Wednesday, October 14, 2015

Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas

  Wow, Wow, WOW!!! Sooo much better! 
                           (third installment after Crown of Midnight)




I was agonizing over the first two books. It would be so good one second then so angsty, dramatic, and cheesy. This one started out with a little angst with Celaena being in a new country with no allies, but it progressively got better.

Celaena takes on the name she was born with, Aelin, and with this change she morphs into womanhood, becoming more comfortable with herself, her powers, heritage, and her role as Queen. She aims for change, and keeps a promise made to her dead friend in her heart. But it was moving to see her make personal progress with the troubles of her life and past. Not to mention, we get to meet Rowan.

Aelin's strict, battle harden, elven teacher. Yum. Team Rowan, please!
Besides the delicious side dish we are introduced to, we get to follow a new character line of blood thirsty witches. I found their story to be a tad distracting when I was more enamored with Aelin's, but I suppose it will lead to something important...eventually.

It does give hints as to what Dorian's father is up to, (nothing good, obviously). There is also some personal progression with Dorian and Chaol. We're left with a giant, frustrating cliffhanger, alas but I was quite thrilled with where Maas is taking her tale!


Lauren - 5 stars



My review for Queen of Shadows


Thursday, October 8, 2015

A Pocket Full of Murder by R.J. Anderson

            An adorable story, really.

 


 Some might say it's predictable, and while it is, readers must keep in mind the audience this book was intended for.

Isaveth is a poor girl who dabbles in Common Magic. She is sweet, full of gusto, loyal, and clever. Together with her new found friend, Quiz, they're the Detective Duo of the streets! They try to solve the mystery of a murder, one her father was wrongly accused of. We get a feel of this little magical world as the two explore and experience their surroundings and the people in it. I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

Anderson wrote a well paced and fun book, and I felt in some ways this book was realistic: not all stories get a fully resolved ending. Some reviewers said they felt the religious aspect of Isaveth's life wasn't really working for them, but honestly I did not mind it all that much. I felt it gave the book the extra twist of despair that it needed to make things harder for our main characters.

If I had to choose a favorite for me, it's definitely Quiz with his pure, innocent love, his strong desire for justice, and his bravery. I can't wait for more! 


Expect the sequel sometime of October of 2016!

 Lauren - 3 stars

Vision In Silver by Anne Bishop

The linchpin in this series!!
(third installment after Murder of Crows)


Vision in Silver felt like one of the books that is used to give information and progress the story along. Not to say it was boring, it wasn't.

A lot of the story revolved around Meg and the delicacy of being a Cassandra Sangue. Between the adjustments of trying to keep Meg stable and work with her needs, even the more peculiar ones, we're also caught up in a slowly progressing war.

Humans are rebelling against The Others, and also killing off the newly discovered Cassandra Sangue which is causing a fast peak of tension in what was once a peaceful community. Things are falling out of Simon's control, and we are introduced to something infinitely more powerful than the creatures of the lot that we've slowly gotten to know.

All in all, the story progressed nicely, and we were left with a somewhat peaceful ending, although that peace is more than likely temporary with the way things are going. Meg and Simon's relationship status is also as slow as ever, but hey we've still got two more books, right? Right? 


Lauren - 4 stars






Coming to a book store near you March 8th, 2016: 
Marked in Flesh!