typedtruths's Reviews (1.8k)

more of the immortal vampyre brides getting revenge on shitty men pls and thank you

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i genuinely love how much this series made me feel and think but damn it, this was such a disappointment

I think this is one of those books that you need to read yourself to get why it is such a gorgeous story. For such a simple story, it packs a punch that will you reeling for hours after you put it down. George is such a sweetie. There is no other way to put it. She has such a raw and relatable personality, and her obsession with Charlotte from Charlotte’s Web made my heart ache. She reminded me so much of myself at this age - questioning everything and finding solace in my favourite book characters. There was not a single moment when I was not rooting for her but it was Kelly who stole the spotlight in my opinion. Everyone deserves a friend like her. She was so, so supportive and kind. I love her reaction to George’s confession and the ending scenario made me tear up. It was beautiful.

This is undoubtedly a story that everyone needs to read at least once in their life. Yes, it is narrated by a ten-year-old but it is no less accessible to older readers, even adults. It holds such a special message at its heart but it never - honestly not once - shoves it down your throat. This is George’s story, through and through, and do yourself a favour and give it a read. I promise it won’t disappoint.

➸ Trigger warnings for

self-inflicted wounds, blood/physical injuries, emetophobia, murder, attempted murder, stabbing, mild war themes, kidnapping, parental death, and animal attack. Loss of autonomy discussed.

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The Jackaby series has completely crept its way into my heart at this point. Looking back, it is so bizarre to me how disappointed I was with the first book. The three books since then have been such a journey. My heart is broken but is also… full. I have no words for my love of this cast, of this world. This series uses so many of my favourite elements and manages to twist them into unique and compelling stories with ease. I am in awe of Ritter’s writing. It remains lush and poignant while retaining that biting sarcastic tone that makes Jackaby and Abigail such memorable protagonists. I adore the two of them more than words can express. I was not disappointed with this sequel in the slightest. It was bloody and brutal and beautiful. I selfishly want more.

After a dubious beginning to this series, Ritter came back with a punch! Beastly Bones managed to weave together a gorgeously atmospheric story about archaeology and paranormal shenanigans. It had so many elements that I love: feminist female lead, slightly eccentric and socially maladjusted genius sleuth, subtle sassiness, shape-shifters, and cute police offiers. It completely sucked me, and made me fall in love with Abigail and Jackaby’s crazy world.

The plotline was just perfect - exactly what I wanted from this series in the first place. I thought that the mystery was suspenseful and engaging in all the ways a proper mystery should be. I was guessing at every corner! The new mythology and paranormal creatures we are introduce to in this sequel tied well into the overall storyline and didn’t feel nearly as forced or out of place as they did in the first book. The setting - both the historical era and the countryside - was the perfect backdrop for the sleuthing and academic squabbling aspects too.

However, what truly worked for me the most was our protagonist, Abigail. She has such amazing character growth in this sequel! I simply adored how she actually listened to her friends’ advice and took it on board. She learned so many valuable lesson throughout the story and actually put them into practice. What did let it down a little bit for me was Jackaby. I think he is a fantastic character in theory - you probably know by now how much of a thing I have for geniuses - but we still don’t get to know him as well as I would like. I want to get inside his head. I really think dual narration would work wonders for this series. I just need more Jackaby!

The romantic tension should have annoyed me but it purposefully had very little “page time” and really was only the smallest of subplots. It never retracted from the story and was actually used to fuel some of Abigail’s character development so it worked out rather well in the end. I just wish we got to know Charlie a little better! I adore them together though and definitely look forward to seeing how it will advance in the sequel.

While we still didn’t get a lot of answers in this book about the how and why of Jackaby’s abilities - or the even why no one believes paranormal creatures exists in this world when they so obviously do - the new mythology introduced and the adventures it sets the characters off on was so well-done and enthralling, I couldn’t really muster the energy to be bothered by it.

Overall, I enjoyed Beastly Bones a great deal more than I did the first book. My biggest complaint are simply that a) we still don’t know Jackaby as well as I would like, and b) everyone has exactly the same sense of humour (which just isn’t realistic, no matter how hilariously witty Ritter is). Abigail was the perfect protagonist for this story and the plotline worked well on so many levels. I really just cannot complain that much at all! Entertaining and engrossing. I’d definitely recommend continuing on with the series if you were iffy after Jackaby. The third book sounds even better too!

I had no idea what to expect from Bring Me Their Hearts. The reviews couldn’t get more divisive if they tried… and I can see why. This is an exact type of tropey fantasy that appeals only to certain select kind of reader. Normally, I’d be one of them but there were a few things that didn’t quite tick my boxes.

This book made me so ridiculously, giddily happy! Ritter has the most incredible way with words... I never want this series to end. RTC.

Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.

Dammit. I honestly did not expect to dislike this book. I’m actually rather bummed out about it! [b:The Orphan Queen|18081228|The Orphan Queen (The Orphan Queen, #1)|Jodi Meadows|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1402927856s/18081228.jpg|25389909] was such an entertaining read. I fell in love with the characters, and I was so intrigued by the plotline. I truly though it had the potential to become something really amazing… but it didn’t hit that mark for me. At all. *pouts*

Reasons Why The Mirror King Was a Disappointing Finale:

1. The pacing was off. I liked that the story began right from the end of the previous book - though that may have been a little confusing for readers who had to wait the year for its release? It was definitely hooking and emotionally impacting… but after that it was hard to get into. The plotline was messy and really just all over the place for at least the first 65% or so. The storyline was plodding. It just never seemed to have any momentum. It kind of just stagnating in this preparatory state, seemingly waiting for something exciting to happen to kickstart it… and that exciting thing didn’t happen until the 85% mark. The ending was undeniably action-packed and 100% more entertaining and engrossing than the rest of the book… but it was too little, too late.

2. The ending was a non-ending! *growls with frustration* Open endings aren’t always bad, but they very rarely work in fantasies. They’re just too unsatisfying. We’ve invested a lot of time getting to know these characters and this world… and we barely get a resolution? Not fair! If the pacing had been better than there would have been more than enough time to wrap everything up. This ending just felt lazy - the author didn’t know how to solve the problem realistically, so she didn’t. Not. Cool.

3. The unanswered questions and lack of world-building. This is kind of tied to the point above, but the I’m still so damn confused about this Wraith situation. We had a whole sequel to explore what the wraith and the wraith boy situation, but we didn’t get enough answers. I’m not sure what causes the Wraith or what it is exactly or… well, a lot of things. The wraith boy still confuses me, and so does the magic system. I don't understand how someone can have magic (is it hereditary or not?) and how it works. I’m just not happy that we didn’t get the answers we needed!

4. The plot twists. While I admire that Jodi Meadows completely and utterly threw me with some of her plot twists, they didn’t always sit right with me. They felt kind of forced, convenient answers to the problems that the characters were facing. For example,

Tobiah’s magic. What exactly was his talent - he could just magically make things appear? If magic is hereditary, then his mother or father had magical abilities too… which doesn’t make sense! And why did he not use it in secret? He could have made mirrors appear in his home city, right? I felt that it was the “reveal” of his magic was a little too convenient, and not thought out enough.

5. The romantic drama in the first half of the book. Look, I adore Tobiah and I like Wil but the drama? Ugh. I couldn’t deal with it. The cheating is still cheating - no matter the situation - and I didn’t care about it as much as I wanted to. I loved them together but their world was literally falling apart around them. I just wanted them to focus on solving the Wraith problem before sucking face.

6. Wil lost her spunk. I don’t know what happened but the strong-willed, kind-hearted protagonist we met in the first book lost her way in this sequel. She felt distant and cold from us readers. I didn’t understand her motivations. She felt kind of jumpy and inconsistent in her thinking. I just couldn’t relate to her.

With that being said, this book wasn’t all doom and gloom:

• Jodi Meadows completely shocked me at three points in this story (

1. Meredith’s death, 2. James’ identity reveal - being made of magic, and 3. Tobiah is a flasher!

)... and I mean completely shocked me. I love being surprised by books so that’s a massive double thumbs-up in my book.
• The romance made me smile in the second half of the story, once most of the drama had run its course. I’m not denying that it’s kind of cliched and sappy, but I just adore Tobiah too much to care. It’s nice seeing one thing in his life go right!
• Did I mention I like Tobiah? Yes? Well, I’m saying it again. I loved Tobiah!
• I’m still in love with this world and the concept of magic having such an ugly side. I don’t think I’ve read about a magical apocalypse like this before, and if had been executed better, it could have been incredible.
• The last 15% was truly captivating. The action was on point, the character really grew and it made me tear up. Too bad the actual ending was so disappointing…

Overall, I don’t regret giving this series a go because I did really enjoy the first book. But there’s no denying that I wasn’t satisfied with this finale. I’m definitely going to be checking out Meadow’s other series though. She has fantastic ideas. I just hope her next/previous trilogies have better conclusions!

Review copy provided by the publisher for an honest review.