Of Blood & Light #1 by C. Monk

Of Blood & Light
Of Blood & Light #1
by C. Monk

Genre: Sci-fi and fantasy, romance, new adult

Well, you know how it is, new to you author but the premise sounds interesting so – do you or don’t you? I did, and I’m so glad, this was a fabulous read, bringing a different slant on the supernatural side, weaving in a bit of Arthurian legend, combined with a strangely Victorian Britain theme….
There are secrets here, secrets upon secrets and poor River is lost. Who Are these people? Where Is she? They seem to feel she is someone else, a wayward wife no less.
I loved so much about this story, the fabulous new world I entered, the strange characters within it, some who were decidedly not what they seemed. And of course the magics 🙂
I really felt for River, loved her determination, her love for family, and her attitude of DLTBGYD. Then Hadrian, who appears cold and aloof, but time proves otherwise. So many fabulous characters here, and some real nasties too. I do love finding those in a story.
Its an intense read, full of drama, action, ballgowns and corsets 😉 and a hero who is a true gentleman, not the usual pushy Alpha grunting type! There’s a really useful section at the back explaining about Thule and its inhabitants, I found that excellent as I was a little confused to begin.
I’m off to look for what else the author has written, and I really, really hope we’re getting more of this.

Stars: Five, a cracking, unusual take on the fantasy romance genre.
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ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Shield Maiden by Sharon Emmerichs

Shield Maiden
by Sharon Emmerichs

Genre: Sci-fi and Fantasy, historical fiction,

I was so intrigued to see this book, I love historical fiction and was really keen to read more of Beowulf, Grendel and that period.
Sadly I found the story just didn’t interest me, I didn’t connect with either the characters or plot, or even really understand what was actually happening.
I restarted a couple of times thinking maybe that would help but….its just not a story for me. At a different time maybe I’ll enjoy it, I’ve not given up on it but right now its just not interesting me.
As always that’s just my view, others will and do love it, and it may be the perfect read for you.

Stars: Two, not one for me right now, maybe at another time?

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Beneath the Starlit Sea, Nicole Bea

Beneath the Starlit Sea, Nicole Bea

Genre: New Adult, Romance, Sci-fi and Fantasy.

I enjoyed this book, it was an interesting read with some different takes on the supernatural. Where it fell down for me was in the backstory, the witches in ore, why, when, how, what exactly did it mean. Illyse and the foxes, how did they get together, what was her story. How did the king just have to power to pull her in the way he did.
I liked the characters but felt they could have been fleshed out a little more, so we understood them better. Of course I’m way past the NA tag I’ve just noticed 😉 so that could be part of the issue…..

There was a lot going on here, and at times it seemed Illyse and Garit ignored the real world and its issues that they were supposed to be solving. That didn’t really feel like the type of person they were.
The story and the characters/creatures were believable but for me things could have been a bit more in depth, so that it didn’t feel quite so disjointed. I did enjoy the fact that the story was very different to so many “witch” stories.

Stars: Three and a half, a story that I enjoyed, which has some unique aspects but when I felt needed a little more clarity and depth.

Arc via Netgally and publishers

Violet Made of Thorns, Gina Chen

Violet Made of Thorns, Gina Chen

Genre: Sci Fi & Fantasy | Teens & YA

Well, what a read. What was fun was Violet and Cyrus are both real antiheroes, no nice do whats right for others here, but lots of do whats right for Violet or Cyrus regardless of consequences. Or is it? There are times when for both of them their first thoughts are selfish, but somehow the final action is tempered on some way.
What makes them that way, is it just that Violet had to struggle so hard and so is determined to make her position secure? Cyrus, is it just the curse/prophecy that makes him so closed or would be be that way anyway?

Its such a fun read, full of fabulous dramas, backbiting, plots and entanglements and running through the delicious love/hate relationship between Violet and Cyrus. You can just feel the simmering lust each time they meet. Some great secondary characters too, Cyrus sister, his friend Dante, the king and his machinations.
Its a story full of twists, turns and surprises, witches, magic, prophecies, fates and gods, and characters that are happy to twist events to suit themselves. I really enjoyed it and look forward to the next part.
It does give some form of ending, not leave the reader on a cliffhanger – I hate, hate those with a real passion so thanks Gina for this semi ending that ties up a few things and opens up for the next book.

Stars: Four, a really fun read, not quite up to Cruel Prince but close.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Wayward, Hannah Mathewson

Wayward, Hannah Mathewson

Genre: Sci-fi and fantasy

I struggled a bit at the start, I was expecting more of the Changelings and Ilsa, Gideon, Fyfe etc and instead it was Cassia and a whole new group. Once past that though I was pulled into another riveting story.
I did feel though that as part of a trilogy ( or series? I think trilogy) it feels only very loosely connected to book one and I would have liked to know what was happening in the changeling world over these two years.

One thing that surprises me each time its mentioned is how young these characters are. They don’t feel like teens, act like teens, and I think that’s why this has such a broad appeal, its not written to appeal purely to teens and YA, their ages are irrelevant, its the story, plots and actions that make it such fun.
I love this alternate London with its scary magics and characters, with the usual power struggles and abuses that factor in real life. Even in fiction human nature rules, with some being empathetic and others rule bound, or who see rules as for others, not them and power as an entitlement not a privilege.
I loved that the characters have flaws, are not perfect, suffer petty jealousies, irrational dislikes, and react from them. I felt one way about them, then things happened, I understood more and changed view and then even more came up and I was “ what now??”

I did really struggle at the start because I was waiting for the connection to last book, to see more of those characters not just Cassia, and it stopped me from really enjoying the story for itself. Once I put that expectation away I really got to enjoy this book for itself. Its a story that kept me guessing how it would end, who would come out on top, but I’m really glad it looks like we may be back with the changelings next book, they’re still my favorites.

Stars: Four and a half, that rocky start knocked off a five but that’s all.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Once Upon A Broken Heart, Stephanie Garber

Once Upon A Broken Heart, Stephanie Garber

Genre: Sci Fi & Fantasy, Teens & YA, Women’s Fiction

What the heck? We’re bring sexist stuff into YA/Teen reads now?
Personally I think Women’s Fiction is a genre way past its sell by date, has real fifties “little housewife” vibes, but to start introducing younger readers to the idea there’s such a thing as male reads and female reads – just why? Its such a backwards concept….

Anyway, I adored the first two Caraval reads, not so much book three. Still, I love Jacks – c’mon, honestly, who doesn’t? Though I have to slide quickly past all the poor women killed by his kiss as they weren’t The One. Sad for him, but for them….much more so. So of course I wanted to read this.

I’m conflicted though, I love the concept, I love the magic world setting, but like book three of Caraval, for me this got a bit too rushed, confusing, jumped around so much. And Evangeline – if there’s a book labeled how to make the Wrong Decision, how to be a doormat, I think it must be her life template. She’s so Good, so Idealistic, so Loving even when people don’t deserve it, so seeing only the good side/being naive constantly, that she rushes from one crisis to the next. At least Scarlett and Donatella had a) some sense and b) lots of courage and sense of adventure between them.

But there’s Jacks….and I so want him to have a good ending. I didn’t really see him and Donatello as being suited, I think he loved the idea of her. Maybe this time Evangeline will be his True Love? Or not – who knows? With this story I really can’t see where anything is going, and that’s one of my issues.
There’s no real clear cut main plot, characters are in, then within a few pages, out again. Its a headlong rush of events, old characters, new characters, related characters and multiple concurrent plots, many of which feel too unexplained.
Maybe book two will make it clearer, and as I’ve found before, maybe reading later books will make my rating for this one higher. Rating a trilogy isn’t easy, its rating part of a story without knowing the rest. Like a judge passing sentence after hearing only one third evidence 😉

Stars: Three, but this may rise after reading all the trilogy. And I probably will because hey…Jacks 😉

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Six Crimson Cranes, Elizabeth Lim

Six Crimson Cranes, Elizabeth Lim

Genre: Sci-fi and Fantasy, teens and YA.

Well, re-tellings are a bit hit and miss for me, some I’ve adored and others…well, lets just say I didn’t. This story though, based on the old Grimms fairy tale, pulled at me. I adored Grimms as a kid, any fairy stories but especially those, and I’d read them over and over.( Mum used to say “Jeannie, you’re too old for fairy tales.” I’d have been maybe 9 or 10….) I’m much, much older now – frankly, you’re Never too old for fairy tales 😉
I remember this one so well, the poor sister spinning and knitting sweaters out of nettles…

Elizabeth makes the sister a princess, and the brothers princes. Sets them in a beautiful Eastern setting, with woods that stretch for miles, huge snow covered mountains, harsh dusty roads. There’s a very pronounced master/servant divide that works so well for the story.
The closeness of Shiori and her brothers grows, she’s always been loyal to them, loves them, but they’ve grown apart over the years. Now though, forced into each others company, depending on each other to break the curse, they grow back as one unit.

I loved this book, loved the addition of dragons, loved the fantasy elements that were still true to the original story but changed to fit this new one. I enjoyed the way Eastern beliefs and myths were woven into an essentially European fairy tale. It all added to that overall roundness of the story, made it feel believable.
I really liked seeing the day to day life, the little things like Shiori struggling to work for the lady she tried to steal the boat from. There were some great characters, harsh ones, kind ones, and of course my favourite, the cruel but clever, wicked ones.
Shiori grew so much in this book, from a sweet but selfish princess, into a much more rounded and understanding character. I enjoyed the gentle romance that grew towards the end, loved the way poor Shiori and her brothers seemed to take one step forward and two back. Those setbacks all added to the story, pushed her and her brothers into devising even more ways to try to break the curse. Kiki though, Kiki really was the star for me. I loved her, and can’t wait to see where Elizabeth takes her and Shiori on the next adventure.
This story is complete but…there are seeds sown for a follow-up that I’d love to read.

Stars: Five, a fun read for all ages, not just teens and YA.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

The Midnight Bargain, C.L.Polk.

The Midnight Bargain, C.L.Polk.
Magic meets Bridgerton in the Regency fantasy everyone is talking about…

Romance
Genre: Sci-fi and fantasy

I wasn’t sure about this book at first, but quickly became hooked and I loved it.
Its a mix, a magical world, but historical in the sense that women are property, and horrors, no matter how talented magically once married they lose that. As spirits can enter unborn children and take over women have to wear a collar to lock out their magic and therefore lock out any harmful spirits. Not just while they are pregnant, but from their wedding day to the end of their childbearing years. Beatrice is horrified, she is talented, thinks the system unfair and would fair rather keep her magic and remain unmarried. However her families future depends on her making a good marriage, thanks to some poor investments by her father, a fact she’s only just become aware of.
Poor Beatrice, stuck between a rock and a hard place. Her only hope is to continue her magical education in secret and get good enough to convince her father she can help mend the families fortunes that way…
There are some great characters here, a lovely mix of friendship and the usual Mean Girls, as Beatrice isn’t quite from the top drawer. I was surprised how things with Ysabeta developed, loved it, it wasn’t what I expected. Ianthe, who couldn’t love him. One of the few forward thinking men of the time, who was prepared to try to understand what Beatrice had issues with. Like most of us, whats accepted as norm isn’t questioned, and though he knew Ysabeta has problems with it he hadn’t really though about it from a woman’s view. Of course he’s in the minority, and his mother certainly doesn’t share his views.
The star for me was Nadi, the luck spirit. I adored her, she made the book really special, her relationship with Beatrice. They both cared about the other, where convention said spirits needed to be kept in place, and didn’t have those sort of feelings.
Its a gentle romance, beset with society problems and a really fun read. I loved the magic, loved the problems that cropped up, loved the gentle mean girls stuff. It ends neatly, everything wraps up with a neat epilogue, and I’d love to read more from this world, see how the things develop with these characters and maybe others a couple of years down the line.

Stars: Five, a really magical read and I love this world. C L Polk, please write more!

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

Learning to Live, (Infinite Love 1), Kira Adams

Learning to Live, (Infinite Love 1), Kira Adams

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: YA/NA Romance,

I rarely read YA novels, I find it hard to relate the the characters but this had the underog theme that does appeal to me so as its on KU I decided I’d try it.
I was pleasantly surprised, the characters weren’t juvenile and silly, the thing that puts me off many YA reads ( though I’ve read books were people in their 30’s act like YA). Older teens I guess, that makes a difference, these are mostly either side of 18 and that extra maturity shows.
The mean girls – I love those charactes, and they were creatively mean to poor Ciera. I loved her, she was head down and ignore, and of course having been bullied much the same many, many years ago I could relate. Report them as everyone says? OK, then who’s going to be around when they come at you even harder? So we just keep heads down and do our best to avoid bullies. Its wrong, they win that way, but in practical terms it needs adults to be watching, to take action.

Ciera has home problems too, her widowed mum and two much younger siblings don’t have much money, and she works after school to help out. Not only that but later we learn she has her own issues to deal with.
Topher was one of those who didn’t outwardly join in the bullying, but didn’t see what was wrong with it, and didn’t do anything to stop it. Apart from her friend Mack Ciera is alone at school, until an incident with the bulles prompts someone to step in.
From there things change, not always for the better, but it makes Topher look at his own actions, and I thought, finally, he can see whats in front of him. Of course that means standing up against his friends, the top group, the alpha predators, and what will happen then?

Its a sweet and moving love story, and has a huge surprise I didn’t see, but with hindsight there were clues. It did make me cry, Ciera was so brave and I so felt for her and her family. I was luckier than her when faced with similar, but could empathise with the scary side and what she was facing. You’d think fate had put the family through enough without this.
The story covers some heavy issues, not just the bullying. It was well done, well handled, not just a simple bullying school love story, and had surprising depth to it.
I won’t suddenly beome a YA lover, but it proves some well written YA books can have a wider target.

Stars: Four, surprised me how much I enjoyed it. I’m actually going to borrow the next book from KU just to see where things go, although this book is a stand alone and complete.

 

The Iron Raven, Julie Kagawa

The Iron Raven, Julie Kagawa

Genre: Teens & YA, Sci-Fi & Fantasy

Oh how I wanted to like this story. I’ve not read any of Julie’s work, but have recently read several excellent YA books.
Sadly this didn’t work for me. Its very well written, and I can see that others love it, but I just couldn’t connect with it. I put it aside a few times and came back to it as I thought maybe it was this strange time we’re living in, that has affected my concentration and reading, but unfortunately it still wasn’t a good fit for me. 😦
I stopped about a third of the way through, knowing it just wasn’t going to suit me. I’m gutted, I was so looking forward to getting my teeth into a new trilogy, but that’s the way it goes.
Not all stories appeal, however well written.

Stars: Two, a story others love but which didn’t connect with me. NB: I only read to just past 30%.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers