A few thoughts:

🎀 It took me a while to get into this book! I think I was suffering from a book hangover! This feels like it would have been a quick read if I was in a better headspace. 

🎀 It was a bit predictable, the ending didn’t exactly catch me off guard, but it also felt like the author needed to wrap things up quickly, so they just chucked in a few more details to round it out. 

🎀 Wasn’t particularly connected to any of the characters or story, felt a bit underwhelming. 

••THE LEDGE••

Written by: Christian White

**ᴛʜɪs ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴ sᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀs**

**ᴛʜɪs ʙᴏᴏᴋ ɴᴇᴇᴅs ᴀ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢ**

A few thoughts:

🎀 Christian White usually throws out a good banger every few years. This one was pretty good too, not as suspenseful as his previous books, but still up there. 

🎀 I do love the Aussie crime fiction authors, they really do know how to tell a good story. When you’re reading about the Australian bush, you know it, you smell it, you know that landscape as if you’re walking along with the characters.

🎀 I enjoyed the 90’s feel to this book. It sounded like the childhood I knew. Riding on your bikes around small country towns… 

🎀 The twists got me, but I felt quite confused… it almost felt a bit clumsy in its revelation… I flipped back through the pages to try & figure out how I missed it. And the ending was expected but kind of… not how I’d hoped it would end somehow. 

🎀 Still a strong contender, but I’ve just read better from this author & this one was my least favourite of the four I know of. Would still pick up any book of his either way!

5/45

Rating: 🦩🦩🦩

Cover art: 🦩🦩🦩

Plot: 🦩🦩🦩🦩

Writing style: 🦩🦩🦩

Characters: 🦩🦩🦩

#booklover #bookworm #booknerd #bookstagrammer #booklover #toberead #tbrpile #books #readingismagic #bookreview #review #readersreview #ratherbereading #bibliophile #aussiebooklover #aussiereader #theledge #christianwhite 

**ᴛʜɪs ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴ sᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀs**

A few thoughts:

🎀 I struggled hard with this book, but kept reading to try & understand why other people gave great reviews. I definitely got the feel-good, wholesome vibes towards the end of the book as the lives of those Jolene worked with start to unravel & you begin to understand the whole point is that you don’t know what’s going on in other people’s lives. 

🎀 This book gave me anxiety. I really need to steer clear of these depressive, neurotic characters. I end up feeling uncomfortable while they do odd things & create weird little messes for themselves. 

🎀 The plot had so much potential!! The idea that the main character had access to all her colleagues digital messages & emails seemed so enticing as a storyline, but this didn’t hit the mark for me. 

Quote: It’s like there are these pockets of sorrow waiting to be uncovered right below the surface. But we see them only sometimes, only by chance. Otherwise, we never know. 

**ᴛʜɪs ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴ sᴘᴏɪʟᴇʀs**

**ᴛʜɪs ʙᴏᴏᴋ ɴᴇᴇᴅs ᴀ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢ**

A few thoughts:

🎀 This one started out as the best of the series so far! Much faster paced than the others but definitely slowed down towards the end for me & lost me a little with all the battle talk.

🎀 Despite this, I’m so far into the hype now that all my FYP’s are Empyrean themed. 

🎀 I finished this feeling somewhat confused… What just happened? What was that ending? What did that even mean? I’m hoping that some of the fandom have created some feedback/guidance somewhere to help me wrap my head around it all! 

🎀 I would love to see a comprehensive break down of meanings for things within the story as well as a compendium of dragons & riders. I found it hard to keep track of these things throughout this book as we added fliers to the mix & even professors. Just so many things & characters to keep track of.

🎀 While it was one hell of a ride, I don’t think this was the best of the current three released in the series. I do feel the author has her work cut out for her. While the fans are loyal.. this one lost me a little & it will take some serious action in the next book to pull me back in. 

🎀 Andarna 🥺 An obvious favourite but Ridoc rose through the ranks in this book!

A few thoughts:

🎀 The world created by the author for these books is incredibly imaginative. I’m astounded by the details, the collective elements created to enhance the story. I fell down a bit of a fandom rabbit-hole with this one & actually loved the art created to represent people’s interpretations of each of the characters.

🎀 The half way point is always where shit gets soooo good. Hate having to put the book down kind of good. 

🎀 Torture scenes were a bit graphic for my preferences. Kind of brutal in parts. 

🎀 In true Yarros style, expected whiplash in the final chapters as the momentum truly gets going & you constantly pivot from new revelation to new revelation. 

🎀 Jack freaking Barlowe. That’s all I can say. IYKYK. 

🎀 Thank Gods tomorrow is the 21st of January.

**ᴛʜɪs ʙᴏᴏᴋ ɴᴇᴇᴅs ᴀ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢ**

A few thoughts:

🎀 I really wasn’t sure if I was a Dragon-book girly but I was keen to try another fantasy series after finishing the Plated Prisoner books.

🎀 I didn’t get really into the story until about the half way mark. From here onwards I really got to appreciate what the fandom loved about these books.

🎀 I actually got quite excited when she bonded with not one, but two of the coolest dragons there.

🎀 While I didn’t love the writing style completely I will definitely be reaching for the next one. 

A writer from my youth, I’ve always held a sentimental attachment to Carmody’s work since Obernewtyn introduced me to her stories many years ago. 

The level of imagination in her stories blows me away. The worlds she creates are extraordinary.

I was pushing through with this one a little bit for the first quarter of the book, it felt a bit too YA even though the premise is captivating. The last half was fantastic though, moved fast & got the heart racing. Loved the ending. 

One I would recommend to my teens.  

One of the most consumable of her books, while I felt most dragged throughout the middle, this one ebbed & flowed. The side-characters are probably the most lovable, in my opinion, so I enjoy the multiple points of view, but I struggled with the amount of battle talk & if it wasn’t for the side drama, probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much. Also, just to note - these two & their escapades, while there’s a major battle happening around them, bunker down have a lot of sex for like 6 pages. 😕

I liked the heavy focus on these powerful women. Auren shows just how strong, powerful & perfectly fae she is, a golden girl who holds her own. And Malina, showing us who she really was, capable, devoted & willing to die for her people. A good place to end the series! 

So I have to be honest, I have actively avoided all these colourful cartoon-style book covers released in the past 2 years… but then it was recommended that I should try Icebreaker. 

If you like some raunchy reading material, then this should be top of your list. It was a lot less cringy than some of the smutty novels I’ve read (it’s the dirty talk, I just can’t!). The two lovers are cute, the plot is engaging, & the banter is witty. 

I’m suggesting this as a great little holiday read to get you through the summer. 😏

In true Chris Hammer style, the Australian country town feel of his stories is like a welcome home mat. The characters, always so well developed, feeling like old friends. 

I was fully absorbed in the unraveling of Nell’s story, the way it was so intrinsically linked with the history of The Valley. 

I really enjoy the way Hammer writes. I become so invested in every story & this one did not disappoint.