WoW #87: Hunted by Megan Spooner

This week, I'm waiting on...

Hunted

by Megan Spooner

Expected publication: March 17th 2017

Genres: Fantasy; Retellings

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Beauty knows the Beast’s forest in her bones—and in her blood. Though she grew up with the city’s highest aristocrats, far from her father’s old lodge, she knows that the forest holds secrets and that her father is the only hunter who’s ever come close to discovering them.

So when her father loses his fortune and moves Yeva and her sisters back to the outskirts of town, Yeva is secretly relieved. Out in the wilderness, there’s no pressure to make idle chatter with vapid baronessas…or to submit to marrying a wealthy gentleman. But Yeva’s father’s misfortune may have cost him his mind, and when he goes missing in the woods, Yeva sets her sights on one prey: the creature he’d been obsessively tracking just before his disappearance.

Deaf to her sisters’ protests, Yeva hunts this strange Beast back into his own territory—a cursed valley, a ruined castle, and a world of creatures that Yeva’s only heard about in fairy tales. A world that can bring her ruin or salvation. Who will survive: the Beauty, or the Beast?

It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling… so, I need it! You may be familiar with my fairy tale retelling addiction, and I really hope this will be the perfect fix. I hope it’s not too similar to A Court of Thorns and Roses… hopefully it’ll take a completely different direction. Fingers crossed, anyway!

Do you like retellings? What are some of your favourites? And are you planning on reading Hunted?

Thanks for stopping by!

* Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. *

Review: The Secret Fire by C.J. Daugherty and Carina Rozenfeld

Title: The Secret Fire
Authors: C.J. Daugherty and Carina Rozenfeld
Series: The Alchemist Chronicles, #1
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: 3 / 5

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French teen Sacha Winters can't die. He can throw himself off a roof, be stabbed, even shot, and he will always survive. Until the day when history and ancient enmities dictate that he must die. Worse still, his death will trigger something awful. Something deadly. And that day is closing in.

Taylor Montclair is a normal English girl, hanging out with her friends and studying for exams, until she starts shorting out the lights with her brain. She’s also the only person on earth who can save Sacha.

There’s only one problem: the two of them have never met. They live hundreds of miles apart and powerful forces will stop at nothing to keep them apart.

They have eight weeks to find each other.

Will they survive long enough to save the world?

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

Being a huge fan of the Night School series, I was really looking forward to reading more of CJ Daugherty’s works. I knew that her new series was going to be more fantasy focused, and I was so happy about this. Fantasy is my all-time favourite genre, so combining one of my favourite authors with my favourite genre seemed like it would be a win-win scenario. By contrast, this was my first time reading any of Carina Rozenfeld’s works, and I was intrigued to see how both authors would collaborate and how the story would develop.

Well… it wasn’t quite what I was expecting. When I began reading I quickly realised my fantasy expectations might be a little off. I kept reading and realised it felt like I had unexpectedly picked up a YA Contemporary novel that just happened to have a few paranormal and supernatural threads woven in. Now, here’s where I need to clarify something. All of this is not necessarily a bad thing… however, I’ve read dozens and dozens of Urban Fantasy books over the years and I’ve seen all these tropes many times before. Combine all this with lots of familiar YA Contemporary tropes and the story just wasn’t that unique to me, and I found my interest in the story wandering more than once.

The narration is split into two separate points-of-view. Taylor is an English teen and Sasha is French, and over the course of the book both characters stories become intertwined and they need to work together despite various outside groups trying to keep them apart. Each character had their own distinct voice throughout the book which was awesome to see and I always knew which character was narrating throughout. Out of the two main characters, Sasha was the one I was intrigued by the most. He does have a cheeky-chappy kind of personality, and they’re usually the most entertaining characters to read about! Taylor, on the other hand, I wasn’t that connected to. She was Little Miss Perfect incarnated, and to be honest, I find perfect characters to be very unappealing. Give me flaws and questionable morals in my characters any and every day! Personally, I find them more fun to read about.

I absolutely loved the family dynamic that both Taylor and Sasha had in their own respective homes. Absentee parentism is a plague that haunts Young Adult literature, and to see that both teens had a parent that was present in their lives, cared for them and took an interest in their wellbeing was EXCELLENT to see.

Now I move onto something that didn’t work for me. On the back cover of my book it says three sentences in lovely sparkly golden font: “A Battle Against Fate. A Race Against Time. The Clock Starts NOW” So after reading this I expected a blisteringly fast paced plot with the constant threat of impending doom as each day ticks by until death, destruction and despair. I hate to say it, but I never got any sense of fear, or desperation, or that time was actually running out. Everything felt very slow and cushy and cozy for well over half the book, and it didn’t match the sense of urgency that the synopsis on the back cover was promising right from the beginning.

I was really hoping to love The Secret Fire more than I did. Maybe my expectations were too high? Or maybe it was bad timing? I did begin reading it straight after reading A Torch Against the Night and Crooked Kingdom, and they were my two most anticipated releases of 2016! Yeah, okay, looking back on that decision, it probably wasn’t the best timing, was it?! Maybe it did have more of an influence that I thought, but I’ll never know for sure. Personally, I think this book would be a perfect fit for any contemporary readers that are looking to branch out and explore some new genres – Urban Fantasy in particular. Overall, I thought it was a good read, but didn’t quite live up to all my expectations.

Review: Red Rising by Pierce Brown

Title: Red Rising
Author: Pierce Brown
Series: Red Rising, #1
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: 4 / 5

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Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations.

Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children.

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so.

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

I read Red Rising quite a while ago and I made the mistake of not writing a review straight away. I remember loving the story at the time, but I have a feeling this review won’t be quite as gushing as it would have been if I’d written it back in March.

The world building was easily my favourite thing about the book. The best way I can describe the story is if you put Harry Potter and The Hunger Games in a blender with a handful of Roman gods, blitz them together and throw the result 500-plus years into the future and set the story on Mars. And I really liked it! Despite the familiar HP and THG vibes, the story manages to bring lots of uniqueness to the table, which is always a good thing.

Darrow is the main character, and while I did like him as a narrator while I was reading, looking back on it now I’m a bit unsure why I liked him. I mean, there wasn’t anything that particularly bothered me about him, and in a way I think that’s the problem. When the book began he seemed quite interesting and I was looking forward to seeing how his character was going to develop. I really liked the Reds and the Helldiver aspect and then… things changed and he becomes all nice and polished and perfect. This makes sense for the faceless leader of a rebellion, but as a character in a book I’m supposed to care and root for, well, not so much.

Just thinking of the secondary characters for a second, I found myself more curious about their stories rather than Darrow’s. I really liked Mustang and hopefully she will have a main role in the sequel. I’m thinking of quite a few other characters right now, but I won’t mention them just in case I cross the line into spoiler territory.

He wasn’t in the book that much, but from what I have seen, Sevro is perfection and needs to be protected at all costs. That is all. Oh, and also the Howlers! I have a feeling they’ll be in future books, and I can’t wait to find out more about them.

Writing-style and pacing: Maybe it’s just me, but Red Rising was A LOT slower paced than I was expecting. Also the writing style, while really good, took me a while to like and enjoy. The first hundred pages or so seemed a bit… tense? Uptight? Maybe a little bit too structured? But after that, things slowly started to relax and the natural flow of the story took over and I began to really enjoy the book.

Trusting Pierce Brown is a bad idea, right!? Seriously, though! I mean, with all the characters he had no problem killing in this book I’m slightly terrified of what he has come up with for the rest of the trilogy! Also, can I just say, he’s a genius for planting VERY subtle clues. There were quite a few times when I was surprised when something was revealed, but I felt like I should have seen it coming as the clues were there, I just didn’t connect them because I was distracted by a billion other things. I love unpredictability like this, and it was SO well done!

Overall, I really enjoyed Red Rising, and now that I’ve finally written a review for it, I’m starting to remember why I enjoyed it so much. I do remember finishing the final few pages thinking I needed to get my hands on Golden Son ASAP. Well, fast forward eight months and I haven’t read it yet. (Oops?) I do plan on changing this status as soon as I can, and hopefully I’ll be able to complete the trilogy next year.

10 Things I'm Thankful for this Year

To everyone in the U.S. that’s celebrating Thanksgiving this week: Happy Thanksgiving! We don’t celebrate here in Ireland, but I hope everyone that does has an awesome day. For my list this week it will be separated into real life things and bookish things I’m thankful for. I'm linking up with Top Ten Tuesday this week, and it's a weekly meme run by The Broke and the Bookish.

Things I'm Thankful for in Real Life

My family and friends: How could I not be thankful for my friends and family?? They’re everything to me.

My dog: From angelic puppy to manipulative mastermind, this little bundle of fur came into my life almost five years ago, took over and has ruled with an iron paw ever since. All joking aside, she’s the most precious thing to me, and if you can’t already tell, I love her to pieces. (And, yes, that is my bed she insists belongs to her, not me. We may have regular disagreements over this!)

Music: “Without music, life would be a mistake.” -- Friedrich Nietzsche. I couldn’t agree more.

Having a warm home and food to eat: There are so many people out there right now that don’t have a single thing in the world beyond the clothes on their backs. And they don’t know where their next warm meal will come from. So, as we all sit down to feast ourselves on huge meals over the coming months for various holidays and celebrations, please take a moment to remember those that don’t have what we have. Please.

And on that sombre note, moving onto...

The Bookish Things I’m Thankful For!

Books and Reading: This one is pretty self-explanatory, really! I’m so thankful my mum got me into reading when I was very young. I may have wandered away now and again, but I always end up returning.

The Bookish Community: I love how welcoming the online bookish community is, and no matter what books we love we can find people that have similar tastes to us. It’s so hard to find people in real life that share what we love, and it’s awesome to have the space online where we can find those people, even if they live thousands of miles away from us.

Twilight: Regardless of whether the Twilight saga deserves the hype it got, I’ll be forever thankful that I read this series. It completely changed my attitude to reading, and liking Twilight gave me a much needed kick up the rear and encouraged me to find and read the books I really love and can become invested in, rather than what others or society deems acceptable.

The Hunger Games: Twilight might have changed my attitude toward reading, but The Hunger Games was the series that started my YA addiction. Once I finished the series, I began to be drawn to more and more Young Adult books, and to be perfectly honest I haven’t really looked back since!

Young Adult Authors: I never understand why the label “young adult” gets so much blind hatred and sneering, but that’s an argument for another day… What I would like to say is thank you to all the YA authors that keep sharing their awesome stories and don’t let any negativity silence their words.

All My Favourite Books! This list keeps growing, and it’ll never stop growing and evolving throughout my life, and the image above shows only a handful of my favourite books. From Pride and Prejudice to Angelfall to Nevermore to Crooked Kingdom, I love them all so much and I’m so thankful that I read each one.

Mini-Reviews: The Secret of Ella and Micha and Crossed

Title: The Secret of Ella and Micha
Author: Jessica Sorensen
Series: The Secret, #1
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: 4 / 5

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A rule-breaker with a fiery attitude, Ella always wore her heart on her sleeve. Then she left everything behind to go to college, where she transformed into someone who follows the rules, keeps everything together, and hides all her problems. Now it's summer break and she has nowhere else to go but home. But once there, Ella fears that everything she's worked so hard to bury might resurface-especially with Micha living right next door.

Smart, sexy, and confident, Micha can get under Ella's skin like no one else. He knows everything about her, including her darkest secrets. If he tries to tempt the old Ella to return, he will be impossible to resist. But what Ella doesn't realize is that when she left, she took a piece of Micha's heart with her. Now he's determined to win back the girl he lost, no matter what it takes.

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

What a pleasant surprise! It’s been a really long time since I’ve read a contemporary romance and I’ve had The Secret of Ella and Micha sitting on my shelves for well over two years, and on a whim I decided to pick it up and give it a go a few weeks ago. I enjoyed it so much more than I initially expected to. Is it a bit predictable? Yep. Is it a unique story amongst the thousands of other contemporary romances out there? Ehh, probably not. But you know what, I don’t care. It ticks the boxes you expect to find within the genre and did it well. I got caught up in the story, I liked the characters, and overall I enjoyed reading it. All of that is exactly what I look for when I take a break from my more usual Fantasy/Sci-fi reads, so no complaints from me!

Title: Crossed
Author: Ally Condie
Series: Matched, #2
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: DNF

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The Society chooses everything.

The books you read.
The music you listen to.
The person you love.


Yet for Cassia the rules have changed. Ky has been taken and she will sacrifice everything to find him.

And when Cassia discovers Ky has escaped to the wild frontiers beyond the Society there is hope.

But on the edge of society nothing is as it seems...

A rebellion is rising.

And a tangled web of lies and double-crosses could destroy everything.

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

DNF @ page 118

I read Matched in mid-2014 and I’ve been mildly curious about the sequel ever since. Fast forward two years, and I really wish I stomped that curiosity into oblivion. Two years isn’t that long ago and usually when I pick up a sequel the general gist of the story will come back to me after the first few chapters. Well, I don’t know what went wrong here, but I hadn’t a clue what was happening. Either Matched wasn’t as memorable as I thought it would be, or my memory is in need of a serious upgrade. The main character, Cassia, was a complete stranger. I did remember Ky, though vaguely. I don’t think the first book had multiple POVs, so I was a bit surprised to see both Cassia and Ky with their own separate viewpoints. The portion I read was way too mopey, too nauseatingly lovey-dovey and I just couldn’t stomach it any longer. Maybe it eases out later in the book, but I wasn’t interested in sticking around to find out. I was warned that this book was where the series began to go downhill, and I should have heeded the signs that were there from other readers I trust.

#ReadIndie Event Sign-Up

I’m so excited to be taking part in the #ReadIndie event hosted by Tracy @ Cornerfolds and Christina @ Books & Prejudice. When Tracy contacted me as asked me if I’d like to take part, I instantly said yes. How could I not! What’s not to love about sharing books you loved that just happen to be written by self-published authors, or published by small press publishers?? Sharing bookish love is always a good thing in my eyes!

The event runs from December 1st – 16th 2016, and the aim is to post reviews of indie and self-published books we’ve recently read and loved. If, like me, you always come across indie books to read but never manage to get around to reading them, then this is the perfect time to choose one and give it a go! (Plus, giveaways are always a good incentive, am I right?!)

The event is nice and relaxed, but there are a few rules to keep in mind:

The Rules:

• Linkup to the blog or account where you will be reviewing.
• If you're using a blog, create a blog post linking back to the signup post and listing your goals.
• Grab the button below and share.
• Post indie book reviews between December 1st and 16th.
• You do not have to post indie reviews exclusively (but only indie reviews count toward the challenge).
• Books do NOT have to be read during the challenge dates, but that is when the reviews must be posted.
• Titles must be from independent publishers. (i.e. not the big 5)
• Link each review you post in the rafflecopter to gain entries.
• Giveaway will be international. (More details to come when challenge begins!)
• Include #ReadIndie in your review titles. (e.g. #ReadIndie Book Title by Author Name)
• Tweet your progress using #ReadIndie.

If you’re interested in taking part, don’t forget to sign up by clicking on the link to Tracy’s sign up post right here!

Review: City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Fallen Angels
Author: Cassandra Clare
Series: The Mortal Instruments, #4
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: 2 / 5

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The Mortal War is over, and sixteen-year-old Clary Fray is back home in New York, excited about all the possibilities before her. She’s training to become a Shadowhunter and to use her unique power. Her mother is getting married to the love of her life. Downworlders and Shadowhunters are at peace at last. And—most importantly of all—she can finally call Jace her boyfriend.

But nothing comes without a price.

Someone is murdering Shadowhunters, provoking tensions between Downworlders and Shadowhunters that could lead to a second, bloody war. Clary’s best friend, Simon, can’t help her—his mother just found out that he’s a vampire, and now he’s homeless. When Jace begins to pull away from her without explaining why, Clary is forced to delve into the heart of a mystery whose solution reveals her worst nightmare: she herself has set in motion a terrible chain of events that could lead to her losing everything she loves. Even Jace.

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

Uhhh. That was disappointing. And boring. Honestly, I feel like we took two steps forward in City of Glass and five steps back in City of Fallen Angels. What the heck happened?! Reading a 435 page book where 15% at best is relevant plot progression and 85% is unnecessary padding gets old VERY fast. I think the best way to tackle this is to list out what worked and didn’t work for me.

Too many Points-of-View: I’m someone who dislikes multiple POVs in books anyway, and City of Fallen Angels is the guidebook to why I dislike them so much. I didn’t have a problem in the previous three books, but this one… uhhh. There was quite a bit of backtracking and repetitiveness when we switch over to a new narrator; character development went out the window in favour of re-explaining things we already knew, and the pacing grinded to an all-out crawl resulting in me craving a character death just to get some action back into the mix.

Too much Simon: He was the unexpected surprise in City of Glass, and while I really liked him in that book, that doesn’t mean I wanted to be stuck in his head for a billion pages in this one. He had A LOT of the main focus in this book, but honestly, I found all of his POV sections very boring and tedious to read. I know he is adored by many, many TMI fans, but… I just don’t get it.

Clary: Now, Clary has never exactly been a shiny beacon of awesomeness, but I feel her character has dwindled down to insignificance the longer the series has gone on. I really feel like she’s at risk of becoming irrelevant beyond being the person Jace loves. And that’s just sad. I don’t particularly like Clary, but geez, the girl desperately needs some decent character development.

Jace: Love him or hate him, I find Jace to be the most entertaining character in this series. Well, snarky humorous Jace is, anyway. Here… I’m torn. I can understand why Jace is acting as he did, but all the moping around got boring after the first hundred pages; never mind the next three hundred! I miss humorous Jace. Also, was it just me or were his POVs too scarce?

Romance: I though all the romantic aspects throughout the book felt forced and unnatural. And this was with all characters, not just Clary and Jace. Alec seemed a bit OCC to me, and the whole Isabelle/Maia/Simon thing… uhhh. Also, was it just me, or did the dialogue in general seem a bit off?

The ending was… pretty good! I know, I’m surprised too! I enjoyed the last three or four chapters, but what grates on every strand of patience I have within me is when all relevant plot progression is contained within those final few chapters. *screams internally*

So, after all that, Alma, do you plan to continue the series? Emm… yep. I do. I know, I know! I’m a sucker for punishment, but I made the mistake of buying the fifth book in the series before reading the fourth book, and I feel like I should at least give it a go. Considering I bought it in good faith that I’d like City of Fallen Angels… Well, look how well that turned out! *sobs*

Nine Books I've Recently Added to My To-Read List

To-read lists are dangerous. Seriously, they really are! They can leave you penniless within seconds if you give in to the temptation to buy every book that catches your eye. They refuse point blank to shrink. And don’t even get me started on the torment of trying to figure out what to read next. I swear I spend just as much time deciding what I want to read as I do reading! The nine books I’ve chosen for this list are only a small selection of what I’ve added to my TBR list over my break and since returning to blogging. (And that’s another point! If you stray away from reading for a little while, double the books will come back to haunt you and demand to be read. Lesson learned!)

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme run by The Broke and the Bookish.

Two Backlist Titles I Want to Read

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers – Recently Sam from Thoughts on Tomes recommended this book in one of her videos, and I absolutely LOVED the sound of it. I hadn’t heard of it before and I’m always looking for new Sci-fi recommendations. If you’ve read it, what did you think of it?

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker – I confess, I vaguely remember when this one was released, but I forgot about it shortly after. I only came across it again a couple of weeks ago and I’m very intrigued!

Three 2017 New Releases

Empress of a Thousand Skies by Rhoda Belleza – Oh beautiful covers, how you tempt me so! I need to read more science fiction, and I hope this book will help with that craving.

Roar by Cora Carmack – Even though the cover reminds me of Truthwitch, it sounds so good. Sounds like a straight up high fantasy novel with lots of magic. Perfect.

Dark Breaks the Dawn by Sara B. Larson – High Fantasy, corrupt monarchies, kingdoms at each other’s throats, and a magic wielding princess? Yep. I need it!

Four Series I Want to Continue

I started all four of these series this year, and I desperately need to get my hands on these sequels ASAP. I love high fantasy, so it wasn’t much of a surprise to me that I loved both THE QUEEN OF THE TEARLING and FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK. ALICE and OF METAL AND WISHES, on the other hand, unexpectedly exceeded all my expectations! ALICE is a dark and twisted Alice in Wonderland inspired retelling, and OF METAL AND WISHES is a Phantom of the Opera retelling set in a slaughter house. Looking back on things, I probably should have expected that I would adore them, but with retellings, I tend to be a little cautious with my expectations.

Thanks for stopping by, and Happy Reading!

WoW #86: Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

This week, I'm waiting on...

Carve the Mark

by Veronica Roth

Expected publication: 17th January 2016

Genres: Science Fiction; Young Adult

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On a planet where violence and vengeance rule, in a galaxy where some are favored by fate, everyone develops a currentgift, a unique power meant to shape the future. While most benefit from their currentgifts, Akos and Cyra do not—their gifts make them vulnerable to others’ control. Can they reclaim their gifts, their fates, and their lives, and reset the balance of power in this world?

Cyra is the sister of the brutal tyrant who rules the Shotet people. Cyra’s currentgift gives her pain and power—something her brother exploits, using her to torture his enemies. But Cyra is much more than just a blade in her brother’s hand: she is resilient, quick on her feet, and smarter than he knows.

Akos is from the peace-loving nation of Thuvhe, and his loyalty to his family is limitless. Though protected by his unusual currentgift, once Akos and his brother are captured by enemy Shotet soldiers, Akos is desperate to get his brother out alive—no matter what the cost. When Akos is thrust into Cyra’s world, the enmity between their countries and families seems insurmountable. They must decide to help each other to survive—or to destroy one another.

Doesn’t Carve the Mark sound so good? Also, I love how simple yet striking the cover is. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a few reservations about this book: I loved Divergent, but disliked Insurgent, so I really hope Carve the Mark will fall on the ‘I love it’ side of the equation! One thing that I really like is that the synopsis sounds more Sci-fi rather than dystopian oriented, so maybe that’ll be a good thing? We’ll see soon enough!

What do you think of Carve the Mark? Have you read the Divergent trilogy, oh, and have you seen the movies? What did you think of them??

Thanks for stopping by!

* Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. *