The Accident Season (DNF Review)

The Accident Season | Moira Fowley-Doyle

Published by: Corgi Childrens, August 18th 2015

Genre: YA, Magical Realism

Pages: 288

Format: Ebook

Source: Corgi Childrens, via Netgalley

It's the accident season, the same time every year. Bones break, skin tears, bruises bloom.
The accident season has been part of seventeen-year-old Cara's life for as long as she can remember. Towards the end of October, foreshadowed by the deaths of many relatives before them, Cara's family becomes inexplicably accident-prone. They banish knives to locked drawers, cover sharp table edges with padding, switch off electrical items - but injuries follow wherever they go, and the accident season becomes an ever-growing obsession and fear.

But why are they so cursed? And how can they break free?

This is one of those books that I never really got into. I liked parts (the mystery around Elsie) but hated others (the lack of answers about Elsie and how dragged out it was.) From the start, I never really clicked with any of the characters, but I kept with it because I've heard it's LGBT+ and assumed there was a f/f relationship, which, if you squint, there sort of maybe might be one, but it's only a kiss and one written as playful and meaning nothing. But I've only read the first 54% so maybe this changes later. Mostly the main character seems to be in love with her stepbrother, but her stepbrother seems to be in love with both the MC and her best friend at different intervals, and the best friend seems to be in love with everyone. Nothing was clear cut.

The main thing that made me DNF was I just got tired of waiting - waiting for the accident season to be explained, waiting for answers about Elsie, waiting for the main characters to figure out Elsie was dead (still no confirmation on this at 54% but I'm assuming she's a ghost), waiting for the romance to become romance, waiting for any clue this was a LGBT+ inclusive book, waiting for everything to kick in and for the story to get better, the magical element to become as prevalent as the realism. 

Mostly I got bored of waiting, and the characters weren't enough for me to keep going. Sorry, The Accident Season, but you just weren't enough for me.

DNF at 54%

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Reading Round Up (84)

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. 

Reading Round Up is back!! I went away for London and then kinda forgot to post, but I'm back with regular journaling now! Plus it's my birthday this month, so you all get to hear my opinion of my most-anticipated reads (An Ember In The Ashes, The Wrath and The Dawn, The Orphan Queen, to name a few!!) and witness my crazy book haul (I have it all planned out because I NEED those books.)

Also I forgot to post this Monday. Oops.

27th July

I'm reading The Dryad of Callaire (my book!) all this week, while I finalise everything, so my actual reading will probably slow down. Today I read 45 pages of that, and 213 pages of Storm Glass by Maria V. Snyder, which I really enjoyed. I love Kade and the exceptionally unique glass magic. Maria's books are always crazy imaginative, and this was no different.

28th July

Today I read 52 pages of DRYAD and 7% of This Book Is Gay by James Dawson, which I am loving and learning a lot from.

29th July

I started The Vanishing Island by Barry Wolverton (12%), which is pretty cool already. I love ships and maps and this book has them in abundance. I think we're going to get along pretty well, this book and I. (I also read 9 pages of DRYAD)

30th July

Having a hard time pinning down the actual time period of The Vanishing Island. But I'm interested in the story anyway, so I guess I'll roll with it. Today I read 10%, and also 42 DRYAD pages.

31st July

I read 26% of The Vanishing Island and FINALLY we're on the ship.

1st August

I read nothing of The Vanishing Island today because I read 120 pages of DRYAD and finished proofing it. It was a nightmare. I didn't sleep until sunrise. I hate being an author (sometimes.)

2nd August

Today I read 22% of The Vanishing Island and I think I like it but this part is meh.

Books finished this week: 2
Books DNF'd this week: 0

For review:

Night Owls | Jenn Bennett

Simon & Schuster sent me this lovely for a blog tour I'm participating in. Catch it on August 14th!! (And find out why you should love Jack Vincent, because he is one hella swoon-worthy guy.)

LGBT genre fic, thank you v much. Also Daughters Unto Devils HELL YES, I've been eyeing this for DECADES.

The Cage (5 STARS+FAVOURITE)

The October Faction, vol 1 (4.5 STARS)

The Waterborne Blade (3 STARS)

The Cage (ARC Review)

The Cage: The Cage | Megan Shepherd

Published by: Balzer+Bray, May 28th 2015

Genre: YA, Science Fiction, Aliens

Pages: 400

Format: Ebook

Source: Balzer+Bray, via Edelweiss

The Maze Runner meets Scott Westerfeld in this gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race. From Megan Shepherd, the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughtertrilogy.

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

I left it WAY too long to write my review of this, and it wasn't in any way because this book is bad. It's because I loved it, for some reason I can't explain, and those are the hardest reviews to write.

So here's what I didn't love, first:

- Every other character but Cora and Cassian. UGH stop whining. I don't care about your teenage romance and your drama. You are all stupid, and how can you not see you're being manipulated??? It was SO obvious that the aliens were manipulating everyone into hating Cora, and yet they were like nah, it's not the aliens, IT'S CORA. Sure, buddy.

- Those two lovebirds, whose names I've forgotten because they pissed me off so much. You're kidnapped, put in an alien zoo, with a zookeeper who tells you to have sex and mate and ... you do it? Wow, okay, sure, seems legit.

- Diverse supporting characters, diverse side characters, but a blonde white MC. Okay, you tried, I see that, but it's not enough.

Here's what I DID love:

- Cassian, who was SO much more complex than I ever expected. So, he's a shiny gold alien, so what,  he's kind and mysterious and he shows Cora that she's strong (and he's evil for a good cause, which is 100% my thing)(and he's vulnerable underneath everything, which is 1000% my thing.)

- Cora, who was strong in a natural, human, weak way. I liked that she was hurt and cried and acted like a typical 'girl' but still stayed strong, got back on her feet, and got them the hell out of there. I really REALLY liked her, and I expected to hate her from the first chapter because she came off as whiny. Which she was - she whined, she despaired, and then she got the thing done anyway.

- ALIEN. FRICKING. ZOO.

- The menageries, the hint at what's to come in future books, the world, the bustling marketplace selling human kids. JUST EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS WORLD MEGAN SHEPHERD CREATED.

Just a side note to say there are plenty flaws in this book, and plenty I hated and skimmed pages of, but it wormed its way into my heart anyway, and I LOVE this book.

Characters ★★★☆☆ (take out the other characters and I'd probably rate this a high 4)

Setting/world-building ★★★★★

Writing ★★★★☆

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ARC August!

I decided some time last night (3AM, 5AM, whenever I woke up in the middle of the night...) that I wanted to have a full month of reading galleys and review copies because I have a LOT of them to read. And then this evening, I went on Bloglovin and discovered there was an actual challenge dedicated to the very thing I had decided to do when I was half asleep. It must be fate.

So, I'm participating in this reading challenge, and hope to power through many galleys and a couple physical review copies too!!

~Saruuh

The Waterborne Blade (ARC Review)

Waterborne: The Waterborne Blade | Susan Murray

Published by: Angry Robot, May 5th 2015

Genre: Adult, High Fantasy

Pages: 512

Format: Ebook

Source: Angry Robot, via Netgalley

The citadel has long been the stronghold of Highkell. All that is about to change because the traitor, Vasic, is marching on the capital. Against her better judgement, Queen Alwenna allows herself to be spirited away by one of the Crown's most trusted servants, safe from the clutches of the throne's would-be usurper.

Fleeing across country, she quickly comes to learn that her pampered existence has ill-equipped her for survival away from the comforts of the court. Alwenna must toughen up, and fast, if she is even to make it to a place of safety. But she has an even loftier aim - for after dreaming of her husband's impending death, Alwenna knows she must turn around and head back to Highkell to save the land she loves, and the husband who adores her, or die in the attempt.

But Vasic the traitor is waiting. And this was all just as he planned. 

This book started off a little slow, but I liked the characters enough to read until it got better. The Waterborne Blade got kinda interesting when they reached the monastery (I forget the name now), when it was impossible to know who was on Alwenna's side and who was plotting to hand her over to the usurper King. But I lost interest in that after a while - which about sums up how I felt about all of this book. I enjoyed it (a lot in some parts, with the rituals and blood magic and action bits) but after a while I got bored and wanted to move onto something new. I suppose the slow pace kinda hindered my enjoyment a bit, but I still did really like certain parts. 

I love Alwenna, and Weaver, and Drew. I think they're all great characters. I thought the threat/villain was pretty realistic, and scarier for it. And I liked the world, even if it didn't feel particularly unique. What was unique was the free merchants, and I'm still not entirely sure whether they're trustworthy or dodgy or looking out for Alwenna. I guess I'll find out in the next book. For me, this book was lacking magic - there were parts of it throughout, but I wanted more actual magic in the first half, wanted to learn more about Alwenna's water magic, but judging from the ending, the second book will more than make up for it!

An interesting high fantasy with great characters (but not enough magic!)

Characters ★★★☆☆

Setting/world-building ★★★☆☆

Writing ★★★☆☆

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