Friday Reads: Series Enders - Forest of Ruin & Until The Beginning!!

Hello there guys!

For this week's Friday Reads I'm gonna have a pair of mini reviews for books that are series enders and I hope to keep reading more and finishing more series along the summer!

Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A very intriguing and satisfying final book for a great trilogy! YA fantasy at its finest! I might have had a reservation or two about the way certain developments came about, but overall loved it!

After the big dual cliffhangers on the last book, I was quite happy to finally dive into this one! I loved the journeys that each one of the sisters went on, and how much growth both of them had on this book. There's been a lot of growth for both of them over the series, but even more in this one!

Being apart for so long has strengthen their relationship, given them a better understanding of their own weaknesses & strenghts and an even understanding of the strenghts and character of the other. Pulling a lil bit of a "What Would Ashyn/Moria Do?" now and then still being true to who they are.

I loved how the relationships progressed and built. Not just talking about the romantic ones, although I really loved how the sisters found someone that would support and love them, even if Moira had that one a lil bit more easy than Ashyn did. But I love how Ashyn decided to take charge in her own way and not let anyone's doubts to guide her actions. There were a few lack of communication moments, but not enough to irritate me enough. Family is important here and some of the familial relationships were complex and twisted and very well written, even if they weren't always positive.

A few unexpected revelations happened, thankfully we MEET THE DRAGONS!! And although there's the awaited conflict that we've been preparing for in the previous books, we don't really come to all out war. Some of my reservations have to do with some events in the big climax but still quite satisfied with the book ending. I guess I'd love to get a bit of an epilogue to check on the characters further on (hello, future vision??) but all in all, very much deserved 4 stars to this one!



Until the Beginning by Amy Plum

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A fantastic second and final book in this duology! I love Amy's writing and I love how she can craft intriguing and fully complex characters!

The book picks up right in the rather cliffhanger-y ending of book 1, After the End, and thankfully making progress and not stalling making us worry and wail.

Juneau and Miles have a wonderful relationship and partnership. It keeps growing and progressing through the book, as both of them grow and adapt to their new realities. Both have introduced the other to things they didn't know where they and they make each other better and stronger.

There's a lot more information revealed to Juneau about herself, her past and even the Yara, and although that creates quite a bit of conflict for her and her relationships with her clan and her father in particular. But I love how she decides to face everything with love, with strenght and with allowing herself to give herself time and space to figure things out while never losing sight of the urgent matters at hand.

The climax was not exactly as I was expecting at first, but it was very much the right thing to happen in the right way, even with a few surprise foes to come at the last minute, but nothing that doesn't fit with the storyline and the plot. I love when I get surprises that I should have expected to happen!

Although the ending has a bit of an open ending, it is one that I welcome and not resent, because it's more about the next big adventure but the big conflict is over and behind us.

Very much deserved 4 stars!

Tell Me Tuesday #38!!

Tell Me Tuesdays is a meme/feature created by the awesome La La In The Library, where we can share how we choose the book we are currently reading from our TBR pile!

I'm always curious about that, cause as much as I tend to make myself a rough schedule for books to read and the like, I'm quite a mood reader and sometimes I just HAVE to ignore my schedule and read something else!

 Until The Beginning by Amy Plum

Amy Plum, internationally bestselling author of the Die for Me series, delivers a heart-pounding adventure perfect for fans of Michael Grant, Veronica Rossi, and Alexandra Bracken. Until the Beginning is the sequel to After the End, which Marie Lu, New York Times bestselling author of the Legend series and the Young Elites series, called “wonderfully riveting.” In this stunning and exhilarating conclusion to the duology, Juneau has been searching for her people and for answers . . . and she is about to find both.

When Juneau’s clan disappeared, she lost so much more than her friends and family. She soon discovered everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. Her people’s gifts were actually secret abilities that others wanted, desperately enough to kidnap an entire village.

Juneau set off on a cross-country journey with her new companion, Miles, to find her clan, which led them to a game preserve in New Mexico. Now Juneau’s people are finally within reach, and she will stop at nothing to save them. But she has a target on her back too, because unbeknownst to her she is the key to unlocking everything. To rescue her people—and herself—Juneau must discover what she and her abilities are truly capable of.

 Forest of Ruin by Kelley Armstrong

The empire rests on the edge of a knife, and sisters Ashyn and Moria are the handle and the blade. Desperate to outmaneuver the evil Alvar Kitsune, whose hold on the people grows stronger every day, Emperor Tatsu begs Moria to put aside past grievances and ally with Gavril—at least long enough to make an attempt on Alvar’s life. Meanwhile, reunited with her long-lost grandfather, Ashyn discovers that she is the key to a ritual that could reawaken an ancient dragon and turn the tide of the coming battle in their favor.

But with lies and betrayal lurking around every corner, Ashyn and Moria will have to decide once and for all where their allegiances lie. And it may not be where their hearts would lead them…

 NIL on Fire by Lynne Matson

 Despite Rives and Skye's attempt to destroy Nil, the island remains. And back in this world, Nil won't let Skye go. Haunted by a darkness she can't ignore, Skye wrestles with Nil nightmares that worsen by the day and threaten to tear her apart. As Skye fights to keep her mind intact, she realizes that to finally break free of Nil, she must end Nil's vicious cycle once and for all--and she can't do it alone.

Who will return to Nil, and in the end, who will survive? In this thrilling final installment of the Nil series, the stakes have never been higher: everyone's fate hangs in the balance, including Nil's own--and Nil will fight to the death. When the full force of the island is unleashed, Skye faces an impossible choice, a cruel one she'd never imagined she'd have to make. Soon one Nil truth becomes painfully clear: only one side can win.

Losing isn't an option, but winning will cost Skye everything.

Perfect for fans of Lost and survivalist stories, NIL ON FIRE is a stunning conclusion to the Nil trilogy that will leave readers breathless.


This week seems to be the week of ending series for me! I'm reading all final books to two trilogies and one duology! I'm quite enthralled with all three and I hope to finish them all this week itself on the quiet times of my lil Rome trip, mostly on the flights and bus rides to and fro the airport!

 So what are you all guys reading and how and why did you decide to pick up that book? Shiny new ARC? Comfort read? Scheduled for review? Must have new release? Tell me!!

Waiting On Wednesday #92!!

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted at Breaking The Spine  that spotlights those can't-wait-to-get-my-hands-on-them books that we are eagerly awaiting!

So, what book am I very much impatiently awaiting for it to already download to my Kindle this week? Until The Beginning by Amy Plum!

Goodreads Summary:

"When Juneau's clan disappeared, she lost so much more than her friends and family. She soon discovered everything she thought she knew about her life was a lie. Her people's gifts were actually secret abilities that others wanted, desperately enough to kidnap an entire village.

Juneau and her new companion Miles's cross-country journey to find her clan has led them to a game preserve in New Mexico. Now Juneau's people are finally within reach, and she will stop at nothing to save them. But she has a target on her back too, because unbeknownst to her she is the key to unlocking everything. To rescue her people - and herself - Juneau must discover what she, and her abilities, are truly capable of."


Why am I eagerly awaiting Until The Beginning? Weeell, Amy Plum ended the first book of this duology in a rather evil cliffhanger and I cannot wait to see what's to come next!!

What are you all (im)patiently awaiting this week?

Mark This Book Monday: After The End by Amy Plum!!

Hello everyone! This week starting the week & as the first entry for Mark This Book Monday I have one of those very much awaited books for this year. At first I had added this to my dystopian challenge, but after reading it, I have taken it out because it is not dystopian, but still was a very cool read!



After the End by Amy Plum

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I'm a huge fan of Amy Plum's previous series and I really was excited about this one when I started hearing about it on Twitter (as the author was writing it, commenting on Juneau). I was even more excited when I heard about it being dystopian, even if it ended up not being so.

I will try my best to keep this review spoiler free, and to do so I'll try and keep it as vague as possible, as to allow you to discover things for yourself as much as possible.

I loved how the book started, with Juneau living in this postapocalyptic world with her tribe. We get a very good overview of the life she had and that would help us understand the massive shift the next events will mean to her.

When Juneau starts her travels to this new world she didn't know it existed, trying to save her father and her tribe, she continues to use her connection to the Yara and her abilities. And that leads her to Miles, the son of the guy that is hunting for her. These two are extremely different and make the most charming, hilarious and somewhat irritating travelling companions ever!

The biggest part of this book is taken by the road trip that Juneau and Miles take: Juneau trying to find her tribe, trying to deal with her shift in what she believes and what she thought was true; and Miles spends it trying to take Juneau to his father to win back his approval, trying to deal with Juneau's crazy past and abilities and trying to find out what are the real reasons for his father to get his hands on Juneau.

I was always entertained while reading, may it be cause of the small details here and there about the Yara, because of the banter between Miles and Juneau, or all the information that we seem to be gather about what was the real reason for Juneau's parents and those to were part of the tribe to retire to Alaska and lie about the fate of the world.

The ending was an absolutely awful cliffhanger, but also the kind that is awesome, and I cannot wait for the next and last book! Yay for duologies! Well deserved 4 stars for this one!



View all my reviews

Waiting On Wednesday #36!!

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly feature hosted at Breaking The Spine  that spotlights those can't-wait-to-get-my-hands-on-them books that we are eagerly awaiting!

 What book am I bitting-my-nails-because-it's-a-while-till-I-can-get-it? After The End by Amy Plum!!

Goodreads Summary:

"She’s searching for answers to her past. They’re hunting her to save their future.

World War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.

At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.

When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie.

Now Juneau is adrift in a modern-day world she never knew existed. But while she's trying to find a way to rescue her friends and family, someone else is looking for her. Someone who knows the extraordinary truth about the secrets of her past."

Why am I eagerly awaiting After The End? Well, I loved Amy's Die For Me trilogy and when I heard that she had a new series coming that was a dystopian, I knew I wanted to read it! And after reading the teasers that Amy has been publishing ever Thursday in her blog... I cannot wait!

What are you all (im)patiently awaiting this week?