bandherbooks's Reviews (3.65k)

Beautiful and haunting third tale in the Graceling series. Queen Bitterblue is grown up and trying to heal her kingdom after King Leck's 35 year rule of terror and lies. Feeling stifled by her crown and paperwork she decides to venture to the streets to help find the truth about really happened during his rule.

This wonderful book takes the trope of the princess amongst the commoners and turns it upside down. I really enjoy Cashore's take on character development and relationships. Characters are strong in their own right and don't depend on their romantic interests to thrive, but those romances are still poignant and all the more real. I also love how she sticks with her guns on certain topics regarding love, marriage, and babies.

Vaughan launches his graphic novel series with an interesting premise - what would happen if every male on Earth suddenly dropped dead with the sole exception of the protaganist and his Capuchin monkey? Apparently a whole lot of chaos, as various factions vie for control and power of a world in crisis. Gangs of "Amazons" who cut off one breast and who firmly believe all men died for a reason and celebrate it; the wives of dead Republicans who try to fight for the seats of their husbands in the now almost defunct Senate and House (why you say? Oh yeah, they were mostly men).

Fun, snarky, and with some thought provoking themes. I will definitely be reading the rest of these issues.

Epic, impressive, and thrilling. What a ride this trilogy has been. Marchetta's work still revolves around themes of nationality, family, and honor, and she makes her characters go to hell and back to find their true meaning and purpose in her violent world. She makes you fall in love with each of them, despite their obvious flaws and prejudices.

Seeing as I finished this quite late last night - I will leave this review brief and spoiler free. Read this trilogy!

An intricatlly plotted and lush sequel to Finnikin of the Rock following the narrative of former thief Froi. It has been three years since Finnikin, Isaboe, Froi and the other exiled Lumaterans broke the curse and re-entered their kingdom. A captured spy has given the Lumaterans the opportunity to send Froi, now a seasoned warrior (although still struggling to control his baser instints), into Charyn to assassinate the evil king who helped install the horrific puppet king in Lumatere.

On this journey, Froi learns much about his past and also learns that he may have more in common with the Charynites then he may wish.

Totally delightful, romantic, and epic, the language alone simply makes your swoon, cry, and cheer.

An emotional roller coaster. Whew. What a beautiful and emotional way to end a fantastic trilogy. Clockwork Princess kept me guessing the whole time, who is Tessa? Why does the evil Magister want her and why does she think she will be the downfall of the Shadowhunters? Who will she choose, Will or Jem? Will she even get a choice?

Tessa Gray is a thoroughly enjoyable female lead, and a great role model for young women, in my humble opinion. She is strong, capable, and willing to sacrifice her own happiness to protect those she loves. Clare did an excellent job portraying Tessa's inability to fully commit her heart to one person, which I found much more realistic then most YA novels where this is only one true choice for the heroine. Pish posh. I also enjoyed Clare's tasteful yet totally erotic love scenes. Nothing I would be scared to give to a teenager, yet still had my jaded heart pounding. Who needs 50 Shades when you have torrid Victorian romance? Yow.

Its books like these that remind me I should really carry a notebook/pen to write down little passages that I just love. Clare has such a way with dialouge that puts you directly into the scene. I simply cannot wait to see her work transformed into film.

What an awesome world. I will never be able to look at teeth the same way again. Taylor puts an fresh spin on the age-old angel vs. demon battle by making everything grey. This is not a simple black vs white, good vs evil tale. The star crossed lovers made my heart ache.

As I have been noticing, this is definitely a Young Adult book for those 16+. Very graphic descriptions of violence, sensuality, and death. Love it when authors push it to the extreme. I can only wish I could see what got left on the editing room floor. Can't wait to for the second book!

In the sequel to Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Karou (leading lady, name means hope) finally understands who she is, and thinks she knows what she has to do. She is estranged from Akiva, a Seraphim she had a quite brief but passionate affair with in the previous tome, and is struggling to find her place in her new reality (don't want to give away any spoilers).

The style and tone of this sequel are consistent with the first novel, and showcase Taylor's superior world and mythology building. She really has a unique take on angel vs. demon trope which I am really loving right now. I also appreciate that her heroine is a kick ass young lady who has scars and battles, and is not simply falling for a pretty boy (or in this case angel), and not everything is a happy ending.

Can't wait till book three...publishing date unknown. Boo.

Hilarious! Love her amusing take on historical events. My personal favorite is the Hipster WWII Brigade. Check this out immediately!

The perfect read for frigid January in Wisconsin. You will simply want to curl up with your blankets and fall in love with this beautiful graphic novel by Craig Thompson. Set in Central Wisconsin and Marquette, MI, Thompson recounts his awkward childhood, relationship with God and the Bible, and a first romance that will make your heart both soar and weep.

Even though it is about the size of a telephone book, you will blaze through Blankets!