Elle
A beautifully written story. Not typically my style but a beloved author of mine from early works.
As a sister who writes longingly to a missing (passed) brother this book sliced like a knife between my heart and my soul. The emotional hurricane of a mc felt tortured and truthful and brave and required no imagination as often what she wrote or thought felt transpired from mine own. Heartbreaking page upon page. I have few words to describe how this book has left me feeling. But put simply this is the quickest I have read a book in a while, a mere two hours that passed like minutes... thank you for putting your pen to paper as always Rebecca Ross.
*****
A cozy, fantastical tale of adventure and emotion... or should I say practicality? Alone in its style within the genre, it sets itself up as a challenge many authors may attempt but few succeed. Fawcett engages with the audience in the most enjoyable research paper I have had the fortune to read. A tale filled with enjoyable and enriching world-building, a reasonably-headed MC who writes in an intriguing format that at times feels slightly stilted but oh, how genius Fawcett is to use those moments to garner imperfections within her characters. A thoroughly entertaining read, filled with feelings of warmth, and connection, to what the idea of family really means. I am delighted to know their story continues, and cannot wait to delve further into Fawcett's world building and style. Read in one sitting without a check on the time!
I ADORED this book! ADORED. ADORED. ADORED.
All the best tropes, done so excellently! Only one thing didn't fly with myself, and that was the speed towards the end of the book felt a lil' bit mishmash in regards to character development. Whenever I put it down, all I wanted to do was to pick it back up; I just could not let it rest... Especially with the incredible twists that kept coming, I adored the Hungarian folklore and worldbuilding that felt excellently used. The characters felt interesting and the main character is not perfect, but perfect! As in, I adored our MC not being shiny perfection and being in the wrong, she felt so realistic. Hodge has crafted a masterpiece I cannot wait to buy copies for friends.
If you love Arranged Marriage, Enemies to Lovers, Only One Bed, Folklore, Witchiness, Dark Fantasy, Magic, this book, is your new best friend.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
The End of Bias by Nordell is a brilliant read. Nordell provides multiple areas of interest in an array of case studies and includes the references for further studying and checking (which is always good to me!). An incredibly thought-provoking book that combines psychology tidbits, neurology, sociology, gender, lgbt+ and women studies, as well as more mainstream areas of tech, politics and history as well as issues of current society. This was overall an incredibly engaging read with a lot of science available in a readable and understandable format and conversation that I would recommend to anyone. Especially those in the young adult or adolescent groups as a necessary read to understand the unknown bias we face in our lives without noticing.
I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
The Prince and The Puppet Thief is a sweet as sugar, satirical fantasy based short novel. Overall, I found it to be a piece of pie that shouldn't be served with cream but it happens anyways. It's a brilliant flip on classic fairytales, with true loves kisses and princesses in need of rescue! And the narrative style is a sarcastic tone that feels slightly misplaced and empty, however, many people seem to have enjoyed it, so maybe it's just not my cuppa earl grey. It is a very fluffy, lighthearted read, that reads with slightly flaky, shallow character development but some good LGBT+ representation including for gender non-binary! Which is reason to read Arnolds work alone!
I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
One word: Dull. A book about three incredibly interesting plants and their effects on the human mind. Or, so I thought when I decided to read it... Instead I was given 10% intriguing information, and 90% the life story of someone who I did not agree to read about. Overall, this was a relatively boring, unnecessary in personal details and not at all what I signed up for. Bleh.
I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
Bam. The opening! This was a light, easy read, perfect for the new round of teens who think the Hunger Games is old news! The opening was a little abrupt for my taste, but still tasteful. It became sluggish towards the midpoint and it became a struggle to finish towards the end. Overall it was an enjoyable read that I think is perfect for the young teen audience it is aimed towards. I would say the story arc was slightly disappointing, but characters became intriguing and enjoyable. I hope that in future books, the characters enjoy a further development stage to make this even better.
I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily
I found the concept of this book intriguing and enjoyed the intro as it showed the aims of this book as a positive and bright spot in our current dark non fiction world. I found the multiple authors an interesting idea and wondered if they would work well together and was sad to read them and find many same-ish pieces of the same drivel idea and no grasping moments of urgency. To gain a higher rating? I'd have loved this to have been a real book of how people could use the lessons we've “supposedly” learnt from the horrors of COVID 19... not a book that first story is about the “good” of COVID and never mentioning that yes there were bad too. Or more stories like how the “aliens” we were unprepared for was COVID and how that may affect future “terrestrial beings” or unexpected situations. It felt like many people repeating the exact same thought process with different words- and some not using as simplistic language choices as promised in its intro...
Honest Review in exchange for an ARC copy of this book thanks to Netgalley! All opinions expressed are solely my own.
Erin Riha is certainly a writer of skill. I enjoyed this book once I was able to throw myself in, I found the opening slightly confusing and too vague to be of interest, but once I pursued, I enjoyed it a lot more. People compare this a lot to The Selection... I have to admit, The Selection is definitely one of my biggest guilty pleasures; as such I know it well enough to easily see the commonalities between the two books (and their eventual series). And I agree. This is very similar in concept, but I knew that going in, what I didn't know is how quickly it would attempt (fairly successfully at points) to turn this into a redemption of self-worth for our MC.
Arden. I love love love that name, and in a way it totally suits her. Arden, to my knowledge, comes from a meaning of “High” and sometimes “High Beauty”, or “High Value”. Which to me, is a compliment to our MC's virtue. Here we have an MC that is no damn damsel in distress, but a young woman who's had stuff chucked her way since she was a kid, and still stood strong, finding a way through and on, not just collapsing in a heap or onto a mans shoulders as they do for disney. She's not the most relateable MC, but I still enjoyed her as a character immensely. It's a shame side characters like Zerah weren't given more of a relationship with our MC as I would have found that deeply intriguing and interesting for their perspectives to grow. I love that the ‘sidekick' or closest to that, was written in a strong woman who has a mask to the world but still has an obvious archilles heel. No more of those powderpuff girls who act like they've never had brains, here we see an array of DIFFERENT women, each with their own personalities. Now, I have to follow that up with the disappointment that for so many of those characters there was a bitter rivalry that felt secondary to the goings on of the book. Mainly because it would have been ever more so interesting for their to be some woman/woman power instead of just more of the misogynistic world we are so familiar with. Though that leads me to the positive point; that this writer addresses the misogyny at multiple times within our MC's narration, and gives Arden the “hell naw” energy we've been missing in the books of authors prior. My biggest disappointment? The Pirate man. He was a freaking asshole, and his crew weren't life changing just different. AND I am so, so so so so done with bloody love triangles. And it felt so over done and over played with the whole “oh it felt different with him” vibes and “oh but i dont know what that means”... just ENOUGH. Please. In regards to the sensitive matters dealt within of rape/assault and violence etc, I think they were covered and dealt with with grace. I find many authors struggle with this sensitive material and make it too fantastical, or horror story like and unrealistic, and I struggle to read the graphic depictions attempted by other writers. Here, it feels realistic and repulsive, and CJ... CJ is the man we all want to punch in the face, and the two personas shown within society are crafted well, cleverly, and believable. Overall, I enjoyed this book and found it an interesting read, but the forced love triangle (with a toxic member, a sensitive wanting to learn member who is basically an aside story, and a member recovering from something as drastic as Arden), lack of interesting connections between characters, and fairly standard and basic world building, leads me to a score of 2.5/5 stars. I'm not sure I'll read the sequel or continuing books unless I find myself bored.
Honest Review in exchange for an ARC copy of this book thanks to Netgalley! All opinions expressed are solely my own.
Trees, nature, forests and woodlands are a part of the natural world and a part of the only connection we have left to that world due to the speed of man-kinds creations. This book separates itself into three parts and talks about thirteen different Celtic tree species and does so to a degree that you learn oh so much, including the mythological context, healing uses, and what they can represent. Now more than ever, we need to appreciate the nature that is around us and realise that the natural connection we once had with trees like the Ash tree is one we should be begging to have back. This book is an invigorating call to all those who hear the whispers from the trees or want to open their ears to them. Overall, a good GOOD book.
Honest Review in exchange for an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley! All opinions expressed are solely my own.
This was a quick and easy read. But I found it dull and unconnected to the reader. It seemed really intriguing by its description in its synopsis but was nothing like what I expected from the synopsis. If you're looking to expand your poetry stylings and poets it may be worth a read, but to me, it was not worth it. I think the ebook format could use some work; as it just felt like one long poem.... The cover of the book is gorgeous and I can get how to some people this style is exactly their cup of tea, it's definitely not mine. I guess the facts on bones were interesting to be inserted into the poetry, but it felt very confused and as if the line between fact and opinions were blurred... but it felt just ill-written.
I have always had a fascination with the messages that were believed to be contained by the simplest of petals, and how in Victorian times, when many people were made to be quiet, flowers the natural beauty, proved to be a source of creativity and expression for all who concerned themselves. I have been on the hunt for a book discussing the messages behind each flower species and have been very sad at the dismal books I have found... This book made me extraordinarily happy the mere second I opened the cover, and gasped at the wisdom incased within the covers. This book is beautiful, brilliant and just what everyone interested in Floriography needs on their bookcases!
Honest Review in exchange for an ARC copy of this book at the authors request! All opinions expressed are solely my own.
The Fair Isle Trilogy: Complete Series Collection by Tessonja Odette would be given a 3 star rating by me. And I admit I rate harsh! I enjoyed this eons more than I was expecting too. They say not to judge a book by its cover, and I have always found the opposite true until recently. I came across this book on several of my book suggestion lists and was so happy to be allowed to review it for Odette as a trilogy collection release! To Carve A Fae Heart was enticing and intriguing from the get go, and the characters each had their own flavours and voice, which many in the Fantasy genre struggle with. I can't bear a drab narration, but here everything held my attention and intrigue. Odette does a brilliant job of conveying a world like so many but in an original clearly inspired way. It isn't difficult to create this world whilst reading her words and her creations actions. Book 2 is again quite an intrigue to read although I did find myself slowing with need to read towards the second half... I am so glad I stuck with it though and am glad to say the third book defied my previous expectations and led me back to Faerwyvae happily. This is an author I am glad to say has left an interesting and fun to read series and I look forward to reading more in the future. Overall, I give it a 3 star rating, as compared to many other Fantasy Fiction books and series, the world is not complete, and certain areas of character development sure did feel lacking and I had no pining after heroes or antihero moments. But I enjoyed it as an easy to read foray into the Fantasy Fiction world.
5 stars.
As someone who considers themselves within the disabled community, this book seemed right up my alley and had rather strong reviews so I added it to my TBR and read a couple of pages to get an idea on writing style... Since that fateful day, I have picked this book up and devoured it every opportunity I have had. This is a book that should be on all bookshelves. From a psychology point of view it leaves a reader with endless ponderings on how intrinsically ableist our society and environment makes us. This book encourages all readers to try harder. To find the breadcrumbs dotted among our history and cultures that feel so utterly wrong when identified without societies rose-tinted glasses. This book helped me consider how even those within the community fall prey to the inner trappings of society and the changes we must incur. How can the community, not me, not you, but US do better. And also, why we should be aiming to do so. Leduc is incredibly human as a writer and writes with a passion that she aims to keep as open and guided as she can, and although other reviewers found her discussion a whine, I found it an open-conversation we all should be having, in all walks, strolls, runs, swims, wheels, stays of life. Because why is a wheelchair or access dog a phenomenon more so than the idea of a fairy godmother? The world is not a fairy-tale, but fairy tales are this world, and are certainly influenced and vice-versa by the world we reside in. This book addresses a large percentage of the fairy tale and folklore that our children and ourselves encounter in this modern world and presents the views of many in a calculated and clear way that really supports her message.
“Give me stories where disability is synonymous with a different way of seeing the world and a recognition that the world can itself grow as a result of this viewpoint.”
Honest Review in exchange for an ARC copy of this book at the authors request! All opinions expressed are solely my own.
This was my first experience with Celeste Baxendell's work as I hadn't read the previous book as she stated this can be read as a stand-alone, which proved to be true.
Honestly I was very pleasantly surprised, I'm real bad at judging books by their covers and also not too keen on most Snow White re-tellings...
But Mirrors of Ice? Impressed me and I read it in one go. I found I was never left disinterested by storyline or character development, and there was none of that forced love triangle that seems ever so popular in Snow White retelling and the way they use the point of the glass coffin just felt so clever!
I loved the amount of depth to be found in our two MCs and how throughout the characters felt consistent and developed and honest. I loved the development between Sterling and his family and how that was addressed from both characters in a way that felt believable and never forced or too farcical. Overall, my favourite Snow White retelling and Stalks of Gold is easily added to by TBR for sure. Baxendell is one to watch!
VE Schwab fans eat your heart out! I loved this! The only way it would've been better was an adult version with even more real death and gore! I enjoyed the use of multiple P.O.V.s and how that was used to keep the narration flowing. Best example of how to actively use the narration timeline as a tool; finding out contestants at the same time as the characters made it much more exciting and fantastical. It had a compelling unique magic system that added to brilliant worldbuilding. One of my favourite arcs from the past year!
I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
I adore any adaptation of Peter Pan. Aside from this one. I picked this up so many times trying to read it, as I was so SO desperate to love it from the description. A feminist adaptation of my favourite story? Sign me up! It was an intriguing tale and had a great plan, clever world building and adaptations to the original material. I wanted to love it. A great take at portraying PTSD, abuse, misogyny and homophobia... But I was bored. The stakes felt high, but I had no connection to the character and their narration. I received an arc copy for review and leave this view voluntarily
I'm a lover and sucker for fairy tale retellings... and Cinderella? Is a favourite in a heartbeat! I enjoyed the aspect Stephens adds and love the way they connect spoilers through a book! But I thought the writing lacked grit and I felt like the writing intended to be flowery and pretty like icicles and felt misused and dead... It was a sweet little tale but when spoilers you're left with the glass slipper and Elyas not in your arms I would expect to be left longing for the tale to continue, rather than a huh oh okay. Next! Feeling.
I was so so hoping to enjoy the ARC I received of this book in exchange for an honest review... But I didn't at all.
I'm not going to lie. The story starts with an intro/ prologue that feels stagnant and filled with forced anticipation- a feeling later returned towards the turn of the book. The basic story plot is very recycled, often within YA especially; but while I love the occasional trashily-written-read-just-for-similarity-of-books-I-love books, I couldn't have disliked this more... I'm sorry to say that what I hoped would be a book filled with a range of characters and tidbits to love felt more like a 8th graders first draft. The writing style was simplistic, and the characters didn't have distinct voices. I'm afraid, if this hadn't had been an ARC I wanted to get better and give the benefit of the doubt to, it would have been my first DNF.
