Monday, January 11, 2016

Mark These Books Monday: ARC Review of Night Study & The Abyss Surrounds Us!!

Hello there guys!

Monday for me this week also means back to work since I had the weekend off (as most people tend to, but a once a month occasion for a nurse like me). I spent it reading & catching up on shows and sorting the library room!

For this week's Mark These Books Monday I have two books that I read in 2016 and that also count towards my challenges of the year (YAY me!). One of them even counts for three challenges: 2016 Debut Author, Netgalley & Edelweiss Reading Challenge (since both are eARCs, both count for this one) and the Diverse Books 2016 Reading Challenge!





Night Study (Soulfinders, #2)Night Study by Maria V. Snyder

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Action filled, with many twists and surprises, very many unexpected surprises that are changing the game as we knew it and that are keeping the series fresh and me turning pages like there's no tomorrow!

Shadow Study left us with quite a bomb and thankfully Night Study picks up right there where we were left, with Yelena and Valek as a team, trying to figure out things together. I so love that as the series progresses these two continue to make a fantastic team, facing threats together and without pointless drama.

Things are more dire than ever, Yelena without her magic and no idea how to get it back, Valek with his torn loyalties and his fierce need to protect Yelena but trying not to be a traitor to the Commander... and twisting and complex net where their enemies are getting the upper hand and refuse to stay dead.

The pacing in this one was neck-breaking and I could barely turn the pages fast enough to see how they'd get themselves out of the very dire situations and dangers they kept finding themselves. Working together or apart Yelena and Valek and their allies/friends/family are always a great team, even if this team all their efforts are barely enough to keep their heads above the water!

There were even more surprises and shocks and twists in this one, that I wasn't expecting, that made a lot of sense but that were real game changers once again! The death toll is also starting to raise and I'm beginning to get worried for my fave secondary characters, because the prospects are are dire and things are looking more and more grim by the moment!

Another fantastic installment in the newly extended series, and frankly with the way the author is keeping things spinning, I'm looking forward to many more books, although I don't know if this was planned as an extra trilogy?? Either way, I'll be bitting my nails here waiting for the next book! Very much deserved 4 stars for this one!









The Abyss Surrounds UsThe Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Tough as nails lady pirates, monsters from the deep, and a slow burn romance with a cruel twist at the end, this was a wild ride that had me glued to my Kindle! Proper review to come, but I need a sequel like NOW!!

We meet Cassandra on her regular life, and we learn as the pages pass about the world we are in, with a few conversations here and there to add to the knowledge of the set up and the way it's changed from ours. Not a full info dump, and we don't know all the details of how or why, but enough to figure out the differences and get a clear idea of where we stand.

But soon enough the real action starts and Cassandra has her world turned upside down. Her first solo mission as a Reckoner trainer ends in failure and death and she finds herself among the same pirates she's always fought against, and what's more, finds herself with torn loyalties and scrambling around for a way to survive and keep doing what she thinks is right.

Once the pirates enter the book, we have this cast of grey and extremely interesting characters that shake Cas' world in ways that she really didn't expect. Cas always grows as a character tremendously, doing her best to survive and trying to hold onto the sense of right and wrong that was her moral compass before, but also discovering that not everything is so black and white and that people aren't always so black & white either.

I loved how gender stereotypes are subverted in many small ways and how in the narrative and the world, they are what they are, not challeged and not taken as exceptions. Santa Elena is a ruthless, tough as nails pirate that can chop off fingers and care for her son and conquer a boat with him strapped to her back or celebrate a victory wearing a ball gown. A father can be the one to stay home to care for the kids while the mothers come and go to the sea and might never come back. No one doubts what a girl can or cannot do because of their gender.

The relationship between Cas & Bao, her new Reckoner charge is quite complex, because she doesn't want to train him as Santa Elena wants him trained, she resents him for his own nature and how it traps her because of her knowlegde, but still, it's always a close bond between trainer & Reckoner.

And there's a fantastic romance, with a great slow burn and a girl that recognizes her feelings but also see how messed up the situation is and doesn't exactly throw herself into the mess anyways. It's still used against her, it's still full of chemistry and heartache and fantastic, and it's a lesbian romance (YAY diversity!). I was rooting for them both all through the book and was quite shocked and shaken at the end because holy spoilers Batman!

I'm so very glad we do have a sequel coming next year (it's written and all!!) because although this ends in a open but bearable way plot wise... emotionally... nope, unresolved as hell! Very much deserved 4 stars for this fantastic debut!

View all my reviews

12 comments:

  1. I was ready to jump on board with The Abyss Surrounds Us at the mention of lady pirates, but then just a few words later you mention a cruel twist with regard to the romance. NOOOOOOOO! I don't know if I can handle such a thing until the second book is already out and waiting for me. Definitely adding it to the list though! And I still really need to read something by Maria V. Snyder!

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    1. I highly recommended, but it's true that the ending is a bit emotionally cruel, thank goodness we have a sequel coming! ;)

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  2. The Abyss Surrounds Us sounds fun! I mean, pirates? I don't think I've ever read a book like that. Definitely considering adding this to my never-ending TBR pile, lol.

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    1. Oh, you totally should Lili, it's very unique!

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  3. Way to go on your challenges already! I think I have about 30% left of my first NG EW Challenge book. Both of these books are new to me. Thanks for reviewing them, Pili. :)

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    1. Both of them are quite awesome LaLa! Yay for working on challenges!

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  4. I've been meaning to read Maria Snyder's books for awhile now! I definitely think I need to try and get to them this year Pili!

    And The Abyss Surrounds Us sounds so good! Definitely looking into that one as well! You had me at pirates. Haha

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    1. You have a series to binge read Jessica! And yep, awesome pirates for the win on The Abyss Surrounds Us!

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  5. I FEEL LIKE THE ABYSS SURROUNDS US WILL TEAR MY HEART APART <///3

    But it's still on my TBR and I can't wait to read it. (What can I say? I'm a masochist lool.)

    I also really need to catch up with Yelena and Valeck - I haven't read the series since Poison Study! Great reviews Pili!

    - Aila @ Happy Indulgence

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    1. It just might Aila, but it's awesome and very much worth reading, just prepare yourself!

      And a binge read with Yelena and Valek is the best thing everrr!

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  6. Hmmm, I'm not sure about either of these. I DEFINITELY want to binge-read Snyder's books in general, because they totally seem like my thing! I keep saying maybe over the summer...

    Your review of ABYSS solidified my desire to stay far, far away! I can't deal with a new series that has a cliffhanger and/or torturous ending. (Well, yes I can, but if I can avoid them, I'll put them off.) :D

    Lovely reviews, Pili!

    Alyssa @ The Eater of Books!

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  7. Awesome review Pili :D Yay for enjoying both books a lot. <3 They aren't for me, sadly, but love that you liked them both a lot :D I am curious about the first one, but haven't read the original trilogy, so not for me just yet ;p Hope you are having an awesome week Pili. <3

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¡Muchas gracias por vuestros comentarios, leerlos me alegra el día!/ Thanks a lot for all your comments, reading them brightens my day!!