29 April 2014

Dreams of Gods and Monsters (One line review)

Daughter of Smoke and Bone: Dreams of Gods and Monsters | Laini Taylor
Published by: Hodder & Stoughton, April 17th 2014
Genre: YA, Epic fantasy, Paranormal
Pages: 613
Format: Hardback
Source: Purchased

By way of a staggering deception, Karou has taken control of the chimaera rebellion and is intent on steering its course away from dead-end vengeance. The future rests on her, if there can even be a future for the chimaera in war-ravaged Eretz.

Common enemy, common cause.

When Jael's brutal seraph army trespasses into the human world, the unthinkable becomes essential, and Karou and Akiva must ally their enemy armies against the threat. It is a twisted version of their long-ago dream, and they begin to hope that it might forge a way forward for their people.

And, perhaps, for themselves. Toward a new way of living, and maybe even love.

But there are bigger threats than Jael in the offing. A vicious queen is hunting Akiva, and, in the skies of Eretz ... something is happening. Massive stains are spreading like bruises from horizon to horizon; the great winged stormhunters are gathering as if summoned, ceaselessly circling, and a deep sense of wrong pervades the world.

What power can bruise the sky?

From the streets of Rome to the caves of the Kirin and beyond, humans, chimaera and seraphim will fight, strive, love, and die in an epic theater that transcends good and evil, right and wrong, friend and enemy. 

At the very barriers of space and time, what do gods and monsters dream of? And does anything else matter?



Endless and beautiful and vast, Dreams of Gods and Monsters is fraught with intense emotion and high impact action. Utterly, utterly unforgettable. This story will live with me forever.

Characters 
Setting/world building 
Writing Style ★★


28 April 2014

Reading round up (24)


Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress and my thoughts on each book as I read it. DREAMS OF GODS AND MONSTERS!!!!!!!!!!!! That's all my thoughts for this week.


21st April

Current page/percent: page 146
Read today: 71 pages
Thoughts: SO MUCH ANGST!! Just kiss and TALK ABOUT THINGS.

22nd April

Current page/percent: page 236
Read today: 90 pages
Thoughts: Ahhhhhhhhh Liraz/Ziri!! Yes!

23rd April

Current page/percent: page 270
Read today: 34 pages
Thoughts: Keep finding very little time to read this but it's So Good.

24th April

Current page/percent: page 388
Read today: 118 pages
Thoughts: ???????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!

25th April

Read to page 478 (90 pages read) and holy hell did I need that kiss. It's been horrible angsting agony for them to be apart!

26th April

SO CLOSE to being finished (read 78 pages, taking me to 556) and while I want to escape these crushing emotions, I cannot bear to have this series finished. I can't imagine how it must feel to those who have read this series from the very start; I only read DoSaB two months ago and I'm crying every few pages at the thought of Karou's story being done.

27th April

Current page/percent: page 613
Read today: 57 pages
Thoughts: I am destroyed.

Books finished this week: 1, though lets be real DoGaM is totally worth two. 613 pages!!

~

Books added to my collection:
(a new feature of Reading Round Up, because I don't get enough books per week to justify a separate post for Stacking The Shelves or In My Mailbox but I want to share my new books.)

The first 13 Morganville Vampires books.
I found all these in a charity book box and paid £10 for the lot of them. Don't know if I'll get around to reading them any time soon, or if I'll even like them, but they were a bargain.

Dreams of Gods and Monsters | Laini Taylor
Which you already guessed anyway... since I've read it. But hey look at this cute photo of Nolan.

25 April 2014

Cover reveal: Shadows Fall Away, by Kit Forbes

Shadows Fall Away | Kit Forbes
Expected September 23rd 2014 from Month9Books


Mark Stewart is one incident away from becoming a juvenile delinquent, and his parents have had enough. They ship Mark off to London England to stay with his eccentric aunt Agatha who is obsessed with all things Jack the Ripper. After a strange twist of luck, Mark is struck by lightning, and he wakes to find himself in 1888 Victorian London.

His interest in a string of murders Scotland Yard has yet to solve make him a likely suspect. After all, why would a young boy like Mark know so much about the murders? Could he be the ripper they've been searching for? Convinced the only way to get back home is to solve the murders, Mark dives headfirst into uncovering the truth.

Mark's only distraction comes in the form of the beautiful Genie Trembly, a girl who is totally out of his league and who may have already caught the attention of the infamous ripper. To save her, he'll endanger both their lives, and risk being trapped in the past forever.


About the Author:

Kit Forbes has been a lover of books, history, and all things paranormal for as long as she can remember. She lives in Western Pennsylvania with her youngest daughter and an assortment of cats who give new meaning to the world bizarre.


Giveaway open Internationally

24 April 2014

Bout of Books 10

Bout of Books

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, May 12th and runs through Sunday, May 18th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 10 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team


I'm finally participating in a Bout of Books!! I've been eyeing the read-a-thon since 8, but my schedules have always collided with it. But this time I am free!! And dear lord do I need a read-a-thon, I have so many books I'm meant to have read but I've been just too busy.

I usually read between 2 and 2.5 books per week, so I'm gonna aim for 4/5. Hopefully 5, but I have very little faith.

22 April 2014

#LGBTApril book recs

LGBTA+ Book Recommendations

It's been a while since I've made a book recs post, and since it's LGBTA+ month, I have the perfect excuse. It's becoming harder and harder to find queer books in genre fiction, mostly because I've already read the books out there . But every so often I stumble across a few gems, and these are the ones I've found.

Books I have read and personally recommend:


The Proxy series | Alex London (Gay main character)
 The Coldest Girl In Coldtown | Holly Black (Transgender secondary character)
The Dream Thieves/The Raven Cycle | Maggie Stiefvater (Gay main/secondary character)


The Demon's Lexicon series | Sarah Rees Brennan (Gay secondary character)
The Lynburn Legacy series | Sarah Rees Brennan (Lesbian secondary character)
The Pantomime series | Laura Lam (Intersex main character)

Books I have yet to read but other people recommend:


 Every book ever by Malinda Lo (Lesbian main characters abound)


 Books I know are LGBTA+ but don't know in what way:

The Culling | Steven Dos Santos
Coda | Emma Trevayne
Witch Eyes | Scott Tracey




21 April 2014

Reading round up (23)

Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress and my thoughts on each book as I read it. I have a tonne of novellas so I'm hoping to read a few of those, along with some galleys. I'm super behind with galleys.

14th April

Finished Proxy (30% read) and let's not ever talk about that ending okay. What the hell happened?


15th April

Current page/percent: 27%
Read today: 27%
Thoughts: Woah. What a way to start. So happy this didn't disappoint.


16th April

Current page/percent: 45%
Read today: 18%
Thoughts: Yeah. Pretty great. Maybe a bit droning, but hoping it's gonna change. It feels as if the character is just going through the motions.


17th April

Current page/percent: 77%
Read today: 32%
Thoughts: This got better. I think the dialogue and interaction makes this book a bit more compelling. If it had been Avene on her own, I think I'd have been irritated by her by now.


18th April

Finished The Headhunters Race (22% read), and read a further 5% of Defy by Sarah. B. Larson, taking me to 9%, though it looks like I'll be abandoning it for a few days, since Dreams of Gods and Monster came!!


19th April

Went out to see Bayside today so didn't read anything at all. Bayside were awesome, if you were wondering. In other news: I am now starting Dreams of Gods and Monsters.


20th April

Current page/percent: page 75
Read today: 75 pages
Thoughts: Ooh I like this new character. I have a theory she's one of the Godstars, and that they left to be hidden on Earth. Lets see if I'm right.

Books finished this week: 2

20 April 2014

Challenges galore!

Is it already halfway through April? What is happening to this year - it's just flying. I thought, since the first quarter of the year has passed, that I'd write an update on my reading challenges. 

At the beginning of the year I took on five challenges - two reading bingos, two of my own goal challenges, and a challenge over at Worlds Without End. I think I'm doing pretty great so far. While I may be behind on my overall goal, I'm much better than I thought I would be on the individual challenges.

Bingo 1


This is one of the challenges I think I'm doing pretty awesome with. Not to brag or anything. I've read 9 books towards it and have completed about a quarter ish, if my maths is correct (which it probably is not...) so I'm on track to finish on time.


Here are the books I've read:

The Immortal Rules | Julie Kagawa
Sworn To Raise | Terah Edun
The Castle Behind Thorns | Merrie Haskell
Rebel | Amy Tintera
Proxy | Alex London
Fragile Eternity | Melissa Marr
Radiant Shadows | Melissa Marr
Stolen Songbird | Danielle. L. Jensen
Black Dog | Rachel Neumeier

Bingo 2


11 books down!! Only 13 to go. This is by far my favourite bingo of all time. Each square is different and inventive. Here are the books I've read:

The Murder Complex | Lindsay Cummings
Riot | Sarah Mussi
The Blood List | Sarah Naughton
Ignite Me | Tahereh Mafi
Altered | Jennifer Rush
The Vanishing Season | Jodi Lynn Anderson
Daughter of Smoke and Bone | Laini Taylor
Infinityglass | Myra McEntire
The Gathering Dark | Leigh Bardugo
Days of Blood and Starlight | Laini Taylor
The Winner's Curse | Marie Rutkoski

Science Fiction challenge

This is one of the goals I set for myself. I want to read 10 sci fi books by the end of the year. So far I have read:

1 - Infinityglass | Myra McEntire
2 - Erased | Jennifer Rush
3 - Rebel | Amy Tintera
4 - The Murder Complex | Lindsay Cummings

Dystopia challenge

Another challenge I set for myself to make myself actually read the dystopic books on my shelves, specifically 25 books. As you can see, I'm doing shit on this challenge. Here's what I've read:

1 - Riot | Sarah Mussi
2 - Ignite Me | Tahereh Mafi
3 - The Immortal Rules | Julie Kagawa
4 - Proxy | Alex London

Women writers of genre fiction challenge


I haven't done so good with this one, mostly because there's only a few specific women writers listed on the Worlds Without End database and the books I've been writing aren't listed. But I have read:

1 - Laini Taylor (Daughter of Smoke & Bone)

General stats:

Books read as of 20/4: 21
Did not finish: 6
Series started: 9
Series completed: 4
Favourite so far: Daughter of Smoke & Bone / Days of Blood & Starlight | Laini Taylor
Least favourite so far: The Blood List | Sarah Naughton

18 April 2014

The Headhunters Race (RC Review)

Headhunters: The Headhunters Race | Kimberly Afe
Published by: January Sky Publishing, January 3rd 2014
Genre: YA, Dystopia, Survival Story
Pages: 196
Format: Ebook
Source: Provided by author in exchange for an honest review

Sixteen-year-old Avene was sentenced to prison at thirteen for a crime she didn't commit. Now she has a chance to win her freedom back – if she enters the Headhunters Race. Second prize isn't so bad either, an upgrade to the Leisure Prison if you make it to the finish line. To win either prize, Avene and the other prisoners must navigate one hundred and fifty miles of dense forest, desert, and worst of all, cannibal territory.

With a mechanical collar timed to strangle the prisoners if they're not back in nine days, Avene allies herself with seventeen-year-old McCoy, another prisoner that insists on helping her at every turn and a boy she's trying hard not to fall for. Together they battle nature, other prisoners, and the timed death collars to win the coveted prize. But when Avene is tested with one deadly conflict after another, she realizes there is more at stake than winning her freedom – first she has to survive.




When I started reading this, I expected more dystopia than survival story and I am extra happy that this book is what it is.

In The Headhunters Race Avene, the protagonist, is imprisoned with only one hope of getting out of jail - win a manhunt of prisoners organised by the governor, and capture a fugitive in return for her freedom. But she'll have to battle criminals much more deadly than her in order to return the fugitive to the governor - her sadistic stepfather.

The Headhunter's Race reads, quite unexpectedly, as a modern survivalist fairy tale. The imprisoned girl, the malevolent stepfather, the huge task she has to complete in order to achieve her goal - freedom. I loved all the different elements of this book. The transition from prison to wildlands is seamless, the threats and dangers piled on top of each other to create an impossible summit of conflict Avene had to overcome, and made for a compelling and at parts emotional thrill ride.

I had a couple issues with the middle of the book, where it seemed like threats were being thrown at Avene one after another for no apparent reason. I feel like this could have worked better had Avene made some real progress and then had set backs spaced at crucial moments - which actually did happen later in the book. But other than that, I enjoyed it.

The Headhunters Race is a fast paced, quick read to be enjoyed by fans of dystopia, post-apocalyptic, and contemporary thrillers alike.

Characters 
Setting/world building 
Writing Style ★★


16 April 2014

Proxy ( #LGBTApril Review)

Proxy: Proxy | Alex London
Published by: Philomel, June 18th 2013
Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Dystopia
Pages: 384
Format: Ebook
Source: Bought

Knox was born into one of the City’s wealthiest families. A Patron, he has everything a boy could possibly want—the latest tech, the coolest clothes, and a Proxy to take all his punishments. When Knox breaks a vase, Syd is beaten. When Knox plays a practical joke, Syd is forced to haul rocks. And when Knox crashes a car, killing one of his friends, Syd is branded and sentenced to death.

Syd is a Proxy. His life is not his own.

Then again, neither is Knox’s. Knox and Syd have more in common than either would guess. So when Knox and Syd realize that the only way to beat the system is to save each other, they flee. Yet Knox’s father is no ordinary Patron, and Syd is no ordinary Proxy. The ensuing cross-country chase will uncover a secret society of rebels, test both boys’ resolve, and shine a blinding light onto a world of those who owe and those who pay. Some debts, it turns out, cannot be repaid.




Proxy is a fast paced science fiction thriller with twists and turns abound and a (hallelujah) diverse cast of characters.

I liked a lot of things about Proxy. I liked the diversity of characters, how Alex London so spectacularly made his characters people, and didn't fall into the monotony of perpetuating the same old stereotypes. Syd's skin colour and sexuality is not made a big deal of - it's part of him, but it's not his personality and it's not his story. I loved that and I loved Syd.

I especially loved Knox, the little shit that he is, but let's just not go there ... ever.
((What the hell was that ending? *squints at Alex London for a full hour* What was that?))

Marie was pretty great too and I liked her motives ad beliefs and complexities. Looking forward to learning more about her in Guardian.

The plot, the pace, and the worldbuilding (oh, the worldbuilding!) were all pretty miraculous. Not gonna lie when I heard this book was about a) a character of colour and b) a gay guy, I assumed most of the plot would revolve around that character being pigeonholed or vicitimised because of said traits (made a slave because he's black, institutionalised because he's gay, etc). But what I got was a fully developed futuristic dystopic world, a fucked up ruling system, social classes, inequality that had little to do with race or sexuality, shit hitting the fan, a rich party boy thrown into the real world, and a rebellion that was equal parts 'whoa cool' and 'what the ever-loving fuck?'

Basically, read this book right now.

Characters 
Setting/world building 
Writing Style ★★


15 April 2014

Out Today: House of Ivy and Sorrow

House of Ivy & Sorrow | Natalie Whipple
from HarperTeen



Josephine Hemlock has spent the last 10 years hiding from the Curse that killed her mother. But when a mysterious man arrives at her ivy-covered, magic-fortified home, it’s clear her mother’s killer has finally come to destroy the rest of the Hemlock bloodline. Before Jo can even think about fighting back, she must figure out who she’s fighting in the first place. The more truth Jo uncovers, the deeper she falls into witchcraft darker than she ever imagined. Trapped and running out of time, she begins to wonder if the very Curse that killed her mother is the only way to save everyone she loves.


My rating: 
From my review (x)

A unique tale of family, love, and witchcraft. House of Ivy and Sorrow was a quick, enjoyable read.

14 April 2014

Reading round up (22)

Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress and my thoughts on each book as I read it. *drops down dead* I'm not sure what my life even is at this point. I need another Rosamund Hodge book to read.


7th April

I don't know what I'm doing. I'm still hung over from DoSaB, and Gilded Ashes, and now The Winner's Curse. So I started The Gathering Dark (Shadow & Bone) by Leigh Bardugo (50 pages). I really like it so far, though I don't love it, which I expected to. The world building is great though.

8th April

Currently reading: The Gathering Dark | Leigh Bardugo
Current page/percent: page 127
# of pages/percentage read today: 77 pages
Thoughts: Love Alina, love the Darkling. But not as enamoured as I thought I'd be.

9th April

Currently reading: The Gathering Dark | Leigh Bardugo
Current page/percent: page 230
# of pages/percentage read today: 103 pages
Thoughts: Loving the Darkling's irredeemable evil. Hoping he doesn't turn good in the next two books!

10th April

Finished The Gathering Dark. It wasn't as epic or sweeping as I hoped it would be, but it was still pretty amazing and I can't wait to read the next book in series. I also started reading 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare again and it's much better now I'm patient enough to stick with it.

11th April

Current page/percent: 29%
# of pages/percentage read today: 10%
Thoughts: I'm still not completely into this. Sensing a 3 star review. It's alright though, I like it well enough.

12th April

So I read Night of Cake and Puppets by Laini Taylor (100%) because I NEED DREAMS OF GODS AND MONSTERS ALREADY. I'm so impatient. Can it be next week already? (or better yet: can I live in the US so I can have already got it? If with a sub-beautiful cover because ours are SO much nicer, but I'll settle!!)

13th April

I've lost interest in 57 Lives at 33%. I just don't think this book is for me right now. Maybe in the future, I'll read it and love it. But any time soon? Nope. So I carried on reading Proxy by Alex London to 70% (24% read). I like it but I don't love it right now.


Books finished this week: 2