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Tuesday 26 April 2016

Bookish Bingo Spring 2016 Complete

 

I think this is possibly the fastest I’ve ever completed a Bookish Bingo card, in just under 2 months, with no DNFs. I think the readathon I participated in was a huge help. Some of the books I was reading for various squares I really wasn’t getting anywhere with, even though I liked them, found others. I stuck to some of my plan, found other books for other squares.

 

Completed List

Second Chance - Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin - 3.1/2 stars

Set in Space - Red Dwarf Omnibus - Infinity Welcomes Careful Drivers & Better Than Life by Grant Naylor - 5 stars

Non Binary MC - None of the Above by IW Gregorio - 4 stars

Under 200 Pages - When Everything Feels Like The Movies by Raziel Reid - 3 Stars

Ugly Cover - Firewalker (Worldwalker #2) by Josephine Angelini - 3 Stars

Set Over 200 Years ago - And I Darken by Kiersten White - 3 Stars

March, April, May Release - Unrivaled by Alyson Noel - 5 stars

Criminals - Burning by Danielle Rollins - 3 Stars

Metallic Lettering - Passenger (Passenger #1) by Alexandra Bracken - 2 stars

Based on a Real Event - Burn Baby Burn by Meg Medina - 4 Stars

Book Towards Another Challenge - Happily Ever After by Kiera Cass - 5 Stars

Green Cover - Strange Sweet Song by Adi Rule - 3 Stars

Free - Wild Swans by Jessica Spotswood - 3.1/2 Stars

Retelling - The Steep and Thorny Way by Cat Winters - 3.1/2 Stars

Set In More Than One Country - Anna And The French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins - 5 stars

Characters Are Not Human - Awake At Dawn (Shadow Falls #2) by C C Hunter - 4 Stars Rec’d by More Than One Friend - Jellico Road by Melina Marchetta - 4 Stars

Flowers on Cover - Wink Poppy Midnight by April Genevieve Tucholke - 4 Stars

MC Shares your First Initial - Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E.K. Johnston - 5 stars

Written Under a Pen Name - Paper Princess by Erin Watt - 5 Stars (Erin Watt is the pen name for writing duo Elle Kennedy and Jen Frederick)

More Than One Author - Their Fractured Light (Starbound #3) by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner 4 Stars

End of the World - An Inheritance of Ashes by Leah Bobet - 2 Stars

Number in The Title - Court of Fives by Kate Elliott - 5 Stars

Non Fiction - Yes Please by Amy Poehler - 3 stars

Stand-alone - The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner - 2 Stars

 

You can see my Goodreads list here

A mini review post of some of the titles here (I will probably have another mini review post with more of this list at some point by the end of may).

 

Best Books - Court of Fives, Paper Princess, Burn Baby Burn, Awake at Dawn, Jellico Road (the friends who recced this to me were right - I was told I would cry my eyes out and I did), Wild Swans., Unrivaled, Exit Pursued by a Bear.

 

Worst Books - There was nothing I flat out hated, though didn’t really like the Serpent King or An Inheritance of Ashes. Passenger was quite disappointing. I may read other books instead of these ones by the end of May.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1392488/bookish-bingo-spring-2016-complete

Review: Wolf by Wolf

Review:

Wolf By Wolf - Ryan Graudin

April 25 2016 - Started again yesterday and finished this evening.

Very good. 3.1/2 stars. Brutal and hard to read at times but excellently written, utterly gripping and finally got to the impossible to put down. Exciting and nail biting, full of tension and adrenaline. Yael was a great lead and I'm looking forward to finding out how this concludes after that brilliant twist at the end.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1392409/review-wolf-by-wolf

DNF: Lions in the Garden

Review:

Lions in the Garden - Chelsea Luna

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

There are some books you know that you just aren't going to like and unfortunately this title is one of them. Initially it was the cover that caught my eye about this one when I saw it on Netgalley, however, the story is very very dull. I'm only at 10%, and already don't like the main character. I must admit, also, I thought it was a fantasy, not a historical. It's trying to be a historical but it doesn't really feel like it.

 

The speech patterns felt kind of too modern. I'm no expert at all, it just didn't feel at all like a historical. It was also very tell and not show. Also - rather gruesome animal death in the first few pages. Big turn off for me. It also in a weird way kind of reminded me of the start of an old Hammer Horror movie. Big castle, peasant town. Girl running through the woods, half expecting the heroine to be seduced by Dracula. (Which I don't think was the intended goal with this book at all).

 

The heroine herself didn't strike me as too bright either. I noticed another one star review on goodreads that pointed this out as well. She's escaping because she wants to avoid an arranged marriage. Fair enough. But she runs away bedecked in gold and diamonds to escape through the woods? Seriously? Apparently common sense does not apply to this girl. 

 

Not for me. 

 

Thank you Netgalley and Kensington Books for approving my request to view the title. 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1392392/dnf-lions-in-the-garden

Review: Cold-Blooded

Review:

Cold-Blooded - Lisa Regan

I received a copy from Netgalley.

I watch a lot of crime tv shows and every now and then I delve into detective fiction. This title caught my eye browsing through Netgalley's crime and mystery section. If it was a tv show, I would have watched it. So I put a request in.

It was okay. Heroine was okay, smart enough without acting too reckless and without thought. Though while I liked her tough-as-nails get the job done attitude, I didn't really feel much for her. I found a bit of lack of emotional connection to the heroine, compared to some of the other characters she seemed a bit flat. I did like the connection she had with her sister and her daughter, would have liked some more background and info on her relationship with the detective she was seeing other than how good their physical relationship was.

The plot was interesting enough, solving an unsolved murder of a teenage girl who everyone at the time seemed to like and respect, shot in cold blood whilst running. Some decent twists thrown in and some disturbing reasoning behind events as they played out. A bit too wordy and long winded as well when the criminal psychologist came in at one point. It was, however, very predictable and got a bit rambly and rather silly towards the end. I guessed who the killer was almost immediately.

It was okay.

Thank you to Book Enthusiast Promotions for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1392258/review-cold-blooded

Review: You Were Here

Review:

You Were Here - Cori McCarthy

I received a copy from Netgalley.

I got this through one of those read now for the first 500 member emails. I must admit I went into it knowing very little about it, other than a glance at the blurb. Unfortunately, this book was not for me at all. Just didn't like it.

The story did nothing for me and I couldn't connect to any of the characters. It wasn't like it was terribly written or anything and had an interesting premise. It tells the story of a teenage girl and her friends coping with the death of the heroine's older brother who was a dare devil and died in an accident whilst doing a stunt of some sort. He left a journal of all sorts of weird places - mostly abandoned - and the sister and her friends try to find these places each dealing with their grief and their own problems in different ways. I found the characters irritating and very melodramatic. Didn't like any of them.

Also, some of it was told in graphic novel format and other chapters were one page drawings or artwork. I am not a fan of graphic novels, really. If I had known that, I would have never started this book. I found it annoying and it jarred the narrative. I would certainly try something by this author again, this particular book just didn't work for me at all.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1392240/review-you-were-here

Sunday 17 April 2016

Bookish Bingo Mini Reviews

Happily Ever After: A Companion to the Selection Series - Kiera Cass Court of Fives - Kate Elliott An Inheritance of Ashes - Leah Bobet The Steep and Thorny Way - Cat Winters Anna and the French Kiss (Anna & the French Kiss 1) by Stephanie Perkins (2014) Paperback - Stephanie Perkins Burn Baby Burn - Meg Medina

Happily Ever After  - Kiera Cass – 5 Stars

 

Delightful Selection fluff that reminded me why I love this series after the immense disappointment of The Heir. 4 short stories – The Queen – Amberley’s story. This one I’ve read and reviewed once before, a few scenes of how Amberley and King Clarkson got together. The Price – some Selection scenes from Maxon’s view point. The Guard – my least favourite as this was Aspen’s story and I really really do not like Aspen at all and The Favourite – Marlee’s story. Also included are a few scenes from Lucy’s POV. I like Lucy, but her relationship with Aspen felt like unnecessary insta love to get Aspen over America. Because of course it’s obvious from the start of this series what America’s destiny is. There’s also a few scenes from Celeste’s POV. Some absolutely lovely art work scattered throughout of various scenes throughout. There’s a map in front of the book done in the most lovely pink and purple ink. The hardcover itself is so pretty, and purple!

Square crossed off: Book Towards Another Challenge (this was my purple themed cover for Story Sprites Round 3)

 

Court of Fives – Kate Elliott – 5 Stars

Brilliant fantasy novel. Great family dynamic between the main character, Jess and her mother and sisters. Incredible sense of place, brilliant world building, including religion, status, and every day life. The plot includes a competition of both mental and physical ability which can be run by both men and women but not someone of Jess’s family’s precious social status. Very well written, very gripping and hardly any romance and what romance there is is something Jess uses to help her family when they are in mortal danger. Exciting and intriguing, intricately plotted world of adventure and fantasy politics with a great cast of characters.

Square Crossed off: Number in Title.

 

Awake At Dawn (Shadow Falls #2) C.C. Hunter – 4 Stars

Second book in the Shadow Falls series. Following on shortly from the first book the continuing saga of Kylie’s daily life at the camp and her search for whatever paranormal species she really is. For a paranormal romance, the writing and the dialogue is very well written and extremely realistic and relatable too. Several different plot developments and twists as Kylie learns new things and relationships develop, and some scary stuff happening as well. This series manages to mix some series side and light hearted romance and humour. Though the final events did feel a tad bit rushed, and I’m hoping they will be explored in the more in the next book. More questions than answers, but a very good series.

Square Crossed off – Characters are Not Human

 

An Inheritance of Ashes –Leah Bobett – 2 Stars

A very weird dystopia. This one made no sense whatsoever. It’s got a very bleak the world has ended feel to it, but there’s no history and whatever world building there is was confusing as hell. Some sort of war had taken place and from the sound of it the good guys had won. But the bad guy still had weird creatures showing up and attacking the farm where the heroine and her sister lived. Dull and boring. I can’t even remember the plot of this one that clearly. Just that it was bleak and I didn’t like it.

Square Crossed off: End of the World (I may wind up reading something else for this square)

 

The Steep And Thorny Way – Cat Winters – 3 Stars

A unique Hamlet retelling. Set in 1920s Oregon. Hanalee is struggling to come to terms with the death of her father and the fact that her mom has moved on and married a white man. Hanalee is mixed race and at this particular town in this time that can be a very dangerous thing. Hanalee is all fire and determination. Though a revelation from the boy who was convicted of her fathers’ murder set in motion the fact that nothing is quite as it seems. Doesn’t stick to the Hamlet storyline exactly. I kept thinking – almost everyone dies in the end of Hamlet – I like this girl – how is this going to work? But it’s easy to see where the Hamlet parallels come in. The mystery is absorbing and the historical detail is very good. There’s an interesting author’s note as well about Oregon history and the law. Unpredictable and surprising.

Square Crossed off: Retelling

 

Anna and the French Kiss – Stephanie Perkins – 5 Stars.

I’ve read this four times now. (Though for some reason I’ve only got it marked down as twice on Goodreads and three times on Booklikes). I found my original review here

It’s my go to book whenever I’m sick or sad. It’s fluffy and fun (and yes I know St Clair is a bit of  - well,  a lot of – a dick at times) but I don’t care. It’s still one of my favourite books ever.

Square Crossed off – Set in More Than One Country

 

Burn Baby Burn – Meg Medina – 4 Stars

A brilliant coming of age story set against the background of the summer of 1977 in New York. While the story itself is fictional, it’s set against some very real things that happened. The Son of Sam murder spree, an unseasonable heatwave, blackouts, arson attacks, and women’s rights movements. Nora is a very mature and well written character in a horrible home situation. Her brother has become a drug addict and as a result is a criminal and violent and her mother is turning a blind eye to it. They’re struggling to make ends meet, Nora just wants to turn 18 and move out. She has a good best friend, a steady job but doesn’t quite know what to do after high school. She and her BFF have their 18th birthdays coming up and they just want to be able to go out and dance all night at the disco. Some delightful 70s pop culture references throughout. On top of all these Nora has to deal with all these other things happening, the heat, the terror of a serial killer stalking the city, being in the cinema when the big blackout hit…Very moving, good storytelling. A very interesting author’s note at the end about the real things that happened during that summer and how they tied into Nora’s story.

Square Crossed off: Based on Real Events.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1384669/bookish-bingo-mini-reviews

Review: South of Sunshine

Review:

South of Sunshine - Dana Elmendorf

As far as I'm concerned the more lesbian romances in YA the better. They immediately make my TBR list and I usually request them as soon as I see them on Netgalley, there is not nearly enough f/f romance in YA.  Unfortunately I just did not like this particular book.

Slut shaming and trash talking on the first page was an immediate flag and I simply just did not like the main character, Kaycee.  Her introduction to the novel talks about how she was ditched by some dude after making out with him and some other girl is already going for him. This girl, Chelsea, (nicknamed Chesty because of her big boobs and she apparently likes tight tops) is notorious for this sort of behaviour and pegged as the school slut by Kacyee and her friends.  Kaycee then says she makes out with a lot of boys but she has REASONS for doing it. Of course. This is okay for her, but not for other girls? Get the fuck over yourself, Kaycee.

The casual racism thrown around in this small southern town in this day and age is pathetic and quite disgusting. Yet in this particular town it seems like the norm. A new family moves in, a rich, well connected black family with a beautiful daughter and her dad has the potential to bring a huge contract into the town which would create a whole boat load of new jobs and revenue for the town. Kaycee's mom owns a clothing/jewellery/makeup store. The regular customers and some older ladies are openly chatting about this new family while Kaycee is working and the new lady comes in. The other ladies in the store – continue to talk about her husband and her race. It’s very uncomfortable to read.

The daughter, Bren, is tall and beautiful, she seems very friendly and nice. Kaycee finds herself staring at Bren a lot and worried instantly that someone will notice her staring and there might be more to the stares than just new girl curiosity. She’s rude and ignores Bren when her friends try to include her. Kaycee struggles with her growing attraction to Bren. In this town it’s pretty much a crime to be anything but white straight and popular. There’s a few other gay people in the town. Two other teens Charlotte and Jacinda, but it’s okay for them because neither of them are popular and Jacinda is from “the wrong side of the tracks”.  There’s also Kaycee’s best fried Van.  He’s not officially out of the closet but it’s one of those everyone knows but don’t make spectacle of yourself and don’t date anyone from our town.

The novel goes on from there and deals with Kaycee’s struggles for her feelings for Bren and how they eventually become friends and something more. The romance scenes when the two girls finally get together are exceptionally well written, the make out sessions are deliciously steamy.  Unfortunately, Kaycee can’t get past her fear of what will happen when her mom and her friends find out the truth about her.  The other girl she doesn’t like, Chelsea, is also interested in Bren. But when Kaycee and Bren are caught together, everyone turns on Kaycee.

Kaycee is so stuck up and judgemental it’s hard to feel hardly any sympathy for her. She’s a flat out bitch and backpeddles so fast to save her own ass she doesn’t seem to take Bren’s feelings into consideration at all and then tries to wheedle her way out of it when Bren hears some of the things she says to protect herself. At one point Kaycee has a huge argument with her friend Van where she publicly outs him therefore turning the danger away from her and onto him when Van who may be a bit of an ass has been very supportive of her and there when she needed someone to listen to and a shoulder to cry on.  It doesn’t help that when the town adults find out Kaycee’s mom’s solution is one of those appalling ‘let’s go pray the gay away’ camps.

Though eventually things work themselves out, and by the end of the book, even though some people will always be assholes and bigots, others can change and the overall message of the novel was peace hope and tolerance for everyone.  That message and the very well written romance scenes where why I gave it two stars rather than one. There were just so many other things in this book I had a big problem with before getting to that point and when it did get to the good points it was handled in a kind of unbelievable way but at least it was nice to see.

Thank you to Netgalley and Albert Whitman & Company for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1384662/review-south-of-sunshine

Tuesday 12 April 2016

Review: Wild Swans

Review:

Wild Swans - Jessica Spotswood

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

A very enjoyable, well written coming of age YA novel with a theme of summer and family. Tells the story of 17 year old Ivy Milbourne who lives with her well known and respected in town grandpa. The Milbourne family is an old family which goes back for many generations and has sparked a legacy of brilliant women who all seem to be exceptionally talented and have something heartbreakingly tragic happen to them.

 

Ivy doesn’t quite know where she fits into this legacy. Her mom left when she was a baby and never came back. Ivy’s tried many different things but can’t seem to find a particular “gift” that she excels at. She’s pretty good at poetry and swimming but not to epic standards. She’s very middle of the road and trying to find a way to make her grandpa proud of her. Her plans for the summer are relaxing and having fun with her friends before senior year starts.

 

Until her mom shows up again with two younger children – bratty 15 year old Isobel and sweet and innocent 6 year old Gracie. Erica the mother pretty much moves to the top of my list in the Worst YA Parent award. She’s horrible and a gigantic bitch from the moment she appears – even introducing Ivy to her new children as their aunt rather than their older sister. She does of course, have REASONS for this. She’s beyond selfish, she yells, she swears and she drinks like a fish.

 

The grandfather is a very well respected professor and a calming presence, but can be quite demanding in a not even realising he’s doing it way. Ivy finds herself in the middle of all this drama. She’s got new responsibilities of handling her younger sisters. And to top it all off, the grandad says one of his students will be working with them this summer, transcribing some journals from the Milbourne famous and tragic grandmother who also wrote great poetry and something from her collection is about to be published or commemorated. In comes gorgeous poetry mad Conner. And Ivy falls head over heels.

 

It’s very realistic and a beautiful portrayal of growing up in a tiny town with a family legacy to uphold. Ivy shows some remarkable restraint in dealing with all this new drama thrown her way. New sisters to deal with, her struggles to understand her mom and her behaviour and why she left, one of her best friends starts behaving like a total asshole when she starts to get closer to Conner, and then there’s her feelings for him. While all at the same time she’s screaming inwardly and barely seems to know how to handle it all. Ivy shows some remarkable character growth throughout the novel.

 

The family drama is moving and the arguments which in one terrible incident spill out in public making things all the worse. It can be very uncomfortable to read, the mother’s piss poor attitude towards Ivy and her grandpa particularly.  The siblings find their way towards each other, Gracie is adorable, Isobel is fifteen and away from everything she knows and she acts like a stroppy brat. But even Isobel by the end grows tremendously as a character. Ivy’s romance with Conner is sweet and believable. A tad more insta-lust than insta-love but it’s interesting to see how they work together with the family drama and Ivy’s friends and Connor’s friends and their different circumstances. Very maturely handled.

 

A very good, very enjoyable read.

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcefire Books for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1380370/review-wild-swans

Sunday 10 April 2016

Bookish Bingo Readathon Wrap Up

 

After a week of Bookish Bingo Readthon this is now what my Bookish Bingo card looks like. 

 

Squares Finished:

Unrivalled by Alyson Noel - March April May Release

Firewalker by Josephine Angelini - Ugly Cover

Exit, Persued by a Bear by EK Johnston - MC Shares your First Initial

None of the Above by I.W, Gregorio - None Binary MC

And I Darken by Kiersten White - Set over 200 Years ago (I started this one yesterday, read 70% and the rest the morning so I'm counting this one in readathon week) 

 

Didn't quite manage to make a bingo, but I did manage to get quite a few squares covered. Didn't quite stick with my original plan as I found some other books to read, which obviously worked better as a few of them I managed to start and finish in a day. 

 

Definitely a lot of fun participating, I even did the photo challenges. And definitely something I would take part in again. 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1377282/bookish-bingo-readathon-wrap-up

Review: And I Darken

Review:

And I Darken - Kiersten White

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

I don't quite know what to make of this one. I must admit, I expected something very bloody and violent, especially with the 'Game of Thrones' comparisons I keep seeing when looking through the reviews on Goodreads. While it certainly had its bloody and brutal moments, what I wasn't expecting at all for it to a brilliantly plotted and intricate political fantasy. 

 

Definitely very dark in tone from the start and the cloud of darkness never really brightens. Lada is an animal right from the moment of her birth, she reacts on sheer determination, instinct and her desire to be her own person no matter what. As good as that is, especially in a time where women are nothing more than pawns to be moved about for gaining power and to serve as required,  Lada's constant brutality as she grows up and outmaneuvers her away around can get very tiring. Her strength and cunning and her push for power is quite admirable. She detests being a woman and can't seem to get her head around some feminine concepts, even when other women who seem to be in what she considers a waste of life explain how they can use their femininity to manipulate the way of the world to their own advantage. She'd rather do it through her orders, blood and strength. She's a brilliantly written anti heroine, it's almost impossible to like this girl but reading about her is absolutely compelling. 

 

Her younger brother Radu is one of the other main focuses. Radu was a weak and sickly child, sneered at and bullied mercilessly as a child, beaten by peers, tutors and even (especially) Lada herself. Radu's only redeeming feature at the start of the book seems to be that he's a very beautiful boy with the potential to be very intelligent. He's calm and sense and logic to Lada's brutality. Radu shows some of the most incredible character growth as the novel develops. He's definitely my favourite character in this series. I just loved reading about him. He finds his solace in religion and converting to Islam when he and Lada are moved from their childhood home to another empire, he discovers solace in prayer, strength in loyalty and in finding and showing kindness where he was shown none. His journey is incredible as he learns to to manipulate and work this to his advantage through such different tactics. It's quite amazing to see how he balance's this against his struggle with his sister. 

 

The third main character, Mehmed, the son of the sultan in the empire Lada and Radu are sent to as political pawns. He befriends both of them. He's in a very precarious position as he finds himself the next sultan in line with potential power that everyone wants to claim. He has very different relationships with both Lada and Radu. Mehmed appears very weak to begin with but his strength builds as his political position and ambition shift along with his relationships with Lada and Radu. 

 

I did find all the political side of it a bit boring at first, especially given the nature of Lada's character where not much was happening even though it was exceptionally well written. Lots of names and different people with different stakes and how they fit in with the main characters and how things affected them. It did get significantly better as it moved on and the characters intertwined and grew up. People change, relationships shift. It got darker, more brutal and more compelling. I read the first 70% of this in a day, and finished the rest the following day. 

 

It's a slow moving fantasy with a lot of intricate plots and twists, and some brilliant characters. Really looking forward to see where this series is going. 

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children's for approving my request to view the title. 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/1377276/review-and-i-darken