tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54388402165006856072024-02-22T16:07:51.346+00:00Lost in thought"A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies...The man who never reads lives only one." - George R.R Martinbeccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.comBlogger377125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-6426969405261155442020-10-17T21:18:00.006+01:002020-10-17T21:18:50.481+01:00The Kingdom of the Wicked REVIEW<p>The Kingdom of the Wicked - Kerri Maniscalco</p><p>Netgalley Review (thank you to Netgalley for a review copy in exchange of an honest review).</p><p>4/5 Stars!</p><p><br /></p><p>This was an intoxicating, atmospheric and dark story that kept me reading, eager to see what happened next. It had its faults yet I continued to read, page after page to unravel the mystery and see how everything came together. </p><p>I felt fully immersed in the world, in the 19th century Italian setting. The setting of a quaint Italian village really had me. The winding, cobbled streets and bustling market came alive and transported me to a historical, fantastical Italy. And also the main thing this book made me? Hungry. Wow, was this book a ride for the senses. Whilst reading I could smell the garlic, the aroma of freshly baked bread, taste the sweet lemony pancakes, and hear the hiss of pancetta cooking. From bruchetta, to ricotta, to mozzeralla, this book was a food lover's delight. The combination of the enchanting setting and the dark atmosphere truly made this a fun and thrilling read.</p><p>I also enjoyed the mystery. This book was a dark and witchy murder mystery story. A mystery surrounding several gory, brutal murders. I did have this nagging feeling who the culprit was but I enjoyed the twisted ride nonetheless. Emilia and Wrath were like a witchy demonic duo, working together to unravel the mystery and reveal the sadistic murderer. </p><p>Now the romance. If that's what you can call it. I feel like it was more of a dark, simmering pot of water, boiling slowly but not quite ready to boil over the top. It had me intrigued and the love interest is the perfect brooding character (that we a love to see). I really hope to see more of the couple in question in the next book and hope the pot boils over like crazy as I'm here for it. </p><p>While I liked Emilia's character and loved her headstrong, fearless attitude and fierce loyalty to her sister, she was also infuriatingly reckless. I lost count of the amount of times I rolled my eyes at her complete disregard for her safety (and others) after several warnings. I understand that she was willing to do anything to get to the root of the murder mystery, but she just seemed so reckless and naive really. Also, everything she did seemed to just work out perfectly as if the stakes weren't 100% high for her atleast. A little too lucky really. However, I did love her close bond with her twin sister and her vengeful quest for answers and justice. It's just that she annoyed me at times! </p><p>At times I also felt like the 'magic system' and the whole demon world felt a little loose and not fully fleshed out. I felt a little confused by what exactly was going on with the whole demon side of things and what exactly fuelled certain individual's actions. Hopefully more will be explained in the next book about the magic and the whole lore behind it all. It intrigued me so I'm eager to understand it on a deeper level.</p><p>Overall I felt really immersed in this intricately dark tale. Witches, demons, family, loss, romance and betrayal; this book has it all. I'm hopeful that the next book helps to flesh out elements of the story that I found lacking but I was invested in this story and this delightfully dark world. </p>beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-59100518839734929552020-08-20T16:06:00.001+01:002020-08-20T16:06:01.645+01:00Cinderella is Dead REVIEW<p><br /></p><p>Cinderella is Dead - Kalynn Bayron REVIEW</p><p>3/5 stars</p><p>Kindly received from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. </p><p>Cinderella is Dead was a fast paced story that turned the famous and beloved fairytale of Cinderella on its head. It was much more Christian Anderson-esque than Disney though! What I enjoyed most of all was the fairytale elements mixed with strong feminist themes. The world that this story is set in is a dark and dangerous place, where patriarchy rules supreme and women are treated as objects, playthings and second class citizens. It's much more of a grim, dystopian place rather than a glamorous utopia you'd find in a fairytale. </p><p>There were a few things that rubbed me the wrong way though. Sadly, the story fell a little flat for me. It seemed to rush on, with everything told to us really and not shown. The insta love element didn't work for me either and had me rolling my eyes a few times. The characters frustrated me at times and I didn't feel completely invested in them. I liked Sophia as a main character but I didn't connect with her really. Her strong spirit and feisty attitude was compelling but as the story progressed I didn't fully believe in everything she did.</p><p>Overall, I liked this story. I liked the fresh outlook on a traditional fairytale and how diverse it was. However, it wasn't for me and wish it had more depth and intrigue. </p><div><br /></div>beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-38601001456089895912020-07-21T20:21:00.002+01:002020-07-21T20:22:45.516+01:00The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones REVIEWThe Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones - Daven McQueen REVIEW<br />
5/5 Stars<br />
Kindly received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.<br />
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This book tore through me like a hurricane, swept me off my feet and left me a raw, emotional wreck. I am absolutely blown away by this book. I devoured it in less than 24 hours. I sobbed, gasped and shouted loudly as I read this, witnessing racism and discrimation; but I also smiled and laughed, spell bound by this tale of an unlikely, yet unforgettable friendship.<br />
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Ethan was such a fantastic protagonist. Witnessing the way he was treated in such a deeply rooted racist society was just heartbreaking. Yet, so important to read about. Seeing him grapple and wrestle with his identity and the colour of his skin was just heart wrenching. He's such an endearing character and I came to care so much for him and was so glad that I was a part of his summer, along with Juniper.<br />
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Juniper Jones. What a whirlwind of a character. A wild, free and caring girl with fiery red hair and a fiery soul to match. Her spirit and zest for life was infectious and seemed to burst off the pages. Her passion and understanding nature really spoke to me. We should all be more like Juniper Jones. Bright, carefree and passionate. Willing to stand up for others whilst also willing to recognise our own failings. A loyal and kind hearted friend. I now want to write a list of activities for an invincible summer of my own.<br />
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Their friendship was everything. Both seen as different, misplaced and unwanted in town, they're brought together on a mission to fulfill Juniper's goal of having an invincible summer. Their friendship was wonderful. Invincible.<br />
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This book dealt with race, racism and discrimination - topics that were relevant back when this book is set and sadly, still relevant as hell in today's world and the Black Lives Matter movement. This should be required reading for everyone - not just young adults - everyone. It's so much more than just a story - it's a lesson, something to learn from, understand (as much as we can) and strive to be better than. We are all people who should be treated equally no matter what.<br />
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The Invincible Summer of Juniper Jones is a poignant read of race, friendship, family and history. Pick it up. I know I will reread this again some day. It will stay with me for a long time.<br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-74420495655765073542020-07-21T13:07:00.001+01:002020-07-21T13:07:46.953+01:00Every Sky a Grave REVIEW Every Sky a Grave - Jay Posey<br />
3/5 Stars<br />
Received for review from Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.<br />
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Every Sky a Grave is an intricate tale seeped in mystery and intrigue, with even a little magic mixed in. It felt like sci-fi mixed with fantasy; it's set in an otherworldly, sci-fi , realistic setting with fantastical elements dotted here and there. It definitely had an original concept, dealing with the power of language along with the power to destroy or create, all within a sci-fi setting. It had some action, mystery and political intrigue which did make for an interesting read.<br />
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The world building is complex - a little too complex at times. Don't get me wrong, it's fantastically rich and vivid in its descriptions of the worlds but I was a little lost at times. I was just a little lost at times and a little confused at what was happening. I'm fully aware that that may be down to my understanding, however it did hinder my enjoyment of it as a whole.<br />
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Elyth was a great character; she's strong, intelligent and intuitive. Despite this, I felt a little detached from her and her story. I enjoyed her as a character more as the story progressed, but her lack of background just didn't allow me to gel with her really as a character. Her character arch did make me empathise and care for her and I liked how she developed as a character - especially at the very end! I loved Hok and his team; I kind of wish we had more of them in the story. I love a team and seeing group dynamics. I had my suspicions early on about the true 'villain' of the story but it was still good to see it all unfold, and see that it's more complex, with grey characters rather than straight up good and bad individuals.<br />
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I'm in two minds about the writing. First, it took me a while to get into the story and it wasn't until 30% of the way through that I started to feel invested in what was happening. I did like how metaphorical and vivid the writing was though; some of the metaphors and symbolism in the story were beautiful. However, it did seem to slow the pace of the story down at times.<br />
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Overall, I did enjoy Every Sky a Grave. I thought it was an original concept that I've never really encountered before. I liked the world and its vivid descriptions. I'm in two minds about continuing as I'm intrigued to find out what enfolds next but aware that the story didn't quite gel with me as a whole. I'd recommend this book to those who enjoy a complex sci-fi story and likes a bit of originality and intrigue.beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-24072270729389512592020-07-11T01:01:00.003+01:002020-07-11T01:01:28.684+01:00Mexican Gothic REVIEWMexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia<br />
4/5 stars<br />
Title provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.<br />
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Well, colour me intrigued from the beginning. This eerie, creepy and peculiar story had me entranced from the start. I was morbidly fascinated by this dark, rather delicious but mostly disturbing tale. I devoured it in a day, eager to piece together all of the pieces of this spine-chilling puzzle. I just had to know what on earth was going on - and I wasn't disappointed. This book was bursting with gothic elements, from the mysterious, complex characters to the grim and decaying setting.<br />
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Oh, the setting. The house. I think it may be my favourite character, and it is surely a character, as its presence is overbearing, suffocating and intoxicating. It felt so claustrophobic and creepy, menacing and dangerous. The perfect gothic setting.<br />
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Our protagonist, Noemi was simply fantastic. I loved her. She was feisty, outspoken, clever and loyal; she simply oozed glamour with a hint of sass and defiance. She was a great character to read from and felt all of her emotions vividly - I was horrified most of the time as she experienced some awful things and grew angrier and angrier as she suffered at the hands of some monstrous individuals. The other characters were great also. Some villainous and unpleasant, others warm and friendly. One made me feel physically sick. What a disgusting creature. But a great character nonetheless.<br />
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I honestly think this book would make the perfect horror/ thriller TV show or film. It read like a film and I could vividly imagine the setting, the characters and the events. And it's all down to the writing. The descriptions are so evocative and intricate, and made the world of Mexican Gothic come to life (no matter how much it scared me at times!). It was suspenseful and full of tension; it had me gripped, turning each page in anticipation. Yet another perfect element of gothic fiction.<br />
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All in all, Mexican Gothic was a sinister story that kept me guessing from start to finish. I felt like I couldn't breathe properly until the final sentence; it was atmospheric, suspenseful and hair-raising. It's not my usual read but I am so, so glad that I picked this up. Definitely read Mexican Gothic if you want a diverse, spooky tale set against a glamorously grotesque setting.beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-70676026338122590652020-07-09T18:59:00.002+01:002020-07-09T18:59:51.778+01:00I'm Five Years REVIEWIn Five Years by Rebecca Serle<br />
3/5 Stars<br />
Title provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.<br />
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<pre class="display" id="review-display" style="background-color: white; border-radius: 4px; border: none; box-sizing: border-box; color: #666666; font-family: Raleway-Regular, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1.5em; outline: none; overflow-wrap: normal; overflow: auto; padding: 0px; white-space: pre-wrap; word-break: normal;">I enjoyed this book overall but I just admit that I wasn't fully invested in the story and its characters. I felt like the main character, Dannie, just was a little flat and dull. I understand that that was kind of the point as her life was without 'colour' and was quite stale and boring. I did appreciate seeing how she evolved as a character but I wasn't cheering her on from the sidelines if I'm honest. The one aspect of this book that I really appreciated was the strong friendship depicted. Dannie and Bella are more sisters than best friends and their relationship was the most important one at the end of all things. I did enjoy how it wasn't your typical romance story and ended in a different way than usual but I just felt like something was lacking.
Fantastic portrayal of friendship and it definitely tugged on the heartstrings at time. It also made me feel very nostalgic about my trip to New York years ago so maybe that was the stand out character in my mind? Who knows, but it was an okay read overall.</pre>
beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-1628329957574401412020-07-06T23:50:00.002+01:002020-07-06T23:50:44.738+01:00Bookish and the Beast Review (Netgalley Arc) Bookish and the Beast by Ashley Poston<br />
3/5 stars<br />
Kindly received this title from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.<br />
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This was such a cute book! I loved the Beauty and the Beast aspects in this and how the author retold the beloved tale in a fresh and cute way! I went into this book not having read the other two (I may have to pick those up now!) but I still enjoyed it! It wasn't amazing but I flew through it in 24 hours so it definitely held my attention! My favourite part of all of this was the book love; the descriptions of books, the library and reading just spoke to me in a real special way! I'll definitely be going back and highlighting some of the bookish quotes! I also just love the whole 'nerdiness' that this book is dripping in! It made a fellow nerd (and proud of it!) and book lover very, very happy!<br />
Overall, Bookish and the Beast was 3.5 star read for me. It was fun, fresh and cute! Nothing too serious, nothing too deep, just the perfect amount of cheesy, needy goodness!beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-13986527634596769192017-01-20T10:37:00.001+00:002017-01-20T10:37:49.753+00:00I'M BACK! <div style="text-align: justify;">
Hello all you lovely book obsessed people! I'm back after stepping away from my blog quite a while ago. I've posted a few times here and there but I haven't blogged properly in almost two years. In that time I've been travelling, visiting a wealth of amazing countries and quite a few bookish places too (of those I will blog about, don't you worry!). I've also been trying to sort out what it is I want to do with my life, mostly career wise - I've been accepted on a Teacher Training course to become an English Teacher, I'm learning to drive (freedom! yay!) and completing a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) qualification, so I've been pretty busy! Obviously with so much on my plate I haven't been reading as much as I would have liked and during a bit of a down period last year I had no desire to read whatsoever. But I'm back now. I'm ready to throw myself into a muriad of different worlds, to devour a pile of books, write my feelings and thoughts on such books into reviews and finally, post on my blog! 2017 is my year and I plan on reading a ton of books, books that I really have an interest in. There's so many books to read, series to start/complete and new ones being released everyday that I've decided that I HAVE to be picky now with what I read or I'll never get through my TBR pile and my ever growing wishlist! I also need to cull a load of books, which pains me, but my bookshelves are heaving and I need the space! </div>
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Ultimately I've missed reading and reviewing books and I've missed blogging! I was unsure whether to restart my blog again from scratch and although I'll keep that in mind, I think I'll keep Lost in Thought up and running for a little while. See how things go over the next few weeks! I'm currently immersed in the world of The Wrath of the Dawn series; I'm just about to start The Rose and the Dagger and I'm looking forward to it quite a bit! I'll be getting a few reviews up in the next few weeks and joining in on all the posts, so I shall see you all again very soon! Bye! </div>
beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-83953401941279746042016-04-10T15:00:00.001+01:002016-04-10T15:00:32.006+01:00The Winner's Kiss Blog Tour: Favourite Series Quotes!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Welcome all! I'm super excited today to be participating in the blog tour for the release of <i>The Winner's Kiss</i>, the final book in the mesmerising series from the brilliant Marie Rutkoski. Without a shadow of a doubt I can hold my hand up and say that <i>The Winner's Curse</i> trilogy has sealed its place <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">as o<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ne of</span></span> my favourite fantasy series of all time. It<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span>had it all; political intrigue, sizzling romance,<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> complex cha<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">racters<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> and an immersi<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">ve world<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. </span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And another reason why I love the series is so much is because of Rutkoski's amazing<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> lyrical</span> narrative. Seriously, her writing is so beautifully descriptive, intricate and imaginative<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">. <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It successfully <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">creates</span></span></span> this tactile world that just blossoms and bursts with life from the pages.</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">Its
use of highly vivid imagery created an immersive reading experience
where the reader can almost feel the exquisite silk dresses, hear the </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">cacophony</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> of</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> music</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> and</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">the hammering of metal on metal; see the </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">gleam of the marble buildings and taste the delicious</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> mouthwatering</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">delicacies</span></span></span></span><span class="TextRun SCX8266079" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX8266079" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span></span></span> </span>Rutkoski expertly weaves the sensual with suspense creating this electric narrative, both intense and dram<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">atic</span>. Sometimes its downright sexy, especially when it comes to Arin and Kestrel's more romantic scenes ;) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Below are my top three quotes from <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">each of the books. The quotes below are so simple <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">but powerful in their own way. Although the world in The Winner's C<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">urse trilog<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">y is fantastical but I believe the quotes below are true in any world and any context<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> creating th<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">is <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">strong bond between <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the story and the reader.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span></span></span></span></span></b></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Isn't that what stories do, make real things fake, and fake things real?</span></span></b></i>”</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Stories are magical things allowing us an escape route from everyday life into thousands of different worlds. If life is tough and getting you down you can always pick up that special book that will immerse you into a fictional world so magical and real, that will sweep you away from all your troubles for a time. It's why we love reading right?!</span></span></div>
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“Sometimes you think you want something,” Arin told him, “when in reality you need to let it go.”</span></b></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Not only does this sum up (SPOILER ALERT!) Arin and Kestrel's complicated, frustrating relationship in The Winner's Crime (it drove me nuts!), I believe it's such a great quote for real life situations. Sometimes you think you really want something or someone but in reality it may be better for you - and them - if you let it be and let that person go. Deep stuff. But yeah Arin and Kestrel are crazy in the second installment and their intense relationship will hold you in complete suspense. An annoyingly frustrating two-some but I just love them together! </span></span></span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“You don't need to be gifted with a blade. You are your own best weapon.” </span></span></b></i></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I love this quote! I love Kestrel's character and how she developed so much throughout the trilogy. She's strong and feisty and we get to see that in her in many different ways. We find out in the first book that she's not all that skilled with a blade but what she does wield is a sharp and intelligent mind and I just love her for it. </span></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">It's such an amazing quote that shows that you don't need to be strong physically to be considered strong; a quick mind is just as powerful - and deadly in Kestrel's case. Girl Power! </span></span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-64782630720572845972015-04-07T21:42:00.000+01:002016-04-05T12:00:07.727+01:00Top Ten Books Recently Added to my TBR List! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://brokeandbookish.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Broke and the Bookish.</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Now my TBR list is huge. Absolutely enormous. My amazon wishlist and goodreads to-be-read list is crazily long. There's just too many good books out there and sadly not enough time to read them. But I'm really excited for some of these and I really really really do hope to get to them sometime soon. Of course that means buying them which is a bit tricky when you're supposed to be cutting back on book buying but hey isn't that every book lovers dilemma?! </span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-28205794131302311412015-03-30T21:44:00.000+01:002016-04-05T12:00:14.204+01:00SHADOW STUDY BLOG TOUR: MARIA V SNYDER GUEST POST!<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">After discovering the wonderful author that is Maria V Snyder a few years ago and devouring her books wholeheartedly, you can guess that I was super excited to hear that Shadow Study was an actual real thing. That excitement turned to pure joy when I read an ARC of it a few weeks back. Now I'm even more excited to say I'm participating in the UK blog tour of Shadow Study to celebrate it's release and have a wonderful guest post from Maria herself for you today. She explains what influenced and inspired her when she first created the magical worlds that feature in her books. World-building completely makes or breaks a book for me especially when it comes to fantasy books. So it's such fun to get an insight into the inspiration that the author drew upon to create her absolutely fantastic worlds. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">So without further ado, I give you Maria V Snyder!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23561467-shadow-study" target="_blank"> (Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Shadow-Study-Chronicles-Ixia-Book-ebook/dp/B00O8XP7SU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1427730102&sr=1-1&keywords=shadow+study" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I was reading Orson Scott
Card’s book, <i>How to Write Science Fiction and Fantasy</i>. In chapter 3,
Card tells the writer to consider some questions before choosing the
main character. He wrote, “Too often—particularly in medieval
fantasy—writers think their story must be about rulers. Kings and
queens, dukes and duchesses—they can be extravagantly powerful, yes, but
too often they aren’t free at all. If you understand the workings of
power in human societies, you’ll know that the greatest freedom is to
act in unpredictable ways is usually found away from the centres of
power.” </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This comment led me to think about a person who was close
enough to the centre of power to witness important events, yet not be
the Prince or Princess. I thought about a food taster and a scene jumped
into my mind. A woman tasted food that was most likely poisoned and the
point of view character was the King. He watched her with heartbreaking
horror because he had fallen in love with her, but protocol demanded
that she taste his food. That led me to wonder about this woman. Who was
she? Why was she there? Why would a King fall in love with her? And
Poison Study was born. The fact I thought about a food taster
wasn’t that random. My husband works for Mars Chocolate (they make
Dove™, Snickers™, M&Ms™, etc…) and a part of his job is tasting
chocolate. So I heard quite a bit about tasting methods, spices,
flavors, mouth feel, etc… over the years. It must have all nested in my
subconscious so when I needed an interesting character out popped a
food taster! :)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I originally thought I’d have a monarch
for my fantasy novel, but there are so many books with monarchs, that I
wanted something different. I sparked on a military dictatorship.
Where this military dictatorship came from is easy to trace. I can link
Ixia back to my 12 years in Catholic school. I wore a uniform to
school every day and loved it. It made my life so much easier in the
mornings.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Many aspects of my life can be found in my
books. My parents took me on a tour of a glass factory when I was 12
years-old and glass has become a huge part of the Glass books. I took
gymnastic classes and loved to climb trees. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Since I’m a
seat-of-the-pants writer, all types of things will bubble up from my
subconscious while I’m writing. It’s fun and I embrace what comes my
way. However, I do plan a few things out and will do research for the
things I haven’t experienced. For example, I learned how to ride a
horse. Since I grew up in a city, I’d never been around horses and I
needed first-hand information. If possible, I do as much hands-on
research as I can.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another factor while I was writing the
Chronicles of Ixia, was being a member of a writing critique group. My
fellow writers helped me improve the story and my writing. I also
attended Seton Hill University’s Masters Program in writing at the time,
and my experience there was fabulous. The teachers and students not
only provided priceless feedback, but they inspired and motivated me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I
guess if I boil it down to one word, life influenced and inspired me
while working on the books. And I hope it continues to do so! I’m
certainly going to continue to keep an open mind and experience as much
of life as possible! </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>- </b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Big thanks goes to Maria for providing such an interesting post! I adore her Study and Healer series so getting that little bit of insight has been great. Also check out my review of <a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/shadow-study-maria-v-snyder-review.html" target="_blank"><u><b>Shadow Study</b></u></a>. It was amazing!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks Mira Ink for allowing my blog to feature in the Shadow Study blog tour! </span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-29644642460287734912015-03-17T14:51:00.001+00:002016-04-05T12:01:00.215+01:00Top Ten Books On My Spring TBR List!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://brokeandbookish.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Broke and the Bookish.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So I found this post a little tricky as I have so many books I want to read! Right now I'm actually just picking up any book that takes my fancy; I don't really do TBR lists so I might change my mind about what books I want to read. But these are the books I'm hoping to get to sometime soon. There's a few others too such as a ton of Bill Bryson books I want to read and a few Netgalley books. I'm trying to read a lot of my physical books because I'm (hopefully!) off traveling at the end of the summer and won't be able to take any with me! So I'm scouring my bookshelves to dust off all those books that have been waiting to be read for the last few years! Also some of the following books I actually don't own...so I might just have to buy some new books (cheer!) which is perfectly fine by me but I should be saving... </span><br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-4346848459732930302015-03-10T11:13:00.001+00:002016-04-05T12:01:09.192+01:00Top Ten Books For Readers Who Like Amazing World-Building!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://brokeandbookish.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Broke and the Bookish.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">I made a long list of topics to discuss in today's post. I didn't really want to choose a genre or a certain book but an interesting topic. That finally lead me to books that have such amazingly well developed worlds and epic world-building. Worlds that are so highly imaginative, so vividly described, so intricately detailed, tactile and alive. Worlds that you are transported to in just a few words. Worlds that have a solid structure with their own complex society, politics, rules, conflicts. So this post is for all of you out there that love sinking your teeth into a book that has such fascinating worlds and those of you who adore exploring new, undiscovered places full of magic, intrigue, mystery and danger. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Beautiful writing brings this luxurious and intoxicating world to life brilliantly. A world seeped in history and politics it's rich, ancient, elegant and gritty. The Winner's Crime allowed us to further explore this vivid, complex world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Need I say much about the outstanding world that is Middle Earth. Tolkien was pure genius, creating a mythical and absolutely entrancing world that is seeped in layers and layers and layers of history and myth. Seriously, there's so much more to Middle Earth than what we see in LOTR and The Hobbit. It's just a beautiful world, expertly constructed. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Not only is Jodi Meadows' writing delicious but also her unique and magical world. It really is the most enchanting place, so alluring in its portrayal of a fantastical, mythical world. I loved the sense of peace and serenity that permeated throughout but also the haunting and eerie atmosphere that crept in here and there. It was definitely a mysterious place.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sanderson has expertly crafted such a complex, riveting and absorbing world. The detail in this book is immense and you really feel the oppressive atmosphere of this dark and dangerous world. It just emanates throughout, pouring off the pages, pulling us into this intricate, magical world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A Court of Thorns and Roses has the most seductive, delectable and bewitching world. It's otherworldly, whimsical and enchanting. The world is rich and vivid and also extremely tactile. You really can imagine that you're there; it's absorbing and gripping. A beautiful but mysterious place where danger lurks in the shadows. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The 'A Song of Ice and Fire' series is truly epic. Epic in its scope and imagination, in its extensive world-building and engrossing history and politics. It's such a colossal world incorporating swathes of varying terrains and lands that just leap off the pages. Westeros is a wondrous and breathtaking place of sweeping landscapes, perilous seas, treacherous winters and legendary creatures. It's pure amazing. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A Girl of Fire and Thorns had such an exotic, enticing and captivating world. The desert setting made it a unique and seductive place, exquisite in its rich and vivid portrayal. Truly, Carson's writing is so descriptive creating an immersive and complex world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Snyder is a fantasy genius. Not only is Poison Study a brilliant example of exquisite world-building but Touch of Power also displays her expertise perfectly. Her worlds are rich, striking and entrancing; amazing examples of mesmerising world-building.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Cinder really exhibited Meyer's astounding imagination, creativity and skill with world-building. A futuristic, sci-fi setting it's gritty, authentic and surprisingly realistic. It's mesmerising in its portrayal of a world that seems vaguely familiar but yet fresh and alien. It's such a fascinating world that we explore in more depth in Scarlet and Cress.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Throne of Glass is exquisite. Just stunning. The story, the characters and the world. A Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire allows us to delve into this world in much more depth. It's fantastical, rich, bright and enchanting, with a magical twist and gritty edge. It's expertly crafted and just amazingly immersive. I can't wait to explore the world more in future books. </span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-5254722819458838012015-03-08T18:00:00.002+00:002016-04-05T11:54:23.245+01:00Showcase Sunday #57<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">It's Sunday and that means one thing; Showcase Sunday a fun weekly meme hosted by Vicky over @<a href="http://www.booksbiscuitsandtea.co.uk/" target="_blank">Books, Biscuits and Tea</a>. It's a great way of showing off what we've bought, borrowed and received this week.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Wow. This is my first book haul post since Christmas. I have been a pretty good girl when it comes to book buying, fair play. I'm trying to save quite a bit of money to go traveling so sadly buying new books every week has had to stop. But I'm still treating myself now and again when there's a book that I just HAVE to buy. It does hurt when I want a million different books and just can't buy them. But it'll be worth it and plus I have so many unread books it's crazy! </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">This Shattered World - Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A Darker Shade of Magic - V E Schwab</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Endless Knight - Kresley Cole</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Blue Lily, Lily Blue - Maggie Stiefvater</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bridge of Snow - Marie Rutkoski</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rain - Virginia Bergin</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Mitosis - Brandon Sanderson</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Sin Eater's Daughter - Melissa Salisbury</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Big thanks to Scholastic and Bloomsbury! Read both books and loved them. Also, look at that map. Love it!</span></span></span><br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-88045675189708479212015-03-04T23:00:00.000+00:002016-04-05T11:55:27.622+01:00February Wrap-Up: A Month in Books! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Well, February was a much better reading month than January! I managed to read <b>5</b> books and <b>1</b> short story. I'm really happy with those numbers but hope to smash it this month and read that little more! There's so many books I'm excited to read and I just wish I had more time in the day for reading! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I read some pretty good books this month and one that just blew everything else I've read so far this year out of the water! First I finished <b>The Bone Season</b>. I really, really enjoyed this complex and intricate book with its engaging plot and intriguing characters. Review to come asap! I then dived into <b>The Sin Eater's Daughter</b>. What a fantastic debut. Loved it! Then I moved onto <b>Salvage</b> as I wanted to read something set in space but little did I know it's not really that kind of book. I did enjoy it but wasn't blown away. Really interesting world and set up though. Next came <b>The Red Queen</b>. What a story. It's so full of twists and turns and surprises. Wasn't as amazed by it as I expected to be but nonetheless I loved it. I stumbled upon a short story that accompanies The Winner's Curse series. <b>Bridge of Snow </b>is a really touching tale that deals with Arin's past. I adore the series and when I knew it existed I just had to read it. And last but not least. The most amazing book I've read this year by far. It was so good I know for a fact it'll most probably top my favourite books of 2015. Sarah J Maas' <b>A Court of Thorns of Roses</b> was a beautiful, thrilling and fantastical story that just amazed me. I loved loved loved loved loved it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Bone Season - Samantha Shannon (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Sin Eater's Daughter - Melissa Salisbury (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Salvage - Alexandra Duncan (3.5*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Bridge of Snow - Marie Rutkoski (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas (5*)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Best Plot:</b> The Bone Season - Samantha Shannon</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> <b>Best Writing:</b> Bridge of Snow - Marie Rutkoski<br />
<b>Best Cover:</b> A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Best World: </b>A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas <br />
<b>Best Characters:</b> A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas<br />
<b>Best Ending:</b> Red Queen - Victoria Aveyard<br />
<b>Best Romance: </b>A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Most un-put-down-able:</b> The Sin Eater's Daughter - Melissa Salisbury<b> </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Most Memorable: </b>The Sin Eater's Daughter - Melissa Salisbury<b> </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Best Moral:</b> Salvage - Alexandra Duncan</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">* Inspired by Jess @ <a href="http://jessheartsbooks.blogspot.co.uk/2015/03/february-round-up-and-book-of-month.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:+blogspot/xUeSL+%28Jess+Hearts+Books%29" target="_blank">Jess Hearts Book</a> *</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">This Shattered World - Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner</span><br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-39922401496336502792015-03-02T18:52:00.003+00:002016-04-05T11:56:40.650+01:00Top Ten Favourite Books Of The Past 3 Years! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://brokeandbookish.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Broke and the Bookish.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">This was a toughie because I've read so many amazing books over the past 3 years. Really, the 3 years span my blogging life as I started this blog early in 2012 so it's a time where I began reading a lot more than I did previously. That number definitely increased in 2013 and 2014 so there's a lot of great books to choose from. I would consider the following books my most favourite books of the past 3 years even though there were a ton of 5 star books I loved! </span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-34001695759385120882015-02-25T17:45:00.002+00:002016-04-05T11:57:40.779+01:00Talon - Julie Kagawa REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoXks2W-W44qVHcu8s_ZxUXSjDBBNLK3vE_yvRQUPJzqYTNLkwPPI8gpecyT-IQYg719_RL5e59lEqrAnTNtJ4pvHWgBQtuY_FHSjrn6puASEyzgH1eFmPQ9Zs4GGyVu-gblvXC-MZ0ns/s1600/17331828.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoXks2W-W44qVHcu8s_ZxUXSjDBBNLK3vE_yvRQUPJzqYTNLkwPPI8gpecyT-IQYg719_RL5e59lEqrAnTNtJ4pvHWgBQtuY_FHSjrn6puASEyzgH1eFmPQ9Zs4GGyVu-gblvXC-MZ0ns/s1600/17331828.jpg" width="221" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17331828-talon?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Talon-Saga-Book-1-ebook/dp/B00JXN2UBC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1424886290&sr=8-1&keywords=talon+julie+kagawa" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUNC39hiyfrwkAbtB0dXV1j1uw5tbn_M5oRUtIUl-D4Dt60IZtWH_zj00kRRoV-DLns1FpE5obUj5cviOETpfX6OiDRqSRTY3x274mmgowNF0X1I8YINFWsBrYWqHnHxq7gQCbphPA5yw/s1600/3HALF.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUNC39hiyfrwkAbtB0dXV1j1uw5tbn_M5oRUtIUl-D4Dt60IZtWH_zj00kRRoV-DLns1FpE5obUj5cviOETpfX6OiDRqSRTY3x274mmgowNF0X1I8YINFWsBrYWqHnHxq7gQCbphPA5yw/s1600/3HALF.png" /></a></div>
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<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">TALON
really surprised me. A few chapters in and I was unsure of the story,
not completely convinced by the whole dragon in human form concept.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">But a few chapters later and something must have clicked</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> I was caught up in the story, invested in the characters</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">'</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> lives and issues</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, devouring each chapter, in anticipation of whatever dramatic thing would happen next</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">TALON turned out to be a slow builder that </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">culminated</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">in an action packed ending that was gripping and exciting.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Ember and Dante Hill are dragons. Two dragons who must </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">assimilate into human society</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, infiltrate the human world as part of a dragon lead </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">organisation</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, Talon. In their human forms, t</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">hey
only have the summer to prove their worth but Ember dreams of freedom
and a summer of sea, sand and surfing. Garret is a soldier, a member of
St. George</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">,</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> an</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> ancient</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> order which has one purpose - to hunt and kill dragons. Sent on a mission to </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">infiltrate
society and root out the "sleeper" dragon, Garrett slowly comes to
learn that all he's been told about dragons may not be true. Ember </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">also </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">comes to </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">realise</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> that there's more to life than Talon</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> and an encounter with </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a rogue dragon </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">makes her question her beliefs. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Ember and Garrett both </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">harbour</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> deadly secrets as they slowly get to know one another, sacrificing the very missions that they were sent to </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">complete</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">What I loved about this story </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">wa</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s the heightened tension and suspense that permeated throughout. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">The story is full t</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">o </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">t</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">he brim with secrets and lies, dangers and co</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ns</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">piracies</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. I loved the sense of mystery and</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> the feeling of uncertain</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ty</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> that radiated </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">through the pages</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">;</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> not knowing when the truth would finally spill over a</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">nd create havoc</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. It's a real edge of your seat kind of book, a book that hooks you and takes you on a thrilling </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ride. I was on tender hooks throughout because as a reader I knew t</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">he t</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ruth about their identities and where their loyalties l</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ay</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> but obviously the characters had no idea </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">themselves</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.
This definitely upped the suspense and made for some rather ironic and
amusing scenes (you know, you get Garrett talking about how monstrous
the waves are when unbeknown to him he's sharing a board with a
monster!). The story built in action towards the end and leaves the slow
build up behind to unleash a fast paced and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">exciting</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> narrative</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> It just rose and rose to this big dramatic climax, this </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">crazy</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> crescendo </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">where the two opposing forces finally meet.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">The two </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">organisations</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> added another layer of intrigue and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">mystery</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">
to the story. I thought the Order of St. George was such a clever idea,
using the legend of St George (the patron saint of England) and the
dragon</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> as in</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">piration</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.
The idea of a secret order hunting and slaying dragons through the ages
just seemed so exciting and I loved the mix of legend and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">fiction</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. The dragon </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">organisation</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, Talon seemed even more </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">sinister and deadly with monstrous dragons believing themselves to be above </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">human beings</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. The two </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">organisations</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">,
pitted against one another makes for a deadly story and I'm intrigued
to know how and when they come to blows again in the next book. </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Something I really enjoyed was Kagawa's writing. It's so </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">GOOD. It</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s beautifully written, flows easily from start to finish, full of </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">suspense and tension. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Her dialogue was realistic and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">the setting with its waves and sand was described vividly</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Although p</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">erhaps with a more</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> magical</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> world and fantastical story her writing really could have been showcased</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> in all its glory</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. I wanted detail, intricate, immersive and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">enchanting</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> detail but I felt with a modern setting and a teenage angst story it just wasn't present. </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"></span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJVqO7wlw3JO8PNuMog_7pYLXHNSfRMyBNY0g0sOyZm4b-z-3u2T_JJ8_i8PxGwalimKrv3G1PC40aUlJe9YH1PtGPVnudWJ6dn399XAR3pmGofFjDlxOQbJE_uJ2vPdigBRJNBEG0Jmw/s1600/thecharacters.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJVqO7wlw3JO8PNuMog_7pYLXHNSfRMyBNY0g0sOyZm4b-z-3u2T_JJ8_i8PxGwalimKrv3G1PC40aUlJe9YH1PtGPVnudWJ6dn399XAR3pmGofFjDlxOQbJE_uJ2vPdigBRJNBEG0Jmw/s1600/thecharacters.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"></span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Now, I liked the character</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">I can't really say that I </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">truly </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">connected </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">with</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> them all bu</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">t as the story progressed I became more and more invested in their stories. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Our main protagonist, Ember (can I just say that I adore her name! It's so fitting!) is undoubtedly a bit frustrating and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a little</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">delusional. Delusional in the sense that she constantly ignores her instincts and gut feeling</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">
all for a bit of boy action. Seriously, she's a dragon. I'm sure her
heightened senses would have worked out that something was amiss with
this stranger (which he is!) who is trying very</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">,</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">very
hard to get close to her. So yeah, she's not very convincing as an
angry, fire breathing dragon. But as a human, she really shined. She
definitely lives up to her fiery name; she's feisty, passionate and
independent although a little hot headed at times. Her easygoing nature
is infectious and it is hard to imagine that under all that pretty red
hair is a hard scaled monster. She really comes across as your average
teenager and it was easy to </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">empathise</span><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> with her (despite being a dragon!)</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Garrett
was also another infuriating character at times. He's supposedly a hard
trained fighter, a dragon slayer, a fully fledged soldier of St. George
with plenty of dragon blood on his hands. What we get isn't the stone</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">-</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">cold</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">,
ruthless monster killer that you expect. Nope, you get a shy and
awkward young man who loses sight of his goal at the first glance of a
pretty girl. I did enjoy how this relationship made him question his
beliefs but it just seemed to happen too quick, too easy to be fully
convincing. Just like Ember he has no real know</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">le</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">dge</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> of what being a teenager actually is so it was fun seeing the two of them work it out together. Just like in the B</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">LOOD OF EDEN</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> series, Kagawa depicts this story of two individuals from completely different </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">backgrounds</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">enemies to one another, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">one a dragon the other a dragon hu</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">nter who come together and put their differences aside because of their feelings. It's all </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a bit</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Romeo and Juliet-like in a way</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
</div>
<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Now, lets discuss the love triangle. The bane of most YA fiction. Yes, it is undoubtedly a cliché, annoying and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a little</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">frustrating</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.
In this instance though I thought it was well done. Some of you may
disagree with me but I thought it reflected Ember's dual identity, her
split personality; both dragon and human. In her human form she's
attracted to Garrett with her getting butterflies in her belly at every </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">look</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, every touch. Then you get her dragon side. She feels an insti</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">n</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ctive</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">
pull towards Riley, a primal feeling deep within. She herself is split
between her dragon side and growing humanity and also her feelings for
Garrett and Riley. Who do I prefer personally? Hmm I'm partial to a bit
of a bad boy myself so definitely Riley. He just oozes sex appeal</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, confidence and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">surprisingly, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a caring personality</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> I</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">t's</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">hard not to be attracted to him.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> I </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">feel
that Ember could have a deeper connection with him than Garrett. But I
did feel for poor Garrett even though their relationship was built on a
lie.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">One thing. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">I
desperately wanted more Dante. He was such an intriguing character and
he sort of disappeared quarter of the way through despite supposedly
being super close to Ember. Their </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">close</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">relationship seemed to just fizzle out which was disappointing but I am REALLY looking forward to how their relationship </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">develops in the next book. It should make for some </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">VERY </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">interesting reading. </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBxG4S0VwiBTgynLlPSKsxchIhjPLnmxipZsm2SUxR_aRLK8LEknZxBIW4kPGGoWyuS9rtlJCo-Xc0oy_mv3JSYe7F0KhzKeNbuhwu3sfm22VOKCoMuXe5qYwfQg-USeG3cYlm3mCi-DE/s1600/litelniggles.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="38" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBxG4S0VwiBTgynLlPSKsxchIhjPLnmxipZsm2SUxR_aRLK8LEknZxBIW4kPGGoWyuS9rtlJCo-Xc0oy_mv3JSYe7F0KhzKeNbuhwu3sfm22VOKCoMuXe5qYwfQg-USeG3cYlm3mCi-DE/s1600/litelniggles.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">In my opinion </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">d</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ragons = magical fantastical setting. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Where
was the world-building? The fantasy setting? I know, I know this book
was set in a contemporary setting but I wasn't fully convinced</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> by it all</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. I couldn't </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">really</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">immerse myself in the world; it was just so normal, so everyday. We get these majestic creatures</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> but then this </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">world that really doesn't match up with </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">them</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">.
Maybe it's just my inner fantasy lover lashing out at not having some
spectacular and imaginative world to dive into. Although, I did like the
setting itself with the sandy beach, wild </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">foaming</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> waves and laid back atmosphere. It</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> was Ember</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">s</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">'</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> paradise for a time</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">, </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a place of magic and freedom </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">but sadly</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">unattainable for such a creature.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<div class="OutlineElement Ltr SCX142282193" style="margin-left: 0px; text-align: center; text-indent: 0px;">
<div class="Paragraph SCX142282193" style="background-color: transparent; color: windowtext; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-right: 0px; text-indent: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">Another thing that irked me a little was the slow pace at the beginning. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">It was too bogged down in teenage angst and romance with not enough focus on the story.</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">It just seemed to drag in places and it wasn't</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> until over half way through that it turned into this fast paced and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">exciting</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> story. I LOVE Julie Kagawa's </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">THE BLOOD OF EDEN series</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> due to its fast paced, gritty </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">narrative and TALON just seems to be rather tame </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">compared to </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">it</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">. Hopefully in ROGUE (TALON #2) the story w</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">ill concentrate more on the dragons, with more intrigue and action.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKW3EMYWpioCNWw_pcSiJqEexQmyGKGvZloP08y99Lua1vlOn6PTwHl5UbzWVgZaVMakll3IaCLeiP0Swyk7TqkoDnJbh-rrhKxxUfloH_LsN7ptQd_aOSB0Tf03_uV7wEihjgdFKMqY/s1600/finalthoughts.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="41" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZKW3EMYWpioCNWw_pcSiJqEexQmyGKGvZloP08y99Lua1vlOn6PTwHl5UbzWVgZaVMakll3IaCLeiP0Swyk7TqkoDnJbh-rrhKxxUfloH_LsN7ptQd_aOSB0Tf03_uV7wEihjgdFKMqY/s1600/finalthoughts.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"></span></span><span class="EOP SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">TALON is a promising </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">new </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">start </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">to</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">this dragon </span><span class="SpellingError SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">centred</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">series. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">I wasn't blown away by it and it wasn't nearly as good as </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">the B</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">LOOD OF EDEN</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> series which wowed me. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">It
read more like a contemporary book and not fantasy at times and I was
hungry for a rich, vivid and fantastical world. The romance overshadowed
a large section of the story but the action packed and fast paced
ending more than made up for the slow beginning. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">I love</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">d</span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"> the intensity of the narrative, the nail biting suspense and action. </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">That
ending has definitely made me interested in continuing on with the next
book because I NEED to know what happens. How could it possibly end
like that? It's not fair and I will dive right into ROGUE when I finally
get my hands on it. If you love fantasy and expect a whirlwind
adventure story then you may be a little disappointed with TALON but if
you love intrigue and </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">taking </span></span><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;">a chance on a new, fresh story then give this a go.</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="TextRun SCX142282193" style="line-height: 20px;"><span class="NormalTextRun SCX142282193" style="background-color: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2_5KhhZ6giPbc0j8uIVRw9V2j4l76D00VmM77knAbbK8A1k7S0vtfG9zAML-9zfUVffwABtnL90_7tN0iLMihyphenhyphen4x8NkD5QDU2zoJTPjOD_S0weaRfNh_USFpPGey2z7NQjDplPOJphrc/s1600/Sig.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2_5KhhZ6giPbc0j8uIVRw9V2j4l76D00VmM77knAbbK8A1k7S0vtfG9zAML-9zfUVffwABtnL90_7tN0iLMihyphenhyphen4x8NkD5QDU2zoJTPjOD_S0weaRfNh_USFpPGey2z7NQjDplPOJphrc/s1600/Sig.png" /></a></span></span></span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-81203345602852549552015-02-23T20:48:00.000+00:002016-04-05T11:58:29.445+01:00Top Ten Favourite YA/Fantasy Book Heroines!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;">Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by <a href="http://brokeandbookish.blogspot.co.uk/" target="_blank">The Broke and the Bookish.</a></span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "trebuchet ms" , sans-serif;"> It was really hard to narrow my favourite heroines down to just ten. I obviously had to leave quite a few out mainly my favourite heroines from classics such as Elizabeth Bennett and Jane Eyre. I've narrowed it down to mostly my favourite YA and fantasy heroines even though that was hard. I love these women because they're strong, fierce, powerful, intelligent and most of all <b>real</b>. They may be witches, assassins, Queens and cyborgs but underneath it all they're real women with real, complex emotions and fascinating lives. I feel like I've traveled to the ends of the earth with characters that I respect, love and empathise with dearly. <b>Girl power all the way!</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">1. Feyre</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">2. Elisa </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">3. Yelaena</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">4. Cinder</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">5. Katniss</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">7. Hermione</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">8. Avry </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">9. Celaena</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">10. Evanjalin</span></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-92003736231650295412015-02-01T19:48:00.000+00:002016-04-05T11:59:11.907+01:00January Wrap-Up: A Month in Books!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It's been a pretty slow month, for everything really. January just seemed to drag by and it was a slow month reading wise also. Towards the end of 2014 I seemed to lose my reading mojo and that has rolled over into 2015 by the looks of things. I only managed four books. C'mon, Bec you can do better than that! The books I did manage to read weren't too bad though. I started the year off by reading <b>WILD</b> and this book grew on me as I read on. I loved its sense of adventure and spontaneity; it's impulsive storyline was rather infectious to say the least. Then I dove into <b>SHADOW STUDY</b> one of my most anticipated reads of this year. It was amazing. Not much else to say really. AMAZING. Then I picked up the rather mind boggling <b>THE GHOSTS OF HEAVEN</b>. By golly was it complex and puzzling but intriguing all at the same time. Not quite sure what to make of it but it was good. Then onto another review book - <b>TALON</b>. Not my favourite take on dragons but I was well caught up in the story and kept on the edge of my seat throughout! My favourite read of the month by far was SHADOW STUDY. Thanks Snyder for deciding to continue with this series! </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Talon - Julie Kagawa (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shadow Study - Maria V Snyder (4.5*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wild: A Journey From Lost to Found - Cheryl Strayed (4*)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Ghosts of Heaven - Marcus Sedgwick (3.5*)</span><br />
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<ul>
<li><a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/heir-of-fire-throne-of-glass-3-sarah-j.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Heir of Fire - Sarah J Maas (4.5*)</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/love-hurts-malorie-blackman-review.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Love Hurts - Malorie Blackman et al (4.5*)</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/the-winners-curse-marie-rutksoki-review.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Winner's Crime - Marie Rutkoski (4.5*)</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/i-was-here-gayle-forman-review.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I Was Here - Gayle Forman (4*)</span></a></li>
<li><a href="http://lostinthought-becca.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/shadow-study-maria-v-snyder-review.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shadow Study - Maria V Snyder (4.5*)</span></a></li>
</ul>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The Bone Season - Samantha Shannon</span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-42546266853168946822015-01-29T17:12:00.002+00:002016-04-05T12:00:00.027+01:00Shadow Study - Maria V Snyder REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Shadow-Study-Chronicles-Ixia-4/dp/1848453639/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422551535&sr=8-1&keywords=shadow+study" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a> <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16130758-shadow-study?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Published by Mira Ink/Harlequin</span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">When I first heard that Maria V Snyder was releasing another Study
series I squealed. I squealed high and loud full of excitement and
anticipation, unashamed of my absolute love for her amazing fantasy
stories (you should have heard me when I was accepted for this on
Netgalley!). SHADOW STUDY was all that I hoped for and more. From the
first page I comfortably immersed myself back into the magical world. It
was as if I had never left. Yelaena and Valek felt like old friends and
we were catching up after some time apart. And boy, what a catching up
it was.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This book kicks off straight
away and you're thrown into the thick of it from the word go. Yelaena is
attacked whilst riding to meet with Valek for a romantic and well
needed holiday together. An arrow shaft nicks her shoulder but all seems
okay. Phew. But then Valek has to obey orders to return to the
Commanders side (after a steamy night together!) and all hell breaks
loose. Well, not as dramatic as that but Yelaena develops an extreme
fever, changing from hot to cold and back again. Once she overcomes this
fever, realisation hits her and smacks her full in the face; she has no
magic. Her magic is GONE. She's left vulnerable and potentially weak
without her magic, something she has depended on wholeheartedly over the
years. And the story just flourishes from that point onward. Valek has
to deal with assassination attempts, his job security and trust issues
up in Ixia. He also has to deal with the Commanders orders to deal with a
smuggling issue, enlisting Ari and Janco and two new characters, Onora
and Gerick to sniff out the problem and unearth the smugglers.
Meanwhile, Yelaena throws herself into finding answers for her blocked
magic and it takes her on one hell of a journey where she meets old
friends and comes face to face with old, revenge seeking foes. </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I
loved how easy it was to dive back in this world with this fantastic
set of characters, its political intrigue and undertones of magic and
danger. I devoured it in just a few days hungry for more Yelaena, Valek
and their complicated but fascinating world. SHADOW STUDY was a fast
paced, action packed extravaganza. A strong sense of adventure just permeated
throughout. The complication - Yelaena losing her magic - was a genius
idea that really added a layer of complexity and suspense to the story.
The story flowed naturally and didn’t seem forced at all or as if Snyder
was grasping at straws to create another story. No, it was an
imaginative and compelling addition to the Study series that had a new,
intriguing storyline with some magnificent character development and a
spectacular world. Most importantly - SHADOW STUDY was FUN. It's full of
humour. It doesn't forget to be light hearted and fun despite its dark
and deadly tone.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I loved how the story kept me guessing.
Seriously I'd be there making a cup of tea only to cry out "IT'S HER.
SHE DID IT" or sit deep in thought trying to figure out the ins and outs
of the story. SHADOW STUDY is all consuming, so entrancing and it had
me hooked from the start. Now, lets talk about that ending. Talk about a
cliffhanger. Those last few words just left me reeling. Having to wait
until NEXT YEAR (!!!) for the second book is going to be agony. After
finishing a thousand questions instantly popped into my mind; How will
this effect things? What will Yelaena and Valek do? Will it have a
good/bad impact on their relationship? So many questions and no answers
for a year *SIGH* </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I know they're fictional.
I know they have magic. But the characters come across so REAL. Snyder
is a pro when it comes to characerisation, creating realistic
individuals that breathe life and soul into the story. They make it come
alive with their fierce personalities and passionate natures. I'm so
invested in their lives and stories, their problems and secrets. Every
laugh, every cry I'm right there besides them experiencing it all.
Yelaena and Valek are possibly my two favourite characters of hers (but
then there's Avry and Kerrick from the Healer series - argh so hard to
choose!) and to embark on another adventure with them was just amazing.
The triple perspective was a great idea on Snyder's part. I LOVE Yelaena
and her sassy voice, but to get inside Valek's head and bear witness to
his thoughts and feelings was great AND then to also read from Janco's
perceptive was an added treat.</span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Valek's chapters were so
intriguing. We got to witness his past and how it's shaped and molded
him into person that he is today. We get to see through his eyes the
events that have made him the dangerous but fiercely loyal Valek, who
killed the King and became the Commanders right hand man. We also get
to witness the strong ties of his friendship with the Commander, held
firm with loyalty and respect; a very, very important relationship in
this book. Janco's chapters felt like the light relief of the story as
his voice was undoubtedly cheery even in the deadliest of situations. I
loved his strong relationship with Ari and their bickering just gave the
story that comic relief it needed. Their scenes instantly dispersed any
tension and instead filled the story with a light heartedness that was
well appreciated. Also his interactions with Onora was hilarious as you
see her struggle to contain her utter puzzlement and annoyance towards
this sarcastic, cheeky guy. Onora herself was a complete mystery and a
definite contender for the most fierce individual in the series (sorry
Yelaena!) but I'm still unsure of where her loyalties lie. We got to see
Yelaena more vulnerable in this book but it just made her even more
determined to prove her worth and search even more fervently for
answers. She's such a relatable protagonist and just like many of the
characters, I've come to care for her dearly and I'm so excited for
whatever is in store for her in the next book! </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Ixia
and Sitia feel like home. Diving back into this world was so easy and I
instantly felt like I was there amongst the green leafy canopy of the
forest, smelling the earthy scent of the trees and plants around me;
feeling the warm glow of the fire whilst nestled in a chair, brandy in
hand listening to the Commander and Valek talk politics; feeling a warm rush of air on horseback as the Avibian plains rushed by - everything was alive and tactile and magical. This world is
so real and familiar to me despite being a fictional and
fantastical place. That's how good Snyder's world-building and writing
is. It's vivid and rich with detail allowing you to experience the world
wholeheartedly for yourself. That's the magical part don't you think?
Reading some words on pages and imagining such amazing worlds and places
as if they were right in front of you. Maria V Snyder, I salute you.</span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">So
yeah this book is a strong 4.5* but there were one or two things that
played on my mind. The story is engaging, full of intrigue and action
but sometimes the fast paced narrative was just that - too fast paced.
Don't get me wrong I love how the narrative sped along, taking me on
this roller coaster ride but at times it felt like key points and
revelations lacked some shock factor as they were thrown into the story
without any real build up or suspense. Take the reveal of Yelaena's
attacker. I nearly missed it. Seriously it was a real "SAY WHAT?"
moment and I had to re-read the section to fully understand what was
happening. I want an intense and suspense filled build up and a dramatic
revelation that hits me out of nowhere. Although the revelation itself
left me reeling. I didn't see that one coming I must say. </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">ANOTHER THING. Only after reading this did I realise that the Glass
trilogy happened before this and it would have been a really good idea
if I'd picked that up first. I didn't feel too lost and it isn't
absolutely necessary to read it beforehand but I do think it would have
helped me with some of the characters and situations to fully comprehend
their stories and what was going on. Oh well, it's just an amazing
excuse to read it from the beginning starting with the book that
propelled me on this journey of magic and intrigue in the first place;
Poison Study. A definite win on my part. </span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">SHADOW
STUDY was so much fun. Snyder has managed to create a satisfying
addition to the previous series and I love the direction that this story
has taken. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in the series
although it seems like light-years away. This book had such an
intoxicating and vivid world, a fantastic array of
characters and a heart stopping plot. Just knowing that this book is the start of something new, a
whole new series has me content for now. I'm so glad Snyder decided to
continue on with these beloved characters and I can't wait to see what
lies in wait for the characters in the next book.
Definitely, definitely pick this book up. Fans of Throne of Glass and
especially Poison Study will love this book and I 100% urge you all to
give it a read. NOW. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-7863969744639019672015-01-24T20:13:00.000+00:002016-04-05T12:02:57.177+01:00I Was Here - Gayle Forman REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9-3lKjDBRKT4S0eJVg2sKul-nkYcf8-PuVa3qHaBCn3KZsu27vZsXo_ZnNDnBN2lUcdtDPje3dW9uipuw3C1qPjBPKmWHqNAqWHJFwQWQ_oRQoYMuXZXwDGVIfQysvpzyfd-0_FObg0w/s1600/18879761.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9-3lKjDBRKT4S0eJVg2sKul-nkYcf8-PuVa3qHaBCn3KZsu27vZsXo_ZnNDnBN2lUcdtDPje3dW9uipuw3C1qPjBPKmWHqNAqWHJFwQWQ_oRQoYMuXZXwDGVIfQysvpzyfd-0_FObg0w/s1600/18879761.jpg" width="214" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18879761-i-was-here?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/I-Was-Here-Gayle-Forman/dp/1471124398/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422130319&sr=8-1&keywords=i+was+here+gayle+forman" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span id="freeText5423045881949078"><strong>Cody and Meg were inseparable.</strong><br /><strong>Two peas in a pod.</strong><br /><strong>Until . . . they weren’t anymore.</strong><br /> <br />
When her best friend Meg drinks a bottle of industrial-strength cleaner
alone in a motel room, Cody is understandably shocked and devastated.
She and Meg shared everything—so how was there no warning? But when Cody
travels to Meg’s college town to pack up the belongings left behind,
she discovers that there’s a lot that Meg never told her. About her old
roommates, the sort of people Cody never would have met in her dead-end
small town in Washington. About Ben McAllister, the boy with a guitar
and a sneer, who broke Meg’s heart. And about an encrypted computer file
that Cody can’t open—until she does, and suddenly everything Cody
thought she knew about her best friend’s death gets thrown into
question.<br /> <br /><em>I Was Here</em> is Gayle Forman at her finest, a
taut, emotional, and ultimately redemptive story about redefining the
meaning of family and finding a way to move forward even in the face of
unspeakable loss.</span></span></i></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span id="freeText5423045881949078">My Review of I WAS HERE:</span></span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span id="freeText5423045881949078"> </span></span></i></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Wow. What a powerful read. Seriously, I WAS HERE was such a
thought-provoking, heartfelt read that was bursting with depth and
emotion. It deals with such a hard-hitting, subject in a moving and
poignant way that really tugs on the heartstrings and messes all your
emotions up inside. Reading this book my emotions ranged from sadness to
anger to sympathy and disgust. Gayle Forman is the queen of writing
books that are roller coaster rides of emotion and I WAS HERE was no
exception. Once I'd got on that roller coaster I just didn't want to get
off no matter how sad or outraged it made me. I was glued to its pages,
like Cody, hungry for answers, the not knowing what truly happened
eating away at me.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Gayle Forman writes about tough and painful
subject matters in such a sensitive and realistic way. This book
discusses what happens to those left behind after such tragic and
distressing events. It shows how everyone deals with grief in different
ways; how traumatic events can break a person or spur them on looking
for answers, or in Cody's instance; revenge. It really emphasises the
importance of living life to the full, of seizing the day and making the
most of the time that is given you. It also discusses some rather
poisonous and sinister things that really did make my blood boil.
Reading about such things is one thing but the thought of such
disgusting things existing is enough to make you sick with anger and
worry. It also delves into the suffering of those with mental illnesses,
painting a clear and powerful picture. It really made me think as a
reader about the subject matter that I was reading about. Forman's
language is just so full of depth and feeling that it's easy to get
caught up in the story, in the emotional turmoil of it all. There was so
much more to this story than just suicide. It of course dealt with loss
and grief but also love, friendship and family; the importance of being
connected to others, of forgiveness and understanding. The ending, in
my opinion, was perfect. It was a fitting end to the story, uplifting
and sweet and it provided closure to such a heart wrenching and suspense
filled story.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Forman is an expert when it comes to
characterisation. The characters in I WAS HERE are flawed and realistic
dealing with real life issues, feeling a depth of real emotions. The
sympathy that you feel for Meg's parents and Cody, her best friend is
immense. Their world as they know it has become fragmented, shattering
all around them. Cody is determined to piece those fragments back
together, to find out why her best friend - the one person that she
thought she knew even better than herself - chose to end her life - and
why she didn't confide in her. She begins a journey of discovery; of
discovering the truth, finding answers to why this happened and also a
journey of self-discovery, of discovering that she's her own person,
free to live her own life. Her growth throughout this book is superb.
Throughout the story you're given a very realistic view of Cody's character. Her emotions are so raw, so real
that you feel every inch of her pain, her suffocating guilt and her
raging anger. She discovers an entire world that she wasn't a part of, a
world where Meg had forged her own way into, leaving Cody behind. It
shows that you don't really know a person all that well no matter how
close you are. She's losther best friend in the world, her
anchor and is now drifting through life without her. You feel Cody's
guilt as it seeped through the pages, guilt at not being there for her
friend during such a difficult time of her life. She's also angry, angry
with herself, angry with Meg and angry with the world for carrying on
without her best friend. Her guilt and anger leads her in a search for
answers, a search for vengeance. She becomes consumed with Megs suicide
and the events leading up to it, refusing to just forget, refusing to
put it behind her. She's fuelled by determination and a touch of
obsession. She digs deeper and deeper unearthing sinister and twisted
things. This element of the story was so shocking and really added a
layer of suspense and tension to the story.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now the romance
subplot didn't seem to irk me as it did some readers. Yes, it was
undoubtedly a bit of a cliché, bad boy rocker falls for the innocent,
naïve girl. It's been done a thousand times before but despite this I
really enjoyed it. I thought it added a layer of romance and realism to a
strained and sad story. This is Cody's story, detailing her life and
her attempts at moving on and finding closure. I thought Cody and ben's
blossoming relationship reflected this moving forward aspect, perfectly.
I liked Ben's character. He seemed genuine; a bit of a bad boy but
helpful and compassionate too. He offered Cody the perfect shoulder to
cry on, a strong person for her to lean on. And vice versa. Cody and Ben
helped one another grieve and move forward as the story progressed.
Another relationship that I also enjoyed reading about was the one
between Cody and her mother. It just developed so naturally and
realistically as the story progressed. Seeing them come to understand
one another and grow closer was just moving to read about. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So
yes, I WAS HERE concerns suicide and mental illness in a rather graphic
and realistic way but ultimately I felt that this book is about
forgiveness, friendship, hope, family and love. That even though it's
about the end of a life it's no doubt a life affirming story. That no
matter what there is hope in the darkness, a light at the end of all bad
things. It makes you want to scream "I WAS HERE" out into the universe, to put your mark on the world like Meg.
If you want a book that packs an emotional punch with an added air of
mystery and suspense then this is the book for you.</span><br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-72460263489921876272015-01-23T15:03:00.000+00:002016-04-05T12:03:40.234+01:00The Winner's Crime - Marie Rutksoki REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_emlRuSeEQDsc5TKBeA3lBYdGMhaIhAYKNJTdCc_A1ygVYV8v1OM-Vwbl0-gauaEwKiUDCZjWLQFXk7k81YIntZYxpflIjjXt-jQ1NdXvMAzsenT1R4w8iXdG_RAc44LuiMNdf13d6Pc/s1600/23276983.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_emlRuSeEQDsc5TKBeA3lBYdGMhaIhAYKNJTdCc_A1ygVYV8v1OM-Vwbl0-gauaEwKiUDCZjWLQFXk7k81YIntZYxpflIjjXt-jQ1NdXvMAzsenT1R4w8iXdG_RAc44LuiMNdf13d6Pc/s1600/23276983.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20443207-the-winner-s-crime?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Winners-Crime-Trilogy/dp/140885869X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421356024&sr=8-1&keywords=the+winner%27s+crime" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="freeText7578214688744884307">Book two of the dazzling Winner's Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.<br /><br />The
engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one
celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of
her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the
truth about her engagement…if she could only trust him. Yet can she even
trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled
practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran,
and close to uncovering a shocking secret.<br /><br />As Arin enlists
dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t
fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end,
it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth.
And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their
crimes will cost them.</span></span></span></i></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="freeText7578214688744884307"><b>My Review of The Winner's Curse:</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="freeText7578214688744884307"><b> </b></span></span></span><i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span id="freeText7578214688744884307"> </span></span></span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What an exquisite read. THE WINNER'S CRIME was everything I wanted
and more. It was an absolutely stunning second instalment in this
magnificent fantasy series that followed on from the THE WINNER'S CURSE.
Rutkoski has definitely upped her game since the last book building on
its fantastic foundations. The characters were superb, the
world-building outstanding and the story fast paced and heart stopping.
In this book Rutkoski has created an even more immersive world with
dynamic characters and beautifully descriptive writing. From the first
page I was engrossed back into the story, caught up in Kestrel's
dilemmas, pining for Arin to make an appearance and eager to see what
twists and turns awaited around each corner, on each page. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Rutkoski's
writing is spellbinding. It had me transfixed. The writing blossomed
from the first page, flowing effortlessly throughout, full of beautiful
imaginative descriptions. It's a treat to read. Seriously, the writing
is exquisite with the most intricately detailed narrative that is
bursting with emotion and feeling. Mixed in with this beautiful
narrative is also this immense tension. It was apparent from the start
and just built and built in intensity as the story progressed to its
dramatic climax. Reading it was such a nail biting experience as there's
so much more at stake in this book; one wrong move, one bad thing said
and all hell could break loose. The intensity is reflected in every
little thing from the winding, narrow lanes of the city and the
claustrophobic corridors of the palace. They hide secrets, danger,
surprises and deception creating a story that really keeps you on the
edge of your seat hungry for more. They also hold captive Kestrel, who
is narrowed in, her wings clipped. Caged in by the palace walls,
suffocated by the Emperor's grasp, she's a prisoner in all but name,
with no room to fly free, no room for freedom. Throughout this book I
was on tender hooks, sucked in by the suspense and intrigue. Every page
was dripping in tension adding a layer of uncertainty and mystery. I
flew through it turning each page in nervous anticipation of what
dramatic thing would happen next. And that ending. Talk about a shocking
and dramatic turn of events. It promises a new setting and exciting new
story for the next book for sure. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was drawn in by the books
political intrigue, court politics and complex characters. The romance
element seemed to take a back seat in this second installment; the
narrative was sensual and rich with romance but other things came to the
forefront and took centre stage. It was all about the politics, all
about society, rebellion, unrest and tyranny. The social commentary in
this book is simply outstanding. For a YA fantasy book the depth and
complexity of the story is truly amazing as Rutkoski weaves important
themes such as power, corruption, race, war and slavery with action,
romance and drama. It makes for a captivating spectacle. THE WINNER'S
CRIME raises important questions that although are set against the
fantastical backdrop of this world, are still relevant today. Questions
such as; Who decides that other races are inferior to others? Who
decided that the rulers are in charge? What makes a good ruler, a good
leader? It's deep and captivating and intriguing and it really creates
this thought-provoking experience whilst reading. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">THE WINNER'S
CRIME has such a spectacular set of characters. In this book we find
Kestrel engaged to the Emperor's son living her life amidst politics and
drama in the city, away from her home, apart from Arin. She must make
the best of a bad situation and is forced to make some pretty horrible
decisions in order to survive in the court. Kestrel is portrayed as
sometimes selfish, comfortable in her silks and rich plush surroundings
but underneath all that she is also brave, intelligent and selfless. She
does the very </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">thing she refuses to do in the first book. She
wants to pave her own fate, neither marry nor be a soldier but confines
herself to an unwanted engagement in order to save the lives of others -
the life of Arin. It's so dramatic and romantic. Kestrel takes a stand
for what she believes in and the beliefs of others, endangering her very
life and freedom for the freedom of others. It's heroic really. She's
so realistic and so believable and I love her for it. Yes, she's so
crazily frustrating to read about at times especially when it came to
Arin and her feelings for him. The total lack of communication between
the two just made me want to bang their heads together and open their
eyes wide to see what stands before them and admit their feelings for
one other. Was it so much to ask?! Their relationship throughout this
book just added to the tension filled narrative that emanated
throughout. Every glance, every touch, every breath just made this book
explode with sexual tension and sensuality, intense and captivating. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now,
Arin in this book is even more mysterious, even more dark and brooding
than the last. Now the Governor of Herran, he must deal with the running
of his homeland and the loss of Kestrel to the very empire that he
hates. The seeds of discontent and discord are sown in this book and
Arin is hellbent on revenge; freeing his country is simply not enough
anymore. Herran is still ensnared in the Emperor's claws, suffering at
his hands and bowing to his every demand, starving in their homeland
while the Emperor lives in luxury. Arin is such an impassioned man, so
strong in his beliefs that its hard not to get caught up in his
rebellious and passionate cause. At the end I felt so much hatred
towards the Emperor who is such an evil and calculated snake of a man
that I was fully on Arin's side, ready to take up arms against him! The
Emperor is so cold, so cruel, using others as playthings; he makes the
perfect villain - someone that you love to hate. Rutkoski really has a
talent for creating this diverse cast of characters that seem so
familiar and realistic but also mysterious and foreign. Nobody in this
book is fully good or bad (well perhaps the Emperor - he's one evil
bastard) but 'grey' characters; they're all flawed but have good
qualities too. They're all molded by their surroundings and their
upbringing, forced to make harsh and difficult decisions in order to
survive. It made the book an exciting and compelling read. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The
worldbuilding is possibly my favourite thing about this book. Rutksoki
has crafted such a spectacular world with a wide and varied cast of
characters and settings depicting exotic, new places full of grandeur
and opulence. It's rich with culture and history; it truly does paint a
diverse and intriguing picture of this engrossing world and its
inhabitants. The world is just so vivid and realistic but also so
fantastical and tactile. It was if I could feel the soft fabric of
Kestrel's silk dresses, the sharp agonising cut of a knife, smell the
salty stormy seas and hear the faint tinkling tune of the piano keys. It
was all so alive and intoxicating brought to life by Rutkoski's
beautiful writing. This book promises exploration as we're introduced to
new places; bustling, crowded cities and wild, untouched jungles. It
sucked me in from the first page and the world was so engrossing, so
fascinating that I didn't want to leave. </span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">THE WINNER'S CRIME had
me enchanted from the beginning. It's such a strong and breathtaking
sequel and I can't wait to read what is in store for Kestrel and Arin in
the next book. The stunning narrative, the tension, the strong
characters and fascinating world makes this book an absolute delight to
read. If you like complex characters, political intrigue and a strong
protagonist you should definitely give this YA fantasy a chance. You
definitely won't regret it. </span><br />
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-55745469743626023152015-01-18T19:30:00.000+00:002016-04-05T12:03:20.851+01:00Love Hurts - Malorie Blackman REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23454354-love-hurts?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-Hurts-Malorie-Blackman-ebook/dp/B00OLC20YC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421356916&sr=8-1&keywords=love+hurts+malorie+blackman" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My Review of Love Hurts:</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">LOVE HURTS is the perfect little anthology to sink your teeth into
when you're in the mood for a good tear jerker or something sweet to
lift your heart. The stories and extracts in this book deal with love in
all its forms; all consuming love, sweet blossoming new love,
heartbreak, angst, obsession and loss. It contains a realistic mix of
stories that depict love when it's sweet and caring but also shows that
love isn't always easy going; it can be hardwork and sometimes
destructive and upsetting. What I especially loved about this anthology
is its diversity. Seriously this book is jam packed full of diverse
characters, stories and authors. It really is a breath of fresh air to
read such a mix of stories that discuss important issues such as race,
gender identity and sexuality. It definitely broadened my horizons and
allowed me to have a taster for a range of different stories that I
usually don't pick up and read. I also loved how realistic and heartfelt
some of the stories were. I didn't enjoy all of them but the ones I did
(discussed below) I thoroughly enjoyed.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The first book HUMMING
THROUGH MY FINGERS is a new short story written by Malorie Blackman
herself. This instantly jumped out at me and had me captivated with its
vivid descriptions and sweet story. It's beautifully written with
sensual and tactile descriptions that really bring the story to life. I
loved the little twist in it too that just added another layer of
diversity and realism to the story.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">FORBIDDEN had me reading in
earnest, glued to the pages, shocked and intrigued. It was super intense
and definitely had my interest. It's such an
out there idea for a romance story as it deals with quite a taboo
subject. This extract definitely piqued my interest. I NEED to know
more; what the implications of such a thing happening is and if things
go further between them. I will 100% pick this book up sometime in the
future to ease my cravings for more!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> YOU AGAINST ME was another
super intense story that had me compelled in a "OMG what is going to
happen next?" kind of way. It was shocking and I was so engrossed in
its story of how relationships can be manipulative and poisonous and
not always sweet and loving. It's definitely a book I'll add to my wish
list after reading this juicy, provocative extract. I really want to
know what happens next!</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One story with such deep and interesting
issues was GENTLEWOMAN. It dealt with gender issues and identity but
also love, friendships, family and acceptance. The protagonist was so
easy to sympathise with and the story itself was so full of heightened
emotion and feeling. The ending was so sweet and it was bursting with
hope.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One of my favourites was ENDLESS LOVE: THE VALENTINE OF
DANIEL AND LUCINDA. This short story was so rich in history and magic
and had an aura of romance and mystery surrounding it. The mention of a
curse instantly piqued my interest even though it was an ambiguous part
of the story. I loved the little historical details and the vivid
descriptions - it really brought the world and story to life. I also
loved the crossing of genres with the mix of time travel and historical
fiction. It was such an interesting idea. After finishing, I was left
wanting more and more. Seriously, I wish this short story was weaved
into a novel. I'd definitely read it.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I was instantly entranced
by THE LIAR'S GIRL. The use of the 2nd person narrative made the story
so much more personal and direct, as if the narrator was talking
directly to you, the reader. I was hooked with its hypnotic narrative
and tension filled plot. At first, the story read as a love letter and
slowly it turned into a confession, with its tone quickly turning
sinister and sour, an unsettling feeling building and building as the
story progressed. Yet again, this is another short story that I wish was
an actual fully fleshed out, well developed novel. I'd love an ending
to this story, to witness what happens after the dramatic events of story.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">UNICORN is a story that combines a dramatic and
tense time period with emotional issues. This story dealt with LGBT
themes in such a touching way set against the backdrop of the war. It
was told from the perspective of an old man, a soldier as he reflects on
his time in the war aboard a warship and the strong bonds that he made.
Especially one in particular. It discussed prejudice and hate, love and
sexuality and was a sweet and relevant story despite it being set
decades before. THE UNICORN was such a bittersweet story that really
captured my attention and made me a bag of emotions. It was touching and
highly emotional and achingly heart-breaking in parts.</span></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">One
extract that stood out for me was definitely ECHO BOY. It was a lot less
fluffy and contemporary than some of the stories in this anthology. It
was futuristic, depicting a sinister dystopian society with an
underlying tension. The extract was action packed and bloody, fast paced
and dramatic. For all it's action and tension it also read like a Romeo and
Juliet-esque love story, with a touching scene of sacrifice and love.
This extract has definitely made me add ECHO BOY to my TBR list.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">All
in all, I really enjoyed LOVE HURTS. The original short stories were
captivating and emotional - they really managed to whip up my emotions
and struck a chord. What knocks a few stars off this anthology though is
the fact it's filled with extracts from a number of books I've already
read or books I plan to read, so I skipped them not to ruin anything for
myself. But the extracts did also give me a flavour of a few different
books that I now need to read to know what happens next. Some definitely
had me hooked and piqued my interest enough to read on. Another thing
that stopped me wholeheartedly loving this book was that I just didn't
click with some of the stories - it was like I wasn't their intended
audience - the Sherlock heavy one for example, I just didn't understand
any of the references which isolated me as a reader from the story and
its characters.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">LOVE HURTS is worth reading for its original
short stories alone. They're filled with powerful messages dealing with
gender identity, belonging, friendships and love all wrapped up in a
sweet, touching and captivating bow. It's also a great and intriguing
way of experiencing new stories and discovering new authors. Definitely
pick it up if you're unfamiliar with contemporary romance stories and
want a little taster of what's out there!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-1403068682436894682015-01-16T17:30:00.000+00:002016-04-05T12:04:14.450+01:00Heir of Fire (Throne of Glass #3) - Sarah J Maas REVIEW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20613470-heir-of-fire?ac=1" target="_blank">(Goodreads)</a> <a href="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Heir-Fire-Throne-Glass-Book-ebook/dp/B00JGAD0N4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1421358826&sr=8-1&keywords=heir+of+fire+sarah+j+maas" target="_blank">(Amazon UK)</a></span></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span id="freeText2917170360694413209">Lost and broken, Celaena
Sardothien’s only thought is to avenge the savage death of her dearest
friend: as the King of Adarlan’s Assassin, she is bound to serve this
tyrant, but he will pay for what he did. Any hope Celaena has of
destroying the king lies in answers to be found in Wendlyn. Sacrificing
his future, Chaol, the Captain of the King’s Guard, has sent Celaena
there to protect her, but her darkest demons lay in that same place. If
she can overcome them, she will be Adarlan’s biggest threat – and his
own toughest enemy. <br /><br />While Celaena learns of her true destiny,
and the eyes of Erilea are on Wendlyn, a brutal and beastly force is
preparing to take to the skies. Will Celaena find the strength not only
to win her own battles, but to fight a war that could pit her loyalties
to her own people against those she has grown to love?</span></span></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">My Review of Heir of Fire:</span></b></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The ending to CROWN OF MIDNIGHT destroyed me. Truly destroyed me. I
was left distraught and in a frenzy of anticipation awaiting HEIR OF FIRE. Waiting for an entire year was pure torture. Then HEIR OF FIRE
fell into my hands and I devoured it, hungry for more Celaena, Chaol,
Dorian and the world of Erilea. It didn’t disappoint. Maas has done it
again. Weaved an amazingly thrilling tale with the most complex set of
characters, rich and mesmering world and compelling storyline full of
shocks and surprises. Seriously this series is easily one of my
favourite YA fantasy series ever and this third installment, although
not as entrancing as the first - just deeply cemented my love for these
books. If you haven't picked up this series yet - you need to - <b>now</b>.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">HEIR OF FIRE definitely had a different feel to it than the other two
previous books. In all honesty I feel a little conflicted about this
one. It was extremely slow paced at times which made me feel a little
disconnected from the storyline and the characters. The multiple POV's
made the story drag a little too. Don't get me wrong I love multiple
POV's (Game of Thrones anyone?) but it was such a big difference from
the first two books I found it difficult to get to grip with all the
changes quickly. Yes, I thought it dragged in places (lots and lots of
training) but I understand that this book focused a lot more on
character development, fleshing them out, preparing them for what lies
ahead in future books. I also found it a little hard at first to get
into the swing of things, finding my feet in new surroundings but when I
did it, I admit it was wonderful and exciting. The last quarter of the
book and its ending really bumped this book up from a 4* to a 4.5* for
me. It really blew me away and in true Maas style left you wanting more.
So much more. And now the dreaded wait for the fourth books begins...
*sigh*</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Now to the good stuff. Once the story got going it was
good. More than good in places. A rollercoaster ride of emotions, full
of twists and turns and shocks and surprises waiting around every
corner. It was much darker, full of blood and gore and unbearable
tension. The Manon chapters with the Ironteeth Clan really upped the
gore in the book. Their ruthlessness and vicious nature just added a
sense of suspense and a little terror to the book and their appearance
in the next book surely doesn't bold well; a lot of blood and death
awaits - but a lot of drama and excitement too. This book introduced
many new things and not all good. Flying monsters and inhuman soldiers just a few of them.
This book was bursting with secrets, all unravelling, bombarding you
from all sides with shocking revelations and truths. Finally witnessing
Celaena's past and the events that shaped her into Adarlan's Assassin
was fascinating and made me love her even more.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"> The
worldbuilding in this book is amazing. It's expertly crafted and so
immersive. Maas has such a talent for creating such vivid worlds and I
loved seeing more of this fantastical world unearthed as the story
travels further afield introducing us to new, magical places. Most of
the book was new and unfamiliar at first as the story introduced a host
of new characters and ventured into foreign lands as we joined Celaena
on a journey of discovery and truth. It was so much more indepth and I
just loved the sense of adventure that permeated at times throughout the
novel. Introducing the fae world really added an air of mystery and
magic to the story and I enjoyed seeing this fantastical aspect. Adarlan
is gritty and great, but magic is all but dead and I love me some magic
in fantasy books!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">The character development in this novel was
absolutely phenomenal. Seriously the characters just grew and grew,
making you empathise with them deeply and feel a real connection.
Celaena herself went through one hell of a transformation. The
gruesome and tragic events of CROWN OF MIDNIGHT have deeply affected
her, causing deep wounds and we see a definite change in her character.
We witness a broken woman, more foul tempered and quick to anger shaped
by her difficult experiences. She's broken, fragmented by events and
struggling to put the pieces back together. Her emotions are overflowing
and we get to see a more vulnerable Celaena, easier to empathise with
as she lets her guard down. Her character is a far cry from the feisty
and cocky girl, so full of spirit that we have previously known and
grown to love. The only thing is - she frustrated me at times. She's
suffered more than anyone and I hated to see her so broken but I wanted
to shake her at times and tell her to get it together - it was just so
important that she got it together. I kept thinking "Will the real
Celaena Sardothien please stand up?" Of course the trials and
tribulations she has to endure all builds up to one thing. She comes
back kicking, even stronger and even more feisty, ten times more
determined than the Celaena we have met before. She finally starts to
transform into a queen, accepting and realising her fate and
responsibilities.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">"She was Aelin Ashryver Galathynius - and she would not be afraid." </span></i></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">She
couldn't have become this Celaena (or Aelin) without the help of one
moody git; Rowan. Seriously, at first I thought he was an arrogant,
cruel idiot with a chip on his shoulder and a serious grudge against
Celaena. His actions were borderline cruel and he pushed and pushed
Celaena, making me so angry at him. But without his prodding and
pushing, Celaena would never have opened up and accepted who she really
was. Yes, he was pushy and a complete idiot but he pushed her to get her
out of her shell, her cacoon of suffering and guilt that she had wound
herself up so tightly in. She comes back so much stronger, with fire in
her belly and it's all because of him. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">What I really enjoyed in this
book is how it focused on the power of friendships. I'm still rooting
for Chaol and Celaena to get back together (please? pretty please?) but I
loved the strong bond of loyalty and respect that developed between her
and Rowan. A grudging friendship at first, they soon are bound to one
another, fighting side by side. I really hope Maas doesn't take it any
further, it's perfect how it is. Chaol and Dorian's friendship also took
centre stage in this book. Leading practically separate lives and doing
their own thing, the ending just cemented their strong bond of
friendship. Chaol's loyalty really shone through at this point. Another
strange friendship was Manon and Abraxos'. Yes, she's a witch and he's
her monstrous steed but they shared a deep bond and Abraxos helped Manon show
a little bit of humanity. I really believe she's not as bloodthirsty
and vicious as she seems. She has a heart. I'm really looking forward to how
Manon's storyline ties with Celaena's in future. I believe this silver fanged, red
cloaked witch will somehow become an important part of Celaena's life,
and hopefully on her side - but who knows!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So lets talk about
that ending. How? What? Why? The King's evil nature strikes again. I
really don't know how this will affect certain characters in the next
book and I just hope that something is done to right this horrible
thing. All I know is that reading that section killed me. There was a
little voice screaming in my head "no, you can't do that - no!" Talk
about shocks and surprises. Phew.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">So there you have it. HEIR OF FIRE isn't my favourite of the three books and I did have some niggling
issues with some parts. But overall, the good things by far outweighed
the few little bad things. The character development in this book was
its strongest point. It was amazing and witnessing Celaena's past really
made this book for me. I seriously hate to wait a year for the next
book. I want - no, I <b>need</b> to know what happens next. I feel like I know Celaena so well, but there's so much
more about Aelin I want to unearth and learn about. I can't wait to see
all the story lines merge together and come together in an explosive
conclusion, but with three more books to go the series just promises
more and more drama, intrigue and excitement. Three more books - the
idea of more books, more Celaena and more of this world is just so
exciting!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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beccabookloverhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12658015894606772164noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5438840216500685607.post-62081743886388407022015-01-04T19:18:00.000+00:002016-04-05T12:05:13.850+01:00Showcase Sunday: Christmas Edition!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">It's Sunday and that means one thing; Showcase Sunday a fun weekly meme hosted by Vicky over @<a href="http://www.booksbiscuitsandtea.co.uk/" target="_blank">Books, Biscuits and Tea</a>. It's a great way of showing off what we've bought, borrowed and received this week.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and a wonderful New Year! It seems so long ago now that I awoke all excited (yes I know I'm 23 but c'mon Christmas is Christmas!) rushed downstairs all eager to open all of my presents. And of course, being the bookish book lover that I am I was gifted quite a lot of books or bookish things (now I just need to find the time to read them all!). I'm so grateful for all of my lovely presents and I'm a very lucky girl, so I thought I'd share with all of you book lovers what I had (as I know you all appreciate some good books!)</span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Books Gifted: </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> Little Women - Louise May Alcott</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Heidi - Johanna Spyri</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Anne of Green Gables - L M Montgomery</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Ice Dragon - George RR Martin</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Salvage - Alexandra Duncan</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Ghosts of Heaven - Marcus Sedgwick</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Fables Vol 1: Legends in Exile - Bill Willingham</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Walking Dead: Compendium 2 - Robert Kirkman</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm </span></span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> Travels with Charley - John Steinbeck</span></span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Down Under - Bill Bryson</span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">One Summer: America 1927 - Bill Bryson</span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">The Lost Continent - Bill Bryson</span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">A Walk in the Woods - Bill Bryson</span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction - Philip Athans</span></span></span></span></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> Beautiful Spines of my Puffin in Bloom Collection!</span></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">Review Books:</span></span></span></span></b><br />
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<img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9G3pRYMjapwEdcHYwNhGb7xRZdpwApmAuafO2ONhCREl_SHkmbh5J2rpAl5F9cVDmPYcgYwgMR_4AtcPQ-5aVdPcWbme_SnkXzGUyK1LfBMUHMcgutAf15E7aG9u-yaTMPcrFq1zJt8g/s1600/breakingtherules.png" width="400" /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">Breaking the Rules - Katie McGarry </span></span></span></span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Talon - Julie Kagawa</span></span></span></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Big thanks to Mira Ink for these two beauties :) </span></span><b><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Netgalley:</span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="font-size: x-small;">Shadow Study - Maria V Snyder</span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I actually squealed when I was accepted for this one! I absolutely love anything Snyder writes and I'm so excited for this! </span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br />
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