The Merciful Crow (The Merciful Crow #1) by Margaret Owen (Review)

       Plague doctor, meets magical people, meets class struggles, meets racial-like group divides; The Merciful Crow successfully merges many different topics and ideas into an actually fun read. Fie is a Merciful Crow, and a future chieftain of her group of crows. She is loyal, dedicated and always puts her Crows first. They are the lowest caste in their society, and they go from place to place in poverty, collecting those with the plague, as they are immune, mercy killing them and burning their corpses to prevent the spread of the plague. It is a thankless and reviled but much needed job. When collecting the dead of the highest class, those of royalty, Fie and her clan get sucked into a battle to save the throne and ultimately save a hunted prince and his brother like Hawk guard. Why? Because if they succeed, the prince is sworn to save and protect the hunted and hated Crow caste.
        I enjoyed reading The Merciful Crow. The world building was really well done and I found myself believing in the magic in the universe. The teeth magic that Fie uses was believable and didn't reach a point of being overpowered, which I find authors often struggle to avoid with magical powers. I also enjoyed the loyalty Fie displayed, and the author avoided a lot of pouting and having the character making dumb-out-of-character choices to forward the plot, and Fie was allowed to stay consistently loyal and rational at the same time. All in all, I really enjoyed The Merciful Crow and I give it the rating of FOUR AND A HALF OUT OF FIVE STARS!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Crown of Coral and Pearl (Crown of Coral and Pearl #1) by Mara Rutherford (Review)

   Nor was born and raised in a water locked village on the sea. No land, just planks houses and water. She and her twin sister Zadie were raised to be beautiful, to be perfect. Perfection means being chosen, and being chosen means going to the mainland, and going to the mainland as the chosen girl means marrying the prince, it means becoming the queen. It also means never getting to come home again, never seeing their twin sister again, and losing everything they know. After a childhood injury, Zadie becomes the default choice, and their fates seemed set in stone, but as the day of choosing grows closer, the sisters become unhappy about their lot, and when a great tragedy strikes, Nor is thrust into a whole new world where things are not as they seem and things are far more dangerous then she had ever considered.
     I fairly enjoyed Crown of Coral and Pearl. It wasn't what I thought it would be. For some reason I was expecting a more aquatic focused novel, but this story was very tension and action entered instead. The locations change, and are almost inconsequential compared to the deep focus on political danger and drama. This wouldn't sound like something I would like, but I really did. It was fairly fantastic. I found I really liked the characters or Nor and Zadie, and the tensions in the novel towards the end were just fantastic. There was a great slow tension build in this novel. As to not spoil anything, I'll leave that there. All in all, I loved Crown of Coral and Pearl and give it the rating of FOUR AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Gravemaidens (Gravemaidens #1) by Kelly Coon (Review)

      When the king of Alu grows ill, an ancient ceremony is initiated to send three women (gravemaidens) as his brides into the afterlife. Kammani is a young woman in Alu, and wants nothing more than to be a as great a healer as her father, and to restore her family through her great skill. She's on the path to accomplishing that goal, but then her world is then thrown into utter chaos as the king grows ill and her sister is selected as one of the gravemaidens destined to die. As everyone else celebrates the honour, Kammani sees what it is: a death sentence. It is up to Kammani to save her sister the only way she knows how, to heal the king. Penalty for failing? Both she and her sister will die. With the stakes being this high, she has no room for mistakes or failure, esspecially when there are people who want nothing more than to make sure the king does not get healed.
       Gravemaidens was a mediocre to good read. I didn't love it, and probably won't re-read it, but I will be continuing in the series. I had a good time trying to figure out the mystery of it, and I was genuinely rooting for Kammani. My only issue was that I found this book dragged a little bit, and took a while to really capture my attention. I don't think this book is for everyone, and I don't believe that is the most interesting read ever, but I also cannot determine anything very wrong with it; so all in all, I would have to give Gravemaidens the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Vow of Thieves (Dance of Thieves #2) by Mary E. Pearson (Review)

     The sequel to the much loved Dance of Thieves, in Vow of Thieves starts with Kazi and Jase travelling back home Tor's Watch, all while... canoodling to pass their evenings. While traveling back, Kazi gets signs that things might not be great up ahead, and when they finally get back, they are attacked and Jase escapes mortally wounded, and Kazi is captured. Tor's Watch had fallen and alone and in captivity, Kazi is devastated and listless. She wants revenge, but her captors have Jase's kid siblings and if she lashes out, they will pay the price. Unsure what to do, Kazi has to navigate protecting Tor's Watch, the children and protected herself.
       Just like Dance of Thieves, I really enjoyed Vow of Thieves. The characters were all fun to read, dramatic and exhilarating, and I was often on the edge of my seat while reading this book. I will attempt not to spoil anything important, but I do have to say that the plot twist and turns in this novel had me actively gasping as I read. Kazi is still a great character. She is tough and capable, but the author didn't feel the need to make her heartless and gave her a sensitive and vulnerable side, which I love. I often find authors ruin powerful female characters by taking away vulnerabilities and feminine traits from them. I respect that Mary E. Pearson doesn't do that. I love all of her strong female characters because they are allowed to still be women and identifiable to a female audience. All in all, read this series, and I give Vow of Thieves the rating of FOUR AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Midnight Beauties (Grim Lovelies #2) by Megan Shepherd (Review)

      The sequel to Grim Lovelies, Midnight Beauties takes off from where it's predecessor ended. All of her friends are now trapped in their animal forms and she is being strong armed into marrying her enemy for political gain. To save her friends and herself , she will have to take on a coven of evil witches, the Royals and the whole world. It is quite and uphill battle. She is targeted for her power by everyone under the sun, and the clock is ticking for her to save the ones she loves.
     All things considered, I found that this book fits pretty well on the same level as Grim Lovelies. I found it forgettable, but there were a fair amount of pretty good elements that I did enjoy and can see other readers getting super into. The tension between Anouk and her enemies was pretty well written for the most part, and I enjoyed her interacting with them, but I found with her friends out of the picture for a good chunk of time, the side cast felt empty for that time. I'm struggling to say much else about this book, so I'll leave you with my rating. I give Midnight Beauties the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Grim Lovelies (Grim Lovelies #1) by Megan Shepherd (Review)

     Grim Lovelies is the tale of seventeen-year-old Beastie Anouk. Anouk was an animal, that through magic was transformed into a young human woman by a witch. Beasties are servants in this world, and her and her kind work for their evil creator, Mada Vittora. Anouk does the cleaning, and has never been outside, not even once, and she has lost toes the insanity that is her creator and master. After finding Mada Vittoria murdered, she is accused of the killing, and she and her fellow Beasties have to flee into Paris. As they flee, they attempt to prove their innocence and guard their lives as humans and they get hunted down every witch and magical being in Paris.
        Grim Lovelies was better than I expected. I liked the side cast quite a lot because they were all diverse, and trying to figure out which person was which animal before their transformations was a fun distractor while reading some of the more bland moments. Grim Lovelies was a good enough read to finish it in a couple days, but I would say that it was mostly forgettable. I moved onto the sequel not long after and I found I struggled to remember plot points from Grim Lovelies, because they didn't leave a massive impact on me when reading it. I could see many people really liking this book though, there were many great elements within, which is why I ultimately give Grim Lovelies the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Finale (Caraval #3) by Stephanie Garber (Review)

     The final novel in the Caraval series, Finale continues on where Legendary left off. Exhilarating, creative and fascinating, Finale does two primary things: finished the story started in Caraval, and builds the world with the goal of allowing for a spinoff series, which I'm fairy certain will be coming. The ending of Finale, which I will do everything I can not to spoil, pretty obviously did setup work for a spinoff series (it wasn't very subtle). Honestly, I'm not complaining, as I (and my sister, who I got to read it with me) both really enjoyed this trilogy. In Finale, the love triangle is further developed, but I won't tell you which man Scarlett may or may not end up with. Thats for you to find out. ;)
       Now my thoughts on Finale specifically without spoiling anything. I found it was a good conclusion for the series, but not perfectly satisfying like other books I have read. It is missing some extra humpsfa. It drags out at points, taking away from that seamless read that we all love and want. But I don't want to be too critical, because ultimately, I really enjoyed Finale and its predecessors. They and their deck of card themed magic tales are definitely worth the read! All in all, I liked Finale and give it the rating of FOUR AND A HALF STARS!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Rowan Wood Legends (The Lost Clan #2) by Olivia Wildenstein (Review)

     The second installment in The Lost Clans series, Rowan Wood Legends
continues the tale of Cat, a young woman who is half faerie, half hunter. The faeries hate her for her hunter side, and the hunters desipse her for her faerie side, and she just wants be treated like a regular person. After loosing her mom, a best friend and a good chunk of her freedom, she is seesawed between a hunter that is obsessed with her because she looks like his dead wife, and a cocky jerk of a faerie that sees her as less-than because of her hunter side but still overwhelmingly wants her anyway. She wishes her two sides could just learn to live in piece, but with both kinds determined to exterminate each other, it doesn't look very promising.
       Just like the first book in the series, Rowan Wood Legends was okay. The love triangles in the two books are not fantastic, and I struggle to want anyone to succeed. Both also have plots, but they feel like sometimes dull ones. I really feel that these books could have done with some more immediate stakes, something with a time limit that would make the readers be more invested. A lot of the stakes in this book felt pretty nebulous, like they were there, but they might or might not actually end up mattering and there were no clear objectives to get Cat's butt into gear. Like she had MANY scenes of just shopping, eating at dinners and taking trips for fun. Any stakes in the book die in moments like that. It can't be that important if Cat has time to go chill and go clothing shopping during it. Anyway, the writing voice is competent and the universe has a lot of potential, so I give Rowan Wood Legends the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Dream Keeper (The Dark Dreamer Trilogy #1) by Amber R. Duell (Review)

   The Sandman is a mythical being that is the master of dreams. Using his sand, he puts people to sleep and rules the world of the night. In Dream Keeper, the sandman is real and in love with a young woman named Nora. Nora holds within her the power to effect the world of the night. She has the power to tip the balances between the Nightmare realm and the Dream realm, which makes her and her loved ones a massive target for The Weaver: the master of the Nightmare realm. She has this because of the Sandman, and he is relying on her not to cave and give in to the Nightmares, because if she does, all will be lost, in the Night world and in the normal human world.
     Twisted and waaaaay darker then I was expecting, this book has a hard focus on nightmares and horror movie level monsters and has almost no normal dreams or happy things (which is what I was expecting). Yah, this book is shockingly graphic and scary. It has grewsome self mutilation, multiple self murders through mind control, and a disturbing scene of self murder by pen violently being stabbed through the throat. Which leads me to my biggest complaint. Absolutely horrifying things happen in the real world to the main character (a normal teenage girl) and we are expected to believe she can just handle it and not have a massive mental breakdown. Its so unreasonable I was taken right out of the story. I don't know about you, but if a woman throat stabbed herself in front of me and my best friends killed themselves by ripping out there own eyes right next to me I WOULD LOSE MY CRAP! I'm talking about mental breakdown after mental breakdown, PTSD to the nines, becoming unable to see anything but the horror. Nora just takes it, brushes it off and keeps going. All of those events happen in the real world, those characters are ACTUALLY DEAD, and Nora is worried about if Sandman's affections are genuine. It was by far the worst part of the book. Otherwise it was a pretty okay book, and I give it the rating of THREE AND A HALF STAR OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

The Evil Queen (The Forest of Good and Evil #1) by Gena Showalter (Review)

      Amazing book alert! I have found a new favorite! Gena Showalter went where many authors have gone before and took on a classical fairytale. I really like fairytale remakes, but if I'm honest, there are two I have never had much love for: Sleeping Beauty and Snow White. I usually found both princesses and their tales quite disinteresting in all of the versions I have seen them in, but WOWZA this book blindsided me and caught me right off guard! It was incredibly and is actually and addicting version of Snow White. It has given me a whole new interpretation of the Snow White characters. It takes place in a magical world where fairytales are prophecies of tragic futures. Our main character Everly is tied with  a group of other girls into a magical prophecy foretelling their futures to be mapped with the fairytale Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Can she escape destiny? Save herself? Her twin? Her Cousin? You'll have to read to find out ;) .
           As you can tell by this point, I loved this book. It was such a creative and addicting story. I was in the middle of brutal exams at the point of reading it, and usually nothing can take me away from my studying (since the exams were very imminent), but this book managed to keep drawing me back; I was addicted. I spent hours of precious time laughing and crying with this book instead of studying like I should have been, and finished it in a day and a half. It is physically quite a large book, but it felt like it took absolutely no time to read, which I love. That's what you want from a book reading experience. Anyway, I am stoked for the series, and recommend it to everybody, its so good. I give The Evil Queen the rating of FIVE STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

The Gilded Wolves (The Gilded Wolves #1) by Roshani Chokshi (Review)

       Set in a magical France, a series of uniquely qualified individuals take on the heist of a century. The Gilded Wolves tell a story about this special group of thieves is made up of people who all come with their own important motives and skill sets. The leader is a rejected heir to one of the most powerful families in the world, trying to get his future back, the chemist is a broken girl trying to make some money for her sister after fleeing prison, the historian is a revolutionist who wants to be respected by his peers, and the others run distractions with their own separate goals and plans.  

      I found this book moderate. I think many people could read it and fall absolutely head over heals for it, but I personally found that it was just missing a little something. I'm not sure what, but the spark just wasn't there for me. Maybe it was because the book didn't really go deeper or tie in the pasts and motives of almost all the cool characters, so none of them had a satisfying character arc. Yah, all I feel about The Gilded Wolves is that it has all the ingrediants of a great book, but for some reason the taste did not blow me away. Maybe it was an editor thing, because I've loved Roshani's other works, but somthing about this book just fell short of making me a huge fan. All in all, I give The Gilded Wolves the rating of FOUR STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Never-Contented Things by Sarah Porter (Review)

      Disconcerting, discombobulating and freaky, Never-Contented Things was incredibly unpleasent to read. Ksenia and her adoptive brother Josh are two incredibly broken foster teens that get sucked into a horrifying world of fairies and a thier twisted monsterous creations. First they seduce Josh, and he goes missing as Ksenia panics, but then Josh suddenly re-appears and things start changing, making Ksenia wish he stayed gone.
      This book was uncomfortable to read, and not in the intended way. I found I didn't like Ksenia or Josh, both seemed like wish-washy characters with demented obsessions and perceptions that we are expected to empathize with. I wasn't really routing for either of them, I found myself routing for the story to end. I just felt weird and gross while reading this book. There was also an issue with the plot feeling like it wanted to be too many things at the same time. I felt there was a cool fairy story there, or a twisted band romance book, or a book on recovery from past abuse, or a book on letting friends in, or endurance or a story about leaving toxic people behind, but all-together it made a huge mess and was not a cohesive read. All in all, I don't recommend Never-Contented Things and give it the rating for TWO STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Bloodleaf (Bloodleaf #1) by Crystal Smith (Review)

Magic is blood, and blood magic is banned, all magic is banded by punishment of death by burning at the stake. Princess Aurelia's kingdom is in the middle of the witch trials, and anybody even mildly suspected of witchcraft is brutally and publically killed. Aurelia is secretly a blood magic user, and she is at great risk even within her own country. If she were caught, it would be her head on pike. For her own safety she is being married off the a neighbouring country's ill and feeble prince. His country is one hated by her country as it is built around prolific magic usage. After plans go awry, and blood is spilt, Aurelia must flee in secret to the prince's country, but there are many plots in the works, and all but on requires Aurelia's death, and they are closing in on her.
         I thought Bloodleaf was pretty good. Not for those who get grossed out at the idea of blood, by far, this is a pretty bloody book considering the magic is done through the letting of blood and people dying; but it was a surprisingly engaging story those elements aside. Aurelia tries so hard to save lives and protect those around her, you really deeply root for her. This is quite a tragic book, with pieces at the end that had me sobbing like a baby, but it was emotionally complex and wasn't an absolute bummer to read. I feel like Bloodleaf is definitely not for everybody, but for those with a taste for tragedy that can handle blood, I think it might be worth a look. I give Bloodleaf the rating of FOUR STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

The Black Coats by Colleen Oakes (Review)

    A new book from Colleen Oakes, The Black Coats tells a story about a group of slighted and hurt girls who a brought into a covert vigilantee group that gets revenge on the men who get away with crimes rangeing from arson to full blown murder. After Natalie tragically looses her cousin to an unexplained murder, and the culprit is not brought to justice, she is induceted into The Black Coats and trained for violence, with the promise that if she helps them, they will get justice for her cousin and punish the killer. As she gets further and further into the organization, some things start becoming more and more suspicious and Natalie starts suspecting them from not being what they claim to be, but once a Black Coat, always a Black Coat, and if Natalie pushes, she might not like what pushes back.
        Meh. It was okay. I found the story was okay, and had some engaging parts, but overall that I was bored while reading it. I didn't really connect with most of the characters and only vaguely cared about Natalie, which was a huge problem. I found it hard to invest, which sucked because I generally love Colleen Oakes writings. Oh well, I guess they can't all be winners. I give The Black Coats the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy #1) by Emily A. Duncan (Review)

       For some reason I feel like this book would make a good anime. Wicked Saints was pitched to me as based on Joan of Arc... that was a lie. It literally has nothing to do with Joan of Arc. It tells the story of a young woman named Nadya living at a temple with monks for a pantheon of deities. She is special because she can actually talk to the pantheon, and they actually respond to her. She is going to be the hero of her people in a bloody holy war. Without her, all is lost. Their enemies are heretical blood mages that reject the pantheon, and are ravaging the border. Once the temple attacked, Nadya has to flee from the one leading the attack, the feared blood prince. As the plot thickens, she has to learn to trust enemies, fear friends and depend on herself alone.
         Wicked Saints is a pretty dark book, and since it has blood mages, ample blood is to be expected. I really liked Nadya and found myself invested in her story in spite of a lot of the darker parts of the book. It had me crying and shipping characters, it was fascinating in its magic system. I really can't shake the thought that this book was so over the top in certain places that this book would do wonderfully as an anime, and I don't even watch anime. I can't fully put a finger on what part makes me feel that, its just something I am convinced of. All in all, Wicked Saints was pretty good and I give it the rating of FOUR AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Ship of Smoke and Steel (The Wells of Sorcery #1) by Django Wexler (Review)

      Violent, dark and disturbing, Ship of Smoke and Steel was a HARD pass for me. It tells a rough tale of Isoka the violent mob enforcer with magical powers geared towards violence and fighting. One days she is captured by the enforcement of her kingdom and is sacrificed to a massive metal monster ghost ship with one objective, bring back the ship in one year, or else the king will have her sister brutalized and ruined. On the ship she is faced with great challenges of monsters, metal "angles" that murder anyone who tries to flee, gang rivalries and giant evil crabs.
      Nope. I rarely dislike a book enough to stop reading it, but by 3/4 of the ways in I just had to give up and skip to the end. I just despised this book. It was disturbing and randomly graphic for no particular reason, and the main character just sucked. I couldn't connect with her at all. The plot felt overburdened and the environments busy. I love pirates but that wasn't what this book was about. It seemed to have a really lacking sense of identity. All in all, I don't recommend it and give it the rating of TWO STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*

Courting Darkness (Courting Darkness Duology #1) by Robin LaFevers (Review)

     A new series in the world of the His Fair Assassin universe, Courting Darkness takes on the perspectives of Sybella and a new character Genevieve. Sybella has always been one of Death darkest agent, and Genevieve is an agent of death undercover, desperately waiting for an assignment, year after year. As their lives continue in the aftermath of the His Fair Assassin series, they both try to find their purposes without clear instruction. As the plot thickens, their paths cross and they must work together to do their purpose/their duty.

      Yaaaaah, it was fiiiine. Nothing special. The writing was competent and the plot wasn't overly flawed, it just didn't feel like anything was happening anytime fast. I felt mostly disconnected, but if you like the His Fair Assassin series, you most likely like Courting Darkness equally. I did find it hard to keep Sybella and Genevieve apart in my head for the first half of the book, and there definitely could have been some optimizing story-wise. All in all, Courting Darkness was okay, and I give it the rating of THREE AND A HALF STARS OUT OF FIVE!!!

*Advanced Readers Copy Review*