Review: The Beautiful

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

I really, really, really wanted to love this. I was so excited to see vampires starting to make a comeback in YA fiction. I was thrilled when my review request was approved, then it was hinted at it would be in one of my YA subscription boxes – so I got a pretty signed hardback with sprayed edges. I did wait until the hype had died down a bit before delving in.

 

There were parts of it I really enjoyed, parts of it that were eye-rollingly stupid and parts that were just boring. The end was wholly unsatisfying (though thankfully I have pre ordered the sequel and had my review requested granted). Though there was enough of a what the??? To want to know more.

 

The 1800s New Orleans setting is vividly described. The main character, Celine is running from a terrible incident in her past in Paris and sets sail for the US with a convent, whose aim seems to be helping young women find suitable husbands. There were times I loved Celine’s character – she was strong willed, sassy and smart. Despite her worries about her past catching up with her she seemed very confident and together. She also came across as highly opinionated.

 

One thing I did like was the female friendships – Celine bonds with one of the other convent girls, Pippa, who becomes a real friend. As a former dressmaker – Celine’s stitching work for the convent catches the eyes of the beautiful and mysterious Odette who hires her to make a gown for a masquerade. Odette appears flippant and over the top, but she embraces Celine and seems keen for Celine to join her rather than head back to the convent.

 

Odette is part of a group of dangerously beautiful and alluring people, none of which seem quite normal. There’s something distinctly different about them, curious and bordering on frightening. Naturally Celine is intrigued by them. I found the male love interest, Sebastian, to be rather bland and uninteresting. A very typical stereotype – rich, well spoken, devious, and charming with a sense of darkness and foreboding. Nothing I haven’t seen in vampire novels before. He and Celine rub each other the wrong way yet unsurprisingly are annoyingly attracted to each other.

 

Doesn’t help when the bodies start turning up with strange symbols, and the police officer heading the investigation clearly has some sort of history with Sebastian and Odette and their group. Doesn’t help either that Celine seems to keep getting in his way. And she’s got things to say as well. Some of the mystery aspect was quite interesting and the plot did get more and more interesting as the novel progressed.

 

One thing that drove me up the wall though was the chapters from the killer’s point of view. To me they sounded just ridiculous. I think they were trying to sound like a sophisticated creature who has been around for centuries plotting his revenge against some perceived wrongness. It sounded woe is me over the top and stupid. Though to be fair, I didn’t actually guess who the culprit was.

 

This was a mixed bag of a novel, with good things and bad things. However, enough of a grip in the story telling that I need more from this world.

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for approving my request to view the title.

 

 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2381009/review-the-beautiful

Review: A Curse so Dark and Lonely

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

I’m a black sheep with this one. All the bloggers I follow and Goodreads reviewers seem to absolutely love this book. I’ve read the author before and I have loved everything I’ve read by her, but I didn’t love this one. I did get a Netgalley kindle copy I tried reading before the book came out, but the formatting was terrible so I decided to wait until I got a physical copy.

 

It was book of the month in one of my Fairyloot subscription boxes so I got a nice shiny hardback. I sort of waited until the hype died down a bit, but then the sequel came out – which I did get (another Fairyloot exclusive) just in case I loved the first and had to have the second one.

 

And turned out I was just sort of meh about the whole thing really. It was an interesting parallel for the Beauty and the Beast retelling, but frankly, the beast character Prince Rhen irritated the hell out of me. I found him completely unsympathetic, annoying, selfish and whiny. I did however, really like the female character Harper. She was what made the book come alive for me. She was strong, sassy, level headed, and smart. Not blown over by the opulence of the fantasy world she suddenly finds herself thrust into.  The other character I really liked was Rhen’s loyal guard, Grey who was much more likeable – a bit of a stick in the mud at times, but with a sense of honour and loyalty. I was routing for him and Harper to hook up – they had a love/hate relationship turned into friendship and mutual respect.

 

However, given it’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling, it’s obvious where the romance was going to happen. I found the plot predictable, and tedious at times, for long stretches nothing seemed to happen other than Rhen whining about his curse and Harper trying to figure out how to escape and get back to her home, the normal human world. They would dance around just forming a connection and something would happen sending them back to square one of distrust and frustration. I found it repetitive and annoying.

 

Two thirds of the novel was prepping for one huge battle when the beast finally appeared. And when it did it was almost like everything happened in a rush. Which of course ended on a cliff hanger. There were a few twists hinted at throughout (and again, completely predictable) If I hadn’t already bought the second book before I read this one I wouldn’t have bothered, but as I have and quite liked Grey’s character, I’m curious to see where his story goes.

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing PLC for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2293040/review-a-curse-so-dark-and-lonely

Review: All The Forever Things

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

I came across this one in my Netgalley TBR from a few years back and started reading it, not remembering anything about what it was about or why I had requested it. I think it must have appealed to the ‘Six Feet Under’ fan in me.

 

The main character Gabe (short for Gabriella) parents’ own a funeral home in a small town, she lives there with her younger sister, has an eccentric aunt, a BFF and a love of all things vintage. One boy made a joke about her being Wednesday Addams so she makes a point of making herself look like Wednesday (which made me like her even more). The novel starts with Gabe and her BFF paired for a school project with ultra popular guy Bryce and cool new guy Hartman. Bryce was the one who for years compared Gabe Wednesday Addams and also nicknamed her Graveyard Gabby which has stuck with her. He also ruined her first kiss with a boy she really liked. So Gabe is less than thrilled.

 

Even worse when her BFF Bree starts to click with Bryce and before long they’re dating. Gabe is mortified, and understandably so. She’s struggling to adjust when she’s so used to having Bree to herself, and this the jerk who made her an outcast. So naturally it’s completely logical that she wouldn’t be thrilled. Yet she’s willing to at least try for her friend’s sake. It’s not easy. Having been in a similar position personally, when a friend you’ve had for years starts ignoring you for someone else – it’s not easy. So Gabe’s reactions and ways of handling this felt very authentic and believable.

 

She’s grumpy and annoyed, especially when Bree starts ignoring her texts and calls, ditching her to hang out with Bryce and his popular friends and their girlfriends who both Bree and Gabe have always dismissed as airheads. Bree’s family situation is complex, and it doesn’t help that Gabe is moaning about her own responsibilities. She does some work in the family business and has to pick up her sister from the eccentric aunt. Normal things. Yet she doesn’t understand why Bree gets mad when she whines about it.

 

While Bree certainly wasn’t a favourite, or even that memorable of a character, you can empathise with her, especially with her miserable home life. Parents are MIA, separated and with little interest in her, so she lives with an elderly grandmother who suffers from Alzheimer’s. Grandma barely seems to know what planet she’s on. She’s got a hot new boyfriend and the popular girls aren’t so bad after all once you get to know them and her only other friend seems determined to hold a grudge and whines about stupid things and doesn’t seem to appreciate how lucky she is.

 

 At least for Gabe, the cool new guy starts paying more attention, and they start forming a tentative friendship with the potential for something more. Hartman seems like a nice enough guy, he has plenty of baggage and drama of his own. Then everything comes to a dramatic point on prom night. Gabe is talked into taking Bree, Bryce, and their friends in the family hearse. The group head off for an after party. Gabe has gone with Hartman as her date, and while the others want to explore some abandoned building, Gabe and Hartman wander off together. There’s a tragic accident.

 

And everything changes.  The event has a major effect on Bree who goes AWOL. Rattled with grief and guilt Gabe realises she has to put aside her grudges and prejudices and do whatever she has to to find her missing friend. Which means reaching out to some of the other girls who were there that night. There’s a touching sense of togetherness as the group come together to deal with the incident and Gabe realises that Bree might have been right after all – these girls and even the boys aren’t so bad after all. They’re just people. Like them, with flaws, complex emotions. Coming together in a difficult time forms new bonds which lead to new friendships and a whole change on life’s perspectives for Gabe.  There’s positive changes for Bree as well. The novel concludes in a believable way, without being overly emotional or dramatic.

 

It’s a well written, enjoyable book, and the characters are easy to understand and identify with.

 

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

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2292759/review-all-the-forever-things

Snakes and Ladders 2020 Master Post

I'm in a big reading slump at the moment, so as we're on self isolation in my house this game seems like perfect timing and will hopefully get me out my slump :) 

 

 

 

Start at square one

1) Author is a woman dice roll 6 - square 6 Title has a colour word in

For 1 I will be reading Serpent and Dove by Shelby Mahurin 

For 2 I will be reading The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2123364/snakes-and-ladders-2020-master-post

DNF: The Orphanage of the Gods

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley. Another one for the DNF pile. This was also book of the month in one of my Illumicrate book boxes so I got a nice hardback signed with sprayed edges. Unfortunately I just didn't like the book. I got about 200 pages or so in, but I just have no interest in picking the book up to finish it. There was little to no world building - in the world the book are based on gods are living being who ruled the world but the regular humans rebelled and wiped them out and took over. All that seems to be left were the gods children who were rounded up and put in prison like orphanages, and treated terribly. The story starts with two teens escaping from one of these orphanages to find the girl of the duo's missing sister. The reader is just thrown in to the action and off it goes. There's a bit of flashback story telling to go into the history of how they got to where they were when the novel started, but I just didn't find myself caring or really connecting with any of the characters. Everything was kind of flat and to me felt unemotional and that made the story dull. Even when the escaping duo get involved with a group of rebels who oppose the way things are run. The point of view suddenly starts shifting and it's a whole different set of characters and histories introduced all of which are going to come together with the other plot. I just don't have any interest in finding out anymore. So calling it quits on this one. Thank you Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2075831/dnf-the-orphanage-of-the-gods

DNF: Renegades

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

Calling it quits on this one. It's been several months since I last picked it up, I read a few pages and am just not interested. Superheroes are not my favourite thing, but it's an author I love and I have enjoyed superhero themed books before and this one is all original characters. So it sounded like something I would enjoy. Heroes vs villains and a POV from each, with the main POV seeming to be from the girl who's on the bad guys team. With a dangerous power and someone no one seems to know much about.

 

There's a little bit of world building but no real character introductions. There's a list various superheroes before the story starts - names, powers, aliases and what team they're on. So when the story starts going you're supposed to know who they all are.

 

Personally I never bother with character lists when they're at the front of books. I want to be  introduced to who the main people are as the plot progresses - not thrown in at the deep end. So having to go back to the list and flip through even after reading it thoroughly a few times, it was still really  confusing and annoying. 

I wasn't connecting with the characters and the thought of picking this one up again became less and less appealing especially with it being quite a long novel. So time to call it quits.

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for approving my request to view the title. 

 

 

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2071805/dnf-renegades

Review: The Devil's Equinox

Review:

I received a copy from Netgalley.

 

This one was immensely enjoyable. Even though the main character was a bit of a moron. It was modern day set but reminded me of 70s style horror films. It would have worked really well in that setting.

 

However, it was a bit of a silly story but still fun (in a dark and twisted sorted of what the fuck is going on and why am I reading this???way). Despite how ridiculous the plot got it was hard to tear your eyes away and made for a good page turner. I think I read this one in a few sittings.

 

The story starts with the main character Aidan sat in a bar drowning his sorrows over a stale marriage. He and his wife have just had their first child but they’re not getting along. Bemoaning his woes to a beautiful stranger he accidentally voices he wishes his wife was dead. The beautiful woman just happens to be their new neighbour Regina, who has just moved in the house next door.

 

Regina worms her way into the life and Aidan and his wife, even befriending the wife to a point, becoming comfortable enough with them to even babysit their child. Before long Aidan is utterly entranced by Regina and falls deeper and deeper under her beguiling spell. After tragedy strikes Regina is there for comfort and before long has started to open Aidan’s eyes to a world of sexual pleasure he never knew.

 

She introduces him to a secret sex club she’s part of and each “level” of the club things get darker, more twisted and more depraved. All coalescing around a certain black magic ritual on a certain date and a certain time requiring one big ass sacrifice Aidan has unwittingly become a part of.

 

It’s all quite moronic and the more stupid things Aidan does, he gets in too deep and finally realises he needs help but the reach of the secret club is goes higher than he could have ever imagined. He’s over his head and trying to figure things out before time runs out.

 

Despite the bizarreness and disturbing nature of the plot I kind of loved Regina as a character. She was wicked and unapologetic about it once she had Aidan in her claws. Aidan was likeable enough just kind of dim. It did get a bit bloody towards the end and more and more stupid as the novel went on.

 

However, regardless of the ridiculousness of the story as I said earlier once you get into it it’s impossible to put it down. There was a fairly amusing twist at the end of the last chapter. (Very reminiscent of a certain Stephen King book).

 

This is the third book I’ve read by this author and certainly one I will be continuing to read.

 

Thank you to Netgalley and Flame Tree Press for approving my request to view the title.

Original post: sunsetxcocktail.booklikes.com/post/2069259/review-the-devil-s-equinox