I haz mixed feelings about this book and that makes me very sad. I really wanted to love it and love it I did not.
Before getting into the nitty gritty, I just wanted to give a shout out to whoever was in charge of all the artwork on the pages and whoever was in charge of the cover because holy guacamole, can I get a GORGEOUSSSSS?
On to more serious stuff though. Lady A was not exactly what I expected. She is not nearly as badass as I had imagined her to be. I wanted to be blown away by her badassery. I wanted to cheer her on as she dealt with the nobility and watched them shrink in fear but sadly that’s not what happened because Arista, aka Lady A, does not enjoy blackmailing the nobility. Alas her soul is not as dark as mine and she hates the life she lives. She would do anything to get out of it (and rightfully so because her ‘master’ is a complete waste of oxygen.)
I just really have a thing for books involving crime okay? I love seeing people be manipulated and not even know it's happening. I LOVE all the cleverness usually involved in books where the main character is part of the crime life but that’s not what I got in this book which would explain my reaction. Now please understand that a lot of this is just personal taste and not really reflective of the book because in spite of my expectations, I actually found myself warming up to Lady A. Sometimes she was a little too loyal in my opinion (given the way she had grown up I kind of expected her to be hardened instead of being soft in terms of the people she has emotional connections with) but in the long run, she was just a young girl trying to make the best of her resources to figure the best way out of a life she wants nothing to do with. I even enjoyed seeing her come across barriers she should have been able to account for but couldn’t because no one can think of everything.
I loved that she was faced with challenges that might have seemed obvious to the reader (and weren’t even major twists or anything) but the actual truth is that no one can be all knowing and more likely than not, things aren’t going to turn out the way you want them to.
My biggest issue with this book was the romance. I didn’t like it. At the beginning of the novel Arista clearly has a crush on Nic but then suddenly she meets Grae and her feelings just disappear. I am appreciative of the fact that there was no love triangle but seriously. Feelings don’t just vazoom (aka disappear)! I also just didn’t like Grae. It’s not that he was bad by any means. He was a sweetheart and treated Arista with the respect she deserved and blah blah blah. My problem was that I didn’t understand his fascination with Arista and I didn’t like how he was casted as Arista’s savior. That girl has brains and is clever, she can save herself. She is a young independent woman who don’t need no man! (although romantic interests can be fun) I think Grae contrasted her character so much it almost made Arista seem helpless when she isn’t.
My favorite character was obviously Nic. Nic is great. He is such a complex character and I LOVED IT. I only wish we could have seen more of him.
The book was very well paced and even though there were some cheesy bits, it was a fun read. I actually really did enjoy all the complicated tangledness (trying to make a pun here guys, just roll with it.) I just wish we actually got more into the secret bartering bit and got to learn what exactly was happening and what kind of secrets the nobility traded to get things accomplished. I did enjoy the set up though and I also liked the world that Bross had created.
I would suggest not to get lured in by the promise of crime because this book doesn’t focus so much on the fascinating crime life than it does on Arista. It’s her story to a better life, not about how she engages in crime. The bits involving crime were great but also, like I said, it’s Arista’s story to a better life.
This was a fun book to read and while I didn’t love it, I’d still say it's something to read if you're in the mood for a light and entertaining book.
Post Script: I also just found out there will be a sequel and I am DEFINITELY curious to see where things will go! This could get verreh interesting....more
The Shattered Court is a book that would have totally escaped my notice where it not for Nick. I am so glad she mentioned it to me because otherwise I would not have found this wonderfulness. I will begin by saying that this isn’t the best thing I’ve ever read, far from it, but at the same time, it just works. It may not be incredibly original but it is so much fun to read and I do like that the author has made it her own story in many ways.
I am going to start off by talking about the main character, Sophie. She is such a good main character. She isn’t reckless yet she isn’t someone who will just take things at word. She questions things, before someone even has to point it out to her. She is a smart main character and it’s nice seeing that she takes the time to think through the consequences of some of her actions. Of course, she is not perfect but I also admire that she knows when to lay low and when to speak up.
This book comes with an interesting cast of secondary characters, including my personal favorite, Lord Sylvian. My real complaint comes in the form of Queen Eloisa. I actually really liked her at the start of the book and I HATE what was done to her character. I wish there were ways to make the book progress, and to make the plot develop without making her an enemy but alas, sometimes, that’s the way things are no matter how much I detest it. *sighs*
Then we have a certain Cameron. I admit, I was worried about him. He was sleeping with Queen Eloisa for crying out loud when the novel started. No, he was not in a committed relationship but it was a fling so I was worried how this would all come to play within the whole context of Sophie and Cameron's relationship and I guess it didn’t really. It’s one of the reasons why I am genuinely disappointed that Queen Eloisa turned into someone she was not at the beginning of the novel. I wonder what we will find out about her character that will at least help us better understand the sudden shift. Going back to the lovely Cameron, he managed to win me over right from the get-go but I was slightly disappointed in the rather easy shift of feelings (not that he had overly romantic feelings for Eloisa, it’s just that his focus shifted very easily). I am happy to report that he was a good mixture of sweet but also not sweet (if you know what I mean).
The romance between the two was something I enjoyed. There was insta-attraction happening but the way their relationship builds on that is beautiful. They build trust and when they are thrust into an awkward situation that forces them to acknowledge their feelings for one another (whoever says that forced marriages aren’t fun to read about), they go about doing that in a fantastic way. Cameron pays attention to Sophie's fears and assures her that he will be loyal to her no matter what. I admire that their relationship gets to a point where the drama is external rather than internal and what I also admire is that while they clearly have feelings for one another, there are no random declarations of love. Also sexy times. I was genuinely surprised when they made an appearance but hey, you take what you get. ;)
While I adored the fast pace nature of the plot, I will admit that I was rather disappointed that they weren’t going to be on the run for the entirety of the book. I am glad though that that wasn’t the case because otherwise we would have totally missed out on meeting characters like Lord Sylvian and we would have also missed seeing the politics within the court (although I wish there had been more of that too).
I think the world building aspect of the novel could have been more intricate but given that this is only book 1, I do like the details we have gotten. And I will not elaborate because, you know, you got to find these things out on your own. I will say there is magic involved.
This book sucked me in and left me anticipating for the sequel. It is a really fun read and I am looking forward to where our journey will take us in the future. ...more
I adore Jinn stories. Jinn are my favorite PNR creatures ever so whenever I hear about a book ***This review has also been posted on The Social Potato
I adore Jinn stories. Jinn are my favorite PNR creatures ever so whenever I hear about a book coming out that features them, I get superrr excited. Just like I was about this one. Sadly though, it didn’t amaze me the way I wanted it to.
There are so many things about it that I love and so many others that just didn’t work for me and this book just makes me want to throw my hands up in the air with frustration.
I am going to start off by saying this, Oz was a horrible love interest. He was so incredibly bland. And don’t get me wrong, I adore sweet guys, I am totally on team good guy but Oz did not mark it. He was bland. Boring. He had no personality. Good guys are awesome and being good doesn’t mean you have no personality, but just because you’re good doesn’t mean you have one so… yeah. Oz definitely fell into the category of love interests who were just pretty much there. Oz has his purposes, sure, I mean he is Lyla’s master but that didn’t mean I thought he was a suitable love interest. In fact, the actions of his character are contradictory. He binds Lyla without her permission and then says it’s for the greater good. He is ‘supposed’ to be a nice guy but if he was so perfectly good and speshul HE COULD HAVE ASKED. But nope. Obviously some things just don’t work that way. Not that everything needs to go my way but I would have been able to get behind his actions with more ease if he wasn’t characterized as this good guy who can basically do no wrong (except binding Lyla without her permission).
The romance was also pretty much a nightmare. Nick and I were talking about this and she made a casual comment about how she had more chemistry with her pillow than the two characters had and she is totally right. Trying to compare their chemistry with the chemistry I have with my pillow would not be fair because my pillow and I have a very intense relationship, the kind these two cannot ever hope to have. *shakes head* It bothers me because when you read urban fantasy, you kind of expect the romances to have chemistry, it may not be all about the romance and I am 100% fine with that; what I am not fine with is the main couple having no chemistry. And moreover, their romance making no sense. THIS HAPPENS OVER THE COURSE OF A WEEK and the L word is used. WHAT IS THIS? Bah humbug. Rashika is so disappointed it’s annoying.
My rant aside, I can finally move on to the awesome bits, because believe me, this book does have a lot going for it.
For example, it has the best cast of best friends ever. They support her but at the same time, they rememeber to call her out on their shit. They tell her when they don’t agree with her, which is so important in friendships but when Lyla knows that what she is doing is the ‘right’ thing, her friends are willing to support her, regardless of the fact that they don’t necessarily think it’s the best idea.
Isn’t that what friendship is about? If I had Lyla’s friends as friends, I would never have to worry about someone trying to stab my back because they would have it.
Lyla is also a fun main character. Sometimes I got annoyed with her because whenever Oz came into the picture she would basically do things that made me question her. She is such a fun and feisty character and so easy to cheer for. I loved her wit and I just loved being in her head, even when she was swooning over a guy for no reason (that’s how I felt at least).
This book is fantastically paced and even if it was kind of long, I was flipping through the (digital) pages very quickly (considering that I was travelling and don’t usually like reading while on the move).
The world is built so fantastic too and I absolutely loved how this book included a completely different take on the idea of a true name. The world is so artistically developed and while it has many elements of typical urban fantasy novels, the author also managed to make certain ideas her own and I loved that!
This is a totally brain candy read and while many aspects of it disappointed me, I would not say I regret reading it. It was fun and had a wonderful cast of characters (except for Oz. Go away Oz, I don’t like you. Although don’t actually go away because then that would suck.) and fun world building and a well rounded plot. I may not have liked the ending and may have been more than a little frustrated by it but I won’t hesitate to continue to series so if you’re curious, I’d still say that you should give it a shot. ...more
This book was not a large improvement over it’s predecessor and I’d go so far to say that it was actually slightly worse but there is something about This book was not a large improvement over it’s predecessor and I’d go so far to say that it was actually slightly worse but there is something about this series that makes you want to keep reading in spite of its shallowness. Sometimes we just really need is a nice fluffy read that doesn’t make us ask all the important questions and still manages to entertain us.
Most of A Stranger Thing takes place over a short period of time and I think that’s one of the things that works for this book. Its fast pace makes it so that the reader just wants to continue reading without any interruptions. The pace makes it easy for the book to suck you in.
Elvie remains the fun witty character she was in the previous book but with the added advantage of being more mature because of her new mommy status. Elvie is a fantastic character to read about. Its just so much fun to watch her deal with problems, both external and internal.
One of her internal conflicts in this book is her relationship with Cole and I find that I like that she is questioning if she wants something long term with him. She loves him but considering how he can be completely irresponsible and immature at times, it’s nice that she isn’t going all ‘I love him and we’ll work though everything’. She has a kid to think about now and is Cole really ready for the kind of responsibility that comes with being a parent?
On that note, I am quite interested in the potential growth Cole might undergo. I’d like to see his character develop from the dumb jock he seems to be. He is a nice change from the usual ‘misunderstood jock’ stereotype but at the same time, I really want to see another side of him, something that’ll make me really connect with his character instead of just laughing at his antics. Elvie deserves better and loving her doesn’t quite make up for the fact that he can be so silly at times. Especially considering the seriousness of the situations the two tend to find themselves in.
That said, I don’t want a love triangle and I don’t think the author will introduce one in the final book (that would just kind of be pointless). What I want is to see crucial character development.
Something else I had a problem with was how certain characters were introduced in this book and after the initial ‘get to know you’, they weren't brought up until the ‘twist’ moments. One of the characters is there with Elvie for a good part of the book but they are almost completely forgotten about until necessary to the plot. What were they doing all that time?!?!?!?!
There are also some twists in this book and while none of them are unpredictable, I have to say, they weren’t all that bad either. They weren’t in your face obvious and even if I saw them coming, I think the author did a good job executing them.
If you were to look closer at the plot, you would find that it’s actually not perfect (SURPRISE) but at the same time, it works for this story. I liked what was happening. I liked the way the author introduced us to new concepts and I liked how the author developed the story.
This book is not even close to perfect but in spite of all of its fault it’s such a fun and likeable read and if you want something really fluffy, I’d encourage you to pick the series up (so long as you’re prepared to deal with certain annoying things)....more
What made me sad was that this book had so much potential and was so good but it lacked development in certain areas that would have made it even moreWhat made me sad was that this book had so much potential and was so good but it lacked development in certain areas that would have made it even more enjoyable and more memorable. ...more
Silver in the Blood was sadly not all I wanted it to be. It’s not a bad book by any means, it’***This review has also been posted on The Social Potato
Silver in the Blood was sadly not all I wanted it to be. It’s not a bad book by any means, it’s very creative and fun but it is also a little slow and needed a little work in the character department.
It takes almost a third of the book for us to finally see all the fun action and I don’t think there was enough of all the good stuff happening to make up for the initial slowness. To be fair, I didn’t mind the slow bits too much. I was never bored and I did like reading those details since they helped built up the suspense, but I feel like there was too much time spent building that suspense and not enough time spent actually making the wait worth it.
I would like to start off by saying that this book isn’t as dark as it sounds. It’s actually quite light hearted (and not in a bad way), it’s cute and fun to read and I enjoyed reading from the POVs of both the main characters.
Dacia and Lou are spoilt young ladies traveling to Romania to meet their mothers’ side of the family. When I say spoilt, I don’t mean it in a bad way. They are from wealthy, influential families but they aren’t horrible, mean girls. I always found both characters to be likeable (even when Dacia made some questionable decisions.)
Dacia is the more outspoken of the two and while she did make some questionable decisions she was also not a bad person. She wasn’t stupid and really, what’s wrong with someone who enjoys receiving attention (not in an obnoxious way.) She can stand up for herself and won’t let people get away with shit.
Lou is in some ways the exact opposite of Dacia. Where Dacia is outspoken and sometimes impulsive, Lou is shy and likes to think things through. In that way, Dacia and Lou complement each other. I definitely found Lou to be more likeable (since I could relate to her better) but what I also liked was that both the girls were likeable. You didn’t have to hate one to like the other.
Both girls develop over the course of the book and I loved watching them both turn into the mature, confident women they were by the end of the novel.
One of the drawbacks of this book is the secondary characters. The love interests have no real depth to them (which was a pity.) Lou and Dacia’s family were talked about in such vague terms that I never found myself feeling anything towards them. Their villainous grandmother was cartoonishly evil to the point where her motives made no sense. I also didn’t like how we never saw enough of Lou’s mother. She is made out to be a bad guy but we never really see her do anything bad (besides siding with the Grandma). I never understood the sudden change in Lou's mom. I felt the same way about Aunt Kate. Although in her case, I never saw her being good so when she is talked about in such nice terms, I was like huh? What do you mean? Isn’t she a douche? There was also the question of Lou’s father who I would have liked to see more of. Basically I felt like the adults and the love interests needed to be round instead of flat.
This book isn’t very romance heavy but the problem is that I never really saw the romantic relationships develop. There is the tension, yes but I wanted to see that flourish instead of the automatic transition into ‘we are in love.’ How long have you known each other for again??? BUT ALSO I just wanted to see the couples, I wanted to see the banter, I wanted to see them work together as a team but none of that really happened on a large enough scale for me to enjoy the dynamic.
The world building in the novel was nice. I liked the Claw, Wing and Smoke aspects (although I might have enjoyed seeing some more of that.) I also liked the Romanian setting. It definitely added a certain darkness to the atmosphere (although keep in mind what I said earlier about this not being a dark novel.)
The first book in this series may not have won me over completely but I still enjoyed it and will definitely be watching out for the sequel. I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a fun fantasy novel to read....more
This book is exactly what the cover suggests it is. It’s fluff. The question arises as to whether it’s good or bad fluff and in my opinion, this book This book is exactly what the cover suggests it is. It’s fluff. The question arises as to whether it’s good or bad fluff and in my opinion, this book is fluff of the good variety. It didn’t always feel that way though. The first 100 pages or so were incredibly painful. I kept questioning the sanity of our main character and my own sanity too for continuing to read a book I wasn't enjoying. The reason I read on, even though I wasn't having a swell time, was because the book was funny. I hoped that the book would get better as I went along and I was right, it did. It got insanely better and I started actually enjoying the book instead of just laughing at the funny parts.
Elvie is our main character and happens to be knocked up. When I first found out about this series, I was intrigued by how the book would deal with teen pregnancy in a sci-fic setting. Worry not though, this book is not serious. It’s pretty goshdarn funny and even if it makes you question whether the author is dealing with an important issue like this with the sensitivity it deserves. Sometimes, you don’t want a deep and moving book! Sometimes you really just want some fluff.
Going back to Elvie though. Elvie is snarky and obviously has mommy issues. This leads to her being detached from her pregnancy and the idea that she is actually having a kid.She calls her fetus goober from pete’s sake. But Elvie is smart, and while she sometimes annoyed me with her slut shamming and her general outlook on some of her other peers, she still managed to be likeable because in spite of everything that had happened to her, she didn’t spend a lot of time moping around. She took action!
Cole on the other hand was an entirely questionable love interest. I despised him for the first 100 pages and questioned Elvie’s sanity for being so head over heels for a doofus for whom she was the ‘other’ girl and who bailed the moment he found out about the baby. But we get explanations for his jerk behavior and while they aren’t a 100% satisfying, they brought a much needed explanation as to how someone so smart as Elvie could love a dumbdumb like Cole.
I guess the one thing Cole has going for him is that even though he may not be the brightest bulb, he is loyal and is definitely smarter than he is given credit for. Especially given the way his superiors discredited him. There were moments in their relationship that were adorable and I think what makes their relationship work is that Elvie isn’t with him for his brains, she knows he isn’t super smart, she’s with him because he is sweet and caring (if dense at times).
This book is very fast paced and if I remember correctly, a lot of it takes place over the course of 24 hours. It’s got a lot of action and could be surprisingly brutal at times (meaning not everyone is alive at the end … including a character I had grown to love). I do like how the author paces the book though. It fits what the author is going and he does it just right so that the book never feels rushed. It feels exciting.
This is a fun fluffy book and while it takes a bit to get used to, it is worth it since it’s such a fast-paced cutesy read with a great futuristic setting and a bit of space opera (if it can be classified as such). ...more
This doesn't even begin to measure up to the other book I read by the author (The Rake) but it did make for some good brain candy and I did have fun! This doesn't even begin to measure up to the other book I read by the author (The Rake) but it did make for some good brain candy and I did have fun! ...more
Inherit Midnight is not particularly special. What it is is a whole lot of fu***This review has also been posted on The Social Potato
Actual Rating 3.5
Inherit Midnight is not particularly special. What it is is a whole lot of fucking fun. It was so much fucking fun that even though there were SO many little details that bothered me, I kind of forgot about them. Kate knows what she is doing when it comes to getting her readers realllly excited. It’s the first time in a while where instead of reading surrounded by people, I chose the sanctuary of my own room and didn’t leave for a good 3 hours once I had finally settled in. Even those three hours flew by. The only reason I wanted this book to end was because it was too late in the night and I had class in the morning (stupid classes, taking away my reading time).
This book requires you to suspend your disbelief at times and this was made easier because the female lead, Avery, was actually pretty clever. You’d think that when she was trying to escape, she’d be ‘not so smart’ about it but she was. She thought things through and she never got caught because of her own mistakes. I also liked how she wasn’t completely reckless and that she was afraid of ordinary things too, like falling (down a building etc.). Admittedly, she wasn’t a particularly round character. However, she wasn’t flat either and the author gave us a look into the particulars of her character and why she was the way she was.
The rest of the characters on the other hand were pretty flat. To be honest though, I wasn’t particularly bothered by that. Sometimes it was annoying that some of her relatives could be so one sided but the author did attempt to show them in different lights that made you wonder if they could be better people (except that one weird annoying uncle). I did like Warren and his wife though! They really made me happy. I also liked the addition of Megan, our MCs best friend. We don't get to actually meet her but it was nice that our MC had a friend she actually talked to on a regular basis even if she was out having an adventure.
Riley was our love interest and frankly, I didn’t care about him. He just seemed to be eye candy for our main character but I wasn’t too bothered by his presense since he wasn’t actually an asshole. He was actually pretty decent. Plus his presence didn’t actually take away from the plot so there is that.
The development of their relationship also requires you to suspend your disbelief, but if you are like me, you’ve probably already read a lot of other romances that requires you to do that and as far as insta-love romances go, this one wasn’t too bad. I mean they do fall in love pretty quick but it wasn’t love at first sight and there is some development (however minimal).
The plot was so much fun because it reminds me so much of one of my favorite books, The Westing Game, and while it wasn’t nearly as good, it was something. I love the focus on history in this novel and I found the challenges the players had to complete, fun. Sure, some of them were way over the top and made you wonder if the grandmother had lost her marbles but they were all so exciting that I kind of just let it pass.
What I also liked was the layer the author added about Avery’s mother. Right before the competition, she had found out that her mother was in fact alive and throughout the novel, Avery learns more about her mother and the things her mother had to go through.
What did annoy me was this suspense layer the author tried to add. I guessed the culprit’s identity long before the ‘revelation’ took place. I think it was really just bothersome particularly because there was already so much going on that the author really didn’t need to up the stakes by adding a weird stalker creep person.
The ending was a little tidy but it didn’t bother me as much because I liked how things had turned out.
I finished the book with a smile on my face and I’d recommend this to anyone who is looking to settle in with a fun book. You may need to suspend your disbelief but I personally thought it was worth the ride....more
When I finished this book, I had no idea how to rate it. I have no idea whether it was amazing, or meh or just plain old likeable and I think the reasWhen I finished this book, I had no idea how to rate it. I have no idea whether it was amazing, or meh or just plain old likeable and I think the reason for that is because while it deals with so many interesting things in such interesting ways, it also seems a little flat at times. Not as intense as one would imagine a book like this to be. But let me define what I mean when I say ‘a book like this’.
This is a book that deals with the idea of handing out justice. It deals with things like bullying and the affects it may have on a person. This book isn’t some silly little fluffy book, as it’s size might suggest. It’s actually pretty fricking serious and the problem I think was that even though it’s a serious book, I never took it as seriously as I should have. I was horrified but not in the way I *should* have been given the seriousness of the issues at hand.
Mara is an interesting character and I liked her. I predicted her role in this before hand and wasn’t surprised given the few details we got about her. Once my doubts were confirmed at the end of the novel, they definitely made some aspects of the story incredibly interesting.
Mara could be a little annoying when she refused to see the Messenger’s side of things but it was understandable. On top of that, I liked how even though she spend some time telling herself that this was all a dream, when it became evident that it actually wasn’t, she accepted the truth no matter how much it frightened her.
The Messenger was perhaps my favorite character. I am not sure what role he will play in the future instalments besides being a mentor figure but I liked getting glimpses into his character. We know he’s been doing this for a long time and at the same time, despite all the cruelty he dishes out or has to observe, he retains his humanity. He has a reason to hope. He has a reason to believe in himself and for that reason I cannot help but like him.
Before you all get excited or disappointed, so far, there is not even a hint of a romance and I am not sure I want that to change. I mean, the Messenger, at the moment, seems to be dedicated to someone else and I don’t know how one could possibly change that. Having said that, I definitely think they could be a great couple. So really, it’s all up to the author at this point and we can just stay here and wait for stuff to happen.
I adore the world Grant has built. I absolutely love some of the mythological aspects that were added but at the same time, we’re only teased with certain details of the world. The world building is very basic with us finding out very little aside from what we need to know for the story to make sense. It upsets me that we didn’t find out more but at the same time, I think Grant is saving the best for the next books considering how this book was about Mara adjusting to the world.
The plot wasn’t rah-rah amahzing but at the same time, I liked the moral ambiguity of what they were dealing with. What is justice really? Who should be avenged? Who should have to pay? Is there a way to separate ‘good’ people from the assholes? It explores all these kinds of ideas. One of the main stories dealt with a girl who killed herself as a result of excessive bullying and while the storyline wasn't perfect, I think Grant did a great job of dealing with certain issues.
I guess my main complain would be that in spite of everything that this book has going for it, it’s lacking some sort of ‘oomph’ factor, something that makes this book memorable instead of ‘just another book’ I read this year and I guess that’s why it’s so hard to rate the book.
If you’re wondering if this book was worth the hype or if you’re just curious, I’d say give it a shot even if you have doubts. It’s short and quick and you won’t regret it.
You, like me, might scoff and roll your eyes at how this book is being compared to The Princess Bride. It’s understandable to be wary considering whatYou, like me, might scoff and roll your eyes at how this book is being compared to The Princess Bride. It’s understandable to be wary considering what a masterpiece The Princess Bride was, but that said, don’t be. This book isn’t The Princess Bride but it’s definitely written in the fashion of it and that’s why I adored it so much. This book isn’t, at least to me, trying to be The Princess Bride but it instead is trying to invoke the same humor and the same fun adventurous feeling.
Obviously, they aren’t wrong in making that comparison because this book lived up to what you would expect when a book gets compared to a beloved book. It was funny, it had witty comments and it had fantastic characters.
Kit is a great main character and someone you cannot help but root for. He is also a bit of a stereotype but that ties back into the whole fact that this book may or may not be a satirization of a typical fantasy. That said, Kit isn’t really annoying, his fascination with a certain princess can be but that aside, he is a fun hero who is loyal to those he cares about and will fight for what he believes in. What else can you want from a hero?
Princess Morgana is fun too. She is a typical princess but with all her princessiness, she also manages to grow and become someone who thinks not just of herself and her selfish reasons for doing things but also thinks about the rest of her kingdom and what she could be doing to help them win this war.
What I really loved about this book was the secondary characters. They really did add to the story and made the already fun adventure a lot funnier, I do mean funnier and not funner since the adventure was already fun. You cannot imagine how many times I burst into laughter just by the actions of these bizarre secondary characters. My favorite character was in fact Lily’s uncle. His cluelessness always did me in. He had a way of messing things up but at the same time, if it weren’t for him, they wouldn’t have gotten as far as they had.
The romance was alright. I say alright because even though I know that there is a bit of satire involved in the book, instalove in this case wasn’t done as well as it could have. Remember the romance in The Princess Bride? That was fantastic. The romance here? Not so much. I loved some of the moments involving the two but other mushy ones did not work for me.
The plot on the other hand did. It was so all over the place and so exciting! It was definitely an adventure and there was a circus involved! CIRCUSES ARE AWESOME. There, that’s a selling point. A circus, one the characters formed. Why must I be so vague you ask? ‘tis because I am trying to sell this amazingly fun book and if I were to take away the mystery of what actually happens in the book, it wouldn’t be as intriguing would it?
What really works for the book is its quirkiness. I love the way the narrator inserts random tid bits in the notes as he tries to define the meanings of certain words that are ‘beyond our understanding’ and also manages to contribute to the world building aspect of the novel. It makes the book original and it also manages to separate it from The Princess Bride so that while it is written in the fashion of the great novel, it isn’t trying to copy it.
I am incredibly excited to see where Tripp will take us with the sequel and I only hope it’s to better places since there are two more books left in the trilogy.
I’d definitely recommend this book to lovers of The Princess Bride and really anyone who just wants to read a fun fantasy that involves the fae. If that isn’t reason enough, here is another one, the author is the son of the illustrator for Amelia Bedelia! That worked for me, I hope it'll be enough to convince you to pick up this fabulously fun book.
This book can be easily surmised as fun. Admittedly though, I am a tad disap***This review has also been posted on The Social Potato
Actual Rating 3.5
This book can be easily surmised as fun. Admittedly though, I am a tad disappointed after having my mind blown by The Lost earlier this year. This book doesn’t even begin to compare on the level The Lost sets but considering the two books actually aren’t that similar, I don’t think it would be fair to compare them.
The major selling point of this book is adventure, it’s why it’s so fun. I mean these kids are trying to find magical stones that will grant the person who has them invincibility. Who doesn’t want to be invincible (certainly not me)? There is also a bit of myth/ancient history involved which makes it all the more exciting, for me at least.
Kayla is a great main character. I love that she is willing to go so far to take care of her family but at the same time, what kept on bothering me was that she was just a teenager. She had powers yes, but she was inexperienced in using them and she really should have confided at least a little bit in her mother. No matter how good the intentions, it’s never good to keep a secret of that magnitude. That said, her loyalty wasn’t a bad quality, I loved that in spite of everything, she recognized that her mother was not the bad guy here. That her mother always wanted what was best for her even if what she thought was best did not line up with Kayla’s ideas about what was best for herself.
In fact, I loved that there were actually good flawed parental figures in this book. There were bad ones, but they were counteracted by the good ones; the parents who in spite of their not so good actions, were never portrayed as evil or even as plain old bad since their children realized that they were not in fact the enemy.
I also loved Selena. I loved how she was not the perfect best friend and actually had issues of her own. She may have been confident but she was also insecure about certain things and did actually need to stand up for herself.
Daniel was also just as fun to read about. I loved that the fact that he was hot wasn’t particularly emphasized. It was in the beginning but as Kayla got to know him better, the emphasis was less on his beauty and more on the fact that he was actually a great guy. What I liked most about him though was his determination to get his mother back; at the same time though it was one of his worst characteristics considering it led him to lying and what have you.
The romance is one of the things that did not work for me though. I expected more considering that the two actually complemented one another but before the relationship had even had any real time to progress, they had already fallen in love and I just ended up being disappointed.
The plot also ended up falling apart when things became rushed towards the end and everything ended up being wrapped up neatly in a bow. It’s one of the reasons why I was so disappointed in this book. It started off beautifully and I was so excited to see where it would all go and how things would turn out but it just didn’t go as well as I had hoped. There wasn’t enough focus on the ancient history/myth for my taste and I wish we actually found out more about the past then just the brief mentions we got. All of this could have linked to something so full of awesomeness yet that wasn’t the case and that made me sad.
I felt like there was a lot of potential in the world building itself too but the fact that it wasn’t explored as much as possible didn’t bother me as much as the fact that the plot ended up not being as awesome as it could have been.
On top of that, I hated how some things wrapped up. As I mentioned before, I felt like the ending was too neat and that there were just some knots that could have been tied a whole lot better than they were.
With all my disappointment expressed, I have to say, this is definitely a book I’d recommend to anyone who just needs something to read. It’s fun and adventurous and while it’s far from perfect, you’ll still have a good time. I know I did....more
When I first read the blurb for this book, all I could think of was how awesome This review has also been posted on The Social Potato
Actual Rating 3.5
When I first read the blurb for this book, all I could think of was how awesome it would be to read a book that was about a secret society of dream walkers and I have to say… I was definitely let down in that department. It isn’t so much about a secret society of dream walkers as it is about the characters and the development they undergo over the course of the book. What I am trying to say is that this book was not wanted it to be but it was still a great read. I mean I did stay up until 4:30 A.M. to finish it (I am cray).
Josh is a good female lead. I refrain from saying great just because she beat herself up too much over things. She'd beat herself over the smallest things and it bothered me. I can see why she would beat herself up but she always took stretched it. It seemed as though the fact that everyone had a tendency to let her off the hook made it so that she had to be harsher on herself. I understand that but at the same time, I didn't like it.
That aside, Josh was likeable and it was easy to cheer for her considering everything she had gone through. I liked how determined she was but her best quality, at least in my opinion, was that she always apologized when she did something wrong. She would sometimes make decisions without taking into account the affect it had on other people but she ALWAYS apologized once she realized that that was wrong (and it didn't take her long to realize that). It was an admirable quality and it made it easier to like her even though she could be a little shit at times.
Will was the love interest of the book and it took me a while to warm up to him. I think it’s because he accepted everything so easily and that made it somewhat ridiculous. He walks into their house without requiring more than minimal convincing on their part. What if they were serial killers? That’s kind of scary! I can understand his willingness to believe because the family actually did the introducing someone to a whole new world in an appropriate manner. My problem was that he was way too quick to adjust to the family itself considering Will had never really interacted with Josh or ‘the gang’ before.
Their romance wasn’t as great as it could have been either. I think it’s downfall was how quickly things progressed at the end of the book. I loved how the author took her time developing their relationship throughout the book. She didn’t focus on their attraction but instead on building a relationship based on friendship and I loved those moments where they supported each other. But then things just went from one point to another too quickly and I was left feeling confused and a little robbed of experiencing a great romance.
One of my favorite things about this book were the secondary characters. I may not have liked every single one of them and I especially had a problem with Windsor but in the end, the author just did a great job with them. They are a lovable cast and super supportive and if I had to ask for anyone to watch my back, it would be this fantabulous bunch. Speaking of favorites (I know we were’t), Haley totally won the show for me and if I could hug him and reassure him, I totalllllly would.
My other favorite aspect of this book was the world the author had built. There aren’t nearly enough books about dreamwalkers out there (or books that actually focus on the dreamwalking bits) and this was so great when it came to that. The author told (or rather showed) us a lot of things about this world. My only problem was that we didn’t get nearly enough of the politics aspect or the secret society aspect which was why I ended up feeling a tad let down.
The plot was also wonderfully developed and I thought the author paced it just right, building up the climax fantabulously. What I didn’t like was the ‘twist’ the author decided to throw in. I feel like we didn’t need that in this book. I get that it opens up possibilities for a sequel but at the same time, I feel like there are so many other ways to set up for a sequel than doing something like that. I cannot say more about it without spoilers so I won’t but yeah.
I think one of the things this book did well was the way the villain was developed, or I should say the main villain. Pergerine, her grandfather is somewhat of a villain as well but he seemed too extreme to me and I didn’t like him. This isn’t meant to be a spoiler of course since throughout the book, it’s obvious that her grandfather is a little shit and the main character knows that (and promotes that idea). That said though, the main villain is set up wonderfully.
All in all, this was a fantastic read and one I would encourage anyone who is looking for something new in the paranormal genre to read. It may not be perfect but it has a lot of things going for it and it’s exciting and fun....more
Rashika (is tired)
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