Tag: book wrapup

Equal Rites Review

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  • Author: Terry Pratchett
  • Series: Discworld #3
  • Genre: Fantasy
  • No. of pages: 288
  • Dates read: 17.06.19 – 24.06.19
  • Rating: 3 stars

This book was kind of lack-luster!

Plot: The last thing the wizard Drum Billet did, before Death laid a bony hand on his shoulder, was to pass on his staff of power to the eighth son of an eighth son. Unfortunately for his colleagues in the chauvinistic (not to say misogynistic) world of magic, he failed to check that the baby in question was a son. Everybody knows that there’s no such thing as a female wizard. But now it’s gone and happened, there’s nothing much anyone can do about it. Let the battle of the sexes begin…

Let me explain… the first half I loved. I loved getting to know Eskarina and watching her magic grow and her setting off on her adventure. The second half, to be honest when she meets Simon and gets to the Unseen University, I got bored. The plot centred so much on Simon and I never really grasped why and I never really cared because I didn’t care for Simon as a character.

Simon was an average character introduced, in my opinion, too late into the story. I didn’t connect with him so when all the stuff that went down at the end, I didn’t really care what happened to him.

I felt the ending was rushed and not really well thought out. It felt like it came out of no-where. I didn’t get how we got into the situation and then how we managed to get out of the situation. I was just very confused with the final 50 pages and I didn’t really like how it was all tied up. I would have preferred a story in which we watch Eskarina grow up to learn to use her powers and learn to control the staff with or without the help of wizards. I just didn’t like where the narrative went in the second half of the novel.

What I did love, as per, was Pratchett’s witty dialogue. I laughed out loud at some points, especially with Granny Weatherwax. I enjoyed his tangents on mundane objects or about characters that we will never meet again in this book, after this one interaction. I thought it was fun and light-hearted.

I loved Eskarina’s character. She was so ballsy and wouldn’t let anyone stop her on her journey to control and learn about her powers. Her relationship with Granny Weatherwax was so interesting. I loved watching them grow to love each other and how they look out for each other no matter what!

I also LOVED Pratchett’s commentary on gender equality. Constantly there were references to how women would never be able to do a man’s job and how women weren’t allowed in places of high education. I loved how the women in this book dismissed these statements and paved their own way and how the narrator made a note to add he disagreed with the misogynistic characters and things they were saying. Plus, the image of Granny Weatherwax slamming open the doors to the great hall and duelling with the Archchancellor of the Unseen University made me very happy!!

The next book I will be reviewing is The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. From what I have grasped so far, is that it’s a mystery novel of missing child set in Botswana.

Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag

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Hi everyone, so since we are halfway through the year I thought it would be best if I told you all my thoughts and feelings on the books I read in the first 6 months of 2019!

I plan on –

  • Listing all the books I read.
  • Update on my challenges.
  • Then do the generic tag, giving you an insight into my opinions so far!

The books I have read so far…

Challenge Update!

So, in regards to my 2019 sequels challenge where I planned to read the sequel to all the books I read in 2018… I have done very, very well. I have only one book left which is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and then I would have completed my 2019 sequels challenge!

For my ONTD Challenge, I have also been incredibly successful! The list below is the books I have read so far for the challenge.

  • January ~ (Read a book that is being turned into a movie or TV show in 2019) ~ The Light Fantastic – Terry Pratchett and The Fellowship of the Ring – J.R.R Tolkien. (I did get this wrong as I chose books that weren’t being made or released as tv shows or movies in 2019 but I still technically fulfilled the challenge just the wrong year!)
  • February ~ (Read a book that includes romance or a book in which characters experience a break-up) ~ Obsidio – Amie Kaufman + Jay Kristoff and Legendary – Stephanie Garber.
  • March ~ (Read a non-fiction book) ~ How To Adult – Stephen Wildish.
  • April ~ (Read a book about time-travel) ~ The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August – Claire North
  • May ~ (Read a book set in a country you have never been too) ~ The Girl in the Tower – Katherine Arden (Russia) and The Boundless – Kenneth Oppel (Canada)
  • June ~ (Read a book about friendship) ~ Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire – J.K Rowling

Finally, for my Goodreads reading challenge. I have read 25 books out of my target of 33. So only 8 more books to go!

On with the tag questions…

Best book you have read so far in 2019:

The best book is a toss-up between Mortal Engines by Phillip Reeve or Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman. Both were action packed and full of amazing characters and set in two very different worlds. One is a post-apocalyptic dystopian, the other a flourishing utopia. Very different, it is too hard to choose now but I will choose Mortal Engines by Phillip Reeve! See the next question.

Best sequel you have read so far in 2019:

Well, this one is easy! Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman, this book was so much better than Scythe and I didn’t think we were going to be able to top Scythe! The world-building was incredible as per but the stakes felt higher in this book than in the first one and we started to move away from it being Citra and Rowan’s sole journey but to a wider more political novel about the society itself. This aspect I really enjoyed!

New release you haven’t yet read but want to:

There are so many new releases I want to read! I can’t pick one!

  • The Girl in Red – Christina Henry. My favourite author of 2018 but her last book was incredibly disappointing I hope she will bring it back with this one.
  • City of Girls – Elizabeth Gilbert
  • Gods of Jade and Sorrow – Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Biggest disappointment:

Fire and Heist by Sarah Beth Durst. This book was awful! The only reason I gave this a two-star rating is because the main character’s friend is super lovely and I see a bit of myself in her but besides that the book is awful! What was disappointing about this was that this was my first book from a book subscription box and I had really high expectations for the book as they, so rightfully, hyped it up. But it was just awful and the string of books that followed, from the company, weren’t any better, thankfully I came out of the slump thanks to their March box. But it was just disappointing as it was hyped up so much and under-delivered incredibly.

Biggest surprise:

The Long Way To A Small Angry Plant by Becky Chambers. This was a book I had seen posted around and mentioned numerous times but I never felt the desire to pick it up. A friend from work gave it to me to read and I was blown away by how sweet, funny and crazy it was. It has ended up becoming one of my favourite books of this year and I just loved the friendships and bonds that were formed. I always considered this book to be something I wouldn’t like.

Favourite new author:

I would have to say, Phillip Reeve. He is a new author to me this year and I thoroughly enjoyed his book, the world-building was amazing. The action was exhilarating and if it wasn’t for my massive pile of books on my desk waiting to be read I would pick up the next book now and read it!

Newest favourite character:

Again I couldn’t pick just one character so see the list below:

  • Rhen Tellur – To Best The Boys
  • Valentine Waterford – Resort to Murder
  • The entire cast of The Long Way To A Small Angry Planet
  • Jupiter North – Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow
  • Death – The Discworld Series

Book that made you cry:

No book will ever come close to the tears I shed reading Lost Boy by Christina Henry. The closest I got to was Obsidio by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. To me it was more emotion towards it being the end of the series, I really enjoyed this trilogy and the themes that were discussed in these novels are very heart-breaking and to see it all end and especially in the way it did. It did make me get emotional but I didn’t cry.

Book that made you happy:

I again have a few as I can’t pick one.

  • The Girl in the Tower – Katherine Arden. Mainly because it was such an improvement from her first book.
  • TLWTASAP – Becky Chambers. Just a fun book about friendship and connections with an incredibly funny cast.
  • The Light Fantastic – Terry Pratchett. His books are always just so fun and it’s so easy to get lost into his world and his writing.

Most beautiful book you have received or bought this year.

The Mortal Engines cover is the most outstanding cover so far this year. The artwork is absolutely amazing and breath-taking!

What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

I have so many books that I need to read. I have 13 books waiting on my shelf to be read and most of these books don’t fit into the remaining ONTD reading categories so I will have to get more books in order to achieve that challenge. There are too many books to count!

Mortal Engines Review

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  • Author: Phillip Reeve
  • Series: Mortal Engines Quartet #1
  • Genre: Sci-fi/Dystopian
  • No. of pages: 336
  • Dates read: 29.05.19 – 10.06.19
  • Rating: 4 stars

I didn’t know much about this story going into it, I had watched the trailer for the movie and that was about it. I am so happy that I have found this series!

Plot: London is a city on wheels – a future city like you’ve never known before. In the terrible aftermath of the Sixty Minute War, cities which survived the apocalypse became predators, chasing and feeding on smaller towns. Now London is hunting down its prey, getting ready to feed. But as the chase begins, Tom uncovers a secret – a secret full of deadly consequences. Soon he is plunged into a world of unkillable enemies, threatened by a weapon that will tear his life apart.

First of all, the setting was unlike anything I have read before. I loved the world-building of the city of London with its many cogs, levels and pipes. It had a massive steampunk feel to it, the city felt like it was just patched together with what was available. Reeve did an amazing job in painting a picture for you of London and all the other places that we visit. I just fell in love with this messed up world.

The characters in this book were incredibly varied. I loved seeing Tom turn from coward to hero, becoming the hero he dreamed of being. I loved Hester’s character the most, she was a woman with a goal and was unwavering! (Ignore the fact her goal is to murder someone.) Katherine was such a beautiful and hopeful character and you just want to see her succeed. The female characters especially lift quite a lot of the male characters up in this story which was great to see!

One thing I didn’t love, there is probably a reason behind this, was the emphasis on Hester’s “ugliness”. She has a scar which haunts her everywhere she goes and I felt slightly uncomfortable whenever she was referenced as ugly or disgusting by all the male characters she comes into contact with, it’s a sign of trauma in her life and it’s something that should be dismissed as ugly and unworthy of someone’s time. But there is probably a deeper meaning to this but I had to say it.

I loved the different POV’s we got throughout the story, we were watching many different sides to this big narrative! We got Katherine’s journey of discovery, Tom’s journey of survival and Hester’s journey of revenge. All very different journey’s so it made for an incredibly interesting read and very dynamic plot!

The romance that brewed in this novel worked well for me. It wasn’t too over-empowering but also developed enough so you didn’t think it came out of the blue.

I loved the theme of loss that flows its way through the story. While I can’t say too much due to spoilers, nearly every character has experienced, prior to the story or during the story, some element of losing something and now has to deal with that loss. It was a theme that follows you from page to page.

My final point would be that it felt very much like a standalone novel, someone the actions and plot points felt very final to me rather than the pathway to a second novel. So, I am interested to see where Reeve goes with the series, as it’s quite unclear to me.

The next book I will be reviewing is The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell. A more light-hearted and fun novel. I am still re-reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire as I am typing this but there will be a blog post about that book as well.

May Wrap Up 2019

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Here are the books I read in the month of May.

Resort to Murder by TP Fielden (4 stars)

This was another good instalment to the new murder mystery series by TP Fielden. I found the case to be far more engaging than the previous book, the addition of the character Valentine to be a brilliant choice and the ending to be a lot more satisfying than the original novel. That being said I did find some problems with the characterisation of one of the female characters in this book. She could have been written a lot better.

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger (1.5 stars)

This was boring! I DNFed this book at 25% and because I only read 58 pages of the 230-page book, I didn’t feel like I had enough reasons or have read enough of the book to review it. This is my first 1 star of the year! To me, since it’s a character-driven novel, I had no idea where the plot was going, nor did I care! I also found the main character to be annoying and whiny. His stream of consciousness kind of monologue was dull and painful to read.

The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden (5 stars)

Another book which avoided 2nd Book Syndrome! I read the first novel and felt underwhelmed. But I decided to pick up the second book as I quite liked the direction it was going and it blew my mind! I loved how it kept to what made the first book so great, most importantly the folklore creatures but it also expanded on where it initally faultered. Vasya’ character development was done very well in this book.

The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel (2 stars)

This was a disappointing one for me. Mainly it felt like a middle grade trying to be YA. Also the book was full of a variety of genres that I couldn’t quite put my finger on, one minute it’s historical fiction and then it’s fantasy. The writing was lacking for me as well and I was just completely underwhelmed with it all.

Viper by Bex Hogan (3 stars)

This one I enjoyed. One of the last books I read from my Fairyloot subscription boxes and I loved it. I had never read a pirate story before so I was excited going into it. My favourite thing was the father/daughter dynamic between our main charcter and her father the infamous Viper! This story is incredibly action-packed and heart-breaking. I recommend everyone should give this a read!

To Best The Boys by Mary Weber (4 stars)

My last book for May and I have left the month very happy. This was one of my highly anticipated reads of 2019 and I loved it!! A book that every young girl should read. It’s incredibly empowering with an amazing message with two strong female characters at the forefront of the story. This story is like Viper, full of twists and turns and you root for girls the entire way through the novel. It also has a deadly labyrinth and who doesn’t love Labyrinths!

Viper Review

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  • Author: Bex Hogan
  • Series: Isles of Storm and Sorrow #1
  • Genre: Fantasy
  • No. of pages: 400
  • Dates read: 16.05.19 – 21.05.19
  • Star rating: 3.75 stars

I got this from a book subscription box and I had bought other ones for the same company and had not enjoyed the books selected that much or at all! So going into this I was quite worried I would have the same experience but I was happy to be proven wrong!

Plot: Seventeen-year-old Marianne is fated to one day become the Viper, defender of the Twelve Isles. But the reigning Viper stands in her way. Corrupt and merciless, he prowls the seas in his warship, killing with impunity, leaving only pain and suffering in his wake. He’s the most dangerous man on the ocean . . . and he is Marianne’s father. She was born to protect the islands. But can she fight for them if it means losing her family, her home, the boy she loves – and perhaps even her life?

For starters, the world of the Eastern Isles is really imaginative and I loved being in that world. I felt the introduction to the world and its history was done really well and was a very interesting part of the story. I really enjoyed hearing about the past between the Eastern and Western Isles. It was all thought out very well. Hogan’s descriptive writing of the different islands was really fun to read about. You could picture yourself there.

I have never read a pirate story before and I feel this is a really good introduction into these kinds of novels. I felt that Hogan’s writing when it came to explaining the ways of the Viper’s ship and all the sailing jargon was done really well to show the intricacies and knowledge Hogan had but also simpler enough that if you had never heard of this stuff before you weren’t incredibly lost. Also, the description of fighting was amazing, since these characters are such skilled fighters you have to have writing that matches that.

The female characters were stand out in this novel and I felt Marianne was a great protagonist. I especially loved her internal struggle of trying to figure out where she stands in the world and who she truly is. Her strength was something I truly loved about her, despite everything, she stands tall and continues to fight. It’s a very admiral trait to have in a female character.

Her relationship with her father was the most interesting part of the whole book. It’s a very traumatic and heart-breaking dynamic that could be hard for certain readers to read. You spend the whole book rooting for her, as you truly see a monster more than a man with Captain Alder. I think it’s an interesting pairing to have with a book as I am used to female characters standing up against evil mothers, not fathers.

I really enjoyed the exploration of what it means to be a woman in the world and especially what sacrifices the female characters have had to make in order to survive whether it’s on an island or on the Viper’s ship.

I thought the arranged marriage between Torin and Marianne was done really well. I think most arranged marriages are written to be evil things that act as prisons for the main character and while this can be the case, it was nice to see a more positive spin on a trope which is normally used more negatively.

My only qualms with this novel are:

I felt the magic and all the stuff surrounding the magic could have been introduced or hinted at earlier on. There were signs here and there but they were too subtle and I felt when they did the big reveal that it came out of no-where and I would have been happy if she just a normal teenager trying to survive.

I really didn’t like the whole “I’m scared of the darkness within me” trope that happens a lot in books like this. I found that it was used to much and it got quite tiresome by the end of it as personally, I would love to see her embrace all sides of herself.

Finally, the romance took some time to really work for me. I am not the biggest fan of romance in stories, as I have seen it be done horribly so I am always cautious but I ended up enjoying it, it just took some time.

Resort to Murder Review

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  • Author: TP Fielden
  • Series: A Miss Dimont Mystery #2
  • Genre: Historical/Murder Mystery
  • No. of pages: 300
  • Dates read: 26.04.19 – 03.05.19
  • Ratings: 4 stars
  • Challenge: 2019 Sequels

Plot (as seen on Goodreads): With its pale, aquamarine waters and golden sands, the shoreline at Temple Regis was a sight to behold. But when an unidentifiable body is found there one morning, the most beautiful beach in Devon is turned into a crime scene. For Miss Dimont – ferocious defender of free speech, champion of the truth and ace newspaperwoman for The Riviera Express – this is a case of paramount interest, and the perfect introduction for her young new recruit Valentine Waterford. Even if their meddling is to the immense irritation of local copper Inspector Topham… Soon Miss Dimont and Valentine are deep in investigation – why can nobody identify the body, and why does Topham suspect murder? And when a second death occurs, can the two possibly be connected?

Another solid sequel that I have read this week. TP Fielden has been a pleasant surprise and I was not disappointed by his 2nd instalment.

First of all, my main positive about this book would be the introduction of a new main character, Valentine Waterford. He was a brilliant addition to the story and it felt good to have another set of eyes to view the story from.

I really enjoyed the structure of this story where we see the reporters cover 3 big stories. The stories were incredibly interesting and varied. I sadly can’t say much about the cases without spoiling the plot but it just worked so well and I preferred the structure of the investigation into both murders compared to how it was done in the first book.

As per usual, Fielden did a great job at describing the town of Temple Regis, giving life to the town and making it feel as if Temple Regis itself was a character within the story. An omnipotent being watching the drama unfold before it. 

Two of my main stumbling blocks with this book is that first of all it took some time for the narrative to really get going. The first 100 pages while easy to read were not that exciting, once you get past the 100 pages mark the story really starts to kick and that’s when you get invested. It was a bit disappointing that you had to wait for 100 pages to get there.

My other bugbear was the characterisation of Ursula, the leader of the Sisters of Reason feminist group. I felt she was only included to play the angry, ugly feminist and she was a one-dimensional character. I understand the point that was meant to be made about the fringe feminist group and the fight for gender equality at that time. Some great points were raised, I just feel that making the leader a more masculine woman and subsequently writing her as an unlikable individual who everyone dislikes or is intimidated with no redeeming qualities was not subtle and could have been written better.

April Wrap Up 2019

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Below is the list of the four books I read in April. The photo includes all the books I own. I had a pretty good April with most books being 4 stars or more!

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (4.5 stars)

This book to me was 4 stars until the very ending. I couldn’t give it 5 stars due to the fact I felt that Christie relied on the ending for her book entirely. While I felt that the ending was masterful, I felt the book as a whole was 4 stars.

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North (4 stars)

This book had been on my TBR list for ages and I thought I was never going to pick this us. This was until the ONTD Reading Challenge came along and set the theme of “Time Travel” for the month of April and I knew this was the book I was going to read. This book was an incredible slow-burner and I loved reading about this immaculate life/lives that Harry lives.

The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers (5 stars)

This book was recommended to me by a friend from work, I don’t own this book so it’s not included in the photo. It was a book I had seen all over Booktube and Goodreads but never felt the urge to pick it up and did I feel like an idiot when I sat on the train back home from work and fell in love with these crazy characters! This is more of a character-driven novel and it was so, so good. Everyone should read it!

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (2 stars)

So this book… I have not done a review for this book since I DNFed it at 40% so I couldn’t give a review on a book I didn’t even read half of. But I did read that 40% in April so I think it should be noted. To be honest, the reason I put it down was due to the desire to pick it back up was minimal and while I did want to know how it ended, I didn’t want to read the extra 300 pages to get there! I just decided to put it down and move away.

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August Review

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  • Author: Claire North
  • Series: Standalone
  • Genre: Sci-fi/Historical
  • No of pages: 405
  • Date read: 05.04.19 – 11.04.19
  • Rating: 4 stars
  • Challenge: ONTD April Theme “Time Travel”

I have been needing a book like this for so long!

This is my current favourite of 2019!

I read this book for the ONTD book of the month of April. The theme for April was time-travel and I was curious about what I was going to read and saw this book which had been sitting on my TBR for so long and thought, this is the moment!

Overall, Harry is a really intriguing character! We see him over 15 lifetimes and we learn more and more about him as each life passes. We know what makes him tick, what makes him laugh, what makes him cry and he feels like someone you know and understands like a friend as we watch him go on this journey. I really enjoyed his POV.

One of my favourites thing about the plot was the flipping between the current over-arching narrative working alongside the little peeks into important moments in Harry’s other lives. We will have a major plot point occur and followed up by an insight into his childhood from his 4th life and we learn about his relationship with his father. I think the pacing works well, switching between moments of high adrenaline and then moments of calm. I think this kind of narrative is also important to Harry’s character development.

I loved the Cronus Club and all the characters you meet because of the Cronus Club. Especially, all the jokes that members and other Kalacharka make regarding their immortality and constantly going through new cycles of life. I loved the jokes of not wanting to go through puberty again. The Cronus Club as a franchise was really intriguing, I loved learning how they worked and how they communicated with the future and the past.

North’s writing to me was really enjoyable. Her writing sucked me into the point where I couldn’t put the book down. I just wanted to keep on reading!

One thing I would say is there is a lot of science jargon and philosophical debate that is held between two characters of very high intelligence and those scenes would just go way over my head and came across quite dull as I couldn’t understand half of what they said. Chapters would be dedicated to these scientific debates and I got bored of those chapters quite quickly.

To me this was a slow burn of a book, I was always really enjoying it but I never had a moment of a sucker-punch WOW moment. It just grew on me slowly and when I finished it I just sat there and thought that was such a good book! This book was consistent, apart from the science debates, I loved every moment of this book and enjoyed picking back up everytime!

March Wrap Up 2018

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Below is a list of the five books I read in March. The photo is missing Thunderhead sadly 😦

Legendary by Stephanie Garber (3 stars)

A great sequel to an amazing debut novel, though not without faults. Garber’s writing was enveloping, she welcomed you back to her world like she welcoming you back home. Yet the strucutre of the plot was a bit lacking at times.

Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman (5 stars)

A jaw-dropping sequel! It was so good I have a friend from work picking up the series just so he can read this book. The world building is the standout feature in this story and more so than ever we see our own society reflected in this novel.

The Power by Naomi Alderman (4 stars)

A pre-dystopian novel I didn’t know I needed. The multi-perspective/characters were the highlights of the story. Alot of triggers litter this book, which I list in the review but this is just a warning going into the book.

The Storm Crow by Kalyn Josephson (3.75 stars)

My very first arc! This was a promising debut and I will definitely pick up the next book she releases. The representation in this book stood out to me alot and I felt it was done really well. The main character was really great and I enjoyed reading her POV.

How to Adult by Stephen Wildish (3 stars)

A satirical non-fiction book I read but I don’t know how to review a book like that so I gave it an average rating. It was very funny and a quick read for March.

The Power Review

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  • Author: Naomi Alderman
  • Series: Standalone
  • Genre: Sci-fi/Feminism
  • No. of pages: 341
  • Dates read: 19.03.19 – 24.03.19
  • Rating: 4.5 stars

I have never read a book like this before! I don’t read much science fiction but I was quite intrigued by the synopsis.

There numerous trigger warnings in this book, so please be careful if you ever decide to pick it up. I don’t mention the triggers in my review but this is my warning for triggers such as:
Rape, Sexual Assualt, Violence and Torture

POSITIVES

I loved the whole concept in general of women having this dormant power and women becoming this unstoppable force and rising up from oppression. I was also interested to see which way Naomi would go with this story. Would she go down the route of “society was changed for the better because women were now in charge” or would she go down the route of “society collapses from the rise in power.” I was very happy with the road she took.

I loved all the characters in the stories both good or evil or in-between. I felt each character introduced a new perspective to this changing world and all actions were justified in their minds as their knee-jerk reaction to these sudden changes.

I really enjoyed the multiple POV’s, I think for us to fully understand the worldwide/societal change this new phenomenon brought, we had to see it from varying characters in different parts of the world. All 4 POV’s represented certain parts of society and through them, we see how those parts responded.

Tunde was the media. Margot was the politics. Allie was the religion. Roxy was the organised crime.

I don’t normally like this dystopian novels as I get bored quite quickly but what I liked about this book is we actually witness all the small changes that lead to the quickly forming dystopian society. We are not introduced to the story halfway through like we are with books such as the “The Hunger Games” where the dystopian setting was established years ago but at the very beginning and we watch everything unravel.

The language switch was intriguing. A lot of words and phrases were used to describe men and their horrible situation, especially by the end of the book, that normally gets associated with women or references something that women go through every day and I thought it was interesting to see that switch. In which these things were being said about men instead of women. It was a weird experience to read it!

NEGATIVES

While I really enjoyed the book, I didn’t care for the ending. It didn’t pack a punch for me. A lot is left unsaid. We don’t know what happens to the characters we have invested our time into which was quite disappointing for me. I had to go to a forum on Goodreads to fully understand the ending, which when explained to me sounded really cool but I didn’t care for the execution.

Overall, I started losing momentum about 3/4 of the way through the book. If it had been a bit shorter I probably would have enjoyed the ending more than I did.

The next book I will be reviewing is an ARC I received in their December 2018 Fairyloot box. I will be reading The Storm Crow by Kalyn Josephson.