Reading round up (71)

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.

23rd March

Finished Beauty Awakened by Gena Showalter and all the things I didn't like about the first book were improved upon! Only 1 sex scene! And only one use of the word decadent (and even that was decadence, so it doesn't really count.) This book was just what I needed.

I also started Fire Study by Maria. V. Snyder (101 pages read!) which is ALREADY PERF. Somehow way better than Magic Study, so I guess I just didn't like the Keep. I'm really liking Moon Man, and loving Leif (Always loving Leif!)

And I read 12% of Of Sea and Stone by Kate Avery Ellison, a book I've recently had the urge to read for no good reason. So far Of Sea and Stone is alright, but I can tell it's just set up. Waiting for the good stuff! (Although loving the hate-hate relationship between the two MCs!!)

24th March

I read 51% of Of Sea and Stone and this went in a completely different direction than expected. Hate Nol. Not sure about the story. And I'd like the setting if it didn't have the feel of an ordinary city plonked underwater... And that's not even mentioning how the MC and her situation feel entirely disassociated... (A girl who hs been a slave her entire life, and been punished by her masters, would not just shrug off a mistake. She'd wait for the blows to fall.)

25th March

I finished Of Sea and Stone which wasn't terrible but not good either, and I read 103 pages of Fire Study which is way better than Magic Study but I can't put my finger on what makes it so awesome.

26th March

I started Rite of Rejection by Sarah Negovetich (10% read.) It's a strange mash of futuristic dictatorship and 19th century traditions. I don't see how the US could have reverted to a 1800s society but I don't hate the idea of it.

I also read 72 pages of Fire Study, bringing me to 276. This book just gets better and better.

27th March

Had a strange day today so didn't get much read. I'm at 18% of Rite of Rejection (8% read today) and I don't know where this is going. Part of me likes it, part of me doesn't. I'm on page 396 of Magic Study (120 pages read) and this is perf. Valek almost dying and Lief being angry at Yelena both made me cry but it's still perf.

28th March

Finished Fire Study (45 pages) which was AMAZING. I am so glad I didn't read this series years ago, because now I have more Yelena and Valek to read!! <3

29th March

I read 23% of Death Marked by Leah Cypess which isn't as good as the first book so far :(
I also read Assassin Study by Maria. V. Snyder (15 pages) which was SO DAMN COOL. Valek POV makes my heart do a happy dance.

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

 Witch Hunter | Virginia Boecker

Starborn | Lucy Hounsom

I AM SO DAMN HYPED TO HAVE THESE. ESPECIALLY STARBORN. THE PRECIOUSSSSSS.

I also got these AMAZON FREEBIES:

Divided | Eloise Dyson

Vengeance | AE Watson

Awoken | Sarah Noffke

Snow White Sorrow | Cameron Jace

The Arctic Code

Beauty Awakened

Magic Study

Of Sea and Stone (scheduled for April 1st)

Fire Study (date TBC)

Beauty Awakened (Review)

Angels of The Dark: Beauty Awakened | Gena Showalter

Published by: Mira Books, February 26th 2013

Genre: Adult, Paranormal Romance, Angels

Pages: 447

Format: Ebook

Source: Purchased

His name is Koldo. He is scarred, powerful, his control legendary-and he lives only for vengeance, determined to punish the angel who viciously removed his wings. But if he yields to the forces of hatred, he will be kicked from the heavens, eternally damned. 

She is his last hope. Nicola Lane was born with a defective heart, yet this fragile human shows surprising strength as demons stalk her every move, determined to end her. She is the key to Koldo's deliverance...and his downfall. Though he fights duty, destiny and his first addictive taste of desire, his toughest battle will be the one for Nicola's life-even if he has to sacrifice his own...

Beauty Awakened is awesome. All the gripes I had with the first book weren't present. There was a decent amount of intimacy without being overkill, no use of the word decadent, and everything just felt really balanced.

I love Zacharel more than Koldo, but I enjoyed this book a lot more. The action and romance just fit together better than book one. 

This book is just all kinds of good. Action and demons and kickass angels. A relationship that's passionate and not forced. Women with agency and guts. Men who aren't total alpha males (okay so they're like 90% alpha, but that 10% humanity makes them likeable.) And a war between angels (Sent Ones) and demons that is compelling and cool. Not to mention a hero with a screwed up life, twisted back story, and parents that both want to kill him.

Beauty Awakened is high-octane sequel with pockets of romance, meaning, and humour. Better than the first book by a long shot.

My only issues are superficial - Koldo on the cover is beardless, and the title has absolutely no relevance to this book whatsoever. Beauty Awakened? What's with that?

Characters ★★★☆☆

Setting/world building ★★★★☆

Writing ★★★★☆

Reading round up (70)

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.

16th March

Read ... pages of Death Sworn by Leah Cypess and finished it. This book is a damn good fantasy, and I adore the assassins. Not enough magic for me personally but that's because Ileni is losing hers so it makes sense. Hoping for more when she finds a super-magic-ball-thing!

I also started Beauty and The Beast by Jenni James because 1) I need a small break between Death Sworn and my next book, 2) this book is pretty short, and 3) it counts towards my fairy tales challenge.

17th March

I finished Beauty and The Beast, and I actually really liked it. More than I expected to. It's a cute story, and even has a bit of danger and threat - unexpected!

18th March

Started Magic Study by Maria V. Snyder because I loved book one! Read 165 pages and I don't love this setting as much as book one. I really like Bains, or Bain, or whatever the stuffy old teacher is, though, and I see potential in Lief if only he'd stop being an aggressive douche.

In an effort to actually read The Arctic Code by Matthew. J. Kirby I read 13% today, bringing me to 53%. It's slow and boring, but I'm (optimistically) expecting it to pick up.

19th March

I read 123 pages of Magic Study, which got marginally better with the appearance of Valek (the bastard!) and 8% of The Arctic Code, which is actually never going to pick up. I'm so bored.

20th March

Read 14% of The Arctic Code and even though they've found the big secret (paleolithic aliens? which somehow manage to also be dull?) I'm still not feeling it. I feel like I've read 75% of nothing. Can't wait for it to be over tbh.

I also read 71 pages of Magic Study, which I'd hoped to finish but at well. These last 100 pages have been better than the entire rest of book... :|

21st March

Finished Magic Study, which was good but not amazing, and skimmed the last 25% of The Arctic Code, which was boring as hell. I also started Beauty Awakened by Gena Showalter (33%) because I was feeling shitty and needed something PNR.

22nd March

I read 53% of Beauty Awakened, bringing me to 76% and I officially do not understand how the title fits. Neither characters' beauty has been awakened. Their self forgiveness, maybe, and their self-esteem definitely. Beauty? Nah. (Also where is Koldo's beard on the cover? That look nothing like him. Rude.)

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

 

Hidden Huntress | Danielle. L. Jensen

Dragons Are People, Too | Sarah Nicolas

HIDDEN HUNTRESSSSSSSSSSSS!!! ALSO POC DRAGONSSSSSSS.

Death Sworn

Beauty and The Beast (Jenni James Fairy Tale Collection)

The Arctic Code (Scheduled for 24th March)

Magic Study (Scheduled for  26th March)

Wicked Nights (Review)

Angels of The Dark: Wicked Nights | Gena Showalter

Published by: Mira Books, July 1st 2012

Genre: Adult, Paranormal Romance, Angels

Pages: 411

Format: Ebook

Source: Purchased

Leader of the most powerful army in the heavens, Zacharel has been deemed nearly too dangerous, too ruthless;and if he isn't careful, he'll lose his wings. But this warrior with a heart of ice will not be deterred from his missions at any cost;until a vulnerable human tempts him with a carnal pleasure he's never known before.

Accused of a crime she did not commit, Annabelle Miller has spent four years in an institution for the criminally insane. Demons track her every move, and their king will stop at nothing to have her. Zacharel is her only hope for survival, but is the brutal angel with a touch as hot as hell her salvation? Or her ultimate damnation?

Wicked Nights went in strong. With a MC attacked by a demon and put in an asylum for the criminally insane, I was drawn into the drama from page one. But it started on a downward slope after halfway, when the romance overtook plot. I liked it a lot less after that.

Annabelle is a great character, strong and feminine and gutsy (and a POC!) and I liked her a lot. I liked Zacharel too, the male main character. I wasn't really impressed with his super macho thing but that's just because I always hope for better characters. I liked how he was fairly naive and clueless in certain aspects, but hated how he got ultra possessive and dickish in parts. I could have done without the you're mine and belong to no one else spiel. Annabelle belongs to herself. Women belong to herself. Men need to understand that, and PNR writers too.

The action was great, and the fighting between demons and angels were the best parts IMHO. I thought it was pretty cool how it went into the hierachy of angels as well. But the sex scenes got tedious. I could have done with two at most, not four. After the second one I just got bored and flipped pages to the actual plot. Not to mention I read the word decadent SIX times.

I liked the action and the angels but the romance was overkill.

Characters ★★★☆☆

Setting/world building ★★★★☆

Writing ★★★★☆

Reading round up (69)

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.

9th March

Was in London today for a short visit, so didn't get much read. Still, I read 10% of Cold Burn of Magic by Jennifer Estep, which is more than I expected.

10th March

Finished Cold Burn of Magic and I'm already looking forward to book two, Dark Heart of Magic!! This book was a fun, promising start to a new urban fantasy series.


I also started The Arctic Code by Matthew J. Kirby (20%) which I like so far! The MC is hella reckless which makes everything she's doing uber dangerous and stupid (and feels unrealistic to me but that's just her personality and I don't understand it I guess.)

11th March

I read 20% of The Arctic Code, which is pretty good. I also started Wicked Nights by Gena Showalter (19% read), a book I only got because it was £0.59, and it's SO GOOD. Amazing characters and world-building and hella hot angels!! As well as this, I read Lois Lane: A Real Work of Art by Gwenda Bond, a fun little short.

12th March

I read 33% of Wicked Nights, bringing me to 52% and I'M LOVING IT. It's just the right amount of romance amongst all the action and demons!!

13th March

Read 26% of Wicked Nights and loving it. Just got to the exciting part and had to stop. Gah!!

14th March

Spent most of the day reading my first draft of The Dryad of Callaire and looking for inspiration to finish it, so I only read 13% of Wicked Nights, bringing me to 91%. I reeeeeeeeeeeally could have done without that last sex scene. It was boring and read like a dozen fanfics I've read, and with this being actually pubbed I expected better. Also how many times can you use decadent in one book??? That's taken it down at least half a star, probably a full star for me.

15th March

Finished Wicked Nights (9%) and started Death Sworn by Leah Cypess (113 pages.)

Books finished this week: 3
Books DNF'd this week: 0

Mira was having a kindle sale so I basically bought EVERYTHING. Aimee Carter's first two Blackcoat Rebellion books, Amanda Sun's Ink and the short story Shadow, Gena Showalter's first two White Rabbit Chronicles, her entire Angels of The Dark trilogy (which is SO GOOD!!), the first book of her Atlantis series, Unravelled (because I own the first in series!)

Lois Lane: A Real Work of Art | Gwenda Bond

The Waterborne Blade | Susan Murray

Galleys, galleys, galleys

SARUUH EXPLORES NA: Shifting Fate

Cold Burn of Magic (scheduled for 24th April)

The Arctic Code

Lois Lane: A Real Work of Art (scheduled for March 31st in a mini-reviews round up!)