Tag Archives: book

Aug 14 2016
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Book Review: The Witch With No Name by Kim Harrison

witch with no nameTitle: The Witch With No Name

Author: Kim Harrison

Series: Rachel Morgan #13

Genre: Urban Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: Rachel Morgan’s come a long way from the clutzy runner of Dead Witch Walking. She’s faced vampires and werewolves, banshees, witches, and soul-eating demons. She’s crossed worlds, channeled gods, and accepted her place as a day-walking demon. She’s lost friends and lovers and family, and an old enemy has become something much more. But power demands responsibility, and world-changers must always pay a price. That time is now. To save Ivy’s soul and the rest of the living vampires, to keep the demonic ever after and our own world from destruction, Rachel Morgan will risk everything. –Goodreads

The Review:

I’ve been slowly working my way through this series for ages, savoring every last moment. Now that I’ve finally reached the end, I feel a combination of sadness that it’s over, satisfaction at how it ended, and gratitude to have experienced such a great series. There are brilliant moments throughout The Hollows that I’ll remember forever. It’s definitely one of my top three all-time favorite urban fantasies.

My favorite part of this series is definitely Rachel’s relationships with the other characters – primarily Trent and Al (who are both written with a lot of duality – something I love). Both are complex relationships that develop slowly over the entire series. What I loved so much about them is the fact that I was never totally sure what their motives were. They had that “mysterious” factor, if you will. The discovery process of figuring out exactly where they stood and watching their relationship with Rachel grow was pure magic. I’m pretty sure Al is one of my favorite characters from any series. Ever. I will miss him the most.

Now that I’ve hinted at how much I love to the series as a whole, I have a few very minor criticisms of The Witch with No Name. With this final book in particular, I admit I expected it to have a stronger climax, being the series-ender and all. That’s not to say it wasn’t as good as the books before it, I was just hoping to feel the escalation of the story a tad more. But really, when dealing with such an amazing body of work, it’s easy to have unrealistically high expectations.

I also found one element of the plot a bit too drawn out and repetitive – that involving the vampire Cormel. Without giving too much away, let’s just say Cormel started blackmailing Rachel to get her to do something for him, but never really carried through on his threats. It went a little like, “do this thing, or else!” and Rachel was like, “Maybe I will, maybe I won’t.” to which Cormel would respond “you didn’t do the thing? Well, do the thing, or else!” Personally, I lost patience with the whole dynamic right from the start, which is probably why that whole plot point seem to go on forever. My biggest objection is that it drew the story out unnecessarily and made a once scary character seem a little comical and inconsequential. Like I said, minor. But still annoying…

Anyway, the resolution to the series was everything I hoped it would be – the perfect culmination of events. I’d recommend The Hollows to any urban fantasy fan. In fact, if you love the genre and haven’t at least tried this series yet, than I’m not sure we can be friends until you do…

As a side note, I’m very much looking forward to diving into Harrison’s new Peri Reed Chronicles even though The Drafter hasn’t gotten the highest reviews so far. The way I see it, Harrison is one of those authors who builds her stories into something amazing over the course of several books. I didn’t think Dead Witch Walking was anywhere near as good as her later novels, and I attribute all of that to the way she built the story. And it turned out amazing. Therefore, I’m definitely willing to give her new series some time…

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Aug 11 2016
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Trilogy Review: Penryn and the End of Days by Susan Ee

Angelfall by Susan Ee
World After by Susan Ee
End of Days by Susan Ee

Penryn and the End of Days Trilogy
by Susan Ee
3/5 stars

The “Penryn and the End of Days” Trilogy is a post-apocalyptic young adult series about vengeful angels who have destroyed most of humankind. Penryn, a teen with a crazy mother and crippled sister to take care of, struggles to help her family survive. When her sister is abducted, Penryn will do anything to get her back, even if that means working with an angel…

Overall, I found the concept and execution of this series incredibly original. In a market flooded with post-apocalyptic/dystopian titles (many of which I’ve read… they are addicting), finding something unique seems to get increasingly difficult. This series was definitely unlike anything I’ve read before.

The first book “Angelfall” was a solid five-star read, and I loved it so much I gushed about it for weeks. In fact, here’s the review I posted shortly after finishing it:

I haven’t been so excited for the beginning of a post-apocalyptic series since I picked up Partials by Dan Wells two years ago… and trust me, I’ve read a LOT of books from this genre between then and now. Angelfall just had an X-factor that immediately grabbed my attention and held it from start to finish. So much so that a hundred pages into the first book I was already online ordering the next two in the series. It was one of those books that made me a believer early on, and I’m kicking myself for not picking it up sooner.

The biggest thing that stood out to me about Angelfall was how incredibly well it was written. Susan Ee has a way with words and descriptions that allowed me to completely lose myself in the story. All of the interactions between her characters seemed so organic and natural, and that’s part of the reason why I think the book flowed so well. For everyone I’ve ever heard complain about insta-loves in YA, this would be an excellent series for you – the relationship development in Angelfall was gradual, based on shared experiences between the characters and a combination of little moments… i.e. my favorite kind of love story.

The other thing that stood out was the concept and how it was executed – this is a post-apocalyptic world where angels (of all things) are responsible for its destruction. Now, up until this point I haven’t had any interest in the angel trend permeating the YA market because it always seems to come across a little cheesy (as it did occasionally in Daughter of Smoke and Bone). What Ee managed to do was take all of the traits indicative to angels and make them kind of badass. The creatures in her novel were dangerous, and you could feel that deadly force emanating from the pages with each new conflict. It was awesome. And if the great concept wasn’t enough, add to that heart-wrenching back story to Penryn and her family (which added a ton of interesting depth and dynamics the story) and you have one robust, well-rounded novel that is sure to knock your socks off.

It was as remarkable to me as any other first-book staples of the genre like Hunger Games and Divergent. It was original (see above), fast-paced (I haven’t been so engaged in a teen book in ages), and contained one of the most organic romantic relationships of any teen series I’ve ever read. In a genre famous for its “insta-loves” finding a relationship that develops naturally was a treat, and quite possibly my favorite element of the story. Those positive elements remained true for the following two books in the series…

But beyond the first book, conceptually, she lost me.

The first book promised to take a plethora of interesting directions, all of which were compelling. But after finishing the series, I never felt as though it lived up to its potential. As I’ve mentioned, I’ve read quite a few teen dystopian/post-apocalyptic novels over the years, and the motto I adopted from them is question everything. I initially went into the “Penryn” Trilogy skeptical if the destructive angels were in fact actually divine beings, or if they had some other, more earthly, origins. I feel compelled to save other readers the same frustration by disclaiming: my questions regarding that were never answered. And in fact, I finish the series with most of my questions and theories unanswered, which is one of the reasons I feel the story was somehow incomplete/inconclusive even though it was entertaining.

Overall, I don’t regret reading this trilogy because it really was a breath of fresh air in the genre. The first book was easily the best of the three and still one of my all-time favorites despite my lower rating of the final two books (2.5 stars, or aka – I liked them, but I didn’t really like them). What can I say? The first book set such a high standard it would’ve been difficult for anything else to compare.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Aug 10 2016
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Coming Soon: The Midnight Star by Marie Lu

The Midnight Star by Marie LuTitle: The Midnight Star

Author: Marie Lu

Series: The Young Elites #3

Genre: Teen Fantasy

Release Date: October 11, 2016

The Overview: There was once a time when darkness shrouded the world, and the darkness had a queen. Adelina Amouteru is done suffering. She’s turned her back on those who have betrayed her and achieved the ultimate revenge: victory. Her reign as the White Wolf has been a triumphant one, but with each conquest her cruelty only grows. The darkness within her has begun to spiral out of control, threatening to destroy all that she’s achieved. Adelina’s forced to revisit old wounds when a new danger appears, putting not only Adelina at risk, but every Elite and the very world they live in. In order to save herself and preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger. –Goodreads

Waiting on Wednesday
Hosted by Breaking the Spine

Okay, I’ll admit I’m not totally caught up with the series, but I will be by the time October rolls around! I really liked the first book (Young Elites) and it reminded me very strongly of the bits I liked from Throne of Glass. It has an atypical heroine and a great concept, and I got the feeling it was only going to get better. And for the record, I also loved Marie Lu’s Legend Trilogy, so I imagine the remainder of this series will be just as good!

What book are you waiting on?

 by Niki Hawkes

Aug 5 2016
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Book Review: The Crown by Kiera Cass

Title: The Crown

Author: Kiera Cass

Series: The Selection #5

Genre: Teen Fiction/Dystopian-ish

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

The Overview: When Eadlyn became the first princess of Illéa to hold her own Selection, she didn’t think she would fall in love with any of her thirty-five suitors. She spent the first few weeks of the competition counting down the days until she could send them all home. But as events at the palace force Eadlyn even further into the spotlight, she realizes that she might not be content remaining alone. Eadlyn still isn’t sure she’ll find the fairytale ending her parents did twenty years ago. But sometimes the heart has a way of surprising you…and soon Eadlyn must make a choice that feels more impossible—and more important—than she ever imagined. –Goodreads

The Review:

As a whole, I’ve had a TON of fun reading this series. It has that magical “it” factor that made me love the awesome moments with unparalleled ferocity while conveniently ignoring its rather glaring shortcomings… up until The Crown, anyway. Despite my love/hate relationship with this final book, I am genuinely sad to see the saga come to an end.

Before picking up The Crown, I read a review from a fellow blogger who bluntly called the book “silly.” I found myself bristling immediately – how dare she call any part of my favorite series silly? I mean, it’s not perfect, but there are so many amazing moments that surely it deserves better than that!

And then I read The Crown, and… I agree. The book was a bit silly.

As with the first three Selection books, the brilliant bits came pretty loaded up front with each girl’s story. The Selection was easily the best of America’s stories, and The Heir was the best of Eadlyn’s. While The Heir focused primarily on the romance and Eadlyn’s relationship with the boys (which is the magic of the story), The Crown focused more on politics, world building, and broader conflicts – all elements I’ve never thought the author handled particularly well. The relationships and interpersonal interactions are what make her series so special, and I found myself constantly wishing for the focus to turn back to them throughout. It left me wanting. Hard.

I don’t usually rant in my reviews, preferring to be more professional and subjective, but I’m feeling sassy today, so here goes… Also: Spoiler Alert!

Before I dive into why I found the final book so eye-rolling, let’s have some boy talk! My vote was for Erik to win right from the start, mostly because the relationship was organic and unforced, but also because Kyle seemed too obvious a choice. So, needless to say I’m satisfied with that outcome, but did every other relationship have to get wrapped up so conveniently? Come on! Where’s the conflict? One of them was gay, one of them wanted to pursue other things, one of them was suddenly afraid to be king, and one of them bowed out nobly so his friend could have the girl – there seemed to be perfect little solutions for every relationship. Even in amped-up competitive relationships, that’s just not how things work. I mean, have you seen how many rejected people on the Bachelor bawl their eyes out on camera after being sent home? Rejection hurts, and in a competitive setting like the selection, people don’t usually volunteer to “lose.” I think the contestants’ exits could have been a bit more dramatic had the author made the relationships the primary focus of Eadlyn’s struggles. Instead, she focused on a conflict with a bogus wannabe king and her dreaded lack of positive public opinion (get over it already!). I think it’s clear that I feel The Crown focused on all the wrong things.

And maybe it would have been okay had those other things been done well… 

I have such a hard time buying into a king and queen (specifically, America and Maxom, whom I thought I knew pretty well) being totally okay passing the weight of the kingdom onto an adolescent’s shoulders just so they don’t have to worry about it anymore. First of all, I never got the impression they were that irresponsible or selfish throughout America’s story. Second of all, that’s just not how things work. There’s no way the infrastructure of a royal house would allow for the royals to decide they just don’t want to do it anymore. It would garner way too much instability. I’ve heard of royals dying prematurely, by nefarious means or otherwise, but I’ve never heard of them quitting. Sigh… Cass’s world, Cass’s rules, I guess. It just didn’t scream well-thought-out to me. And don’t even get me started on the citizen “meetings”… ugh. And, to beat the horse to death, she didn’t have to fill the pages with all of those senseless conflicts if she’d just kept the focus on the romance. This is one of those books I’m rewriting in my head for sanity’s sake.

Anyway, it’s clear I’m a mixed bag of feelings with this last book, leaning more towards negative than positive. In all of the past books, I overlooked the things that could have been bothersome because I was enjoying all the other bits so much. In regards to The Crown, there just wasn’t enough magic to keep me occupied, so I got annoyed. The only reason for the somewhat decent rating is that I liked Eadlyn’s relationship with Erik. Overall, I will look back on this series with a mixture of adoration and frustration, but I just might try to forget how some things ended in The Crown.

 Other books you might like:

 by Niki Hawkes

Aug 3 2016
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Coming Soon: Like a River Glorious by Rae Carson

like a river glorious by rae carsonTitle: Like a River Glorious

Author: Rae Carson

Series: Gold Seer Trilogy #2

Genre: Teen Fantasy / Historical Fiction

Release Date: September 27, 2016

The Overview: After a harrowing journey across the country, Leah Westfall and her friends have finally arrived in California and are ready to make their fortunes in the Gold Rush. Lee has a special advantage over the other new arrivals in California—she has the ability to sense gold, a secret known only by her handsome best friend Jefferson and her murdering uncle Hiram. Lee and her friends have the chance to be the most prosperous settlers in California, but Hiram hasn’t given up trying to control Lee and her power. Sabotage and kidnapping are the least of what he’ll do to make sure Lee is his own. His mine is the deepest and darkest in the territory, and there Lee learns the full extent of her magical gift, the worst of her uncle, and the true strength of her friendships. To save everyone, she vows to destroy her uncle and the empire he is building—even at the cost of her own freedom. – Goodreads

Waiting on Wednesday
Hosted by Breaking the Spine

Carson’s Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy is my all time favorite teen fantasy series, and I have to say, even though the Walk on Earth a Stranger leaned more towards historical fiction than fantasy, I enjoyed it immensely. This author writes amazing characters, compelling plot lines, and completely immerses her readers into the stories. I have no doubt Like a River Glorious will be just as good – September 27th can’t come too soon!

What book are you waiting on?

 by Niki Hawkes

Aug 1 2016
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Tackling the TBR [14]: August 2016

tackling the TBR

It’s once again time for my favorite feature: Tackling the TBR! There’s nothing I love more than picking out which books to read next, and this slightly organized method of reading has really amped my enjoyment to the next level. Bring on the mantras!

Read the best books first.
&
Life is too short to read books you’re not enjoying.

However you put together your TBR for the next month, the goal is to reduce the amount of obligation in reading and increase the fun.

Here’s a look at how the system works:

1. Identify the titles that take top priority in your TBR.
2. Combine them all in your own Tackling the TBR post.
3. Throughout the month pick from that pile as the mood strikes you.

Here’s what mine looks like:

August 2016 TBR Tackler Shelf:

I am pretty eager to read all of these, but I think I’m most excited about the latest Czerneda and Aaron books… although I always love Melissa Landers. Either way, anything I pick up from this list is guaranteed to be a good read. :-)

Feel free to share your versions of how you manage your TBR pile (and the links to your posts if applicable) in the comments. Maybe we can help make each other’s systems even better. :)

What books are you Tackling this month?

by Niki Hawkes