Devil and the Deep

****

4 Stars/5

Thanks to Megan Tayte for giving me this book to review.

Synopsis

STORM CLOUDS ARE GATHERING, AND THEY WILL RAIN BLOOD.

Scarlett is living her happy-ever-after, back in the real world. Only the ‘happy’ part is proving problematic.

For starters, there’s the isolation. Being a Cerulean among humans is fraught with risk, so her time with people can only be fleeting. Which means being with Luke but not being with Luke.

Then there’s her Cerulean light, her power over life and death. Less awesome talent, as it turns out, and more overwhelming responsibility. And it comes with rules – rules that are increasingly difficult to obey.

But what’s really pushing Scarlett to the precipice is something much bigger than herself, than her life in the cove. A force to be reckoned with: Blood.

When long-buried truths are exposed, will Scarlett keep her head above water – or will she drown in the blood-dimmed tide that is unleashed?

Review

Devil and the Deep is a very enjoyable paranormal book which is just as good as the previous three books. Unlike the last book there was more romance and less action but it is still fast paced. It felt like this book was building up to the final book in the series, and most of the revelations that happened I had guessed but it did not spoil my enjoyment. The one minor problem I had with this novel is that I wish we had seen more of what happened with Scarlett when she returned to Luke after the last book, rather than being told.

I liked Scarlett as she is wanting to balance everything, and is kind and wants to help people, but I did think that by now she would have learnt that keeping secrets never ends well. I really like Luke as he is struggling to come to terms with everything, but he never takes it out on Scarlett and he is very protective of those he cares about.

Jude is less of a prominent character in this book compared to Wild Blue Yonder, but he is still a caring friend and ally. Cara is her lively self and I am glad that her character has not changed too much. Another thing I am glad about is that the characters we have that we have gotten to know on Cerulea do play a part in this book and do not disappear entirely.

I really enjoyed this book and there are still lots of unanswered questions, and with the cliffhanger ending I am looking forward to the next and final novel Darkly, Deeply, Beautifully. I would recommend Devil and the Deep to fans of the rest of the Ceruleans series.

You can purchase Devil and the Deep at Amazon UK and Amazon USA 

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Cage of Deceit

****

4 Stars/5

Thanks to Xpresso Book Tours for giving me this book to review.

Synopsis

Seventeen-year-old Allyssa appears to be the ideal princess of Emperion- she is beautiful, elegant, and refined. She spends her days locked in a suffocating cage, otherwise known as royal court. But at night, Allyssa uses her secret persona- that of a vigilante- to hunt down criminals and help her people first hand.

Unfortunately, her nightly escapades will have to wait because the citizens of Emperion may need saving from something much bigger than common criminals. War is encroaching on their country and in order to protect her people, Allyssa may have to sacrifice her heart. Forced to entertain an alliance through marriage with a handsome prince from a neighbouring kingdom, she finds herself feeling even more stifled than before. To make matter worse, the prince has a nosy squire, Jarvik, to watch her every move.

Jarvik is infuriating, bossy and unfortunately, the only person she can turn to when she unveils a heinous plot. Together, the unlikely pair will have to work together to stop an enemy that everyone thought was long gone, one with the power to destroy her family and the people of Emperion. Now the cage Allyssa so longed to break free from might just be the one thing she has to fight to keep intact. In order to save her kingdom, she will have to sacrifice her freedom, her heart, and maybe even her life.

Review

Cage of Deceit is a really enjoyable YA fantasy novel which is fast paced and very addictive as I read it in under a day. I have not read the prequel series to this book, True Reign, but I did not feel I missed much and could easily read it. It has a slow-build romance but not as much action as I was expecting, but I foresee more in future books. I kind of got a Pride and Prejudice feel to this book as it had a lot of first impressions and how they can be inaccurate.

Allyssa is a fighter, stubborn and does not like to feel trapped however, is not very curious as people keep on mentioning that they have important things to discuss with her but she never wonder about what it might be. Odar is handsome and charming but is more suited to court life that politics and strategy. Jarvik is intelligent, distrustful and can be cautious and arrogant.

The ending would have been a big cliffhanger if I had not guessed the twist from very near the beginning of the book but it was still a good ending. I am looking forward to reading the next book in this series and the original series in this book. I would recommend Cage of Deceit to people who enjoyed The Orphan Queen and fans of YA fantasy books.

The other tour posts are at Xpresso Book Tours

You can purchase Cage of Deceit at Amazon UK and Amazon USA

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A Thousand Nights

*

1 Star/5

Thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for giving me this book to review.

Lo-Melkhiin has killed 300 new brides and is now looking for a new wife, and the heroine knows that he will take her beautiful sister, therefore she makes the ultimate sacrifice and goes with him. However, strange magic seems to flow between her and Lo-Melkhiin and after she survives the first night she discovers a magic develop in her. With her surviving longer than the other wives, can her new powers save her kingdom from a terrible monster in time?

I could not get into A Thousand Nights as I found the story rather slow. Another reason why I could not connect with this book was because I do not know much about the story this novel is based on, Arabian Nights, so if I knew it better I could have enjoyed it more.

However, my big problem with this book is that I only knew the name of about 3 people. Everyone else is called her sister, father, sister’s mother etc. This is also true of the main character as I got almost halfway the book and I still did not know her name which made it really hard to connect to her but she was selfless and brave. We do know Lo-Melkhiin name but we hardly know much else about him, as apart a few flash backs, we hardly see him.

I really could not get into A Thousand Nights and had to DNF at 48%.

Gathering Frost

****

4 Stars/5

Thanks to Netgalley and Xpresso Book Tours for giving me this book to review.

When Jade was a young girl, an earthquake struck New York and replaced half of it with a village and castle that could have come from a story book. Ten years later Jade, and everyone else in the castle, has been stripped of emotions and she is working as a member of the queen’s guard. However, everything changes for her when the queen gives her a mission, to let Prince Aster, the queen’s runaway son, capture her and gain his trust so Jade can let the queen know his secrets. But life outside the queen’s control is not what Jade expected as she begins to feel emotions and she starts to question everything she has ever known in the last 10 years and she wonders whose side she is really on?

I really enjoyed Gathering frost as it is a unique mix of fantasy and dystopia but while it is meant to be a reimagining of sleeping beauty, I did not notice it much as it was very subtle. It is a sweet fast paced read with good action and romance. I would have liked a bit more world building, especially what is happening in other countries.

Jade is not relatable at the beginning but as she got more in touch with her emotions I liked her better as she is not perfect but strong, compassionate and good at playing a long game. I am liking the change happening in YA male leads as Asher is intelligent, witty and charming and not an alpha male or a strong silent type. I also like Queen Deirdre as she was an evil character but in an understandable way.

I will definitely be reading the next book in this series Withering Rose. I would recommend Gathering Frost to fans of Fireblood by Trisha Wolfe and other books Kaitlyn Davis.

Mageborn

**

2 Stars/5

Thanks to Michael DeAngelo for giving me this book to review.

Adelia has just begun her new life as a pupil under Master Wizard Gaston Camlann. He trains her in all she needs to know to make her way in the treacherous world of Tellest. However, when an assassin enters the city of Forsynthia, Adelia will have to learn to fend for herself outside the safety net of her master, to find out the truth.

Mageborn is an OK fantasy novella with an enjoyable plot. However, I found it hard to get into it as the writing did not flow for me.

I found it a bit difficult to connect with the characters, maybe because I have not read the other books in the Tellest series. With Adelia I would have like to get to know more about her history but she is determined and kind.

This novella is an OK fantasy story and I would recommend Mageborn to people who have read the Tellest series.

The Orphan Queen

****

4 Stars/5

When Princess Wilhelmina was a child, her kingdom Aecor was conquered by their neighbour, Indigo, but she and the other orphaned nobles were able to escape. Ten years later they have become a group called the Ospreys who are experts in stealth and theft, and their plan is for Wil to take her kingdom back. To do this Wil and her best friend Melanie must infiltrate Skyvale Palace where they have to fit in with the people who killed their parents and captured their home. But Wil is a magic user which is forbidden because it causes  Wraith, a toxic by-product, which is drawing closer to Indigo, and Wil is wary that her magic may lead to her getting caught especially by the vigilante Black Knife. However, will Wil’s magic be the key to stopping the Wraith?  With the leader of the Ospreys, Patrick, acting suspiciously, Wil is struggling to know who to trust?

The Orphan Queen is a really good fantasy novel, which has action, suspense, romance and good world building. This book had nothing new to it and it was predictable but I still really enjoyed it especially once I got past the first third.

I liked Wil as she was willing to do whatever it was to help her friends and kingdom, but also knew what lines to cross and which ones not to. However, she was a bit of a pushover, especially at the beginning. I really liked Black Knife as he was mysterious and charming, wants to help people and do what is right but I did know who he was from the beginning. However, I would have liked to get to know the Ospreys better as us, the readers, only really knew Melanie and Patrick.

I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading what happens next with Wil in The Mirror King. I would recommend The Orphan Queen to fans of Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas.

Lark Rising

***

3 Stars/5

16 year old Lark is happiest at home and because of her power of sight she cannot cope being near large crowds. But when her sight warns her that her village will be attacked by Troths soon, she has to go on a journey to seek help from the legendary Riders of Tarnec. When she find the Riders of Tarnec, she  realises that one of them, Gharain, is the man who she has foreseen that she will fall in love with but who will end up killing her. Lark discovers that she is one of the most important people, the Guardian of Life, the first of the four Guardians who help keep the world in balance, but will Lark discover her true inner strength in time?

I liked Lark Rising as it is an enjoyable YA fantasy book but I did feel it lived up to its hype. It was slow to start but a sweet if a bit typical fantasy novel with nature, magic and a quest. It had decent world building but I could have improved as it lacked some depth.

Lark is a Mary Sue and I did get irritated at her but she develop more as the book went on as she grew more courageous and confident. While I do sometimes like the strong silent type, I did hope Gharain would warm up as I would have like to get to know him better but he was brave and loyal. I did role my eyes at the Gnome, Twig as I just didn’t like his character as I felt it was too cheesy.

Seems to be a Marmite book but I will want to read the next book Silver Eve. I would recommend Lark Rising to fans of Ever Darkening by Janeal Falor and Broken Aro by Jen Wylie.

Aflame

****

4 Stars/5

Thanks to Netgalley and Matador for giving me this book to review.

Zara is the princess of Garimu and is one of the strongest wielders of elements in her kingdom. Johar is the prince and heir of Birin who wants to do want is best for his kingdom. Their destinies change forever when Zara’s father has a foretelling that a great evil has arisen and the only hope to stop it is for a wielder and non-wielder to be connected together by marriage. Can Zara and Johar get past their differences in order to save their people?

Aflame is a very enjoyable YA fantasy novel with romance and action but it was a bit slow. The POV is from both of the main characters which I enjoyed as it makes it easier to get to know them both. However, it was not the best written/edited as three of Johar chapters in a row started with nearly the same sentence.

I really did not like Zara at the start of the book as she was spoilt and vain but I think she did improve as the story went on. However, I did like Johar as he would make a really good king because he always put his people before himself and tries to plan for all possibilities. While this book did have an insta-attraction which I don’t mind, the romance was too quick as after only knowing each other for a week they were declaring their undying love for each other.

This series has great potential and I look forward to reading the next book. I would recommend Aflame to people who liked Cage of Deceit by Jennifer Anne Davies and books by Victoria Hanley

Enchantress' Destiny

***

3 Stars/5

Thanks to Beth Caudill for giving me this book to review.

Having just found out that her witch boyfriend has been cheating on her and is disregarded by her arranged betrothed she has never met, Clairessa decides to spend a night with another elf that she feels an attraction to. While Rowe is in town to settle problems with his business he visits a club and meets a gorgeous woman but later find out that she works for him. However, the Goddess has a plan for the both of them as only they can stop a deadly curse.

Enchantress’ Destiny is an enjoyable fantasy romance novella but I preferred the first half to the second. It is set in a fantasy world but it had a contemporary feel to it. This is the second story in this series but I have not read the first one and it did not affect my enjoyment.

Claire is protective of herself, persistent and has a lot of pride in her work. Rowe lives life like a bachelor as he is distant to almost everyone but he is also stubborn.

I would recommend Enchantress’ Destiny to fans of fantasy romance books.

Golden

***

3 Stars/5

Thanks to Melinda Michaels for giving me this book to review.

Hanna has just suffered her first black out in 10 years in front of her Homeroom. This terrifies her because the last time she blacked out she woke up with no memory of her life before. Hanna is sure that everyone is keeping secrets from her and the only person she thinks is honest with her is William Vann, the man who everyone is telling her to avoid. However, Hanna could have never of guessed that she is a descendent of someone in a fairytale and that William’s ascender was a villain but can she trust her instinct or will the story repeat itself?

Golden was an enjoyable paranormal mystery novel which was darker and more intense than I was expecting. While a unique story it did have elements of the TV show Once Upon a Time but based on the original fairytales not the Disney versions. This book was not fast paced and was definitely character driven.

I felt very sorry for Hanna as I would hate it if everyone I knew and loved was keeping secrets from me. However, I did not like that she kept on doing dangerous things for the rush which made it harder to connect to her. I like William as he hates who he is but does his best to not be the villain everyone expects him to be.

I liked this book and look forward to reading another book in this series. I would recommend Golden to fans of paranormal books based of fairytales.