Review: One Blood Ruby

Seven Black Diamonds: One Blood Ruby | Melissa Marr

Published by: Harper Collins, February 28th 2017

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Fae

Pages: 368

Format: Ebook

Source: Harper Collins, via Edelweiss

Now that Lilywhite Abernathy is the heir to the Hidden Lands, everything is about to change.

The Queen of Blood and Rage wants Lily to help broker peace with the human world, but Lily knows that harmony won’t come easily. After decades of waging war on the humans, who cost the queen her firstborn daughter, the fae are struggling to accept Lily, a half-human monarch. And the humans, while no match against faery affinities, will hardly agree to the queen’s détente without resistance.

Lily wants to be a fair ruler but fears having to abandon the life she’s known to do so. Now that she and Creed are more than just fellow Black Diamonds—operatives for the queen—her priorities have shifted. But her worries about assuming the throne are derailed when it becomes clear that someone—or some fae—is masterminding violent attacks to discourage peace.

In this gripping follow-up to Melissa Marr’s lush Seven Black Diamonds, Lily and her friends are forced to reckon with the truth of their own parentage and to protect one of their own, no matter what—or who—comes between them.

I liked this, but I wouldn't go much further than liked. There were elements I loved - Creed and Lily, Roan and Will, seeing more of Erik, and Lily's dad - but the rest was flat compared to the dark, exciting Seven Black Diamonds.

I'm left with so many unanswered questions. What happened to the fae world, and did Lily ever become queen? Was Eilidh meant to be queen, since the land chose her? What the hell HAPPENED to Eilidh? Did she and Torquil ever get to be together after that ending? Did Vi give Erik a chance? Did Zephyr ever heal from losing Alkamy? What were the consequences of Will coming out to the press? Was it Nacton doing the terrorist attacks or Eilidh???

It was an ending that didn't feel at all like an ending. It feels ... unfinished, like there's still more story to tell. I'm a bit frustrated I didn't get to see Creed and Lily ruling the fae world, or the peace settling between them and humans. I'm invested in this world and these characters, and I'd really appreciate an epilogue or follow up of some kind to give me a satisfying conclusion to their stories. 

As always the faerie lore and details of the writing and world were stunning, but the story itself let me down.

Characters ★★★★★

Setting/world ★★★★☆

Writing ★★★☆☆

Review: Empire of Storms

Throne of Glass: Empire of Storms | Sarah J. Maas

Published by: Bloomsbury, September 6th 2016

Genre: NA, High Fantasy, Fae & Fairy Lore

Pages: 693

Format: Paperback

Source: Puchased

The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those don't.

As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

Aelin's journey from assassin to queen has entranced millions across the globe, and this fifth installment will leave fans breathless. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down?

Nah. No thanks. That didn't happen.

This book was so much bigger and better and more painful than the rest. What Maeve did to Rowan ... I have no words. I'm not sure about Dorian's romance, which was my only issue with this book, but I understand he's grieving so I accept his choice. I weirdly missed Chaol - I don't love him, only like him, but it felt incomplete without him as part of the gang. BUT I did love the addition of Lorcan (of all people!) to the the main gang, and his interaction with Elide. And I adore every single member of Aelin's court, even Fenrys (!) and Gavriel (!). That ending was horrific, though, and I don't know how I'm meant to wait until next year for the resolution.

Characters ★★★★★

Setting/world ★★★★★

Writing ★★★★★

Saruuh Explores NA Review: City of Fae + City of Shadows

Bear with me while I write these reviews - it's been a wild and emotional ride through City of Fae and City of Shadows, but I'm loving this series and dying for more!

London Fae: City of Fae | Pippa DaCosta

Published by: Bloomsbury Spark, May 7th 2015

Genre: NA, Urban Fantasy, Fae

Pages: 336

Format: Ebook

Source: Bloomsbury Spark, via Netgalley

From the moment Alina touches London's hottest fae superstar, breaking one of the laws founded to protect all of her kind, her fate – and the fae – close in. 

Below ground, the fae High Queen plots to claim the city as her own and places her pawns, ready for the battle to come. A battle she cannot lose, but for one small problem – Alina. There are four ancient keepers powerful enough to keep the queen in her prison. Three are dead. One remains … And to fight back, Alina risks sacrificing everything she has come to love.

I have a whole bunch of adjectives for this book. Engrossing, captivating, chilling, unsettling, romantic. Basically it's all these things and something I can't put into words, something fun and dark and exciting. City of Fae is an inventive urban fantasy story with a hella complex main character (seriously, you will not guess her secrets) and a super, super sexy love interest. Plus, Reign is sweet in moments and the maybe-romance-maybe-not between them made my heart full of love.

As well as swoony romance, there's great action and a story unlike anything I've read before. I HATE spiders but this book is so good that I stuck it out - that should tell you how much I love Alina and Reign.

This book stole my heart. One of my favourite NA books ever. I devoured it in two sittings.

Characters ★★★★☆

Setting/world ★★★★★

Writing ★★★★☆

London Fae: City of Shadows | Pippa DaCosta

Published by: Bloomsbury Spark, July 7th 2016

Genre: NA, Urban Fantasy, Fae

Pages: 326

Format: Ebook

Source: Bloomsbury Spark, via Netgalley

Alina knows she is not real – the fae queen spun an evil web to create her – but she wants more than to spend her days feeding off humans’ energy to survive. She isn’t content to lose herself in the dangerously attractive Reign. She wants a life of her own making.

Desperate to help the man who saved her life, Alina vows to find his missing sister. Alina is convinced that the general of the Fae Authority plays a part in her disappearance. She infiltrates the organisation and gets close to their strongest fighter. But while Samuel’s tormented soul and masterful touch stirs in Alina a feeling of being human again, her loyalty to Reign makes her Samuel’s enemy. Who should she trust?

This New Adult urban fantasy is packed with action and suspense and will have you yearning for more forbidden fae romance.

Okay, first off, I didn't enjoy this quite as much as City of Fae, but that was mostly because I hated the tension and upset between Alina and Reign and I suspected the HECK out of Samuel. Good call, past!me.

I turns out I quite like Kael, the general? I'm not sure when that happened, but this series is so wild and throws so many twists at me that I'm not surprised. 

The Reign/Alina hurt me so much in this book - and the ending made it a thousand times worse. I just want them to be happy and besties for life - that's not too much to ask, right? In other news, there's a new character called Nyx and I want to be her best friend.

Aside from hurt and characters, the story from City of Fae builds epically in this book. You can really tell the series is heading towards something catastrophic. The Hunt actually scare me. But my favourite thing was how the world expanded and we got to see more of the fae in London. The world building is EXCEPTIONAL - part of me wants to live in it, which is saying something when it used to have a giant spider lady in the tube tunnels!

I'm dying to get my hands on the next book!

Characters ★★★★☆

Setting/world ★★★★★

Writing ★★★★☆

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