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Thursday, March 31, 2016

Cover & Prologue Reveal: Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

Laini Taylor's Trilogy 'Daughter of Smoke & Bone' has had so much love from the online book community and I have to admit that I have still to read them! (darn that ever growing TBR pile.) However, Laini now has a new book on the horizon (so really need to catch up and read Smoke and Bone!):

Title: Strange the Dreamer
Release Date: 27th September 2016

What we know so far:

Strange the Dreamer is the story of:

the aftermath of a war between gods and men
a mysterious city stripped of its name
a mythic hero with blood on his hands
a young librarian with a singular dream
a girl every bit as perilous as she is imperiled
alchemy and blood candy, nightmares and godspawn, moths and monsters, friendship and treachery, love and carnage.

THE COVER


The all blue cover on the left is the UK edition while the half blue half gold is the US edition. Personally I prefer the US cover (I think because it's slightly more abstract and I like that it focuses more on the title), but ultimately I think they look best when they are side by side. 
Which edition do you prefer? 
Any thought's on the Prologue?
 
PROLOGUE
 
In the second sabbat of Twelfthmoon, in the city of Weep, a girl fell from the sky.
Her skin was blue, her blood was red.
She broke over an iron gate, crimping it on impact, and there she hung, impossibly arched, graceful as a temple dancer swooning on a lover’s arm. One slick finial anchored her in place. Its point, protruding from her sternum, glittered like a brooch. She fluttered briefly as her ghost shook loose, and then her hands relaxed, shedding fistfuls of freshly picked torch ginger buds.
Later, they would say these had been hummingbird hearts and not blossoms at all.
They would say she hadn’t shed blood but wept it. That she was lewd, tonguing her teeth at them, upside down and dying, that she vomited a serpent that turned to smoke when it hit the ground. They would say a flock of moths had come, frantic, and tried to lift her away.
That was true. Only that.
They hadn’t a prayer, though. The moths were no bigger than the startled mouths of children, and even dozens together could only pluck at the strands of her darkening hair until their wings sagged, sodden with her blood. They were purled away with the blossoms as a grit-choked gust came blasting down the street. The earth heaved underfoot. The sky spun on its axis. A queer brilliance lanced through billowing smoke, and the people of Weep had to squint against it. Blowing grit and hot light and the stink of saltpeter. There had been an explosion. They might have died, all and easily, but only this girl had, shaken from some pocket of the sky.
Her feet were bare, her mouth stained damson. Her pockets were all full of plums. She was young and lovely and surprised and dead.
She was also blue.
Blue as opals, pale blue. Blue as cornflowers, or dragonfly wings, or a spring—not summer—sky.
Someone screamed. The scream drew others. The others screamed, too, not because a girl was dead, but because the girl was blue, and this meant something in the city of Weep. Even after the sky stopped reeling, and the earth settled, and the last fume spluttered from the blast site and dispersed, the screams went on, feeding themselves from voice to voice, a virus of the air.
The blue girl’s ghost gathered itself and perched, bereft, upon the spearpoint-tip of the projecting finial, just an inch above her own still chest. Gasping in shock, she tilted back her invisible head and gazed, mournfully, up.
The screams went on and on.
And across the city, atop a monolithic wedge of seamless, mirror-smooth metal, a statue stirred, as though awakened by the tumult, and slowly lifted its great horned head.

Wednesday, March 30, 2016

April Releases

 

April seem to be a month of sequel releases (with a few other amazing sounding books). So I have eight books I am looking forward to in April but half of them I won't be reading for quite a while as I need to catch up on the rest of the series first:   

 

The Glittering Court by Richelle Mead  

Release Date: 5th April 2016
Add on Goodreads
Pre-order from: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US)
 
 
I read the Vampire Academy, quite few years ago and really enjoyed Rose's kick-ass character. So, I look forward to seeing what Richelle Mead will create in her new series.
 
 
 

Lady Renegades (Rebel Belle #3) by Rachel Hawkins


Release Date: 5th April 2016
Add on Goodreads
Pre-order from: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US)

This book is the third in the Rebel Belle series. I read the first book in this series -mainly because of the cool cover - and it was a quick fun read but I haven't picked up the second book yet!




Siren's Song (The Storm Siren Trilogy #3) by Mary Weber


Release Date: 14th April 2016 (UK) - already released in US
Add on Goodreads
Order from: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US)

This is again a last book in a trilogy. This is a series which I haven't started yet, it has been recommend by quite few of the booktubers I watch so has been on my TBR for a while. However, now that the three of them are all out I might marathon them. #beautifulcoveralert  



Bright Blaze of Magic (Black Blade #3) by Jennifer Estep


Release Date: 26th April 2016
Add on Goodreads
Pre-order from: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US)

I've just bought the first book in this trilogy and can't wait to read it as I love the authors other books and hopefully this series will be just as good. I sounds like it is going to be sword and magic filled adventure with Family rivalries.



 

Soldier (Talon #3) by









The Rose and the Dagger (The Wrath and The Dawn #2) by Renee Ahdieh

Release Date: 26th April 2016
Add on Goodreads
Pre-order from: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US)

This is the second book in The Wrath and The Dawn series. The first book in this series (see my review book here) was amazing and one of my favourite books of 2015. I have high expectations for this book.





The Star-Touched Queen by 



















***

Let me know if you are excited for any of these book.

Are there any April releases which I haven't mention you are looking forward to?



Tuesday, March 29, 2016

Top Ten Tuesday #4 - My Most Recent 5 Star Reads

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish


So as any of you who have read my recent post I spent a few weeks of March reading quite a few 'meh' books so these are my 5 star reads of 2016 so far (in the order that I read them):

The Elsker Saga by S.T. Bende
(Didn't give this book 5 stars the first time I read it but I re-read it this year and it was just amazing and it really stuck with me after I read it.)
 

Sorry there is only 9 books in this weeks list, I need to read more amazing books and am always open to recommendations.

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Show Me The Books #1 - FREE Werewolf Series Starters

First of I think I am going to have to explain the title for this blog post. 'Show me the Books' has been a feature I have been mulling over in my head for a wee while now. Basically it's where I shall share with you some book within a theme, and then hopefully you dear readers, will tell me in the comments some other books that you have heard of / read within that theme.

So to give this feature a try I thought I would share some of the FREE* kindle books (feat. werewolves) I have been reading in the last few months. I have been dipping back into Urban Fantasy more and more recently and I thought I would give some of the free books a go first.  

(*According to Amazon (UK) - hopefully they will still be free when you read this!)
 

1) Shadows of the Ancients (Volume 1) by

This is a new-adult book (ages 16+)
I really enjoyed this book and gave it a 5 star when I first read it and a 4 star when I re-read it. I really enjoyed the sequels to this book as well. I think what make this book stand out for me was the fact that the main female lead wasn't a 'Bella' character, she was strong and comfortable as a werewolf.
 

2) Bloodfire (Blood Destiny #1) by

I have just finished this book so I can't comment on the sequels but I gave this a 4 stars. I loved the variety of shifters in this book, our hot headed main character and a hot alpha of alphas (who I can't wait to read more about).
 

3) Dirty Blood (#1) by

 

 
 ***

NOW IT'S OVER TO YOU:

Have you read any good werewolf books recently?

Have you read any of these book's I've mentioned?

Any other free urban fantasy books I should be checking out?

 
Such cuteness (aren't animals always so much cuter when they are babies?)
 
 

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Waiting on Wednesday #13 - Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine, which spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating!

Release Date: June 13th 2016
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Pre-order on Amazon (UK)|| Amazon (US) ||

Synopsis from Goodreads

In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.

Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father's failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she wanders a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and its thugs. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the hearth of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.

Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. Treachery and trials await her with the Church’s halls, and to fail is to die. But if she survives to initiation, Mia will be inducted among the chosen of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the only thing she desires.
Revenge.


Why I am Waiting

Daughter of an executed traitor - this is one of those situations that fascinated often the main focus of a story is the traitor I'd love to read about the effects it has on the traitors family. Then of course we have a school of assassins which sound a bit like Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers. Also if you go onto the Goodreads page and look at the authors review you can see a bit more about this book and there is also a excerpt over at the USA Today which I am just off to read.  

Tuesday, March 22, 2016

Top Ten Tuesday #3 - Books I Really Love But Feel Like I Haven't Talked About Enough

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish.

So books I haven't mentioned much but really loved.... this is a hard one, I mean if I have LOVED a book then you guys have to know about it. So, the first 5 are books which I haven't written review for because I read them before I started blogging and the last five are books that I can't shout their praises from the roof top loud enough!

So here we go:

 

1) Pellinor Series by Alison Croggon

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I feel as though I have only mentioned this book a few times on my blog, and when I was younger this was one of those books I read over and over and over again. It's one of the first high fantasy book I read and is what I remember as one of my first 'big' books (it has upward of 400 pages - which was a lot back then).

 

2) All These Things I've Done (AKA Birthright Trilogy) by

Add on Goodreads   
I have been thinking about various ways in which I could talk about this series (I haven't decided how yet) but I read this book as the end of the 'Dystopian phase' (at least my dystopian phase) and loved it. Although, it is set in the future the main feature of this book that I loved was that the main character is the daughter of a murdered leader of a crime family. I love this plot idea and have been searching for similar books ever since.
 

3) Nightshade Trilogy by

 

 

 

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Bookish Thoughts #2: Reasons we Read - when love is gone.

Yes you read that title right - why would you spend hours of your life to reading a book if you aren't enjoying it you ask. Well never fear I'll tell you why!

 

So be totally honest March so far has been a bit of a 'meh' reading month for me. I read one 5 star book at the beginning of the month but since then my books have been all hovering about the 3.5 star mark (maybe it's some form of half reading slump?).  However, this did get me thinking (most of the time this is a bad idea.... but not today) what are the reasons I keep reading the books I'm not enjoying?


1) Reviewing


This is a fairly new reason for me, and if I am really hating the book this isn't even a consideration as I know I won't write a review for it. However, if I have got a few things I liked and a things I didn't like then somewhere in the back of my mind I thinking "When you write your review you'll have lots to write about". So yes knowing I was planning on reviewing a book can keep me reading it.
 

2) Hard Earned Money

 
I will always be a girl on a budget when it comes to book buying, so when I spend my hard earned money on a book (especially when it's a new hardback!) I expect every page to be good so I get my money's worth out of it.
 
 

3) The End

 
Finding out the ending to a book is THE main reason I will keep reading a book I hate, I just need to know what happens in the end  - sometimes this is a bad choice as the ending can be worst than the rest of the book!
 
 

4)  Peer -Pressure

 
It less peer-pressure and more self- inflicted pressure really. So, I read reviews where people rave about a book and I will keep reading in the hope that I will get to the part in the book where the other person fell in love with the it - sometimes I get there and I totally understand what they were talking about and other times I just have to accept the reality that everyone has different tastes.  
 

5) Just GET OUT!

 
There are some books that have been on my TBR shelf for far too long and I'll just keep reading so I can get them off that shelf and make way for more books.
 
***

So there we have it, some of the reasons I keep going when -maybe- I shouldn't! Hopefully I'll get to some great books soon so I will want to keep reading! Do you have any other reasons that you keep reading when your love for the book is gone let me know!

 

Friday, March 18, 2016

Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

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Buy From: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US) || Wordery || 

Synopsis from Goodreads

When her father is murdered for a journal revealing the location of a hidden gold mine, eighteen-year-old Kate Thompson disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers—and justice. What she finds are untrustworthy strangers, endless dust and heat, and a surprising band of allies, among them a young Apache girl and a pair of stubborn brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, a startling truth becomes clear: some men will stop at nothing to get their hands on gold, and Kate’s quest for revenge may prove fatal.



5 Star Review

This is one of those books that just after the release was all over my Twitter and Bloglovin feeds and it caught my eye. I had never read a YA Western - or in fact any western -  the idea intrigued me but it wasn't till a few months ago I really, really fancied a western so I watched my first Clint Eastwood Spaghetti Western *who knew they were that good!?!* and bought this book.
 
This book is full of action from the beginning right though to the end. We quickly get a feel of the Wild West in the first few chapters, with the brutal murder of her father. Kate is a strong character who is fuelled by revenge who isn't afraid to what ever it takes to kill those responsible for her fathers murder. Although, she isn't completely heartless and this kept me on the edge of my seat when it came to any kind of confrontation as I wondered 'will she kill him or show him mercy' there were a few characters you just knew had to die in Kate's eyes.  
 
 
"Now for the love of God, lower that damn pistol."
"All right," I say.
And I do.
Right after I shoot him through the skull.
-Page 9
 
 
The romance in this book wasn't surprise and there was a few BIG hints and flashing lights about which way it was going. Although I have to say there was a few moments where I wondered if they were going continue being together once the action and adventure died down (as much as it  ever did in the wild west!). I also likes the well worn trope used in this romance, one of my favourites.
 
 
'Why's he gotta be so honourable? If he were more like {insert name1},
he'd be easier to hate.
But somehow I like {name1} just fine but I can't stand {name2}.'
 -Page 100
 
 
There is quite a few twists as we near the end - really anything can happen *plays the Ellie Goulding song* - I didn't see some of them twists coming, there wasn't even really a hint for one of them. I was happy with the ending of this book didn't end with a big show down - although expect one of them - it was great to read the 'after'. (Also guys check out the authors notes at the end it was fascinating to read where the facts were woven into the fiction and also to read how Erin came about writing a YA Western book- something that I hope we will begin to see more of.)
 
Overall, a great book full of shootouts, the search for gold, the good old Mulan trope and a great romance. And a kick-ass female character who knows how to use a gun and survive in the Wild West. *Wishing for a sequel featuring these character's again - one can always hope.*

 
There are so many country songs which fit this story so well (Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert - do some real kick- but songs) but this one is my latest find (Thanks to Alwyn Hamilton's - author of Rebel of the Sands - character playlist)

 


Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Waiting on Wednesday #12 - And I Darken by Kiersten White

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Breaking the Spine, which spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating!

Release Date:  28th June 2016
Add on Goodreads
Pre-order on Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US) || Wordery ||

Synopsis from Goodreads

NO ONE EXPECTS A PRINCESS TO BE BRUTAL. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets.

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, who’s expected to rule a nation, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.



Why I am Waiting


I love the sound of Lada character she sounds strong willed, sassy and ready to fight for what she wants. There also seems to be a bit of court intrigue and kingdoms at war. Romance also seems be hinted at, one where she knows she shouldn't but can't really control how she feels, can't wait to see how that plays out with her stubborn sounding nature! (The cover on the right has just been release and shall be the UK paperback -I think- it's so different from the cover above and gives a much darker, more intense - fantasy- feel to the book.)

Sunday, March 13, 2016

An Ember in the Ashes (#1) by Sabaa Tahir

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Buy: Amazon (UK) || Amazon (US) || Wordery || Waterstones

Synopsis From Goodreads

Laia is a slave.
Elias is a soldier.
Neither is free.


Under the Martial Empire, defiance is met with death. Those who do not vow their blood and bodies to the Emperor risk the execution of their loved ones and the destruction of all they hold dear.It is in this brutal world, inspired by ancient Rome, that Laia lives with her grandparents and older brother. The family ekes out an existence in the Empire’s impoverished backstreets. They do not challenge the Empire. They’ve seen what happens to those who do.

But when Laia’s brother is arrested for treason, Laia is forced to make a decision. In exchange for help from rebels who promise to rescue her brother, she will risk her life to spy for them from within the Empire’s greatest military academy.

There, Laia meets Elias, the school’s finest soldier—and secretly, its most unwilling. Elias wants only to be free of the tyranny he’s being trained to enforce. He and Laia will soon realize that their destinies are intertwined—and that their choices will change the fate of the Empire itself.
 

5 Star Review

 

This book seemed to get quite a bit of hype when it was first released and I can now understand why. I put off reading this book for quite a while, at first it was because I was waiting for it become cheaper to buy- this bookworm is always looking for a good deal. Secondly, I got into my head that it was one of these confusing Fantasy worlds that needed a certain amount of brain power to work out what was happening - I wish I knew where with idea came from - but this was not the case it was a great world nothing confusing about it at all, in fact as I re-read the blurb I can totally see how it was based on ancient Rome. Anyway, I finally pick this book up and really loved reading it and wish I had got around to reading it earlier.
 
"There are two kinds of guilt" I say softly. "The kind that's a burden and the kind that gives you a purpose. Let your guilt be your fuel. Let it remind you of who you want to be."
-Page 376
 
This book has an amazing first chapter that quickly drew me into the world. It was written in such a way that the fear and tension of the characters was so clear that by the end of the chapter I was tense myself, the emotions and feelings of the characters basically dripped off the pages. The first chapter from Elias's point of view (POV) really highlighted that the ruthlessness shown by the Masks in the first chapter wasn't just for the Scholar's it was a 'norm' with the Empire.
 
 
"Fear is only your enemy if you allow it to be.. too much fear and you're paralysed...too little fear and your arrogant...Fear can be good. It can keep you alive. But don't let it control you."
-Page 424
 

Due to the brutality of the Empire which is clear and consistent though out this book there is a secrecy and I spent quite some time working outs who loyalties lay where. As well as secrets this book is full of hidden histories, and often when one of the main characters does find out new information we are never given full stories, what answers we are given just open up more and more questions. 
 
I think that the way in which the two POV were used in this book was very effective. I am generally not a great fan of having more than one POV - I get far too attached to one character- but this book uses the two POV well and it defiantly helps to develop and explore the world. I liked the way in which that as the reader, you knew things that the character's weren't aware about each other, and it worked especially well as the two main characters interacted more.  
 
The romance side of this book is quite small and I was worried when I read the blurb we were going to have a Romeo and Juliette insta-love story between our main characters but it wasn't. The romance is a slow growing romance or at least I think they could be more than an friendship - it seems to be suggested, but between which characters you will have to read the book and find out! 
 
This book was overall a great read centring around the lengths a sister will go for her brother and the idea of freedom from a brutal Empire. It has a great ending that sets everything in place for a revisionary sequel.     
 
 

Tuesday, March 08, 2016

Book Quotes #2 - February


So although I read more in February than I did in January I have less Quotes to share with you! (I shall let you create some theories as to why - I have no clue!) The two quotes I am going to be sharing come from some of my favourite book I read in February and I highly recommend them.

 

***

1) "You shouldn't have to be in the darkness with me."
"I think the point of being a good friend is being in the darkness. I'll be your light, until you can be it yourself again."


-Page 355
Inferno by Catherine Doyle  
 
I think this is a lovely quote about friendship and being their for others even in the darkest of times.
 
***
 
2) 'nearly every battle people face is in their head.
If you think you can't do something, you won't. If you believe you can, it's only a matter of time before you will.'
 
-Page 17 Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman
 
I think this quote rings true as if you aren't motivated to do something because you don't think it's possible you won't try as hard. For example think of a test or exam: if you think you could pass it, you would study hard before hand and turn up on time etc. and maybe even resit if you didn't pass the first time; whereas if you don't believe you are going to pass no matter what amount of time you put into studying then what is the point? Studying would be a waste of time, so you would never succeed in passing!
  
***
 
So there we have February -short- book quotes, do you agree/disagree with either of these quotes. Have you read any great quotes in the books you read in February? Would love to know tell me about them in the comments.  

Saturday, March 05, 2016

February Reading Wrap-up

I am quite surprised at how many books I read this month, it didn't feel like that many but here they are:

 

Fantasy 


Rebel of the Sands (#1) by Alwyn Hamilton 
See my review here 
Add on Goodreads
 
Midnight Thief (#1) by Livia Blackburne
4 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 
The House of the Four Winds by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory
3.75 Stars (see my thought here)
Add on Goodreads
 

Dystopian

 
 
Red Queen (#1) by Victoria Aveyard
4 Stars (My review )
RE-READ
Add on Goodreads  
 
Glass Sword (Red Queen #2) by Victoria Aveyard
Add on Goodreads
 

Contemporary

 
Inferno (Blood for Blood #2) by Catherine Doyle
See series review here
Add on Goodreads
 
Overprotected by
 
The Princess Plot by
3.5 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 
 

Urban Fantasy  

 

The Elsker Saga by S.T.Bende

Elsker
Endre
Tro
 
RE-READ
Add on Goodreads
 
Nature's Destiny (#1) by Justine Winter
4 Stars
RE-READ
Add on Goodreads
 

Mercy Thompson Series by Patricia Briggs
RE-READ
Silver Borne
River Marked
Frost Burned
4 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 
First Bite by Dani Harper
(Audio Book)
3.75 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 
Foxblood Trilogy by Raquel Lyon  
A Brush with the Moon
Rise of Hellton
 Fall from Grace
3.75 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 

Historical Fiction

 
Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman
Add on Goodreads
 
Beautiful Wreck by Larissa Brown
3 Stars
Add on Goodreads
 

As you can see I have read some great books this month but there were also quite a few meh (Okay) books as well, let me know in the comments if you have read any of these books what did you think?