Reading Round Up (88)

Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress, my thoughts on each book as I read it, and any books I've acquired during the week. 

Super short update to get me back on the right schedule!

27th August

I read 19% of Fire and Chasm by Chelsea M, Campbell and I think I'll end up really liking this, if only it would get going already...

28th August

I read 39% of Fire & Chasm today, and I do like it, but I'm not loving it.

29th August

I wanted to finish Fire & Chasm today but I got so far and wanted to stop. I read 30% though.

30th August

I finished Fire & Chasm finally, and it was alright. It had all the elements of an awesome book but I just never loved any of it.

Books finished this week: 1
Books DNF'd this week: 0

For review:

You know I'm not linking all these. I am way too lazy for that. But here's what I got from Harper Collins, and imprints:

Witch Hunter (5 STARS)

The Vanishing Island (3 STARS)

Fire & Chasm (ARC Review)

Fire & Chasm | Chelsea M. Campbell

Published by: Skyscape, September 22nd 2015

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Witches (Well, wizards...)

Pages: 172

Format: Ebook

Source: Skyscape, via Netgalley

Azeril is a ward of the Church, and their most cunning weapon. By day he hides in plain sight as a student, but with his beloved obsidian knife, he also kills wizards. Az has no memory of his life before the Church, until one night, when a wizard recognizes him from his past. The killer in Az never misses his mark, but he can’t destroy the only potential link to his life before this. For the first time, Az has a lead on who he used to be—if only he could escape the watchful eye of the High Priest long enough to investigate.

Azeril discovers that the line between good and evil—the primal forces of the Fire and the Chasm—is as shifting as his own moral compass. And the truth about who he is will put his entire world in danger.

This book had all the elements for an amazing book, but it just didn't click with me personally. I liked plenty - the characters and their motives were easy to understand, the threat was fairly unique, and I didn't mind the world/lore of the Fire and the Chasm. Some points felt a little overly religious like the ending where the MC overcame the Chasm (bad, corruption, sin) by accepting Fire (pure, wholesomeness.) For a book about a church I expected less of that, for some reason. 

But I did like a lot about this - the magic was fairly unique, having been gifted from the Fire, I loved the moments of darkness from the boy, and I'd never read anything like Az's addiction to Obsidian. Az and Leora's relationship was sweet, and I liked how they were friends at the beginning, instead of a growing romance. 

But nothing about this book really stood out to me. It wasn't bad, but it just wasn't anything new, and I can't imagine I'll remember it.

Characters ★★★☆☆

Setting/world-building ★★★☆☆

Writing ★★★☆☆

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Witch Hunter (ARC Review)

The Witch Hunter: Witch Hunter | Virginia Boecker

Published by: Hodder & Stoughton, September 1st 2015

Genre: YA, Historical (sorta), Fantasy, Witches

Pages: 409

Format: Ebook

Source: Hodder & Stoughton, via Netgalley

Witches, watch out... Half Bad meets Kill Bill in this incredible new supernatural series.

Sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Grey doesn't look dangerous. A tiny, blonde, wisp of a girl shouldn't know how to poison a wizard and make it look like an accident. Or take out ten necromancers with a single sword and a bag of salt. Or kill a man using only her thumb. But things are not always as they appear. Elizabeth is one of the best witch hunters in Anglia and a member of the king's elite guard, devoted to rooting out witchcraft and bringing those who practice it to justice. And in Anglia, the price of justice is high: death by burning.

When Elizabeth is accused of being a witch herself, she's arrested and thrown in prison. The king declares her a traitor and her life is all but forfeit. With just hours before she's to die at the stake, Elizabeth gets a visitor - Nicholas Perevil, the most powerful wizard in Anglia. He offers her a deal: he will free her from prison and save her from execution if she will track down the wizard who laid a deadly curse on him.

As Elizabeth uncovers the horrifying facts about Nicholas's curse and the unwitting role she played in its creation, she is forced to redefine the differences between right and wrong, friends and enemies, love and hate... and life and death.

The first book in an incredible new series set in a fantastical medieval world.

This book has been compared to Graceling, Game of Thrones, Kill Bill, Half Bad, and the novels of both Sarah J. Maas and Holly Black. Basically, the comparisons need to chill. I understand the usefulness of them, and have found many a great book because of a comparison, but SIX for one book?

This book is awesome and can stand apart from (and above most of) the comparisons. Set in a fantasy version of England, Witch Hunter introduces us to a world where witches are persecuted and witch hunters work for the Inquisitor, a real nasty weasel called Blackwell - who has his own agenda for wanting wizards killed (and a serious plot twist that is!) I loved the world of Witch Hunter instantly. I've read a lot of witch books and none of them really caught my interest as much as this, and once I was fully absorbed in the story I was flying through the pages and unable to stop reading.

The unique world forms the basis of this story, but the characters really carry it. I ended up loving Elizabeth way more than I first expected, and I fell head over heels for John. Another thing this book does is it introduces a female as the bitchy, jealous rival and then COMPLETELY CHANGES THAT by throwing them together and making them friends. Thank you, Witch Hunter, for this female friendship. And don't even get me started on the romance between John and Elizabeth, the slowest of slow burns that had me wanting to push their faces together and shout JUST KISS.

I loved literally everything about this book - the gradual romance, the stand out characters, the vivid world and its dark secrets. I need the next book immediately.

Characters ★★★★★

Setting/world-building ★★★★★

Writing ★★★★☆

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The Vanishing Island (ARC Review)

The Chronicles of The Black Tulip: The Vanishing Island | Barry Wolverton

Published by: Walden Pond Press, September 1st 2015

Genre: MG, Fantasy, Ships

Pages: 352

Format: Ebook

Source: Walden Pond Press, via Edelweiss

Does the Vanishing Island really exist? And if so, what treasure—or terrible secret—was hidden by its disappearance?

It’s 1599, the Age of Discovery in Europe. But for Bren Owen, growing up in the small town of Map on the coast of Britannia has meant anything but adventure. Enticed by the tales sailors have brought through Map’s port, and inspired by the arcane maps his father creates as a cartographer for the cruel and charismatic map mogul named Rand McNally, Bren is convinced that fame and fortune await him elsewhere. That is, until his repeated attempts to run away land him a punishment worse than death—cleaning up the town vomitorium.

It is there that Bren meets a dying sailor, who gives him a strange gift that hides a hidden message. Cracking the code could lead Bren to a fabled lost treasure that could change his life forever, and that of his widowed father. But to get there he will have to tie his fate to a mysterious Dutch admiral obsessed with a Chinese legend about an island that long ago disappeared from any map.

Before long, Bren is in greater danger than he ever imagined, and will need the help of an unusual friend named Mouse to survive. Barry Wolverton’s thrilling adventure spans oceans and cultures, brings together the folklore of East and West, and proves that fortune is always a double-edged sword.

This book should be perfect for me - it's got ships and sailors and maps and a hidden island. But something about it never clicked, meaning I liked it a lot but never loved it.

Bren was a pretty okay character - fairly standard for MG fantasy although I was impressed with him not being an orphan (that trend is way old and this was a nice change.) Still, I would have loved to have read this entire book from Mouse's POV. Mouse was much more interesting and complex than Bren and I want to know more about her.

The story was great, though. It had everything I love as mentioned above, it wasn't stringent on the ship paraphernalia despite being a kid's book, and whenever the plot seemed to dip it would pick up the pace without warning. There were several WHAT THE HECK moments for me, which were a nice surprise - it's always fun to be shocked.

All in all, a fun, fast-paced fantasy that holds many secrets. You can't go wrong with this one.

Characters ★★★☆☆

Setting/world-building ★★★★☆

Writing ★★★☆☆

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Reading round up (87)

Reading round up is a weekly journal where I record my daily reading progress, my thoughts on each book as I read it, and any books I've acquired during the week. 

Delayed post because I went to Scarborough for birthday celebrations and then forgot to update for a few days.

17th August

I read 43% of The Unquiet by Mikaela Everett, which is really cool. I like how the parts of this book are spread out by years. Makes it feel more realistic.

18th August

Today I read another 30% of The Unquiet, finishing it. I really really liked it. Completely unique.

I started Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley, too, and read 11%. This is gonna piss me off so much, I can already tell.

19th August

Yep, Lies We Tell Ourselves is making me angry with literally every page. I don't know what I expected from a book about institutional racism but it wasn't uncontrollable rage and the urge to kill fictional kids. I read 25% today.

20th August

I read another 34% of Lies We Tell Ourselves, and I prefer Sarah's POV to Linda's but now I understand Linda a bit better.

21st August

I finished Lies We Tell Ourselves, and I was pretty emotional in the end.

22nd August

I started Witch Hunter by Virginia Boecker (16%), which is actually pretty good. Can't tell if it's set in London or York though. Hoping York!

23rd August

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY!!! :)

I read nothing today because I was busy shopping and gazing at ships and the lighthouse. Cool stuff.

24th August

I read 32% of Witch Hunter and I'm enjoying it so much.

25th August

Okay, so I'm in love with Witch Hunter. And John, precious John, my child, my perfect healer. Today I read 34%.

26th August

I finished Witch Hunter (18%), and went through immediate withdrawals. So I read The Healer, the novella about John. I loved the insight into him and the things that haunt him, and it made me want to protect him 1000000% more. Stop tormenting John, Boecker!!

Also I started Fire and Chasm by Chelsea M, Campbell. Intriguing so far, and I can see it being really good.

Books finished this week: 4
Books DNF'd this week: 0

For review:

Two genres I rarely read for this week's galleys: contemporary romance and adult literary fantasy. Intrigued by all, and have high expectations of the Rachel Vincent one (of course.)

Polaris (4.5 STARS)
For The Right To Learn (4 STARS)
Eden's Wish (3 STARS)