Out of the ashes of the Briar realm arises a new dominion for its destroyer. Alyce, now called Nimara, rules over her newly established Dark � 4 stars
Out of the ashes of the Briar realm arises a new dominion for its destroyer. Alyce, now called Nimara, rules over her newly established Dark Court and a manor of beasts once kept in the shadows. In the century since the decimation of the Briar realm, Aurora still lies under her sleeping curse, and Alyce has become the very thing she once feared to be. Though Alyce has tried, she cannot break the curse holding her love captive, and Aurora lies hidden away from the prying eyes of the court. When a young man washes up on shore everything changes, waking the princess and descending the realm into chaos. With war looming closer, and her lost love returned, Alyce must decide how far she is willing to go to enact her revenge and discover if love can even thrive in a world so entangled with it.
Where its predecessor Malice led me softly through its thorny brambles, Misrule pushes back the thickets to reveal a reality far more malevolent. In the hundred years since the destruction of the Briar realm, Heather Walter explores the intricacies of revenge, and the lengths one will go to make it endure. Expanding on the scope of the world, and the plethora of beings within, a new side to the story emerges � one teetering on the edge of change and the balance between good and evil. As the curse upon Aurora flourishes, a war against the fae looms nearer, and a simmering tension between the dreams of a century past and the present day draws breath. By the time Aurora awakens from her slumber these moving pieces are amplified, paired against the fallout from the ashes of a fallen kingdom. The strain on Alyce and Aurora’s relationship ensuing from these transformations is central to the closing of the series. While the two grapple with this new reality and who they have both become, they search for forgiveness and a way to still build a future together. These components of the story were not what I expected for the characters going into the finale, but the complexity of forgiveness ensuing out of them was splendid. Albeit a little emotionally damaging. Alyce’s ties to the Vila were expanded upon even further here, something I’d been looking forward to since the end of Malice. Tested loyalty is my bread and butter and Misrule served it well, especially with Alyce, Aurora, and the Dark Court. Misrule is truly a book where morally gray characters thrive, constantly shifting the narrative and making moves that are never anticipated by the audience. The introduction of new beings and characters brought that even further into the foreground. Coming around to the inevitable conclusion had me very much wrecked, yet drawn into its essence of hope and repairing what is lost. Full of violence, the brutality of vengeance, and the unraveling of prejudice, Misrule makes for an enthralling ending to the Malice Duology. One that will remain with me for the considerable future.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review
In a world where magic is all but a coveted resource, four estranged siblings will reunite to search for a fabled object said to unlock a new� 4 stars
In a world where magic is all but a coveted resource, four estranged siblings will reunite to search for a fabled object said to unlock a new source of magic, before their enemies surpass them entirely. Vira is the Maharani of Ashoka, tasked with maintaining a country on the brink of war and upholding her predecessor’s legacy. Behind the walls, magic is the only thing keeping Ashoka’s enemies from completely overtaking them, but its source is nearly spent. The only solution is the legendary Ivory Key, an ancient relic said to be capable of unlocking the magic that was previously sealed away by a once-revered secret society. In order to pursue and retrieve the key, Vira and her siblings must reunite to piece together lost clues that will have them journeying deep into enemy territory. Amidst shifting agendas and continued harbored secrets, this treacherous quest is no easy undertaking and may be the thing that finally tears apart their family and the world that they love for good.
With complicated family dynamics and intricate puzzles to solve, The Ivory Key is an artful love letter that pays homage to Indiana Jones and National Treasure with its central quest. As a longtime fan of elaborate sibling dynamics, what first caught my eye here was the core focus on four estranged royal siblings that are forced to reunite and work together to save their country. In turn with my love for quests, hidden clues, and lost relics, The Ivory Key peered deep into my heart and promised it all. Beyond these various layers to the plot, the world that Akshaya Raman has created within is so vivid and vibrant it fully came alive inside my mind. Grounded in a myriad of distinct cultural elements from India and South Indian architecture, it’s clear that Raman poured a part of herself into this world and its foundations. Hearing about all the different foods that were described at length specifically, only served to make me hungrier than I was when I began. The Ivory Key promised angst between siblings and boy did it deliver. No doubt my favorite part of the entire book was the differing agendas and fractured relationships that came into play with the quest for the key. Each of the characters had been on separate paths that had to be reconciled with who they had become and what they were trying to save. My only real setback with this was the timeline for everything. The first half of the book was devoted entirely to set-up and drawing the siblings back together, and while that was interesting, it left less time to execute the search for the treasure. Once the quest was underway, I was completely swept up in the clues and mysteries being unlocked. There were some clever twists here and there that reminded me of past treasure movies and made me all the more excited to reach the end. In combining secret societies, hidden temples, and ancient treasure, Raman has drawn together an immersive world that I am not so quick to leave. At its heart, The Ivory Key examines the bond between siblings and the identity that can be found with family and on one’s own and how those can be reconciled.
Trigger Warnings: blood, violence, death, murder, death of a parent, grief, alcohol consumption...more
A mysterious art theft strikes a match when the thieves leave behind their card for Harvard Senior Will Chen, an art history student working � 4 stars
A mysterious art theft strikes a match when the thieves leave behind their card for Harvard Senior Will Chen, an art history student working part-time at the Sackler Museum. The perfect student, artist, and son, Will has always strived to curate every aspect of his life, yet the mask begins to slip when he finds himself entangled in an impossible plot. At the behest of his mysterious benefactor, Will becomes the leader of a grand heist to steal back five Chinese artifacts stolen from Bejing centuries ago, scattered around the world. With fifty million dollars on the line, Will assembles a crew of his closest friends, all with something to gain if they should succeed and lose should they fail. As each of the crew members wrestle with their own complicated relationship with China, the chance to take back a piece of what was stolen long ago is too great to pass up. Willing to risk it all, they may just find a missing part of themselves in the process.
Portrait of a Thief is a book that really stole the show with what it was trying to impart to its readers. Debut author Grace D. Li writes effortlessly, baring the deepest parts of her soul to all those experiencing the long-term effects of colonialism and the diaspora. Through an impossible heist with stakes beyond imagine, Li illuminates the complexity of Chinese identity against a profound yearning that lives inside those that have had to surrender a part of themselves in growing up elsewhere. With a catching comparison to Ocean’s Eleven, Portrait of a Thief brings the action up close and center, alongside an unlikely group of friends deciding to take something back for themselves. Out of all the aspects of this debut, one of the most poignant parts is the multitude of identities that are explored within. Although all of the heist members are Chinese American, their views on the mission were incredibly divided as they had all found their identity in different ways. Each of the characters had their own complex relationship with China, which was drawn out with each heist and created an interesting conflict between the group. These relationships were a stark contrast to the conversation happening around the heist and colonization, which I really appreciated as a reader. The diaspora affects all people differently, and that was really evident through the individual relationships and unique connections with China. Rather than have the crew get along, I liked that there was some conflict, both on an identity level and the heist itself. Also the little rivals to lovers storyline we were given made my heart soar. With her debut, Grace D. Li has created a novel equal parts thrilling, and critical. Portrait of a Thief examines the diverse parts of Chinese identity, diaspora, and the ways in which an identity can be in conflict, through a group of people determined to leave their mark on a flawed world.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review
The first daughter is for the throne. The second is for the wolf. All her life Redarys has known that as the kingdom’s second daughter her � 4.5 stars
The first daughter is for the throne. The second is for the wolf. All her life Redarys has known that as the kingdom’s second daughter her sole purpose is to be sacrificed to the Wilderwood and the Wolf keeping its gods captive. Though her sister Neve rages against her fate, Red has accepted it, plagued by an unknown power and determined to never hurt those close to her again. As the only second daughter born in centuries, Red has all the more reason to go, but when the day arrives and she feels the woods pulling her forward, she finds that the legends she’s been told are not entirely true. For one, the protection offered by the Wilderwoods is weakening, and the Wolf is just a man as much of a captive as she is. Red is exactly what the woods have been waiting for, and her power is the key to set them free. That is if Red can learn to control it before the forest weakens and the gods overtake it and destroy her world for good.
Well, there's nothing quite like one of your most anticipated reads of the summer being just as good as you had hoped. Boy have I been loving this trend of cursed forests, crumbling estates, and wolves, and this dark fantasy debut blended those perfectly. For the Wolf is a novel shrouded in political turmoil and rooted in folklore, an extraordinary story that had me feeling caught right from the start and did not relent until right at the very end. Don’t even get me started on the slow-burn romance, it’s all-consuming and underlying tension had me aching for more, while at the same time begging for respite. Brooding monster boyfriends really are the move what else can I say. Eammon is everything to me. Besides the romance, the exploration of sisterhood and sacrifice was by far the most compelling part of the novel. I loved the complicated familial relationships and dynamics examined on par with everything else that was going on � Specifically, the points of view for Red and the interludes for her sister Neve, which contrasted nicely against the plot development. Neve’s perspective was easily the most interesting to me as it provided a nice break from Red’s point of view and was beyond entertaining. Not that it at all prepared me for the third act, which hit me like a truck coming out of nowhere. All that's left to do now is wait for the second and final book in the series: For the Throne, coming out next July. I'll just be over here screaming about this book in the meantime. In her haunting fantasy debut inspired by Red Riding Hood and Beauty and the Beast, Hannah Whitten has carved out her place in adult fantasy, with rich prose and detailed imagery that makes no apologies. Comparing this to Uprooted and The Bear and the Nightingale is certainly appropriate, and there is no doubt that readers who enjoyed both will be desperate to sink their teeth into this amazing story. Honestly, after reading this I want nothing other than to disappear into a cursed forest and explore ruined castles for hours. Applications are open for those interested in joining me.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this arc in exchange for an honest review
Just popping by to say, yes, I actually enjoyed a book written by Sarah J. Maas, in the year 2021. House of Earth and Blood is the first in� 4.5 stars
Just popping by to say, yes, I actually enjoyed a book written by Sarah J. Maas, in the year 2021. House of Earth and Blood is the first in a new adult fantasy series I would pitch as unsolved crime meets a fantasy world and the two unlikely allies teamed up to solve it. Half-fae Bryce Quinlan's life was torn apart the day she discovered the horrific murders of her friend Danika and her pack after returning home one evening. Two years later and the case has run cold, but Bryce still wants the death of her friends to be avenged. With the addition of new information, she is called to work alongside Hunt Athalar, an enslaved angel whose sentence will be reduced so long as he works by her side. Together they will unearth what really happened all those years ago, something that threatens the very fabric of their world and everything they hold dear.
This is by far Sarah J. Maas's best work to date. As someone who struggled a lot with her other books, I recognize the incredible transition from her last series to this one. The fact that this is placed into the adult fantasy genre certainly gave her more room to write what she wants without holding back this time around. Crescent City is definitely a book that throws a lot of information up front at its readers, but gives a high payoff to those who take the time to immerse themselves in the world and its incredible cast of characters. I was immediately impressed by the amount of time taken to set the stage for the events that would later come to dominate the plot development. There clearly was a lot of effort put into the placement of these elements of note, to the point where so many went right over my head until they were later called upon in the final chapters. Like a set of dominos that were carefully arranged, only to come elegantly crashing down in the finale. As for the romance, it went above and beyond what I was initially expecting. If there's anything I love, it's reluctant allies who team up to solve a mystery, only to then fall horribly in love with one another. This gave me that, and then some. Bryce and Hunt transition from begrudgingly working together, towards finding healing and closure with the help of each other, and there is something really powerful in that. These two really were one of my favorite parts about this book, which is surprising. After that explosive ending I am really looking forward to settling back into this series come November. More Ruhn content please.
Trigger warnings: violence, blood, murder, gore, alcohol consumption, death of a loved one, depression, drugs, discrimination, misogyny, parental neglect, PTSD, sexism, slavery, slut-shaming, substance abuse, attempted suicide...more
There is nothing quite like returning to real life after spending hours engrossed in a story you are unable to put down. The First Sister w� 4.5 stars
There is nothing quite like returning to real life after spending hours engrossed in a story you are unable to put down. The First Sister was such an immersive experience, I really don't have any other way to describe it. That feeling of being completely absorbed in every aspect of a book that reaching the end is somewhat jarring and unreal is definitely the case in reading this.
Everything contained in this book has clearly been painstakingly crafted. The world building alone is a feat in and of itself. Altogether astonishing, if a bit inconceivable at times given the amount of thought and time put into creating it all. My absolute favorite thing about the book, was the three different characters and their contrasting journeys. Separated on opposite sides of an ongoing war between the acclaimed Icarii and the pious Geans, both Lito and First Sister have their own paths to follow that don't initially seem to have anything in common with each other. Until Saito Ren, the new captain of the ship First Sister is stationed to, and the warrior that defeated Lito in combat, is put into the mix. That, along with the discovery of recordings from Lito's missing partner Hiro, results is a thin thread connecting these two incredibly different people that is only pulled tighter as the book progresses. The chapters center more around Lito and First Sister specifically, with alternating chapters for the recordings left by Hiro for Lito. I thought that every part of this was clever on the authors part, and in reaching the end, have to commend Lewis for those insane last few chapters and revelations. Truly didn't know how to react to it all, but I am definitely reaching for book two. I've got to find out if First Sister gets the cottage-core life she deserves....more
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