also plenty of things that I liked. Lia really comes into her own and learns to have confidence. She saves her kingdom, and in doing so saves all the other too. So, even though I wasn't fully satisfied, it was still a good book, and a good ending.

White Cat (Curse Workers #1) by Holly Black

Overall Rating:3 Stars

Date Finished: November 23, 2016

The concepts of this book were very unique and fascinating. People have "gifts" that allow them to change people with just a touch of a hand. Change their emotions, change their memories, change their luck, change their physical appearance, even kill them with just a touch of a finger.

The main character comes from a family of con artists and mafia hit men. He's used to running schemes but then he realizes that he is being conned, and by his own family.

Now, the plot itself is fine, there's some scheming and twists and risk taking but it still didn't feel fully satisfying at the end. Part of it is the fact that he still winds up stuck working for a mob boss for the rest of his life. Part of it is how things end with his family. They lied to him and used him for years and yet he just lets them gets away with it, even trades himself for them. And then he ends living with his psychotic mother and running schemes with her. 

He did some great stuff and improved throughout the book, only to revert back to same old pushover he was at the beginning. Frustrating.

Flamecaster (Shattered Realms #1) by Cinda Williams Chima

Overall Rating: 3.5 stars

Date Finished: November 18, 2016

I really liked the original Gray Wolf series and so I was so excited when I heard that there was going to be a follow-up series. Of course, part of that was the excitement to see characters from the previous book, but also to see their children and the state of the world...etc.

I liked the characters for the most part and there was plenty of action and intrigue...and yet, it just wasn't the same.

There wasn't the same suspense. Most of the book was just them kind of biding their time waiting for an opening and unfortunately a lot slower than I was hoping for.

And yet, other things happened too fast. The beginning with the introduction of Ash and the death of his father felt rushed. We're talking about the strongest mage in the kingdom yet the fight is over in minutes?? And with all of that happening so fast we never get to see his mother or his sisters and so we really get no follow-up on them or the kingdom itself. During other parts of the book Ash would reflect on the past but we really don't get much of a detailed update on his family at all. 

And the romance with Jenna was too rushed. They have some psychic moment and all of the sudden they're in love. They spend all their time together kissing rather than getting to know each other and so it didn't really feel like a romance at all. I wanted to the build up and the excitement and maybe even some butterflies, something! And the reality is that seeing inside of someone's mind doesn't make you love them, so I wanted some kind of building or trust or some time getting to know each other to really build that connection. 

And then we finally get to the ending where things are finally starting to happen but it all felt a bit rushed. The death of the king, and all of the interesting reveals that should have been given more time were ignored or brushed over. And even though we have the epilogue, that left more questions than answer.

Overall, there was enough of this book that I enjoyed that I will still keep reading and I do look forward to the next book. But I am still hoping for a little bit more from the next book. 

Imprudence (The Custard Protocol #2) by Gail Carriger

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: November 10, 2016

I have to be honest with the fact that I really have trouble rating this series. Partially it is because I really liked the original series and I almost feel bad giving this a bad review because it is a continuation of that series. Partially because this brings back many of the characters that I loved from the original series. But the problem with that is that they are seen differently through Rue's eyes, and because I like the old characters more than I like most of the new characters so that makes it even harder.

I will say that I had a bit of trouble really liking Rue in the first book of the series. I loved Alexia as a character but her daughter was really nothing like her. While Alexia was always pragmatic and consistent, Rue was overly dramatic and rather quite spoiled.

In this book Rue is set adrift, so to speak, as she no longer under guardianship of Lord Akeldama, her parents move to Egypt and without her father, she is no longer a member of the pack. So, she has to find her place in the world. 

Because of that there we essentially lose most of the characters from the original series that I was looking forward to seeing. Especially with word of Professor Lyle coming back, I really wanted to see how that all worked out and the new dynamic between Lyle and Biffy. I will say that Rue was more enjoyable in this book. Because of everything happening she has to essentially put on her big girl panties and start taking some responsibility.

There are more mentions of the past, reintroductions of past characters, some much needed explanations, and of course, lots of tea. And while there are some interesting developments, in a lot of way it still doesn't quite make up for missing the old characters.

But I will say that overall I enjoyed this book more than the last one and I enjoyed the growth of the characters. The romances seemed a bit forced, but overall, not bad.

Unspoken (Shadow Falls: After Dark #3) by C. C. Hunter

Overall Rating: 3 Stars

Date Finished: November 5 2016

As the Della part of this series closes up there is a lot of things to resolves and lots of questions to answer and Della is receiving pressure from her aunt the ghost to find those answers fast.

Chase is back. He is determined to do things right this time and he will willing to give up everything to do it. He is working hard to earn Della's trust again and has promised not to lie to her ever again (I'll believe that when I see it). And while the new Chase is very sincere and open about his feelings, he is also super frustrating because he just keeps saying, were meant to be together, and trying to force things. 

Steve is back too, and while things with Steve are awkward there is satisfying resolution of their relationship in the end. 

There is the usual mystery and searches while they try to find the murderer of their aunt in time to get Della's father removed as a suspect. And it doesn't help that Della's father is an idiot and turns Della into the police as a suspect for murder herself!

Della finally meets her uncle, lots of things are answered and everything is wrapped up in a nice little bow. And that was actually what I really hated about this book. I can live with Chase. I can live with some of the other changes and info reveals. What I can't live with is the magical, Disneyesc resolution with Della's father. 

I get it, he finally realizes that his daughter is not a monster. He cries and he feels so bad, blah, blah blah. And then she forgives him and somehow they automatically go back to having that amazing relationship that they had before. 

I don't care how great your relationship with your dad is, after years of being treated like crap by him, after being kicked out of your house and accused murder, there is no way that relationship is fixed in 5 minutes. Even if you still love him, even if you forgive him and do it sincerely, that relationship is never going to be the same. There is will always be drama, and hurt, and it is going to take them years to really resolve everything that happened. And I hate that she tried to just erase all of that in order to give Della her perfect, happy ending. You can still have a happy ending without it being perfect, that's called real life

So, overall it was good but I had some major issues with the ending. 

Eternal (Shadow Falls After Dark #2) by C.C. Hunter

Overall Rating: 3 Stars

Date Finished: October 31, 2016

So, let's all start by being honest and just admit that whether we love or hate these books, we are still going to keep on reading them because we loved Shadow Falls and we just have to see how it all ends!

Now, coming back to this series, as I mentioned in my review of the previous book, I am reminded how much drama there is in these books. There is of course the continuation of the love triangle from the previous book. I wasn't a fan of Chase in the previous book. And while I liked him more in this book than I did the previous one, like Della, I find myself wondering how much of that has to do with the bond and the shared visions. 

There is are still some unanswered questions and Chase still is not very forthcoming with information, which again continues to cause issues on the relationship front. And yet, there are also issues going on with Steve. Add into that Miranda's issues with Perry and there is lots of romance drama going around everywhere. 

The part that I do enjoy about these series is the murder mystery. You have these murder mysteries that also seem to tie into the history of Della's family and that leads to Della running out trying to solve it all before it's too late. 

At the end there are still lots of questions left unanswered and there is a big cliff hanger at the end that leaves Chase in the hot seat. 

I will say that it is getting harder to like a love interest who is constantly being an idiot, or lying. And yet, despite it all, I still enjoyed the book and I still look forward to the next book in the series, 

The Inquisition (Summoner #2) by Taran Matharu

Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars

Date Finished: October 26, 2016

Sequels are always hard because it's so difficult to live up to the first book and yet, I really enjoyed this sequel. 

Now, I will say that the beginning was fairly slow. There's the trials and while there is new information revealed it is all talking and planning and not too exciting. And especially with the title being the Inquisition, I was worried that most of the book was going to cover trials and trips to prison and all of that. Luckily that moves along fairly quickly. There is still lots of talking and planning after that but it is planning for a dangerous mission so I was a little more forgiving on that part. And most importantly, we learn who Fletcher's real parents are!

From there they start the preparations for their secret mission into the jungle. The one thing that kept bothering me during this section was the egging notion that there was some kind of other conspiracy going on. And Fletcher struggles with the same question, because there is no way the Triumvirate would volunteer to help with this unless they were getting something out of it. 

And despite the slow beginning, from the moment they drop down in the jungle things get better from there on. There is lots of twists and betrayals and plenty of action. And amongst all of that someone is trying to kill Fletcher and blame either the elves or the dwarves in the process. The attempts cause the members of Fletcher's team to start doubting each other. 

And despite all the odds Fletcher's team comes out on top. They are the only team to witness the Troll ceremony, providing their country with the coordinates for the Trolls entrance to the ether. They become invaluable to the mission, only to be betrayed at the last minute. 

I must admit that the villain was cleverly planned. I had lots of suspects but in the end I never suspected the one who was the real traitor. And so, Fletcher and his team are left abandoned in the middle of Troll territory, near dead, with no one to help. And then they come up with an insane plan to get out. Can I just say, what a great ending! I can't wait to find out what happens in the next book!

The Flame Never Dies (The Stars Never Rise #2) by Rachel Vincent

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: October 22, 2106

This book pretty much picks up where the other one left off. Nina and the other exorcists are in the Badlands and are trying to survive without resources. And on tops of that demons are being sent from the demon run city of Pandemonia to track down Finn.

Now, on of my biggest complaints about this book is that there is a lot of things that are left unexplained. 

For example, in the beginning of the book they decide to raid a supplies truck. It is two or three supply trucks full of items and a very small contingent of guards. Once they've finished tying up the guards Nina notices that something just doesn't seem right about all of this. She asks the guards trying to figure out what's going on but once they realize that one of the guards is actually a demon they get distracted and the whole weirdness of the situation is never resolved. Why would the Church make a mistake like that? Chances are they weren't making a mistake but actually setting them up for something. But what? Later when they mention the virus I think, now I get it. They put the virus in the food and they wanted them to hijack it. But then the explanation given is that Mellie was injected with it while in the city. So then that the leaves the question of this raid. And if it wasn't significant, then why make it suspicious. Just have them raid it and move it. Don't make a big deal about at the moment only to have it mean nothing later on. 

And then we have the virus. The boy starts showing signs within 2 or 3 days, and yet a demon is able to possess Mellie for almost a week without very many symptoms. And then all of of the sudden it escalates all within a matter of hours. And when they get to Pandemonium all of the demons start showing symptoms within hours. Mellie was the original carrier so if anything her demon should have felt the affects sooner. It was all just a bit contradictory.

And then we have the baby. The world building previously explained says that the wellspring of souls is empty and a baby dies unless someone dies at the same time to give them their souls. Yet, the nomads believe that my killing demons they free the soul of the righteous which helps refill the wellspring. So, why do all babies die without a volunteer soul in the cities and yet some babies survive in the Badlands. And how do you explain how the baby survived. They stop Nina from sacrificing herself to save him and yet he somehow miraculously gets a soul. Does that have something to do with the illness, does it return Melanie's soul to the wellspring instead of the demon feeding off her or is there something else? Is the wellspring really empty? Does it have something to do with the people taken captive closer to Pandemonium. Did some of those deaths leave a soul in the wellspring? You can't describe the world in absolutes and then break the rules when its convenient without explaining it! Drives me crazy.

And there is the whole battle for Pandemonium. Nina gives herself up expecting to sacrifice herself in order to destroy all the demons. And while there was some action and some losses on both sides, in the end I was left feeling like it was too easy. They infiltrate the city fairly easily, the showdown with the big bad demon everyone is scared of lasts two minutes, and they basically topple a demon fortress with squirt bottles. I don't know, it was all a bit disappointing. Especially with that big bad demon being Finn and Grayson's dad, I expected something more from the show down. I don't know, a conversation, him trying to convince them to stay, or at least seeing it from Finn's perspective instead of Nina just seeing from the corner of the eye that Finn had killed his dad. Talk about anticlimactic!

Anyway, while there was some good parts to the book and it wasn't bad overall, there is still a lot that left me frustrated and wishing for something more.

Bound (Arelia LaRue #1) by Kira Saito

Overall Rating: 1 star

Date Finished: October 21, 2016

After seeing a number of positive reviews by other people I decided to give this book a try. The idea of the book itself intrigued me. I mean New Orleans, Voodoo and Curses, sure makes for an interesting premise. And while there have been quite a few books on Voodoo and New Orleans must of the ones I've read recently have been dystopian or set in a very different New Orleans. This series takes place in the good ol' New Orleans we know now and promises to dredge up its past with a curse that originates from the time of slavery. And so all of that seemed fairly promising going in. 

And yet...

Despite everything it promised, this book was just a complete flop for me. 

The main characters were annoying, stereotypical and one dimensional. The main character herself is supposed to come from a poor family and she spends her whole life taking care of her grandmother and trying to make ends meet. And yet despite that, she was not a likable character, and in part that was because of her horrible taste in friends. Her best friends is basically Barbie 2.0. She is rich and shallow and sleeps with just about anyone who walks and all she cares about is marrying a rich guy so she can make everyone jealous and stay at home while her rich husband maintains her expensive tastes. She spends the whole book complaining because you have no idea how hard it is being me and all I want is a rich boyfriend so stay out of my way. She is completely pathetic, and yet Arelia forgives her over and over. 

And while Arelia herself wasn't much of a likeable character, you throw in the romance and it just made things worse. Arelia falls in love almost immediately and spends her time daydreaming about him because he gave her chocolates. The conversations were stiff and awkward with all these random modern references that never lead into anything. 

The voodoo was mostly non-existent expect for random references to her studying with her aunt. There is one scene where she heals a kid at the beginning, and yet what she did goes against everything her aunt teaches her later so it was all a bit contradictory. Even the spirits were a bit ridiculous. One of the spirits agrees to help her in exchange for her trying to set him up with another spirit because he's so self-conscious and doesn't feel attractive enough. Boo hoo. Really?

The ending was also really lame.  Unfortunately, I just didn't really enjoy any of this and it took all my willpower to actually finish it and not just DNF at 30%.

Six of Crows (Six of Crows #1) by Leigh Bardugo

Overall Stars: 3.5 stars

Date Finished: October 16, 2016

I was a little nervous going into this series because I was disappointed with the Grisha series and so I found myself very reluctant to pick up this series. It says that it takes place in the same world at the Grisha series but doesn't really explain a whole lot beyond that. I found myself expecting (as with any other spin off) to run into the same characters from the previous series and I just didn't like that series enough to want to continue with the same characters. And I also didn't like the characterization of the some of the characters in the original series so I found myself expecting the same issues here.

And boy was I glad to be wrong! This book has everything that the Grisha series was missing.  It was fast paced and had enjoyable, gritty, complicated characters that all made the ride so much more exciting. 

I enjoyed all of the characters which was surprising. With such a mix of characters I expected some issues there but the reality is that they were all well-written. Each one had their jaded past and their darkness they were struggling with. and each of the characters continued to develop as the story progressed. I also thought that I would get tired of all the POV changes. And while I will say that it does change quite a bit, I did feel like each character added something different so I was actually okay with most of the changes.

I was a little disappointed with the ending. First was the way things ended with Kaz and "Ghost". Kaz had been progressing throughout the book and I was frustrated but his unwillingness to take that one last step to prove himself to her. 

Also, Kaz was always one step ahead and so I was really excited for some surprise reveal at the end showing how awesome Kaz is and how he planned for all of the contingencies, but alas it was not to be. I can see how this would be necessary for the plot and continuing the series but it was a disappointment from the person who had been such a dynamic, intelligent character to fail so epically at the end.

But overall, this was a very good book and I look forward to the next book in the series!

Reborn (Shadow Falls: After Dark #1) by C.C. Hunter

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: October 7, 2016

Now, I will say that most anyone to starts this series already comes in biased. If you're reading this series, it is most likely because you enjoyed the Shadow Falls series and you can't wait to hear more about your favorite characters from that series. After the ending of the original Shadow Falls Series, I wasn't quite sure where this series was going to pick up. Was it going to be strictly Della, or would we see some of the other characters? I was expecting it to be mostly her casework with the FRU or something similar.

Luckily for you fans of Shadow Falls it picks up mostly where it left off. While some time has passed  Della is still at Shadow Falls with all of our good friends from the first series. And while these books focus on Della you still get to see into the lives of the other characters and see how some of their drama plays out. 

I will say that I always loved cranky Della from the original series and it was interesting to see things from her perspective. While she is still the same old, hands off Della, you get to see inside her head and some of fears and frustrations. I enjoyed her progression throughout the book and felt it was a really good storyline. I enjoyed the fact that we got to see both the mystery of Chan and the murder mystery being solved side by side. 

And there is of course a love triangle introduced (it almost wouldn't be Shadow Falls without it) but I really found myself enjoying the series despite that.

Della is a tough character who isn't afraid to stand up for herself and those she cares about and I really look forward to reading more in the next book. 

City of Eternal Night (Crescent City #2) by Kristen Painter

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: October 6, 2016

So, I came into this book already slightly disappointed from the first book. Now, I liked the characters for the most part and the plot was interesting but I felt like the action was often brushed over and the ending was very anticlimactic. As such, I came in really hoping for a big, exciting finish in this book to make for the last one.

Unfortunately, I ended up having the same problem with this book as I did with the last one. The book builds and builds and then just kind of flops at the end. I like the characters, I like the world building and I even like most of the plot but nothing is ever resolved in a satisfying way. All conflicts are short and for the most part conflict is avoided. And the most frustrating thing is that this had a lot of potential to have a killer ending. The end brings this showdown between the evil father and not just Harlow, but her long dead sister, the first born that was prophesied to kill him. And as we approached the showdown I was really hoping for something big, and yet it was all over in like 2 seconds. She walks in, kills her father and then boom, it’s over.

And Harlow was still a bit frustrating in this book. Even after everything that happened she is still pushing Augustine away and then there is this random love triangle for all of one chapter. And when Harlow finally puts on her big girl pants and chooses Augustine, I really thought things were finally going to pick up for them, and yet it doesn’t. And while Harlow is finally coming to terms with who and what she is, and is finally trying to control her powers, she makes stupid, naïve mistakes. Like making a deal with the big, evil tree that only brings sorrow, in order to try to resurrect her sister. A sister she can’t bear to live without after just learning about her two seconds ago. And when said sister appears and seems more than a little unstable and a bit psychotic, she just ignores it because hey, it’s my sister. And when said psychotic sister asks to share her body, she doesn’t even hesitate. There’s no “hey, she might be psychotic and try to take over my body(duh)”, she just says sure sister go ahead. And then is soo surprised when said psychotic sister does in fact take over her body.

 And the storyline with Giselle is getting old. Not that it's not important, I mean she is involved in a lot of it, but rather than the intrigue of the previous book, it was mostly talking and relationships and I was ready to move on from that storyline. And while I could understand the occasional check in with that story, it was almost every other chapter and I was really bored with it.  I also felt like Giselle’s sister was a very one dimensional character. She just agrees with everything and goes along with everything. I kept waiting for her to be secretly planning something and to turn out to truly be sadistic because I felt like that would have at least made her feel more like a real person.

Overall, I will say that I still enjoyed the characters and plotline enough to want to read the next book, but I’ve been pretty disappointed overall with the series. 

Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5) by Sarah J. Maas

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Date Finished: October 2, 2016

Yes, Yes, Yes! I will say that I have been very reluctant to start this book. With so much having been resolved in the last book and the description I was just so worried that this book was going to become bogged down in negotiating and talking and overall just be fairly boring. And at the beginning when they are setting up the meeting with the leaders that's what it really seemed like I was getting. There's power struggles, blah blah blah, and I was preparing myself for boring court intrigue. And then being true to herself Aelin doesn't just sit still, she takes off and starts wreaking havoc. And boy was that fun to read.

So, the gist of the story is that when Aelin returns to claim her throne, her country refuses her. And boy was that frustrating. After everything she’s done to get to this point, to have her own countrymen turn her away was a huge blow. And they hint that the only way she could ever be useful to her country is through political marriage. (GRR!!!!) I will admit that I really wanted to Aelin to just tear them a new one then and there, but I also knew that there was no way she could do that and still make it work.

So now, Aelin has to go and get some allies, which is starting to look pretty impossible.

There are a lot of different POV’s throughout the book and for the most part it was enjoyable to see the different perspectives and how it all starts to come together. I will admit that at the beginning some one of the perspectives seemed quite boring and irrelevant but in the end it all came together to give the book more depth.

And more than anything I have to say that I enjoyed the fact the Aelin was her same old arrogant, chaotic queen-self. She wrought havoc and spilt blood and fought tooth and nail for her allies. And as we near the end of the book it just appears impossible that things will work out.

And while I don’t want to give too much away, let me just say, THAT ENDING!!!

At the end you just keep waiting for someone to say, just kidding, and yet, despite all of the crazy twists and turns, Aelin planned for all of it and everyone is left reeling by her pure awesomeness with everything she managed to bring together in the end. It is definitely not the end, there is still a lot to be done, but I will say that I was pleasantly surprised that this series keeps living up to my expectations.

On a side note, I will say that there were some graphic sex scenes that were pretty unnecessary. People are hooking up and that's fine, it's part of the plot and I liked most of the pairing, but we went from some spattered heavy kissing or just sex references to all of the sudden everyone having graphic sex. Plot romances all you want but there's no need for it to become graphic now, after everything. It just kind of felt like the author experimented with this in her other series and now feels like she has to throw it in everywhere. I'm more interested in the plot than details. So can we please skip some of that next time?

What's Left of Me (Hybrid Chronicles #1) by Kat Zhang

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: September 27, 2016

This is hard book to review, and unfortunately a lot of has more to do with the fact that I have a very hard time imagining a world in which the concepts the author introduces can actually lead to a functioning society. So, I will try to divide my review and focus first just on the book itself and later on the concepts or questions the book raises that, to me, felt a bit unresolvable.

As far as the book itself goes I must say that I was pleasantly surprised. Going in I was expecting this book to be told from the perspective of the soul in control (Addie) but it was actually told from the perspective of Eva, which I feel like worked better for the book. We still hear Addie and her inner dialogue with Eva but Eva is always our narrator.

Having said that, the book was often frustrating because while Eva was narrating, Addie was in control of their body, and Addie was not really one to act. She shied away from conflict, ran away whenever she was afraid, and spent a lot of time crying. And I understand her frustration and her fears, but I feel like things got better once they were kind of taking turn controlling the body.

The other worry that I had was the romance. You have two girls in one body which can complicate any romance and when Eva started to show interest in Ryan I was so sure that the author was going to have Addie fall in love with Devon and wrap it all up in a nice shiny bow and ignore all the potential complications of a romance when two people share the same body. But happily, she didn't. Addie has no feelings for Ryan or Devon and was not too happy about Eva using their body to kiss Ryan. And while that brings up a whole round of other complications, I feel like they are part of the reality of this world she is trying to create and they need to be addressed so I am glad that she didn't shy away from that.

Now, romance is one of the things that I just can't see a good work around for in this fictional world we've entered. Just looking at the example the book gave us. Eva falls for Ryan and Ryan loves her back. But Devon doesn't like Eva or Addie and Addie doesn't like Devon or Ryan. Now, Addie is starting to show some interest in Jackson but Jackson is a hybrid too. So imagine for a second that Addie is with Jackson and Eva is with Ryan. But then what about Devon and Jackson other soul? So they each find another girl. So, now we're talking 5 bodies and 10 souls. But what about the second souls in the new girls they find? And so and so forth until there is almost no end. So then what? How do they marry and have children and create any form of meaningful society. Do you share weeks or days. And what about the children? Does that mean they only see their parents every other week or every other day? The whole idea just doesn't seem to really pan out very well.

And then you think about the general running of a society. Addie is an artist, but Eva is not. So does that mean that everyone in society only does their job every other day and the other soul does their chosen job the other days? Does the dominant always get to choose or how can they divide life in a way that makes it meaningful for both. And what if one of them is a criminal. Does that mean you punish the other one too, even if they had no control over the other one's actions? Do you suppress the criminal, or does that just equate to the death punishment for every crime?

Just imagine trying to elect a president. Would have to vote for both souls or just the one soul that wants to be elected. The fact that one would make a good president doesn't automatically mean that the other would. And then what happens when the other soul takes over? You just don't have a President for the day? The same problem exists with any necessary officials. Even simple things like police officers, school teachers. And while the concept worked in the book for the small group of hybrids among a society of one soul people, I just don't see a society functioning with all hybrids.

So, if we go off the idea that settling isn't natural and the government is forcing it to happen, so how does the rest of the world actually function? And they say the hybrids were in control before the great war, what exactly does that mean? If settling isn't natural, then wouldn't everyone have been a hybrid before then. Or is this double soul thing something that happened later? There is just a lot of unanswered questions and a lot of things that I just have trouble believing that the author will be able to resolve in a believable way.

A Torch Against the Night (An Ember in the Ashes #2) by Sabaa Tahir

Overall Rating: 4 stars

Date Finished: September 22, 2016

Very few sequels live up to the first book in a series. For that same reason, I am always reluctant to start a second book in a series because there’s just no way it can live up to the first one and so many fail horribly. Now, I still found the first book more exciting but this book definitely lived up to what I was expecting of the series.

This book picks up where the other one left off. Elias and Laia are running for this lives and Helene must reluctantly hunt them down.

One of things that I really enjoyed about this book is that it was so dark and real. Too often in books like these miraculous things happen and all the main characters comes out on top and they somehow manage to save everyone they love against all days. And yet, reality is so much darker. Especially in an Empire like the one they are running from, with a cruel Empire leading them.

Helene struggles to come to terms with her love for Elias and her loyalty to the Empire. She plots and plans and yet every time she tries to come out on top she fails and in the end, she pays for it in unimaginable ways.

Elias is trying to come to terms with his imminent death. He was poisoned by his mother and knows that no matter what he does his end is drawing near. And while there were some frustrating decisions, for the most is was all consistent with his character. Despite it all, throughout it all he never gives up and never stops fighting.

Laia is the one that really frustrated me in the book. She is falling in love with Elias. And then her friend from the rebellion shows up and she starts to change. She was such a strong, fierce character and she burns so brightly, and yet she lets undermine her. After Elias leaves she allows him to cause her to be weak, to doubt herself and her gifts and her power to change the world. And the whole while that he is treating her so cruelly, she allows herself to live him. Now, in hindsight, I can see how this needed to happen plot wise but it was so frustrating to see Laia waste away into someone who was barely recognizable from the first book. Despite that she fights back and in the end they are able to accomplish the impossible. I just hope that this whole process brings us a stronger, fiercer Laia for the next book.

There is lots of ups and downs in this book. Some joy and lots of heartache. There is intrigue and plotting and fighting and action. The characters were inspiring and overall the book was just outright enjoyable. For the first time in a long time I actually find myself looking forward to the third book!

Greta and the Goblin King (Mylena Chronicles #1) by Chloe Jacobs

Overall Rating: 3 Stars

Date Finished: September, 21, 2016

This is a loose retelling of Hansel and Gretel. Greta (aka Gretel) and her younger brother (not named hansel by the way) are lured into a witches trap by the smell of gingerbread. But instead of teaming together to throw the witch into the fire, Greta saves her brother from the fire only to fall in herself. The fire turns out to be a portal into another world called Mylena.

There were a couple frustrations that I had. The first being that it feels like you start out the book having missed a couple chapters. Greta's angsty relationship with the dark Goblin king, Isaac, is already in full swing. While the author summarizes what happened in the past two weeks it wasn't enough. I wanted to read that first meeting in the bar, that first dream and everything after, not just get random hints here and there. Greta's hot and cold act with Isaac got real old. I get that this is all part of a typical YA relationship but it kept going throughout almost the entire book.

And despite that I still kind of like Greta as a character and then the author goes and throws in a completely unnecessary love triangle.

Wyatt is the human love interest and was a great character until they threw in the love interest. He was great with the younger boys and a great leader and then the supposed romance changes it. To me, that ruined all of it. He somehow fell in love with her in two days, so much in love that he would give anything for her and can't stop thinking about her. And that of course has nothing to do with the fact that Greta is the first girl he's seen in years. And now that is going to complicate the next book because Greta's rejection will cause a wedge and blah, blah, and I'm already seeing the next book going downhill.

And then when things start to get tough, Greta keeps almost dying. Now, to be fair, she almost died at the beginning of the book as well, which puts in to question how good she really is. And I also understand that she is just a human against supernatural creatures and she is trying to protect this group of kids, but she keeps failing. Over and over. I mean, she is saved by little kids who don’t even know who to fight. I could get having a couple hard fights where she gets badly injured but I felt like she was getting badly injured every time she tried to fight, and that just made it harder to see her as the tough as nails hunter she is supposed to be.

It wasn't a bad read but not very original and I'm a bit doubtful about the rest of the series.

Hope and Red (Empire of Storms #1) by Jon Skovron

Overall Rating: 3.5 Stars

Date Finished: September 20, 2016

When I read that this was a combination of pirates and samurai I was both intrigued and doubtful that it could be pulled off well. It’s hard to find a good Samurai book at all, yet alone one with pirates mixed in.

This story follows our two main characters, Red and Hope.

Hope is the only survivor of deadly experimentation performed on her village. She is taken in by Monk warriors and the leader secretly trains her in the art of fighting. He is killed for teaching a female and she escapes with the goal of exacting her revenge. In the mean time she works as security on a ship.

Red is a rare survivor of a drug addicted mother and is marked by the drug with red eyes. He spends some time living life as a pirate (really just a couple of months) and mostly gets by as a thief in the ghetto.

Now, while the Samurai part of this book is showed through Hope, Red really isn’t a pirate for very long and is not until the end of the book that the whole pirate thing becomes a big part of the book, and that is really more hinting at what we will see in the next book, not so much what you see in this book.

That being said, I really enjoyed the characters in the book. Red is such a great character and I loved his comments and humor. Hope was definitely more closed off but I also enjoyed seeing how she started to open up around Red.

The thing that I will say, is that I felt like there was too much going on. At first all of the action is great and amazing and you’re just soo excited to get things underway, but then it never really ends. The fight in the ghetto was a big deal in and of itself. I figured that there would a big fight for the ghetto, they would win and then things would wrap up and the rest would be left for the next book. But it just continues almost nonstop. You have the tracking, the fight in the rich neighborhood, the flight to the docks, the chase over the sea, and then the big fight at the end of the book. And you also have a few different POV’s thrown in there as well. Now, all of that was well written and enjoyable but at one point I just kind of wanted the author to get to the point.

Now, having reached the end if became obvious that most of that was necessary in order to gather together all of the crew that they would need to take on the Empire in the next book, and it all makes sense in hindsight, but while reading I found myself just wanting the author to finally wrap things up.

I wasn’t too happy with how the ending separated Red and Hope and it will be interesting to see how things pan out in the next book because Red was my favorite character and I don’t know if it will be the same if he is unrecognizable after all the alterations. 

Silence (The Queen of the Dead #1) by Michelle Sagara

Overall Rating: 4 Stars

Date Finished: September 16, 2016

I absolutely love the Chronicles of Elantra series by Michelle Sagara. I love the characters and he world building and it is a series that I will keep reading as long as it lasts (and it’s already been going for a while). So, of course when Michelle Sagara comes out with her first YA series, I have to read it.

Now, I have to admit that I was really bored through the first half of the book. and at one point even thought of not finishing. I found the main character boring and uninteresting. Nothing was really happening (despite all the vague threats that something would happen) and there was mostly just a lot of talking. Both of the main characters are still caught up on their exes and so there is no real romance building and not a whole lot developing with the necromancy either so it was a bit frustrating.

And then they go to a random party and a necromancer shows up looking to recruit Emma and things start to pick up. From there things start to move faster and there are clear goals set so even most of the down time is planning or researching. Emma finally starts using her powers and the book comes to a big closing.

I will say that I was very surprised at the end with how much I found that I had enjoyed the book. I was more than prepared to give this book a very low rating and yet, things really turned around and left me excited for the next book.

By the end I really began to like all of the characters, especially Michael. I can't remember ever reading a book with an Autistic character. I have known a few people with Autism and I felt that the author did a great job of capturing the reality for many highly functional Autistic people and the challenges for those who care for them. And what I liked the most is that she did not make him a helpless character, she gave him strength and intelligence and he of all people was able to see what others couldn't. I was so glad with his inclusion in everything and what a great, realistic character he was!!

 I also really liked the growing relationship between Emma and Eric, and the fact that it isn't romantic makes it so much more real. By the end I was surprised with how much I ended up liking the book and I'm looking forward to the next one.

Strange and Ever After (Something Strange and Deadly #3) by Susan Dennard

 

Overall Rating: 3 stars

Date Finished: August 16, 2016

I just didn’t have time to sit down and really read this as I would have liked so I ended up reading it little by little over a couple of days. There was a lot going on in this book but most of it was actually good. That being said, there a couple of things that frustrated me.

The first thing that frustrated me was Eleanor’s personality/relationships. In this book she spent a lot of time pushing everyone away. Usually they’re stupid and do that in the second book but come back better in the third book. In the last book Eleanor and Daniel were struggling to come to terms with her power and whether they would be together. And in this book they express their love and desire to be together, and yet they still spend most of the book pushing each other away.

Towards the end of the book things finally started to come together and Eleanor finally started to really pull herself together. Eleanor’s relationship with everyone started to improve, but that also created another small issue. As her relationships improved, that included her relationship with Oliver. There was so much hinting and vague comments that is started to seem like Oliver had fallen in love with Eleanor, which was a frustrating turn of events considering she was finally mending things with Daniel.

As we reach the climax there was a lot going on. There’s plenty of fighting and action but there is also a lot of important things that all happen very quickly and there were a lot that happened in that final battle that left me feeling unsatisfied.

Oddly enough it wasn't for the reason that most people were. Rather than how things ended with Daniel, I was frustrated with how things ended with Oliver. I understand why most people fixated on Daniel, but there was a lot of relationship building with Oliver, and not necessarily in a romantic sense. At the end when she released him they had a communion of sorts and came to understand one another and Eleanor felt so empty and lost without him. And yet, when he came back and gave up everything to help, I never felt like that relationship really reunited in a satisfying way. I don't mean that it has to be romantic, obviously she still loves Daniel, but not all love has to be romantic and there was clearly love between them and a tender relationship that I feel like kind of disappeared after he left which was very disappointing. He could never take Daniel's place, but he was dear to her as well and there should be some joy at having him back, rather than just sorrow for everything else.

Having said all that, overall is a was a good book, there were just a few things that left me wanting more.