Stephanie's books

Clockwork Angel
Eragon
City of Bones
Twilight
The Fellowship of the Ring
The Golden Compass
Night World, No. 2
Thirst No. 2: Phantom, Evil Thirst, and Creatures of Forever
Thirst No. 3: The Eternal Dawn
The Iron Daughter
The Iron King
Nightshade
Divergent
A Discovery of Witches
A Great and Terrible Beauty
The Hunger Games
The Host
City of Glass
Memoirs of a Geisha
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo


Stephanie's favorite books »

Thursday 26 March 2015

NetGalley Review- Feast of Fates (Four Feasts Till Darkness #1)


Title: Feast of Fates 

(Four Feasts Till Darkness #1)

Author: Christian A. Brown

Format I read: Ebook (kindle via NetGalley)

Rating: 3.5 /5


SYNOPSIS:
Morigan lives a quiet life as the handmaiden to a fatherly old sorcerer named Thackery. But when she crosses paths with Caenith, a not wholly mortal man, her world changes forever. Their meeting sparks long buried magical powers deep within Morigan. As she attempts to understand her newfound abilities, unbidden visions begin to plague her—visions that show a devastating madness descending on one of the Immortal Kings who rules the land.

With Morigan growing more powerful each day, the leaders of the realm soon realize that this young woman could hold the key to their destruction. Suddenly, Morigan finds herself beset by enemies, and she must master her mysterious gifts if she is to survive.
 

MY REVIEW:
*I received a copy of this book via netgalley*

It took me a long time to get into this book, it is a beast filled with a lot of information and a lot of world building which is good but also as the in depth description continued I found I got lost and I even skimmed a little. The writing style also took some getting used to but once I did I found a beauty to it that I rather enjoyed.
Most of the characters were wonderful but there is a lot of them in this crazy tale and some I could not care for, Morigan and Caenith were my favorite by far, with fate playing a part they form an unlikely but deep bond and I love when two people can find each other and help each other grow and learn about themselves like these two did.
As I read other reviews for this book I noticed some people were bothered by the graphic rape and torture in the story and yes I would agree this tale is not for the faint of heart but I disagree with it being a reason not to read this book (unless you are one of those faint of heart) because in a land as cruel and ruthless as the ones in this world built here I think its bound to happen, it is proof of the cruelty that must be faught and also some brutalities play a role in the unfolding of the tale.
I liked this book but I can't say I loved it and I have to admit there were times I had to push myself to continue or skim some of the drawn out description but overall I'm glad I read this and I may continue the series if I find the time So I can see how things continue.

Monday 16 March 2015

Book Review- Horde (Razorland #3)



Title: Horde (Razorland #3)

Author: Ann Aguirre

Format I read: Paperback

Rating: 5/5





SYNOPSIS:
The horde is coming.

Salvation is surrounded, monsters at the gates, and this time, they're not going away. When Deuce, Fade, Stalker and Tegan set out, the odds are against them. But the odds have been stacked against Deuce from the moment she was born. She might not be a Huntress anymore, but she doesn't run. With her knives in hand and her companions at her side, she will not falter, whether fighting for her life or Fade's love.

Ahead, the battle of a lifetime awaits. Freaks are everywhere, attacking settlements, setting up scouts, perimeters, and patrols. There hasn't been a war like this in centuries, and humans have forgotten how to stand and fight. Unless Deuce can lead them.

This time, however, more than the fate of a single enclave or outpost hangs in the balance. This time, Deuce carries the banner for the survival of all humanity

MY REVIEW:
Well this was a satisfying end to a satisfying series. I have really enjoyed this series and the things I believe it stsnds for, such as being true to yourself and fighting for what you love snd believe in. This world is made up of some really great characters, some not so great characters, and some forgettable ones but they all played their part. There was an extra bit of death in this conclusion but I expected that, it was war after all and some were troubling but one hit me harder than I had expected and was a lingering sore spot for some of our characters but all in all the ending was perfect deaths or not.
My favorite thing about this installment was the revelation of why it's called the Razorland series, it was perfect and I could not have asked for a better explanation. The freaks also evolved a lot and it was interesting to get more info on them and hoe they learn and I know believe they are NOTzombies but I still really liked the idea of them maybe more than zombies.
This being book three and an epic ending I won't say more as not to spoil anything. I loved this series and I'm kinda sad its over but I enjoyed the ride and the great ending this book brought it.
 

Sunday 15 March 2015

Book Review- Outpost (Razorland #2)



Title: Outpost (Razorland #2)

Author: Ann Aguirre

Format I read: Paperback

Rating: 5/5





SYNOPSIS:
Deuce’s whole world has changed.

Down below, she was considered an adult. Now, topside in a town called Salvation, she’s a brat in need of training in the eyes of the townsfolk. She doesn't fit in with the other girls: Deuce only knows how to fight.

To make matters worse, her Hunter partner, Fade, keeps Deuce at a distance. Her feelings for Fade haven’t changed, but he seems not to want her around anymore. Confused and lonely, she starts looking for a way out.

Deuce signs up to serve in the summer patrols—those who make sure the planters can work the fields without danger. It should be routine, but things have been changing on the surface, just as they did below ground. The Freaks have grown smarter. They’re watching. Waiting. Planning. The monsters don’t intend to let Salvation survive, and it may take a girl like Deuce to turn back the tide.
 

MY REVIEW:
I don't really remember book one that well so I can't say if I liked this one more or less but I do know that I did enjoy this book a lot and as I read on I remembered what I needed to from the first book and I really enjoyed how things continued on.
I like Deuce, I know there are people who do not and criticize her a lot because of her reactions to certain events but as tough as some of the things were that happened in both books, I enjoyed the authenticity of her reaction based on her upbringing and her limited interaction and knowledge of topside. I also think that Deuce is growing and learning but I admire her will to stay true to the thing that makes her feel alive and important, she also has Momma oaks to give her guidance it the ways of the world and when she shiws her love it changes a lot if things for Deuce and I simply feel in love with momma oaks quickly and was glad for her presence it brought light to a pretty dark and dangerous world.

Spoilers Ahead
Stalker is an interesting dude, I know he did terrible things but the more he is around and opens up I believe that he did what he did because he thought that was the only way to survive, and I may like him but I do not think he is the right choice for Deuce and I'm glad he is not on the radar really anymore even if he still thinks he is. Fade and Deuce are partners in more ways than one and I enjoyed the time they got in carefree love. I don't agree with what stalker said about Fade:
"He won't make you happy, dove. He's soft in ways you and I aren't. Ultimately, you're going to break him." 
I think that softness he has is something Deuce needs and I dont think she will break him I think she will save him, always as he will her. Longshot was as good for Deuce as momma oaks he sad my favorite thing to Deuce:
"Then speak louder girl, Don't let them put out your spark." 
I'm very shocked by the evolution of the freaks or muties as Salvation calls them, I knew that they were learning but I did not exspect colonies living like the humans, I'm curious to know more of them as it is clear they are not just mindless zombies as we were once lead to believe.
I'm worried about our little group as they travel from Salvation in hopes to save it and I will continue on ASAP. 

Tuesday 10 March 2015

Read to Review: The Glittering World

Title: The Glittering World
Author: Robert Levy
Format I read: ebook on kindle via netgalley
Rating: 3/5

SYNOPSIS:
In the tradition of Neil Gaiman (The Ocean at the End of the Lane), Scott Smith (The Ruins), and Jason Mott (The Returned), award-winning playwright Robert Levy spins a dark tale of alienation and belonging, the familiar and the surreal, family secrets and the search for truth in his debut supernatural thriller.

When up-and-coming chef Michael “Blue” Whitley returns with three friends to the remote Canadian community of his birth, it appears to be the perfect getaway from New York. He soon discovers, however, that everything he thought he knew about himself is a carefully orchestrated lie. Though he had no recollection of the event, as a young boy Blue and another child went missing for weeks in the idyllic, mysterious woods of Starling Cove. Soon thereafter, his mother suddenly fled with him to America, their homeland left behind.

But then Blue begins to remember. And once the shocking truth starts bleeding back into his life, his closest friends—Elisa, his former partner in crime; her stalwart husband, Jason; and Gabe, Blue’s young and admiring co-worker—must unravel the secrets of Starling Cove and the artists’ colony it once harbored. All four will face their troubled pasts, their most private demons, and a mysterious race of beings that inhabits the land, spoken of by the locals only as the Other Kind…

MY REVIEW:
I received a copy of this book via Netgalley,

I couldn't remember why I had picked this book and I can't tell you what I expected, but I can tell you that what I got was nothing I could have ever expected even if I tried. I guess it was sorta about Fae but not really but I guess that depends on what you believe about the Fae, I did like that it was original to me but also it was mysterious and a little captivating. I like that the story was told from each one of the friends point of view at differnt times in the journey, but on the flip side to that I'm not sure I really connected or cared to deeply for any of the characters. It was a very interesting tale and the multiple points of view gave me a pretty deep insight into each individual but as interested as I was in their story I was not as interested in their personalities. 
This book is more fun when its mysterious I think so I will leave the rest up to you to decide, I would recommend this to some people it was a cool story.

Book Review- Reborn (Born #3)


Title: Reborn (Born #3)
Author: Tara Brown
Format I read: ebook (kindle edition)
Rating: 5/5

SYNOPSIS:
Twenty years ago a man made a child he never intended to love.

Ten years ago the world ended and Emma turned her back on the man she believed was her father...in an attempt to survive.

Eight weeks ago she discovered the truth about her family, including the sister she never knew existed.

Last week she had her heart broken by the one man she never imagined giving it to.

Yesterday she turned her back on those she cared for in an attempt to help them survive.

Today she plans on hunting two men to the ends of the broken earth.

Not to save the world.

Not to make the world a better place.

Tomorrow... she plans on getting revenge.
 

MY REVIEW:
I have a very intense love/ hate relationship with this book, I really love this world and the characters that inhabit it but I hate how emotional this conclusion made me. I have many feelings and opinions about this book so if you read on spoilers are ahead.
I'm not sure I could ever really understand or connect with Emma but there is just something about her that I like and I'm glad she finally found happiness, stability, and family:
"Because it's us and them, it always was." 
She started this journey as a fierce loner with no one to worry about but herself and Leo but when Ana knocked on her door it started a chain reaction that along the way gave Emma the 'us' she was unknowingly looking for. For a long time I couldn't understand her easy ability to just take a life and move on like she had just stepped on a spider, but the more I think about it the more I realized that it was just a part of how she was raised, how she had survived for so long, and because of her DNA and the wsy she was brought into this world. I must say that the storyline of Emma's evil father and the terrible way things are run was much more interesting than the whole zombie apocalypse I even forgot the infected were a threat for a long time while they delt with the bigger issues of the world.
Now I need to talk about Will, I just don't know why I like him so much, there is so much about him that annoys me and makes me mad but there is so much more that I love, I am very upset at Tara Brown forbreaking my heart twice by killing him, yes twice who does that, how rude to bring him back to his family only to be ripped away again, but also I understand it needed to be done for some things must be built from the ashes of loss and regret.
and I may have loved Will but I love Emma and Jake together even more, and the glimpse in the future eas a wonderful way to end the series proving that life can get better with hard work and love.
I'm sad to see this series over but I am insanely satisfied with the way things went down the good and the bad.

Monday 9 March 2015

Book Review- Cold Fury (Cold Fury 1)

Title: Cold Fury (Cold Fury 1)
Author: T.M. Goeglein
Format I read: Hardcover
Rating: 3/5

SYNOPSIS:

Jason Bourne meets The Sopranos in this breathtaking adventure

Sara Jane Rispoli is a normal sixteen-year-old coping with school and a budding romance--until her parents and brother are kidnapped and she discovers her family is deeply embedded in the Chicago Outfit (aka the mob).

Now on the run from a masked assassin, rogue cops and her turncoat uncle, Sara Jane is chased and attacked at every turn, fighting back with cold fury as she searches for her family. It's a quest that takes her through concealed doors and forgotten speakeasies--a city hiding in plain sight. Though armed with a .45 and 96K in cash, an old tattered notebook might be her best defense--hidden in its pages the secret to "ultimate power." It's why she's being pursued, why her family was taken, and could be the key to saving all of their lives.

Action packed, with fresh, cinematic writing, Cold Fury is a riveting and imaginative adventure readers will devour.


MY REVIEW:

To be honest I bought this book based on the organized crime aspect, when I was younger I always imagined my father in his perfectly put together suit heading off everyday to take care of "business" now to be clear my dad was and still is a hotel vice president and nothing more but he loved old action movies with the crime boss and I thought that was why, this is why I find it hard to believe that Sara noticed akl the whispers even heard parts of conversation and dudnt try to find out more, especially since she watched so many movies on the subject, Willy even hinted something to her and she never thought twice about any of it until her family was missing, I guess you could say that was my big issue with this book Sara was a little slower on the uptake than I would have liked.
there was a lot of cool action and once Sara decided to use what she learned about herself and her family things got really exciting but I wish it had not taken so long for it to pick up, there was a lot of back story which I guess had useful aspects byt some of it felt like filler that staled the real mystery and excitement.
I liked the story behind the outfit and how it included Al Capone and the secret doors. I was no aware this was a series when I started it and Im not sure if I will continue on or not.