Banished by Kimberley Griffiths Little Release Blitz!!

Hello there guys!! Today I'm very pleased to take part of the week long blitz & release week celebration for Banished by Kimberley Griffinths Little!




Banished by Kimberley Griffiths Little
(Forbidden #2)
Published by: HarperCollins
Publication date: February 2nd 2016
Genres: Historical, Romance, Young Adult

She thought she’d lost everything . . .

After spending months traveling the harsh, unforgiving Mesopotamian desert, Jayden reunites with a broken, injured Kadesh. Although everyone was convinced the violent and unpredictable Horeb, Jayden’s betrothed, killed the handsome prince, Jayden knew in her heart that her love was alive and safe. But their reunion is short-lived, as they learn Horeb is on their trail and determined to take back the girl he has claimed. Soon, the two star-crossed lovers are on the run toward Sariba, Kadesh’s homeland, where, as heir to the Kingdom, he plans to make Jayden his princess.

But the trek to Sariba is fraught with heartache and danger. After narrowly escaping being stoned to death for a crime she didn’t commit, and learning that her sister has disappeared, Jayden’s only solace is her love for Kadesh. But even he is keeping secrets from her . . . secrets that will change everything.

This gorgeous and enchanting sequel to Forbidden, is full of love, danger, and heated passion that will leave readers breathless.

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Sequel to:

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Booklist Review:

“This sequel to Forbidden (2014) picks up with desert girl Jayden, distraught that the young man she loves, Kadesh, might have died. But, of course, he hasn’t. Scarred and missing an eye, yes, but he’s escaped the clutches of Horeb, Jayden’s malicious betrothed. Traveling bravely through the desert, Jayden finds him. But that perilous trip is only the first of the dangers to come. Gathering an army, Kadesh is determined to return to his faraway home, where the valuable frankincense grows, and introduce Jayden as his future bride. First, however, they must face betrayal, danger, and a waiting evil. Jayden achieves almost superhero status here, moving from adventure to adventure—not even a near-death stoning can stop her. Little’s descriptions of the landscape are evocative in both desolation and in beauty. Just as good is her pacing, which gets the blood pumping for both characters and readers. Far more than a bridge book, this will heighten anticipation for a no-doubt exciting conclusion.“

EXCERPT:

A dirty, callused hand slapped down over my mouth and the stale breath of a man hissed in my ear. “Don’t move or I’ll slit your pretty, little neck.”

I clawed at the stranger’s cloak, trying to push him off, but he was too heavy. A moment later, I realized my ankles were tied together. I couldn’t run, couldn’t even move. Shrieks gurgled in my throat as if I was drowning, his hand cutting off my air.

Only one day into my journey to find Kadesh and I was already dead.

The sharp tip of a blade pressed against my neck, and I whimpered.

“Give me the frankincense of the stranger we killed.” The man’s foul breath dragged across my face. He was referring to Kadesh, the boy I loved, who’d been murdered by Horeb, the prince of my tribe.

With myself as a witness, I’d watched Horeb plunge his sword into Kadesh and then order his soldiers to drag his body off.

Shock flooded me when I realized who my attacker was. I wrenched his fingers away from my mouth and with a raw voice, said, “Gad? What are you doing lurking about the cliffs of Mari?”

This man was a childhood friend of Horeb’s and one of my own tribesmen. His body pressed against mine, and I writhed in disgust.

There was only one reason Gad was in the foothills of Mari, far from the oasis of Tadmur where my tribe camped for the summer. He was a member of Horeb’s army.

Horeb, my betrothed. The man who’d attacked and scarred me. Blackmailed me for the murder of his father to hide the fact that he’d killed his own father so he could steal the tribal crown.

About the author:

When I was a kid I read a book a day, scribbled stories, and dreamed about having my very own book on the library shelf. I grew up in San Francisco, but now live in an adobe house on the banks of the Rio Grande with my husband and sons. I think I've drunk so much Land of Enchantment water that some of that ancient magic got into my blood and now spurts out my pencil--I mean ergonomic keyboard. I adore anything old and musty with a secret story to tell.

I'm the author of 10 award-winning middle-grade and Young Adult novels with Scholastic and Harpercollins and I make way too many cookies when I'm writing - and I've got the best book trailers in the universe - for reals! Check them out here: www.kimberleygriffithslittle.com. Please find me on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, and Youtube.

Awards: Southwest Book Award, Whitney Award for Best Youth Novel, Whitney Award Finalist and Association of Mormon Letters of Art Award, Bank Street College Best Books of 2011, 2013, and 2015, a Crystal Kite Finalist, and New Mexico Book Award Finalist.

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Friday Reads: ARC Review of The Eternity Key by Bree Despain!!

Hey there guys! Happy Friday!

I hope you guys are getting ready for the weekend! I am, but for a weekend at work! ;) My off days were Wednesday and Thursday this week!

Today for Friday Reads I have one of the ARCs that I had intended originally for ARC August, but that I ended up reading earlier.

Since it's a retelling of sort of the myth of Persephone and Hades, it totally counts towards my 2015 Mythology Reading Challenge, that had been very much abandoned for these past months!

The Eternity Key by Bree Despain

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


When last year I read The Shadow Prince I was quite pleasantly surprised about the twist on Greek mythology that the author had worked on. Qith some obvious references and a few surprises about who was who, I was left really looking forward to read the sequel!

Then I got approved for the sequel by the publisher on Netgalley (thank you!) and then came the Egdmont debacle and we had doubts about book 3 happening... and I ended up pushing back reading this one. Finally decided to go back to this series and very happy that I did, although I'm glad I didn't read it too much in advance of release date (rather quite a while after!) because there's quite the cliffhanger in the end!

I felt that the book was a bit slow at first... after all the revelations at the end of the first book, to find the crew stuck trying to find the Key and having no clue of what they're doing and trying to figure it out... I guess I was expecting them to be a bit more organized or to have more of a plan, but in the end they're such a bunch of teenagers, Greek myths or not, and they don't have a lot of knowlegde easily gathered, laying around.

What left me scratching my head was how wishy washy the team feel was, I was expecting that after all that they went through, they'd rely more on each other but it seemed like although they had THE common interest, they had gone back to their own lives, pretending like the clock is not ticking and the Skylords are not likely to make an appearance at any point.

Maybe it was because it's been a while since I read the first book but I felt like the relationship between Haden and Daphne had taken a few steps back in the beginning of this one, and we spend a good part of the book with these two not just trying to continue with school work, trying to find the Key, but also figuring out (again?) what they feel about each other (in Daphne's case) and how to express said feelings (in Haden's case).

We meet some new characters in this book and some are clearly the enemy while others are a bit more in the grey area, if not undercover allies, but with such high stakes at play, I feel that Haden was being wary enough but also keeping secrets from each other was a problem the group shouldn't have at this stage of the fight, but secrets they kept.

The relationships in general were well developed and we didn't just limit our focus to Daphne and Haden, but also Daphne and the very hard relationship of trusting him again after all that she found out, and how her father makes every possible effort. We also see Tobin struggling with his wanting to find his sister and how knowing his mother's secrets has killed their relationship.

The last part of the book was the best part, since we had the musical opening night with the Key search in a very heist like plan, and the action doesn't stop because there's plenty of surprises, revelations about characters that we thought that weren't important, and quite a dire betrayal! I suspected the traitor a pair of times while reading, but I was NOT expecting THAT kind of betrayal!

A very cliffhangery ending that leaves us wondering how anything can be fixed and worked around and very excitedly (if a lil vexed) awaiting the next book! Well deserved 3.5 stars for this one.




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Waiting On Wednesday #50!!

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 I'm-dying-to-get-reading-already this week? Forecast by Rinda Elliott!!

Goodreads Summary:

"The Lockwood triplets are charged with helping to save the world—but at a high cost.

Coral is always in the middle, always the family peacemaker. She’s the sister with the most to prove. When a freak snowstorm halts her Florida summer, signaling the Norse end of the world, she tracks down Taran Breen—a would-be warrior carrying Thor’s soul. A boy who’s fought his temper all his life and is now a suspect for murder.

One who looks at her as no other has before.

As roaring seas surge and terrifying underworld creatures emerge for battle, can Coral control her goddess magic and protect Taran? Because now she has a chance for more than her crazy life—as long as she and Taran win….

It is written that three Sisters of Fate have the power to change the world’s destiny.

But only if they survive…"


Why am I eagerly awaiting Forecast? Well, I read and loved the first book in the series and I cannot wait to find out what was going on with Coral & THOR!! I'm a huge Norse myths (and of mythology in general) fan, so a series that explores them? I'm all for it!!

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

Saturday Pages: Frozen by Erin Bowman!

As the last entry for this week's Saturday Pages I have a book that was one of my "me" reads but that also counts for my Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014!

Frozen by Erin Bowman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Last year I quite enjoyed Taken, Erin Bowman's dystopian debut and with a rather interesting ending, I was quite excited to read Frozen and find out what happened next.

As always with a sequel you can expect some spoilers for the previous book, but I will do my best to keep it as spoiler free as possible for Frozen.

The story starts with Gray going on a mission lead by his father to try and contact another of the settlements in the Laicos Project, one that was considered a failure since the population ended up killing themselves in internal fights. But the people at Crevice Valley have reasons to doubt that and to want and try to turn any survivors into allies against the Order.

The journey brought many conflicts into view and even more after a pair of unexpected things happened. I wasn't expecting the Forgeries to be so central to the plot developments in this book, but they were. Not only they challenge the Rebels and Gray's certainity of what they know and how well they know each other, but also give some food for thought about what we consider real and human, how we separate us and them? What can we justify that way?

I wasn't sure what to expect when they reached the north settlement, but not exactly what we got for sure! I was so surprised about how a few generations could turn things back so quickly even when they had the technical advantage a while back.

Even if I had a few issues with the uneven pacing and I so wasn't a fan of Gray's inability to make up his mind between the two girls, and kept pushing and pulling both along, which proved quite a bad idea with such a dire mission underway, I really enjoyed this book and I don't think it suffers from middle book syndrome. While the love triangle isn't really resolved do to a quite brilliant plot twist near the end, we get a lot of plot progression, character growth and we can expect some really interesting things in the showdown between the Order and the Rebels (and their newly gained allies!).

Well deserved 3 to 3.5 stars for this one.



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Friday Reads: The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson!!

I'm starting this week's Friday Reads with a sequel that is part of my 2014 Series Challenge and that as luck would have it did not suffer from middle book syndrome! The only pity is that the final book won't be coming out this year, but the next which is quite a bummer!

The Madness Underneath by Maureen Johnson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Madness Underneath started very shortly after the ending of The Name of The Star, so you can expect some spoilers for the first book in this review, but as usual I will do my best to ensure I won't spoil this one for you.

This is a great sequel and let me tell you, it doesn't suffer at all from the dreaded middle book syndrome. The story progresses if in a bit of an unexpected direction, but that had some crumbs planted on the first book.

Rory is trying to deal with all that she went through at the end of The Name of The Star and as usual, she does it in her own unique style. Half trying to figure out things, half pretending she's okay and ignoring whatever issues she might have, and all around lying to everyone around her about what happened.

She discovers some new and unexpected abilities and feels like she must stay in London and help Stephen, Boo and Callum. But her parents are understandably scared and want to keep her safe and close to them. Her new abilities prove to be reason enough to, through some behind the scenes manouvres, get sent back to Wexford so she can be close to the team.

Back in Wexford she falls back to her usual routine of being Jazza's friend and Jerome's girlfriend, and trying to catch up with all the school work that she missed, but she's no longer the same girl she was and she keeps finding clues and thinking more of her secrets than trying to go back to a normal life.

The plot in this one surprised me, cause at first it seemed like it'd be similar to the main plot of book one but then, a character that I didn't think would be too relevant turned out to be not only relevant but the main villain for the book and maybe the rest of the series! We get a peek at a more deep mythology for the whole purpose of the Shades and after an unexpected showdown we are left with an ending that was quite cliffhanger-y and evil!

I missed more of the friendship of Rory and Jazza, cause those two make a great team, but whatever was present felt very genuine, including Rory's guilt at having to lie to Jazza all the time. As for the romance... I have to say part of it I saw it coming, and felt very realistic as far as teenage relationships go, but the other part... well, I wasn't as sure about it. Hopefully the mess that the romance and the cliffhanger are will get resolved in the final book!

Well deserved 4 stars for this one.



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Saturday Pages: Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder!!

As the final entry on this week's Saturday Pages I have the sequel for the previous entry and one that doesn't suffer from the dreaded middle book syndrome! It is also part of my 2014 Series Challenge!

Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Scent of Magic is another one of those strong sequels that don't disappoint, and after a great book like A Touch Power, it's not an easy feat. As usual, I will do my best to avoid spoilers for the book, but you can expect spoilers for book 1 since the plot of this book is built on the ending of book 1.

These series has become a quick favourite of mine cause I love the main character, Avry. She's strong, resourceful and even if she's headstrong and stubborn as a rule, she doesn't usually charge head on onto disaster. She just doesn't take orders just because well, but she is more than ready to work together when informed of the plans. I feel a special kinship with her since she's a healer and I'm a nurse, though I always wonder if I'd be able to take other people's injuries as my own to cure them.

Scent of Magic is told in dual POVs, from Kerrick's and Avry's, which make sense since they spend most of the book apart, wondering what's going on with each other, wondering about each others' safety but never failing to do their duty. Each one of them has a different mission but both are working to make sure Tohon or the northen tribes won't overrun the Realms.

Avry takes advantage of the fact that most people think her dead, so she takes on another identity to infiltrate the army of the High Priestess of the Creator. It's very interesting to see Avry prove her own worth to others and herself by doing something other than being a healer. I loved how she tried to make amendments with her sister and how she kept on worrying about keeping her friends believing she was dead.

We've got quite a bit of world building in this one, since Kerrick's travels take him beyond the Realms, and we learn a lot by comparing the tribes customs and traditions with the ones from the Realms.

There's plenty of military tactics, political intrigue and magical mysteries to keep our attention page after page. We also keep on wondering about the fate of some of characters here and there.

The ending was quite evil, with an awful emotional cliffhanger that made me extremely happy to have the final book to read right after this one. Well deserved 4 to 4.5 stars!



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Friday Reads: Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin!!

I'm gonna be starting this week's Friday Reads with the sequel for one of this week's Mark This Book Monday entries. It's always great when a sequel builds up over the previous book but also manages to stand on its own. No middle book syndrome for this one, sometimes I felt like I needed to take a breather with everything that was happening but I also had to keep on reading to see what happened next!

This one is also part of two of my challenges, the 2014 Series Challenge and the Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014!

Ashen Winter by Mike Mullin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Ashen Winter is exactly what a middle book in a trilogy should be, full of a plot that will stand on its own, that moves the general plot of the series along and that will make you want to keep on turning the pages!

As always, you ought to expect some spoilers for book one, Ashfall, in this review, but I will do my very best to keep it as spoiler free for the main plot points of the book.

Ashen Winter starts where Ashfall leaves us, with Darla and Alex finding some sort of a safe haven, that proves to be not as safe as everyone would have wished. But Alex still feels like he needs to find his parents, so he and Darla decide to trust what little information they have and mount an expedition of two to try and locate and bring back Alex's parents.

This is another book where Darla and Alex are travelling, and though they are more prepared and know more about surviving in the new world, with the volcanic winter and the hardships of it, it's still as dangerous or even more than it was before, since all the survivors are making their choices on how they're gonna ensure they continue to survive.

While Ashfall was more about living through the catastrophe and the consequences of it while trying to get your head around the new reality that you had found yourself in, Ashen Winter is more about surviving and trying to adapt to that new reality, and how it will change you as a person, or not.

One of the biggest strenghts of this book is not only how it shows us the harsh conditions people have to deal with, but also how people would react to those conditions, and how that extremeness can bring out the worst and best on people. I really like how it doesn't forget the criminals and how prisons might be affected, so not only regular people can change and be monsters, but also, you have to contend with the regular monsters out and finding themselves in a lawless place.

Alex and Darla are pushed to their limits even more than in Ashfall, and I love how strong their relationship is. How they're there for each other, being strong when needed and never giving up on one another. I really liked how they kept having to remind the adults that even if they're just teens, things are not what they used to be, and they have to be taken more seriously after all that they've been through.

This book is full of tension and I kept on thinking... what else can happen now! Damn it! Everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong! The climax and ending was quite heartbreaking and when you hope that they'll find some measure of safety and quiet to try and deal with all the physical and emotional scars, they find themselves thrown into another battle about to begin! It is not exactly a cliffhanger per se, but I'm quite happy to have the final book here to be read now anyways!

All in all a fantastic sequel that kept me tense and scared for the character turning page after page! 4 to 4.5 stars.





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Friday Reads: Prodigy by Marie Lu!!

As the next entry for this week's Friday Reads I have the sequel of Legend, the book I reviewed in the previous Friday Reads entry. Binge reading a series has the advantage of saving you agonizing waits and you feel like you've never left the world you're reading about!

As with Legend, Prodigy is part of both my 2014 Series Challenge and the Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014!

Prodigy by Marie Lu

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Being able to read Prodigy right after finishing Legend was a treat because I had all the details fresh in my mind. As always I'm going to try and keep it spoiler free, but expect spoilers for Legend because that's the nature of sequels!

We start right where Legend left us, with June and Day on the run, trying to contact the Patriots and get them to help Day with his injury. June is ready to give up everything in her former life to help Day and try to make amendments and Day has decided that the Patriots are the ones that can help them change the Republic.

The Patriots plan is to kill the newly elected Elector Primo, to start a revolution and change the Republic as it is. In exchange for the Patriot's help to finding Day's brother, they are asked to help. June will infiltrate the Elector's circle by returning to the Republic and Day will be the one to carry out the deed. But nothing is exactly as it seems, not the Elector Primo, not the Patriots and certainly not their plot.

Here the world builind is intense, since we see beyond the streets where Day grew up, we see more of the Republic and we even see some of the Colonies, and we learn that they aren't exactly the paradise and haven Day had dreamed of. There's a lot of political intrigue in Prodigy with quite a few unexpected twists in it too.

Day and June are still our main characters and the POVs we follow, but they're not the only characters that get developed. We get to know other players in this game much better than we did in Legend, and despite the hints at a love "square" we get, it was done in a very realistic way. It bothered me a bit, but never really took from the narrative and the main plot points, and in a sense, it also adds a bit more to the already high stakes.

For most of the book Day and June are separated because in this book and series romance never takes over the plot, the story and the fight never feels like an excuse to present us with the romance. Day and June do go through to some very hard times and revelations in Prodigy, and that changes them but also makes them more determined to do what they think is right.

The ending... well, the ending is not exactly a cliffhanger, but it is an emotional punch. You are left feeling quite horrible and hoping for something that will fix everything in the next book! Luckily enough for me, I had Champion right there waiting to be read!

Prodigy was a fantastic sequel, didn't suffer from the dreaded middle book syndrome, since we learn a lot of important information and the character progression is brilliantly done. Very much deserved 4 stars!



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Saturday Pages: The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa!!

Following the bloody theme of this week's Saturday Pages, here's the review of the second book of the Blood of Eden series, by Julie Kagawa. As book two of a trilogy it is part of my 2014 Series Challenge. And as a paranormal postapocalyptic dystopia, it is part of my Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014!

The Eternity Cure (MIRA Ink) by Julie Kagawa

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Eternity Cure is the second book in the Blood of Eden series, and let me tell you from the start on that is doesn't suffer from the middle book syndrome at all!

I will try my best to avoid spoilers for the book, but it is quite likely that this review will contain spoilers for The Immortal Rules. I usually try to avoid those too, but most of the time those are hard to avoid.

The Eternity Cure starts mostly where we left Allison by the end of book 1, trying to find Kanin and rescue him from Sarren's hands/claws. She's once again on her own but she's not the same vampire she was before. She has a better hold on her monster and her humanity, and even though she's clearly hurting, she keeps on telling herself it was the right thing to do.

While looking for Kanin she meets up with Jackal, and despite not trusting or liking him, they establish a truce to rescue their sire from Sarren, and following the blood trail they end up back in New Covington, Allie's city. And here Allie finds herself with a very unexpected surprise, she finds Zeke in there being a leader for the few Frigue humans that aren't affected by the new plague.

Allie does grow quite a bit during the course of this book, she learns to be strong for herself and others, and despite her dislike of Jackal, she also learns quite a lot about him and his sire from him. She's still a fighter, and she manages to never lose track of herself to the monster, even when facing a mad monster as Sarren ( I just cannot use the term madman with him).

Kanin is a character that I liked on The Immortal Rules, and despite spending quite a bit of this book in a rather reactive position and not taking part of the action, since he's being tortured and being used as bait, I found myself understand and growing to like him more and more. He's a vampire that believes a lot on making your own choices, atoning for your acts and fighting for what is worth it. And despite his very tough exterior, he really cares a lot for Allison as a father figure.

Jackal is a fantastic character, and one I love to dislike and like alternatively. He's irritating and horrible but provides the right sarcastic comedy relief even in the stark and harsh landscape that this book has. He's also a powerful ally and vampire and thankfully he's never used as a possible part of a love triangle!

Zeke is slightly rougher around the edges, but he's still this inherently good guy. He's always a fighter, he's always hopefull and he's always loyal. He managed to shift his world when he discovered he was in love with a vampire, and he can ally himself with the vampires to try and safe the world.

Sarren is the definition of the perfect maniacal villain. Despite the past and what he might have suffered, I couldn't empathise with him at all. He's gone beyond any possible empathy and he's turned into a mad monster, no longer fit to be called a madman. He's extremly strong and fast and cunning. He's the kind of monster to give other monsters nightmares, and that's proven here.

The plot gives us a few surprises here and there and the stakes keeps on getting higher with new versions of the viruses affecting humans and Sarren threatening everything and everyone.

The ending has to be one of the most heartbreaking and evil ones I've recently read! I was beyond glad I had read it with the final book, The Forever Song, just a pair of months away! But yeah, evil cliffhanger advisory announcement here.

Very much deserving of 4 to 4.5 stars!



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ARC Review: Witchfall by Victoria Lamb!

I continue my quest for improving my ratio on NetGalley and on having the reviews for ARCs I've received on a timely manner! This one I didn't manage to have up before relase day this Tuesday, but it's up on release week at least! I wanna give a great thank you again to Harlequin Teen for being so kind to me and approving my request once again!

This one is also part of my 2014 Review Pile Reading Challenge!

Witchfall by Victoria Lamb

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I was approved on NetGalley for Witchstruck, the first book of this trilogy and I really enjoyed, so when I saw that book too was also available for review since it was coming out soon, I had to know what was coming next for Meg, Alejandro and Lady Elizabeth!

Thank you so much to Harlequin Tee for once again approving my request!

As always, since this is the review of a sequel you can expect spoilers for book 1 as those are very hard to avoid but know that I will do my best to avoid spoilers for Witchfall!

Meg finally can breathe without the shadow of witchhunter behind her, but she exchanged that for the long hand of the Inquisition. She has moved to court since Lady Elizabeth was recalled by her sister, Queen Mary. It would seem a good thing, but Lady Elizabeth and Meg are under even a more strict vigilance there, and the Inquisition is there at every step.

The thing I really really love about these books is how fantastically they mix the period time events and politics, with the customs and the atmosphere with the world of magick. While you are reading, it all comes together to seamlessly that you simply think that is how it had to be, with magick in between all the political intrigues!

Being so truthful to the period it also means there are loads of mysoginistic attitudes that always grate on my nerves, nothing against the book but something to be warned about. Also, the Inquisition is scaring as hell (pun not intended, but approppriate) and there's some torture in the book that even if not graphic, it was both deeply uncomfortable and enraging to read.

This is a very solid sequel, without middle book syndrome, with a plot that takes a few unexpected turns, with some very dangerous foes, some new, some old. More magick, more political intrigue, more secrets revealed and more to uncover.

Meg grows as a character, even if sometimes she can be a bit irritating, she has a backbone and she won't stop from doing what's right. Alejandro continue to be slightly heatheaded when it comes to Meg sometimes, but he always manages to be there for her and to help as he can. There's no love triangle despite someone else being interested, it was never an issue of having doubts, though some jealousy was experiencen here and there.

Lady Elizabeth is still not the strong woman the world will meet as Elizabeth I, but she is still trying to navigate the waters of Court and avoid the dangers of the Inquisition. Her change of heart and the end of the book was not unexpected, but it was disappointing.

The climax was a bit quick and over a bit too soon, too easy and at the same time it seems that we go through a loop of "it's over, but no it really isn't" sort of a feel.

A book with exquisite world building, even if I don't seem to connect with them emotionally as I'd wish. Well deserved 3.5 stars.



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Friday Reads: The Nightmare Dilemma by Mindee Arnett!!

For the first Friday Reads of the week, I have a book that I was very much looking forward to and that I read almost in one sitting and absolutely enjoyed! Made me laugh, made me root for the characters and broke my heart a little bit! Thank you Mindee Arnett for a great sequel!



The Nightmare Dilemma by Mindee Arnett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I really enjoyed The Nightmare Affair and thankfully The Nightmare Dilemma was even better!

Dusty, Eli and the rest of the Dream Team and for that matters the rest of the hiding magical society, are still recovering from the consequences of the battle with the evil sorcerer with the black phoenix pet and the break of the Will.

If I had liked Dusty before, I simply adored her in this one. She's got this quirky and sarcastic sense of humour and she's beginning to try and learn to put a filter between her brain and her mouth, but she's still hilarious. She's grown a bit since TNA and she continues to do so in this book but never losing that teeanage feel to her, with her dashes of rebellious attitude.

I liked Eli a lot more in this book than I did on the previous one. He came into his own, wasn't acting too stereoptypical and he even find a place for himself in the magical midst of Arkwell. It was very sweet the way the attraction and friendship mix was done between Eli and Dusty, and pretty heartwrenching too.

The plot mix of political manouvers, general danger and character interactions and relationships was done very well, and I really liked how despite the main plot was resolved and this book is a chapter in itself, you also get the feeling of the unrealized-as-of-now but constant threat that will come forward in the next book.

The Nightmare Dilemma was a great sequel, didn't suffer from the middle book syndrome at all, and progressed the characters development and relationships with a very engaging plot of its own. And as a bonus, no real cliffhanger. The ending leaves you feeling for the unfairness of it all, but doesn't leave you heartbroken without hope. Well deserved 4 stars!



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Saturday Pages: Shadowlark by Meagan Spooner!

Hello everyone! I'm starting a new day for reviews here in the blog! I have a huge backlog of reviews since I went on a massive reading binge during my vacation time, and I want to share more reviews of those books I read with you all! So here it is, the first edition of Saturday Pages!

To kick off Saturday Pages I'm sharing a review of another book for my 2014 Series Challenge, it's one of the challenges that I had been slacking off a bit more as of late, but I remedied that quite a bit during my vacation time!

Shadowlark by Meagan Spooner

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is a series where I find the world building so intriguing and with some many questions still unanswered that always compells me to keep on reading, even if with every book I take a while to warm up to Lark, the main character.

It wasn't as hard for me to get rooting for Lark in this book as it was in the first, cause she's a bit more determined and more of a fighter, even if now with her gift/curse she keeps on doubting herself. Granted that her ability is dangerous and she isn't sure she'll be able to control it, but it annoys me so much that it takes it so long for her to start training to try and control it.

Shadowlark is mostly the journey of Lark to find herself and finally accept who she is with her abilities and to accept the darkness in herself and not let it control her, as much as it is the physical journey to find her brother Basil. That journey takes her to Lether, a city where magic is also harvested from the Renewables to keep their population safe, and their leader Prometheus rules the city with an iron fist. There are a few revelations that I guessed quite ahead of time and Lark does have to make a few hard choices.

The relationship with Oren progresses very slowly, from which I'm thankful, and they have to find a way to accept themselves and each other with the darkness and the flaws, and to find a way to make their relationship work, because they simply seem to need each other to go on.

This is a good sequel not suffering much for middle book syndrome, even if by the end of the book we haven't got that much new information. Lark has grown and she has decided she will go on her own journey looking for answers she needs, and not just following orders, running from someone, or looking for someone to solve her problems.

A solid 3 stars and I'm quite looking forward for the final book in the trilogy to see if we finally get answers about the world and to see if Lark can find the answers she is looking for.



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Friday Reads: Asunder by Jodi Meadows!

Due to a lot of technical difficulties and my super busy schedule of this past weeks, I'm only gonna have one entry on the Friday Reads, but a very worthy one! Another second book in a trilogy that doesn't have a middle syndrome!


Asunder by Jodi Meadows

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Wow, hats off to Jodi Meadows, if book 1 was great, Asunder has all the great and some more for good measure!

We are getting some answers finally, as Ana keeps going through her journey and more questions that only the inquisitiveness of the New Soul can raise. There are big issues dealt with in these books, the hate of those who are different, the dismissiveness of those who we consider inferior... all of that started in the first book, and it's taken into even higher stakes in here.

There's so much of Heart's story that we don't know about, and apparently not even their own inhabitants are aware of it! Anna discovers part of Janan's secrets, but still there's so much more to find out about, and the threat is bigger than ever!

And in the more personal level, Sam and Anna deal with more troubles in their relationship, dealing with their own issues and differences, and dealing with some external influences, all of it well wrapped in some amazing swooniness!

I just can't wait for book 3 and hopefully all the answers to the questions left and others that might come up in the last book itself!



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