Fantasy Books

I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

BOOK SUMMARY

Be careful what you wish for.

When Jax receives nine missed calls from her older sister, Lexie, she assumes that it’s just another one of her sister’s episodes. Manic and increasingly out of touch with reality, Lexie has pushed Jax away for over a year. But the next day, Lexie is dead: drowned in the pool at their grandmother’s estate. When Jax arrives at the house to go through her sister’s things, she learns that Lexie was researching the history of their family and the property. And as she dives deeper into the research herself, she discovers that the land holds a far darker past than she could have ever imagined.

In 1929, thirty-seven-year-old newlywed Ethel Monroe hopes desperately for a baby. In an effort to distract her, her husband whisks her away on a trip to Vermont, where a natural spring is showcased by the newest and most modern hotel in the Northeast. Once there, Ethel learns that the water is rumored to grant wishes, never suspecting that the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.

BOOK DETAILS

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon
Fiction / Noir / Mystery & Thrillers
Published April 6th, 2021 by Gallery/Scout Press
Hardcover, 319 pages
My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

 

The Drowning Kind by Jennifer McMahon is a page-turning read filled with hauntingly beautiful prose that chills to the bone.

One of my favorite aspects of McMahon’s books is how she combines alternate timelines, each featuring a compelling protagonist and a mystery surrounding them both.

The setting here is in Vermont, current and 1929 timeline, on an estate rumored to have a very magical pool that grants wishes.

Fed from natural spring, some say the waters are healing, others say they are haunted, even cursed. Others warn against casting wishes in fear of what the waters will take in return.

McMahon writes with touches of horror and supernatural. Leaving long shadows and watery deaths in her wake as she builds a consuming mystery of just how Jax and Ehtel’s lives will be influenced by these mysterious waters.

I could feel the cold, wet chill and smell the sulfurous brine while reading The Drowning Kind. In fact, it may change how you feel about swimming at night, at least for a while. Be careful what you wish for.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

He saw the darkness in her magic. She saw the magic in his darkness.

Wren Southerland’s reckless use of magic has cost her everything: she’s been dismissed from the Queen’s Guard and separated from her best friend—the girl she loves. So when a letter arrives from a reclusive lord, asking Wren to come to his estate, Colwick Hall, to cure his servant from a mysterious illness, she seizes her chance to redeem herself.

The mansion is crumbling, icy winds haunt the caved-in halls, and her eccentric host forbids her from leaving her room after dark. Worse, Wren’s patient isn’t a servant at all but Hal Cavendish, the infamous Reaper of Vesria and her kingdom’s sworn enemy. Hal also came to Colwick Hall for redemption, but the secrets in the estate may lead to both of their deaths.

With sinister forces at work, Wren and Hal realize they’ll have to join together if they have any hope of saving their kingdoms. But as Wren circles closer to the nefarious truth behind Hal’s illness, they realize they have no escape from the monsters within the mansion. All they have is each other, and a startling desire that could be their downfall.

Book Details

Down Comes the Night by Allison Saft
Fiction / Fantasy / Gothic / Romance
Published March 2nd 2021 by Wednesday Books
Hardcover, 400 pages
My Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars

  Review

DOWN COMES THE NIGHT is a debut YA dark fantasy filled with magic, mystery, and a forbidden romance set in a winter-drenched landscape where two enemies are trapped inside a crumbling manor fighting for their survival as each night threatens their lives.

I did enjoy the story, and loved the fact that it was a standalone novel that felt complete, but ended up being disappointed by the novel’s description labeling it as a “gorgeously gothic” YA debut.

Having a forbidding landscape of ice and snow and a crumbling mansion does not make for a Gothic read.

What Down Comes the Night did excel at was its strong combination of magic and science set in a fantasy world of gods and goddesses where two enemy kingdoms are battling for supreme reign. It had all the elements that I enjoy in dark fantasy.

Wren Southerland is the Queen’s most talented healer, but after using her abilities to mend an enemy soldier she is removed from her post and finds herself sent far north to the doorstep of a reclusive lord in order to cure his servant of a mysterious disease.

Nothing is quite what it seems. The lord is odd, the staff distant, and the patient hiding secrets. All of which I loved.

Wren uses her healing abilities, which are a blend of science and magic, to heal. This gave the novel a unique feel and Wren’s personal struggle to use her healing in a meaningful way made her a relatable and engaging heroine.

There is a slow-burn romance that I enjoyed while the mystery surrounding his illness and the remote location of the manor, made for a sinister feeling of danger.

Overall, I enjoyed the writing. The story felt atmospheric and its unique blend of magic made this YA fantasy interesting. There is also a nice message about forgiveness and compassion that readers will appreciate.

I would recommend this to readers of YA fantasy and look forward to more of Saft’s work. I anticipated a dark Gothic read but got a dark fantasy instead, enjoyable, but not what I expected.

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West Hall, Vermont, has always been a town of strange disappearances and old legends. The most mysterious is that of Sara Harrison Shea, who, in 1908, was found dead in the field behind her house just months after the tragic death of her daughter.

Now, in present day, nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse with her mother, Alice, and her younger sister. Alice has always insisted that they live off the grid, a decision that has weighty consequences when Ruthie wakes up one morning to find that Alice has vanished. In her search for clues, she is startled to find a copy of Sara Harrison Shea's diary hidden beneath the floorboards of her mother's bedroom. As Ruthie gets sucked into the historical mystery, she discovers that she's not the only person looking for someone that they've lost. But she may be the only one who can stop history from repeating itself.

Book Details

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon
Published February 11th 2014 by Doubleday
Fiction / Thrillers / Suspense / Paranormal
Hardcover, 317 pages
My Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

  Review

THE WINTER PEOPLE is a dark and haunting blend of writing which combines elements of a suspense novel with that of a supernatural horror-thriller.

The atmosphere is chillingly atmospheric. Set in a picturesque small town of Vermont, West Hall is home to strange occurrences and whispered old legends.

Jennifer McMahon weaves a tale of ghosts, murder, and the bonds between mother and child that reach beyond death, creating a spine-tingling read.

I’ve had this book on my to-read shelf and finally sat down to read it. Warning: it is hard to put down novel as the writing lulls you into a world of secret diaries, folklore, and legends. Where some things should be left alone and others are forgotten.

I was in the mood for a mystery but also wanted to read something with a supernatural bent. The Winter People filled that craving.

This is a story that weaves two timelines, both set at West Hall, one in 1908 with the murder of Sara Harrison Shea and one in the present day where nineteen-year-old Ruthie lives in Sara's farmhouse whose mother, Alice, has suddenly disappeared.

Expertly weaving the past and present, this is a story of twists and surprises.

The connection between the ghostly house, the haunted Vermont landscape, and folklore of The Devil's Hand come together, wrapping the story in a cloak of Wintery eeriness.

The two story-lines come together with a satisfying if uncanny, conclusion. I’m very excited to read more by this established author.

This is one of those reads where it really is perfect for Fall but I read it during the 110 plus digits of August and it still swept me away to a land of forests and ice.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

Ash is descended from a long line of gladiators, and she knows the brutal nature of war firsthand. But after her mother dies in an arena, she vows to avenge her by overthrowing her fire god, whose temper has stripped her country of its resources.

Madoc grew up fighting on the streets to pay his family's taxes. But he hides a dangerous secret: he doesn't have the earth god’s powers like his opponents. His elemental gift is something else—something that hasn't been seen in centuries.

When an attempted revenge plot goes dangerously wrong, Ash inadvertently throws the fire and earth gods into a conflict that can only be settled by deadly, lavish gladiator games. The fights put Madoc in Ash's path, and she realizes that his powers are the weapon her rebellion needs—but Madoc won’t jeopardize his family, regardless of how intrigued he is by the beautiful warrior.

But when the gods force Madoc’s hand, he and Ash uncover an ancient war that will threaten more than one immortal—it will unravel the world.

Book Details

Set Fire to the Gods by Sara Raasch and Kristen Simmons
Set Fire to the Gods #1
Publishes August 4th 2020 by Balzer + Bray
Young Adult Fiction / Fantasy / Epic
Hardcover, 432 pages
My Rating: 3 Stars

  Review

SET FIRE TO THE GODS is the first installment in a new YA fantasy duology featuring elemental gladiators, fierce arena battles, and warring gods set in an inspired Greco-Roman world.

Avatar: The Last Airbender meets Gladiator is how the book is described and it has elements of both.

This is a world ruled by mercurial gods who choose elemental-wielding warriors to represent them in lavish, yet deadly, gladiator games.

Ash and Madoc find themselves in the arena on opposite sides, yet when an attempted revenge plot goes dangerously wrong, they join together and uncover an ancient war of the gods that could set the mortal world on fire.

Where this story shines is the epic battles scenes and the god's interaction with their chosen gladiators.

Each god represents an elemental power and readers will find this high-stakes adventure exciting. The plot is very slow-burn though, and I struggled because of this through the first 40 percent of the book.

Despite the intriguing concept of warring gods and elemental battling gladiators, I had trouble connecting emotionally with the characters.

The story is told from both Ash and Madoc’s perspectives and, although I did enjoy their interactions together and even the hint of their romance, but they felt somewhat lackluster.

Overall, an entertaining series opener filled with action and danger. I am curious enough to continue with the next book to find out what happens and hope for more world-building and deeper emotional development.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

In a small Western Queensland town, a reserved young woman receives a note from one of her vanished brothers—a note that makes her question memories of their disappearance and her father’s departure.

A beguiling story that proves that gothic delights and uncanny family horror can live—and even thrive—under a burning sun, Flyaway introduces readers to Bettina Scott, whose search for the truth throws her into tales of eerie dogs, vanished schools, cursed monsters, and enchanted bottles. Flyaway enchants you with the sly, beautiful darkness of Karen Russell and a world utterly its own.

Book Details

Flyaway by Kathleen Jennings
Published on July 28th 2020 by Tor.com
Fiction / Fantasy / Dark Fantasy
Hardcover, 176 pages
My Rating: 5 of 5 Stars

 

FLYAWAY brings Gothic storytelling to the Australian shores where Jennings’ lyrical words, edged and thorny, will enchant you.

Clever use of nestled cautionary folktales entwines with an eerie mystery making this a scrumptious, albeit touched by elements of horror, fairy-tale read.

“Trees bled resin like rubies, sprouted goitrous nests, suspended cat’s-cradles of spiderwebs, spinning disks of silk.”

There is no need for haunted moors nor dripping Spanish moss. You won’t find crumbling castles here but what you will find is carnivorous shape-shifting beasts, creeping—feeding lantern bushes and enchanted wishing bottles.

“Battles, massacres, murder; bushrangers and lonely revenge; tales of whose last stand was on this knob of land, of what will catch the toes of children swimming unattended, of witches in the scrub waiting for the unwary, of loping beasts and whispering megarrities.”

Behind the bright sunlight, Jennings paints shadows and doubt, dilapidated cottages, and paths you do not want to stray from. Unsettling and beguiling at the same time.

“Once, somewhere between the Coral Sea and the Indian Ocean but on the way to nowhere, there was a district called—oh, let’s call it Inglewell.”

This is a short book, one that should be savored. An avian story that takes place in a small town called Inglewell where a young woman goes on a quest to find her missing brothers and finds out just how twisty and ensnared the townspeople’s lives are.

A dark, delicious, tangled story that you won’t soon forget. Lyrical and lush, Flyaway is simply enchanting.

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There’s something wicked in Burning Lake…

Natalie Lockhart is a rookie detective in Burning Lake, New York, an isolated town known for its dark past. Tasked with uncovering the whereabouts of nine missing transients who have disappeared over the years, Natalie wrestles with the town’s troubled history – and the scars left by her sister’s unsolved murder years ago.

Then Daisy Buckner, a beloved schoolteacher, is found dead on her kitchen floor, and a suspect immediately comes to mind. But it’s not that simple. The suspect is in a coma, collapsed only hours after the teacher’s death, and it turns out Daisy had secrets of her own. Natalie knows there is more to the case, but as the investigation deepens, even she cannot predict the far-reaching consequences – for the victim, for the missing of Burning Lake, and for herself.

Book Details

Trace of Evil (Natalie Lockhart #1) by Alice Blanchard
Published December 3rd 2019 by Minotaur Books
Fiction / Mystery & Detective / Police Procedural
Hardcover, 370 pages
Source: Bought
My Rating: 4 Stars

  Review

TRACE OF EVIL is the first book in the Natalie Lockhart series. It features a plucky new rooky detective and a murder mystery that takes place in a small, New England town where secrets abound.

This is a page-turning read filled with chilling atmosphere. Burning Lake is the perfect setting as Blanchard weaves a spine-tingling tale of witchcraft, murder, and dark history.

I love it when suspense thrillers feature remote, sleepy towns built upon a dark history. Back in the 1700s this picturesque town accused and convicted three innocent women of witchcraft.

Once hidden in shame, today, the town of Burning Lake embraces its magical roots and thrives on a tourist business of New Age boutiques and occult gift shops. It all feels very Salem like, mixing a touch of supernatural with suspense.

Detective Natalie Lockhart is a rookie detective in Burning Lake assigned a cold case of uncovering the whereabouts of nine missing transients who have disappeared over the years.

A murder of a beloved school teacher pulls her into a case which will go reach into the very heart of Burning Lake.

Blanchard transports readers into a world of black magic, buried secrets, and plot twists that will keep you entertained and guessing.

Natalie Lockhart is a spunky, new detective whose troubled past makes her both intriguing and relatable. There is a whisper of romance and plenty of moody atmosphere in this series opener.

I’m looking forward to continuing this series that hints at the supernatural while keeping the mystery grounded. Recommended to fans of Mystery & Detective and Police Procedurals looking for a new heroine to follow.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

A young woman living in a rigid, puritanical society discovers dark powers within herself in this stunning, feminist fantasy debut.
 
In the lands of Bethel, where the Prophet's word is law, Immanuelle Moore's very existence is blasphemy. Her mother’s union with an outsider of a different race cast her once-proud family into disgrace, so Immanuelle does her best to worship the Father, follow Holy Protocol, and lead a life of submission, devotion, and absolute conformity, like all the other women in the settlement.

But a mishap lures her into the forbidden Darkwood surrounding Bethel, where the first prophet once chased and killed four powerful witches. Their spirits are still lurking there, and they bestow a gift on Immanuelle: the journal of her dead mother, who Immanuelle is shocked to learn once sought sanctuary in the wood.

Fascinated by the secrets in the diary, Immanuelle finds herself struggling to understand how her mother could have consorted with the witches. But when she begins to learn grim truths about the Church and its history, she realizes the true threat to Bethel is its own darkness. And she starts to understand that if Bethel is to change, it must begin with her.

Book Details

The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
Fiction / Horror / Occult & Supernatural
Published July 21st 2020 by Ace
Hardcover, 368 pages
My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

  Review

THE YEAR OF THE WITCHING conjures up a dark, supernatural fantasy about a young woman living as an outcast in a harsh, puritanical society who discovers her mother’s hidden legacy and the forbidden forest which calls to a growing power rising within her.

A bewitching tale of horror with a feminist twist — Salem meets The Handmaid's Tale

Henderson's debut crafts a dark, witchy, coming-of-age read that is equal parts frightening and enthralling.

Immanuelle is a fearless and resilient young woman who is trying to balance her spiritual life with that of being a woman of a different race who is shunned by the spiritual leaders of Bethel.

Henderson creates a complicated young, heroine torn between following the protocols of the Prophet and protecting those she cares about.

“She was born breech, in the deep of night. The midwife, Martha, had to seize her by the ankles and drag her form the womb. She slipped out easy, dropped limp into Martha’s arms, and lay still as stone.

Her name, she demanded, eyes sharp with moonlight. Give me her name.

Immanuelle, she finally bit it out like a curse. She will be called Immanuelle.”

I love the atmosphere created in this book. The story is suspenseful, its tones Gothic with a creeping sense of dread felt throughout.

I was on edge when reading about Immanuelle's first encounter with the witches of the Darkwood forest. The scenes of witchcraft and plagues are shocking and filled with visceral imagery.

“Immanuelle had always felt a strange affinity for the Darkwood, a kind of stirring whenever she neared it. It was almost as though the forbidden wood sang a song that only she could hear, as though it was daring her to come closer.”

The juxtaposition between the hedonistic supernaturalism of the forest and the stark spiritualism of Bethel really captures the essence of the story with Immanuelle caught between the two.

At its core, this is a story of forbidden love, curses, and forgiveness. It is also an exploration of the abuse of power in its many available forms. A bewitching debut with an exciting new voice that captures the horror of old world witchery with a feminist twist.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Summary

Steel Magnolias meets Dracula in this ’90s-set horror novel about a women’s book club that must do battle with a mysterious newcomer to their small Southern town, perfect for murderinos and fans of Stephen King.

Patricia Campbell’s life has never felt smaller. Her husband is a workaholic, her teenage kids have their own lives, her senile mother-in-law needs constant care, and she’s always a step behind on her endless to-do list. The only thing keeping her sane is her book club, a close-knit group of Charleston women united by their love of true crime. At these meetings they’re as likely to talk about the Manson family as they are about their own families.

One evening after book club, Patricia is viciously attacked by an elderly neighbor, bringing the neighbor’s handsome nephew, James Harris, into her life. James is well traveled and well read, and he makes Patricia feel things she hasn’t felt in years. But when children on the other side of town go missing, their deaths written off by local police, Patricia has reason to believe James Harris is more of a Bundy than a Brad Pitt. The real problem? James is a monster of a different kind—and Patricia has already invited him in.

Little by little, James will insinuate himself into Patricia’s life and try to take everything she took for granted—including the book club—but she won’t surrender without a fight in this blood-soaked tale of neighborly kindness gone wrong.

Book Details

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires
Fiction / Thrillers / Supernatural Fiction / Southern
Published April 7th 2020 by Quirk Books
Hardcover, 404 pages
My Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars

  Review

THE SOUTHERN BOOK CLUB’S GUIDE TO SLAYING VAMPIRES combines southern charm with 1990s horror. In this story, author Grady Hendrix pits middle-aged housewives, who share a passion for true crime books, against a vampire.

Nothing they have read before could prepare them for the real-life monster they are about to meet, nor prepare the monster for the discovery of just how badass southern ladies can be.

“I wanted to pit Dracula against my mom. As you’ll see, it’s not a fair fight.”

Like an overripe peach—sweet, gooey, and just about to go rotten, The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires fills the senses with warm nostalgia and creepy-horror. I loved every moment of it.

“Sometimes she craved a little danger. And that was why she had a book club”

This page-turning, Southern Gothic literature was such a refreshing read, but don’t misunderstand me, this book packs as much gore and dark atmosphere as it does heartwarming female friendship.

“He thinks we are what we look like on the outside: nice Southern ladies. Let me tell you something…there is nothing nice about Southern ladies.”

This book is smart as well as it artfully imbues the story with elements of repression and racism. I was embarrassed and frustrated. Hendrix definitely weaves into the book the question of who really is the monster in the story, and there is more than one.

From southern etiquette and book club love to grisly cockroaches, rats, and vampirism—The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix was just the escape read I needed. It kept me on edge and put a smile on my face.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

A dragon shapeshifter and a healer with power over the earth fight a corrupt empire in this thrilling and deeply emotional romantic fantasy from the USA Today bestselling author of Radiance.

Magic is outlawed in the Krael Empire and punishable by death. Born with the gift of earth magic, the free trader Halani keeps her dangerous secret closely guarded. When her uncle buys a mysterious artifact, a piece of bone belonging to a long-dead draga, Halani knows it's far more than what it seems.

Dragas haven't been seen for more than a century, and most believe them extinct. They're wrong. Dragas still walk among the denizens of the Empire, disguised as humans. Malachus is a draga living on borrowed time. The magic that has protected him will soon turn on him--unless he finds a key part of his heritage. He has tracked it to a group of free traders, among them a grave-robbing earth witch who fascinates him as much as she frustrates him with her many secrets.

Unbeknownst to both, the Empire's twisted empress searches for a draga of her own, to capture and kill as a trophy. As Malachus the hunter becomes the hunted, Halani must risk herself and all she loves to save him from the Empire's machinations and his own lethal birthright.

Book Details

Dragon Unleashed by Grace Draven
Fallen Empire Book #2
Publishes on June 9th 2020 by Ace
Fiction | Romance | Sci Fi & Fantasy
My Rating: 4 Stars

  Review

DRAGON UNLEASHED is the second book in the Fallen Empires series and continues with another fabulous book filled with magic, danger, and a slow-simmering romance all set in a unique fantasy world.

If you are looking for fantasy-romance, that special blend of authentic world-building touched by magic, one filled with a captivating romance to love, then you really must try Grace Draven.

Readers are taken back to the same fantasy world first discovered in Phoenix Unbound. A world shadowed by a tyrannical empire ruled by an evil villainess bent on revenge.

Lush writing paints a world of deadly bazaars, enchanted barrows, earth magic, and a shape-shifting dragon.

In this book, we are taken from the mountainous steppes of Phoenix Unbound into the valleys and merchant city’s of the empire. A world of forbidden magic, markets selling sorcery, and a villainess named the Spider who spins a dangerous web of deceit.

Here, Draven transports readers into the daily life of free traders who travel in meandering caravans selling their wares, but in this world, it is rumored to be inhabited by the near-extinct Draga whose blood and bone are coveted for their magical properties.

Dragon Unleashed builds a layered, slow-simmering romance of friendship to lovers that packs plenty of emotions.

A dragon shapeshifter and a healer with power over the earth, Malachus and Halani, both, must keep their abilities and heritage secret but when they meet by accident and a mysterious artifact, a piece of bone belonging to a long-dead Draga, brings them together, they can’t deny their growing feelings despite the danger they present to each other.

Dragon Unleashed is filled with lush writing and an imaginative world setting perfect for building a fantasy romance between to characters that’ll be hard to soon forget.

Recommended highly to fantasy-romance readers and fans of Grace Draven books. I hope we have many more books in the Fallen Empire series to look forward to.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

This breathtaking sequel to The Beholder will take you on a journey into a darkly sparkling fairy tale, perfect for fans of The Selection and Caraval.

When Selah found true love with Prince Torden of Norway, she never imagined she’d have to leave him behind. All because the Beholder’s true mission was a secret Selah’s crew didn’t trust her to keep: transporting weapons to the rebels fighting against the brutal tsarytsya, whose shadow looms over their next port of Shvartsval’d. A place Selah hoped she’d never go.

But gone is the girl who departed Potomac filled with fear. With a stockpile of weapons belowdecks and her heart hanging in the balance, Selah is determined to see the Beholder’s quest to its end.

Book Details

The Boundless (The Beholder #2) by Anna Bright
Young Adult Fiction / Fantasy / Retelling
Published June 9th 2020 by HarperTeen
Hardcover, 512 pages
My Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars

  Review

THE BOUNDLESS is the second and concluding book in the Beholder series. This time it’s all about secret missions, rebel spies, and a ruthless adversary that Selah finds herself captive too.

Although I enjoyed all the romance and gorgeous landings in book one, The Boundless really gives more room for Selah to grow in her characterization.

Setting sail to Shvartsval’d to court another prince, she continues to aid her crew in a plot of rebellion but is captured by the tsarytsya’s army, where she finds herself indentured to the infamous Baba Yaga.

Forced into danger, we get to see a new side of Selah. Gone is the timid and shy girl. Fierce and even cunning, she does what it takes to survive.

There is romance and it is everything I could have wanted for Selah, but it is definitely in the background. Selah’s relationship with her crew, her feelings of betrayal, and her determination to make her own future is now the focus.

What I enjoyed most is the cat and mouse game played between the tsarytsya’ and Selah. Bright has given her readers a terrific villain and worthy adversary. Her knights and the scene with the game board is one of my favorites.

Overall, an entertaining conclusion to the series. I enjoyed seeing Selah learning to rely on herself and make her own choices, the romance did not disappoint, and the danger was definitely more intense this time around. Recommended to readers who enjoyed The Beholder.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor, returns with The Angel of the Crows, a fantasy novel of alternate 1880s London, where killers stalk the night and the ultimate power is naming. This is not the story you think it is.

These are not the characters you think they are. This is not the book you are expecting. In an alternate 1880s London, angels inhabit every public building, and vampires and werewolves walk the streets with human beings in a well-regulated truce. A fantastic utopia, except for a few things: Angels can Fall, and that Fall is like a nuclear bomb in both the physical and metaphysical worlds. And human beings remain human, with all their kindness and greed and passions and murderous intent. Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of this London too. But this London has an Angel. The Angel of the Crows.

Book Details

The Angel of the Crows by Katherine Addison
Fiction / Fantasy / Historical / Sherlock Holmes
On Sale Date: June 23, 2020 by Macmillan-Tor/Forge
Hardcover, 448 pages 
My Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars

  Review

Set in an alternate Victorian London, THE ANGEL OF THE CROWS by Katherine Addison re-imagines classic Sherlock Holmes only this world is inhabited by angels, vampires, and werewolves. Here, a madman treads the streets at night named Jack the Ripper.

Classic elements of Sherlock Holmes set into a fantastical fantasy world inhabited by Angels, Vampires, and Hellhounds.

Here, in this alternate London, Sherlock Holmes is envisioned as an Angel named Crow. His character comes complete with huge wings and the astute observation and deduction skills readers would expect. Dr. Watson is played by the eccentric surgeon Dr. Doyle who is recently returned from the war and finds himself a flatmate and assistant to the sleuthing Crow.

Told from Dr. Doyle’s perspective, Addison weaves into the main plot Crow and Doyle aiding the Scotland Yard in the grisly Whitechapel murders. Their search leads them into the dark underbelly of London, searching for the identity behind the notorious serial killer known as Jack the Ripper.

Readers familiar with the classic storylines will find threaded among the plot such investigating cases as A Study in Scarlet and The Hound of the Baskervilles. Several storylines seem very familiar as you are reading, but then there are twists and turns that take that familiarity away.

This is a fun read with its Sherlock Holmes retelling and mix of supernatural elements combined with the Jack the Ripper mystery. Angels, Vampires, and Hellhounds—oh my!

Fans of the classic will enjoy the character dynamics and brewing friendship between the feathery Crow and eccentric Doyle. As each case takes our duo one step closer to Jack the Ripper's identity, readers will feel like they're within familiar stories.

An engaging plot and mystery round out the story. My only wish was for a better feel of the Angels and the Fallen's history. Fans of Holmes and Watson will find familiar storylines while the twists keep you on your toes.

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I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher, courtesy of Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Book Summary

Irréelle fears she’s not quite real. Only the finest magical thread tethers her to life―and to Miss Vesper. But for all her efforts to please her cruel creator, the thread is unraveling. Irréelle is forgetful as she gathers bone dust. She is slow returning from the dark passages beneath the cemetery. Worst of all, she is unmindful of her crooked bones.

When Irréelle makes one final, unforgivable mistake by destroying a frightful creature just brought to life, Miss Vesper threatens to imagine her away once and for all. Defying her creator for the very first time, Irréelle flees to the underside of the graveyard and embarks on an adventure to unearth the mysterious magic that breathes bones to life, even if it means she will return to dust and be no more.

Book Details

The Bone Garden by Heather Kassner
Illustrated by Matt Saunders
Published August 6th 2019 by Henry Holt and Co.
Juvenile Fiction / Fantasy & Magic
Hardcover, 288 pages
My Rating: 4 of 5 Stars

  Book Review

THE BONE GARDEN is a gorgeously illustrated and hauntingly told middle-grade fantasy about a brave, young heroine made of magic, dust, and bone who just wants to be made into a real-life girl.

The atmosphere in this middle-grade debut is delightfully eerie, its pages are filled with graveyards, secret tunnels, a disembodied hand, two-headed bats, and lots of bones. You can hear the hum of bones, smell the graveyard dirt, and feel the powdery bone dust on your fingertips!

Brought to life by magic, Irréelle fears she’s not real and when she accidentally destroys her creator’s work, Miss Vesper threatens to unimagine her into nothingness.

Fleeing, Irréelle embarks on a desperate quest to discover “an unmarked grave that is very clearly marked” to discover mysterious magic that breathes bones to life and could make her into a living girl.

Irréelle is a wonderfully, imperfect young heroine made up of an odd assortment of bones who reminded me of Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas by Tim Burton. You can’t help but love her sweetness and bravery.

This really is a sweet and heartfelt story about friendship set within some terrific atmosphere. The concept of bone magic and the adventure to be had within its pages is sure to make The Bone Garden appeal to young readers wanting a chilling read but not too scary.

Readers will be enchanted by the growing friendship between Irréelle, Guy, Hand, and Lass as they adventure in a land of graveyards and bones.

Overall, a lovely read that lends perfectly to reading aloud and with illustrations that enhance the story beautifully. The uneven execution in this debut is easy to ignore with its compelling atmosphere and mystery.

Readers who love Marcy Kate Connolly, Claire Legrand, or Karen Foxlee are going to love THE BONE GARDEN. 

Book Description:

They say that the cure for Love will make me happy and safe forever.

And I’ve always believed them.

Until now.

Now everything has changed.

Now, I’d rather be infected with love for the tiniest sliver of a second than live a hundred years smothered by a lie.

Lena looks forward to receiving the government-mandated cure that prevents the delirium of love and leads to a safe, predictable, and happy life, until ninety-five days before her eighteenth birthday and her treatment, when she falls in love.

Rating: 4 Stars

Favorite Quotes:

But it does not tell you this: that love will turn the whole world into something greater than itself.

Love, the deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don’t.

This is a dystopian book that’s a little different from The Hunger Games & Divergent and the like.  The world isn’t ending, necessarily but the government has mandated that everyone over the age of 18 has a procedure that basically renders you incapable of love and most of the other strong emotions.  They literally cut a piece out of the brain to achieve this!  I cannot imagine a time when the majority of people would be pushing for this to happen, but here it does.  I guess I can see some appeal to not suffering through a broken heart but to cut out a piece of my brain to achieve this?  Uhhhh, no thank you!

The story follow Lena Haloway as she is preparing for her procedure.  She got about 3 months until it is scheduled and there are interviews that have to be done so that the government can pick a husband suitable for her (because if you don’t care, how could you choose for yourself?) and what she will do for a living (will she go to college or just get a job until she is married?).  They regulate the music that your allowed to listen to and the books that you can read.  Something that Oliver did that is really different from most dystopian stories is the fact that everything we once had still exists.  There are cell phones and cars and the internet.  They are all strictly monitored and not everyone has them but they are still in use.  So many times you read these types of books and its like living in the dark ages and I thought this was a nice touch.

One of my gripes about this book is that if you take away the portion of the brain that controls emotion, how does anything get done?  If you don’t care, how do you take care of your children or get up everyday and go to work and cook and clean?  Love guides almost all the things we do.  We work because we love our families and want to take care of them.   We love our children and so we play with them and discipline them and laugh with them.  If you remove all those things are you really still alive?  Aren’t other things in our lives determined by a type of love?  If you were a police man breaking up an illegal party with a bunch of teenagers involved, would you care enough to just send them home or would you release the dogs against them and beat them with clubs and would it matter either way?  Very confusing to me.  I guess if love was that simple and it could be removed without interfering with everything else, then maybe, but it simply affects too many things.

Anyway, the story drags on a bit for me once the world is set up and you get a grasp on what’s happening.  Lena and Hana (her best friend) start to break the rules and go to unauthorized parties after curfew.  Up until this point, they’ve had almost no contact with the opposite sex besides adult males (parents and teachers who have all had the procedure) and these parties are full of uncured boy their own age.  So in typical teenager fashion they are rebelling before they can’t anymore.  Then Lena meets a boy, Alex, who shows her that there is so much to be missed by having the procedure done and how much the cureds have been lying to everyone (particularly Lena).  As they get to know each other and fall in love Lena realizes that there’s no way she could ever willing have the procedure and she tries to come up with a way for them to escape.

Will they find a way or will Lena have to lose part of herself?

*SPOILERS BELOW*

First of all, I cannot believe that there wasn’t a love triangle in this book!  It was kind of nice  to not have to be vacillating between two love interests!

I was wondering throughout the whole beginning of the book if it wouldn’t turn out that Lena’s Mom was still alive.  Considering how long ago she supposedly killed herself she was still very present in Lena’s mind and that usually means something is coming up.  It’s too bad that she didn’t  get to see her before she escaped though.

I cannot BELIEVE that Alex doesn’t make it with Lena to the Wilds!  He sacrifices himself up to the regulators so that Lena can get away.  He got shot and captured but I’m not sure if he’s alive or not!  What will she do now in the Wilds all alone?  Being with Alex was the main reason she decided to run away in the first place!  Sheesh, I wonder what Oliver has planned for book 2?

Book Description:

tick
tick
tick
tick
tick
it’s almost
time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She’s finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam’s life.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Favorite Quotes:

My troubles have arrived fashionably late to this conversation, inconsiderate beasts that they are.

It’s the kind of kiss that makes you realize oxygen is overrated.

He’s standing right in front of me and I miss him like I haven’t seen him in years.

“I think there’s something about the impermanence of life these days that makes it necessary to etch ink into our skin,” he says.  “It reminds us that we’ve been marked by the world, that we’re still alive.  That we’ll never forget.”

Another heart wrenching book by Mafi.  She really is a wonderful writer.  I couldn’t put the book down.  I devoured it in a day and now I’m dying to know what happens next.  I’m not sure but I think this is a three book series so the next one should be the end.  I love the way your heart is practically in your throat the whole book.  There is so much emotion happening and Mafi writes in a way that you can’t help but experience everything along with the characters.

Book two picks up shortly after where book one ended.  Juliette, Adam and James have been at Omega Point for about a week and things are starting settle down.  Once the immediate danger is over Juliette has retreated back inside herself because she is now surrounded by people who know what she can do and some of them include children.  She doesn’t want to scare anyone and so she decides to just keep to herself and only really talk to and associate with Adam.  What a hard thing to have to experience at the age of 17, to try to make friends when you’ve never done something like that before.  She’s always been immediately ostracized when she was around other people and so she doesn’t know how to start getting to know people.  I thought this was a good road for Mafi to take with this story, it makes it more believable.  Because of this, she comes off even scarier than she would have if she even made some small attempt to interact with people.  The story about how she killed that little kid years ago gets out and now everyone is looking at her just like people always have.  So much for being with people who would understand her because she wasn’t the only one with some bizarre powers.  Castle thinks that there might be more to Adam being able to touch her than it just being some fluke and now he’s undergoing some test to see if there’s another reason he can touch her.  The results are devastating and now Juliette has to decide how she’s going to back away from him to keep him safe.  She learning more about her own abilities and now she’s not just worried about her touch being dangerous.  Her whole body is a weapon and she has no control over it.  On top of that monumental obstacle, she is still keeping secrets from Adam.  She hasn’t told him that Warner can touch her too and that she kissed him right before she shot him.  I don’t know why she doesn’t say anything.  She should have told him as soon as he was healed.  There was no real reason for her not to except for the part where she actually enjoyed it.  She could leave that part out of it as far as I’m concerned but the rest of it she should have told him.  You can’t keep secrets like that.  The fact is that if they really loved each other there would be no reason to keep these kinds of secrets.  Adam might be a little pissed but the fact is she did what she needed to do so that she could save him and I don’t think that he would be angry for long.

Kenji plays a much bigger role in this book and I’m so glad because I love him!  He’s like the only bright spot in the book; his personality is so bright and carefree that you can’t help but smile when he’s around.  This is not to say that he doesn’t have some serious moments and he does put Juliette in her place a few times but she really needed someone to kick her in the ass so she would quit moping around.  The reality is that she is the primary reason that The Reestablishment is hunting so fiercely for Omega Point.  Not that this wouldn’t have come to a head at some point in the future but the timetable’s been moved up and that is because of Juliette.  Warner can’t let her go and now that his father is involved he hasn’t got a choice but to find her.  After learning more about him in Destroy Me I was pretty sure he would be a big part of this book as well.  We learned even more about him and his past as him and Juliette spend some time together.

Kenji has been working with Juliette to help her figure out and hone her skills and she starts to get a little more control of it.  I was hoping this would naturally lend itself to help with her self-esteem but that doesn’t really happen.  If she should would just accept who and what she is life would start to become more manageable for her but she can’t stop seeing herself as a monster.  She’s come out of her shell a little bit and it starting to make some friends but everyone at Omega Point is preparing to battle Warner’s father and his men and they need Juliette to help them.  With the strength of her power she could be the edge that they need to win.

Will she be able to put her personal feelings aside and focus on the more important objective?  Will she be able to use her abilities against the “bad guys” to save the innocent citizens of sector 54?  How will she reconcile her feelings for Adam and Warner?

*SPOILERS BELOW*

Oh man this book was torture for me!  I’m still so unsure who I want Juliette to end up with!  Her and Adam have such an intense relationship and it’s been growing since they were kids.  Now that they have finally found each other and Adam can actually touch her things were looking up.  This was not to last, of course, and now Adam has discovered that he has an ability as well.  He’s a disruptor and that’s why he can touch her because he can cancel out her power. The problem with this is that he has to be constantly on guard in order for it to work and that can’t happen when they are getting physical with each other.  She nearly kills him at one point!  So she’s decided to stay away from him and it’s destroying both of them.  Then there’s Warner.  This is the first time that Juliette really gets to know him for who he is instead of the leader of sector 54.  When she was listening to his father tear him down and then again later when he was being held captive at Omega Point and she had to interrogate him.  He was so sweet to her and let her see a part of himself that I don’t think he’s ever shown anyone else.  The scars on his back, the way he really sees himself, the way he sees her and how she makes him feel.  It was breathtaking to witness.  Now she’s so confused about what to do and she hasn’t told Adam about any of this and she hasn’t told Warner that Adam is his brother (which shocked the hell out of me, by the way) and she’s somehow in the middle and unable to decides what to do.  She’s also hiding a lot of information about Warner.  She doesn’t tell anyone that she knows why he can touch her and what his ability is and I’m not sure why.  What could it harm?  It just makes her look worse for keeping it to herself.  I think she loves them both but who is the better choice?  Adam is so loving and caring and wants to take care of her and he loves her with a desperation that is a little frightening.  Warner can be gentle and caring and he doesn’t pull any punches.  He is who he is and he accept Juliette for who she is and what she is capable of.  He also loves her in an overwhelmingly obsessive way.  I wonder if this is something about Juliette or if it’s something in their DNA that she attracts?  Either way it’s a tough decision.

I wish that Kenji wouldn’t have stopped Juliette from killing Anderson.  That guy is a monster and someone needs to take care of him.  I understand why he did it but at the same time you don’t go to war with someone in his position if you don’t have his replacement ready to take over.  Then in the end when he just shot her in the chest and leaves!  This was the only real issue I had with the book.  Why would he have gone through the trouble of shooting her in front of Warner only to leave before he could witness what it did to him?  And, why would he have had “the girls” kidnapped to use to heal him only to leave them behind?  If anything, he should have at least taken them with him back to the capital.

I’m really looking forward to seeing how it all ends.

Book Description:

Perfect for the fans of Shatter Me who are desperately awaiting the release of Unravel Me, this novella-length digital original will bridge the gap between these two novels from the perspective of the villain we all love to hate, Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45.

In Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me, Juliette escaped from The Reestablishment by seducing Warner—and then putting a bullet in his shoulder. But as she’ll learn in Destroy Me, Warner is not that easy to get rid of. . .

Back at the base and recovering from his near-fatal wound, Warner must do everything in his power to keep his soldiers in check and suppress any mention of a rebellion in the sector. Still as obsessed with Juliette as ever, his first priority is to find her, bring her back, and dispose of Adam and Kenji, the two traitors who helped her escape. But when Warner’s father, The Supreme Commander of The Reestablishment, arrives to correct his son’s mistakes, it’s clear that he has much different plans for Juliette. Plans Warner simply cannot allow.

Set after Shatter Me and before its forthcoming sequel, Unravel Me, Destroy Me is a novella told from the perspective of Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45

Rating: 5 Stars

Favorite Quotes:

It’s a strange thing, to never know peace.  To know that no matter where you go, there is no sanctuary.  That the threat of pain is always a whisper away.

Love is a heartless bastard.  I’m driving myself insane.

I’m at a loss for words with this novella.  At the end of Shatter Me I had already firmly decided that I didn’t like Warner.  I didn’t necessarily think he was a bad person, per se, but that he wasn’t a good person either.  Now I find myself saddened by his story.  Raised by a man who never had a nice thing to say to him and never receiving any kind of affection.  It’s very similar to Juliette’s story, really, only that in Warners situation it wasn’t because people couldn’t touch him but because no one did.  It makes a lot more sense now why he felt to connected to Juliette and now that he has her journal from when she was institutionalized he’s even more determined to find her and bring her back to be with him.  I’m not sure if he’s going to have much success with this due to the way he tried to get her affections the last time but I at least have a better feel for who he is and why he is the way he is.  I think that anyone can change, given the proper motivation.  The question is, will Warner want to change and is love enough of a motivator for him?  I think we’ll find out in book two which is next up on the list.

Book Description:

Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.

The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette’s touch is fatal. As long as she doesn’t hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don’t fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color.

The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war– and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she’s exactly what they need right now.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

Rating: 4.5

Favorite Quotes:

Truth is a jealous, vicious mistress that never ever sleeps, is what I don’t tell him.  I’ll never be okay.

my cheek is pressed against his chest and he smells like strength and courage and the wold is drowning in rain.

I remember you every day forever in every single broken moment of my life.

His hands are shaking so slightly, his eyes brimming with feeling, his heart thrumming with pain and affection and I want to live here, in his arms, in his eyes for the rest of my life.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book when I first picked it up.  It was a recommendation from a friend and I thought, what the hell, I’d give it a shot.  It was surprisingly good!  The writing style took a little getting used to as most of what Juliette thinks is in run on sentences.  This makes a little more sense once you figure out that she has been locked up all alone for almost a year and hasn’t spoken to another living soul for that whole time.  I think I’d be a little nutty too.  Mafi is a very emotionally descriptive writer and because of this it doesn’t take very long for you to be attached to certain characters and to really despise others.  I only used four of my favorite lines from this book above but I think I highlighted around 10 or so which is really high for me in any book.  I think she’s an amazing writer and once I got used to her writing style, I really liked it.

I’m not sure what year the book is set in but basically we’ve destroyed the planet and there’s not enough food or clean water and The Reestablishment has taken over power of everyone. They’ve decided that in order to correct the problems that society has caused they need to make several changes.  Only the strong get to survive, they are getting rid of all the books they can find and trying to create a whole new language.  All the unhealthy, weak and old are gotten rid of.  It doesn’t specifically say how this happens maybe they are all killed or maybe they are just segregated from the rest of society?  Juliette has some sort of weird power where it is dangerous for her to touch anyone.  She had an incident in a grocery store and after that she was locked up in what she assumes is an insane asylum.  One day she gets a cell mate, Adam Kent, and then things start to change a little for her.  Can you imagine not speaking to anyone for a year?  Just as she’s starting to get used to the idea of him she’s taken out of her cell and introduced to the sector leader for The Reestablishment, Warner, who informs her that he’d like her to join their cause.  He thinks that her “talent” could be really useful to them.  Which means, of course, that he would like her to help him kill the rebels.  Warner takes her to their base and sets her up with a nice room and nice clothes and good meals and thinks that this is the way to get her to agree to join him.  He’s got more on his mind than just how she can help their cause too.  Luckily for her, people can’t touch her (at least not most people) so she seems to be relatively safe for the time being.

Adam has been assigned to guard her and as time goes on we learn a little about their past and get to see their relationship develop into something very sweet and intense.  Juliette’s got to escape from The Reestablishment, especially from Warner as he’s got some kind of weird obsession with her, and Adam is going to help her to this.  When they finally get free, it’s a mad dash to find their allies and get somewhere safe.  Then everything gets turned on its head when they do finally find safety.  Will this new group be the good guys?  Will they want to use Juliette for her “talents” as well?  With her suddenly being in a situation of acceptance, how will she handle it and will her and Adam be able to stay together?

*SPOILERS BELOW*

I love the relationship between Adam and Juliette.  I wasn’t sure how this would work out in the beginning, since she can’t be touched and was relieved that Adam was the exception to this rule.  The fact that they knew each other when they were younger went a long way with me to support the intensity of their feelings for each other.  You can’t just meet someone and all of a sudden be in love with them.  I liked that they each had formed feelings for the other growing up even though they had never had a conversation before now.  Adam is so sweet to her and the fact that he remembered all the small things she did growing up for the same people who treated her so terribly was a nice touch.  I’m not sure how this will all play out as Juliette has no experience with relationships of any kind.  How will she handle something so intense?

I was disappointed to learn that Adam wasn’t the only one immune to Juliette’s dangerous touch when Warner touched her right before they escaped.  I’m not sure exactly how I feel about Warner.  I think that he is a product of his upbringing.  Even though he can be ruthlessly cold and calculated, I’m not sure that he is a bad person.  I think this is all he knows.  He seems to have real feelings for Juliette although they way he got to know her was a little stalkerish with reading all about her history and then watching her in the asylum for the past year.  He’s obsessive though and he’s not going to just let her go without some sort of fight.

I actually really loved the ending to this book!  I totally didn’t see it coming.  A whole group of people who all have different abilities.  How wonderful for Juliette to finally feel like she belongs somewhere.  Adam made a little headway with her self-esteem over the course of the few months they got to spend together but think about how horrible her life would have been.  Can you imagine not being touched by anyone for almost your entire life?  It’s pretty incredible that she’s still such a good person.  The kind of power that she has would have been so dangerous in the wrong hands.  The way her parents made her feel like a monster especially pissed me off.  As a parent you love your children NO MATTER WHAT and how could you let her feel so alone her whole life?  They could have ruined her forever.  I’m excited to see what book two brings.  I’d like to know what other kind of gifts the people of Omega Point have and how they deal with Warner and the threat he represents.

Next up is Destroy Me, a novella before Unravel Me.