Friday Reads: A Court of Thorns & Roses and The Girl At Midnight!!

Hello again guys!

For the first Friday Reads since quite a while I'm bringing not one but two reviews, because even if I haven't been blogging, I haven't entirely stop reading, not at all! Maybe not as much as I would have wished, but I do have a few reviews that I want to share with you guys!

And I'm finally adding some books to my 105 Challenge, because although both are fantasy books that released on 2015, I'm counting one towards my fantasy category and the other towards my 2015 release category, as well as counting The Girl At Midnight towards my 2015 Debut Author Challenge!

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


An absolutely fascinating book that made me want to keep reading! Sarah J Maas writing is as captivating as always, and I loved the way she mixed Fae and Beauty and Beast and made it her own story.

I loved the characters and I loved what a fantastic main character Feyre was! So human, so flawed and so strong! She's her family's provider and she resents them for it, but it's been what has defined her for so long, that she doesn't know how to do something else, how not to be the one having to take care of them every time.

At first seems like her sisters both seem to be a bit of a stereotype, the sweet and oblivious one and the mean and uncaring one. But as the story progress both the reader and Feyre discover that there's more to her sisters than we thought as first, particularly Nesta "the mean" one.

As far as the Fae... I felt like everything was woven so well and the world building of the different courts and their differences and the politics of the Fae and the lies and the curse and all the monsters in the many shapes that they're presented! Feyre is introduced to the Fae through a rather nice Court with fairly decent Fae, with snarky Lucian and strong and brooding Tamlin. But then she finds herself Under the Mountain, and oh boy... all hell breaks loose in there. Everything about Fae trickery and their crazy games and politcs come true here, with Rhys reminding me a lil of The Darkling, dangerous, alluring but ultimately not to be trusted.

Tamlin also has his own allure and oh boy... the chemistry is off the charts when it comes to our slightly beastly Fae! I must confess the bite scene made me fan myself! If you've read it, you probably agree with me, and if you haven't... you'll know what I mean when you do!

For some reason I just didn't feel like the transition from distrust and fear to companionship and then love was done smoothly enough, or I simply didn't connect too well with it, so that's my reason to not give this one a higher rating, somehow it rattled me, but once she was Under The Mountain, despite her bad choices, I felt like the connection was so strong and worth moving mountains, no pun intended!

Really looking forward to the next book, even if I fear what's to come next!! Very much deserved 4 stars to this one!




The Girl at Midnight by Melissa Grey

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This one had a certain feel of similarities with other books I've read and loved but they were combined in such a way that was its own and never felt like something I had read before, if that makes sense!

I loved Echo and I loved her thieving ways and how much she loved books and I adored how she always had the aproppriate word for everything! She can be a bit prickly and closed up on occasion but I loved how she defied authority and had a fierce loyalty to those she loves, the family she found and made for herself.

The fantasy world was built up in a wonderful way, very visual and very grounded in the real world at the same time! I loved how we kept travelling from one city to another, and how through the writing and descriptions we got to feel like we were there, each one of them with their own unique flavour and flare!

Both the Avicen and the Drakharis have their own cultural differences fleshed out although we lack in-depth history about them and their war, which I suspect we'll learn more about in the next books in the series, that I cannot wait to read about!

Great main and secondary characters, with wonderful friendships and complicated relationships, including diversity in more ways than one!

Echo and her best friend had a wonderful relationship and banter, and I love how even though some of the events shape them both in very different ways, they find a way to remain friends and get through things together, their friendship helping them throughout.

Casius and Dorian also have a friendship that span centuries, even if it's not entirely as equal as it is for Echo and Ivy, but it feels stronger once Dorian stops being in denial and opens up to what might be out there.

Jasper is an interesting character, a scoundrel and not to be trusted easily, with a flair for the dramatic and beauty, that ends up surprising even himself with his capacity for selflessness!

The plot moved rather fast, with plenty of tension even in the moments our characters are trying to regroup and heal, and I was quite surprised when the climax resolved in the way it did! Quite the game changer and now I'm not sure how it's gonna play in the sequel!

All in all, most well deserved 4 stars to this one! Can I get the next one now?



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Fall Out by Gwenda Bond: Mini-review and Giveaway!!!

Hello there guys!

The blog is still "mostly" on hiatus, but now that most of the cleaning at the apartment is sorted and I have a pair of weeks till the kitchen people come, I'm gonna try and see if I can post more than once a week!

And to celebrate that, what better that a good giveaway, right?? Right!

This is one of those, spread the good karma sort of giveaways. I had planned to order a signed copy of Fall Out by Gwenda Bond from Malaprops because I needed that book and I love Gwenda and I wanted it signed, international shipping be damned! BUT, then I learnt that Gwenda was gonna be doing a signing of Fall Out at BEA!! *happy dance*

My gloriously beautiful copy of Lois Lane: Fall Out

My gain is your gain too, since I got my wonderful signed copy at BEA, one of you can win a non-signed copy of Fall Out! It will be shipped directly from The Book Depository (YAY Free Shipping anywhere!).

Just in case you're wondering why would ought to want to read Fall Out, I'm adding here my mini-review for it and then you can enter the giveaway via that handy rafflecopter at the bottom of the post! ;)
 


Lois Lane: Fallout by Gwenda Bond

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


4.5 stars. I absolutely devoured it at the airport! With a wonderful voice for Lois Lane as a teen, but one that doesn't mind getting in trouble if it's because she's defending those without a voice or digging for the truth!

I loved her, her friendship with SmallvilleGuy, her beginnings at the Daily Scoop and simply everything from the high school set up, Lois family dynamics, and her need to accept herself as different and to realize that she'll find friends being herself.

The plot could feel a lil bit familiar if you're a big reader of comic books or avid watcher of Smallville the show, not necessarily because it's been done before, but because it's the sort of supernatural case you'd expect the guy from Smallville and Lois to be involved with!

I cannot wait to read more Lois Lane books Gwenda, please & thank you!!

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About the Author:

Gwenda Bond is the author of the young adult novels Lois Lane: Fallout and Girl on a Wire, among others. She has also written for Publishers Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Post, among other publications. She has an MFA in Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, and lives in a hundred-year-old house in Lexington, Kentucky, with her husband, author Christopher Rowe, and their menagerie. Visit her online at www.gwendabond.com or @gwenda on twitter.

Giveaway

Open international as long as The Book Depository ships to you.

It will be purchased from TBD and shipped directly from the site.

I will be checking the entries, so no cheating!

Good luck!

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Friday Reads: ARC Review of Uprooted by Naomi Novik!!!

Hey guys! Still on hiatus, currently in NYC attending BEA for the very first time, but I felt like the blog could do with a lil update since I feel bad for abandoning the blog and since it might be a longer hiatus that I had planned originally... things with the apartment are taking a long while enough and I might not be moved and settled till July itself!

This is the last ARC review that I needed to complete my For Review category for my 105 Challenge, woohooo!!

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Another recommendation from bloggy friends that was an absolute success! A wonderful fantasy with wonderful characters, a plot that was never exactly what I expected and surprised me always for the best!

I started it an wasn't sure what to expect of it and very soon was enthralled with Agnieszka's voice and her story! I loved how she kept on being her own self, struggling with being told to change and finding her own way to do things despite it all. I loved how strong her love for her family and her amazing friendship with Kasia, that despite the ups and downs, is strong enough to brave the dangers of the Wood.

The Wood, oh boy, that's a whole character in itself, and probably my favourite part of the book, along with Agnierzka's journey of discovery of her own magic and her own worth. The Wood was all sorts of creepy and gruesome and simply fantasticly done! And when we get to learn about how it all started? Really NOT what I had expected and I loved how the climax was resolved!

I adored the relationship between Agnieszka and the Dragon, how it went from strong dislike, to reluctant respect & collaboration to explosive chemistry!
I really loved how things progressed with them, slowly and tentatively, but with plenty of spark and I loved that Agnieszka is not pasive about it, takes things into her own hands when the Dragon doesn't allow himself to, and when he runs away, she doesn't simply pine after him, she continues with her work and then doesn't take any of his nonsense.

I read this book in two big chunks, from start till about 56% then got into a slump once they got to court after the fight at the Wood and then went back to it and the court part that I wasn't too keen on was shorter than I expected and things started getting more interesting, dire and creepy very soon! In the end, I wanted the book to keep on going and be longer because I simply love the world too much! The ending is rather open and definitive at the same time, and although a sequel is not necessary, I wouldn't be adverse to getting more stories set in this world!

Very much deserved 4.5 stars to this one!



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5 TO 1 by Holly Bodger: Review & Giveaway!!!

Given my love for this book I was more than happy to be part of the blog tour, and although I was not selected for the official blog tour, Hannah sent us all the info and the giveaway so we could share it too!

Today I'm sharing my review for this amazing book and don't forget to check out the giveaway at the end of the post!

Review

This book first captured me when I saw its gorgeous cover, because I absolutely adore the lovely mehendi art. And then when I read its summary, and how it promised a bit of dystopia with a sharp look at gender inequality and mixing prose and verse? I knew I had to get it!

I was beyond lucky to get an eARC thanks to the author and I ordered Indian food and started reading right away! I was extremely captivated by the narrative and I was once again surprised by how easy it is to read verse.

Having dual alternating POVs work if both sound distinctive and separate, so you could tell who are you reading about without having to read the header, and that's accomplished not only by having one in verse and the other in prose, but Sudasa and Kiran both have such distinctive voices! They come from opposite sides, but unknowingly to each other both disagree with the current state of affairs in Koyanagar.

The world building had a very interesting premise and one that works more brilliantly as a way to make you stop and think about the current state of affairs, and even more when we're presented with a society completely different, based on a big change and taking power and reversing it. And how power can affect and change the best intentions we might have... Absolute power corrups absolutely, and how sometimes reasons are not as good as we thought they were, when we bend them to serve other interests.

Although the main two characters are Sudasa and Kiran, there are other characters, some that we get to know by interacting with them and others that we just get to know by hearing about them, but all have substance and more to them than we would have expected at first.

One thing I loved that maybe not everyone will get so easily is how immersed we get to an Indian-like culture, since Koyanagan was part of India, and it was done so well, it made me feel like I was back in India! I can understand that without a glossary of some sort you might be confused about some terms and customs, but for someone that has spent quite a few months in India in the past, it was like meeting an old friend and it felt so very genuine.

I adored this book because it was told beautifully, it's full of food for thought and it's full of diversity anywhere you look! Diverse, beautiful and feminist... my only complain is that I would have wanted to continue reading more many more pages, so I am hoping we'll get a sequel!

Very much deserved 4.5 to 5 stars and one of my absolute favourite debuts of the year!

 5 TO 1 by Holly Badger

Publishing date: May 12th 2015
Knof Books for Young Readers

In the year 2054, after decades of gender selection, India now has a ratio of five boys for every girl, making women an incredibly valuable commodity. Tired of marrying off their daughters to the highest bidder and determined to finally make marriage fair, the women who form the country of Koyanagar have instituted a series of tests so that every boy has the chance to win a wife.

Sudasa, though, doesn't want to be a wife, and Kiran, a boy forced to compete in the test to become her husband, has other plans as well. As the tests advance, Sudasa and Kiran thwart each other at every turn until they slowly realize that they just might want the same thing.

This beautiful, unique novel is told from alternating points of view-Sudasa's in verse and Kiran's in prose-allowing readers to experience both characters' pain and their brave struggle for hope.

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 About Holly Bodger:


HOLLY BODGER has a BA in English Literature and has spent her entire career in publishing. She is an active member of RWA and is a 2013 Golden Heart finalist in the Young Adult category. She lives in Ottawa, Canada.

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Interview with Holly Bodger author of 5 to 1!!!

Hello guys!!

The blog is currently on hiatus, but I still have a few posts scheduled here and there because no matter how busy, crazy, crazy busy or totally exhausted that I might be this month with the paperwork, the cleaning, the furniture buying & assembling and the move... I want and NEED to share some things with you all!!

And one of the things that I REALLY NEED to share with you is my love for 5 to 1 and its author, Holly Bodger! I do hope to get to meet her at BEA with some luck! She was fantastic on assuring I got an ARC from NG and she was so nice to agree on coming over here for an interview!

Welcome and thank you so much for visiting my blog, Holly! Feel free to grab a cupcake and sit anywhere except where the two mini-dragons are!





Mmmm, cake.

- First off, I want to start asking you how did you end up writing a dystopian novel set in the Indian subcontinent? We don't get as much fiction written about India by a non-Indian author and even less a dystopian!

The story was inspired by a journal article I read about the effects of son preference and gender selection in countries such as India and China. Once I started to think about what is going to happen in these countries in the future, I couldn’t get it out of my head. I initially put the idea aside because I didn’t think the world needed another dystopian novel (even though I don’t really consider this book dystopian but I knew others would). When I realized I would not get the idea out of my head until I wrote it, I decided to just go for it. The rest is history!


- As someone that has been part of an Indian family for a few years and spent time in India and living the society from the inside, I love all the lil touches that make the book so realistic, like the different names for the family members and the like, how much reseach did you do? Anything very interesting or curious that you learnt but didn't end up using?

I did an insane amount of research and probably used only 5% of it in the book. I would have loved to go on and on about all the beauty and the ugly of India, but I needed to stay true to what Sudasa and Kiran would notice and so I had to leave a lot of that out. I also had to keep reminding myself that this Koyanagar had separated from India because they wanted to fix things, and so it would not have made sense for them to keep all the laws and customs of India.


- I love how your story was told in dual POV and how we get to see the two sides of the story and how the main characters see each other. Was that always part of the plan for the story or did it happen later as you were writing or editing? If so, who was the sole POV you started with?
I wrote the book entirely as verse from Sudasa’s point of view first. It was only when I was told that something was missing that I realized I needed to add Kiran, too. At the time, it had never occurred to me to write a half-verse, half-prose book, but now that I’ve done it, I can’t imagine it any way else!

- Your descriptions of Indian food and clothes and jewelry are fantastic! Have you worn a saree yet or do plan to? Your favourite Indian food? I do hope you'll get to try cheese naan soon!

I have not yet worn a sari, although I have a friend who says she’s going to put me in one soon! I do own a salwar kameez, a kurta, several dupattas, several pairs of juttis, and tons of Indian jewellery. I eat curry probably once a week (more often after Christmas and Thanksgiving since I love TURKEY CURRY!) My lack of cheese naan really deserves some kind of attention from a national foundation. J But don’t worry, I am going to be in New York several times this summer and I’m sure I’ll find it there!


- I love how your book uses a dystopian setting to explore big and important issues as feminism and gender equality. It seems like this world started as a way to protect the women from the horrible treatment that girls still get to this day in India, but those good intentions go awry pretty soon and oppression of the other gender is not a better option. I wonder how did you decide to turn the tables to make us see how wrong gender inequality is?

I did this for two reasons. The first was because the reality of gender selection is that countries such as India and China will soon find themselves without enough girls of marriageable age. As of 2011, India had 7 million more boys than girls under the age of 6. Fifteen years from now, that means there will be 7 million boys who can’t find a wife or partner. The girls who marry will have their pick of boys which is why I imagined them all ending up with the rich ones, thus gaining more riches and power for themselves.

The second reason I did this was because I felt like there were already enough people yelling about gender inequality from the rooftops and yet their words have been falling on deaf ears. I wanted to show the situation in a different way; in a way that shows that this will hurt boys too. That is the real crux of the situation: gender equality helps everyone while gender inequality hurts everyone.


- I'm a big fan of mehendi/mendhi and when I saw your cover I was in insta-love! How was the process of the cover? Were you involved at all or was it a stunning surprise for you too? Is there a particular meaning on the fishes drawn in the palms?

I am going to be interviewing my cover designer as part of my book launch blog tour and plan to ask her these same questions. I really had no idea what to expect and was extremely surprised when I saw the first comp of the cover. I’m guessing that she used the fish because of Kiran’s poem at the end, although I like to imagine that she knew I was a Pisces and wanted to incorporate that. J

- The ending of the book was quite open and although I'm sure it could stay as a standalone, I must confess to hope and wish for a sequel to see what else is there in this world! Might we be getting lucky? If so, will it be a proper sequel, a companion novel?

I would love to publish a sequel to this book. I always imagined it as a two-parter: one part in Sudasa’s world and the other in Kiran’s. I have also been thinking about the idea of a companion, however those thoughts are mostly still inside my head!


Thank you so very much for all your answers, Holly! Be sure to check your pockets and bag so neither dragons or sheep try to smuggle out! Take another cupcake for the way!

Mmmm, cake. You know the way to a girl’s heart!

 5 TO 1 by Holly Badger

Publishing date: May 12th 2015
Knof Books for Young Readers

In the year 2054, after decades of gender selection, India now has a ratio of five boys for every girl, making women an incredibly valuable commodity. Tired of marrying off their daughters to the highest bidder and determined to finally make marriage fair, the women who form the country of Koyanagar have instituted a series of tests so that every boy has the chance to win a wife.

Sudasa, though, doesn't want to be a wife, and Kiran, a boy forced to compete in the test to become her husband, has other plans as well. As the tests advance, Sudasa and Kiran thwart each other at every turn until they slowly realize that they just might want the same thing.

This beautiful, unique novel is told from alternating points of view-Sudasa's in verse and Kiran's in prose-allowing readers to experience both characters' pain and their brave struggle for hope.

 About Holly Bodger:




HOLLY BODGER has a BA in English Literature and has spent her entire career in publishing. She is an active member of RWA and is a 2013 Golden Heart finalist in the Young Adult category. She lives in Ottawa, Canada.

Friday Reads: Chantress Alchemy by Amy Butler Greenfield!!

Hey again guys!

I have another review ready for this week's Friday Reads and this one also counts towards my 105 Challenge as part of the books from the TBR pile category!

Chantress Alchemy by Amy Butler Greenfield

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I read Chantress last year as one of my Alyssa Recommends and enjoyed it well enough, then it took me a lil while to get this book and it's been sitting in the TBR pile for quite some time, but finally I started it a few days ago, and although it didn't grab me instantly and I had to put it aside to finish some other books, once I got back to it, I read it in one sitting!

I had some issues with Lucy at first because she was such a mix of unsure and reckless at the same time, that she was a bit frustrating! I began to grow more fond of Lucy when she started to be cautious about who to trust but still tried to play it wisely enough to get information to keep herself safe.

As the title clearly illustrates, there is alchemy involved in this book, and Lucy has to deal with feeling like she has enemies coming from all sides and very lil ways to defend herself if any other than her wits.

We meet some new characters, like Gabriel and Sybil that keep us guessing about them being friends or foes and their motivations, and Sybil in particular made me wish time and again that she would really be an ally and not another antagonistic female character. We also meet old characters, both foes and allies and there comes a point where even the friends aren't exactly as friendly, and the foes... the foes get even more frightening that ever before! I so hated Wexham with a passion!

I loved how Amy managed to be historically faithful with the position of women in the society in her books but also how she managed to give some power back to them and ways to navigate a would where they're at a disadvantage. And I loved that she made Lucy stubborn enough to not bow to the oppresion but deal with it very cleverly.

Nat and Lucy's relationship went through a lot of hardship on this book, even if they still worked great together and shared fantastic chemistry, but things do end in a very painful way for both of them! But it was done so very well and very true to character that I just felt it made sense, even if it was a very painful ending to read!

This book was both a fantastic sequel and a book that can stand on its own with its own plot that gets resolved and finished, although there are plenty of threads left unresolved (like Lucy +Nat!!) to make us want to grab the final book sooner than later! Very well deserved 3.5 to 4 stars for this one!



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Friday Reads: A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L'Engle!!

Hello there guys!

I shall be putting the blog on hiatus after this weekend, although there will still be some scheduled posts since I had some blog tours and interviews and posts that I agreed to do and I've already worked on them and have them ready so now I can stop worrying about my blog and focus only on worrying about my apartment, getting the damned keys already and pack for BEA!

Today, I have a late review to start this Friday Reads, because I'm talking about April's choice for The Midnight Garden's Classic MG & YA challenge! I was a bit late to start reading it because April truly got away from me!

A Ring of Endless Light: The Austin Family Chronicles, Book 4 by Madeleine L'Engle

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I finished reading this one on my last night shift at work and holy hell, was that a bad choice... If you’re wondering why it was a bad choice for me to read this one at work? Well, I was feeling pretty down with all the death and with Vicky’s reaction to it all and did I mention all the death and accidents? A real bummer to go and try to smile at my patients while I wake them at 6 am for meds and blood tests.

Well, I give this one 4 stars, even if I have some serious issues with some parts of the book, but Vicky being a rather wonderful almost 16 year old girl, that felt realistic and rather sensible even being a dreamer and poet and one that didn’t feel like she had to do or give in or feel guilty-ed (not a word, I know, forgive me, I slept lil today!) into doing what any of the boys would want her to do, from Zachary pushing her (for goodness sake, HE’S BLOODY 20!?!), to Leo wanting to be more than she wanted and Vicky being very clear that she just wanted to be friends, and Adam… Adam pushing her away and also needing her and Vicky being mature enough to know she what she wanted but also respecting the boundaries as long as she was treated as someone mature enough to talk to and not a child to be condescending. I was very glad to see that Vicky was more into thinking than simply swooning…

But what really made me give this book the 4 stars was the dolphins! All the dolphin interactions, the swimming, the mind-melding/telepathy with them, Norberta, Basil, baby dolphin… and everything about them really! I adore every interaction, every way in which dolphins are shown as interesting and intelligent creatures with perhaps a different intelligence & understanding from ours. I just couldn’t help but hum “So long and thanks for all the fish” sometimes in my head, and my Hitchhikers fangirl was squaling a bit at all the dolphin-ness. I need to go swimming with dolphins somehow, it’s always been on the bucket list, but boy have I been reminded of HOW MUCH I WANT TO!!

The dolphins also bring me to another favourite part of the book, because I loved how characters discuss and talk about why’s, how’s and science and philosophy and how to figure out your questions about life, the universe and everything (sorry, had to do it, again) and how to figure out yourself. Vicky’s demands of being treated like mature enough would have been rather more annoying if her main demand was caused because she wanted to be treated as someone that can talk about complex issues and will bother to learn and understand and be open enough to new ideas, not just as “someone old enough to kiss” which unfortunately is more the focus on more recent YA’s.

I really liked the Austins, even if I felt some of the Bible talk and quoting and discussions about God felt a lil preachy at times for me, but never too much to make me want to stop reading, only a bit of frowning now and then. And they were what I call the good kind of Christians, if you allow me to use that qualifier. They are kind, inclusive, eager to talk and learn and to help people and not think they are better than others or have all the answers. A bit preachy or not, they’re a family I probably wouldn’t mind spending time with, if I can duck having St Agustin quoted at me! ;)

Going back to the three boys… if this would have been another book I would have totally said “hell no!” but it was done so very well! More in a way of exploring friendships and attraction and relationships, and not simple indecision back and forth of declarations of love. Vicky is clear with them all and the boys are more or less clear too. And quite frankly, the only one actively trying to woo her and taking her on dates is Zachary, since Leo and her seem to be hanging out as friends mostly, even if he tries to push the boundaries and Vicky is clear and upfront with him all the time. And Adam… well, he’s the one with the most genuine connection and that spend more time with Vicky talking and interacting with the least “date” scenario, and he ends up being the best option, even with the age difference. I was shocked and rather appalled when Zachary was revealed to be 20!! O_o I felt bad about Zachary but I was bothered that he was made such a “broken bad boy” cliché. And that the non-Christian option was represented so cartoony, and with the most shallow characters, like Zachary and his dad.

And last but clearly not least given the importance and how overwhelmingly present the theme was all over the book: death. It made me wonder if the author had suffered some loss recently when she was writing? Because sometimes it felt like a way for her to go through the stages of grief and how to get yourself together! I feel like the illness and clearly upcoming death of Grandfather and the dolphin baby would have been rather enough, but there’s so much of it! Yes, I know quite well that life can suck like that sometimes, but oh boy! The way Grandfather’s illness progression and treatment and deterioration and how that affects the family as a whole and each one of the differently was done brilliantly, and that would have been more than message enough, I feel. Some of the added deaths felt a bit like kicking us in the gut when we were already down, you know? I am someone used to death surrounding her and it took me a while to kick the gloominess after finishing the book!

Still, this is a very recommended book for teens to try and make them stop and think about life, and for adults too, because we all might need a reminder now and then. And dolphins make everything better!



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Mark This Book Monday: Something Real by Heather Demetrios!!!

Hey there guys!

Happy Monday! I am quite excited for the new week because I'm getting a few days off finally, and also because I might be finally getting the news of WHEN I'm getting the keys for my apartment and even might be getting the keys proper!

I'm starting the week with a new Mark This Book Monday edition, and this week's is April's book for The Reader's Lounge Book Club! And not only that, since I had bought the copy quite a while back from Book Outlet, it is also part of the 105 Challenge in the Books from the TBR pile category, and since it was released in 2014 and it was the author's debut book, it's also counted towards my 2015 Debut Author Challenge!

Something Real by Heather Demetrios

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Something Real was April's book for my book club: The Reader's Lounge Book Club! I was so very excited when it was chosen because A) I already had a copy and B) I had already read and loved another book by Heather Dremetrios!

This is such a poignant and fantastic book and a debut to boot! It's the story of Chloe, a girl that grew up in front of the cameras (that was actually born on camera) in the family's reality show. Then the show ends for various reasons, one of them to do with Chloe, then known as Bonnie with a trademark, and she works hard at patching herself up and getting a normal life as a normal teenager, and then one day, the cameras are back.

This book is both entertaining and deep, makes you try and see things from all sides, but no matter what, I ended up on Chloe's side. I have never been a big fan of reality shows (I think the only one I really like is The Amazing Race, and I'm not entirely sure it qualifies 100% as a reality show, but I disgress!) and so I must confess to be predisposed to support Chloe on her opposition to losing her normal life.

Family dynamics are a huge part of this book, from Chloe's relationship with Benton and Lexie and the rest of her siblings, the relationship with her mother and the nearly non-existent with her father, to the Chloe's friends, to the entire crew of MetalReel and Chuck (whom I despised and wanted to Force-choke) with the family. And of course the non-familial relationships between Chloe and Patrick, and Benton and Mark.

There are so many characters in this book, but you won't feel like any of them are simply fillers, you'll find yourself getting to know them all a lil better here and there, and seeing quite much more to many of them of what they seemed at first. Character development was very much strong for most of the characters, and the way their relationships and dynamics grew and evolved was a joy to read.

Seeing the ugly behind the scenes side of reality TV was extremely interesting and very upsetting on occasions. Everything seemed like an opportunity to get more viewers and make more money and the people involved, the kids for f's sake!, they are just entities to be directed and used! Show must go on and everything is fair in show biz. It was sick how Chloe was blamed and manipulated to stay in front of the cameras, and how all her childhood was directed and shaped, and once she felt like she wanted out, she was blamed and shamed and judged every which way.

We get to see Chloe with her friends, and handling a crush as a normal girl, and then fighting as much as she can to keep her normal life separate and protected from the MetalReel showbiz, and I was really glad to see how her friends came through for her, so very happy to see such a positive friendship, with girls supporting each other, demanding honesty and offering protection and comfort and support. And even happier to see the relationship that developed between Patrick and Chloe, and how it did develop, with its starts and stops and all the wonderful moments!

I feel like I will continue to read anything and everything that Heather Demetrios writes, and I highly recommend for anyone and everyone to read this book, contemporary lover or not! Very much deserved 5 stars!!



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Saturday Pages: Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins!!

Hey there guys!

Getting a review up for today has been quite a close call, because last night I was too tired to schedule one and I was not sure if I'd have time to write one today before work with everything that I had to do this morning, but I was inspired enough to write a quick one!

This Saturday Pages is all about a quite awaited sequel that didn't suffer from middle book syndrome or sequel slump and that as a 2015 release is part of my 105 Challenge!

Miss Mayhem by Rachel Hawkins

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


When I read Rebel Belle last year I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did, and since it was my first Rachel Hawkins I had no idea I was in for a treat with the banter and the humour, but this time with Miss Mayhem I knew what to expect when it came to that.

What I wasn't expecting were the new twists she threw into the relationships between the different characters and the turns and twists that the plot would have!

Harper finds herself trying to juggle her role as Paladin and protecting David with the lies she has to tell her friends and family to explain absences, strange events and all mananers of oddities that keep on popping here and there, and it all gets even more complicated when the Ephors appear again! I was very annoyed as was Harper when they came demanding and blackmailing and generally putting everyone in danger and not giving any answers.

Harper finds that trying to juggle having her ex and her new boyfriend as part of the team as well as her best friend back, but not quite as she was before she was taken... can be a bit much, even for her. And as she tries to get everything sorted, she finds herself learning to work with others in a way that she didn't have to before.

It was very interesting seeing Harper & David work both as a team and as a couple, and how Harper needs to learn to give up her control freak tendencies a bit, because David needs to make his own choices, no matter how much she has to protect him. Their dynamics were full of banter and humour but thankfully no unnecesary drama!

The dynamics between Bee and Harper also undergo a pretty big change and one that I was not expecting, but it's fantastic that they didn't have a competitive friendship where when there's a hitch they try to tear each other down, instead there's talking and figuring out things and asking for time to do so when necessary.

I loved that Harper's family continue to be present, and that despite her powers and all the crazy stuff going on, her parents are present in the story and not as oblivious as you'd expect. And I simply adore her aunts, Aunt Penelope in particular!

The ending was quite the unexpected twist and quite horribly cruel, so be aware that the wait for the final book is gonna be BAD! I have no idea what aces Rachel Hawkins is hiding in her sleeves, but I cannot wait to find out! Very much deserved 4 stars!



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Saturday Pages: Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda and My Heart & Other Black Holes!!!

Hey guys! I hope you're having a wonderful weekend, in my case I'm hoping to have slightly less busy shifts during the weekend! And I hope to have some time to read ARCs because I need to catch up and finally reach the ever ellusive 80% on NetGalley!

For this week's Saturday Pages I have two mini reviews since I don't want my pending reviews to end up piling up as usual! Both books are contemporaries, both highly recommended by The Midnight Garden ladies (thank you Wendy & Kim) and both will be counted towards my 2015 Debut Author Challenge and my 105 Challenge as Contemporary YA is one of my categories in that challenge!

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm usually not a big fan of contemporaries but when one comes as highly recommended as this one, I know I need to check it out, and Simon didn't disappoint at all.

Simon is a wonderful character, one that feels real and genuine, a teenager struggling with not just his being gay and coming out to his friends and family, but with many of his choices and actions, since he sometimes feels like he has to explain himself to everyone around him, and that can he hard enough when you're not sure about yourself.

I loved that this book dealt with many things, some lighter issues and some tougher issues. From bullying, to underage drinking, to misunderstandings with friends, family dynamics, falling in love and coming out and being upfront about who you are.

Simon & Blue start talking to each other via e-mail, and they slowly but surely become friends, support each other and help each other to be brave enough to face whatever's to come. They end up falling in love and it was so heartwarming and cute and adorable and *sigh* full of feels!

I loved the rest of the characters, because they're all there, real and genuine and with their own strenghts and flaws. Simon's family are wonderful, with great sibling dynamics & support and very present parents that are both supportive and parental enough to set up boundaries and limits.

A wonderful debut and contemporary read, a book that made me so very happy and made me cry and left me with a wonderful book hangover and a massive craving for Oreos! Very much deserved 4.5 stars!





My Heart and Other Black Holes by Jasmine Warga

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is one of those fantastic books that need to be read despite the fact that it will break your heart, but it will also give you hope. And I must thank my dear Kim from The Midnight Garden for telling me that I HAD to read this book no matter what!

This book deals with the very tough themes of depression and suicide, and it does so in a way that feels genuine and realistic and that makes it very easy for you to feel what Aysel and Roman are feeling.

Both Aysel and Roman are at that point of feeling that they want the sadness and the pain to stop, and since they cannot see a way out of the blackness, they feel like they need that to stop and so they're planning their own suicide and find each other as "suicide buddies".

I love how by getting together to plan their suicide, they end up talking about their reasons for wanting to end it all, and how that made Aysel feel a lil different, how it make her finally find some hope, even if it was just the tiniest bit and she decided that she wanted to hold onto that hope. And how she decided that she needed to hold onto Roman and try and spark the same hope in him.

Prepare yourself for being overloaded with the feelings of sadness and black tunnel and then feel the relief of finding a lil spark that can make you see that there's more than just that darkness. A fantastic contemporary book that gave me a massive book hangover! Very much deserved 4.5 stars!


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Friday Reads: Love in a Time of Monsters by Teresa Yea!!

Hello there guys!

Friday is here and with it another working weekend looming ahead for me. My brain is on overload thinking and worrying about expenses and the apartment and the plans for BEA... and I have been half tempted to just put the blog on hiatus already, but I shall wait till May 1st to start the official hiatus, minus some blog tour posts that I have scheduled.

For this week's Friday Reads I have a wonderful book that has been flying under the radar and I feel deserves to reach more readers because it's a fantasy NA and it is fantastic! It's counted towards my 105 Challenge for my Fantasy books category!

Love in a Time of Monsters by Teresa Yea

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I discovered this book through the amazing artist that did the cover (our dear Jenny from Supernatural Snark) and once I read the summary I knew I had to get it and read it.

And I was right, I loved this one so much! I started reading it at work (night shift) and finished it as soon as I got home and got some sleep. I'd describe this as gothic fantasy with retelling elements, because we get references to novels and characters that know, so maybe it's a gothic fantasy retelling of the events that inspired the classics? Something like that!

I loved the world building and how wonderfuly visual the descriptions for everything was, from the landscapes, to the characters, to the feeling of the places and the monsters.

I loved how well crafted the characters are! None of the characters felt too typical or underdeveloped, because from main to secondary, all have more going on that you see at first. Cat is a survivor, a monster hunter, fragile and strong and an addict. She's broken and so very far from perfect, but I loved her to bits even at her worst moments and I loved how Rob always managed to see the best in her and so make her try to be that best. Same with Liam, even if it took me quiet a while to warm up to him, he's a fantastic character, complex and the perfect mix of antihero and villain. And Rob, well... Rob is of course a very complex character, a reluctant hero if there's ever been one, but with enough strenght and love to make others want be better.

The book takes place in a time of monsters, where sirens drag sailors to their death and get hunted for their scales, where monster hunters are necessary and where the most dangerous of all monsters was brought to Scotland to try and save a life. Mixing POVs and moving from past to current events, this story kept me riveted to the pages, wanting to know more, to see what happened and hoping for as few deaths as possible, but the book really doesn't pull any punches, and I had quite a few weepy moments along the book!

Rob is Robert L Stevenson and some of the events in the book inspired him to write his Treasure Island and Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde, and this is the part that made me call this book a bit of a retelling.

Before wrapping up this review I must talk about the romance, because there was a love triangle but it was done is such a different way that I just didn't bother me at all, and that's almost a first! Hooray for diversity, and even more diversity in fantasy books! And as a NA book, do consider yourselves warned, there are sexy times ahead, and there's also great humour, fantastic quotes and a lil bit of magic.

All in all a very recommended book to all the lovers of fantasy that will appreciate something fresh and unique and very well crafted! Very well deserve 4 to 4.5 stars!



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Mark This Book Monday: Summer on the Short Bus by Bethany Crandell!!

Hello guys!

How's your Monday going? Mine has started rather well, with some highly awaited book mail and some really good sleep last night, so I'm ready to start this new week! And the fact that I'm off work till Thursday after working 6 days last week is obviously helping with that good feeling too!

For this week's Mark This Book Monday I have a book that I will highly recommend to everyone, because it's both funny and full of depth and makes us think and makes us laugh. I also count it towards my 105 Challenge as part of my YA contemporary category!

Summer on the Short Bus by Bethany Crandell

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I got Summer on the Short Bus shortly after release last year but for one reason or another it got buried under more books in my Kindle library and remained unread. Then I took part on the 1 year anniversary blitz for it and thought that it was about time I read it and it took over my Sunday!

Constance "Cricket" Montgomery is a spoiled brat with an hilarious and offensive inner (and outer) monologue that made her feel extremely real and infuriating and that once confronted with a summer sentence working at a camp, tries every one of her tricks with her daddy to get out of it. And once she can't and has to face working on Camp I can with kids with special needs... she literally faints!

This story is full of snark, laughs and some serious fuzzy feels! I love how Cricket has to get off her spoiled rich girl horse and face more than her own share of prejudice and realize how that hurts when it's directed at you, as opposed as being the one spewing it. The best thing about Cricket though is how upfront she is with everything. She doesn't have a politically correct filter that makes her pretend to be one thing while snarking inside as another and that makes her honest and genuine, even in her spoiled brat self.

I love how Cricket learns a lot about empathy and about herself and her past and her own family, in a way that she could have never imagined, and even if it all might have been initiated by making the most out of spending time with the resident hottie and Zac Efron look-alike, it is not a change done only on surface. She is not faking for Quinn's sake, so she'll look good, the campers and other counselors are making her see things differently, and see herself differently, and she doesn't want to go back to being who she was anymore.

All the characters had a lot of depth and personality, from the campers, counselors to even Cricket's dad. There is so much more to them all than what we see at first when we meet them, and even if we don't get to know them all in depth, the characters have that realness to them.

A fantastic book that made laugh and snicker, and smile and gave me quite a few swoony feels and that managed to give quite a few lessons on diversity, equality, empathy and being honest with outselves and others without ever feeling preachy or self-righteous!

Very well deserved 4 stars and a very much recommended read for all of those that love contemporaries and all of those that aren't entirely sure if it's their genre too!



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Friday Reads: I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios!!!

Hey there guys!

It is Friday! And I'm hoping to get a pair of books in the mail and to have some time to read before going to work night shift, because then I work night shift on Saturday again, which means I'll spend most of my Saturday sleeping...

For this week's Friday Reads I have a book that punched me in the feels in the best of ways and that made me sob and ugly cry and any other actions involving tears that you might think of. I preordered it from Book of Wonder signed and personalized and I got a special promo letter from Josh to Skylar for V-day and that was just wonderful too!

Since it is a 2015 release it will count towards that category on my 105 Challenge!

I'll Meet You There by Heather Demetrios

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


My ratings usually come from gut feelings and when I've been through so many emotions and I've cried as much as I did with this book, it deserves 5 and more stars for sure. And this is particularly relevant for me since this one is a contemporary book, and it's not a genre that I am drawn to much. I usually am very picky when it comes to contemporaries and this one was an absolute bullseye for me!

Skylar is our main character and it's a girl that wants to get out of the small town she has always lived in, and that dream of going away, all the planning and saving and thinking, is what has kept her sane through a very crappy and tough and all around messed up family dynamic, with her dad dead and her mum not being much of a parent for quite some time. Skylar has just graduated high school, has a scholarship for a fantastic art school and she just needs to get through a final summer before she can follow her dreams.

The relationship between Skylar and her mum was painful to read at times, but so raw and real and heartfelt. Skylar has been the one taking over the adult role and being the one responsible for herself and her mother for a lot time already and once her mum falls into another dark hole, Skylar feels like she'll have to give up everything to pull her mum out of it. It was very much a role reversal with the teen being the responsible one and the mum being the one in need of care. I found myself wishing that Skylar would stop feeling so responsible for her mum and would decide to focus on herself more, and feeling like crap for wishing that because her mum is her only family, and we do take care of those we love.

Then we got her friends, Dylan and Chris, both excellently written secondary characters that break through the possible sterotypes. Dylan is a girl that wears tight clothes and has a baby boy, a teen mother that is madly in love with her son's father and that has managed to graduate. Chris is Skylar's ally on the quest to leave their town, to be more and a genius at math. I loved how their relationship went through some hardships due to their different choices about staying or leaving for the future, and how despite it all they were there for each other through and through!

And then we got Josh, and he is such a broken and complex character and one that I simply felt for so much! He also wanted to leave town and did so as a soldier, to fight in Afghanistan, and he is injured, loses a leg and returns suffering from PTSD. A mess if there ever was one. I am very happy that we got both Skylar and Josh's POV, because his chapters if shorter, were even more emotionally heavy and poignant and made me cry like mad! Being in his head was both amazing and painful and was necessary to get us readers to not hate him after one pretty big mistake he makes, but seeing things from his POV... well, we know he made a BIG mistake and we still want Skylar to kick his arse but also to forgive him.

I'm glad that Skylar and Josh's relationship is built by working together, hanging out together, becoming friends by feeling like outsiders and not really belonging in a place, and after quite a few false starts here and there, with communication and a lil help from others here and there, they find a way to be together. They have to work on their relationship a lot, but they do have dreams to achieve and someone to share those dreams with. And an amazing black lab doggie that made me cry even more!

This book was an amazing read for me and not only because it was extremely emotional for many reasons and not just the romance, but so many important relationships like between parent and children, friends, co-workers, parental figures. And it makes you really think and wonder about the consequences of war for those that come from it and their families. A brilliant book through and through.



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Mark This Book Monday: ARC Review of Made For You by Melissa Marr!!

Hey there!

Monday is here and it's a new week to look forward to! I'm having a heavy on the workload week, but I'm hoping that some book mail will improve the week for me! I'm also awaiting a few things for my new apartment, so I cannot wait for them to arrive!

For this week's Mark This Book Monday I got the review for an eARC that I was approved for via NetGalley, thank you so much for the auto-approval Harper Collins UK!! It counts for my books for review category on the 105 Challenge!

Made For You by Melissa Marr

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I had been really intrigued about this book for quite a while, so when I was approved for an eARC for it via NG, I was quite eager to start reading it!

Eva Tilling is your super popular girl in a small Southern town, where popularity and status comes from who your family is and how long they can claim to have been in the town. Thankfully Eva is not your mean queen bee, but instead we get someone that isn't sure of continue fitting in because it's how things are, or to ignore convention and do what she feels right. She has the perfect boyfriend and a group of friends she's known forever and Grace, her non-Jessup-native best friend.

Made For You could feel like your typical and topical contemporary story about privileged teenagers but then we get a few twists, one is the murder mystery that starts with the attempted murder of Eva herself and two is the paranormal element introduced after Eva's accident and her seeing visions if someone touches her.

Those two twist are not the only things that make this feel less topical than usual, I must say that one of the topics I loved seeing twisted & broken were the absent parents that we usually see in YA. Eva's parents are always travelling and busy with their work, so Eva has always been very self reliant, but after her accident/attempted murder, her parents really are shocked into a change of attitude, and I loved how Eva's mum reacted to everything. I love how she decided that she needed to take charge and responsability and that being a mother was something she had been failing at. Not something common seeing an adult admiting fault AND taking steps to fix it, and even less in something as parenting.

We get 3 POVs in this book, Eva, Grace and Judge, the serial killer aka completely-off-his-rocker-guy. Being in the killer's head was utterly creepy and disturbing, but it was incredibly well done. I was always wondering about who Judge would be from Eva's group of friends and although I suspected right, waiting for Eva to connect the dots wasn't as fustrating as it could have been.

I think the bit that worked less well for me were the visions, even if they were clearly key to actually apprehend Judge and to save Grace and Nate. But we really don't get much of an explanation or clue as to why visions are possible, or other clues about paranormal stuff, so it was a bit odd.

As for the romance... I was happy to see Eva and Nate working things out and talking and being upfront with each other and that Eva decided to stop acting the way she is expected to for social convention. And I loved that she was strong and sent her bf packing when she found out about the cheating and that she was adult enough to avoid bitterness and still help him when he desperately needed it.

I really enjoyed the writing and the pacing even if not everything clicked 100% for me, and I was particularly happy to see the way nurses were depiced in this one, so thank you for that Melissa Marr! Definitely I'm gonna check more books written by her. Well deserved 3.5 stars for this one.



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Saturday Pages: Empire At Night by Kelley Armstrong!!

Hi there guys!

Happy Saturday! Having the weekend off is quite amazing and a nice change, so I'm going to the cinema with a friend and spending some time reading and relaxing, and continue plotting apartment decoration!

I'm starting this week's Saturday Pages with the review of the sequel of the very first Alyssa Recommends book!! I'm gonna be counting this one as part of my 105 Challenge since this is a 2015 release and that's one of my categories in the challenge!

Empire of Night by Kelley Armstrong

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Last year I read Sea of Shadows as my first ever Alyssa Recommends book and it was a fantastic start. I loved the world building, the magic, the main characters and the way the plot was progressing as an overall series ARC and the plot driving the book. So I was extremely intrigued and awaiting eagerly the sequel.

It was a happy coincidence that the edition I happened to preorder in my Kindle not the US one and ended up downloading on April 1st instead of having to wait till April 7th!

Despite having read the first book a year ago and not having the clearest memory of everything that happened, I never felt lost or confused, and we quickly get up to date with what's going on now after the events of book 1. Ashyn and Moria are at the Emperor's palace as guests, and both are uneasy because they feel they ought to be doing something more after what they witness and being Keeper and Seeker.

Empire of Night is a fantastic sequel. We get character growth for both Moira and Ashyn, we learn more about Ronan and Tyrus and even Gavriel and the Emperor. When we're not having quiet moments of character development and dealing with court politics and intrigues, we finally start moving into the action to the moderate happines of Moira, that was chaffing at the inaction.

There's so much plotting and crafting in this book and despite having the sisters together for a good portion of it, since they're dealing in their different ways with the aftermath of what happened in book 1 and their grief and guilt about it, they are emotionally stranged somewhat. Then once they start being on the move again, they find themselves working together and dealing with the dangers as a team once again.

The mission they find themselves in ends up quite disastrously and the sisters end up once again separated, Moria kidnapped, Tyrus with Ashyn and Ronan and a big mess underway for them all. Treachery, political intrigues (again) and lies all over the place makes any rescue plans or direct action complicated, so there's a lot of hiding and spying and escaping.

There was very subtle romance in the first book and in this one things are less subtle but still didn't take over the book either. The romance not only was adorable even with some heartbreak in there but also was a fantastic way to get to know and develop our characters even more. Moria and Tyrus make a fantastic team as friends and as a couple and I love how their relationship developed.

I love the nuances of the culture and world building, how there's more to everything that we think at first, and then once the book it's almost over... we encounter not one but TWO cliffhangers, of very different sort with each one of the sisters' POV! Both equally intriguing and maddening and AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!

Very much deserved 4 to 4.5 stars to this one, when does the next book comes out?!?!



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Friday Reads: ARC Review of Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill!!!

Hello there guys!!

Happy Friday!! It is a Friday after night shift from me, so although it's a pretty awesome day since I have it off, it is also a bit inconvenient since I really need my nap in the morning after work. Do forgive any typos that might happen right now!

For this week's first Friday Reads entry I have an ARC that I was approved on NG by Quercus books and that is an amazing book but also extremely tough to read! As an ARC it shall count towards my 105 Challenge in the books for review category and also as part of the Dystopian Reading Challenge 2015!!

Only Ever Yours by Louise O'Neill

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Brilliant, relevant and enraging all at once. Is this an amazing book? YES! Will it be easy to read and give you fuzzy feels? HELL NO! But I think it's something every woman of every age NEEDS to read!

This was a particularly hard book for me to read, and I'm pretty sure it'll be for any woman out there, because it holds a mirror to the ugliest parts of ourselves: our envies, our self-hate and self-doubt, how we've all sometimes agreed to some injustice to stay on someone's good side, how we lose control of ourselves and our bodies... and all that hate and those messages about the perfect body, the Vomitorium, the kcal blockers... it reminded me of some less than stellar moments of my teenage self and made me want to go eat some chocolate because I could.

A dystopian story set in a future where women are designed and created, not born, raised together in Schools where they're prepared for their future as companions, concubines or chastities, the only roles allowed to women now. And as the best dystopians, it is so scary because it could be true. Women, specially young girls, have no real rights, no right to think for themselves or to ask questions, they only exist to give birth to sons, please men or care for the other eves. What are the eves? They're the women, and they are as unimportant as to have their names without a capital letter.

So many of the things that happen in the book are already happened, albeit in a smaller scale. Women are still treated as property in many countries, and even in the first world ones, the pressure to look perfect, to be perfect, to be thin, to look perfectly composed, to not be overly emotional and the fact that women still turn against each other for petty reasons instead of focusing on fighting for what's important really, like true equality.

We follow the story from freida's POV, one of the eves in her final year at the School, hoping to be chosen as a companion. I had the biggest swings with freida that I've ever had with a character, I kept on going from hating her to pitying her to understanding and empathy to loathing and wanting to shake her, time and again! She wants attention and she puts up with so MUCH to get it, risking everything for approval.

As I said, this is a MUST READ BOOK and if you know or find any girls out there that think feminism is not their issue or relatable, give them this book and make them think about that it says!

Despite how I needed a break now and read from reading the book, this is a brilliant book and deserved to ger more out there!



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Mark This Book Monday: The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson!!

Hey there guys!

Today is not a common Monday for me, because after working the weekend I have the day off, and I'm going to choose the right colour for my kitchen, have breakfast with my co-workers, get a pair of parcels in the mail and work on some bloggy things! And read too!

To start this Mark This Book Monday I have the Alyssa Recommends book for March up for review! This one was another success for Alyssa since I loved it! And since I made a category of Alyssa Recommends books for 105 Challenge, it is counted that way too!

The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I had been wondering about this book for quite a while since before it came out last year, but because my bloggy friends were quite torn about it, some hating it and others loving it, I couldn't decide whether to read it or not.

But then Alyssa added it to the Alyssa Recommends list and since I'm in such a fantasy-reading kick, I felt it would be the perfect book for March.

And it very much was! I love that it was medieval fantasy with a touch of postapocalytpic (and possibly dystopia, though I cannot be sure, maybe once I read the sequel). Our main character is Lia, her Royal Highness, Princess of Morrighan and First Daughter, that decides to run away from the shackles of tradition & court.

She's impulsive and stubborn and given her temperament and the way she was raised... I'm not surprised she just decided to give the middle finger to everything and run away from the palace just before her wedding. Yes, the marriage was very important to ensure the alliance of the kingdoms and probably their survival, but I can understand how she just wants out, how she's tired and sick of being told what to do like she's useless, and she decides that she needs to take control of her life in any way she can.

We follow Lia in her flight with Pauline, he attendant and friend, and we see them both establish their new home far away from Civica, the kingdom's capital. I loved how Lia threw herself into her new simpler life with gusto, not shying away from hard work and always being a good friend to Pauline, even when things got hard.

And then we get to two guys and the other two POVs in the book, Kaden and Rafe, the prince and the assassin, and we don't know who is who till well close to the end of the book. And it kept me guessing all the way till the end of the book and I decided to stick with my very first guess... and I was wrong. Which if you think about it makes very much sense, so yeah, there's that.

And this leads me to the part of the book that I liked less... the sort of love triangle! Both prince and assassin go on a search for Lia, for obviously very different reasons and both then decide to stick around and get to know her better because she's intriguing. Fair enough, I'll be very ready to believe that when it comes to the prince, because well... she was supposed to become his wife and she run away, and he wants to know why, and he can be intrigued about why she run away and started working in a tavern. But the assassin?? His job was to kill her, and instead of doing his job he decides to stick around, getting to know her which could lead into making it harder for him to kill her in the end! What pitiful, sort of crappy assassin is that one?? Hmph!!

And Lia clearly is more attracted to one of them than the other from the start, and when I say clearly, I mean clearly, she only flirts with the other guy to make guy #1 jealous because of his warm and cold (that could be understood for once) moods towards her. So I don't understand why we need the other side of the triangle to make things muddy, mostly because I don't understand why the assassin has to stick around to get involved!!!

Okay, enough with my big pet peeve that costed this book one star, because I absolutely adored Lia, with her temper, her very necessary growth as a character, how she sees her kingdom from the very foundation that it's the common people, how she struggles with finding herself and her worth and deciding that she needs to face her responsabilities. She's a fighter through and through, and I loved her for that, flaws and all.

The world building was fantastic, the descriptions are so visual and they never felt overwhelming or boring with details, instead they were woven into the narration flawlessly, changing and moving with the plot. And I loved how some details and mentions here and there hinted at this world maaaaybe being something more than just a medieval/epic fantasy. I loved the mentions of the Ancients, the lore of the Remnant and how their religion is slightly different from one kingdom to another.

A fantastic first installment in a new series that I'm completely hooked on already. It would have had 5 stars if not for the love triangle and uncomprehensibly incompetent assassin! Well deserved 4 stars though!



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