Sandry's Book Title: Sandry's Book Author: Tamora Pierce Series: Circle of Magic 1 Genre: High Fantasy Pairing: None Rating: Three Petals On the Author's Website: http://www.tamora-pierce.net/books/sandrys-book/ Summary: With her gift of weaving silk thread and creating light, Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief who has a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. At Winding Circle, the four misfits are taught how to use their magic - and to trust one another. But then disaster strikes their new home. Can Sandry weave together four kinds of magical power and save herself, her friends, and the one place where they've ever been accepted? Maggie's Review:
In a world were magic is formed with careful spells, potions, and incantations, having power that doesn't require any of that is rare, so rare, in fact, that four extraordinary children are blindsided to learn that they all have something called ambient magic. The introduction Sandry, Daja, Briar, and Tris all had to magic was traumatic, but joining together to survive the summer of earthquakes might be too much for even their special brand of magic. I'll start by saying blatantly that this book was beyond juvenile. The writing style was stilted and awkward with far too much telling rather than showing. The plot was predictable and the ending so anti-climactic that every time I reread this book I'm always surprised by how little oomph the final scenes impact. Yet, if you look at my last sentence there, you'll see "every time I reread". You read that correctly; I've reread this book and this series more times than I can remember and for some reason I inevitably return to it year after year. There is an inherent sweetness to the characters that I can't help loving. Each character's personality is so perfectly crafted that I can tell who says what without the '(s)he said' at the end and the antics that they get up to always bring a smile to my face. I found myself laughing aloud at jokes I've read a dozen times before, but still felt new and fresh to me this time around. Even better than the characterizations was the world building. It honestly feels like all of Pierce's efforts went into creating one of the most intricate worlds I've ever read (which could be why the plot fell flat). Every single culture is given amazing amounts of depth with individual customs, gods, and quirks unique to a type of people, to a country, or even to a class of people. I am honestly in awe of the world in these books and every time I reread I learn something new and exciting. Maggie's Recommendation: The plot of this book is stilted and predictable, but the characterizations were wonderful and the world building has me in awe. I absolutely recommend this book because no matter how many times I reread it, I still enjoy every moment.
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Bloodstained Heart Author: Kassandra Lea Title: Bloodstained Heart Series: None Genre: Paranormal Pairing: M/M Rating: Two Petals On the Author's Website: http://leakassie.blogspot.com/ Summary: Seamus haunts the halls of his grand estate, cursed to an eternity of undead life and unable to leave the grounds. His only friends are his faithful dog, and the sweet, earnest Tibbit, whom he desperately, but secretly, loves—because it's one thing to consider him a friend, quite another to expect anyone to fall in love with a man who isn't even really alive... Maggie's Review:
I received this book as an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Seamus is cursed to live as a zombie, locked inside his decaying castle as loneliness and hopelessness hit him harder with each day that passes. He is only made to feel worse every time he sees Tibbit, because Seamus knows that Tibbit could never love a zombie. To be completely frank, this is a book with a good idea and terrible execution. The idea of Seamus being cursed and needing someone to save him is an old one, but it is always interesting to read a new interpretation of the Beauty and the Beast trope. The zombie aspect was a nice touch and I liked the addition of a dog and Tibbit being the vet. However, this story needed to be completely restructured for it to be in any way enjoyable to read. Seamus getting cursed needed to be a full prologue. Then Seamus falling in love with Tibbit needed to start from the moment Seamus found the puppy and move in a firm timeline towards the grave digging scene where the book actually starts. Unfortunately, the reader is instead given each of these important aspects of the plot in awkward flashbacks. It made the story feel choppy and without any flow, which made it difficult to read and lessened my ability to feel and identify with the pain Seamus had been experiencing since he was cursed. It also made Tibbit's drama feel almost laughable, when the seriousness of his situation should have made me feel the exact opposite. Maggie's Recommendation: While this book started with a good idea, the execution was terrible. Instead of writing a full story, the author chopped it up in awkward flashbacks that hurt my overall enjoyment of this story. I can't recommend it. The Prince of the Moon Author: Megan Derr Title: The Prince of the Moon Series: None Genre: High Fantasy Pairing: M/M Rating: Three Petals On the Author's Website: http://maderr.com/?page_id=31 Summary: All Solae wants is to be accepted and loved by the family that has always rejected him. But given it was his late mother who cursed the kingdom to eternal winter, the chances of that happening are minimal. If he can find a way to break the curse, however, surely that would be enough to change their minds regarding him. But Solae is forbidden to practice magic because of his mother, which limits his ability to pursue solutions. Desperate for advice and new ideas, he contacts a famous curse breaker—and has no idea what to do when the man unexpectedly shows up, handsome and friendly and dangerously intriguing. Maggie's Review:
I received this book as an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. When the kingdom was cursed by a witch just before she died on a pyre for her alleged crimes, cold, clouds and snow blanketed the kingdom in eternal winter. The witch's son, Prince Solae, was therefore ostracized by his family, forced by their disdain to live alone in a high tower with only his books and spells for company. Then Solae writes a famous curse breaker for help and instead of writing back, Millio comes for a visit. Suddenly the entire castle is in disarray and Solae knows he and Millio might lose their lives and the curse will remain in place forever. I read this story years ago when it was first released as part of a fairy tale anthology. I remember enjoying the story then, but being content to move on to the next story in the anthology. That was still true now. Overall I did like the story. It's short and sweet with just the right touch of romance. Solae is a troubled young man and Millio's visit helps to alleviate some of the pain Solae's family's hatred has caused. It wasn't just the kingdom blanketed in snow, but Solae's life as well. I liked watching him thaw and grow. The king and the king's other two sons, the prince of the sun and the prince of the stars, were less well written. They were caricatures instead of characters. The king's anger felt irrational. While it's explained away as the king trying to hide his embarrassment, to me it just felt overwhelmingly silly. Yet, on the same token this was a fairy tale and irrational actions leading to severe consequences is generally a central theme. When The Prince of the Moon was released as part of a fairy tale anthology, I could ignore the king's behavior. As a stand alone story--even though it's still technically set up as a fairy tale--the strange behavior is slightly more difficult for me to accept. Maggie's Recommendation: This story was short and sweet with just the right amount of romance. Some of the supporting characters needed a little more dimension to make them feel realistic, but overall I enjoyed reading this story so I do recommend it. Wendigo Rising Author: James A. Hunter Title: Wendigo Rising Series: Yancy Lazarus 3 Genre: Paranormal Pairing: M/F Rating: Three Petals On the Author's Website: https://jamesahunter.wordpress.com/wendigo-rising/ Summary: Bigfoot is real. Yancy Lazarus—mage, bluesman, and rambler—knows because there happens to be a nine-foot-tall, walking myth standing in the road, flagging him down. Yancy just can’t escape his reputation as a supernatural Fix-it man even when cruising through the forgotten backwoods of Montana. Turns out Bigfoot has a serious problem on his hands: one of his own has gone rogue, developing a taste for the flesh of humans and Sasquatch alike. A greater Wendigo has risen for the first time in thousands of years and if Yancy can’t stop the creature it could be a slaughter for the residents of a rural Montana town. But even with the monstrous threat looming on the horizon, Yancy has bigger fish to fry. He’s working as an agent of Fate, attempting to put the kibosh on a nefarious scheme, aimed at upsetting the tenuous balance between the supernatural nations. When your boss is Lady Luck, however, nothing is ever left to chance, and his two cases may have more in common than it appears. If he can’t figure out the missing link it could usher in a new world order: an age of inhuman creatures and walking nightmares … one where Yancy Lazarus doesn’t exist. Maggie's Review:
I received this book as an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Yancy is up to his old tricks, just wanting to hang out at a bar, get drunk, and play some cards or the piano. He doesn't want to be out trying to save the world, but as an Agent of Luck he doesn't have much choice. While on his way to follow a lead, Yancy is met by Bigfoot stopping to ask for help. Of course, when Bigfoot's problems overlap with his own mystery, Yancy can't help being intrigued. Even with Bigfoot's help Yancy doesn't know if he'll be enough to stop the zombie Armageddon that's on its way. I've said this in the previous two reviews for this series, but I have to repeat it here: Yancy's snark and dark humor are extremely well written. I enjoy every time he opens his mouth even when he's being obtuse or an ass. What Wendigo Rising excelled at, however, was helping him grow past that. It's been clear up to this point that Yancy is a hard outer shell with a soft, gooey center,. The truth revealed in this book is that he doesn't know how to handle strong emotion, so he walls himself off from everyone around him as a defense. Reading about him learning to open himself up and welcome having friends and even a lover was very interesting. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy the plot. The beginning dragged. Despite this being the third book in the series and the plot firmly entrenched at this point, there was a lot of exposition to explain the world-building and the magic Yancy uses. In fact, every time Yancy uses his magic he also has to provide an explanation as to what the Vis is and why he can only draw so much without it becoming dangerous. The repetitiveness became a touch boring after a while. The rest of the book consisted of battle after battle after battle. I understand that Yancy is in a race to save the world from the possibility of a zombie hoard, but there needed to be some sort of relief from the constant, almost overwhelming drama to break it up a bit. Maggie's Recommendation: Overall I did like this book and I am still enjoying this series. Yancy's characterization is the best part and I really liked his personal growth. I had some trouble with too much exposition and too many constant battles, but I do recommend this book. BreakerAuthors: A.F. Henley and Kelly Wyre Title: Breaker Series: Exile 1 Genre: Sci-Fi/Paranormal Fantasy Pairing: M/M Rating: Five Petals On the Authors' Websites: https://afhenley.wordpress.com/breaker-exile-volume-1/ http://www.kellywyre.com/stories Summary: In the wake of several near-cataclysmic events, humanity created the Cure, a DNA-altering antidote to death by disease and old age. But all cures come with side effects: a small percentage of the population develops a wide range of powers, some of which are lethal to others, and some which are lethal to the wielder. These people are called the Estranged, hunted and shunned, safe only on the Island of Exile. It is here that Kaeva and Eddie meet—and where they set a prophecy in motion, quite possibly sealing their own demise, and even the end of Exile. Maggie's Review:
I received this book as an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Eddie is on the run from the government, who might want to capture him in order to conduct cruel experiments in order to figure out his Estrangement. When Eddie learns about an island called Exile where people like him try to live in peace, he travels there where he meets Kaeva. Kaeva is a high level Estranged and is so dangerous that just his touching someone could kill them. Having Eddie suddenly thrust into his life only makes Kaeva worse, but Eddie is everything Kaeva has ever wanted in a partner. With death hovering around every corner, creating a life together might just be impossible. The story starts out slow. There's a lot of world building that has to go into the first few chapters. Readers need to understand how the Estranged happen and what Exile is at every level in order for the deeper nuances of this story to make sense. There's a lot of exposition and a ton of detail that at first read makes the story feel slow and a bit heavy. However, not only was that necessary for the rest of the story, I have a feeling that when I reread this story I will find all of that immensely interesting. At first, my review was going to be only about how wonderful the world building was, but then I got to the end of the book and realized the sheer emotion in the story absolutely deserved more praise. I could feel Eddie's pain and Kaeva's panic as if I were experiencing those emotions myself. They pulled me in to their agony and their hope in equal amounts until I wasn't sure if I should be crying or cheering. This book was truly beautiful and I really have to say thank you to A.F. Henley and Kelly Wyre for writing something so heartfelt and moving. Maggie's Recommendation: Everything in this book worked. The world building created levels of nuance that had me wanting to dig more into the Estranged and their creation, but the emotion in the book is what really kept me reading. This is a beautifully written story and I absolutely recommend it. Unquiet Land Author: Sharon Shinn Title: Unquiet Land Series: Elemental Blessings 4 Genre: High Fantasy Pairing: M/F Rating: Four Petals On the Author's Website: http://www.sharonshinn.net/unquietland.shtml Summary: Leah Frothen has returned home. But she can scarcely catch her breath before she is summoned by regent Darien Serlast, the man who made her a spy. Leah is reluctant to take on a new assignment, but Darien has dangled the perfect lure to draw her in… Leah finds she enjoys the challenges of opening a shop catering to foreign visitors, especially since it affords her the opportunity to get to know Mally, the child she abandoned five years ago. But when the regent asks her to spy on ambassadors from a visiting nation, Leah soon learns that everyone—her regent, her lover, and even her daughter—have secrets that could save the nation, but might very well break her heart. Maggie's Review:
Leah was a spy who worked in foreign countries in order to overhear as much gossip and intrigue as possible. When her job ends, Leah knows its time to return home where she must finally figure out the responsibility she's been avoiding for the last five years. Her daughter needs a mother, her family needs her help, and her country could use her skills as a spy as court intrigue heats up again. This is my favorite book in the series. Every previous book had issues with the characters coming across as characterizations rather than as people, but Unquiet Lands doesn't have that issue at all. Instead of being confined into a stereotype defined by her blessings, Leah became her own distinct person. Her blessings still play a large part of her life, which is absolutely necessary for the continuity of the series, but I felt like I could better identify with her so I was pulled into the book. My only complaint was the simplicity of the plot. It was definitely an interesting read, but nothing surprised me. The twists were dramatic, but predictable, and the ending was a little too neat and easy. I liked what I read, but I really feel there should have been some more depth or foreshadowing to give this story a little more oomph. Maggie's Recommendation: I am really enjoying reading this series and this book was the best one so far. The characterizations were dynamic, which I really enjoyed, however the plot was a little predictable. I do recommend this book and am looking forward to learning if there will be another one in the series. The Heart of the Kingdom Author: Sasha L. Miller Title: The Heart of the Kingdom Series: Kingdom Curses 1 Genre: High Fantasy Pairing: M/M, Bi Rating: Four Petals On the Author's Website: http://www.sashalmiller.com/?page_id=281 Summary: All Cenric wanted was a necklace to gift to his lady love, in the hopes it might persuade her to actually become his lady love. Instead of love, however, Cenric is informed of her engagement to someone else, wakes up to find his house burning down around him, and is dragged away by a man who might have saved him, but won't say much about why one necklace has Cenric running away from someone willing to kill to get it back. Maggie's Review:
Cenric lives in a small town working as a scribe where his only goals in life are to get the town's taxes done correctly and maybe impress a girl he likes. When he sees a pretty necklace for sale, he buys it in the hopes that it will convey his feelings to the girl. Except, his house is burned down that night and Cenric is suddenly on the run from a magical being that wants to kill him and steal the necklace. I read this book years ago when it first came out, but when I learned the next book in the series would be published soon, I dug this book out to reread. I remember liking this story back then and I enjoyed reading this time too. My favorite part was the plot, which weaved aspects of fairy tales in with the general drama of Cenric trying to stay alive. Every twist and turn kept my interest and I had trouble putting the book down even though I was rereading and therefore already knew what was going to happen next. The weakest part of the book is the ending. I'll try not to give anything away, but I felt like there wasn't enough foreshadowing about who the bad guys actually were. Cenric walks into the room at the very end of the story and the three bad guys are people he, and therefore the reader, haven't been introduced to. There is almost zero frame of reference to understand why these guys are bad or what they're really after. However, rereading this story with the knowledge that there is a second book coming soon, I can see that perhaps the sudden introduction at the end of this book is the start of foreshadowing for the second. If that ends up being true, then I can forgive some of the abruptness. Maggie's Recommendation: I really enjoyed rereading this story in preparation for the next book's arrival. The plot is very interesting in the way it ties fairy tales into the drama, but I felt the ending was a little weak. I do recommend this book and am absolutely looking forward to the next one. |
Magnolia's Reviews
Maggie reviews paranormal and fantasy novels and novellas. She also interviews authors and hosts giveaways. Archives
April 2018
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