Tag: fantasy

Book Review: The Sign of the Raven, by Pippa Dunn

Image belongs to Penguin Young Readers Group | Viking Books for Young Readers.

Title: The Sign of the Raven
Author: Pippa Dunn
Genre: YA, fantasy
Rating: 3 out of 5

LONDON, 1889.

Ashlyn Threadneedle leads a double life. By day she works as a government messenger. By night she escapes into vivid lucid dreams, navigating the Stream—a world in which the only boundary is her own imagination. But when her long-dead mother unexpectedly appears in a dream, Ashlyn is certain the Stream is hiding secrets, ones that contradict everything she knew about her past—and threaten to undo the future of everyone she loves.

In her quest for answers, she joins the Corvi Signum, a secret society of dreamers fighting to protect the Stream from an insidious enemy powerful enough to manipulate people’s thoughts and seize control of London. For Ashlyn to have any hope of preserving her own mind, she must first unravel the mysteries of both her family and the Stream. But a world of dreams is a treacherous place. Time slips backward and forward as easily as sand through an hourglass, and if Ashlyn and her fellow dreamers fail in their mission, then nowhere—neither waking nor sleeping—will be safe.

I liked the premise of this. I did not care for the reality and execution of it. It felt very disjointed and uneven. Some of that may have been from the Stream and how fluid time was, but…events just didn’t feel smoothly connected to each other and the characters felt very surface level. Paper dolls, more or less.

Pippa Dunn is an English teacher. Sign of the Raven is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Young Readers Group | Viking Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Hecate Cavendish and the Angel of Death, by Paula Brackston

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Title: Hecate Cavendish and the Angel of Death 
Author: Paula Brackston
Genre: Fantasy, historical 
Rating: 4.5 out of 5    

In her role as Assistant Librarian at Hereford Cathedral, Hecate continues to be guardian of the magical medieval map, and custodian of the ancient chained library. Equally important to her is her family of ghosts; the lost souls who haunt the centuries-old building, and who she has come to care about deeply. When a heartbroken Welsh warrior appears to her seeking her assistance, she sees it as her duty to help. As her friendship with the glassworker, Gil Wheatley, deepens, she understands the suffering of the lovelorn spirit. However, the arrival of a new Master of the Library throws her position into doubt, and may mean she must leave the cathedral.

Meanwhile, a savage murderer is terrorizing the city. When a second killing shows similarities and no clear explanation, Inspector Winter suspects something supernatural at work and calls on Hecate and her singular skills to help him.

With Hecate’s place in the cathedral no longer secure, her best friend soon to be wed, a growing relationship, everything in Hecate’s life seems in a state of flux. She must put aside her own personal concerns, however, if she is to fulfil her promise to the Welsh nobleman and succeed in stopping the murderous progress of the vengeful phantom who is terrorizing her city.

I’m sad to see this series end! I found the historical setting so engrossing, and all the characters are so vivid—including the ghosts. Hecate is an interesting character to read, and I love to see how her mind works. There was a lot going on here, and I enjoyed seeing how it all connected. Excellent writing and a fascinating read.

Paula Brackston is a bestselling author. Hecate Cavendish and the Angel of Death is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: To Dream in Darkness, by Ann Liang

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Title: To Dream in Darkness
Author: Ann Liang
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.8 out of 5

China in the age of brilliance, where gods freely wander the three realms. Amongst them is the cruel and beautiful Death God, who has never failed to collect a soul on time. Until now. For when he seeks out Rujia, the noble god of healing―and the only god he is fated to kill with his own hands―she makes him an offer he can’t refuse: she will help lift the excruciating, century-old curse placed upon him if he gives her a one-month reprieve.

Rujia knows she isn’t as noble as everyone believes. Her deal with Death is merely an excuse to buy herself time while she figures out an escape plan. But when her plan causes the Celestial Palace’s collapse and the beloved crown prince’s disappearance, she and Death are both held responsible. The only way to avoid the wrath of all the other gods is to travel across the realms and safely retrieve the crown prince themselves.

Yet the journey proves far more treacherous than expected. As the unlikely alliance between them blooms into more, and Death’s resolve to kill Rujia weakens by the day, neither can outrun their intertwined fate without devastating consequences: A mysterious plague. An empire-destroying flood. A thousand deaths―and rising―to restore the balance Rujia’s disrupted. And if Rujia continues to live despite the will of the Heavens, this is only the beginning…

I really enjoyed this read! The mythology was interesting, even if the culture of the gods was a bit like…high school. I liked Rujia and Death both together and separately, as they both grew and learned to trust and think beyond themselves. Bits of this were sad, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Ann Liang is from Beijing and lives in Melbourne. To Dream in Darkness is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Fallen Beauty, by Astrid Scholte

Image belongs to St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books.

Title: Fallen Beauty
Author: Astrid Scholte
Genre: Fantasy, YA
Rating: 3.25 out of 5

Eighteen-year-old Thorelea Winyard has been a prisoner her entire life, forced to paint dead animals pushed into her cell. She dreams of the world outside her tower and everything she’s been denied. When one of her subjects comes back to life, Thorelea is thrust into a royal court where she can have anything she desires—aside from her freedom.

Here, she learns that the king and queen have ruled for centuries; their immortality is gifted through the power of their court painter, who dutifully updates their magical portraits. It is also here that she meets the sole other mortal of the court: Prince Kelter. Desperate to become immortal so he can join the ranks of the battalion waging war against a neighboring kingdom, he offers her a deal. Thorelea will paint the portrait Prince Kelter has been denied by his parents, and he will help her escape from the ruthless royal court.

They meet each night in secret. As they grow closer, they must face the monstrous realities of Thorelea’s powers. Will she be forced to choose between her heart and her freedom?

Honestly, I’d give this one a pass, if I had it to do over again. Very clunky, erratic, and half of it didn’t even make sense. The premise was great. The execution was…not. I’m not even sure why I finished it. I didn’t care for the characters. The world was flat. Even the history and resolution felt surface-level.

Astrid Scholte lives in Australia. Fallen Beauty is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: This Shattered Tempest, by Thea Guanzon

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Title: This Shattered Tempest
Author: Thea Guanzon
Genre: Sci-fi/fantasy
Rating: 5 out of 5

When the storm swallows the world, who will be left standing?

Throughout their political marriage, Alaric and Talasyn struggled to resist the undeniable pull between them, even as rising tensions forced them on opposite sides of a looming war. Hand in hand, they vanquished the cataclysmic threat of the Moonless Dark—and started to hope for a future together.

That hope is shattered when a devastating attack sets off a chain of events that tears them apart once more. Now, as two rival nations prepare for a final, decisive clash, the Master of the Shadowforged Legion and the last Lightweaver fight to find their way back to each other. But the odds are stacked against them, and time is running out…

Is love enough to rewrite destiny? Can a new beginning rise from the ruins of the past? Or are Alaric and Talasyn doomed to meet as enemies on one last battlefield? This explosive third and final book brings the beloved Hurricane Wars series to a stunning conclusion—where passion and power collide, and the fate of a divided world hangs in the balance.

I really enjoyed this trilogy! Yes, the first book especially gave me Star Wars déjà vu, but I ended up loving these characters and worlds for themselves. So much intrigue here! And lies. Everyone is playing a game, telling lies, and manipulating everyone around them. That’s probably a very accurate picture of the lives of politicians, but it was disturbing to me. I enjoyed how everything wrapped up, even though there was a lot to be sad about, too.

Thea Guanzon is a bestselling author. This Shattered Tempest is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Avon and Harper Voyager | Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Sunderworld, Vol. I: The Extraordinary Disappointments of Leopold Berry, by Ransom Riggs

Image belongs to PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers.

Title: Sunderworld, Vol. I: The Extraordinary Disappointments of Leopold Berry
Author: Ransom Riggs
Genre: Fantasy, sci-fi
Rating: 4 out of 5

Seventeen-year-old Leopold Berry is seeing weird things around Los Angeles. A man who pops a tooth into a parking meter. A glowing trapdoor in a parking lot. A half-mechanical raccoon with its tail on fire that just won’t leave him alone. Every hallucinatory moment seems plucked from a cheesy 1990s fantasy TV show called Max’s Adventures in Sunderworld—and that’s because they are.

Not a good sign.

In the blurry weeks after his mother’s death, a young Leopold discovered VHS tapes of its one and only season in a box headed for the trash—and soon became obsessed. Losing himself in Sunder was the best way to avoid two things: grieving his mother and being a chronic disappointment to his overbearing father. But when the strange visions return—at the worst possible time on the worst possible day—Leopold turns to his best friend Emmet for help. Together they discover that Sunder is much more than just an old TV show, and that Los Angeles is far stranger than they ever imagined. And soon, he’ll realize that not only is Sunderworld real, but it’s in grave danger.

Certain he’s finally been chosen for greatness, Leopold risks everything to claim his destiny, save the world of his childhood dreams, and prove once and for all that he’s not the disappointment his father believes him to be. But when everything goes terribly, horribly, excruciatingly wrong, Leopold’s disappointments prove to be more extraordinary than he ever could have imagined.

How do you battle darkness when no one believes in you—not even yourself?

Welcome to Sunderworld.

I found this to be a fun read! I felt kind of like the movie Labyrinth—which, yes, I did love—campy, fun, with a touch of magic. Was it totally believable? No, but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the read. This was a quick read, entertaining, and didn’t require a lot of brain power to follow. I recommend it for a fun weekend read, and I look forward to reading more in this world.

Ransom Riggs lives in L.A. Sunderworld, Vol. I: The Extraordinary Disappointments of Leopold Berry is the first book in the Sunderworld series.

(Galley courtesy of PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group | Dutton Books for Young Readers in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Fire Power, by Mir Benitz

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Title: Fire Power     
Author: Mir Benitz              
Genre: Fantasy, YA       
Rating: 3.5 out of 5    

The Silverscale Grand Prix is the national championship of dragon racing—a high-speed, often deadly, elite sport with an unimaginably big cash prize.

Asta and her dragon Carmine are unlikely competitors. No sponsors, no high-tech gear, no fans out in the stands. Not to mention that a female rider hasn’t won the Prix for nearly sixty years. The odds are stacked against them—but Asta is determined to prove everyone the training school that kicked her out for fighting a classmate, her family who wished she’d never left the farm, and, most of all, her infuriatingly arrogant childhood-best-friend-turned-rival Felix, the poster-boy heir to the Seraphin racing dynasty and reigning tournament champion.

Raw talent alone won’t be enough to get Asta and Carmine through these races—and it soon becomes clear that the risks Asta has taken to get to Silverscale could have devastating consequences. Time to think fast, or die trying.

This didn’t work too well for me. I couldn’t really picture dragon racing as a whole, so it was hard to buy into everything else, too, but…I don’t know anything about Formula 1 racing, so maybe that was the problem. I liked Asta, but her repeated bad decisions were a lot to take in and the chemistry between her and Felix was…lacking.

Mir Benitz lives in Pennsylvania. Fire Power is her new novel.

(Galley courtesy of Little, Brown and Company in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Immortal Rose, by Alexandra Bracken

Image belongs to Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon.

Title: Immortal Rose
Author: Alexandra Bracken    
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Members of the ancient House Rosebourne have a strange gift born of a fairy ancestor: the ability to infuse fragrance with magic capable of manipulating mind, body, and emotion.

When a shocking murder leaves the kingdom of Albion vulnerable to a coup, royal spymaster Hugh Thornton seeks the one person who can help: Viola Lockwood, the last living Rosebourne and secret heir to a fraught legacy.

Livid at the silver-eyed aristocrat who had her thrown in jail to force her compliance, Viola nevertheless comes to an agreement with him. In exchange for crafting Immortal Rose, the singular perfume capable of saving Albion, illegitimate Viola can seize the life—and fortune—that should have been hers.

As Hugh and Viola race to find the perfume’s lost fairy ingredient, hidden deep in Albion’s dark underbelly, neither can deny the scorching attraction building between them—especially as the attempts on Viola’s life grow increasingly brazen.

But a terrible truth lurks in the heart notes of their kingdom—and while every bargain has a cost, Immortal Rose may demand more than Hugh and Viola can ever pay.

I really enjoyed this read! The secondary characters are fantastic, and I loved both of the main characters as well. The setting was believable (okay, except for the name of the city), and I loved the history and culture. A lot of action in this story, and layers of mystery and intrigue. I can’t wait to read more set in this world!

Alexandra Bracken is a bestselling author. Immortal Rose is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon in exchange for an honest review.)

 

Book Review: Our Strange Duet, by Erin A. Craig

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Title: Our Strange Duet     
Author: Erin A. Craig 
Genre: Fantasy, YA      
Rating: 4 out of 5

She was never just the voice he shaped . . .

A rising soprano with a gift she is only just learning to embrace, Christine Daaé has moved through the glittering world of the Opera Populaire longing to find her purpose. Instead, she finds herself caught between two men who refuse to let her slip quietly into the chorus.

One is Raoul, her childhood friend turned devoted admirer, offering her a future filled with warmth, safety, and a love that feels like sunlight. The other is a mysterious masked figure who lurks beneath the Opera House: The Phantom. His brilliance, obsession, and dangerous devotion to nurturing Christine’s talents ignites a dark and complicated passion in her heart.

As Christine’s star ascends, so does the tension between Raoul and the Phantom. She must decide who she is when the curtain falls—and what she’s willing to risk for the life she wants.

I’ve never read or seen The Phantom of the Opera, so I came to this read with basically zero knowledge of the original story. I’m not sure what to say. This was a very atmospheric read, dark and glittering at the same time. I liked Christine, although the hints of mental health issues were scattered throughout the narrative did seem pretty obvious to me. I loved reading the behind-the-scenes stuff of the opera itself, but Erik was pretty creepy to me. I don’t know. This was well-written, but it was pretty dark.

Erin A. Craig is a bestselling author. Our Strange Duet is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Random House Children’s Books | Delacorte Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: Hawk & Sparrow, by Ayana Gray

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Title: Hawk & Sparrow
Author: Ayana Gray             
Genre: Fantasy, YA
Rating: 4 out of 5

Vesper Evans has always resented Basalton’s high society, and the sorcery that provides them with a luxurious life unimaginable to most. Orphaned as a child and rescued by the editor of The Basalton Globe, Vesper is now an ambitious reporter determined to keep her newspaper afloat.

While covering a lavish society gala, Vesper happens upon a shocking scene: the murdered body of a man she had spoken with just minutes before. Several of the powerful magical elite may want the man dead, but the prime suspect is wealthy industrialist Maximilian Kite.

Max soon makes Vesper a tempting offer: Find the culprit and restore his reputation in exchange for a substantial fee. Despite her distaste for Max’s world, Vesper agrees—the money would save the Globe, and the story would be the scoop of a lifetime. There’s only one catch: In order for her to infiltrate society, the two must pose as a courting couple.

Their investigation takes them from the highest echelons of privilege to the seediest backstreets of Basalton. As they unearth the city’s secrets and scandals, Vesper finds herself in grave danger—while falling for one of the most infuriating, arrogant, handsome men she has ever met . . .

I thoroughly enjoyed the world this was set in (except for the lack of women’s rights). It felt like the 1920s, which is a favorite of mine. I actually found Vesper’s disdain for anyone in high society a bit off-putting:  not that she didn’t have some good points, but she was guilty of the exact same kind of prejudice she accused all of them of.

I enjoyed the mystery of trying to figure out what was going on and who was behind everything, and there were plenty of red herrings to keep me guessing. I loved the interactions between Max and Vesper and how they both influenced each other. This was a solid, engrossing read.

Ayana Gray is a bestselling author. Hawk & Sparrow is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group | Balzer + Bray in exchange for an honest review.)