Review: Rise of Fire by Sophie Jordan

Rise of Fire

Sophie Jordan

(Reign of Shadows #2)

Publication Date: February 7, 2017

Hardcover, 304 pages, HarperTeen

Genres: YA, Fantasy

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Luna and Fowler have escaped the kingdom of Relhok, but they haven’t escaped the darkness. When a battle against the dark dwellers mortally injures Fowler, Luna is faced with a choice: put their fate in the hands of mysterious strangers or risk losing Fowler forever. Desperate to keep the one bright part of her life alive, Luna accepts the help of soldiers from a nearby kingdom. Lagonia’s castle offers reprieve from the dangerous outside world—until the king discovers both Fowler's and Luna’s true ties to Relhok and their influence over the throne.

Now pawns in each kingdom’s political game, Luna and Fowler are more determined than ever to escape and build the life they’ve been dreaming of. But their own pasts have a tight hold on their hearts and their destinies. Luna must embrace the darkness and fire within her before she loses not only Fowler, but the power she was destined to inherit.

My Review

I said the first book in this duology was Tremors meets Tangled with a little bit of The Walking Dead thrown in. This book is Tremors meets The Princess Bride with a little bit of Reign, the TV show. There are still weird ground-dwelling monsters, but instead of focusing on the two main characters, Luna and Fowler, Rise of Fire introduces some side characters to mix things up a bit.

This series finale had a Princess-Bride-in-the-Fire-Swamp (ROUSs) feel. In the beginning, Fowler is injured much like Westley, and its Buttercup’s/Luna’s intention to negotiate with Prince Humperdinck to save him. Does it work? Well, you’ll have to read to find out.

Honestly, I loved the court intrigue in this one. The meddling relationships were so much fun. It’s a weird contrast to Reign of Shadows, which was a forest-y survival story mixed with a monster movie. The additional characters really helped push the story to a new level. Chassan was an interesting addition, though I feel like his terrible actions in the beginning were just kind of blown off towards the end. Also, his dad and his sister were stereotypical, but in a fun, bad-guy way. Unfortunately, the endings for all the characters, including the bad guys, was a little rushed. I think another 20-50 pages would have made a more solid and notable conclusion.

As for Luna and Fowler, they still definitely remind me of Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, but Princess Buttercup and Westley are in there as well. Luna is a good character, but she’s not particularly memorable like an Aelin or a Katniss. Her and Fowler both are just fun. We also never get a full explanation for Luna’s Daredevil-esque senses.

All in all, this series is a quick read. It’s not meant to be a fantasy to theorize over. It’s simply something you can pick up and read in less than a day. I’d say, if you’re looking for something to fly through between giant fantasy books, pick this one up, but only if you like weirder fantasy stories with strange creatures and a strong helping of romance.

*Note: I purchased a copy of this book myself. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Review: The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

The City of Brass

S.A. Chakraborty

(The Daevabad Trilogy #1)

Publication Date: November 14, 2017

Hardcover, 533 pages, Harper Voyager

Genres: Adult, Fantasy, Historical

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Nahri has never believed in magic. Certainly, she has power; on the streets of 18th century Cairo, she’s a con woman of unsurpassed talent. But she knows better than anyone that the trade she uses to get by—palm readings, zars, healings—are all tricks, sleights of hand, learned skills; a means to the delightful end of swindling Ottoman nobles.

But when Nahri accidentally summons an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior to her side during one of her cons, she’s forced to accept that the magical world she thought only existed in childhood stories is real. For the warrior tells her a new tale: across hot, windswept sands teeming with creatures of fire, and rivers where the mythical marid sleep; past ruins of once-magnificent human metropolises, and mountains where the circling hawks are not what they seem, lies Daevabad, the legendary city of brass, a city to which Nahri is irrevocably bound.

In that city, behind gilded brass walls laced with enchantments, behind the six gates of the six djinn tribes, old resentments are simmering. And when Nahri decides to enter this world, she learns that true power is fierce and brutal. That magic cannot shield her from the dangerous web of court politics. That even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.

After all, there is a reason they say be careful what you wish for...

My Review

Wow. So I haven’t had any strong reactions to reading a book in years. But this book. Whew. This book’s ending made me ANGRY. In a fantastic way. And I loved every moment of it. Almost. I actually kind of felt like the little boy in The Princess Bride when Westley dies. Remember him? Yeah, that was me.

We start The City of Brass by following Nahri’s POV. She’s a con artist in 18^th century Cairo, so when she summons a djinn warrior with a snarky attitude, I was hooked. I love me some romantic tension. Things were a little jarring, though, when the POV switched to Ali. At first I was wary, since his chapters were taking me away from Nahri and Dara’s storyline, but I quickly grew to love his viewpoints just as much as theirs. Each time either Nahri’s or Ali’s chapters ended, I was sad. I wanted to stay with the character longer. I give major props to Chakraborty for being able to make me disappointed each time a viewpoint ended.

Basically, I loved all of the characters. Even the evil ones. Ghassan is the evil ruler every evil ruler in fantasy dreams of being. (He’s actually logical at times and that’s what makes him so bad.) Dara is the mysterious bad boy with a humorous side. Ali is a clueless cinnamon roll, and Nahri is a strong woman who looks out for herself. I love it. It also helps that these main characters aren’t the leaders of the revolt that’s happening within the djinn city. All of these characters are kind of just stuck in the middle of this terrible situation. Of course, this may develop differently in the second book, but I appreciated the idea that not every fantasy protagonist is the leader of the rebellion.

Now, I do have to admit that while the beginning was a very fun adventure, with Nahri running to the city of Daevabad and Ali navigating his political family, the middle of the story did slow the pace down quite a bit, as both characters were put into the political minefield and there was a dip in the action scenes. But that ending. Oh boy, that ending. HOLY COW! It was chaotic and insane. I had the most visceral reaction I’ve ever had reading a book. Chapter 27 was heart-stopping. Needless to say, I’ll be buying books two and three. I must know what happens to these precious characters.

One reason I’m not giving this book five whole stars, despite the fact that it’s the only book in a long time to make me so unbelievably worried for a character that I had to spoil myself by looking up the sequel’s description on Goodreads, is that the world-building was a little confusing at times. The djinn/daeva have a complicated history that I’m still not entirely sure exactly how everything played out and when. I wish there was a timeline in the book for reference. But some minor confusion didn’t stop me from devouring this beautiful story.

All in all, if you’re a fan of YA fantasy books, read The City of Brass. If you’re a fan of epic fantasy books, read The City of Brass. If you’re a fan of djinn and less mainstream fantasy creatures read The City of Brass. Just read it.

*Note: I received a copy of this book at BookCon 2018. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Review: Brave by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Brave

Jennifer L. Armentrout

(A Wicked Trilogy #3)

Publication Date: December 11, 2017

Paperback, 364 pages

Genres: New Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy

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Ivy Morgan hasn't been feeling like herself lately. Not like anyone can blame her. After all, being held captive by a psychotic fae prince hell-bent on permanently opening the gates to the Otherworld is bound to leave some mental scars.

It’s more than that, though. Something dark and insidious is spreading throughout Ivy, more powerful than she could ever imagine... and it’s coming between her and the man she’s fallen deeply in love with, elite Order member Ren Owens.

Ren would do anything to keep Ivy safe. Anything. But when he makes a life altering choice for her, the fallout of his act has far reaching consequences that threaten to tear their lives apart.

If Ivy is going to have any hope of surviving this, she must put aside the hurt and betrayal she feels, and work with not only those she loves, but with an enemy she would rather kill than ever trust. War is coming, and it soon becomes clear that what Ivy and Ren thought they knew about the Order, themselves, and even their enemies, has been nothing but a cluster of dangerous, deadly lies.

Ivy knows she must be more than just brave to save those she loves--and, ultimately, to save herself.

Because behind every evil fae Prince, there’s a Queen….

My Review

The final book in JLA’s Wicked Trilogy picks up pretty close to where Torn left off. Ivy’s reeling from all that’s happened, and her friends are just as worried as she is. There’s so much angst. Something I feel like JLA does a very good job creating.

For a finale, Brave had it all: action, kissing, death, betrayal, and more. I do wish, however, that it had been another 100 pages longer. I think it could have done with being slowed down towards the end. Though I’ve noticed JLA’s final books for her series always tend to really amp up the speed. It didn’t necessarily detract from the story as I was reading, but reflecting on the ending later on, I think more pages would have prevented some rushed scenes.

One thing I LOVED about this ending, however, was Ivy’s growth. I’m not going to spoil it, but let’s just say the end of book two and the beginning of book three left her in a bad place. Her metamorphosis was so cool though. It’s what made me love this installment more than book two, and Ren’s reaction to Ivy’s change gave me all the heart flutters. He’s less alpha-male possessive-macho-man than JLA’s previous love interests. That’s not to say he doesn’t have some of those qualities, but he does trust Ivy to take care of herself.

As for the side characters, Tink had some very funny scenes. I’m still not sure exactly how I feel about his “growth.” I liked him a little better the way he was in the first book. I kind of felt the same about the villain of the story. He was more ominous in books one and two, and the twist in this ending left me unsure. Plus, I was a little shocked by how JLA chose to write the ending. It was so different from her other series.

All in all, I’m sad the trilogy is complete. I want more Ren. More Ivy. And more Tink. I think I’m entitled to another three books, right? Well, at least there might be a TV adaptation to get me through my book hangover....

*Note: I purchased a copy of this book myself. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Review: Geekerella by Ashley Poston

Geekerella

Ashley Poston

(Starfield #1)

Publication Date: April 4, 2017

Hardcover, 320 pages, Quirk Books

Genres: YA, Contemporary

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Geek girl Elle Wittimer lives and breathes Starfield, the classic science-fiction series she grew up watching with her late father. So when she sees a cosplay contest for a new Starfield movie, she has to enter. The prize? An invitation to the ExcelsiCon Cosplay Ball and a meet-and-greet with the actor slated to play Federation Prince Carmindor in the reboot. With savings from her gig at the Magic Pumpkin food truck and her dad's old costume, Elle's determined to win - unless her stepsisters get there first.

Teen actor Darien Freeman used to live for cons - before he was famous. Now they're nothing but autographs and awkward meet-and-greets. Playing Carmindor is all he has ever wanted, but Starfield fandom has written him off as just another dumb heartthrob. As ExcelsiCon draws near, Darien feels more and more like a fake - until he meets a girl who shows him otherwise. But when she disappears at midnight, will he ever be able to find her again?

Part-romance, part-love letter to nerd culture, and all totally adorbs, Geekerella is a fairy tale for anyone who believes in the magic of fandom.

My Review

If you’re looking for a cute, no-true-substance contemporary read about geeky people being oddly persecuted (despite us living in a geek-accepted day and age), then this book is the one for you. I don’t want to come off as too harsh while reviewing this book, because it had its fun moments, but it was just all around too cliché.

So the story is based off of Cinderella. Danielle is playing the leading lady. Darien Freeman, the actor playing Carmindor in Danielle’s favorite franchise, is the prince. And, of course, there are the evil stepmother and stepsister(s). Why can’t any book make a realistic, three-dimensional stepmom? Without one, Danielle’s entire storyline just felt like a pity party. Danielle also made some strange decisions that had me doubting her realistic-ness as well. (I mean, who takes a dog to a premiere?! Paris Hilton? Really?) There were other more important strange decisions, but the dog one forced me to knock the book down a half star. It was just odd….

Before I get too much into the less impressive qualities of the book, I’ll share the good stuff. Darien, while also whiny, had a very interesting storyline. I found myself enjoying his chapters much more often than Danielle’s. He was an actor on a popular movie set versus Danielle’s cliché situation. So yes, his chapters were better.

The geeky setting of the story was also very cute, but there were too many corny “We’re all in this together” moments. Conventions are not High School Musical. Oh, but the Starfield universe does sound super cool! The author should write books about those characters! (I know she wrote a new sci-fi YA book. I’ll be reading it at some point.)

All in all, maybe this book just wasn’t for me or I read it at the wrong time in my life to truly enjoy it. I was hoping for a Cinderella Fangirl, but I just got a more contemporary Cinderella a la Hillary Duff’s A Cinderella Story. If that’s your thing, check this one out. If not, just reread Fangirl.

*Note: I received a review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Review: Traitor to the Throne by Alwyn Hamilton

Traitor to the Throne

Alwyn Hamilton

(Rebel of the Sands #2)

Publication Date: March 7, 2017

Hardcover, 516 pages, Viking

Genres: YA, Fantasy

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Rebel by chance. Traitor by choice.

Gunslinger Amani al'Hiza fled her dead-end hometown on the back of a mythical horse with the mysterious foreigner Jin, seeking only her own freedom. Now she’s fighting to liberate the entire desert nation of Miraji from a bloodthirsty sultan who slew his own father to capture the throne.

When Amani finds herself thrust into the epicenter of the regime—the Sultan’s palace—she’s determined to bring the tyrant down. Desperate to uncover the Sultan’s secrets by spying on his court, she tries to forget that Jin disappeared just as she was getting closest to him, and that she’s a prisoner of the enemy. But the longer she remains, the more she questions whether the Sultan is really the villain she’s been told he is, and who’s the real traitor to her sun-bleached, magic-filled homeland.

Forget everything you thought you knew about Miraji, about the rebellion, about Djinn and Jin and the Blue-Eyed Bandit. In Traitor to the Throne, the only certainty is that everything will change.

My Review

The Blue-Eyed Bandit is back, and she’s causing just as much chaos as she did in the first book. I love it!

So, this sequel starts off in kind of a weird place. It’s been six months since the events of the first book, which made for a very confusing start. At first, I thought something was wrong and that the publisher accidentally printed the text for the third book in the paperback copy of Traitor. That’s how confused I was. But nope. It was just a jump in time. So be prepared for that. I know it took me a few chapters to really comprehend what was going on.

As for the characters in this book, Amani is still a fierce fighter and friend. She’s dedicated and angry and everything you’d expect a young woman who’s been undermined for so long to be. Also, I really love Amani’s dynamic with the other ladies in the rebellion. It was like a ragtag group of girl friends in high school, only they’ve been transported to a desert fantasy land. They’re written so well that they seem very real.

However, the female character greatness brings me to something I found a little lacking in this one: the male characters. Two complaints here: One, I wanted waaaaaay more Jin than I got. The scenes he was in were good, don’t get me wrong, but there just weren’t enough of them. And two, the villains are a little cliché in this one. Not terribly so, but the Sultan was doing a little bit of that whole villain spiel thing that I never understand. I guess in a roundabout kind of way, it makes some sense as to why the Sultan would want to talk with Amani, but still…Also, his son and heir was a typical douche bag.

Now, the plot of the book was one I expected to thoroughly hate as I realized about fifty or so pages in what was going to happen. I normally don’t like plotlines in fantasy books that rip the main character away from her ragtag group of rebels a la Empire of Storms or King’s Cage style, but for this one, I was thoroughly impressed with how I could not stop reading, despite Amani being in a whole new setting with new characters to interact with. I kept flipping pages and flipping pages.

All in all, if you’re looking for a fantasy series that’s out of the ordinary, Rebel of the Sands is one you should definitely pick up. There are genies, exiled princes, swordswomen, guns, and even kisses.

*Note: I purchased a copy of this book for myself. This in no way affected my opinion/review.

Empress of a Thousand Skies Review and Blog Tour

Today, I’m super excited to be a part of the Empress of a Thousand Skies & Blood of a Thousand Stars Blog Tour! Empress released last year, and Blood of a Thousand Stars is releasing this year. To encourage you all to pick up your copies, I thought I’d share my review of Empress of a Thousand Skies.

Empress of a Thousand Skies

Rhoda Belleza

(Empress of a Thousand Skies #1)

Publication Date: February 7, 2017

Hardcover, 314 pages, Razorbill

Genres: YA, Sci-Fi

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A sweeping sci-fi fantasy adventure that follows two fugitives -- a princess-in-exile and her accused killer -- across the galaxy as they fight to reclaim her family dynasty and save the universe from a deadly threat.

     Crown Princess Rhiannon, known as Rhee, has deadly accuracy with a blade and a thirst for vengeance. After her family perished in a suspicious spacecraft accident when she was just a child, Rhee grew up in exile while a corrupt government ruled in her stead. Now, Rhee has finally come of age to claim her title as Empress... and to avenge her family.

     But on the eve of her coronation, Rhee is brutally attacked by a government assassin and only narrowly escapes with her life. Without knowing who she can trust, Rhee goes into hiding, relying only on her sharp instincts and her trusty blade to survive.

     Across the galaxy, pilot Alyosha has risen above his war refugee origins to find fame as the popular star of a reality holo-vision show. But when Aly is framed for the attack on Rhee, he goes from celebrity to fugitive in an instant. On the run from the formidable UniForce army, Aly knows that his only hope is to find the princess and clear his name.

     Thrown together by an act of violence, Rhee and Aly eventually discover the attack is just one part of a larger plan with devastating, far-reaching consequences for the entire galaxy.

My Thoughts

Princesses in space? Check. Advanced technology? Check. Spaceship chases? Check. And a sassy droid? Check. This YA book has all the makings of a fun, action-packed sci-fi read.

Princess Rhiannon has known since her family died that she would take the thrown, but she just wants to avenge her parents and sister. Not rule an entire galaxy. Apparently, others think the same since someone just tried to murder her before her coronation. And Alyosha wants to be free to live his own life, but being in the wrong place at the wrong time forces him to go on the run from the galaxy’s UniForce.

In the book, the two main characters, Rhiannon and Alyosha, or Rhee and Aly, share their respective journeys across the galaxy in each of their POVs. While Rhee is trying to figure out who is attempting to end her life, Aly is trying to figure out why he’s being set up for a crime he didn’t commit.

Sometimes Rhee and Aly aren’t always the most flushed-out characters, yet their voices do resonate as you’re reading. Rhee is the girl reluctant to take charge, and Aly is the boy who everyone blames simply because he exists. I think their stories are very poignant when it comes to today’s society. At times, though, I did find myself gravitating more towards Aly’s story. I think this was because of his partners in crime. I mean, he had a droid following him around! Doesn’t every space hero need an awesome droid?!

As for the plot of the story, it was definitely quick-paced. Rhee’s chapters were often longer than Aly’s, but both always ended on cliffhangers. This made reading the story super frustrating, but, at the same time, super fast. I just wanted to know what was going to happen next! At a couple points, the cliffhanger situation did bum me out a little bit, simply because there were such big scenes happening, but when the next chapter from the character’s POV started, it would pick up too far in the future and the whole ordeal would only be mentioned in passing later on. Thankfully, those odd cliffhanger scenarios only happened once or twice.

Now, I’ve got to talk about the worldbuilding. It was good. I enjoyed reading a YA science fiction story that had other creatures in it, not just humans! It was kind of like Guardians of the Galaxy in that way. There were fuzzy creatures, pointy-eared creatures, and more! But, I wish more time had been spent developing all the species, technology, planets, and religions. It’s such a cool concept that I think it could have been explored as much as possible. But who knows? Maybe that worldbuilding happens in book two?

All in all, I’d recommend Empress of a Thousand Skies to any YA SFF lover. Especially fans of Melissa Landers, Marissa Meyer, and/or Mindee Arnett.

The Author

 
Rhoda Belleza was raised in Los Angeles, where she grew up writing X-Files fanfiction and stuffing her face with avocados. She's a children's editor at a publishing house and writes from a sunny Brooklyn apartment stuffed with far too many bikes and far too many shoes. When she's not writing, Rhoda obsesses over nail art tutorials, watches kung fu movies, and sews together crooked things that pass for clothes. Empress of a Thousand Skies is her debut novel.

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The Tour

EMPRESS OF A THOUSAND SKIES

WEEK ONE

1/29 – Ageless Pages Review – Review

1/30 – The Bookish King – Review

1/31 – Elizabethandherbooks – Review

2/1 – Shell’s Stories – Review

WEEK TWO

2/5 – Haunted by Books 13 – Review

2/6 – Bookling Critics – Review

2/7 – How Useful It Is – Review

2/8 – Sweet Things – Q&A

BLOOD OF A THOUSAND STARS

WEEK ONE

2/12 – Brittany’s Book Rambles – Q&A

2/13 – Pages Within Me – Review + Creative

2/14 – Celesha’s Love for Books – Review

2/15 – Ex Libris – Review

2/16 – A Court of Coffee and Books – Review + Quote Teasers

WEEK TWO

2/19 – Hollywood News Source – Playlist

2/20 – The Fandom – Moodboard

2/21 – BookishStateofMind – Creative imagery with a review

Make sure to check out the other tour stops!

*Note: I received a finished copy of Empress and an ARC of Blood of a Thousand Stars for review from the publisher. This in no way affected my opinion/review.