Circle of Ashes by Elise Kova and Lynn Larsh

Circle of Ashes by Elise Kova and Lynn Larsh

Expected Publication: April 9th 2018 by Silver Wing Press

EVERY WISH HAS A COST BUT WILL THE SOCIETY BE WILLING TO PAY IT?

Once a hacker-for-hire living in the shadows, Josephina “Jo” Espinosa is the newest member of a magical Society. Their mandate? To grant the wishes of mortals. A simple enough task until Jo is faced with an impossible wish – and her inability to grant it might spell disaster for her entire team, if not the Society itself.

Jo is used to high-pressure situations, but after a string of disasters, the last thing she needs is stakes of this magnitude. Especially given that neither she nor the Society know quite what the consequences of failing to grant a wish might be.

The only person with answers is the Society’s aloof and cryptic leader, Snow. Yet while Jo is enigmatically drawn to the man, all their clandestine encounters leave her with only more questions about the true nature of the Society, her magic, and her own history.

Time is running out for the Society, and an executioner will rise from among them to exact the price of failure.

Note: I received an ARC copy of this via the authors for an honest review. This in no way influences my opinion.

After reading Society of Wishes, I was anxious to get my hands on this book. I loved the first book and I just needed to know how this story and world were going to develop – and I was not disappointed. This book had me so hooked and I fell in love with this world even more!

I think the best thing about this book was the wave of emotion on every single page. The authors really did a great job of making the emotions jump off the pages and it really added to my reading experience! I was invested in each and every character… well.. almost every character ( I hate Pan, #justsaying) and I really felt everything they were feeling throughout the book. It felt as if I were there with them and friends with them. There were times that I was crying ugly tears because I was so invested and affected by what was going on.

The book was extremely easy to get lost in. The character and plot developments, along with the world building and the emotions really swept me up into this world and kept me turning the pages. I had to know what was going to happen next and I ended up reading this book in one sitting because of that!

We got to know more about the characters and how they came to be in the society! I loved the fact that we got into some of the characters wishes and how different they seem! I loved the fact that the authors used actual historical events and based a couple of wishes around them explain why history took the turn that it did – along with creating their own histories (since the book is set in the future) to explain history affecting the characters as well. I also liked the fact that, whilst some of the wishes were on a larger scale that affected the course of history, other wishes really only impacted the characters themselves and the people in their lives. It was an even balance between the two and I liked the fact that not every character did something to help a whole nation of people because it kept the characters relatable.

We also got a little more into Snows character and I am infatuated! I was so intrigued by him in book one and I just kept gravitating toward him as a reader and wanting to know more about him – the same can be said about this one! I am still extremely intrigued by him and the history that he and Jo share and … I just want to know  everything, ok? He’s been around the longest and has seen everything and I just want to know what he knows… I am also completely and utterly curious about what his history is and how he ended up in the/creating the society! I need answers!

As mentioned previously, I hate Pan. I don’t want to go too much into it because spoilers, but I hate her character. She is such a dark and twisted character and, whilst I am intrigued to know more about her and how she ended up the way that she did, I also just want her to be killed off already. She still reminds me of a gender reversed Peter Pan, but an evil one.

I don’t want to get too much into the ending because, again, spoilers, but it broke me. I loved the fact that the authors didn’t take an easy ending and showed the idea that some things just don’t work out the way you expect them to, but it still broke me. I cried ugly tears for a good long while after finishing the book!

All in all, I absolutely loved this instalment! I enjoyed both the character and the plot development and the wave of emotions that left each and every page! I gave this book 5/5 stars.

November Fairyloot unboxing: Ladies that Slay

Hey guys! I have a different kind of post for you today and that is this months Fairyloot unboxing! As soon as I saw the theme and some of the items that they were going to be including, I had to get it! This months box was absolutely amazing and I am so stoked that I got it! I will link up to all of the shops featured, so definitely go and check those out 🙂

NOTE: This is an unboxing post, so there will be spoilers for the items in this months (November) box – Ladies that Slay. 

I love the artwork for the spoiler cards that they do each month!

The First item in the box was this exclusive Brightest Witch candle from Flick the Wick. It is based on Hermione from Harry Potter and the scent is Lily, Vanilla, Musk, Raspberry and Citrus. I absolutely LOVE the bright colour of the candle! I’ve always wanted to try out Flick the Wick and I am definitely going to have to look into getting some of their candles!

The next item in the box is an Exclusive Blue’s Brew tea created by Bookish Teas. This tea was inspired by Blue Sargent from the Raven Boys series (which I have yet to read!). This tea is fruit with Blackberries and currents and smells divine. I’m not a huge tea drinker, but I am definitely going to go out and buy a tea strainer so that I can try this tea! It also has edible glitter in it.

The next item (and the one I was most excited about) was an exclusive book sleeve designed by Aunjuli Art. This book comfortably fits a large paperback or small hardback (like this months books!) and has a pattern of Swords and books. The inside lining is also waterproof – which is going to come in useful with the most recent weather! I have always wanted a book sleeve and I am so excited about owning this beautiful sleeve.

The next item is an exclusive Fire is Catching Badge, inspired by Katniss Everdeen, designed by Literary Emporium. I like the fact that this is an easy iron on badge, but I am not entirely sure where to put it yet, because I don’t really own anything that I can put a badge on – it’s definitely beautiful, though!

The next item is an exclusive Fight Darkness sticker, designed by Reverie and Ink, and quotes An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir. Again, not entirely sure where I want to put this, but I do have a lot of options.

We also received a couple of swag pins from The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli and This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada – both of which are on my TBR.

The first book included in this months box is an ARC of Furyborn by Claire Legrand. This book was definitely bigger than I first thought it was going to be, but I am extremely excited about getting to this! This is set to release next May and is being released by Sourcebooks Fire.

When assassins ambush her best friend, the crown prince, Rielle Dardenne risks everything to save him, exposing her ability to perform all seven kinds of elemental magic. The only people who should possess this extraordinary power are a pair of prophesied queens: a queen of light and salvation and a queen of blood and destruction. To prove she is the Sun Queen, Rielle must endure seven trials to test her magic. If she fails, she will be executed…unless the trials kill her first.

A thousand years later, the legend of Queen Rielle is a mere fairy tale to bounty hunter Eliana Ferracora. When the Undying Empire conquered her kingdom, she embraced violence to keep her family alive. Now, she believes herself untouchable–until her mother vanishes without a trace, along with countless other women in their city. To find her, Eliana joins a rebel captain on a dangerous mission and discovers that the evil at the heart of the empire is more terrible than she ever imagined.

As Rielle and Eliana fight in a cosmic war that spans millennia, their stories intersect, and the shocking connections between them ultimately determine the fate of their world–and of each other.

The other book we got in this months box was The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli. This is an exclusive Fairyloot edition, which has silver foil, rather than the gold of the normal edition. This also came with a letter from the author and a signed book plate. This is the first instalment in a YA Fantasy series and features Dragons – So I am definitely excited about getting this one!

In the beginning, there was the Namsara: the child of sky and spirit, who carried love and laughter wherever he went. But where there is light, there must be darkness—and so there was also the Iskari. The child of blood and moonlight. The destroyer. The death-bringer.

These are the legends that Asha, daughter of the king of Firgaard, has grown up learning in hushed whispers, drawn to the forbidden figures of the past. But it isn’t until she becomes the fiercest, most feared dragon slayer in the land that she takes on the role of the next Iskari—a lonely destiny that leaves her feeling more like a weapon than a girl.

Asha conquers each dragon and brings its head to the king, but no kill can free her from the shackles that await at home: her betrothal to the cruel commandant, a man who holds the truth about her nature in his palm. When she’s offered the chance to gain her freedom in exchange for the life of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard, she finds that there may be more truth to the ancient stories than she ever could have expected. With the help of a secret friend—a slave boy from her betrothed’s household—Asha must shed the layers of her Iskari bondage and open her heart to love, light, and a truth that has been kept from her.

That’s it for this box! I absolutely loved this month’s items and I cannot wait to use some them. Fairyloot have definitely outdone themselves and the packers did a great job of getting all the items in the box!

Find me Here:

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You Will Be Mine by Natasha Preston

You Will Be Mine by Natasha Preston

Expected Publication: February 1st 2018 by Sourcebooks Fire

Amazon: You Will Be Mine

Book Depository

A YA thriller about a group of friends that starts receiving notes from a secret admirer whose words of adoration quickly become deadly.

Note: I Received an ARC of this book from Sourcebooks Fire via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion

For me, Natasha Preston became an author to look out for after reading The Cabin. It had me hooked from beginning to end and the ending was absolutely shocking. So when Sourcebooks uploaded this to Netgalley, I just had to read it! This book had me guessing throughout, but there were some things that I feel were a little unbelievable, considering the situation.

This book follows a group of six housemates at university as they begin to get notes and they start getting murdered. The police are trying to catch the culprit, but they don’t seem to be getting anywhere. I felt like this book was obvious in the sense of who it wasn’t. The characters had an idea of who they thought was the perpetrator from the very beginning and they often blamed this character for the events throughout the book – so obviously it wasn’t the character that they thought it was. I think I’ve been reading too many murder mysteries… I know the tricks of the trade… or the books.

Whilst I knew who it wasn’t, I had other suspects throughout the book. Both guesses turned out to be wrong and I only started getting an inkling of who it was going to be toward the end. The book left me guessing and I loved the way that the events were described and the ultimate ending and explanation that was given. I felt like the explanation was well thought out, but I would have liked to maybe have seen more of the relationship dynamic between the characters (I don’t want to spoil it) to really give weight behind the actions themselves.

I did feel like a lot of the actions of the characters were a bit unbelievable considering the circumstances. There was a lot going on with the murders etc. but the characters often acted pretty stupid and ultimately did things that were getting them hurt/murdered. Even after the first couple of times, they carried on acting stupid and it grated on my nerves.

I would have also liked to have seen more of the relationship dynamic between the character they believed were committing the murders and the rest of the housemates. I feel like flashbacks would have been a great tool to add to the book to help give it that extra bit of depth with the characters themselves and the readers.

Can we also just talk about that ending. I should have really guessed that an ending that shocking would have come from this author after reading The Cabin, but I forgot and it sprung on me. It has definitely left the future open for the characters and for the reader’s imagination to run wild on what could happen next. It was a great way to leave it as either a standalone or even as something the author could come back and visit in the future with a follow up book.

All in all, I enjoyed this book and the plot itself. I felt the murders were well planned out and the explanation was definitely fitting to the book itself. I absolutely loved the ending and would not be opposed to a second book! I gave this book 4/5 stars.

Find Me Here:

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Six Little Secrets by Katlyn Duncan

Six Little Secrets by Katlyn Duncan

Expected Publication: November 24th 2017 by HQ Publishing

Some secrets can never stay hidden for long…

Six teenagers meet in Saturday detention: a brain, a beauty, a cheerleader, a rebel, a recluse and the new girl.

But someone is watching. Someone has made sure that they are all in the same room at the same time. Someone knows that each of them is hiding a terrible secret…

…and by the end of detention, everyone will know the truth.

Note: I received an ARC copy of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

I stumbled across this book whilst looking through titles on Netgalley. The cover and blurb immediately drew me in and I had to know what was going to happen. Unfortunately, I was hugely disappointed with this book and I found it relatively predictable.

The biggest issue within this book for me was the characters. They are completely superficial and there is no depth created – we see short snippets of the characters a few days earlier (what ultimately lands them in detention) and we find out the secrets they didn’t want everyone to know. However, other than that, we don’t really delve into the lives of the characters; there is no connection created between the characters and the readers and it makes the book difficult to read because I didn’t really care about them enough to not want them to get hurt etc.

The secrets they didn’t want everyone to know were also pretty cliche to the genre. It was nothing mind blowing and they were all pretty predictable. I was expecting something that would have really shocked me and it never came. The reasoning behind what someone was doing to the characters during detention was also uninteresting and cliche. I feel like a better reason could have been thought out than what was given.

The book didn’t have enough time to develop any aspect of it – plot wise or with the characters. We see a couple of the punishments and then the reason was suddenly told by the perpetrator and then… nothing. Suddenly our characters, who previously had NOTHING in common, were suddenly all best friends and walking down the school hallway together? The relationship between the characters never developed during the events to warrant them suddenly being connected to each other. There was no consequences for the perpetrator, either, they just suddenly disappear – which is completely unrealistic. No social media, no online print, not anywhere to be found anywhere even though we eventually find out their real name…

The author also skimmed over the issue of Teacher/student relationships without actually delving into the the societal issues and the consequences that it has on the student as well as the teacher – along with the school and the community itself. It is a problem that we face in todays society and it was gleaned over without enough of an explanation or representation. The other issues from the other students should have also been represented in a much more in depth and personal way to really show the issues and the consequences of those – whether they be the issues the characters themselves face or the effect they have on the society within the book.

All in all, I was pretty disappointed with this book. The characters were superficial at best and the issues were not represented properly to show the consequences for the characters involved, along with the community as a whole. I was expecting a lot more from this book and it just didn’t deliver. I gave this book 1/5 stars.

Find me here:

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Alone by Cyn Balog

Alone by Cyn Balog

Expected Publication: November 1st 2017 by Sourcebooks Fire

When her mom inherits an old, crumbling mansion, Seda’s almost excited to spend the summer there. The grounds are beautiful and it’s fun to explore the sprawling house with its creepy rooms and secret passages. Except now her mom wants to renovate, rather than sell the estate—which means they’re not going back to the city…or Seda’s friends and school.

As the days grow shorter, Seda is filled with dread. They’re about to be cut off from the outside world, and she’s not sure she can handle the solitude or the darkness it brings out in her.

Then a group of teens get stranded near the mansion during a blizzard. Seda has no choice but to offer them shelter, even though she knows danger lurks in the dilapidated mansion—and in herself. And as the snow continues to fall, what Seda fears most is about to become her reality…

Note: I received an ARC copy of this book from Sourcebooks Fire via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

I absolutely loved Cyn Balog’s Unnatural Deeds, so when I saw that she was releasing a new book later this year I just had to read it. I was not disappointed! I was completely hooked on this book and read it in one sitting.

We are introduced to our MC from the very first page – along with the problems she has (I don’t want to say too much because SPOILERS!). The way in which we are introduced to her and the description had me immediately hooked – I absolutely had to know what was going to happen to this character and where certain aspects of her personality etc. were going to take us. Seda was a likeable character throughout the book despite the way we are introduced to her and I enjoyed watching her develop as a character as things progressed because it was easy to forget about certain things (again, trying not to be spoilery). She definitely came across as someone who could be a friend once she comes out of her shell. She definitely started changing with the arrival of the stranded teens and I feel like the interaction helped her to come out of her shell and to be a bit more loose.

What I also really enjoyed about this book was the family dynamic that Seda had with her mother and siblings. It was easy to empathise with Seda and the problems her parents were having and it made her more of a likeable character when watching her interact with the two sets of twins and her mother. We also learn other various aspects of her family, which become important later on in the book, which also made her easier to like and relate to.

Another aspect of this book that I really enjoyed was the setting itself. At the beginnign of each chapter was a little chapter heading describing something about either the house/rooms in the house or the way that Seda’s Aunt and Uncle used to run it. The author cleverly wove bits of fact of certain historic people and slightly changed their stories to make it fictitious at the same time – which gave it the air of creepiness. The set up of the house with certain props etc. definitely helped to set the scene for events that happened later in the book, whilst constantly keeping an air of subtle creepiness.

The pacing of this book was just right. It starts off at a relatively normal pace and then things start to get creepier, which had me completely hooked. It also begins to speed up as events start happening later in the book and keeps readers on their toes right up until the very end!

What I most enjoyed about this book was the fact that this was not an ‘in your face’ kind of scary book, but rather took a more subtle and psychological approach, whic made the ending even more shocking. I absolutely did not see the big reveal that came at the end and was left utterly shocked when this book ended! Certain things were revealed, other things happened and it just led up to a finale that left me completely gobsmacked! I recommended it further as soon as I had finished!

All in all, I absolutely loved this book and I cannot wait to have a finished copy on my shelf! Balog is fast becoming one of my favourite authors and I cannot wait to see what she writes next. I gave this book 5/5 stars.

S.T.A.G.S by M. A. Bennett

S.T.A.G.S by M. A. Bennett

Expected Publication: August 10th 2017 by Hot Key Books

Nine students. Three bloodsports. One deadly weekend.

A twisting thriller for fans of Looking for Alaska and The Hunger Games

It is the autumn term and Greer MacDonald is struggling to settle into the sixth form at the exclusive St. Aidan the Great boarding school, known to its privileged pupils as S.T.A.G.S. Just when she despairs of making friends Greer receives a mysterious invitation with three words embossed upon on it: huntin’ shootin’ fishin’. When Greer learns that the invitation is to spend the half term weekend at the country manor of Henry de Warlencourt, the most popular and wealthy boy at S.T.A.G.S., she is as surprised as she is flattered.

But when Greer joins the other chosen few at the ancient and sprawling Longcross Hall, she realises that Henry’s parents are not at home; the only adults present are a cohort of eerily compliant servants. The students are at the mercy of their capricious host, and, over the next three days, as the three bloodsports – hunting, shooting and fishing – become increasingly dark and twisted, Greer comes to the horrifying realisation that those being hunted are not wild game, but the very misfits Henry has brought with him from school…

Note: I received an ARC copy of this book from Hot Key Books via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

When I saw this book on Netgalley and read what it was about, I just had to request it. The blurb instantly drew me in and I love reading these twisty cat and mouse kind of books. However, whilst I was expecting to love it, I just didn’t. I feel like this book fell short in a lot of areas and I just did not enjoy myself as much as I thought I would reading this.

From the very first pages, we already know what is going to have happened by the end of the book, to who it is going to happen and who did the doing. This completely took away from the mystery surrounding the book and the blood sports and the people who we were meeting because I already knew what was going to happen. As soon as I got to know the characters a little more, the book became completely predictable and I really struggled to actually continue reading at times.

I also really struggled to like out MC, Greer. She won a scholarship to a prestigious, private school (there is only one scholarship given out per year to a student from a normal school) and I feel like she acted really really stupid throughout the whole book. Like, I literally wanted to reach into the book and smack some sense into her because there were some really obvious signs of stuff going on that she just completely missed. We are told about how intelligent she is etc. but I just wanted to shake her throughout most of the book. Even when she knew what was going on, she still questioned everything after a few words from Henry because he was “Oh so chamring” (this vibe about Henry not coming over to the reader at all). Again with the shaking.

The “Medievals” also all really bugged me. I don’t feel like any of their voices stood out and I wasn’t getting the vibe that I was supposed to be getting from Henry. I also feel like the ending didn’t fit with anything that we were told about them. I feel like they would have done other things or maybe sorted out the issue a different way.

A huge issue I had with this book was the ending. There was a new aspect added to the book about 85% of the way in that I feel wasn’t really explained very well and should have been introduced much earlier so that we could have gotten used to it being part of the story a bit earlier. The ending and the solution was pretty rushed and it was also left open in a way that could mean a book 2 is coming – but it was also ended in a way that I can’t see another book coming because of the ages of our MC’s. So, I’m confused, really.

I think the only aspect I really liked about this book was Shafeen – he was the smartest person there and thank goodness he was there because I probably would have DNFed this book without him. He was a no nonsense, save the day kind of guy, who wouldn’t have even been there if Greer hadn’t gone. Hey ho. I would have liked to have seen more of the ship that was setting sail in this book, because I don’t feel like I saw enough of them and the relationship/the way it grew to actually ship them, but it is a cute concept.

All in all, I was pretty disappointed with this book. I was expecting so much more, but I was left annoyed with the MC and wishing that the certain aspects of the plot had been revealed either later or earlier. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

Before I Let Go by Marieke Niejkamp

Before I Let Go by Marieke Niejkamp

Expected Publication: January 23rd 2018 by Sourcebooks Fire

Days before Corey is to return home to the snow and ice of Lost Creek, Alaska, to visit her best friend, Kyra dies. Corey is devastated―and confused. The entire Lost community speaks in hushed tones about the town’s lost daughter, saying her death was meant to be. And they push Corey away like she’s a stranger.

Corey knows something is wrong. Lost is keeping secrets―chilling secrets. But piecing together the truth about what happened to her best friend may prove as difficult as lighting the sky in an Alaskan winter…

Note: I received an ARC of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

I have extremely mixed opinions about this book. I felt constantly compelled to carry on reading, but at the same time, I was left with more questions than answers and I often felt like the book didn’t flow as well as it could have done. The book felt choppy and I feel like things could have been explained a little better.

One of the things I both liked and disliked about the book was the flashbacks. It often went back in time and then came back to present day etc. Whilst I usually like this style of writing when used well, I don’t feel like it added anything extra to the story. It gave us snippets of the past between the two characters, but I don’t feel like it was entirely useful in understanding what happened. If it had been used better and given us more of an insight, rather than the snippets we were given, I feel like it could have really helped the readers and we could’ve gotten a better idea of the bigger picture.

Another issue I had with this book was the fact that I didn’t feel that much empathy for the characters. I feel like the chopping and changing between past and present stopped me from really connecting to the characters. Also, the author used a variety of different minority groups, to the point where I felt like she was using them to try and be different rather than actually representing them as they are. Corey was Asexual whilst Kyra was pansexual and bipolar at the same time. Whilst the bipolar was represented (as far as I know – I don’t understand a lot about the disorder, but some), I feel like it could have been represented more, rather than becoming the side issue. What I did like was the fact that no one really understood Kyra or what she was going through. I feel like this is so true to society because a lot of people misunderstand illnesses such as these and that leads to the sufferers feeling lonely and like an outsider – which is exactly what Kyra was feeling.

What I did like about this book was the creep factor. The town, the people and history of Lost Creek was completely eerie and it definitely had me wanting more. I had to know what was going to happen next and where it was going to go. I loved the spa and the feeling of abandonment that it had because I feel like it added something to the state of mind Kyra had before her death. The people were also completely creepy. I can definitely understand how the two MC’s felt like outsiders because it was a completely close knit community with secrets.

Another issue I had with this book was the ending. I felt like I had more questions about the characters and the events that led up to Kyra’s death than I did answers. There was some issues with the plot that confused me and which were never actually addressed. I also felt like the ending was a bit anti climatic considering the things that had happened before hand – I almost felt like there was something/a certain event that was missing that I would have liked to have seen, but it never happened. (I don’t want to say too much because spoilers).

All in all, I have completely mixed reviews about this book. I felt completely hooked by it and I had to know what was going to happen next, but at the same time I feel like it had its issues and could have been better. This book definitely has a lot of potential! Also, I just want to mention that I absolutely love the cover! I gave this book 3.5/5 stars.

Violet Grenade by Victoria Scott

Violet Grenade by Victoria Scott

Published: May 16th 2017 by Entangled Teen

DOMINO: A girl with blue hair and a demon in her mind.

CAIN: A stone giant on the brink of exploding.

MADAM KARINA: A woman who demands obedience.

WILSON: The one who will destroy them all.

When Madam Karina discovers Domino in an alleyway, she offers her a position inside her home for entertainers in secluded West Texas. Left with few alternatives and an agenda of her own, Domino accepts. It isn’t long before she is fighting her way up the ranks to gain the madam’s approval. But after suffering weeks of bullying and unearthing the madam’s secrets, Domino decides to leave. It’ll be harder than she thinks, though, because the madam doesn’t like to lose inventory. But then, Madam Karina doesn’t know about the person living inside Domino’s mind. Madam Karina doesn’t know about Wilson.

Note: I received an ARC copy of this via Netgalley in return for an honest review. This in no way influences my opinion.

I had really high hopes for this book. I absolutely LOVE the cover and the blurb was really interesting. However, this book fell short for me to the point that I actually DNFed it. I think this book just wasn’t my kind of thing – and you guys should definitely still pick up this book if it is on your TBR because you might still like it!

I found the book, what I read of it, relatively slow. I never really got into the story and the little hints of mystery behind Wilson and her parents etc. was not really enough for me to continue reading. I struggled to pick the book back up after putting it down and I often put it down in order to do something else. I wasn’t particularly compelled by the plot, despite it being a relatively unique concept for a YA book (I don’t want to give too much away).

I also struggled to empathise with the characters. I am not sure what it was, but I didn’t feel that bond as a reader to these characters, which meant that I didn’t really care whether Dizzy stayed where he was or what happened to Domino. I didn’t want to know because I wasn’t invested. I often found it difficult to tell the voices apart because the characters were similar and it kind of confused me when I eventually picked the book back up because I couldn’t remember where I was or what the characters themselves were doing.

I also feel like the house itself held too much mystery. I didn’t feel like, after the way Domino is portrayed, that she would actually take the offer that she was given – which meant that, for me, the story didn’t flow because I didn’t feel like it made sense. I didn’t feel like the characters would do the things they were doing because the were portrayed to be something different.

All in all, this book just wasn’t my kind of thing. I really wanted to love this book, but I just didn’t I gave this 1/5 stars.

The Revenge by Hannah Jayne

The Revenge by Hannah Jayne

Expected Publication: July 4th 2017 by Sourcebooks Fire

Tony just wanted a little revenge when he posted his ex’s location online. He never meant to lead a predator to her doorstep… 

After Hope breaks up with Tony and embarrasses him at school, he’s devastated. In a moment of revenge, Tony makes the location on her phone public. But a week later, when Hope calls Tony and begs him to stop the prank, he hears a shriek and a car door slamming. Then the call is dropped.

When Hope isn’t back at school the next day, Tony realizes that he may have put Hope’s life in danger. Can he trace Hope’s movements and save her before it’s too late?

Note: I received an ARC of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

When I first saw this on Netgalley, it was the first I’d heard about the book. The premise and cover drew me in immediately and I just had to read it. However, I was extremely disappointed with this book and I actually feel like it copied Gone Girl in quite a few places and things, but it lacked that oomph that Gone Girl had.

From the very first page, we are thrown in the middle of a break up between a popular girl (Hope) and not so popular boy (Tony). We are immediately given this background as to what happened to lead Tony to put Hope’s information online – and then he does it within the first couple of pages. I feel like I needed more than this to actually get into the story, the mindset of the characters and their relationship before it ended. I think it took me a little longer to actually understand the characters purely because we were just thrown into the middle of this high school drama.

The first sort of half of the book I actually felt plagiarised Gone Girl. It was extremely similar and it was basically Gone Girl in YA form. It was pretty much exactly the same, but I felt like Hope lacked that conviction and villainous side that Amy had in Gone Girl – which means it was done poorly in my mind. Hope needed something more to her character for her to be understood and portrayed as the kind of person who would frame someone for kidnapping her for revenge.

What I did like about it was the fact that it then changed from Gone Girl when things happen. I don’t really want to go into it because spoilers, but it was a good twist. It was needed because it was pretty sort of slow going up until that point because of the similarities between Gone Girl and this book.

Unfortunately, I was actually left with more questions that I was answers and I feel like the book ended so suddenly. I was actually confused when it said acknowledgements… and I was left thinking “Is that it?!?” I have so many questions left over and I feel like the book needs to be finished off properly, in a sense.

Unfortunately, I was really disappointed with this book. Despite the fact that is was an extremely quick read, I was left with more answers than questions by the time the book suddenly ended and I feel like there were way too many similarities (to the actual point of plagiarism) to Gone Girl. I gave this book 2/5 stars.

Garden of Thorns by Amber Mitchell

Garden of Thorns by Amber Mitchell

Published: March 6th 2017 by Entangled Teen

Book Depository

After seven grueling years of captivity in the Garden—a burlesque troupe of slave girls—sixteen-year-old Rose finds an opportunity to escape during a performance for the emperor. But the hostage she randomly chose from the crowd to aid her isn’t one of the emperor’s men—not anymore. He’s the former heir to the throne, who is now leading a rebellion against it.

Rayce is a wanted man and dangerously charismatic, the worst person for Rose to get involved with, no matter what his smile promises. But he assumes Rose’s attempt to take him hostage is part of a plot to crush the rebellion, so he takes her as his hostage. Now Rose must prove where her loyalties lie, and she offers Rayce a deal—if he helps her rescue the other girls, she’ll tell him all the Garden’s secrets.

Except the one secret she’s kept for seven years that she’ll take to her grave if she must.

Note: I received an ARC of this via Netgalley. This in no way influences my opinion.

I had a lot of fun reading this book. I absolutely love the cover and, when I read the blurb, I knew I had to request it from Netgalley! I am so glad that I got accepted because I really enjoyed this!

Immediately we are thrown into this crazy world that Rose lives in. She is a prisoner of the Garden and she is forced to perform. From the very first page, we can see the kind of conditions she is forced to live in and it makes the reader just want to save her and wrap her up in bubble wrap so that she never has to go through it ever again. Her captivity definitely has an impact on her mentally that she struggles with throughout the entire book and it was interesting and satisfying to watch her grow as a person and watch her learn that not everyone is like the people in the Garden. She is extremely headstrong where it matters and I really like her.

The villains in the garden are people that readers just love to hate. They are really just terrible and easy to hate. There isn’t a redeemable factor about either the Gardener or Shears and I would really love to know what their back story is and how they ended up the way that the did. I would also love to know what happened to the guy who sold Rose out into captivity – what’s his story and where did he end up?

I really liked the people in the rebellion. I was actually pretty skeptical at first because they seemed a bit too good to be true? I was expecting some form of crazy plot twist where they were actually evil too… but it never came! I could see myself being friends with all of the people in the rebellion and I would have loved to get to know some of them more!

The only real issue I had with this book is the fact that it took Rose a little too long to start trusting people, even after they proved themselves time and time again. It became a little exhausting after a while and I just wanted to clip her around the ear so…

Can we just mention the ending? Obviously I don’t want to get into it too much, but it was so bittersweet! I was not expecting what happened and I was pretty upset when it did happen!

All in all, I really enjoyed myself reading this book and I am assuming there will be a sequel based on the ending? I am hoping so anyway! I gave this book 4/5 stars.