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wordsofclover
I received a copy of this book from the author/publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
It's 1957, and Daniel Matheson is spending several months in Spain, under the dictatorship of Franco, with his American father and Spanish mother. As Daniel uses his camera to see the real side of Madrid, he also begins to know Ana - the maid in his hotel whose family have been cruelly treated by the Spanish Civil War, and Franco's regime. Daniel begins to discover the terrible and beautiful sides of Spain, but also needs to question how far he can delve into secrets, especially if they put Ana in danger.
This is a slow-burn story showing a side of Spain that's easily forgotten and also focusing on an issue of stolen children and corruption in the orphanages and the religious orders that run them that many people do not know about. Once I got to grips with the different POVs in the story (there are a few, which is definitely a style of Sepetys), I really began to enjoy the story being told and the type of Spain being shown to me.
The POVs, while a few of them, it did seem to add something to every side of Spain. There was Daniel, the tourist, Ana, the girl wanting to escape, Julia, the mother, Puri, the one who believed, and Rafa, the fighter.
I did find myself completely enthralled by the story and the deeper I got, the deeper I began to feel and fear for the characters. There was such an air of menace and violence.
I did find myself a bit disappointed in part 2 versus part 1, mostly because something happened which is just not something I like when it happens to characters.I just really hate when characters spend so much of their lives apart and when they finally reunite in their 40s/50s, they both know they were waiting for each other all that time. I just feel sad for all that wasted time. Things felt slightly rushed as well, which I presumed would happen as part 2 didn't start till 80% into the book. And it ended a tiny bit abruptly so I was shocked when I turned the page and that was it.
The stolen orphan storyline really interested me though it wasn't a shock - not because of the heavy hints from the start but also some of the similarities between what happened to the babies in Spain, versus Ireland around the same time. Mother and Baby Homes (or 'laundries') in Ireland were prisons and asylums for unwed mothers and/or women who were looked down upon in society, and oftentimes these women were forced to put their baby up for adoption (often to rich Americans) in the same way the Spanish babies were stolen from their families here. The laundries were also ran by religious orders - generally nuns. I definitely saw some similarities between how women and babies were treated, and the moral superiority of those running such places.
It's 1957, and Daniel Matheson is spending several months in Spain, under the dictatorship of Franco, with his American father and Spanish mother. As Daniel uses his camera to see the real side of Madrid, he also begins to know Ana - the maid in his hotel whose family have been cruelly treated by the Spanish Civil War, and Franco's regime. Daniel begins to discover the terrible and beautiful sides of Spain, but also needs to question how far he can delve into secrets, especially if they put Ana in danger.
This is a slow-burn story showing a side of Spain that's easily forgotten and also focusing on an issue of stolen children and corruption in the orphanages and the religious orders that run them that many people do not know about. Once I got to grips with the different POVs in the story (there are a few, which is definitely a style of Sepetys), I really began to enjoy the story being told and the type of Spain being shown to me.
The POVs, while a few of them, it did seem to add something to every side of Spain. There was Daniel, the tourist, Ana, the girl wanting to escape, Julia, the mother, Puri, the one who believed, and Rafa, the fighter.
I did find myself completely enthralled by the story and the deeper I got, the deeper I began to feel and fear for the characters. There was such an air of menace and violence.
I did find myself a bit disappointed in part 2 versus part 1, mostly because something happened which is just not something I like when it happens to characters.
I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The Cruel Prince is a deep foray into the world of Faerie with twins Jude and Taryn, and their half-fae sister Vivi who end up growing up in Faerie following the death of their parents. However, the world is a dangerous one for the mortal twins who at any point could be ensorcelled and tricked. Jude is determined to fight her way to the top and gets a chance when the next High King, Prince Dain, employs her into his Court of Shadows.
This is definitely one of he top anticipated books of 2018, so I was so glad to received an e-copy for review and I’m even happier now I’ve read it (more like devoured it) and absolutely loved it.
This book and world is basically everything I want a Faerie story to be. It’s beautiful and magical while at the same time it’s dark and tricksy.I love that Holly Black never shied away from the horror that the Faerie world holds for mortals - it’s not a gay paradise but a hellish prison unless you’re lucky like the twins and have the protection of someone like Madoc, and even for them it was extremely dangerous.
I loved the dynamic between the younger characters like Taryn, Jude and Cardan and Locke. It always felt like there was something sizzling in the air between them all (something very akin to a sexual energy if i do say so myself) and I just kind of wanted them all to stop fighting with one another and start kissing one another but maybe that’s Faerie glamoring me.I am ensorcelled!
I really liked Cardan’s role in the story and how he began to really unravel in front of the reader in the second half of the book (after things got really crazy, like oh my god!). We finally started seeing his vulnerable side and to be honest, he kind of reminded me of Draco Malfoy a lot with the way he acted out to hide his own insecurities and behind it all he was really abused and lonely.
The ending was absolutely great. I actually gasped when I realised what Jude had planned all along, it was so brilliant. I cannot wait for the next book but I do know i will definitely end up reading this one again, and buying my own copy when it’s out in the shops.
The Cruel Prince is a deep foray into the world of Faerie with twins Jude and Taryn, and their half-fae sister Vivi who end up growing up in Faerie following the death of their parents. However, the world is a dangerous one for the mortal twins who at any point could be ensorcelled and tricked. Jude is determined to fight her way to the top and gets a chance when the next High King, Prince Dain, employs her into his Court of Shadows.
This is definitely one of he top anticipated books of 2018, so I was so glad to received an e-copy for review and I’m even happier now I’ve read it (more like devoured it) and absolutely loved it.
This book and world is basically everything I want a Faerie story to be. It’s beautiful and magical while at the same time it’s dark and tricksy.I love that Holly Black never shied away from the horror that the Faerie world holds for mortals - it’s not a gay paradise but a hellish prison unless you’re lucky like the twins and have the protection of someone like Madoc, and even for them it was extremely dangerous.
I loved the dynamic between the younger characters like Taryn, Jude and Cardan and Locke. It always felt like there was something sizzling in the air between them all (something very akin to a sexual energy if i do say so myself) and I just kind of wanted them all to stop fighting with one another and start kissing one another but maybe that’s Faerie glamoring me.I am ensorcelled!
I really liked Cardan’s role in the story and how he began to really unravel in front of the reader in the second half of the book (after things got really crazy, like oh my god!). We finally started seeing his vulnerable side and to be honest, he kind of reminded me of Draco Malfoy a lot with the way he acted out to hide his own insecurities and behind it all he was really abused and lonely.
The ending was absolutely great. I actually gasped when I realised what Jude had planned all along, it was so brilliant. I cannot wait for the next book but I do know i will definitely end up reading this one again, and buying my own copy when it’s out in the shops.
Where does one even start with The Wicked King?
Once upon a time there was a human called Jude Duarte who was raised in the land of the fae. Bullied, attacked and vilified, she was made to feel less than until she took matters into her own hands and became a king-maker, puppeteer. Now she wonders if the strings she's cast out are still under her control, and if they're not, she may be in big trouble.
I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from the Wicked King after the absolute rollercoaster that was The Cruel Prince but I loved this. I really loved seeing Jude really grown into her role as 'advisor' to Cardan, and I also appreciated seeing how insecure she still was - both in her role within the fairy world, and with her feelings for Cardan.
I don't think the relationship between Jude and Cardan is ever portrayed as particularly healthy, and I know people have issues with it but I love how jagged and dangerous it is. Their interactions always leave me on the edge of my seat - I never know if they're going to rip each other's clothes off or stab each other with swords.
Jude's time as prisoner in the Undersea left me shook, honestly. I was so scared for her, and I feel like it's truly the first time that we as readers have seen Jude in a real life and death situation where she had no Madoc, no Cardan, no Court of Shadows to back her up. She was completely out of her comfort zone, and it was truly hard to read. I actually would have loved to have spent more time in this particular part of the fae world though, and would love a novella or even a novel about Nicasia or someone from this court.
I loved the ending - I felt so happy for a moment before it all blew into smithereens. I honestly can't wait to see what happens next (though I know for a fact that a funeral is coming!)
I wish this book was longer, it would be my only gripe - I feel like we only got a handful of what was potentially out there, and I think that this world is so dense and amazing I always just expect really big books because my mind has expanded the world so much for me. I could read books set in this world forever, honestly.
Once upon a time there was a human called Jude Duarte who was raised in the land of the fae. Bullied, attacked and vilified, she was made to feel less than until she took matters into her own hands and became a king-maker, puppeteer. Now she wonders if the strings she's cast out are still under her control, and if they're not, she may be in big trouble.
I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from the Wicked King after the absolute rollercoaster that was The Cruel Prince but I loved this. I really loved seeing Jude really grown into her role as 'advisor' to Cardan, and I also appreciated seeing how insecure she still was - both in her role within the fairy world, and with her feelings for Cardan.
I don't think the relationship between Jude and Cardan is ever portrayed as particularly healthy, and I know people have issues with it but I love how jagged and dangerous it is. Their interactions always leave me on the edge of my seat - I never know if they're going to rip each other's clothes off or stab each other with swords.
Jude's time as prisoner in the Undersea left me shook, honestly. I was so scared for her, and I feel like it's truly the first time that we as readers have seen Jude in a real life and death situation where she had no Madoc, no Cardan, no Court of Shadows to back her up. She was completely out of her comfort zone, and it was truly hard to read. I actually would have loved to have spent more time in this particular part of the fae world though, and would love a novella or even a novel about Nicasia or someone from this court.
I loved the ending - I felt so happy for a moment before it all blew into smithereens. I honestly can't wait to see what happens next (though I know for a fact that a funeral is coming!)
I wish this book was longer, it would be my only gripe - I feel like we only got a handful of what was potentially out there, and I think that this world is so dense and amazing I always just expect really big books because my mind has expanded the world so much for me. I could read books set in this world forever, honestly.
