wordsofclover's Reviews (2.16k)

WHATTT WAS THAT????? I think I need to sit in a dark room for a little while after that one.

This was, again like the other two books in the series, packed with action both thrilling and heart-breaking from start to finish. I always feel like I read this series with my heart in my mouth because I'm so afraid all the time for all of my favourite characters. Again, my favourite POVs were that of Corban, Veradis and Camlin, and I also really enjoyed Maquin's and Haelan's this time around to. I was a bit disappointed with Cywen's character arc in this story as I felt she became somewhat diminished with everything happening around her and in the other books I had really enjoyed her attitude.

One of the best things about this series in my opinion is the animals and the huge role they play. From Storm and Shield to Craf and Fech and then we also have Buddhai, Pots and Daria in this one, plus a few stinking bears and one horrible draig. They have all become really important to me and it hurts just as much when they get hurt as when a main human character gets hurt

Fech, why!! AND STORM! I refuse to belive Storm is dead, she can't be dead. But because she had her puppies, I think there's a chance she could be dead and Haelan could end up having a new version of Storm in his black-faced puppy. But I really want Storm to live. I just don't see how she can survive that spear to the chest :(

I really loved some of the sidekicks we saw in this book, from Camlin becoming Meg's favourite person (Camlin has such a heart of gold under his roguish exterior) and then I really enjoyed Haelan's hero-worship of Corban. I supposed get so confused about the ages of all our main characters now because we started off with Corban at quite a young age, it's almost hard to remember he's almost a fully-grown man now with stubble and bicep muscles.

The ending of this killed me. Everything was going so well and then it all went downhill so quickly I mean Meical? What are we going to do now!!!! I just can't...I hate some of the characters in this - Nathair, Lykos, Calidus and Jael so much it makes my blood boil and I really need their comeuppance in Wrath. I need Wrath like right now. RIGHT NOW!

I think this is one of the best novellas in a series that I've read and it contained literally no characters from The Grisha Trilogy but instead contained the atmosphere and folklore that made me fall in love with the Grisha world. This story tells the tale of a young girl who is living in a village where girls are going missing. I was totally entranced by the spell of this writing, and the mystical, haunting way it was written. It was a little bit of a twisted tale containting bits of Hansel and Gretel and The Gingerbread Man. I really didn't expect the ending. I was so creeped it out and it left me completely shocked. I would definitely read a whole book on Ravka fairytales.

Another creepy Ravka folk story about a clever fox called Kujo. I didn't give this one five stars simply because it left me feeling a bit remorse. This is about Kujo and his investigation into a hunter that's killing the animals of the forest. The mentions of the strung-up, dead and skinned animals just left me feeling a bit sad. The storytelling was great though, and again, I think I would ravish any kind of folk story in this world. Bardugo has such a fabulous way of immediately drawing the reader in and catpuring their attention for the entire tale.

I buddy read this with Diana from YouTube/ D's Journey.

This was one weeeeiird book. And while the story was wonderfully complex and really well written, I just don't think it was for me which is why I'm giving it 2/2.5 Stars.

There's not much I can sy about the snyopsis of this book without making anyone who hasn't read it really confused so I'll say is it involves a teenage runaway called Holly who promises a strange lady that she will give her 'asylum'. The book follows Holly over the course of her long life, from different POVs, while Holly learns what it meant when she granted the woman asylum. The story involves body-hopping, immortality, a weird church with a creepy painting, people who drink souls...yeah, told you you would be confused.

David Mitchell obviously put a lot of work into this book and i can appreciate that for sure. I just think as a whole the writing wasn't to my taste. There were huge portions of the book where I was bored, and confused, and the only real time I was gripped was the section when the story was told by Marinus. Because that part actually followed some action, it was more fast-paced and I was excited to see what happened. We also got explanations in this part (400 pages into the book) which I could have done with a little bit earlier.

I had to give this book a low rating because I found myself not really wanting to pick it up, even though once I started reading I would be fine. So my interest just wasn't peaked enough. I'm really glad I buddy read it with Diana because it was the perfect book to discuss what the hell was going on with someone else and because I was buddy reading it, it pushed me to keep on going.

I will read more of Mitchell's work but not for a little while. I think I'll try Cloud Atlas next.

3.5 Stars

A nice look at an event that happened before Stay the Distance when July is faced with seeing her mother for the first time in almost four years and then has to deal with her emotions when her mother makes no attempt to seek her out. I think I would have liked a bit more maybe, or even a tad bit more emotion on July's part but for the most part I enjoyed it, and July's interactions with both her father and co-workers like Pilar and Jorge.

4.5 stars

There's something about Mitch Albom's writing that is so beautiful and magical, I could just bathe in all the words.

Frankie Presto was once one of the greats and rubbed shoulders with Elvis, Hank Williams, Django Reinhardt and Darlene Love.He was born in the middle of Franco's dictatorship of Spain and found his way through America. The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto starts with the death of Frankie and we make our way to the start of his story, who he was, how he learned to play the guitar like he did and who gifted him the magic strings that turn blue when he changes someone's life with his music.

I think this is a must-read for anyone who loved The Book Thief. Instead of Germany in WW2, we have Spain in the late 1940s. Instead of book-loving Liesel, we have music-loving Francisco. And instead of being told by Death, Frankie's story is told by Music. Yeah, you read that right. Music is a being, an all-seeing entity in this book. It gives a piece of him to newborns to create music during their lives and when they die, it takes it back.

“All humans are musical.
Why else would the Lord give you a beating heart?”

I'm not huge into music but even I was fascinated the way Mitch Albom was able to place Frankie Presto into the time of Elvis and Johnny Cash and weave him into the lives of other famous musicians. Presto meets Django Reinhardt, Hank Williams, Elvis, Darlene Love, Roger McGuin, Lyle Lovett, Tony Bennett over the course of his life and we find out how he rose and fell in the limelight and why he stepped out of it altogether but was never forgotten by fellow artists and fans of great music.

This was such an amazing story of an amazing life, and you would almost believe Presto was a real person in this era. You're almost sad that he wasn't a real person! There were real heartbreaking moments in this one - Francisco looking for Baffa at the factory, when he meets his aunt and screeched 'momma', his lost moments at Woodstock, the last song he sings to Aurora...there are so many wonderful moments that really gripped me.

I'm taking away a .5 of a star just because near the end some of Frankie's actions annoyed me a bit and I was ready for the story to start winding up. But I thoroughly enjoyed this one for the most part and Mitch Albom has proven to be again that he can cast me under a spell with his words. Wonderful.

3.5 Stars

Warden is an ex-soldier, ex-agent and current part-time bar owner and full-time drug dealer in a place called Low Town. Thanks to his various ex-jobs and current acquaintances, Warden knows everyone there is to know and he's not the person to mess with. When he's asked to find a sister of an old friend, Warden begins putting something in order that's 12 years overdue.

I thought I'd be super lost in this book because it's been a few years since I read Straight Razor Cure and I can't really remember much of what happened. But there was very little directly related to the first book in this story. This book was pretty enjoyable and it was fun getting back into the gritty, dangerous streets of Low Town. There seemed to be a lot more conversations going on than action and it got a bit boring and confusing sometimes as I tried to put two and two together and figure out what Warden was up t0.

Career of Evil is the third book in the Cormoran Strike series and this time around, Cormoran and his assistant/partner Robin are sent a woman's severed leg in the mail. As the two of them try and solve the case, they're pulled together and apart and walk further into danger.

I really liked this one, as always. I love Cormoran, he is most definitely a muggle version of Mad-Eye Moody and what's not to love about that. I liked his continued platonic relationship with Robin and her character development and confidence in herself. It was great seeing more about both the character's past. Robin did annoy me sometimes with how she was going off by herself and not really listening to Cormoran. I also hate her relationship with Matthew and can't see it going anywhere good .

I CAN'T BELIEVE SHE MARRIED HIM!!! WHY WHY WHY!

This book was much darker than the other two in my opinion. Some of the chapters were so twisted and the murderer's voice was so disturbing I had some trouble reading at times. I couldn't continue on to the next chapter all the time and had to give myself a bit of time before I was ready to move on. I definitely went back and forth with who the murderer was and I was surprised with the verdict in the end but of course, it was great seeing Cormoran put everything together and explain it in the end.

I can't wait for the next book in the series!

A series of essays from writer Alan Bennett about Mrs Shepherd, an old woman who lived in a van who came to his street and ended up staying for over 15 years - eventually moving into Bennett's driveway. In the essays, Bennett talks about his various interactions with Mrs Shepherd over the years and the little glimpses he finds out about her odd life and how she came to be the lady in the van.

This was enjoyable but I think I liked it more because I had already seen the film. Without the experience of seeing the movie, I don't think I would have really felt the character of Mrs Shepherd and it helped that I had the idea of Maggie Smith as her. In the movie you get a rounder view of how other people reacted to Mrs Shepherd such as the other neighbours and this was missing in the essays.