Tag: 4.5/5 gavels

Feb 15

{Review+Giveaway} Courting Darkness by Robin LaFevers

Courting Darkness is the first book in the young adult fantasy Courting Darkness Duology by author Robin LaFevers. The Courting Darkness duology is a spin off the young adult His Fair Assassin Trilogy. That trilogy has shamefully been on my to be read pile for years! I have all of the books just sitting on my shelves mocking me for not reading them. Luckily, this is a spin off series and doesn’t need to be read after the original trilogy, but I am totally kicking myself for never reading the trilogy because Courting Darkness was so good! I loved it so much, and now I am bumping up the His Fair Assassin trilogy to the very top of my TBR. In Courting Darkness, our main character is Sybella, who is also one of the main characters from the His Fair Assassin trilogy. I loved the way Robin LaFevers tells a story. She doesn’t just tell, she weaves a tale. Her writing is atmospheric and dark and totally delicious. The other… Read more »

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Sep 11

{Review+Giveaway} TWO DARK REIGNS by @KendareBlake

Two Dark Reigns is the third book in the Three Dark Crowns series by Kendare Blake. The Three Dark Crowns series is a young adult fantasy series that I freakin’ love! Full disclosure, I binge read this series and it is currently all I can think about! I need the next book fiercely. Three Dark Crowns is a series that is darkly addicting and I want more more more. I will say, I am very glad that I read this series back to back because this world is vast and complicated and reading the books one right after another helped me pick up on many world and characters nuances that I am sure I would have missed out on if a year of more had passed between my readings of book 1, 2, or 3. This review is nearly impossible to do without spoilers but because I don’t want to ruin anything for you, I will talk in general about what I like about this series. To do that first,… Read more »

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Jul 12

{Review+Giveaway} Kiss of the Royal by @LindseyDuga @EntangledTeen

Kiss of the Royal by Lindsey Duga is a young adult fantasy novel, and one of my most anticipated reads of summer 2018. Fantasy romances are my very favorite genre at the moment, and one where the magic travels through kisses…well, how could I not love that book? I am so happy to report that not only was Kiss of the Royal just what I was looking for, it also surprised me in a very good way. Lindsey Duga took pieces of a few fairy tale classics and twisted and turned them into a fantasy novel of epic proportions. While I would really love to revisit the world that Lindsey created in Kiss of the Royal, at the moment I believe this is meant to be a standalone novel. And it is very satisfying as a standalone. It ends in a nice way, but I am so in love with the characters that I would love to read more about them. ::CoughZachCough:: Kiss of the Royal is set in a… Read more »

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May 08

${Review+Giveaway} The Queen’s Rising by @_RebeccaRoss$

{Review+Giveaway} The Queen’s Rising by @_RebeccaRoss

The Queen’s Rising is the first book in a new, Young Adult Fantasy series by the same name, from author Rebecca Ross. I was immediately drawn in to this book. The cover is stunning, and the summary really grabbed me. I love the idea of young adults studying one of five passions and getting a patron to help them learn their craft. It all felt very Renaissance to me, which is a time period I have always been fascinated by. Plus, I knew there was also going to be magic and politics and all of that fun stuff that I crave in fantasy worlds. And I have to say, The Queen’s Rising was excellent! The Queen’s Rising focuses on our young main character, Brienna. She doesn’t have an immediately apparent aptitude for one of the passions and she doesn’t end up getting a patron until later in the game than most young adults her age. This, coupled with some other surprising things that happen to her, set her off on a… Read more »

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May 07

{ARC Review} The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang @HHoangWrites @BerkleyRomance

The Kiss Quotient is the first book in a new series by the same name by author Helen Hoang. The Kiss Quotient is a romantic comedy about two characters that will make you fall head over heels in love with them. The Kiss Quotient was like a breath of fresh air for me. I absolutely adored getting to know Stella and Michael, and I am beyond happy that this is going to be a series. Helen Hoang is an author that I need to keep my eye on, because this book was easily one of my favorite reads of 2018 in the contemporary romance category. It was just so cute and romantic! Stella is a numbers gal. She is super analytical, and she also happens to be on the spectrum, so when she has a problem in the love department, she turns to the one thing she feels comfortable with…math and numbers. She thinks she can quantify love and come up with a formula for a winning relationship. I loved Stella… Read more »

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Feb 12

{Review} Love Between Enemies by @MollyELee @EntangledTeen

Love Between Enemies is the second book in the Grad Night series by Molly E. Lee. The Grad night series is a set of interconnected standalones that follow a group of friends on the night of their high school graduation. I really love the idea behind this series because all three of the books basically happen over the same weekend, so we get to see lots of character overlap and scene overlap from different perspectives in the different books. But each of the books does read as a standalone, so you don’t have to read the series in order. Each one will follow a different couple. The Grad Night series falls squarely in the young adult age group, and I think it is great for readers of all young adult and adult ages. I loved Love Between Enemies. It was super cute and a ton of fun. Love Between Enemies follows our two main characters, Zoey and Gordon. Zoey and Gordon are number one and two in their senior class… Read more »

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Oct 28

${ARC Review+Halloween Costume Ideas} #Renegades by @Marissa_Meyer @FierceReads$

{ARC Review+Halloween Costume Ideas} #Renegades by @Marissa_Meyer @FierceReads

Renegades is the first book in a new series of the same name by author powerhouse Marissa Meyer. Marissa’s Lunar Chronicles has been on my TBR for forever, but I recently read, and loved! Heartless. So I was super excited to pick up Renegades because I am obsessed with super heroes. Ever since I watched X-men, years and years ago, I was instantly hooked. And what was extra cool, was that Marissa Meyer said something really similar in her foreword note to Renegades. So extra yay for that! Renegades is set on the premise of a world like our own, where super powers have started to emerge. And with those powers a group of villains, called the Anarchists gained power and actually were in control for a number of years, so the world was a very different place, full of violence and chaos. Enter the Renegades, who swooped in to save the day. And right after these events, our story takes place. It was really cool to see a world where… Read more »

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Sep 21

{Review} I Love You Subject to the Following Terms and Conditions by Erin Lyon @forgereads ‏@WritingLyon ‏

I Love You Subject to the Following Terms and Conditions is the first book in the adult romantic comedy series called Contract Killers by Erin Lyon. I loved this book. As soon as I read the title, I knew I was going to love this book. (The title still cracks me up.) I love you, Subject to the Following Terms and Conditions (hereinafter “I Love You”) (see, I can be lawyer funny too…) is set in a world where the concept of marriage has turned into a series of seven year contracts. At the end of your contract term, you and your partner can choose whether or not to re-sign for another term of years. How romantic, right? This book is marketed as, “27 Dresses meets Bridget Jones’s Diary for the millennial set”, which I think is spot on. I really really enjoyed every moment of this book. In fact, when I got to the last page, I kept trying to turn for more. I need more! I’m really hoping that the contract killers series is… Read more »

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Sep 01

{Release Day Review+Giveaway} Most Valuable Playboy by Lauren Blakely

MOST VALUABLE PLAYBOY is a standalone sports romance by Lauren Blakely. I was super excited for this book for two reasons. One, it is written by Lauren Blakely, and I love her romances and two it is written in the guy’s POV! I am such a huge fan of romances written in the guy’s point of view. I just love to get inside their heads and live for awhile, and I know I am not the only person who feels that way. You will all be happy to know that I absolutely LOVED Most Valuable Playboy. It was everything I was looking for in a sports romance and more. It might even be my very favorite Lauren Blakely book to date! Most Valuable Playboy is the story of Cooper and Violet. There are so many of my favorite Tropes in this story, I don’t even know where to start. We have a fake relationship, we have guy’s point of view, we have best friend’s sister. So many yeses!!! So many!… Read more »

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Aug 25

${ARC Review} Fireblood by @Elly_Blake @TheNovl$

{ARC Review} Fireblood by @Elly_Blake @TheNovl

Fireblood is the second book in the Frostblood saga and should be read in order. This review might contain light spoilers from the first book. If you are new to the series, you can check out my review of the first book HERE Fireblood is the second book in the young adult fantasy Frostblood Saga series by Elly Blake. I read Frostblood at the end of last year and I really loved it. I have been itching for the second book in the series ever since. I loved the lore and myths behind the Firebloods and the Frostbloods. and I am so, so happy to say that I loved Fireblood just as much as Frostblood. I am so ready for book three, Nightblood! I need it right now! Fireblood was just as action packed as the first installment, and we learned so much more about the Firebloods, the Minax and the history of the world. There are plenty more secrets to be revealed in the next book. If you remember… Read more »