geekylorraine

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

Actual rating, 3.5.

Overall, I really enjoyed the Egyptian Mythology in this. With Anubis, Set and Nefertiti being three I already knew enough about. The author also references dark creatures trying to take down the Medjai, or something along those lines. All I recall is Kriosphyinxes, which were great, but that's not plural creatures. I was expecting something more than there being a kriosphyinx around every corner.

Death means little in Wardens of Eternity. One character fell limply to the floor like a rag doll after what would amount to a mortally wounding attack. It didn't stick. Unless the wound is instantly killing you, the Medjai's magic can fix it. And that's another problem I have with the plot. The magic is poorly explained and used as an “oh crap, think of a way to fix this.” I know, I'll make up another word for another spell that was very obviously placed in earlier, in order to save the day.

I feel like there were opportunities to turn this group of characters and this world into something really good, but the author just missed the mark a little. I'll admit though, my analytical side is arguing with just overall enjoyment. And despite my criticisms, I genuinely enjoyed this book! It scratched the Egyptian mythology book itch in a satisfying way and I enjoyed the fighting and the magic, despite seeing things I thought could be better. In fact, I enjoyed the idea of the story so much, I 100% wish it was better!

A slightly different style of review from me today! I was having trouble separating the different elements like I normally do because my comments kind-of involved everything, and it was all inter-linked! Either way, hope you enjoyed the review!

Unfortunately, this title really wasn't for me. I don't know if my expectations were all wrong, but this just didn't have much going on. I've DNF'd after 100 pages of reading about the average everyday goings on of a few girls. The closest we came to excitement was one of them dropping a light onto someone's head.

There's clearly a hint of something happening soon, but after thinking that for 100 pages, I can't keep waiting forever for it to happen.

A sad DNF from me.

Review originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

I closed this book and actually said “No!” out loud. You know why? The book ends with a question. My answer to the question wasn't no. My yelling no is because I'm never going to know the answer to said question. And I'm asking myself if that means there never was an answer to the question, or if we just never find out the answer. Yes. That's a whole paragraph of me talking about the final few sentences of the book. I could probably write a whole novel in response to this book. But I won't. Instead, see below my trying to sum up how much I adored this book, without actually writing a novel.

The Plot

Aside from the ending, which I explained above, I adored the narrative style of To Be Taught, If Fortunate. It's told in a sort of after-action report. If reports were more casual and more human. It's as if the main character sat down, wrote up the goings-on, and sent it off to Earth in the hopes of it being read. And I loved that. Writing that makes me consider the ending again, there's no answer to the question because it's up to us to answer it. I'm just annoyed I won't get to read what happens next. And I really need to know what happens next.

The World

Here's the trick with this book, it's a study of four different worlds. And Becky Chambers manages to explain each one in such a way that I could imagine exactly what the planet was like, what the characters were feeling due to planetary conditions. For the most part, the environment is described without express emotion, but I somehow still embraced a sense of wonder that came with each discovery. It's like I wasn't reading fiction, and was enjoying the writings of someone who had actually been responsible for aiding in cataloguing life on other planets. It was amazing.

The Characters

Becky Chambers has a knack for characters. Despite the science, the planets, the technology, it all comes back to the four characters this whole thing is centred on. It's how these planets impact them, their thoughts, how they cope with environments, how they find joy in the little things, and deal with adversity. This whole thing is character-driven right up until the end, where Becky Chambers makes you a character, the reader makes the ultimate decision. And damn, I loved and hated that.

I'm not going to break the characters down like I normally do. I loved all of them. Despite this being a report of sorts, the characters personalities shone through and they're each unique and so fun to read about. You need to read this (and it's super short, so it won't take too long!) to really grasp how Becky Chambers manages to work her magic with these characters.

I should probably stop rambling now! Have you read this novella? What'd you think?

This book had me hooked from the first page to the last. With a story full of twists and turns and loveable characters, it's a book I wasn't expecting much from but got way more than I bargained for.

The World
If you don't like metaphors and interesting, sometimes eccentric description, this book isn't for you. Me, I enjoyed it. Some reviewers have commented on things like “how can you taste midnight?” but I get it. It's not so much taste midnight, it's the all-around experience of it. If you take everything you read literally, this book won't be for you. Scarlett also had an ability, similar to synesthesia, but with a more magical, empath-like twist, where she could experience her emotion in the form of colours, and it was interesting to read what colour combination matched the emotion.

The broader world was a tad tropey, but not so much that I didn't enjoy it. Part of me wants to know more about the world as a whole, part of me thinks everything is about the setting of Caraval, and the point is the rest of the world is supposed to fall away until Caraval is everything. At least for a few days.

“The sky was black, the moon visiting some other part of the world, as Scarlett took her first step into Caraval. Only a few rebel stars held posts above...”

The Plot
I don't even know where to begin here. This is almost a story told from the point of view of an unreliable narrator, but it's not really her fault. Anything and everything the characters experiences could be completely fake or it could be real, and it's nigh on impossible to know which is which. And just when you think you've figured it out, and there can't be another twist you're not prepared for, something will hit you. Sometimes books like this annoy me. The twists seem random or not thought out. Caraval was different though. Caraval seemed well thought out. Nothing was there without a purpose and the author had a way of telling the story that drew you in so you experienced everything right along with Scarlett.

There was one problem with experiencing things along with the main character though, you're left out of the loop a lot. The magic system is... magic? These systems are supposed to have limits that are defined. If not, what's the point? Anyone can do anything and it's all ok? I'm hoping this is explained more in future books otherwise the stakes might seem less concerning if someone can click their fingers and undo all the bad that's happened.

“Every person has the power to change their fate if they are brave enough to fight for what they desire more than anything.”

The Characters
Scarlett

Scarlett is the main character, whose point of view we experience Caraval. In the beginning, she was mildly annoying, a weak female character who I wanted to give a nudge to fight for herself. But that's where we get the growth. Once she gets over herself at the start of the book, she becomes a character I enjoyed reading about, and one I could eventually cheer for. Her personality could've been more in-depth, with more story than a missing mother and abusive father, but overall, she was just about good enough to carry the story. I can only hope she grows more and is fleshed out better in further books.

Julian

The somewhat predictable love interest, but still my favourite character in this book. After all, without Julian, where would Scarlett be? Dead, probably! Julian is an enigmatic character. I'm not sure we ever find out who he is for 100% certain, but that's one of the reasons I actually like him. His story is clearly complicated, but he's likeable and I was rooting for Julian throughout.

Donatella

Donatella is Scarlett's younger, more irresponsible and out of control sister. Although I think there's a secret heart of gold hidden under the insecurity and madness. The whole plot is centered around her, but you don't get to actually see much of her. Scarlett clearly cares deeply for her, though, and it sounds like she's important for future books, so I'll be interested in reading more about her.

Would I read it again? If I didn't have thousands of other books on my list, sure. This isn't one of those I'd pick up as a “comfort read” though.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? Yeah, eventually. I'm great at starting series and never finishing them. I'll get on it eventually.

Would I recommend it? If you like a lot of metaphors, a little bit of romance and a magical setting, you should definitely give this one a go.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Not quite. I enjoyed it, but not at that level.

Originally posted on Geeky Galaxy.

The Plot

I know this is novella lengthed, but it seemed a little rushed to me. There's clearly word count left, but it seemed like the author wanted to write The End and move on before it was ready. They seemed to jump around from point to point just a bit too quickly, not allowing situations to fully develop before moving onto the next thing. For example, there was one part where they were hiding. It seemed to me like this would be perfect downtime from the action. Raise a little tension at the thought of being caught, get some more characterisation in of how the characters are reacting to the stressful situation they were in, etc. This didn't happen. I felt like we moved on before there was this opportunity. Other than the feeling that everything is a little fast, I did really enjoy this story. The idea of an unshackled bot and what would come of it if anyone found out was great.

The ending was well-rounded, sealing everything up with a pretty bow on top. I know there are more books, and there's more to Murderbot's story, but I didn't get the burning desire to read the next one straight away. Or maybe at all... I'm not sure.

The World

The setting of All Systems Red is well-built, with subtle pieces of information woven in, rather than it all being thrown at you at once. The reasons for the characters being where they are made sense and the description of this alien world was mostly good. I did feel like I wanted a little more occasionally. Like they're on a minimally surveyed alien planet with all sorts of weird and wonderful flora and fauna, right? I'd love to hear a little more about what that actually looked like. I'm just a sucker for good world-building that makes me feel like I'm stood on this alien planet right alongside the characters, and this didn't give me that feeling.

The Characters

Murderbot

Murderbot has some of the best quotes in this book. Murderbot doesn't have a specified gender that I saw, but because I related to Murderbot so much, I'm going with she. She's not a social person at all and I totally relate to that. I feel like some of the things she's said about humans have crossed my mind once or twice before. The voice this character was written in was just unique, and since this was told from her point of view, I really enjoyed seeing how she thought and processed things as a mostly bot with some human bits thrown in for good measure. I feel like Murderbot made up for some areas of this I felt were a little lacking, because of how relatable she was.

The accuracy of the below quote!

“Yes, talk to Murderbot about its feelings. The idea was so painful I dropped to 97 percent efficiency.”

There's more characters in this, of course. Murderbot is a SecUnit, which means her purpose is to provide security to the survey team she's with. However, Murderbot is clearly the key character. This series is called The Murderbot Diaries after all. The other characters did feel very secondary, like they were there to be protected and did serve a purpose, but not in any meaningful or memorable way.

Would I read it again? Maybe? I'm not 100% on this.Will I be picking up the next in the series? If it's on sale, sure.

Would I recommend it? It's a short, quick read. Murderbot is a fun character, so sure.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? No.

Review originally posted at A Reading Brit.

The Plot
The plot is what makes this book so damn good. It's a slow-burner at the start. You read a lot about them planning whatever they are going to do, and you read about it for a while before you even realise they're really planning to do anything. It's not ‘til a good few chapters in that the plan is even mentioned. And what a plan it is. It's scarily believable. More terrifying than any horror I've ever read. It's so easy to see this happening in real life that it's disturbing. The build-up and planning we see is where this really excels. The author thought of every little thing, right down to getting people to open and close curtains in hospital wards. As the attack began to approach, the tension ramped up, until it hit boiling point. Once we reached that stage, I couldn't put it down, and read it straight through until I'd finished it.

The World
This is set in the modern-day real world. Within the first two chapters, you're dropped into a graphic description of children's charred bodies, still swinging on their swings when the nuclear bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. This was eye-opening. I, of course, knew of Hiroshima, and what happened, but never considered it right down to your average family, on a human level. It was disturbing, as it should be, and I admit, it hooked me. After reading about those children, and imagining what must've been happening throughout the rest of the city, the need for revenge for the antagonist becomes a lot clearer. The novel is split between multiple different locations, but most of the time is spent in New York, where the whole plan for revenge is happening.

The Characters
John Wyse

The main protagonist in this. An NYPD detective, with an alcoholic partner, and a new girlfriend. He's not got the best, most amazing well-built personality out there, but I don't think this book is so much about the characters. It's more about the story and the warning. Despite that, John is interesting to read about as he begins to piece together what is happening in New York. I also enjoyed the fact he didn't really get his happily ever after. So often, these books can end with the main character walking away happy, partner on their arm, with no residual effects from whatever trauma they've been through. John doesn't get away that easy.

Tsan Yohoto
The antagonist. The big bad guy that came up with this whole plot to kill thousands of Americans using their own consumerism and obsession to both health-fads and fast food against them. His motives are clear, and his cold, calculating personality comes across well, and very creepily. He talks about annihilating Americans without the blink of an eye, and he does it well. I don't want to say much more, at the risk of spoilers, but this guy is a great antagonist, and probably the most well-developed and thought-out character in this book.

Would I read it again? If I want to be creeped out by antibiotic resistance, sure. I mean, it's re-readworthy, but I'm not sure the subject matter is something I want to think about too much!

Would I recommend it? Yes, for sure. I think it's a book that a lot of people could read, just as a lesson on finishing their course of antibiotics, and not insisting the doctor give them antibiotics to solve something that doesn't need it.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? Not quite. And it's not out of the fact the book isn't good, the book is amazing. I just prefer books with more focus on people, and characters, and this wasn't that.

ARC gifted to me by the publisher, Black & White Publishing.

I asked for sci-fi recommendations on Twitter, and book-blog/writer Twitter being as awesome as it is, it didn't let me down. I had a ton of suggestions, and read through a couple of the synopsis and decided to start here, and I'm definitely not disappointed I did!

The Plot
Embers of War only spanned a few days, overall, but they were definitely a dramatic couple of days. The introduction is strong, and surprising, featuring death almost immediately. And not a small number of deaths either, I'm talking planetary annihilation. That definitely awakens the reader to the brutalities of war, and war in a science fiction perspective can be totally brutal. These futuristic weapons don't play around. This introduction is the basis for this whole book, and it's used so well throughout. Me being the idiot I am didn't even think up or imagine one of the links the characters had to the war, and I applaud the author for that.

This book is technically part of a series, and I didn't realise that going into it, but it works pretty well as a standalone if you didn't want to go on and read the rest. The ending wraps up the main arc nicely, and we're only left with a few threads and wonders of what is going to happen next.

The World
Yay for awesome sci-fi world-building. Powell manages to build a complex world, far in the future, but not drown us in too much information most of the time. There were a few sections where we do get a little bogged down in information, mostly from the AI spaceship. One that sticks with me is when it starts comparing one side of the war, the “Conglomeration” to various things from history, such as the Anglo-American culture and the classical Greco-Roman empires. This only lasts for a paragraph or two, but about two sentences in, I was horribly bored and skipped to the end of that section. Most of the time, it's awesome, but there is the odd area where we veer a little close to info-dump, and not even interesting info dump.

Beyond that, we've got an interesting clash between the Conglomeration and the Outward, but not much else going on with regards to species. There's mention of other species, and there is something non-human on the main ship, but it's not mentioned too often, and aliens definitely aren't the focus of this. It's very much about humanity and what humans are capable of, with a fascinating dash of ship AI.

The Characters

Trouble Dog

Trouble Dog is our main AI spaceship. She's a person, basically, just in the form of a massive warship, who regrets her past, so joins an organisation that rescues people, rather than kills them. She battles with emotion, as AIs often do, and still battles with that side of her that was built to be a warship, and sorely misses the massive guns that being a rescue ship, rather than a warship, means she no longer has. Trouble Dog was probably my favourite character, who made me smile and cheer with some of her comments and actions.

“The Trouble Dog gave a credible impression of an indignant sniff. If she had been a child, she would have been pouting. “I told the idiot to give me back my guns.””

Sal Konstanz

Ona Sudak

Would I read it again?

Will I be picking up the next in the series?

Would I recommend it?

Is it going on my favourites shelf?

After having read A Darker Shade of Magic and not enjoying it all that much, I was hesitant to try another Schwab book. I was pleasantly surprised by This Savage Song though. Urban fantasy is up there amongst my favourite genres, so I was hopeful that this could be better for me, but when you've read a ton of urban fantasy, you begin to wonder if you'll ever read something truly different. This Savage Song managed to be different. The world that was built and the creatures that Schwab created were...

Continue reading at A Reading Brit

It started really well. There was excitement, the sci-fi elements were introduced well and intrigued me. It tapered off after around 40% though and I struggled to keep going. I eventually gave up 50% in.

Lots of political commentary. I enjoy politics, but this went above and beyond, for me. You can tell it was written around Brexit and the issues the EU is facing and I just have no interest in reading about it more than I already have to suffer through it on the news daily. I took a peak at the author's twitter, and the political commentary in the book suddenly made a lot more sense, which was a shame, as this definitely had potential.

Amanda, as a main character, had very little personality. She was flat and boring, repeatedly saying that she was “half-caste”, the authors words, not mine, as if that made up for everything else.

The sci-fi elements had potential. The social credit score was interesting, and the AIs drew my attention, but I don't think either things were used to full advantage.

Overall, not something I enjoyed, so I'm afraid I won't be sharing this one.

I received this for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I ran a Twitter poll, asking what I should read next with a few options that people had recently recommended to me. ADSOM won, so here I am, writing this after spending about 4 hours of my life reading it. To be honest, I wasn't as awe-struck as I thought I was going to be...

Full review at A Reading Brit

Review originally posted on A Reading Brit

In love with this. Truly, completely in love with it. My favourite read of the year so far. I was super excited to start the next one, more than willing to go out and buy it directly after finishing the first. When I discovered it wasn't out yet, I was devastated. I didn't realise that Skyward was so recently published, so just assumed the next one would be out, and wasn't emotionally prepared for it not to be.

The Characters

Spensa – Our glorious main character. She's got great depth, with details of her life revealed expertly by Sanderson. Everything she says and does has a clear motivation and her backstory perfectly suits who she is and what she does throughout. Despite the fact this is a sci-fi, where nothing should really be relatable, I could totally understand why she acted the way she did and why she was angry at the world. I felt really sorry and angry for her at first and then ended up cheering her on as the story progressed. At one point, I actually physically punched the air in celebration because apparently this book really got to me.

Cobb – Cobb is the best instructor going. He's different to the rest of the instructors and seemed to genuinely care for his cadets. His backstory, again, was expertly woven in and, as the reader, we can understand why he does what he does.

M-Bot – I don't know where to start with this. Honestly, you've got read this to understand M-Bot, who he is and why he's so freaking fabulous.

Jorgen – His arc here from jerkface (Spensa's words, not mine) to a loveable character is great. It doesn't happen overnight (well, I read the book overnight!), and I went from hating him to rooting for him.

I won't mention anymore characters, but they were all so fantastic, unique and worthy that I could easily mention every single character, where normally I'd only feature the main few. I mean, I feel like I need to mention Doomslug, at least. If you read Skyward, you'll know what I mean.

The World

The world! Where do I even start? The world this takes place on is Detritus, which is a fantastic name for this planet. The descriptions we get throughout this novel makes it sound like a hard, but rewarding place to live. The sci-fi elements aren't heavy at all, there's no difficult scientific sounding descriptions, so I'd say this would be a decent novel to start with if you're interested in sci-fi but don't want anything too heavy. The world felt so real as I was reading it. I could truly imagine the falling debris and the hell that could follow them.

Overall, I'd say Brandon Sanderson is going to be a new favourite for me. In the time between finishing Skyward and finishing this review I've also read Mistborn, which I also really enjoyed (you may except a review at some point!).

Would I read it again? Yeah, I'll read this before the next one comes out. I can also see this being a comfort read for me. You know, one of those books you go back to if you're in a slump or if you want something good to read.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? Hell yes!

Would I recommend it? 100% absolutely without a shadow of a doubt yes.

Is it going on my favourites shelf? See above! My love for this book is way more than I ever expected it to be. I need more people to read it so I can shout about it with them!

Review originally posted at A Reading Brit.

Shadow and Bone is the first book in the Grisha Trilogy, and I'm pleased to say I finally got around to reading it! I'm only a few years behind the times here...

Overall, this was a fun read that I really enjoyed. I read it in a few hours in one sitting. Whilst the main character didn't really win me over, all the other characters did, as did the world that Leigh Bardugo built. Much like Nevernight, I'm annoyed I didn't read this sooner! Next time a book is everywhere, and super popular, I plan to find out why much sooner that I have been.

The Characters

Alina – She was a little bit annoying at first, but I eventually found it within me to like her. She spent a little bit too much time saying she wasn't pretty, saying she didn't deserve anything that was happening. It was a tad stereotypical, but it wasn't over the top, and I still managed to enjoy her story, nonetheless.

The Darkling – Yep, this is my favourite character. I'm obviously not sure what happens in future books, but I feel like this isn't a character that should be my favourite? I've always been the one to like the bad boy though. It's definitely a fault I've got! He's a great bad guy, and whilst I should've expected it, I didn't quite realise how bad. I went into this book knowing he was the bad guy, but I didn't know how.

Mal – Aww, Mal. He was cute, and genuine, and I felt a little sorry for him. I also spent far too much of the book worrying about him! Whilst The Darkling might be my favourite, Mal has a place in my heart too. I'm curious about him and any undiscovered talents he might have. There's more to that tracking power than meets the eye.

The World

Now, this was interesting, and I'm glad the copy I read had a map so I could understand it a little more. It's an interesting premise, a darkness full of monsters killing anything that might come near. All created using the abilities of an extremely powerful Grisha. I'm interested to find out more about the other Grisha. We only see a hint of what they can do in this book. Even when we did see it, it's mostly for show. I'm intrigued to know what the Grisha can do on a true battlefield, what the different Summoners can do and what other powers might yet be revealed. The whole magic behind it all is fresh and fun, and I can't wait to find out more about it!

Would I read it again? Yeah, I probably would. I feel like I could've missed some details in my eagerness to find out what happens next.

Will I be picking up the next in the series? Yep, maybe not instantly, but it'll certainly be read within the next few months.

Would I recommend it? If you're anything like me, you won't care whether it's been recommended or not. You'll be curious why this book is literally everywhere and have to read it to find out why. If you're like me up until a few days ago and haven't read it, then go for it. At least you'll know what everyone is talking about!

Is it going on my favourites shelf? No, I don't think so. I don't think a book where the main character wasn't my favourite can go on that shelf. I'm still going to rave about it though, because I love The Darkling.

I Tried is a delightful children's book, with a clear story and moral. The illustrations are terrific, and the little bird trying to fly is representative of a lot of things children go through as they grow up.

Reading it as an adult, I can imagine children would love to read this, and that it would also be appreciated if read out in a classroom. It's easy to follow, and the pictures will keep everyone engrossed.

Originally posted on A Reading Brit

4.5/5Upgraded to a 5 after coming back to this after a few days. I want to read the next book, quite a bit, so it's worth the upgrade. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this, and am impressed with this as a debut book. For a debut, it's pretty amazing.

I liked how music was used in this. It set the scene quite well when you knew what songs were playing in the background. And there was some great music, and the ones I haven't heard of, I'll be listening to, if they're anything like the others mentioned.

There was a definite romance in this, but it wasn't one of those where they tortured each other forever, and there was no love triangle. Two positive things to me. The over-protective nature of Zadeon was a little eye-roll worthy, but at the end of the day, he's super-powerful and she was an unknown, so I guess it kind-of makes sense.

The main character was well-developed, she had her own backstory, and it tied in neatly with who she was. Her personality matching her experiences well.

My favourite part of this was the world-building. The nephilim vs demon thing, even though the nephilim were relatives of the highest level demons was a fun take. The abilities and quirks of the demons were fun, their demon marks making for some great description. The setting was fun. I enjoyed reading about what hell looked like, and how it didn't follow 90% of the stereotypes.

I'll admit this isn't a book I'd necessarily recommend as a serious read, but as a light, fun read, I enjoyed it. And if I want a few hours of entertainment, I'll look for the next in the series. I'm hoping one is coming at some point. There's a hint of more stories to be told, so I think there'll be more, and I look forward to it.

Review originally posted at Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

Absolutely loved this. My favourite book of the year, so far. Which isn't saying a lot, but it's also my first sci-fi of the year, which could be telling me something about the urban fantasies I've been reading.

It's hard to properly review this story without spoilers, so there will be minor ones below. However, I've avoided spoiling any of the massive plot points, because where would be the fun in that. I want you to go out and experience the book for yourself, not give everything away here!

The narrator of this story, Bob, has the perfect level of sarcasm and snark. Despite his situation, which is totally out of this world, I found him, and his reactions, relatable. As a character, he's thrown into an incredible, stress-inducing situation, and how he handles it, and the sense of humour he uses to keep himself sane, is fantastic. Maybe it's because I'm a little bit geeky, but his pop culture references, that no one else understood, did make me chuckle quite a lot. If you know a certain famous science fiction TV series, you'll recognise one of the names I discuss below.

Bob, to do what he really wants to do, has to make duplicates of himself. There's one named Riker, which I took a particular liking to. I enjoyed the way the author chose to switch POV throughout this piece. Although the first time it happened threw me, as I wasn't paying attention to chapter titles. So, if you pick this book up, pay attention to them! They'll give POV info, as well as the date.

Another good thing for me, is that this novel wasn't constantly rushing forward at break neck speeds. There was the odd chapters that were more relaxing, where you had a little bit of science explained to you, instead of an intense fight. The author balanced this out well for me, so I wasn't bored of the slow-down or exhausted by the action.

From the beginning to the end, I thoroughly enjoyed this story. The intriguing start, the journey and stories that were encountered throughout the various star systems, and even back on Earth, and the stories that are still waiting to be told come the end. I will definitely be picking up the next book in this series. It's just a matter of deciding if I want to read it right now, or if I'm going to give something else a chance. Hmm, decisions, decisions.

Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

Think I might have urban fantasy, strong female MC, somewhat annoying love interest/psycho burnout. I just feel like I'm reading interesting plots, but with very similar characters a lot of the time.

Badass female MC – ✔

Annoying Love Interest – ✔. Admittedly, why they're annoying varies. This one is a won't take no for an answer sort, but there's a weird reason for that I won't spoil.

The third male, who isn't a love interest at all, but wants in the MC's pants too – ✔

However, some were flipped on their head, and for that, I'm super happy. It's what redeemed it for me. I definitely can't go into detail without major spoilers, but let's just say, something I've wanted to happen in all these paranormal romance books, finally happened!

I enjoyed the world that has been built here too. Angels, archangels and vampires are all common knowledge. The unique thing, or at least new to me, is that only angels turn vampires.

The thing is, whilst I do want to read on, I also don't. The book had a happy ending, where I can make up some, they lived happily ever after bs. I really liked the ending, but it's not encouraging me to read on, so I also don't know how to feel about it.

Overall, I'm giving this a 4.5/5. I think my issues with it are because I've read about 10 books along the same lines recently. This might've been the best of the lot of them.

Originally posted on Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

How to Save an Undead Life is the first book in the Beginner's Guide to Necromancy series. It drops us in to a world where magic, as well as vampires and necromancers, definitely exist. It was a good read, and one I didn't regret picking up at all. Especially since it was on Kindle Unlimited.

The first thing I'm going to mention is the characters. Grier, Boaz and Amelie were well-written to portray their personalities, as well as hints of their past.

Grier held her own as a main character. She had a good balance of damsel in distress and go away, I can help myself, which I was thankful for. A character that's just a damsel in distress all the time is annoying, but so is a character that's so badass she never needs help.

Boaz took a little time to grow on me as a character. At first, he struck me as possessive and somewhat over the top in his pursuit of Grier, but he grew on me. Especially when you meet a truly possessive character a little later on. His relationship with Grier is fleshed out more as the book continues, and it really redeemed him as a character for me.

The best part for me was the world being built here. We get a lot of information, about High Society, Low Society, Necromancers, Vampires and all sorts in between. The information was interesting, and there wasn't too much of it that I was overloaded. I've retained most of the information too, which is something I don't normally do with the books that dump too much on you at once. Thankfully, this wasn't that.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. The ending let me down a little. It left it flat, and didn't necessarily encourage me to read on. In fact, the ending kind-of just appeared out of no where. One minute, she's helping fix a broken nose, the next minute, The End. It kind-of sprung up on me out of nowhere. I'm still planning to though, because I enjoyed the characters, and the world the author has presented.

Originally posted on Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

I'm afraid I abandoned this about 30% in. I just couldn't take anything seriously.

The characters were ok, nothing stand out, but they weren't terrible. The MC was a gambler and cleaned the local police station. I couldn't quite believe the relationship she had with the police because of it. The whole city is falling apart, but the MC calls for help, and not one, but two, PCs show up? I think they've got better things to be doing. She didn't even really explain in the call why she wanted help and they were rushing to her aid. Sure, maybe send one person, if nothing more urgent comes up, but you don't waste two of your officers on a call like that.

What really tripped me up was the plot. It just got too weird. It was like the plot of a parody or nonsense film. What's the strangest thing that can happen next? Oh, fire raining? What's also weird? Trees! Oh, how about the roommate shifting into a bunyip. Sure. It just seemed like one thing after the next, with no real reason for it happening. I get that magic is leaking all over the city or something, but these random events just felt out of place and unnecessary. I'm assuming it was to show the chaos that was being caused, but it didn't work for me.

Sorry, but this just wasn't for me.

I received this ebook for free as part of an ARC from NetGalley.

Review originally posted at Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

At first, I couldn't get into this at all. The prologue really bogged me down, and I found the first few chapters too wordy, and not interesting enough. This was the first book I'd picked up as part of NetGalley though, so I wanted to stick with it. Abandoning the first book I picked up wouldn't be great, would it? 

If you've noticed the rating, you're probably wondering what the hell I'm thinking. The thing is, this book gets better if you get through the first couple of chapters. It didn't redeem itself back to 5/5 levels for me, but still, it clawed it's way from a 1 to a 3, and then I got to the climatic ending, and we're up at a 4, pushing towards 4.5 if I was feeling generous. Which, after reading the first chapter of the next book that was supplied at the end, I decided I was. 

The Good: 

The plot is probably my favourite thing about this. Angels protecting people are stories as old as time, but this is a whole other level for so many reasons that's difficult to go into without spoilers. Let's just say, there's more to both Alex and Aramael than meets the eye. 

Alex is a strong main character. She's got her issues, for sure. More issues than most. She's got her flaws, and they're handled quite well. I enjoyed following the story from her perspective, and enjoyed reading her interactions with the other characters. 

Even better than Alex, though, is Aramael, the angel of the story. His story of who is, what he is, and how he has to deal with the dramas of Heaven were my favourite parts of this. You only see snippets of the drama going on up in Heaven, but there's enough drama for a whole seperate novel, probably multiple. I'm looking forward to seeing more of it. 

The ending was the best part. If you've read my previous reviews, you'll know I hate it when I can figure out the climax, or the big reveal, before it happens. I like to be surprised. With this, I didn't expect it, and I genuinely want to pick up the next book.

The Bad (but not too bad): 

The writer's style at the start did bog me down a little, as I said above. I'm glad I stuck with it, though. 

There was the odd cliché in this. Very minor, but probably predictable spoiler here, we've got the start of a forbidden romance. The whole, we can't do this, it's forbidden sort of thing was going on. What, thankfully, redeemed it for me, is the characters' response to it. Particularly, the female in the situation. She didn't halt her whole life because she couldn't have the angel. She got on with it. Hallelujah. The whole forbidden romance thing, whilst hinted at, isn't a main theme at all. In fact, it would be quite easy to ignore it if you really want to, which is pretty much what I chose to do. 

I'm curious as to why this book seems to be being republished under a different author's name, I'll admit. It seems the series is complete, or, there's at least 4 books, so why change things now? Just a curiosity I've got regarding this. 

So, in summary, yes, I would buy this book. Especially if you enjoy urban fantasy stories, with a hint of romance. And who doesn't like a good series to sink their teeth into?

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and of course, the author for the opportunity to read this book! 

Originally posted at Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

How many books can I say I started at 10pm, and finished at 3am? Not that many. For that reason alone, it's 5 stars. I value sleep like little else, but this made me forgo sleep to see what would happen next.

At first, when I first read about this, I was unimpressed. It seemed like every other YA, dystopian novel out there. How many books have the classes separated by something? Whether that be numbers, colours, looks or something else? It's now a new concept. This was a breath of fresh air for this genre for me.

I was more invested in the characters than I'd care to admit. Darrow, Mustang and Servo were just great characters. If you don't like Servo, then I think there's probably something wrong with you. He was my favourite character because he wasn't perfect like the other golds. He wasn't traditionally handsome and tall, but boy was he smart.

To be honest, parts of it aren't YA. This is a quote from the first few chapters, and when I really started paying attention to this novel:

On Mars there is not much gravity. So you have to pull the feet to break the neck. They let the loved ones do it.

Originally posted at my blog - Squirtoon's Bookish Blog

Well, at first I had no words for this. It's probably one of the strangest things I've ever read. I've never read a sci-fi comedy before, so this was a first for me. 

The main character Cal Carver is definitely the star of the show. He's got a remarkably quick wit, and is possibly the most annoying character in existence. I like main characters I can like, characters that I can cheer for. Cal was not this for me. Cal was a character I wanted to very desperately punch in the face. I wasn't alone in this opinion, most of the characters did as well. How he survived the whole book without being killed, I'm not entirely sure. He should've been. I've also got no clue what Cal actually looks like, which isn't great for a main character. 

There was also the character of Miz. She was another character I couldn't stand. Miz is a werewolf-type alien, who had a crush on Cal, until she found out the truth about him. Her behaviour is super annoying throughout, because of this crush she had. Imagine the cheesiest, most possesive girl character you can, multiply it by 10, and you'll have Miz. It just made me roll my eyes every couple of pages. 

My favourite character was Splurt. You won't understand it unless you read it, and I don't want to spoil too much. Splurt is the best character, and he doesn't even talk. Maybe that's why I like him so much. 

The story itself is quite far-fetched, but still somehow fun. They get themselves into trouble, and somehow get themselves out of it in some very entertaining ways. This was the redeeming quality of the story. It kept me reading, instead of telling Cal to do one and giving up. The entertainment value of the story is what somehow upheld the 4 stars I've given to the story. 

I've not decided if I'm going to get the next book in the series or not. Can I put up with two annoying characters for a whole other book? I'm not sure. 

Wow, where do I start?

Thanks for r/suggestmeabook to begin with. I asked for a spacefaring romance, but something where the romance was subtle, not too in your face.

I'll start with the spacefaring. This book definitely has that! 90% of the book is set on The Wayfarer, a wonderfully fun sounding spaceship, with a task of never thought about before, and a multi-species crew.

The technology is always one of they things I like to read about, and there was plenty of it here. The explanations were good, not too in-depth to bore the reader, but deep enough to give a decent understanding.

Where this book really excels though is the characters, particularly in Rosemary, which is the character that grows and changes the most throughout this book.

The book was full of surprises, things that made me smile, and loveable characters. I've already finished book 2!

I'm experimenting with reviewing at the moment. Reviewing what I've read so far at 50% (well, 45, but close enough) and then reviewing again at the end to see how my opinion might differ.

I'll start by saying I've never read any political books before. Unless you class Feed by Mira Grant, but that's also a post-apocalyptic book with zombies so I'm not sure I count it! I love The West Wing, so figured I'd give this a try.

I actually pre-ordered the book back in March, so was pretty excited when it arrived. The book design definitely added to that excitement, but I daren't judge a book by its cover! I know a lot of people hate Clinton, but you can't say he's not got an interesting story of his presidency. I hoped he'd bring that drama, but also the knowledge with him.

I loved the start of this. I've read other reviews that say it was too slow, but that's exactly why I love it. You get the sense that the president screwed up in the first sentence, or maybe the second. You've got the house select committee and the metaphor of sharks. I feel like the beginning of the novel is all Clinton. This is where his insider knowledge comes in, and I enjoyed it. Although I wouldn't say it's that inside. I've seen things like that before. It's nothing overly new. You have got immediate questions about what's going on, and how that's going to affect the plot.

A little later on, you've then got where I stared to lose faith a little. The action starts, and it's... I don't know. I love myself some good action, but when you've got the President shooting bad guys. It just seems... wrong? The whole plot of the President being the only one who can fix the impending cyber attack is over the top to me. Stretches my ability to believe it. I get that it's fiction, but is fiction not grounded in truth somewhere. Wouldn't the president simply get the top CIA operatives on it, rather than himself? Getting away from his Secret Service agents by ordering them not to follow him, and meeting someone who he's got zero background information on, and could quite easily have killed him multiple times? Maybe it's explained more later on why he's so willing to do this. Why it can't be anyone but him, but right now, it's not sitting too well with me. I find the secret code word to be a little stupid too “Dark Ages”. I don't know the answer yet, but I'm assuming someone hacks into the energy grid and cuts the power across the entirety of the US? And that's the big bad the president has to stop. Maybe he needs to stop being secretive and start informing at least a few more people about the threat, so they can sure up defences and begin planning for events if the worst did happen. I'm not talking about telling the public to great mass hysteria, but come on!

I'm still going to continue reading. I'll be back when I finish.

I'm back, after finishing it! So I was a little off with my theory of Dark Ages being just about electricity. I won't go into it too much because spoilers, but that's one hell of a virus! I think the big reveal of the traitor was obvious. I don't know if it was supposed to be, but it seemed obvious from back when the traitor was first discussed. So the big reveal didn't pack as much punch as expected. I'll admit the way the President goes about catching the traitor, is pretty cool, and brings the tension levels to a critical level.

The character of the President was a tad cliche. Ex-military, adding depth with a wife that passed away, no thought to his safety, much to the annoyance of the secret service. Seemed a little cliche.

The characters I did like were Carrie and Augie. I don't know how to talk about them without spoilers, but how they're portrayed is much more interesting to me.

Whilst I know I've been pretty critical, I did actually really enjoy the book. It was well-paced, and there was enough slower parts to catch my breath without the pace dropping to a crawl.

Overall, I'd recommend it. It's not the first book I've read with a character like President Duncan, or the first I've predicted the ending. It is entertaining and fast-paced, which makes up for it. And the design with the red page gilding on the edition I had.

I was expecting this book to be more interesting, overall. Maybe it's just me, but I found the whole story around the gangs of London to be somewhat predictable and old news.

I never understood Milton's motives. He ditches the life he had and ends up spending time with a 15 year old kid and his mother. Who, by the way, are the most stereotypical and eyeroll-worthy characters there could be.

After reading the book that felt like it was never going to end, I'm not in the mood to write a long review!

SPOILERS

I'll say that I almost didn't finish it. I felt like Keira was never going to get with the damn immortal stalker.

The start was a lot like Twilight. A girl moves away from home, to somewhere it's cold and rains a lot. She meets an incredibly rich family. She develops an obsession with one of the family. The family are some sort of supernatural beings. The one she's obsessed with stalks her, watches her while she sleeps, saves her from her own occasional stupidity. Now, am I talking about Afterlife, or Twilight?

I'm getting sick of books where the protagonist is seemingly nothing special, but is obviously the most amazing thing ever at the same time. Get a grip.

Oh, and you know how the damsel in distress is always taken by some bad guy, and the immortal stalker has to save her? That happened in this book. And from the “cliffhanger” at the end of the book. It'll happen in the next, and I certainly don't care for it.