Review: Reap the Wind by Karen Chance

Title: Reap the Wind
Author: Karen Chance
Series: Cassandra Palmer Series, #7
Format: Paperback, bought
My rating: 2 / 5

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You’d think that being Chief Seer for the supernatural world would come with a few perks. But as Cassie Palmer has learned, being Pythia doesn’t mean you don’t have to do things the hard way. That’s why she finds herself on a rescue mission skipping through time—even though she doesn't entirely understand her dimension-bending new power.

Rescuing her friend John Pritkin should have been an in and out kind of deal, but with the near-immortal mage’s soul lost in time, Cassie has to hunt for it through the ages—with Pritkin’s demon dad in tow. He’s the only one who can reverse Pritkin’s curse, but with the guardians of the time-line dead set on stopping anyone from mucking about, Cassie will have to figure out how to get her friend back without ruffling too many feathers—or causing a world-ending paradox or two...

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

The Cassandra Palmer series is one of the few Urban Fantasy series I’ve kept up-to-date with from my pre-blogging days. It was one of the first UF series I read, and it still remains a firm favourite to this day. This is going slightly off-topic, but I find wait times between books in a series can be painful at the best of times, but when it’s a favourite series, that wait can become excruciating. Add in the fact that the sixth book in this series, Tempt the Stars, ended on yet another cliff-hanger, it was extra frustrating when I found out that Reap the Wind was set to be pushed back by an entire year. When the book finally arrived in the post a couple of weeks ago, I began reading straight away and my expectations were through the roof!

I don’t know what went wrong, exactly, but frustration was the main emotion I was left with after I finished reading. While I was reading, I kept thinking ‘was I satisfied with the things that were happening?’, and ‘was it worth the extra wait time?’ If I have to answer those questions, my answer would be no. This isn’t a small book by any stretch of the imagination, – 514 pages – yet I felt it turned into a giant recap of the previous six books in the series. It has been a long time since I read the previous books, so yes, this recap was appreciated. But, to be perfectly honest, getting a recap of the series wasn’t the reason why I wanted to read this book in the first place! Maybe if I wasn’t waiting for several dozen Cassie and Pritkin situations to be resolved, maybe this wouldn’t have bothered me so much. I hate to say this, but a part of me feels a little cheated. I expect what’s mentioned in a books synopsis to be solved – that’s its selling point, so I expect at least what’s mentioned in the synopsis to be addressed and resolved within that book. I don’t want to say any more, but I wasn’t satisfied with how little progress was actually made.

Here’s the thing: Cassie and Pritkin have been bickering and bugging the hell out of each other since the beginning of the series, and their dynamic together is AWESOME. It’s the main reason why I’ve stuck around for so long! I love it. In this book, however, there was a huge Pritkin shaped void. It was tolerable for a while, but by the half way mark, I was starting to get a bit angry with his continued absence. Also, I was starting to get tired of more and more unresolved stuff being piled on top of even more unresolved stuff . It became too much, and in honesty, and there are so many things going on I can’t keep it straight in my head anymore. What makes me really sad, though, is I’ve started not to care, and this breaks my heart. I LOVE Cassie and Pritkin, I really do, and I don’t want to be feeling this way after reading the latest instalment in the series.

Before I wrap up, I have to mention Mircea. I liked him in the first book, but by the second book I had jumped on the Pritkin bandwagon and haven’t looked back since. While I like Mircea’s character in general, I (surprisingly) found him extremely creepy in this book. There are some sexy time scenes with him, and honestly, I felt they were more unsettling rather than hot. I’m really glad Cassie FINALLY grew a pair and stood up to him – it only took seven books, but hey, better late than never, right?! Let’s hope she continues on this way in the future… but I’m not holding my breath.

I have to say, I think I went into this book expecting far too much. Reap the Wind isn’t really a bad book; it just didn’t live up to what I was expecting on any level. I guess my final thoughts come down to whether I want to continue with the series… well, erm, surprisingly yes. Yes I do! Seven books worth of investment isn’t something I’ll sacrifice on a whim, and Cassie and Pritkin mean too much to me abandon them just yet… but my patience will only last for so long. I’ll give the series one last chance, and I really, really, really hope Ride the Storm will deliver on all its promises. If it doesn’t, I’m gone.

Review: Twist by Karen Akins

Title: Twist
Author: Karen Akins
Series: Loop, #2
Format: Hardback, kindly provided
by the publishers in exchange for
a review. (Thank you!!)
Publisher: St Martin's Griffin
My rating: 4.5 / 5

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Bree Bennis finally has it all—a non-comatose mother, an uber-hot (albeit anachronistic) boyfriend named Finn, and a new-found mission to protect the timeline from those who would skew it for their own gain. But when she leans over one day to smooch said boyfriend, her lips meet those of her arch-nemesis Wyck instead. The timeline has been altered, and Bree is caught in the crosshairs. But when she goes back to repair the damage, she is stopped by none other than her Future Self, who delivers an urgent message: Someone is kidnapping Shifters from the distant past. It’s up to Bree to stop them. But first, she has to figure out who... and why.

To follow the trail of chronocrumbs, Bree reluctantly accepts her new undercover gig as Wyck’s girlfriend. Everything goes spiffy until Finn shows up in the 23rd century on the eager arm of a gorgeous fellow Shifter, Blark. Even as Bree struggles with jealousy, she battles the nagging dread that Finn might be better off with someone less chronologically complicated. Her worst fear is confirmed when Finn becomes the kidnapper’s next victim. As Bree zeroes in on the culprit, they unravel her life one timeline-change at a time. She realizes that she alone has the power to save herself and everyone she loves. But to do that, she may lose Finn forever.

-- As seen on Goodreads

My Thoughts

*I received a copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review. This didn't influence my opinion in any way.*

I loved Twist so much! It was just as entertaining and fast paced as Loop, and oh gosh, the titles for this two-part series are simply perfection. The pacing is blisteringly fast, and the story twists, turns and loops on a hairs breath and keeps you on your toes from beginning to end - it’s fabulous!

Bree finally has a little normality and stability in her life after the events that took place in Loop. She almost up-to-date with correcting timeline changes and is beginning to feel like she has everything under control… until one evening when she’s on a date with Finn, and she leans over to kiss him, but ends up kissing Wyck instead. Someone is messing with the timeline, and Bree is firmly in their sights. When Shifters start going missing, it’s up to Bree to find the source of the changes and save the timeline from begin thrown into irreparable chaos. Little does she know just how tangled things are, and with some interference from Future Bree, correcting the timeline once and for all could cost Bree everything.

Both Bree and Finn are simply adorable characters! While we didn’t get quite as much Bree and Finn together time in Twist as we did in Loop, I still loved their banter when they were together. They both have really likeable personalities that bounce off each other so well, and this creates so many hilarious moments. Add in Bree’s snarkishly sassy inner monologue, and it’s so awesome to read! The entire story isn’t all fun and laughs though, and I felt so many emotions throughout the book and I went from laughing one minute to fighting off tears the next.

As I briefly mentioned earlier, the plot is VERY fast paced. When the story really began to kick off there is so much going on all at once, with dozens of different directions the plot can go in, and I really applaud the author for crafting this book so clearly. I loved the perfect balance of heart pounding action, lightning fast plot, and entertaining, humorous and adorable characters. There isn’t a dull moment, and I loved finding out everything right along with Bree, and I was afraid to blink or I’d miss something.

The ending, the ending, oh gosh, the ending! I just about had a heart-attack during that last chapter. I’m not going to say anything specific, don’t worry, but I loved how well wrapped up everything was, but it wasn’t without some heartbreak. I’m a little sad that this is the final book! I was hoping it would be a trilogy, and I’m not really ready so say goodbye to these characters.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed both Loop and Twist, and I highly recommend both books. Time-travel is such a tricky topic to pull of believably, and I thought Karen accomplished this brilliantly. Add in two adorable, courageous and loveable characters, and I’m completely in love! I can’t wait to see what other stories we get from her in the future – and I’m going to be over here living in hope that there might be something from Bree and Finn, too!