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Showing posts from 2016

Crystal Storm (Falling Kingdoms) by Morgan Rhodes- 10 out of 5! AMAZING

The Queen Morgan Rhodes never ceases to amaze me. This book was as epic as all the other books in the Falling Kingdoms series. That cliffhanger though... my heart is in tatters! I AM NOT OK WITH THE ENDING! What's up with the queens of YA this year (Sarah J Mass and Morgan Rhodes) and their 'thing', 'obsession', 'prone to torture tendencies', or whatever it is you want to call it at the end of their books? 2017 is going to be, to us YA readers, a year of healing. And a well needed one! Between Empire of Storms, A Court of Mist and Fury and now Crystal Storm I am truly done with book series and their mean cliffhanging endings for a while. I shall only read stand alones this january. I need a brake! Luckily for me my tbr list is huge and I can give myself that time. Seriously guys... the ending is very disturbing! I am with Cleo 100%: "I don't think this world will survive my grief". Ok. so...the book... It starts with King Gaius 17 years pri

Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone series Gosh this is a hard review to write! I loved the series. I hated the series. Both statements are equally true. Let's start with the easy part: The first book was great (read previews post). The second book was a good enough follow up! Maybe a 4.5 out of 5, a little slow but still good. Now to the hard part: the third book: Dreams of Gods and Monsters. It was the worse book in the trilogy. There were good moments, but not enough good moments to make me EVER want to read it again. I loved Avika's and Karou's interactions. Mik's and Suzana's. Ziri's and Liraz's... you know, the characters we met on the other books and loved! But I absolutely hated the new characters (Eliza, Dr something, her annoying work mate, Nightingale, Scarab, etc...). They were ALL unnecessary and distracted from the story that the reader had now come to love. And the worse part? The new characters destroyed and obliterated the ending. I fou

Daughter of Smoke and Bone: 5 out of 5

Daughter of Smoke and Bone ended up being a lot better than I expected. After I finished reading the Lunar Chronicles (and loved it!) I wasn't sure this was going to be as good. It Was! GoodReads synopsis of the book: "Around the world, black hand prints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky. In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grows dangerously low. And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war. Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her had that color. Who is she? That is the Question that haunts her, and she is about to find out. When beautiful, haunted Avika fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh,

Winter: Lunar Chronicles 10 out of 5?! ;)

Aaaaahhhh!!! what an epic finale!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you are a lover of ya and fantasy there is no way you will not like this book. It was exciting and full of twists and turns. LOVED it! By far the best book in the series. Cinder: 4 out of 5 Scarlet: 5 out of 5 Cress: 4.5 out of 5 Winter: 10 out of 5 I will miss Iko's sass; I will miss cray cray Winter; I will miss my dear Wolf! His bravery, his softness; I will miss Thorne's sarcasm and banter... etc etc etc. The last book brings it all together in wonderful unexpected ways. It was exactly what one would hope of a finale: intense, intense, intense!!!!! If you are like me, and dive into a book with all you've got, you will have your heart on your hands the whole time. There wasn't a moment in the whole book where something wasn't happening and someone was not in danger. The story kept on moving. Wolf and Scarlet are my favorite characters in the series. I love Wolf's dynamic. His hard ext

Cinder (4 stars) and Scarlet (5 stars) - Lunar Chronicles

I have finally started reading the Lunar Chronicles! And I am loving it. Cinder started a little slow for me. I didn't like it at first all that much, but as the story progressed I became more intrigued and fascinated by it. It is a wonderful re-telling of Cinderella. Beautifully written with some awesome sci-fi elements to it. At times a tad predictable, but I guess being a modern re-telling of a classic that comes with the territory. That being said, about half way through the story became engaging enough that I was no longer concerned about it. Cinder is a mechanic, a cyborg! One of her hands and feet are metal. She has a step-mum and a sister that does not appreciate her and a sister she is friends with. So not exactly like that classic ;) She is not your usual heroin, being a cyborg limits what she can do as she not the owner of her own body. She belongs to her step-mum. But she feisty and determined to change her faith. If she just knew by how much .... Prince Kai is

The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E Pearson- 4.5 out of 5

I have read this series a while back now, I really liked it, even though the ending was not what I wanted. I am that reader that often gets frustrated with endings, that is always rooting for the bad boy, the least unlikely to be with the girl in the end. The same was true here! I highly recommend this series!   The Kiss of Deception: This was such a captivating read! My very first by this amazing author. The main character, Lia, has a strong willed, fierce and enticing personality. It is hard not to like her and it is hard not to sympathize with a character that wants so little: free will! One of my favorite things is the strong friendship theme that runs trough the book (and also through the rest of the series). The boys, the prince and the assassin got me very confused at first, I didn't know who was who, but I am guessing that was somehow intentional. It made it interesting and fun. I loved Kaden! From begging to end. My favorite character no doubt! Although the book

Silence (Hush Hush Saga): 4.75 out of 5

Let's start by saying: AWESOME book cover! I think it is so prety! :) I am very much in love with this series. Everything about it calls to me. Sure, there are little things here and there that don't exactly add up, but that is the thing with almost all supernatural/fantasy books. All in all it has been great diving into this series this far and I am looking forward to reading the last book. It is not often that an author is able to captivate its readers in the same way in all books throughout a series, Becca Fitzpatrick is an amazing story teller. After the massive cliffhanger from the previous book I was glad I already had the next book in the series. There is more Patch, more Nora, little less Vee (thanks God). little more Scott (he grows on me here a little) Nora comes back even stronger than on crescendo. Her amnesia turn up the heat on things considerably. There is as much action and adventure and heart in this book as in the others. Patch still Patch. I sai

Crescendo (Hush Hush saga, Book 2)- 4.75 out of 5

Aaaaaahhhhh... this book was nerve racking!! (in a good exciting way). I was on edge the whole time and I feel the desperate need to start the next book immediately! The unexpected cliff hanging ending is killing me here! I truly seriously honestly do not understand all the low sad reviews on GoodReads. Why?!?!? Ok, it is not the most mature book out there, but its not meant to be. Its an YA, a teen read! And it delivers! I am only not giving a 5 because the new character: Scott, is for the most part pointless and stupid. I didn't like him. And considering I always like the underdog on books, I think that means a lot. The plot is immense. There are so many twists and turns, so many things happening at once! Some of them get sorted by the end of the book. others are left for the next one. I can't wait to read it! Patch still Patch. He drives you crazy! The angel has so much wit and so much heart. His relationship with Nora was maddening. There were things going on and p

Hush Hush - 4.75 out of 5

This was great! I truly enjoy it! I just saw however that there are a lot of bad/low reviews for this book on GoodReads. So let me be clear: I love it and I am not ashamed to say it ! haha Seriously, I feel towards this book similarly to how I felt towards the Fallen series, they have the same 'fallen angel' theme, the same bad rep on GoodReads, the same easy to read ya story line... If you liked Fallen (I LOVED it), you will like at Hush Hush (it is also somewhat similar to twilight. Another series that gets mix reviews). I have only read the first book at his point, so I can't say if the rest of the series leaves up to it or not, but the first book was good enough for me. Plot (according to GoodReads); "Romance was not part of Nora Grey's plan. She is never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, P

The Raven Cycle (emphasis on the last two books): 4 out of 5

Oh boy... I wanted to give this series a 5 so bad. But I just can't. I actually keep fluctuating between 3.75 and 4. I read a review on GoodReads that said something along the lines of plot being forgotten for the sake of character building. I agree with that 100%. The characters are amazingly well written . I challenge you to not love them. But the plot... lacking. This would have been better as a trilogy. So much of it was unnecessary and only made the story slow and frustrating. Every time I read Greenmantle I wanted to shut the book. Such a pointless spineless character. Henry's mom, whatever her name was....what was the point of her existence? Even Henry for that matter. He wasn't bad, but he wasn't need either. Why bring back Neeve? etc. If this had been a trilogy, it probably would have been a 5 for me. Because I do love the main characters. Ronan, Adam, Noah (specially Noah, he is so adorable), all the woman ad 300 Fox Way, Gansey, The Grey Man (Love h

Everything Everything: 5 out of 5

Can a book be described as utterly cute? I am going to say yes, because, well... this was utterly cute! I can't get over it. The beauty of it is unexplainable. The Plot (GoodReads): "My disease is as rare as it is famous. Basically, I'm allergic to the world. I don't leave my house, have not let my house in seventeen years. The only people I ever see are my mom and my nurse, Carla. But then one day, a moving truck arrives next door. I look out my window, and I see him. He's tall, lean and wearing all black- black T-shirt, black jeans, black sneakers, and a black knit cap that covers his hair completely. He catches me looking and stares at me. I stare right back. His name is Olly. Maybe we can't predict the future, but we can predict some things. For example, I am certainly going to fall in love with Olly. It's almost certainly going to be a disaster." This book was so beautifully written. I would say it follows on the footsteps of The Fault in

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo: 10 out of 5!!!

I am speechless. This was no shadow of doubt one of the best YA reads of 2016 ! And coming from me, that should mean a lot as I did not like Six of Crows. These books are about impossible heists, impossible escapes, impossible odds, and eventually unforgettable friendships. Since I started this blog way after I've read Six of Crows I will add a little review of it before I dive into Crooked Kingdom... Six of Crows (3 out of 5):  I wanted to love the book because of the great reviews, but I just didn't. A good YA book is good when you somehow connect to the characters. I didn't. Not one. Nada. The reading quickly became tedious. Kaz is meant to come across as someone calculative and cold because of his past and he does. So much so that I felt nothing towards him. I ended up completely indifferent to him. The other characters did not fair any better. It was obvious, to me at least, that Leigh Bardugo was building the characters up for the second book. It was a good ac

The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle): 4 out of 5

This was as good as the first book. And almost as slow... I love Maggie Stiefvater's books. Truly. But the speed in which the stories develops on all of her books usually gets to me half way through. Nonetheless, great read. The Dream thieves focuses mostly on Ronan. It explains and expands on what we find out about him and his raven Chainsaw at the end of the first book. It also tells us more about Adam and his character grows (or changes, depending on ones point of view). Don't expect it to be like the first book, where there is an equal amount of care given to almost all characters. Here Ronan takes center stage. If you didn't like Ronan, you might learn to like him as you get to know more about him. If you already did like him, you might fall in love. He is taught character to get used to, it took me a while on the first book. But I like him, I really do. He is charismatic and loving on his own way. And your heart might just melt with one little line from Adam

The Stonefire Dragon series by Jessie Donovan- 5 out of 5

The plot on each of the books in the series is slightly different from the other, in each book new characters appear but old ones are never forgotten. I am only on book 3 (it is a series of 8) and I am already in love with it. Update: I have now read all 10 Stonefire Dragons books and Lochguard (spin off series) and have loved them all! I will have more reviews for them here soon! -Dec 2017-  The first book is about Melanie Hall and Tristan Macleod (my favorite still!!!) . Melanie offers herself as a sacrifice to the dragon in exchange for a vial of dragon's blood. Dragon's blood cure any illnesses and her brother is really ill. The Dragonman she is assigned to hates humans, and with reason. Dragon hunters -humans- killed his mother and tortured his sister. I wont say more not to spoil it to anyone... The second book in the series is about the dragon clan leader Bram and the Department of Dragons Affairs inspector (and human) Evie Marshall. Contrary to Tristan, Bra

The Raven Boys (The Raven Cycle) : 4 out of 5

Be prepared for a very very slow start. I enjoyed the book, but it took a long time for the story to get going. I had to fight my inner desire to skim through. Luckily, I was told by a wonderful bookstagrammer before I got into it that the first book takes a while to get going, so it wasn't an unwelcoming surprise. And that my friends, is the ONLY reason this book gets a 4. Had it been an easy read from the beginning it would have been a 5. The Raven boys is about a girl called Blue, her psychic family, and 4 boys from the local rich boys school. GoodReads: "For as long as she can remember, Blue has been told by her psychic family that she will kill her true love. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she is not sure anymore." It sounds form that little synopsis that the book will be full of romance, but it is not. It is very cleverly written and clearly purposefully

Girl in Pieces: 4 out of 5

This is a hard book for me to review. I really liked it, so it has a special place in my heart. But I really struggled with it as well. Girl in Pieces synopsis (from GoodReads): "Charlotte Davis is in pieces. At 17 she's already lost more than most people lose in a lifetime. But she's learned how to forget. The broken glass washes away the sorrow until there is nothing but calm. You don't have to think about your father and the river. Your best friend, who is gone forever. Or your mother, who has nothing left to give you. Every new scar hardens Charlie's heart a little more, yet it still hurts so much. It hurts enough to not care anymore, which is sometimes what has to happen before you can find your way back from the edge." Girl in Pieces is a very dark novel on self harm and alcoholism. It is written in a somewhat fragmented text. Imagine getting a glimpse at someone's journal but never being able to fully read it. That didn't bother me, but I

The Fault in Our Stars- 5 out of 5

5 out of 5 is not enough praise for this wonderful book! "That is the thing about pain, it demands to be felt" -Gus- The synopsis (taken from the book): "Despite the tumor-shrinking medical miracle that has bought her a few years, Hazel has never been anything but terminal, her final chapter inscribed upon diagnosis. But when a gorgeous plot twist named August Waters suddenly appears at Cancer Kid Suppor Group, Hazel's story is about to be completely rewritten." So so many tears were shed during and at the end of this book. I loved it so much that the very next day I was getting the film and sitting down to watch it. Can't say I liked the movie quite as much as the book, but it was good too. A warning though for those who have not read it yet: you will not just cry, you will have your soul crushed, destroyed, in pieces... this book gets to you in a way no other has or probably ever will. This book goes way deeper than teenage romance. Yes, there i

Vassa in the Night- 1.5 out of 5

How terribly disappointing... It was originally a 1 out of 5, but after I slept on it I decided that was way too harsh, there were good things about the book, even if only a very few... The book is about a girl called Vassa and her magical doll.  They get 'trapped' in the local store one night. The problem is, to start anyway, that the store beheads shop lifters, even innocent ones.  As the book progresses Vassa discovers a curse in the store, and with her doll, Erg, Vassa tries to break the which's curse and free her neighborhood.  It sounds mighty interesting and I was very excited to read it. I was hoping for some crazy odd and bizarre book that pushes the boundaries of one's imagination. Sadly, instead of being an exciting read, it was a rather gory read. Ok, I get it uppercase (I got the book from my subscription with them), its October, Halloween and all that... but just no! That did not work for me! The world building makes no sense whatsoever. Where

The Forgetting- 4 stars

There is nothing to forget ! 4 out of 5 I thought this was a great book and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The book makes one ponder on life, on our human history, our greed. What if every 12 years you could forget all the wrongs? To some I guess that would be great. But I would like to believe we are made of our memories, we are made of our mistakes and our victories. I like how the book explore that part in us while at the same time, providing the reader with action, some scify, and some romance. All an ya reader could want! My only criticism, and that's due to personal preference is that it at times explains things too much. I am not one to seat and read the details of everything. All in all, a very exciting read... highly recommended it!

In The Beginning

In the Beginning there was fallen... I thought I should start things by sharing the Book Series that got me into all the other book series :) Fallen was the first book series I ever got seriously invested in. I was looking for an easy read and bought the book on offer. Who would have thought that this little happy accident would turn into years of love for ya and fantasy?! It breaks my heart going to GoodRead and seeing how many negative comments have been left on this wonderful series. I am sorry Fallen haters, but I am a NOT_GUILTY_AT_ALL Fallen lover :) The first book starts a little slow, I will give the critics that much. But it eventually picks up and turns into an epic story! There are a good number of characters in this series and they are well very well rounded. As the story progresses the characters grow and as you learn more about them you start to see that not everything and not everyone is as it seems. There is much more to each character than it appears when you