Riri
This novella is about Queen Coriane in her youth. It shows how she met King Tiberias, how she eventually gave birth to Cal, how she eventually met her end, and... angst. A whole lot of angst from beginning to end, starting from “OH NO MY BROTHER LOVES MY BEST FRIEND, THEY'RE GONNA LEAVE ME ALONE!” and spiraling down into further depression with each chapter. Her diary is filled with endless whining which adds absolutely nothing new to the story, aside from the fact that Coriane is way too dumb the whole time she was dealing with Elara.
Elara would be easy to get close to. She would not expect Queen Coriane to speak to her, let alone sing to her. But Coriane would do both.
Actual rating: 3.5 stars
Rounded up because I loved the series, the characters are fantastic, and the couples are cute. But when you're reading through 800 pages and things are starting to get repetitive, you will notice. There are so many glamour and mind control tricks that I got tired of it after a while. In fact, the entire finale is mostly a battle of mind control with Cinder's friends coming one by one—basically giving Levana plenty of chances to screw them up.
I don't know. I didn't like it. It felt like they have to face all these things for the sake of having obstacles before the happy ending. It was good, but not as epic as I was expecting.
The other issue I had lies with Winter. Jacin and Winter are side characters in their own book. She sounded awesome in Cress and I really wanted to love her as much as I love Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress... but there are far too many things about her that bothered me. Winter suffers from severe hallucinations because she refuses to use her Lunar gift, but when her mind is stable, she's a bit coquettish. I liked that.
What I didn't like was how naïve she is. She trusts others easily for no apparent reason (other than because she's nice and kind), but she also puts the people around her into a lot of trouble. They have to help her whenever she's hallucinating, and yet she often wanders off without telling anyone. Like in the poisoned apple scene. It's exactly like the original scene in Snow White. IT WAS SO FORCED, and it makes Winter seem really dumb.
Don't get me wrong though, I loved the book. It's just not as great as I wanted it to be. Then again, maybe I'm just being nitpicky because The Lunar Chronicles is an amazing series and I think it deserves better.
Perfect for Halloween, though I ended up finishing it before the day comes. Some of the stories are super creepy, some are disturbing, some left me confused, but overall this is a pretty good anthology. I rated each story individually.
The Birds of Azalea Street
by Nova Ren Suma
4 stars
In the Forest Dark and Deep
by Carrie Ryan
4 stars
Emmeline
by Cat Winters
3 stars
Verse Chorus Verse
by Leigh Bardugo
4 stars
Hide and Seek
by Megan Shepherd
3 stars
The Dark, Scary Parts and All
by Danielle Paige
2 stars
The Flicker, The Fingers, The Beat, The Sigh
by April Genevieve Tucholke
4 stars
Fat Girl With a Knife
by Jonathan Maberry
3 stars
Sleepless
by Jay Kristoff
5 stars
M
by Stefan Bachmann
3 stars
The Girl Without a Face
by Marie Lu
5 stars
A Girl Who Dreamed of Snow
by McCormick Templeman
3 stars
Stitches
by A.G. Howard
3 stars
On the I-5
by Kendare Blake
4 stars
My personal favorites are Marie Lu's, April Genevieve Tucholke's, and Jay Kristoff's.
Not sure if 1★ is too harsh or not, but the only thing I'm 100% sure of is that I did not enjoy this book. At all. [b:Snow Like Ashes 17399160 Snow Like Ashes (Snow Like Ashes, #1) Sara Raasch https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1392224823s/17399160.jpg 24221752] was disappointing for me, and Ice Like Fire is even worse. I feel like everything just fell apart. At first I had a bit of excitement because Meira is finally exploring the rest of Primoria, but the world-building is so poor that all the kingdoms she visited mostly blended into a blur. I feel like if all the descriptions are taken out of the book, it wouldn't make that much difference—that's just how flat they are.Also, Mather gets his own perspective in this book... and I didn't like it. His chapters are awfully dull. They don't add anything new to Meira's chapters. The sudden switch from Meira's first-person narrative to Mather's third-person is so jarring it's disturbing. And most of his chapters are filled with... angst. Actually, there's a whole lot of angst in this book—both from Mather and Meira. The plot feels like it's getting nowhere, and it really didn't go anywhere. This entire book with its 479 pages accomplishes nothing. It feels like wading through a bunch of unnecessary stuff just to end up like one step ahead of the start line.I find Meira slightly more tolerable than how she was in Snow Like Ashes, but she's still just as rude and judgmental—as Giselle pointed out. She's still whiny. She still makes a lot of stupid decisions, and she repeatedly blames herself for it. By which I mean repeatedly drowning in so much self-loathing that gets tiring real fast. The issue of Meira finding things so fast just so the plot can progress has been here since the first book, but all these convenient situations are just ridiculous.Oh, and Theron in this book is awful—naive and stupid. Man, what happened to the characters in this series? They have become unbearably dull, and whatever charm they had in Snow Like Ashes are gone. Or maybe the massive whinefest drowned them out, I don't know. I just don't feel anything for these people. There's also an attempt at political drama between the kingdoms, but it's so pathetic it feels shallow. Like it's only there for the sake of having turmoil in Primoria.Overall, Ice Like Fire was terribly bland. I'm still going to read the third book though, just to see how it all ends.
Adelina, dear... you are so doomed.Back in [b:The Young Elites 20821111 The Young Elites (The Young Elites, #1) Marie Lu https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1407318399s/20821111.jpg 25217978], we saw glimpses of darkness Adelina has always had in herself. But here in The Rose Society, she takes it to a whole new level. The betrayal of the Daggers has left her hurt and bitter, and the darkness in her is gradually taking over her mind. Adelina is undeniably selfish. She doesn't hesitate to use others when she needs to, and she pushes away the people who genuinely care for her... but at the same time, I find it hard not to sympathize. Her emotions feel so real, so while I think she makes a lot of terrible decisions, a part of me also wants her to succeed.To be completely honest, I have mixed feelings about the new characters. They all have layers and play their own roles in the story, but I can't seem to like Maeve. I find her rude and arrogant while lacking the depth that everyone else has, though maybe that's for the next book to dig further into. I understand that she's a young queen who is eager to rule, but what she said to Adelina towards the end—AFTER attempting to attack Adelina—just didn't sit well with me.“You are outnumbered!” Her eyes fix on me. “The Beldish do not believe in abominations,” she says to me. “We revere your malfettos in the Skylands. You are an Elite, the children of the gods. Just like me. There is no reason for us to fight.”Adelina's response to that pretty much mirrors my own.I look up at her, suddenly disgusted by her olive branch. What a trick. She doesn't want peace—she nearly killed me. She wants to win, and she will take over Kenettra under the disguise of friendship.Magiano, on the other hand, I've loved since the first time he appeared. With Enzo, one could only guess whether he truly loved Adelina or not. I was hoping that the bond they shared was real, but after what happened in this book... I can't tell anymore. Actually, Enzo made me rage when he blamed Adelina for attacking Raffaele and for Gemma's death. Nevermind that Raffaele wanted her killed. Nevermind that Gemma attacked her first. You just pin all the blame on the poor girl. I'm so glad she called him out on it, because I don't think that's entirely her fault. Magiano, on the other hand, clearly shows genuine affection for Adelina. I feel like he might be the light she needs to keep herself safe and calm, so I find myself thinking that he might be the better match for Adelina.Then again, looking at the little “accident” with Violetta at the end, Adelina's fate probably depends on whether or not she can find salvation. I'm also curious about what's going to happen to Teren. Adelina had a really sweet revenge, but I doubt this is the last we'll see of him.Enzo inherited a throne. Giulietta relied on her royal blood. Queen Maeve rules Beldain because she was born to it. But true rulers are not born. We are made.This book doesn't end in a cliffhanger, but it gives you a revelation that makes you want to jump straight to the last book. Which, unfortunately, won't be out until next year. ;___; It's really refreshing to read from a villain / antihero's point of view, and I think Marie Lu does them especially well.
Six of Crows is one of the best books I've read this year. The pacing is a bit more on the slow side for the first half of the book, where we get to learn more about Ketterdam, the Dregs, and the people Kaz gathered for the heist. But that doesn't mean we don't get any action—we do, and it's really, really good.
What I love the most from this book, however, are the characters. Every single one of them isn't purely good nor evil. They're not “friends”. They don't trust each other for the most part, and that doesn't change even as they work together. They have different objectives, and while there is romance growing between them, it never shoves those objectives out of the spotlight. While they do make mistakes, they have their priorities straight. They have depth; everyone is not what they appear to be.
Being an anti-hero fan, my favorite ended up being Kaz... but I just have to mention how awesome the girls are—Inej and Nina. Inej is naturally nice, but while she often expresses concern about what the others are planning, she never forces her beliefs on them. Her relationship with Kaz is fascinating, and I think this one line she said to him describes her really well.
“I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.”
A bit sad that the finale of this great trilogy turns out to be the weakest. The book feels terribly rushed, with Ceony's magician test and the hunt for Saraj rolled up into one. I'm actually not too fond of the latter since Ceony is being unreasonably brash regarding this, and the decisions she made are just... They don't feel like things an intelligent quick thinker like Ceony would do.
There's also the thing with Zina which doesn't feel necessary. It would've been nice if Ceony's family had more involvement prior to this, but since they only had minor role in the previous book, the issue just feels contrived and random. It doesn't have depth, and this is also something I've been complaining about regarding the antagonists.
That aside, I actually did love the way Ceony and Emery fought Saraj together. They kick ass, and I'm glad to see them finally getting a happy ending as well. It would've been nice if we can see Ceony and Emery's life past that point, but that's probably for us readers to imagine.
Honestly, being the shallow human being that I am, I picked up this book mainly because the cover is pretty. I went into this expecting a light read to take a break from all the fantasy books, but I was pleasantly surprised.
There's just something visceral about this book. It's filled with emotions so raw that it really hits me in the heart, even though I'm not particularly fond of Lennie nor do I find her easy to relate to. She's young, she doesn't know how to deal with her sister's death, and she makes a lot of stupid decisions, but I think that's what makes her real. Her romance with Joe takes off super fast, but it's still adorable... though I didn't really like how he brought Rachel into the messy drama.
While I think it's dumb for Lennie to get involved with her dead sister's boyfriend even though she's falling madly in love with someone else, I kind of understand why they ended up like that. I know how it feels to lose someone and have no one else who truly understand the loss. It's complicated, so while what Lennie did with Toby was definitely not right, I can't bring myself to hate her for it.
Well... either that, or I just like trainwrecks and messy human drama. Or both. Probably both.
Anyway, I really liked this book. The writing style is different, but beautiful. Not to mention the poems. Some of Lennie's poems are weird, some are awkward, but some are also touching and beautifully written. The handwritten poems alone make the physical book worth getting even though I'm running out of space.
Well, that was unexpected.
While this book is even more engaging than the previous one, I feel like it kind of drags on at some points and getting through those scenes was a bit of a struggle for me. The romance is slightly thicker and tends to make its way into the spotlight every now and then, but it's still adorable so I have no complaints about that part.
The antagonists, however, still suffer from the same issue Lira had. They lack depth. Their motivations and backgrounds are unclear, making it feel like they're evil for the sake of being evil. That makes it hard to feel anything for them.
I really liked Ceony's friendship with Delilah too, so the ending leaves me feeling a bit bitter... but otherwise it was a very enjoyable read.
Please don't judge me, I seriously have no idea why I picked up this book even though my love for the Theatre Illuminata series dwindled down with each volume and plummeted in the last book. This book contains ALL the issues I had with that series, and made me realize that the writing is just not for me.
Maybe because the cover is gorgeous and I'm shallow like that. DON'T JUDGE ME, OKAY.
Aside from the excessive descriptions of dresses and gadgets, there is literally no world-building and little to none character development. It's really difficult to feel any connection to the characters, not to mention I found Penny rather annoying. The transitions are poorly done and make the whole plot really confusing, and in the end I don't think the plot makes any sense.
Nope.
This book doesn't grab me right off the bat. It takes a while before I can truly get into the story and magic, but the fast pace and the clear, concise writing style made it engaging nonetheless. Ceony is a nice and relatable heroine. She has her flaws, of course, but she acknowledges them and tries to be a better person. She doesn't dwell on things she can't do anything about, and instead tries to make the best of her life—even if it's different from what she wanted.
The romance is thin, but adorable. Emery's past gives so much depth to his character, and Ceony only starts to fall in love after she learns more about him. No instalove, no drooling over his hotness considering he's pretty much average in everything aside from his eyes. The 12 year of age difference doesn't bother me a single bit, but that's my personal taste... and also because Emery doesn't feel like an old man despite his age.
And because I'm closer to his age than Ceony's. You didn't see that.
That aside, it'd have been nice if we get to learn about Ceony herself. Emery's life and past takes up a large portion of the story, but Ceony's only came out in a desperate moment that made it feel kind of rushed. This is only the first book in a trilogy though, maybe that's for the next ones to reveal. I didn't really like Lira though. I feel like she lacks depth as an antagonist, so hopefully this part gets better as the story moves along.
This is actually more like 3.5 stars, but I'll round it up because the characters are fun and the world-building is beautiful... and for Rhysand. Feyre is a pretty good heroine too—not meek, but not absurdly sassy either.
What bothered me the most about this book was probably the pacing. It was really, really slow at the beginning, then Feyre looked away for a moment and everything was already in chaos. From there, the rest of the story feels rather rushed with sudden info reveals. The first one came from Alis, which I thought was fine since Feyre did need to know the secrets they kept from her, but the next reveal with Rhysand was just so... sudden. There was no build-up leading to that point, so it felt kind of forced.
Complaints aside though, I loved the romance and Feyre's interactions with the faeries—particularly Lucien. In the last 40% of the book I ended up liking Rhysand more than Tamlin (though I don't ship him with Feyre), and since this is clearly not the last time we'll see him, I hope he'll get more spotlight in the next books. I really like the writing style too, maybe it's about time to pick up Throne of Glass...
Carswell Thorne is awesome, that is all.
Merged review:
This would have been around 3.5 stars if it weren't for The Princess and The Guard and Something Old, Something New. Still a bit disappointed that Cress and Thorne didn't get a proposal, but I guess the happily ever after made up for it in the end.
God, this book is SO messed up I can't even begin to describe it LMAO. It doesn't justify Levana's actions, not in the slightest, but it does explain the reasons why she became the way she is now... and boy, does she have a LOT of reasons. At the beginning, Levana is only a lonely 16-year-old living in the shadow of her beautiful sister, Channary. The sister who contributed to most of the reasons that ruined her life, that is.
As Levana grows older, we get to see her gradual descent into madness. It was hinted that she's always been... slightly disturbed to begin with, but what threw everything into hell was mainly her unrequited love for Evret Hayle and the delusions that followed. I feel REALLY bad for the man since he literally didn't do anything wrong, but at the same time I also feel sorry for Levana. I can't help but think that if only she was raised in a loving environment and received better treatment, she wouldn't end up tumbling down into this whole insanity.
What she did to Evret is undeniably gross though, as there is no such thing as mutual consent in their relationship. Though to be honest, the forced kisses and even the "rape" didn't really bother me. It's the way Levana made herself look like Solstice that did.
Overall, I really enjoyed this novella. There are some parts that dragged and some parts that went too fast, but it definitely left a strong impression on me.
Love is a conquest. Love is a war.
Here is what I think of love.
Reading Cress feels like having a great adventure. There's so much going on in this book. By the time I reached the end, I felt like the plot has moved far, far away from where it was at the start of the book. It's a really engaging read, and the characters have grown so much since the beginning of the series.Cress and Thorne are probably my favorite couple so far. I loved Thorne in [b:Scarlet 13206760 Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1342485529s/13206760.jpg 18390691], and even more so after the epic journey he shared with Cress through the desert. As for Cress herself, I didn't expect to like her because naïve characters tend to annoy me if not nicely handled... but in the end, I liked Cress just fine. She's cute, and her romantic fantasies are adorable.Also, we get to see Princess Winter in this book. Along with her childhood friend and love interest Jacin, who temporarily joined Cinder on the Rampion. While we don't get to learn that much about them, I loved what we've seen from them so far. Jacin is so rude and sarcastic it's hilarious at times, while Winter is... interesting.Cinder and Kai finally have more time together towards the end of the book. At first my opinion of Kai hasn't really improved since he was being awfully doubtful and judgmental towards Cinder, but he does get better so I find myself liking him a bit more. Or maybe I'm just happy that my wish for Cinder to kidnap Kai finally came true.While I still have [b:Fairest 22489107 Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1402940130s/22489107.jpg 41928590] to read, I'm really looking forward to [b:Winter 13206900 Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1426654088s/13206900.jpg 18390887]. Can't wait to see how she's going to deal with Scarlet's feisty temper too. :'D
This book is even better than [b:Cinder 11235712 Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388186881s/11235712.jpg 15545385], which I loved despite its flaws, and I literally couldn't put it down until drowsiness eventually forced me to sleep. As the story shifts its focus to France, I feel that the world-building got a lot better than the vague descriptions of Asia back in the first book. It's easier to imagine the landscapes, and the writing is still easy to follow.Unfortunately, I had some issues with Scarlet as a character. I couldn't like her as much as I like Cinder. Despite the hints of sympathy she shows every now and then, Scarlet is way too hot-headed for my taste. She is quick to judge others, without even bothering to listen to their side of the story first. There are lots of moments when she shows a selfish streak too, prioritizing her wish to rescue her grandmother and not giving a damn about everything else... even if that makes her a loving granddaughter. I don't know, we just don't click.That being said, I find her relationship with Wolf adorable. Or rather, Wolf is endearing. But I have to say that my favorite male character at this point is Cinder's new companion—Thorne. He's so charming in a silly way, and I'm so excited that we get to see more of him in [b:Cress 13206828 Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379083526s/13206828.jpg 18390772].Also, if you're planning to marathon series, make sure you read [b:The Queen's Army 16075962 The Queen's Army (The Lunar Chronicles, #1.5) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349734763s/16075962.jpg 21871423] after you read Scarlet. It kind of spoiled Ran's identity along with Jael and his special operatives for me, and while it didn't make the book less enjoyable, it did drain the tension and suspense I could've gotten from those scenes.
So, my plan to wait until [b:Winter 13206900 Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1426654088s/13206900.jpg 18390887] comes out before marathoning the whole series has fallen apart. The more I heard about this series, the more I wanted to read it... and so I did.While the writing is beautiful and the story compelling, it should be noted that it takes a while for things to start rolling. In fact, the ending of this book is more like a whole new beginning for Cinder. The plot is a bit predictable, but it still kept me at the edge of my seat. Cinder and Prince Kai have great relationship dynamics too, and as horrible as it may sound, I liked where they stand at the end of the book.No magical love-solves-all resolution, no instant acceptance, but still sweet nonetheless. Or maybe I can say this because [b:Scarlet 13206760 Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles, #2) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1342485529s/13206760.jpg 18390691] and [b:Cress 13206828 Cress (The Lunar Chronicles, #3) Marissa Meyer https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1379083526s/13206828.jpg 18390772] are out already, so I don't have to wait to read the continuation with impatience eating me out.Also, the story vaguely reminds me of Sailor Moon. Which is always a good thing.I do have to agree, however, with the reviews stating the lack of Asian culture, despite the book taking place in Asia. The terms alone are not enough for the world-building to stand firm, so the occasional mention of them make the setting feel rather surreal. Hopefully the world-building will improve in the next books though.
Actual rating: 3.5 starsAfter the epic [b:Angelfall 15863832 Angelfall (Penryn & the End of Days, #1) Susan Ee https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1381264956s/15863832.jpg 16435765] and [b:World After 17849112 World After (Penryn & the End of Days, #2) Susan Ee https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1423238855s/17849112.jpg 18142457], End of Days left me feeling a bit conflicted. The plot is still fast-paced and action packed, and the pacing is still as great as always... but I have to admit that I'm not too fond of how Penryn behaves in the first half of the book. In the previous books, I loved how Penryn never worried too much about emotions and just tackled the issues in front of her. But in this book, she becomes notably more emotional. More... angsty. Even in dire situations, she would make comments about how Raffe doesn't want her or how they can never be together.Yes, yes, I know, it's hard to deal with emotions. The vault in Penryn's head already has too many things stuffed into it, and it doesn't help that she's only 17—a teenager. But still, after reading about her awesomeness in the previous books, I couldn't help but think: “Wow, Penryn... what happened to you?”While I'm glad that Penryn and Raffe get their happy ending, I feel like the series need more development before reaching a conclusion. There are way too many things squished into the last 25% or so, so the quick conclusion felt shallow... and cheesy at some points. Some things like Obi's death also feels like a convenient way to wrap things up, and in the end it's more like deus ex machina than anything else. There's a lot of questions which remain unanswered, though I do like how the world isn't magically fixed in the end. It stays broken, and everyone who has been scarred stay that way.I wish we'd get to see Laylah fixing Raffe and Paige too. At least a glimpse of it, instead of having deus ex machina and suddenly seeing them in better condition.Complaints aside, I did enjoy this book and the ending—I just feel like it could've been better. The Watchers are awesome though, so I'm a bit sad that they didn't get much spotlight. Can we see more of them, please? Pretty please?
Up until about 70% of the book, I thought I would only give it 3 stars. The plot moves at a super slow pace and tends to drag on, with Kestrel and Arin walking around in circles over and over again. Misunderstandings come one after another. Just when they finally sort out an issue between them, something else would happen and make things worse. This continues up until the end, where Kestrel hits the point of desperation due to yet another misunderstanding... and as Arin starts working towards a better option for his people, everything quickly falls apart for her.Including her friendship with Jess and Ronan, which I adored so much in the first book. What happened to them was just awful.God, what did Ronan do to deserve THAT. I just... WHY. I can't help but feel a bit bitter towards Kestrel, because regardless of her intentions, it was her who drove him and Jess to reach this point. Now I can only hope that Verex's fate won't be as terrible, since he seems genuinely nice towards Kestrel despite how he might feel about their marriage plan.Hopefully both Kestrel and Arin will show some growth in the last book. There's only so much misunderstanding and indecision I can take, and this one nearly burned out all of my tolerance. Still, it was an engaging read and I'm looking forward to read [b:The Winner's Kiss 20443235 The Winner's Kiss (The Winner's Trilogy, #3) Marie Rutkoski https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1431357125s/20443235.jpg 31175868] next year!