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popthebutterfly
Disclaimer: I received this book from netgalley and the publisher! Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Lost Orphan
Author: Stacey Halls
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: Historical Fiction
Recommended Age: 15+ (mental health issues, sex references, possible rape TW)
Publisher: Mira Books
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: A mother’s love knows no bounds…
London, 1754. Six years after leaving her newborn, Clara, at London’s Foundling Hospital, young Bess Bright returns to reclaim the illegitimate daughter she has never really known. Dreading the worst—that Clara has died in care—the last thing she expects to hear is that her daughter has already been reclaimed. Her life is turned upside down as she tries to find out who has taken her little girl—and why.
Less than a mile from Bess’s lodgings in a quiet town house, a wealthy widow barely ventures outside. When her close friend—an ambitious doctor at the Foundling Hospital—persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her young daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her—and will soon tear her carefully constructed world apart.
Set against the vibrant backdrop of Georgian London, The Lost Orphan explores families and secrets, class and power, and how the pull of motherhood cuts across them all.
Review: I liked this book for the most part. The world building was masterfully done, I really loved the feel and flow of this book, and I felt like the book did well as part historical fiction and part thriller/mystery as the main character tries to figure out the pieces of what happened and as the reader is taken through a twisty windy turn through this world. The book also did well to showcase and discuss mental health issues like PTSD and agoraphobia!
However, I did feel like the book had uneven pacing and the story was kinda disjointed with going back and forth between the past and the present.
Verdict: It was a well done novel!
Book: The Lost Orphan
Author: Stacey Halls
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: Historical Fiction
Recommended Age: 15+ (mental health issues, sex references, possible rape TW)
Publisher: Mira Books
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: A mother’s love knows no bounds…
London, 1754. Six years after leaving her newborn, Clara, at London’s Foundling Hospital, young Bess Bright returns to reclaim the illegitimate daughter she has never really known. Dreading the worst—that Clara has died in care—the last thing she expects to hear is that her daughter has already been reclaimed. Her life is turned upside down as she tries to find out who has taken her little girl—and why.
Less than a mile from Bess’s lodgings in a quiet town house, a wealthy widow barely ventures outside. When her close friend—an ambitious doctor at the Foundling Hospital—persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her young daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her—and will soon tear her carefully constructed world apart.
Set against the vibrant backdrop of Georgian London, The Lost Orphan explores families and secrets, class and power, and how the pull of motherhood cuts across them all.
Review: I liked this book for the most part. The world building was masterfully done, I really loved the feel and flow of this book, and I felt like the book did well as part historical fiction and part thriller/mystery as the main character tries to figure out the pieces of what happened and as the reader is taken through a twisty windy turn through this world. The book also did well to showcase and discuss mental health issues like PTSD and agoraphobia!
However, I did feel like the book had uneven pacing and the story was kinda disjointed with going back and forth between the past and the present.
Verdict: It was a well done novel!
Disclaimer: I received this arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Lucky Ones
Author: Liz Lawson
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary
Recommended Age: 15+ (discusses and depicts gun violence/school shooting TW, some delinquent behavior, romance)
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: How do you put yourself back together when it seems like you've lost it all?
May is a survivor. But she doesn't feel like one. She feels angry. And lost. And alone. Eleven months after the school shooting that killed her twin brother, May still doesn't know why she was the only one to walk out of the band room that day. No one gets what she went through--no one saw and heard what she did. No one can possibly understand how it feels to be her.
Zach lost his old life when his mother decided to defend the shooter. His girlfriend dumped him, his friends bailed, and now he spends his time hanging out with his little sister...and the one faithful friend who stuck around. His best friend is needy and demanding, but he won't let Zach disappear into himself. Which is how Zach ends up at band practice that night. The same night May goes with her best friend to audition for a new band.
Which is how May meets Zach. And how Zach meets May. And how both might figure out that surviving could be an option after all.
Review: I really liked this book! I think the author did well to approach the subject with grace and sensitivity. I think that the writing was well done, the characters were likeable and well developed. The pacing was also well done. I also liked how the author showed how different grief is. Grief isn’t just tears and there’s no one way to deal with it. Sometimes grief manifest itself in different ways and each person has to come up with ways to deal with it in their own way.
However, I did feel like the romance was a bit forced, but it felt more natural as the book went on. The book also did well with the subject of school shootings, but otherwise there wasn’t much of a story outside of how characters deal with grief, which normally doesn’t keep my attention (but in this one it did for the most part). Ultimately, it’s just saddening to think that while these characters get to heal, the process will begin all over again with new children, some of them as young as 5, until we come together as a nation to figure out a way to stop these from happening to the next group of children.
Verdict: A well done book that, while doesn’t present ways to prevent gun violence, helps show how we can better help those who are “the lucky ones”.
Book: The Lucky Ones
Author: Liz Lawson
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary
Recommended Age: 15+ (discusses and depicts gun violence/school shooting TW, some delinquent behavior, romance)
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: How do you put yourself back together when it seems like you've lost it all?
May is a survivor. But she doesn't feel like one. She feels angry. And lost. And alone. Eleven months after the school shooting that killed her twin brother, May still doesn't know why she was the only one to walk out of the band room that day. No one gets what she went through--no one saw and heard what she did. No one can possibly understand how it feels to be her.
Zach lost his old life when his mother decided to defend the shooter. His girlfriend dumped him, his friends bailed, and now he spends his time hanging out with his little sister...and the one faithful friend who stuck around. His best friend is needy and demanding, but he won't let Zach disappear into himself. Which is how Zach ends up at band practice that night. The same night May goes with her best friend to audition for a new band.
Which is how May meets Zach. And how Zach meets May. And how both might figure out that surviving could be an option after all.
Review: I really liked this book! I think the author did well to approach the subject with grace and sensitivity. I think that the writing was well done, the characters were likeable and well developed. The pacing was also well done. I also liked how the author showed how different grief is. Grief isn’t just tears and there’s no one way to deal with it. Sometimes grief manifest itself in different ways and each person has to come up with ways to deal with it in their own way.
However, I did feel like the romance was a bit forced, but it felt more natural as the book went on. The book also did well with the subject of school shootings, but otherwise there wasn’t much of a story outside of how characters deal with grief, which normally doesn’t keep my attention (but in this one it did for the most part). Ultimately, it’s just saddening to think that while these characters get to heal, the process will begin all over again with new children, some of them as young as 5, until we come together as a nation to figure out a way to stop these from happening to the next group of children.
Verdict: A well done book that, while doesn’t present ways to prevent gun violence, helps show how we can better help those who are “the lucky ones”.
Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: The Bone Roses
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 1
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: May 8, 2018
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, language, gore)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 331
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Rags is the most feared Rustler in the world, and for good reason. When she’s not raiding the post-Yellowstone Kingdom’s established settlements for supplies to keep her frontier, Rondo, alive another day, she’s fending off witch hunt-happy villagers who want her rare blue eyes in an unmarked grave.
But when the Kingdom strikes back, kills Rags’s best friend, and sends its second-in-command to destroy Rondo in four days, Rags must make a choice: seek revenge, or save her loved ones who are trapped in a town bound for slaughter broadcast Kingdom-wide. With little more than a stolen dream to guide her, and a growing attraction to a sly Kingdom informant, Rags is about to give the Kingdom four days it’ll never forget—if the bounty on her head doesn’t get her killed first.
Review: For the most part this was a good book. The plot was intriguing and characters are interesting. The world building was also well done.
However, I got really confused with this book a lot of the time. The characters were a bit trope-y, the writing was circular, and there was no steampunk in the novel nor was it a western. Westerns are more than people who wear chaps and ride horses.
Verdict: It was ok, but that tagline lies.
Book: The Bone Roses
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 1
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: May 8, 2018
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, language, gore)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 331
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old Rags is the most feared Rustler in the world, and for good reason. When she’s not raiding the post-Yellowstone Kingdom’s established settlements for supplies to keep her frontier, Rondo, alive another day, she’s fending off witch hunt-happy villagers who want her rare blue eyes in an unmarked grave.
But when the Kingdom strikes back, kills Rags’s best friend, and sends its second-in-command to destroy Rondo in four days, Rags must make a choice: seek revenge, or save her loved ones who are trapped in a town bound for slaughter broadcast Kingdom-wide. With little more than a stolen dream to guide her, and a growing attraction to a sly Kingdom informant, Rags is about to give the Kingdom four days it’ll never forget—if the bounty on her head doesn’t get her killed first.
Review: For the most part this was a good book. The plot was intriguing and characters are interesting. The world building was also well done.
However, I got really confused with this book a lot of the time. The characters were a bit trope-y, the writing was circular, and there was no steampunk in the novel nor was it a western. Westerns are more than people who wear chaps and ride horses.
Verdict: It was ok, but that tagline lies.
Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Garden of Ashes
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 2
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: August 15, 2018
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, gore, depression TW)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 390
Amazon Link
Synopsis: It’s the one place no rustler ever wants to end up.
Having survived Rondo’s destruction, sixteen-year-old Rags has been taken captive by the Kingdom and sentenced to ‘rehabilitation’ at the Kingdom’s Threshing Floor, a notorious prison camp for hardened criminals. Those who refuse to serve the Kingdom go in…no one comes out.
Faced with this nightmarish reality, Rags is forced to use everything she knows as a rustler to survive against starvation, a cruel ward master, and torture at the hands of the Kingdom’s ruler, Hyperion. Given only two options—death, or conformation to the Kingdom’s ways—she’s forced to play the Kingdom’s twisted game.
With the help of the Kingdom’s second-in-command, Henrick Oreson, and its charismatic luresman, Colton Caelan Fieldson, Rags must find a way to play a convincingly false role she was never meant to play and show the Kingdom she can be ‘rehabilitated’ to its standards. But with the deciding evaluation rigged in the Kingdom’s favor, failure is imminent…unless she can find a way to turn lies into truth and achieve the impossible: actually, escape the Threshing Floor.
Review: I think this book greatly improved from the first book. The book picks up from where the first left off and it runs with the plot. The pacing is fast, the characters become more developed, and they lost the steampunk western tagline lol.
However, I did feel like the writing was still circular in some parts. The author keeps going back to certain points and it makes me feel talked down to. The book also has some questionable editing. There are some missing subplots and points and some things happen with no setup or explanation. It’s still confusing.
Verdict: It was ok, but very confusing for me.
Book: Garden of Ashes
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 2
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: August 15, 2018
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, gore, depression TW)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 390
Amazon Link
Synopsis: It’s the one place no rustler ever wants to end up.
Having survived Rondo’s destruction, sixteen-year-old Rags has been taken captive by the Kingdom and sentenced to ‘rehabilitation’ at the Kingdom’s Threshing Floor, a notorious prison camp for hardened criminals. Those who refuse to serve the Kingdom go in…no one comes out.
Faced with this nightmarish reality, Rags is forced to use everything she knows as a rustler to survive against starvation, a cruel ward master, and torture at the hands of the Kingdom’s ruler, Hyperion. Given only two options—death, or conformation to the Kingdom’s ways—she’s forced to play the Kingdom’s twisted game.
With the help of the Kingdom’s second-in-command, Henrick Oreson, and its charismatic luresman, Colton Caelan Fieldson, Rags must find a way to play a convincingly false role she was never meant to play and show the Kingdom she can be ‘rehabilitated’ to its standards. But with the deciding evaluation rigged in the Kingdom’s favor, failure is imminent…unless she can find a way to turn lies into truth and achieve the impossible: actually, escape the Threshing Floor.
Review: I think this book greatly improved from the first book. The book picks up from where the first left off and it runs with the plot. The pacing is fast, the characters become more developed, and they lost the steampunk western tagline lol.
However, I did feel like the writing was still circular in some parts. The author keeps going back to certain points and it makes me feel talked down to. The book also has some questionable editing. There are some missing subplots and points and some things happen with no setup or explanation. It’s still confusing.
Verdict: It was ok, but very confusing for me.
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher! Thanks! All opinions are my own!
Book: Stars Over Zephyr
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 3
Rating: 4/5
Publication Date: April 2, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (depression TW, gore, violence)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 378
Amazon Link
Synopsis: With the Kingdom in chaos over her botched public execution, sixteen-year-old Rags has only one thing on her mind: survival. But that’s no easy feat with the Kingdom Corps chasing her, and every citizen wanting to cash in on the ultimate bounty. One place may offer shelter, though—Solstice, a lawless settlement where criminals go to seek refuge.
Yet Solstice is anything but a safe haven. A professional bounty hunter prowls its seedy streets and a ruthless anti-Kingdom rebel group, known as the Supporters, are rumored to call this settlement home. Neither side is friendly to outsiders. Having fled with former second-in-command-turned-traitor, Henrick Oreson and former luresman, Colton Caelan Fieldson, it’s a chance Rags will have to take.
Their options few, they must work together to survive a hostile new world while on the run, earn the respect of the Supporters, and regroup against the Kingdom. If they fail, civil war among the settlements will rage Kingdom-wide. If they’re successful, it could mean a chance at revenge against Hyperion and his cruel Threshing Floor, and the possible opportunity to take back their Kingdom once and for all…
Review: Again, the book improved from the last one! The characters were much more developed and the writing was much better! The editing was better and the world building continued to be spectacular!
However, the pacing was a bit slower than the other books and I got a bit bored during the slower parts of this book. The book also still had some little plot points that were a bit out there or that weren’t fully fleshed out.
Verdict: It was good!
Book: Stars Over Zephyr
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 3
Rating: 4/5
Publication Date: April 2, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: 16+ (depression TW, gore, violence)
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 378
Amazon Link
Synopsis: With the Kingdom in chaos over her botched public execution, sixteen-year-old Rags has only one thing on her mind: survival. But that’s no easy feat with the Kingdom Corps chasing her, and every citizen wanting to cash in on the ultimate bounty. One place may offer shelter, though—Solstice, a lawless settlement where criminals go to seek refuge.
Yet Solstice is anything but a safe haven. A professional bounty hunter prowls its seedy streets and a ruthless anti-Kingdom rebel group, known as the Supporters, are rumored to call this settlement home. Neither side is friendly to outsiders. Having fled with former second-in-command-turned-traitor, Henrick Oreson and former luresman, Colton Caelan Fieldson, it’s a chance Rags will have to take.
Their options few, they must work together to survive a hostile new world while on the run, earn the respect of the Supporters, and regroup against the Kingdom. If they fail, civil war among the settlements will rage Kingdom-wide. If they’re successful, it could mean a chance at revenge against Hyperion and his cruel Threshing Floor, and the possible opportunity to take back their Kingdom once and for all…
Review: Again, the book improved from the last one! The characters were much more developed and the writing was much better! The editing was better and the world building continued to be spectacular!
However, the pacing was a bit slower than the other books and I got a bit bored during the slower parts of this book. The book also still had some little plot points that were a bit out there or that weren’t fully fleshed out.
Verdict: It was good!
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Count the Rain
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 4
Rating: 2/5
Publication Date: August 27, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend, DNF-ed
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 344
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old professional outlaw, Rags, never wanted to help save the world. But with the death of Hyperion and the salvation of the Kingdom at hand, she finds her newfound freedom to be more than she’s prepared for. That is, until a mysterious assassin targets her and the new leader of the Kingdom, Henrick Oreson, uttering two words: “Praise Antiquity.”
A ghost from the Kingdom’s past, Antiquity, poses a new threat. It’s rumored to be more advanced and is determined to take over in Hyperion’s stead. Forced to leave her family behind once again, Rags flees to Zephyr to protect them and the upcoming Council meeting that could make or break the Kingdom’s future. But with Antiquity coming for them, there are only two choices: go to the front lines and fight, or let the fragile new Kingdom fall.
Together with Henrick, new second-in-command Colton Caelan Fieldson, and Supporter leader Meridian, Rags must find a way to cripple Antiquity and prevent Zephyr from falling into the wrong hands. It won’t be easy when Antiquity has a weapon that could end the Kingdom in a single night. She’ll have to call upon everything she knows and the alliances she’s made to answer the one question that could mean the downfall of everything she’s fought for: are the needs of the many worth those of the few? Her choice will determine if the new Kingdom rises from the ashes… or returns to them.
Review: I had to DNF this book. There were some more plot points and circular writing and while I was interested in the story, I felt like I knew what the ending was going to be for a very long time in this series and skipping ahead in the book I found myself right. I just couldn’t enjoy the books anymore.
Verdict: It was an okay series, but it had some issues and ultimately I wasn’t happy reading it.
Book: Count the Rain
Author: Kathryn Lee Martin
Book Series: Snow Spark Saga Book 4
Rating: 2/5
Publication Date: August 27, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend, DNF-ed
Publisher: The Parliament House
Pages: 344
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Sixteen-year-old professional outlaw, Rags, never wanted to help save the world. But with the death of Hyperion and the salvation of the Kingdom at hand, she finds her newfound freedom to be more than she’s prepared for. That is, until a mysterious assassin targets her and the new leader of the Kingdom, Henrick Oreson, uttering two words: “Praise Antiquity.”
A ghost from the Kingdom’s past, Antiquity, poses a new threat. It’s rumored to be more advanced and is determined to take over in Hyperion’s stead. Forced to leave her family behind once again, Rags flees to Zephyr to protect them and the upcoming Council meeting that could make or break the Kingdom’s future. But with Antiquity coming for them, there are only two choices: go to the front lines and fight, or let the fragile new Kingdom fall.
Together with Henrick, new second-in-command Colton Caelan Fieldson, and Supporter leader Meridian, Rags must find a way to cripple Antiquity and prevent Zephyr from falling into the wrong hands. It won’t be easy when Antiquity has a weapon that could end the Kingdom in a single night. She’ll have to call upon everything she knows and the alliances she’s made to answer the one question that could mean the downfall of everything she’s fought for: are the needs of the many worth those of the few? Her choice will determine if the new Kingdom rises from the ashes… or returns to them.
Review: I had to DNF this book. There were some more plot points and circular writing and while I was interested in the story, I felt like I knew what the ending was going to be for a very long time in this series and skipping ahead in the book I found myself right. I just couldn’t enjoy the books anymore.
Verdict: It was an okay series, but it had some issues and ultimately I wasn’t happy reading it.
Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher and fantastic flying book club! Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: They Went Left
Author: Monica Hesse
Book Series: Standalone
Diversity: Jewish main characters!
Rating: 5/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 384
Recommended Age: 16+ (romance, violence, death, TW for Holocaust mentioning)
Synopsis: Germany, 1945. The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp said the war was over, but nothing feels over to eighteen-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal; her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else--her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja--they went left.
Zofia's last words to her brother were a promise: Abek to Zofia, A to Z. When I find you again, we will fill our alphabet. Now her journey to fulfill that vow takes her through Poland and Germany, and into a displaced persons camp where everyone she meets is trying to piece together a future from a painful past: Miriam, desperately searching for the twin she was separated from after they survived medical experimentation. Breine, a former heiress, who now longs only for a simple wedding with her new fiancé. And Josef, who guards his past behind a wall of secrets, and is beautiful and strange and magnetic all at once.
But the deeper Zofia digs, the more impossible her search seems. How can she find one boy in a sea of the missing? In the rubble of a broken continent, Zofia must delve into a mystery whose answers could break her--or help her rebuild her world.
Review: This book is equal parts heartbreaking and equal parts inspiring. The character development is amazing, I absolutely loved our main character and I loved how she wasn't cookie cutter, she had flaws as well. I loved the world building, it's hard to realize how devastating a place can be after a war. I am fortunate enough to not live with destruction like that and to see life go on as normal. I think books like this are very important because we only learn about the during and we don't get to hear a lot about the after.
However, I did think the pacing was hit or miss. Sometimes we were sailing through and others we were at a standstill.
Verdict: a marvelous book! Definitely recommend!
Book: They Went Left
Author: Monica Hesse
Book Series: Standalone
Diversity: Jewish main characters!
Rating: 5/5
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 384
Recommended Age: 16+ (romance, violence, death, TW for Holocaust mentioning)
Synopsis: Germany, 1945. The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp said the war was over, but nothing feels over to eighteen-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal; her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else--her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja--they went left.
Zofia's last words to her brother were a promise: Abek to Zofia, A to Z. When I find you again, we will fill our alphabet. Now her journey to fulfill that vow takes her through Poland and Germany, and into a displaced persons camp where everyone she meets is trying to piece together a future from a painful past: Miriam, desperately searching for the twin she was separated from after they survived medical experimentation. Breine, a former heiress, who now longs only for a simple wedding with her new fiancé. And Josef, who guards his past behind a wall of secrets, and is beautiful and strange and magnetic all at once.
But the deeper Zofia digs, the more impossible her search seems. How can she find one boy in a sea of the missing? In the rubble of a broken continent, Zofia must delve into a mystery whose answers could break her--or help her rebuild her world.
Review: This book is equal parts heartbreaking and equal parts inspiring. The character development is amazing, I absolutely loved our main character and I loved how she wasn't cookie cutter, she had flaws as well. I loved the world building, it's hard to realize how devastating a place can be after a war. I am fortunate enough to not live with destruction like that and to see life go on as normal. I think books like this are very important because we only learn about the during and we don't get to hear a lot about the after.
However, I did think the pacing was hit or miss. Sometimes we were sailing through and others we were at a standstill.
Verdict: a marvelous book! Definitely recommend!
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: We Didn’t Ask for This
Author: Adi Alsaid
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: LGBT+ friendly
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary
Recommended Age: 15+ (slight violence, romance)
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Every year, lock-in night changes lives. This year, it might just change the world.
Central International School's annual lock-in is legendary -- and for six students, this year's lock-in is the answer to their dreams. The chance to finally win the contest. Kiss the guy. Make a friend. Become the star of a story that will be passed down from student to student for years to come.
But then a group of students, led by Marisa Cuevas, stage an eco-protest and chain themselves to the doors, vowing to keep everyone trapped inside until their list of demands is met. While some students rally to the cause, others are devastated as they watch their plans fall apart. And Marisa, once so certain of her goals, must now decide just how far she'll go to attain them.
Review: I thought the book was pretty good. The characters were interesting and well developed. The plot itself was intriguing and kept me interested in the book throughout the whole novel. I really liked this lockdown novel during this lockdown time period.
However, I felt like something the pacing drug on and on and it was hard to imagine what the world looked like. There was very little world building and it got confusing at times. Also, the unbreakable windows were a bit unrealistic.
Verdict: It was pretty good!
Book: We Didn’t Ask for This
Author: Adi Alsaid
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 4/5
Diversity: LGBT+ friendly
Publication Date: April 7, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary
Recommended Age: 15+ (slight violence, romance)
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Pages: 352
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Every year, lock-in night changes lives. This year, it might just change the world.
Central International School's annual lock-in is legendary -- and for six students, this year's lock-in is the answer to their dreams. The chance to finally win the contest. Kiss the guy. Make a friend. Become the star of a story that will be passed down from student to student for years to come.
But then a group of students, led by Marisa Cuevas, stage an eco-protest and chain themselves to the doors, vowing to keep everyone trapped inside until their list of demands is met. While some students rally to the cause, others are devastated as they watch their plans fall apart. And Marisa, once so certain of her goals, must now decide just how far she'll go to attain them.
Review: I thought the book was pretty good. The characters were interesting and well developed. The plot itself was intriguing and kept me interested in the book throughout the whole novel. I really liked this lockdown novel during this lockdown time period.
However, I felt like something the pacing drug on and on and it was hard to imagine what the world looked like. There was very little world building and it got confusing at times. Also, the unbreakable windows were a bit unrealistic.
Verdict: It was pretty good!
Disclaimer: I received this ebook from faecrate. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Reigntime
Author: S.K. Levy
Book Series: Reigntime
Rating: 1/5
Publication Date: July 15, 2016
Genre: YA High Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend- DNF-ed
Publisher: Australian eBook Publisher
Pages: 410
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Lexie Taylor, a seventeen-year-old student nurse in tropical North Queensland, has been assigned a new patient and she’s baffled by his odd and uncooperative behaviour. But she finds herself drawn to the enigmatic Myall, who, for the first time since the death of her older brother, reminds Lexie of what it is to be happy.
As Lexie begins to trust him, Myall reveals he is a Reigntime creature—a magical and immortal being from the Awakening—who will die if he remains in hospital. Risking everything, Lexie smuggles him out, and together they travel deep into the dangerous tropics of Kakadu on a mission to locate the key to his survival.
But the dangers that await them will give Lexie a death sentence of her own...
Review: I really couldn’t get into this book. It had a good premise but the writing didn’t work with my brain. I had to DNF around 20%.
Verdict: DNF-ed but it seems great!
Book: Reigntime
Author: S.K. Levy
Book Series: Reigntime
Rating: 1/5
Publication Date: July 15, 2016
Genre: YA High Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend- DNF-ed
Publisher: Australian eBook Publisher
Pages: 410
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Lexie Taylor, a seventeen-year-old student nurse in tropical North Queensland, has been assigned a new patient and she’s baffled by his odd and uncooperative behaviour. But she finds herself drawn to the enigmatic Myall, who, for the first time since the death of her older brother, reminds Lexie of what it is to be happy.
As Lexie begins to trust him, Myall reveals he is a Reigntime creature—a magical and immortal being from the Awakening—who will die if he remains in hospital. Risking everything, Lexie smuggles him out, and together they travel deep into the dangerous tropics of Kakadu on a mission to locate the key to his survival.
But the dangers that await them will give Lexie a death sentence of her own...
Review: I really couldn’t get into this book. It had a good premise but the writing didn’t work with my brain. I had to DNF around 20%.
Verdict: DNF-ed but it seems great!
Disclaimer: I was recommended this book by Molly @mollysbooknook! Thank you Molly! All opinions are my own.
Book: Wolf by Wolf
Author: Ryan Graudin
Book Series: Wolf by Wolf Book 1
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Jewish main character!
Publication Date: October 20, 2015
Genre: YA Historical Fiction/Sci-Fi
Recommended Age: 15+ (violence, gore, slight romance, some language)
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 388
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Her story begins on a train.
The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule. To commemorate their Great Victory, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor’s Ball in Tokyo.
Yael, a former death camp prisoner, has witnessed too much suffering, and the five wolves tattooed on her arm are a constant reminder of the loved ones she lost. The resistance has given Yael one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year’s only female racer, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin’s brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael’s every move.
But as Yael grows closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?
Review: I really loved this book! It was a fantastic imagining of what the world would look like if Hitler had won. The characters were well done, the world building was amazing, and I was totally enraptured by the book from page one. The plot grabs you by the throat and refuses to let you go. I also adored how the background was told, through a then/now perspective.
The only issue I had was that sometimes the pacing was a bit slow but I really loved this!
Verdict: I definitely recommend this one! Thanks Molly!
Book: Wolf by Wolf
Author: Ryan Graudin
Book Series: Wolf by Wolf Book 1
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Jewish main character!
Publication Date: October 20, 2015
Genre: YA Historical Fiction/Sci-Fi
Recommended Age: 15+ (violence, gore, slight romance, some language)
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Pages: 388
Amazon Link
Synopsis: Her story begins on a train.
The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule. To commemorate their Great Victory, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor’s Ball in Tokyo.
Yael, a former death camp prisoner, has witnessed too much suffering, and the five wolves tattooed on her arm are a constant reminder of the loved ones she lost. The resistance has given Yael one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year’s only female racer, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin’s brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael’s every move.
But as Yael grows closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?
Review: I really loved this book! It was a fantastic imagining of what the world would look like if Hitler had won. The characters were well done, the world building was amazing, and I was totally enraptured by the book from page one. The plot grabs you by the throat and refuses to let you go. I also adored how the background was told, through a then/now perspective.
The only issue I had was that sometimes the pacing was a bit slow but I really loved this!
Verdict: I definitely recommend this one! Thanks Molly!