Sunday, December 31, 2017

My Life According to the Books I Read in 2017

Since I've had a very rich reading year this year, I decided to do the my-year-in-books-I-read end-of-year wrap up meme which was created by Christine at The happily ever after:

Describe yourself: Night Owl by M. Pierce

How do you feel: Wicked all the Way by Shayla Black

Describe where you currently live: Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge

If you could go anywhere, where would you go: The Summer Palace by C.S. Pacat

Your favourite form of transportation: Angels' Flight by Nalini Singh

Your best friend is: Treasure Island by R.L. Stevenson

You and your friends are: Beyond Jealousy by Kit Rocha

What's the weather like: Dark Skye by Kresely Cole

What is life to you: All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood

Favourite time of day: Shadow's Seduction by Kresley Cole

Your fear: Closed Doors by Kit Rocha

What is the best advice you have to give: Truth by Sherri Hayes

Thought for the day: Blank Canvas by Kit Rocha

How I would like to die: Beyond Doubt by Kit Rocha

My soul's present condition: Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel

And that's it for me this year, book blogging-wise. 

Have a nice New Year's Eve and many good books (and all other good things) in 2018!

Tuesday, December 12, 2017

Top Ten Favorite Books of 2017

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


Wow, I haven’t done a Top Ten Tuesday post in years!

But since this has been a good reading year for me and I actually have a variety of books to pick from, here are my top ten books I read in 2017 (in random order):

  1. Uprooted by Naomi Novik
  2. All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood
  3. Angels' Blood (Guild Hunter #1) by Nalini Singh – or really, the entire Guild Hunter series
  4. Beyond Jealousy (Beyond #4) by Kit Rocha – or, again, the entire Beyond series
  5. Ashwin (Gideon's Riders #1) by Kit Rocha
  6. Call Me by Your Name by  AndrĂ© Aciman
  7. Sweet Ruin (IAD #16) by Kresley Cole
  8. Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1) by Sylvain Neuvel
  9. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien by J.R.R. Tolkien
  10. The Book by Jessica Bell

Saturday, December 02, 2017

Virtual Advent Tour 2017: Winter Reads

It is that time of year again! Time for Virtual Advent Tour, organised by Sprite at Sprite Writes.

Virtual Advent Tour BadgeConsidering this is a book(ish) blog, I think it is high time for a book-related Virtual Advent post. (How haven’t I done one in all these years yet?) So, here are some of my favourite reads for winter time.   

As a child, I loved The Little Match Girl by Hans Christian Andersen. Although I cried my heart out every time I read it. I guess my masochist fiction preferences were showing early on. ;)
     

 Lassie Come Home cover

The crying continued as I was a bit older with Lassie Come Home by Eric Knight. A good part of it is set in winter and it does contain the spirit of the season, implicitly if not explicitly.

I find His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman a good read for dark months of autumn and winter, both for its setting, story lines, and the philosophical and religious questions it provokes.

Winter Ghosts coverOne of my all-times favourite books is The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse. Happening over a winter night in the Pyrenees, it is a poignant and touching story, written in beautiful, lyrical prose. 

And lastly, a novella from my favourite paranormal romance series (best read in order) to warm you up (ahem ;)): Untouchable (IAD #8) by Kresely Cole. Ice, winter, and Christmas – it has it all.

I am always on the look-out for new book recommendations. 

What are your favourite winter/Christmas reads?

Monday, September 25, 2017

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things couldn’t have a more accurate and fitting title as it does.

It is a painful and difficult read, and I lost count of how many times I wanted to rage quite it, but I had intentionally spoiled myself about the ending, which made me go on, and I am so glad it did!

Going into the story, I was quite wary, but it has turned out that the number one reason for that was not at all justified, because of all the horrifying and frustrating things in All the Ugly and Wonderful Things, the one thing that never disgusted me was the relationship between Wavy and Kellen.

Of course, objectively and on principle, I wouldn't condone a relationship between real people their age. However, in their particular circumstances as described in this book I can’t judge them – not even Kellen – at all.

Because of all the terrible things in Wavy’s life – from her drug-addicted and neglectful parents to poverty and the general, mostly non-understanding, atmosphere of her time and environment – Kellen was not only the least terrible, but the best thing of only few good things in her life.

Bryn Greenwood does an astonishing job with her unique story-telling style with multiple POVs (I especially loved the ‘growth’ of Wavy’s voice) which enable the reader to grasp the full picture, making it obvious how Wavy and Kellen's love must have looked to outsiders and thus make their reactions perfectly understandable. But she also provides what we don’t get in real life: an unobstructed insight in the protagonists’ minds and hearts that made it impossible for me not to root for the pair.

Therefore, as much as All the Ugly and Wonderful Things is heart-wrenchingly poignant, its pay-off is also heart-warming, and I couldn’t but end up loving this book.

Thursday, September 14, 2017

The Letters of J. R. R. Tolkien

Cover of The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien
Tolkien’s letters are at times tedious and repetitive – just as life can be – but for the most part very compelling reading material.

For a fan of Tolkien’s works, it is interesting to read about the process of how they came to be written and published. Moreover, reading about his writing process itself is both inspiring and motivational to a writer, although Tolkien might be turning in his grave if he knew that people find his writing struggles either. Equally inspiring and thought-provoking are Tolkien’s world-views and philosophies, both general and academic, even if I disagree with some of them (which were a product of his time.)

The language, style, and tone of his letters range from intellectual and strictly formal to warm, familiar, and humorous in places, with an occasional special brand of ‘saltiness’ shining through which I greatly appreciated, and show him not only as an author but as a nuanced personality.  

Tolkien’s letters are probably best appreciated if read and digested little by little and not to be sped through, although I have done precisely that with the second half of the book because I got fed up with myself that it was taking me so long.

Overall, Tolkien’s letters are a fascinating read and therefore I definitely intend to return to them in the future.

Saturday, September 02, 2017

The Cold King by Amber Jaeger

Note: This review contains SPOILERS.

At first, this was so bad that it was sort of entertaining.

We have a Cinderella-meets-the-Beauty-and the-Beast-with-a-hint-of-the-Phantom-of-the-Opera-like story that reads like terrible BDSM, just without sex (which actually makes it worse), but with a generous dash of brainwashing.

The male protagonist (aka the villain, I am certainly not calling him a hero) is a sadistic and manipulative asshole, who throws the female protagonist in a dungeon to make the transition from her old life to the new one ‘easier’ – for him, of course. After all, it is much easier to brainwash someone to accept common human decency and having one’s basic needs met as luxury if one has only ever been shown cruelty – though, as they say, the absence of cruelty is not the same as kindness – than win them over by treating them right from the beginning.  

The cold king is a typical abuser, targeting the weak and isolated and tearing them down before building them back up to his own desires by making them completely dependent on him, all of which he justifies as improving their lives and showering them in luxury they could never experience otherwise.

Even Calia recognises that as shitty but falls for it hook, line, and sinker, as does everyone else – who, by the way, does nothing to help her at least with good advice. But, after all, that is neither Calia’s nor the others’ fault, since they are all victims and Calia with her reasoning the most typical of them all.

The cold king is supposed to be a tortured hero, but even if his pain is understandable, it doesn’t excuse his behaviour. I couldn’t feel even remotely sorry for him or his predicament for being cursed (with the curse of his own doing.) He also has a giant ego, and naturally, as people of his kind do, knows better what is best for Calia and others then they do themselves.

Calia herself is an ‘extreme Cinderella’, ignored and disliked by everyone, including her horrible, abusive, and neglectful mother. Her poor fortune and suffering (in comparison to everything else, all her crying was the least of a bother) is exaggerated to the maximum in order to garner sympathy. Needless to say, it didn’t work for me.

She is also quite a bit of a Mary Sue, suddenly becoming pretty (no, hair growth does not work like that!), graceful, and smart (she learns to read very fast, knows things she had nowhere to learn (such as doing cuff-links), passes sound judgements, etc.), except, of course, for her own situation.

All of the above perpetuates the terrible message that if a woman suffers quietly through abuse, accepts her lot in life, and moulds herself completely to the abuser’s wishers, she will get her fairy-tale ending.

Because, of course, in the end the male protagonist falls in love with her (which also undoes the curse, duh!) and learns the error of his ways and changes for the better and treats her like a queen (literally) – which doesn’t happen in real life.

Calia only develops a bit of a spine towards the end, but only because she is hurting by her love not being requited, and not, you know, because of all other terrible things the cold king has done to her.

The book only gets worse after the half-way mark when we suddenly get multiple, jumping POVs, including the omniscient POV (either that or Calia becomes telephathic), and every ridiculous romance (but not romantic) cliché in existence is used and abused for the contrived quasi-love story.

With putting Calia in the role of a personal servant – who basically does what a valet would – and other characters’ occupations, Jaeger tried to subvert gender roles, which would be commendable, but fell flat due to the characterization which was unflattering in Calia’s case and virtually non-existent in other characters who were mostly bland and one-dimensional.

Add to this an attempt of ‘progressiveness’ by having the cold king be accepting of a same-sex couple, except that it was poorly executed, since kindly ‘overlooking’ their ‘friendship’ is not exactly the same as not being homophobic.

I won’t even go into all the inconsistencies within the story. For example, the setting is undecided on whether to be steampunk-ish with some ‘high’ tech, such as a likeness of modern plumbing and the use of diamonds for industry and craft, or one of a pre-industrial impoverished agricultural society.

Perhaps indecisiveness is at the core of this book’s problems. The blurb says that “… Not every Beast is a prince charming at heart and not every Beauty is a maiden just waiting for love…” and perhaps the author wanted to be edgy and actually re-tell The Beauty and the Beast as a story about abuse, but failed at it, because the end result is something that goes back and forth between trying to be just that (mostly) and a classic HEA fairy-tale but ending up as a horrible mess instead.

Overall, by the end of the book, I wasn’t entertained by the bad-ness of it anymore, only disgusted. 

Thursday, May 18, 2017

Finding Anna series by Sherri Hayes

Note: The series reviewed contains themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18. Some of the content may be triggering. Also, take heed that there may be some mild SPOILERS ahead.

Finding Anna isn’t what I expected it to be, but in a good way.

Although it is categorised as erotic romance, this 4-book series is really a story about a victim of human trafficking and sexual slavery taking back her life with both the help of other people and her own iron will.

Like the story, Stephan is not a typical protagonist of the genre, either. I liked that he isn’t the tortured hero with a dark past type, but is a genuinely good person and does not just his best to help Anna, but what actually is best for Anna. Which doesn’t mean that he doesn’t mess up, because he does.  

However, for a change from a lot of male protagonists in the genre, Stephan doesn’t hesitate to acknowledge his faults, apologise for his mistakes and try to fix them. For the most part, though, he is a level-headed man, with the patience and self-restraint of a saint, and would be almost too good to be true, if not for having a few actual flaws.

Even though Anna is very dependent on Stephan (as she would be on any other given person, considering that she literally cannot function on her own after her captivity), Stephan doesn’t take advantage of that. On the contrary, he encourages her to spread her wings and return into the world – but at the pace that is comfortable and safe for her. And even when, out of concern for her, he disagrees with her decisions, he still supports her and helps her carry them out in any way he can, even if it means having to step aside.

Additionally, I loved that Stephan isn’t Anna’s only source of support and doesn’t limit her to his social circle; Anna also reunites with a childhood friend, who also brings other people into her life, and I loved how both men put their mutual dislike and distrust of each other aside for her sake.

For erotic romance, Anna and Stephan’s relationship is pretty tame and doesn’t go further than light kink and develops slowly, progressing to intimacy only towards the end of the second book. Which is good and necessary, as it is contrasted against Anna’s horrendous past experiences.

Hence, Finding Anna is an emotionally demanding series, both for the references and flashbacks to the abuse Anna has been through (and which can be hard to stomach, so be warned) and the ways it affects her in the present.

That said, it is also very satisfying to see Anna recovering from her trauma, regaining her sense of self, and reclaiming her sexuality. And although that is bound to be a life-long process, Anna’s abusers don’t win. She does. And gets to live (mostly, I assume) happily ever after. 


Monday, May 08, 2017

The Adventures of Charls, the Veretian Cloth Merchant (Captive Prince short stories #3) by C. S. Pacat

SUMMARY (from Goodreads): The Adventures of Charls follows the dealings of a humble cloth merchant in the days before the royal Ascension. Set after the events of Kings Rising and The Summer Palace.

MY THOUGHTS:

I am only taking away a star because of that abrupt ending. I need Charls's reaction when he figures it out, damn it! And, well, Damen’s or Laurent’s POV would be immensely more welcome. Although, I can well imagine our beloved kings had fun trolling Charls behind his back the entire time.

I pretty much loved everything, from all the undercover shenanigans to Laurent totally being ‘chaotic good’ and the mention of the cuff (I assume Laurent is still wearing his, too) to all the glimpses into Damen and Laurent from Charls’s POV.

Seeing the events and characters through Charls’s eyes was definitely entertaining as he is very perceptive in some ways (and I loved his loyalty and concern for both Laurent and Damen, I mean, Lamen), but his wit fails him in certain aspects and leaves him terribly (but adorably) oblivious.

All in all, The Adventures of Charls, the Veretian Cloth Merchant made me laugh and smile and still does even days after reading it, and was a great addition to the Captive Prince universe.


Friday, May 05, 2017

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

This was a refresher reread for me due to the TV show Black Sails, which was created as sort-of a prequel for Treasure Island and you should totally watch it if you haven’t already.

I first read Treasure Island in 5th or 6th grade (I remember taking it from the 5/6th grade literature section in our school library, so it must have been around then). That was about a quarter of a century ago, and I only recalled a handful of names (namely, Flint, Silver, and, curiously, Ben Gunn) from it. Hence, now that the show ended, it seemed a good time for a reread.

Of course, Treasure Island is a YA (before there was YA, I guess) adventure story, while the show itself is much more serious, complex, and, of course, intended for adult audience. It is also more than superior to the novel (I know, blasphemy!) and I choose to actively ignore some elements of the book in favour of the show.

That said, I actually found Treasure Island fairly interesting this time around – and I suppose also the first time, because it is the kind of read that would have appealed to me at that age. I can see why I didn’t remember it well, though.

The story is a fast-paced adventure, which tells more than shows and is scarce with details and, thus, isn’t very memorable. The main character being a boy (and also kind-of the author’s self-insert, I think) might have contributed to it being easily forgettable, as well.

Nevertheless, I didn’t hate the book and I found certain elements entertaining in the light of Black Sails. Therefore, the reread was overall worth my time. 


Sunday, April 09, 2017

Less Reviewing, More Reading

What the title says. AKA my new-ish policy.

Because, honestly, does anyone even read my reviews? *shrugs*

And yes, I have said that the purpose of this blog is mostly as my personal notebook, so I don’t forget all about what I read. But in that case I may just as well jot down some notes in a Word doc I keep and keep it to myself.

With Goodreads having improved their features a lot since I started this blog, posting my thoughts there can serve for self-reminding and cataloguing purpose just as well. And takes far less time and effort, since it requires less styling both visually and content-wise. 

In particularly, time is the key word here.

I think reviewing has been one of the reasons for not reading much for the past two years. I have read a lot more this year when I stopped reviewing every single book. But I have come to a stall in the last two weeks again, and today here I am, having finished another book, contemplating how to review it – and the one that came before that… and I feel done.

In the time it takes to craft a review I could be reading (because that is the point, after all) or writing or doing any number of other things. So, that is what I will do from now on.

I don’t intend to abandon this blog, because it is a valuable archive of the past reads and reviews (not all of which are cross-posted elsewhere) and because I am sure there will come occasions when I will feel like writing a long thought-out review. But I will no longer feel guilty about not having reviewed whichever latest read and, therefore, postpone picking up the next one until I do so.

I will simply, rate it and/or put a few thoughts on GR and move on to the next bookish adventure. To many more of which I am looking forward.

Monday, March 20, 2017

Kill Someone by Luke Smitherd

Note: The book reviewed contains graphic depictions of violence and discusses other related themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18. Also, take heed that there are some SPOILERS below.

Would you kill one person to save five others from being murdered? That is the choice a 21-year-old Chris faces in an ‘experiment’ he has been ‘chosen’ to participate in.

It is an impossible choice. A choice, as Chris likes to remind a reader now and again, one can hardly judge Chris for the way he goes about making it.

The premise of Kill Someone is as intriguing as it is horrifying and thought-provoking. Alas, while the concept of the story is fascinating, its execution is more than a little elusive.

The writing is loose, replete with rambling, repetitions, and digressions in the first person POV. One short third person POV segment is thrown in for no apparent reason, except maybe for the author thinking it would be cool to change the POV or not knowing how to approach that part of the narrative through Chris’s POV.

The whole thing felt a lot like a self-insert with some alterations – and that feeling got only stronger after reading a rather lengthy afterword which was all too similar in style to the novel’s narration.

And, whereas the umpteen reminders not to judge Chris throughout the story were at least somewhat in place, the same being said in the afterword sounded as if the author forgot that Chris is, after all, not a real person, but his creation.

Speaking of the said creation, it could use some more forethought, because Chris’s character fell into the area of implausibility on quite a few points.

For example, Chris thinks of himself as a kid at the age of 21 (!) and he has never been in a fight (even I, a chronically ill child, had been in a fight or two in school). And even a decade later, despite his experience, he still behaves and thinks much the same. What a missed opportunity to show character development.

His family is living on a decrepit farm BUT Chris never mentions anyone doing any farm work AND YET his family is well-off (enough for the parents to vacation in Maldives?) Does not compute.

Additionally, Chris’s parents seem to be keen on him being on the straight-and-narrow path for him, but they are okay with him working for a call centre instead of going to college?  

Then, there was a very sexist matter of reducing five women to quintuplets, although that is not what they were, technically, but triplets and two younger sisters. And the author either wasn’t bothered to do the math or thought it was perfectly fine for them to be ‘very close in age’, so close in fact that they must have been born within 24 months.

That is right, three births (including triplets) within two years. Ah, men and their unrealistic expectations. But, hey, it is just women, right, what else are we for than popping out kids?

So, yeah, that detail made me angry right at the beginning of the book and it hardly improved much as it went on.

By 40 % of the book I had a thought that maybe someone switched the word order in the title, because what I was thinking was ‘someone kill me’.

Oh, yes, it was this book this tweet was about:

At least the resolution was somewhat sensible, when Chris figured out that he had the option to choose a merciful solution. (Although, I forgot whether killing himself was against the rules, because that was definitely an option that came to my mind. But no judging.)

The ending and the reveal of why Chris was ‘chosen’ for this experiment at least provided some food for thought.

And here comes a SPOILER.

Guilt-tripping people into helping improve the world by forcing them to committing a crime first is something I disapprove on principle, because wouldn’t it be better if no one died and a person chose to do good without having to atone for something bad?

On the other hand, though, a question arises whether one person’s death could be an acceptable price for the many other (perhaps hundreds, thousands) lives the murderer would improve in trying to atone for their crime?

My first instinct is to say ‘no’, but the answer is much more complicated than I can come up with, at least not now.

Chris, at least, found an answer which he could sleep with, which is also something.

Therefore, the thought-provoking ending somewhat redeemed the book in my eyes, but it was a shame that the rest of it was stylistically and narratively underwhelming and felt not thought-through well enough. 

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

DNF Review: Lords of the City by Alice Ward

Note: The book reviewed contains themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18. Also, take heed that there are some SPOILERS below.

There is a first time for everything, including writing a DNF review, right?

Lords of the City is a bundle of standalone romance novels featuring Chicago billionaires finding their HEA with the women (and the readers, I guess) they bring to their knees with their alpha-maleness and bad boy attitude.

Alas, the stories themselves fall extremely short of this highly misleading description, apart from the first novella. 

This is what I noted down when I finished Lured:
It is a shame this wasn’t a full novel, because Niall and Emma and their relationship totally intrigued me. Unfortunately, as it is only a novella, the story, characterization, and relationship development (or not-development) are rushed and one has to imagine and/or speculate about the depths of their characters and relationship, although there are so many things that should/could be explored more in depth in regard to both characters, but especially Niall, which are only hinted at.                                                                                  
Nevertheless, it is an interesting introduction to the series and I expect the epilogue novella will function as a second part and hopefully deliver a satisfactory (and happy) conclusion to this tragedy. And it is a tragedy, because while Niall behaves like a jerk and he is an idiot, there are certainly reasons for him being as he is and I really need to see him getting to the bottom of his idiocy and his painful (I assume) past and become a better man.                                                                
And while I can give Niall a bit of a benefit of the doubt, I also understand Emma’s hurt and her own conclusions about Niall’s supposed (at least currently) irredeemability.                                                                                                                                  
Overall, it was a bit of a hit-and-miss, because it felt like I could like the story and the characters but I missed that added depth that would make me actually like them. The price of the shortness, I guess.
And that was all that was good about the series.

I read a few chapters of Torn, but I should've guessed that the protagonist describing herself as quirky couldn't mean anything good. I couldn't get into the book, because I didn't feel any connection to the characters.

I found Noah particularly annoying with his wish to remake the female protagonist (I can't even remember her name) into what he wants 'his' woman to be. Fine, if you want to have a dress code for your company and compensate your employees for having to readjust their wardrobe to fit the code. But forcing a woman to limit her style exclusively to 'curve-hugging' dresses with disregard of her own comfort and style is sexist and disrespectful, not romantic and certainly not 'professional' and the book lost me there (especially with the 'quirky' lady happily going along with it.)

I tried the beginning of the second book, but I, again, wasn't drawn neither to the story nor to the characters. So, I decided to quit and not even bother with the third book.

The epilogue novella was a also a disappointment, because instead of continuing Niall and Emma's story, Emma simply disappears and instead of her another woman appears in Niall's life out of the blue and I guess he gets his HEA with Candace (but of course it must be Candace), probably without having to overcome his inner turmoil or, god forbid, change.

Also, despite the description that says that these lords of the city would bring us to our knees during a 'raw, emotional journey', these 'bad, bad boys' and their supposedly 'sexy and delicious' stories were pretty tame and far from 'thrilling' – quite the contrary, to me the series was actually too boring to finish.

There are two parts of another Ward's series included in the bundle but I didn't even bother with those.

I can see why this was on sale: give people a deal price for the bundle and 'lure' them in with the first, otherwise unavailable, novella, just in case at least some people might find any appeal in the rest of the materials included.

Overall, the best part of this was the prologue novella, Lured, even with its tragic ending, which I guess was also worth the price of a bit over an euro, while the rest was a free 'bonus'. 

3 stars for Lured, 0 stars for the rest. 


Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Dark Skye (Immortals after Dark #15) by Kresley Cole

Note: The book reviewed contains themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18. Also, take heed that there are some SPOILERS below.

Before they were mortal enemies, they were childhood best friends. Despite belonging to enemy factions. Three (well, four, eventually) dead parents later, their friendship – let alone anything more – is over, seemingly irreparable, replaced by pain, fear, and resentment. Or is it?

I have to appreciate time and again in IAD series, how Kresley Cole’s concept of ‘fated’ mates means anything but a guaranteed happy ending (within the story; on a meta level, of course we all know it will happen) for the pairing of the moment, for there are so many things that could go wrong and keep them apart, destiny or no. I love that it takes much more than ‘fate’ for love to win.

That is also the case for Melanthe and Thronos: it only takes them five centuries of running and pursuit, before they even start resolving the hurt and misunderstandings from their past and working towards a future (trying to survive while having only each other to rely on helps a lot, though, even when they ‘hate’ each other.)

Granted, the said resolving starts off a bit slow and that made me feel a little underwhelmed and frustrated (If only they talked to each other!), but once they get past a critical point, the story picks up and, damn, it is worth every moment of the earlier frustration.

Hence, I ended up absolutely loving Melanthe and Thronos’s story: one of the most painful, tragic, but also heartfelt and beautiful ones in this series; they ended up being one of my favourite IAD couples, just as I had expected and hoped for.

Furthermore, in Dark Skye, Cole pulls together quite a few threads from other stories and the larger Ascension plotline, bringing us up to speed with some of my favourite couples from the previous books. Which made me want to reread some; I think I might have to check back to at least Cadeon and Holly’s and Rydstrom and Sabine’s stories, and maybe Lothaire. (But when will I have the time to both reread and continue the series, that is the question.)

I loved seeing Nix’s perspective and the revelation why she is playing the matchmaker for so many pairings: because, ultimately, all the mixed-factions couples will come in handy for joining Vertas and Pravus in the fight against a common enemy, the Bringers of Doom. Because this will be an Ascension on a whole new level, apparently, and I am so looking forward to it. (And Nix coming out of it as the goddess of Ascensions prediction is perfect for her.)

I could flail about so many more details, but I don’t want to spoil everything for those who haven’t read the book, yet.

In conclusion, therefore, let me just say that Dark Skye is a fascinating, intense, and clever story. It was one of the instalments I had been looking forward the most, and, even if it didn’t look like it in the beginning, it truly lived up to it.

Now, I must hurry and read Sweet Ruin, so I can next get to Shadow’s Seduction (which was released today) ASAP.

Monday, February 20, 2017

Beyond series by Kit Rocha

Note: The book series reviewed contains themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18.

Those of you who follow me on Goodreads may have noticed that I burned through the 13 books (well 3 of those are short stories and 3 novellas, but still) of this series in January, which is more reading (not counting fanfiction) that I had done in 2016 altogether.

Apart from the mini-reviews posted directly on GR as I finished each book, I didn’t review them, because, truthfully, I would have just repeated myself a lot. Also, I preferred to spend the time I would have put into struggling with how to write reviews into actual reading.

However, I loved this series so much that I still feel the need to flail about it. Beyond series is set in a post-apocalyptic, dystopian world, and the first book starts off as erotica with plot (about 50/50), but sets up the world-building just enough to tempt you to continue the series.

And then you are trapped.

Because with each book, the world gets more and more expanded and complex and keeps you hooked. The development of the over-arching conflict between the opposing sides is extremely compelling and the series tackles a number of real-life issues with an incredibly sensitive and insightful approach that surpasses that seen in many of so-called ‘high’ mainstream literature.  

And, of course, the authors are sneaky and keep introducing characters you fall in love with a few instalments before their actual stories. Hence, binge reading. Because you have to read on to see what happens to them. But you can always count on a happy ending in this series, which is just another major plus.

Have I mentioned I fell in love with all (well, except the evil ones, but those I loved to hate) these stupid asshole characters? Men and women. Yeah.

Anyway, there are many other things I could flail about, but since I don’t want to spoil anything for you (which was another reason for not reviewing each book on its own), let me just finish by saying that if you are a fan of dystopian lit combined with erotica, I highly recommend you check this series out.

Wednesday, February 08, 2017

MacRieve (Immortals after Dark #14) by Kresley Cole

Note: The book reviewed contains themes only appropriate for those over the age of 18.

Uilleam MacRieve appeared on the fringes of previous stories quite a lot and I felt like it was high time to pick up his story.

I had a rather long break from reading this series, but you can always count on Kresley Cole to sum things up enough to make you remember the important parts from the past instalments without making the story tedious.

So, we meet Uilleam – okay, I will go with Will, because that spelling is finger-breaking – a few weeks after the escape from the prison in book #11 as a broken man, plagued both by the ordeal he went through on the island as by the past wounds the experience re-opened, dinking himself to a stupor every day and planning a trip to the immortals’ suicide cove.

Enter Chloe Todd, a professional football (sorry, an European here, seeing the word ‘soccer’ hurts my brain) player about to see her life dreams come true by competing at the Olympics, who is suddenly faced not only about the existence of the supernatural and becoming one of them, but also with the fact that her father is not who she thought he was, but none other than Preston Webb, the sinister leader of the Order that hunts supernatural beings.

While everyone in the Lore is hell-bent on seeking out their revenge against Webb through his daughter, Will hides his fated mate to keep her safe, unaware that she is about to come into her immortality as one of the species he detests from the bottom of his heart for all he has suffered because of one of them as just a boy.

And that is when the real problems start. Fortunately, between these two idiots who could have avoided much trouble had they only communicated – although I have to give props to Kresley Cole: Will’s inability to communicate about his past trauma is very realistic – Chloe is rational enough to put some things together on her own and thus finds in herself enough patience for Will to catch up and do his part of psychological and emotional heavy lifting as well, eventually.

My heart broke for Will in regard to certain aspects of his backstory, but I loved that she picked a male protagonist to deal with that, because it is all too often that males are dismissed as potential victims and I loved how Kresley Cole dealt with that particular topic.

And finally, Kresley Cole managed to surprise me with the Ubus people, of whom we have been told again and again in the series that they are evil, but of course there is more to that than that and I absolutely loved the twist regarding that species and I would love to see more of them now, with everything we learned in MacRieve.


Thursday, January 19, 2017

The Silent Kookaburra by Liza Perrat

SUMMARY (from Goodreads): All eleven-year-old Tanya Randall wants is a happy family. But Mum does nothing besides housework, Dad’s always down the pub and Nanna Purvis moans at everyone except her dog. Then Shelley arrives – the miracle baby who fuses the Randall family in love for their little gumnut blossom.

Tanya’s life gets even better when she meets an uncle she didn’t know she had. He tells her she’s beautiful and could be a model. Her family refuses to talk about him. But that’s okay, it’s their little secret.

Then one blistering summer day tragedy strikes, and the surrounding mystery and suspicion tear apart this fragile family web.

MY THOUGHTS:

The beginning felt a little slow, but that later on proved necessary as it provided the fine cues for the rest of the story.

I was initially wary of the first person POV. However, Liza Perrat manages to pull off the 11-year-old’s language and rationale with great authenticity and without impoverishing the story. Quite the contrary, the style imbued with local linguistic flavour only enriches it.

While Tanya’s uncle was the sort of a bad person that made me root for the mobsters to take him out, I couldn’t help myself thinking that had he received some help and support, he might not have become what he had. The victim-turned-perpetrator stereotype doesn’t sit well with me: some victims do turn out just like their abusers, but it is not inevitable if the people close to the victims and the society at large offer them proper help.

I loved how in The Silent Kookaburra Perrat seamlessly and with great insight incorporates a number of issues which are still current (or which are, really, current in every age.) These range from poverty, domestic violence, depression, loss of a child, alcoholism, superstition and prejudice against immigrants and people of other religions, and probably some more that I forgot about.

Tanya herself has a lot on her plate, dealing with alienated parents (from each other and the children), bullying, low self-esteem, having to grow-up early, and being the target of the mysterious uncle who says all the right things to make her feel good but has nefarious intentions towards her.

In several ways, I could relate to Tanya, and Liza Perrat captured her struggles in a very genuine manner that truly resonated with me.

At the end of the story, one of the main mysteries of the book remained unresolved. But that is just life; we don’t always get all the answers.

And finally, I loved that Tanya got her happy ending, albeit it was a bit clichéd, and that certain prejudices were overcome for the good of everyone involved.

RECOMMENDATION: The Silent Kookaburra is an incredibly rich story set at the beginning of the era I would consider ‘modern’ that provides a wealth of food-for-thought for everyone not afraid to dig into some, perhaps uncomfortable, but still very current and important issues, and is, therefore, a very compelling read.


The author has sent me a free copy of The Silent Kookaburra in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. 

Monday, January 16, 2017

The Summer Palace (Captive Prince short stories #2) by C. S. Pacat

The Summer Palace is a short story that serves as an epilogue to Kings Rising, with Damen and Laurent meeting at the summer palace for a well-deserved respite from trying to consolidate their positions and secure the future of their people.

The story of their reunion is a triple wonder as it offers glimpses into the aftermath of the final events of Kings Rising while allowing Damen and Laurent to finally enjoy their time together and at the same time process – with each other’s help – some of the hardest parts of their past.

(Except for one; but I think it was the right choice of the author not to cramp everything into such a short story and leave that out, either for some future story or for the readers’ own imagination, not to mention that dealing with everything in the span of one evening would have been too much for the characters, as well.)

As such, The Summer Palace is utterly touching; it made me both laugh and shed a tear. I didn’t think that I could love these two fictional characters more than I already had, but after this story, I do. I so do.

And against such beauty, I cannot possibly hold a few missed typos against the author, so all five stars it is, because all in all, The Summer Palace was brilliant, better than I could have ever imagined.

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Labyrinth of Stone by TA Moore

SUMMARY (from Goodreads): Ten years ago the Black Rapture transported thousands of people, seemingly at random, from Earth to the strange, inimical world they call the Labyrinth. Will Teller was one of them. Surviving that meant joining an army and becoming better at killing than he's comfortable with. It's enough upheaval for anyone's life. The only problem is, apparently no one told his commanding officer that.

Pride, and heart, stung by abandonment, the icily controlled General Nathan Kearney has decided that Teller can either find the wayward lover, or he can take his place in Nathan's bed. That's pretty good motivation for a straight guy, only thing is - Teller's sexuality seems to have gone a bit Magic-8 Ball on that issue. Suddenly Nathan's starting to look pretty good, and the only question is whether or not Teller wants to be the consolation prize?

MY THOUGHTS:

I should probably reread Labyrinth of Stone to do it proper justice – and I’ll definitely give it another go – but since I don’t see the time for a reread in the near future, this will have to do for now.

In Labyrinth of Stone, TA Moore blew me away with her masterful world-building, once again, with the gritty, raw imagery of the alien, dystopian setting and its unique characteristics. The same goes for her characters: rough, complicated, hardened by circumstances, yet softened by distinct quirks and dry humour.

What I missed in the Labyrinth of Stone was at least a hint of a resolution to two of its major mysteries, but I can live with it.

All in all, Labyrinth of Stone is a fascinating story for its plot, setting, characterization, and relationships between various characters. With the way TA Moore crafts her words, sharp and eloquent, it was a delight to read.

RECOMMENDATION: If you are into no nonsense m/m Sci-Fi romance, I absolutely recommend you check out Labyrinth of Stone.


Sunday, January 01, 2017

Happy New Year!

A picture of baubles with a 'happy new year' inscripition.

Happy New Year, reading and otherwise, to all of you who stumble across my humble blog!

I'm going to kick the new (reading) year off with Bout of Books 18.0, as for the rest, I'm not making any plans or resolutions (reading-wise), so we shall see how it goes.

2017 Reading

Still going easy on myself, although I kinda feel the reading lust again, so I challenge myself to 12 books this year. This will be the place where I keep the records of my reading together with rereads and things GR challenge doesn't record, like parts of volumes and such.

MY READING:

Books are listed in order of reading (with the level of strangeness, see my rating system); those reviewed are linked to their reviews and also listed under Book Reviews tab.
  1. The Summer Palace (Captive Prince short stories #2) by C. S. Pacat (5)
  2. Beyond Control (Beyond #2) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  3. Beyond Denial (Beyond #2.5) by Kit Rocha (4)
  4. Beyond Pain (Beyond #3) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  5. Beyond Temptation (Beyond #3.5) by Kit Rocha (3)
  6. Beyond Jealousy (Beyond #4) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  7. The Silent Kookaburra by Liza Perrat (4)
  8. Beyond Solitude (Beyond #4.5) by Kit Rocha (3.5)
  9. Beyond Addiction (Beyond #5) by Kit Rocha (4)
  10. Beyond Possession (Beyond #5.5) by Kit Rocha (3)
  11. Beyond Innocence (Beyond, #6) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  12. Beyond Happily Ever After: Closed Doors (Beyond #6.5) by Kit Rocha (4)
  13. Beyond Happily Ever After: Blank Canvas (Beyond #6.6) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  14. Beyond Ruin (Beyond #7) by Kit Rocha (4)
  15. Beyond Ecstasy (Beyond #8) by Kit Rocha (4)
  16. Beyond Surrender (Beyond #9) by Kit Rocha (4)
  17. MacRieve (IAD #14) by Kresley Cole (4)
  18. The Professional (The Game Maker #1) by Kresley Cole (4)
  19. The Master (The Game Maker #2) by Kresley Cole (4.5?)
  20. Dark Skye (IAD #15) by Kresley Cole (4)
  21. Dark Domination series (4 books) by Lili Valente (3)
  22. The Book by Jessica Bell (5)
  23. Asking for It (Asking for It #1) by Lilah Pace (4)
  24. Begging for It (Asking for It #2) by Lilah Pace (3.5)
  25. Ashwin (Gideon's Riders #1) by Kit Rocha (4.5)
  26. Kill Someone by Luke Smitherd (2.5)
  27. Under His Command trilogy by Lili Valente (3)
  28. Sweet Ruin (IAD #16) by Kresley Cole (5)
  29. Their Virgin Captive (Masters of MĂ©nage, #1) by Shayla Black (3)
  30. Shadow’s Seduction (The Dacians #2, IAD #17) by Kresley Cole (4.5 - 5)
  31. Ours to Love (Wicked Lovers #7) by Shayla Black (3)
  32. Cruel Beauty (Cruel Beauty Universe #1) by Rosamund Hodge (4)
  33. Wicked Ties (Wicked Lovers #1) by Shayla Black (2)
  34. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson (3)
  35. The Adventures of Charls, the Veretian Cloth Merchant (Captive Prince short stories #3) by C. S. Pacat (4)
  36. Finding Anna series (4 books) by Sherri Hayes (4)
  37. Come Home To Me (Second Chances #1) by Peggy L. Henderson (4)
  38. Angel's Blood (Guild Hunter #1) by Nalini Singh (5)
  39. Archangel's Kiss (Guild Hunter #2) by Nalini Singh (5)
  40. Archangel's Consort (Guild Hunter #3) by Nalini Singh (5)
  41. Archangel's Blade (Guild Hunter #4) by Nalini Singh (4)
  42. Archangel's Storm (Guild Hunter #5) by Nalini Singh (4.5)
  43. Archangel's Legion (Guild Hunter #6) by Nalini Singh (5)
  44. Archangel's Shadows (Guild Hunter #7) by Nalini Singh (5)
  45. Archangel's Enigma (Guild Hunter #8) by Nalini Singh (4.5)
  46. Archangel's Heart (Guild Hunter #9) by Nalini Singh (5)
  47. An Indecent Proposition (Indecent, #1-5) by Stephanie Julian (3)
  48. Enemies Like You by Joanna Chambers (3.5)
  49. Decadent (Wicked Lovers #2) by Shayla Black (3)
  50. Delicious (Wicked Lovers #3) by Shayla Black (3)
  51. Surrender to Me (Wicked Lovers #4) by Shayla Black (3.)
  52. Belong to Me (Wicked Lovers #5) by Shayla Black (3)
  53. Wicked All the Way (Wicked Lovers #6.5) by Shayla Black (3)
  54. Uprooted by Naomi Novik (5)
  55. Call Me by Your Name by AndrĂ© Aciman (4)
  56. Beyond Doubt (Beyond, #9.5; O'Kane for Life, #1) by Kit Rocha (4)
  57. Liar, Liar by T. A. Moore (4)
  58. The Cold King by Amber Jaeger (1)
  59. At His Mercy by Alison Kent (3)
  60. Welcome to the Hotel Yalta: Six Stories of Cold War Noir by Victoria Dougherty (3)
  61. An Introduction to Pleasure (Mistress Matchmaker #1) by Jess Michaels (3)
  62. Daddy's Best Friend (Temperance Falls: Experience Counts #1) by London Hale (3.5)
  63. The DILF (Temperance Falls: Experience Counts #2) by London Hale (3)
  64. Nanny with Benefits (Temperance Falls: Experience Counts #3) by London Hale (3)
  65. Sinful Temptation (Temperance Falls: Selling Sin #1) by London Hale (3)
  66. The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (4)
  67. All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood (5)
  68. Archangel's Viper (Guild Hunter #10) by Nalini Singh (4.5)
  69. Debt Inheritance (Indebted #1) by Pepper Winters (3)
  70. The V-Girl by Mya Robarts (3.5)
  71. Angels' Flight (Guild Hunter, #0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 3.5) by Nalini Singh (4)
  72. Night Owl (Night Owl #1) by M. Pierce (3)
  73. Sleeping Giants (Themis Files #1) by Sylvain  Neuvel (5)
  74. Waking Gods (Themis Files #2) by Sylvain  Neuvel (4) 
  75. Possessed (When Worlds Collide #1) by Kelly Apple (4) 
  76. Beauty's Daddy: A Beauty and the Beast Adult Fairy Tale (Billionaire Daddies Book 1) by Jane Henry (1.5)
  77. Forbidden Daddy: A Blakely After Dark Novella (The Forbidden Series Book 1)by Kira Blakely (1.5)
  78. Call Me Daddy by Jade West (3)
  79. The Thomas Elkin Series by N. R. Walker (4.5)
  80. The Siren (The Original Sinners #1) by Tiffany Reisz (4) 
  81. The Angel (The Original Sinners #2) by Tiffany Reisz (4)
  82. The Prince (The Original Sinners #3) by Tiffany Reisz (4)
  83. The Mistress (The Original Sinners #4) by Tiffany Reisz (4)
  84. An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde) (3)
  85. The Saint (The Original Sinners #5) by Tiffany Reisz (5)
  86. The King (The Original Sinners #6) by Tiffany Reisz (4.5)
  87. The Virgin (The Original Sinners #7) by Tiffany Reisz (4)


Did-not-finish:
  1. Lords of the City series by Alice Ward 

    Books I Read in 2016
    Books I Read in 2015
    Books I Read in 2014
    Books I Read in 2013
    Books I Read in 2012
    Books I Read in 2011