Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Absolutely magical! As enjoyable as the movie!

Howl's Moving Castle is one of my favorite Miyazaki films so when I found out that there was a book that it originated from, I was super excited and decided to pick it up. Diana Wynne Jones does a great job of making this book exciting and unpredictable. Her characters are quirky in their own ways and have character flaws which makes them all the more endearing. In some ways the book is similar to the movie, but in most ways it's different but not in a bad way!

Howl is just as vain as in the movie, and Sophie just a stubborn, but even more so in the book. They also tend to squabble a lot more in the book which is highly entertaining. We also get to hear more of Howl's record of heart breaking in this book, and the main force of conflict is between Howl and the Witch of the Waste. The King merely seeks his aid in the search for his lost brother Prince Justin, and his court magician Sulliman. (Who is a man!)

This was a fun book, and truly magical. Destined to be a classic for all ages!

 

5 stars

 

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! 

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

Easily the best book this year!!

How does one describe a book so magical and captivating that you will stay up until 6am to read it?

 (Guilty as charged.)

Uprooted was sexy, intriguing, honest, and just all out well written and constructed.
Like a drink of cold water when one is thirsty for something more, I was enraptured and satisfied by this book.

What will you get when you buy said book? 

A delicious cover, an adventure, unique world building, complex and wonderful characters, and best of all an unforgettable experience.

Nieshka is a wild, headstrong, nature loving girl who is whisked away into a world of magic. Counter that with the Dragon: an uptight, magician who adores beauty and perfection, and prepare yourself to be amused as they pair up to counter an evil, living forest that contains terrible horrors within.

 Novik doesn't keep the book PG by any means, which helps make the book feel more real. She composes her literature to unfold naturally with smooth progression, making it easy to fall into pace and become one with Nieshka's world. I dare not reveal more and ruin any surprises for you, but I must insist if you are a lover of reading, give this one a try. I do not think you will regret it.

Lauren - 5 stars

Trial By Fire by Josephine Angelini

Alternate universes and witches? 

Sign me up!

I found Trial by Fire to be interesting and intriguing with it's tale of alternate universes with a twist of magic. As we all know, our heroine Lily ends up in a different universe where there is another version of her, who is powerful and supposedly cruel. This part of the book is where the story gets interesting. At first though, as much as I hate to say it, Lily is completely and 100% a pathetic Mary Jane. Sick and weakly, and hung up romantically on an obviously douche-y best friend, when Lily finally left her universe I could only hope that she would get it together and woman up!

It took a little time, and some 'woe is me' moments, but I was happy to see Lily start to come into her own, and become open to her unique powers. There were a couple typical things that I felt could've been more refined, for example Lily discovers that she can speak to her sister in this new universe through her mind. Guess what they call it? Mind-speak. Surely there could be a better name for it?
 

Despite this though this new world is fascinating, with it's magical willstones that define their owners and become such a part of them, that it's painful and/or intimate to touch another's stone. Other unique points were that their ideals were different from ours as in nudity does not faze them, and their world has monsters that are disgusting, terrifying, and carnivorous.

There are sisterly bonds of love, dark secrets, possible universes linking together, an ominous and ongoing war, and of course a sexy love interest, Rowan. Who could ask for more? The ending left me feeling slightly confused, nervous, and yet still somewhat excited. I can only hope that Angelini will introduce more of this magical world and an even stronger more independent heroine in her sequel!

Lauren - 4 stars

Coming this September! 

Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff

3.5 stars

Haunting, gothic, and wildly imaginative!

What is Clementine's story?

 I was certainly dying to find out! This was such a fun magic themed story, with great mystery behind it. 

 Clementine's tragic tale begins with her being forced to sleep with magic for ten years in a basement closet until she was finally discovered and rescued by one of our main characters, Fisher. But why and by whom is left unknown and Clementine is seeking to find some answers.

As we uncover the old town Clementine grew up in, things get weirder and weirder. My interest really began to peak when "bad things" started happening. Bad things being slimy green catfish with rows of monstrous needle-like teeth, ominous storms, demon dogs, the magical Hollow forest acting up; all signs of what they called The Reckoning. Problem is nobody knows why The Reckoning is coming or why it even happened ten years ago, either. 

One of my issues with the book was that after finishing it and running my opinions and thoughts through my head, I realized something rather shocking; I could not remember Clementine or Fisher's names. Clementine, although strong willed, sweet, and having a rather bizarre introduction, was slightly bland. Fisher too, suffered a similar fate as there was nothing defining about him except his unique craft. This problem is more than likely due to the wide cast of main characters to share with readers, but it doesn't make the book terrible just not as amazing as it could have been. I also found myself wishing I could have known a little more about the fiends. Information like their origins, and how they came to existence.

Yovanoff's story is engaging and fascinating and the small town really comes to life with its unique descriptions, and mysterious, as well as old, history. There were some fun characters as well and a happy ending. Fiendish was truly fun and mysterious and I will look forward to more from Yovanoff in the future.

Half Bad by Sally Green

4.5 stars

Loving the blood effect on this cover as well as this debut novel.

I stumbled upon this gem while looking for another book at the store. Honestly, I was not entirely sure what to expect, but what I didn't expect was such an amazing and heart wrenching story!

Nathan's tale is one of sadness from the day he was born, for he is a half white and half black witch. What makes this so unfortunate is that Nathan's black blood is of the darkest and most dangerous origins. Despite being constantly viewed with disdain and treated with hatred by nearly everyone he meets, Nathan is strong, clever, and optimistic in his own unique way.

Sally Green does an amazing job with her story telling for it ensnares you and compels you to finish this book as quickly as possible. Along with a rocky and deliciously forbidden romance, readers also get to experience living in a cage, tales of torture, and an underground system for witches on the run or in need of an illegal favor that comes with a price.

There are a couple pages told from a first POV but I found it to be unique and different almost like you're being woven into the story. The idea of good/bad and black/white is strongly put into question.  I also found Nathan's view on life and his interactions with family and the people he meets to be beautiful as well as a touch cynical. My only dislike was my concern with his instant turn to brutality in certain occasions.

The ending was satisfying and left off with a mild cliffhanger but I see promise in it's sequel, Half Wild.

Always A Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

4 stars

This cover is way better than the first.

(sequel to Once A Witch)

A serious improvement compared to the second!

All my pet peeves from the first book were pretty much eliminated from the second. For starters it felt way more action packed than the first. We pick up where we left off with Tamsin and family deciding how they plan to face off with the future troubles ahead involving Alistair and the old Knight family. 

Alistair has escaped to the Victorian-era to warn his family of their impending troubles, and there's nothing for Tamsin to do except follow and try to save her family as well. 

It was way more action packed

  because Tamsin disguises herself as a lady's maid in the enemy's home where things are a dark whirlpool of trouble. If there isn't the threatening, domineering La Spider, there is Liam the dangerous, experimenting son who has a flirtatious facade. Jessica is the only normal one of the family, and you can't help but grow attached to and pity her situation, though she is strong in her own way.

The Greene family predecessors were quite talented as well. Isobel was by far my most favorite, though Thom was definitely second. Although we didn't get to know the entirety of the Greene family you still got the feeling that they were well rounded, and altogether fairly decent people.
With the feeling of Tamsin against the world, I found myself quickly reading through the book to reach the anticipated conclusion.

Throughout the book Tamsin is reminded that she will have to make a life-changing decision which really makes the book even better in the end since it was amazing though a little sad. I was happy with the realistic view of it though like the first book.

Once A Witch by Carolyn MacCullough

3.5 stars

While this book was unique in sorts, it was also a bit cliched.

Meet protagonist Tamsin, a young witch from a long generation of witches. Promised to be a great witch at birth, and then to everyone's disappointment, wasn't.

Tamsin does not feel like she fits in with her family, she is under minded by other family members, and so when she is mistaken for her sister and gets approached by a stranger asking for her help locating a missing item, a part of her cannot resist. Tamsin gets herself tied into a a huge mess as she struggles with being an average human being, and yet coming from un-average origins.

I found the idea of each witch and wizard having unique powers such as freezing people, reading minds, siren like abilities, throwing fire ect. to be a fun and unique idea for a plot based on witchcraft. I also liked the twist of the rivalry between the two magic families for the antagonist.

What I found to be a little teenage angsty was the fact that she pined instantly for her love interest, and thus began silly girly spouting here and there. Otherwise I didn't mind their romance all that much just slightly cliched.

But then there was the sister rivalry...
This was the absolute worst aspect of the book. Tamsin went on and on about how perfect her sister Rowena was, and how the world revolved around her older sister who acts like a spoiled primadonna. (Which honestly didn't help her case.)

Rowena was just an absolute snot for no reason whatsoever, except maybe jealously, to make matters worse. You would think training to be the next head of family would install some maturity and nurturing in her especially regarding her sister. Not to mention everything Rowena did was perfect and was noted in the book i.e. Rowena's hair always being a perfect chignon, or white would usually look bad on people with pale skin tones but on Rowena it only made her glow and did I mention she looked absolutely majestic?
Long story short, it got old.

The ending was very intense, and left a great opening for the sequel, Always A Witch. I felt it was a good ending since it wasn't happiness and rainbows for everybody, but rather a big life changing decision which felt realistic.

Hero by Alethea Kontis

4 stars

Another gorgeous cover!

(sequel to Enchanted)


Meet Saturday Woodcutter, a fierce, muscular girl who would much rather gallivant around the forest chopping down trees with her axe, than dance at a ball least alone in a dress!
A girl who is a fun rolemodel for tomboys out there!

While Enchanted was a mash up of fairy tales, Saturday's was more of an adventure. We pick up with the Woodcutter family's lifestyle completely changed thanks to the golden egg laying goose, so they find themselves with more steady financial support. Saturday's axe has changed into a sword, and she finds herself questioning her purpose and if she's really all the special since she believes herself to be the only non-magical person in her family.

But once she summons an ocean in her backyard, she finds out that she is more than she could ever imagine. Saturday sets out on her journey, but once she is captured by a witch she meets an Earl's son, a man who is more than he appears. They will need each other's help in order to get out of their predicament, and love will of course be part of the adventure, though Saturday wishes it didn't have to be so.

I once again found myself falling in love with the Woodcutter family.

They are all so unique, close together, and amazing. Saturday is such a brave woman that is an admirable heroine in this book and her love interest, Peregrine, is quite admirable and unique himself, and their chimera friend tops off the trio perfectly. Though the story is slightly cheesy, it is really enjoyable and fantastical none the less.

We don't get much insight into the villains from Enchanted until the end, which leaves me wondering if things will be summed up in Friday's book, Dearest, or if there will be more?

Enchanted by Alethea Kontis

5 stars

Gorgeous cover, amazing story.

"He wished he could bottle up the smile she gave him and save it for a rainy day. Of course, if all went as it should he'd have those smiles every day, bottle or no, rain or shine, now and forever, until the end of time and after."

That is just too cute.

I have to start off with saying that I felt the summary did not give justice to this book. And if you are a book cover fan like me, look under the dust cover! I felt it was very elegant and pretty! :) I found myself completely enchanted by this novel! While it remains unique in it's own way, it is a mash-up of several different fairy tales like Rumpelstiltskin, a slight pinch of Rapunzel, a reference to the rhyme of the Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe, Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, as well as Princess and the Frog.
I immediately fell in love with the Woodcutter family and their overall bizarreness, for each family member is unique in their own magical way. Sunday's story is very intriguing, and it jumps right into the part where she meets Grumble the frog who becomes her companion, her friend, and her love. Of course as the story goes, she kisses Grumble and he later transforms into Prince Rumbold.

The story was light, entertaining, creative, and unique to say the least. I found all of Sunday's family, including herself, to be quite loveable. The scenery was described and written beautifully I found myself longing to see the Elder Woods, and I also found Rumbold's character to be adorably complicated, especially post-frog enchantment. He was just so eager to love Sunday...

The tale takes a steady route, and while you know where it's heading it's still an excellent read that you can get caught up in. I was actually surprised at actually how dark the book became regarding the King and his reign.

Follow my review for Hero!

 

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

4 stars

 

Can I say I love you Neil Gaiman for asking a 1922 version of your book to be released?

You can imagine the book-gasm I had when I found this beautiful classically designed book with cloth cover, and gold pressed into the cover. Gorgeous.

This book is in fact the inspiration for the movie, which I loved, and so heck why not pick it up for a read? Young Tristan Thorne, half fairy and half mortal, steps over the forbidden Wall in order to complete his destiny of finding a fallen star in order to win his love's heart. Tristan meets new friends, and his pure heart and good intentions help him out of hard fixes on his journey.

While I loved the classic magic this book invoked, I felt a little torn. Tristan's journey was very epic, but at the same time I felt it lacked some major action. Despite this, I liked how Tristan became a man when he got to know himself  better, once he realized what kind of man he wanted to be and who he was. 

 

If you've seen the movie first, the differences are noted, but at the same time I couldn't help but think they did a damn good job on the movie as well.

The Near Witch by Victoria Schwab

This cover is simply gorgeous.
4 stars

I'm pretty sure this is Schwab's debut book, and I loved it!

A story told in a different time, where women's rights were pretty much non-existent, and men were jerks all the time, magic was considered witchcraft, even evil.
 Lexi is a strong willed girl in a small town, she loves her sister and mother will all her might, and doesn't seem to fear witches as much as other townfolk do. They even have a an old story of the old Near Witch, she calls to you on the wind, but you must never answer. Then things start to get interesting, when Lexi meets a young boy who seems to disappear on the wind. 

 Magic!

Children in the town start to disappear,
 and Lexi fears the worst and knows she must investigate before her sister is next.

Such a good book, appropriately creepy and spooky! I adored the love story behind the action and mystery. You'll fangirl over Lexi and Cole too once you see them together!  The characters are well defined, you do have some of your typical cookie cutter types, and the development was intriguing! Truly a fun read!

Blue is for Nightmares by Laurie Faria Stolarz

This book was a nightmare!

2 stars (I was tempted for one!)

   

A young adult witchcraft book that tries too hard to be adult, in my opinion.

Stacey is a "woe is me" character, whose friends suck. With friends like these, her enemies in the book don't seem so bad anymore! One of them humiliates her in front of her crush out of jealousy. Wow. Not to mention, Stacey's oh-so-wet-dream worthy love interest, was completely unmemorable. So forgettable in fact, that I can't remember his name! Chad? Chase? Conrad? I immediately placed who the villain was and found myself wanting to scream at how dim witted the characters were. I mean this guy screamed creepy!

Ugh...stupidity hurts.

I'll give the book kudos for accuracy in their flower language, and the fact that someone actually dies in this book! 

These, ladies and gentlemen, were it's only good points.

Now. The whole story revolved around a stalker, and the fact that Stacey was having prophetic nightmares. Nightmares that made her wet her bed, but not out of fear! No, no, just because during the dream she had this strong urge to piss herself and couldn't seem to wake herself out of the dream in order to use the toilet like a grown up. Weird and weirder. So we try to grasp the fact that Stacey is trying to hide her bed wetting for nearly the entire book.

To sum it up, this book was blah.
Blah, blah, blah. So blah, I'm not even going to bother reading the other 3 books or the damn graphic novel.