This MG read- World, Characters & writing were all unique but pacing issues left it a few notches above Meh. My family listened to this book at bedtime every night- My daughter was bored enough to throw in the towel early on & it was (at times) an unwanted sleeping aid for us old folks. I found it to be enjoyable enough, but just not as gripping as the first book. Now the narrator, HE was phenomenal! Definitely give this one a go as an audiobook

I listened to this audiobook & I can't imagine enjoying it any other way. The voices were rich & varied & the acting was spot on. The background was dark & sinister, the characters were unabashedly gray BUT that ending. It was painful to behold, it just ended. There was finally some telling dialogue & then nothing. I highly reccomend this book but maybe wait until you have book #2 in hand unless you're in the market for a oddly timed cliffy

What do you do when Chaos is nipping at your kingdom's heels? When the air is rife with political intrigue, insurrection, betrayl & quite possibly, an all out assault on the crown? Who's in the right? Are reparations due? This book shows that those answers aren't always cut & dry. It was great at showing every POV. We got to see the woes & drama of ruling a sick & desperate country. This book is filled with tropey clichés yet I highly recommend it

PAUSED @ 42% On one hand: the writing was solid, the background building was decent & the premise was interesting. BUT: the pacing was erratic, the characters were trite & vapid & the ping-ponging tension wasn't as sensual as I imagine the author was aiming for. It was more of a headache inducing, sexually impotent annoyance. I thought Wrath and Emilia's sexual tension was hot in the last book but now it's just a boring, travesty of tropey clichés

This was a well detailed, Magically Realistic, Historical Fantasy set in 1911 New York. We saw the classism and misogyny of the times which, sadly, we still have too much of today. It was a coming of age & into one's powers whodunit centered around a 17 yo girl who finds out she's magical after some seriously bad events & wants to learn how to wield said power so she can avenge her brother's murder. Overall: this was a great audiobook!

Nasty, nightmare fuel Vamps with evocative, poignant, vivid writing. This book will take you to dark places & have you questioning if HEAs can truly exist let alone in a world devoid of sunlight populated by blood sucking, atrocious creatures. The narrator, Damian Lynch, turned this LARGE tome into an instant favorite. I HIGHLY reccomend this one, especially as an audiobook & even more so if you liked The Name of the Wind. I LOVED it

#NetGalley
There are only a few literary no-no(s)that I can not abide by & this book has a major one. AT LEAST ONE MAIN CHARACTER MUST BE INTERESTING!! It had loads of potential but it fell flat. Most of the cast were either dull, despicable or annoying. Nothing better than a lush, creepy, freaky, circus yarn (especially around Halloween time)but sadly, if you're in the market for one of those kinds of reads you're going to be disappointed here.

I listened to this audiobook & winced, often. There were many odd names & lineages & associations & positions held & dates that at times, I just zoned out & said to myself “I guess this (named action) happened because of some weird named guy, I hope I don't need to remember who they are later on“. & remember I did not. I'm enacting Pearl's Rule of 50. 50 minutes of audiobook instead of 50 pages but you get the gist. This is a DNF for me

~ Sorry

This book has it all:
Solid writing? Check
Lush, detailed background? Check
Magical action? Check
Some sexytime heat? Check(ish)
Courtly drama? Check
Dramatic plot twists? Check
Excellent character development? Double Check!!
All that & an emotional cliffy ending? Yes, thank you! If you liked A Court of Honey & Ash, you'll especially enjoy this read. I tore through this book with glee & can't wait for book #3!

#NetGalley
The Deep Space Between was a fun way to pass the day. My favorite parts were the varying characters inhabiting this magical town & the dichotomy between Sarafina & her plus 1, Angwyndith. I loved seeing how they dealt with the struggles to find common ground & make the best of a precarious situation. If you're looking for a fun Fantastical murder/chaos mystery, you've found a good one here. The Deep Space Between was good, fun, Fantasy

This is not your grandfather's Cairo BUT is it ours? I don't think so. I listened to the previous novella & loved it! I tried listening to this book & even though the narrator is the same I just couldn't get into the story. I didn't care about what was happening or for the characters, a travesty! One that's hard to overlook & power through. This is a DNF at ~ 50%. I tried over & over to psych myself up to go back to it but ultimately I failed.

#NetGalley
DNF @ 15%, surprised that I made it that far. I reread whole passages over & over again trying to retain the info to no avail. The prose- dense & bland. It went out of its way to check hot topic boxes. Autistic character? Check! Transgender mercenaries that “are female, for now“ (trite?)? Check! Could I have misunderstood? Maybe, things were hard to keep straight. Did I care one whit about the characters? NO!! and that's unforgivable.

The writing- Excellent
The background- robust & intoxicating
The characters- perfection (as always) BUT This book will leave you with WAY more questions.
WTH happened to Ronan?
With the moderators?
Jordan awake?
What's the secret to making Sweetmetals?
What's the endgame Ronan?? Hennessy??
End of the layline?
End of the world?
My non Zed brain can't handle the uncertainty of it all.
Interest piqued
Mind blown
Well done Mrs. Stiefvater- well done!

#NetGalley
TJ Klune writes about heady topics such as divinity, what The Call of the Afterlife must be like, Love in the face of impossible situations, what makes a life Good & Worthy, Death, Grief, Suicide, Contrition & Vindication & he does so with flair. Don't get me wrong, Klune isn't flowery or verbose, his writing sits snuggly in the Goldilocks Zone, it's juuust right. There were a few laggy bits but this is definitely a solid read!

This was a fun read. Here's the rundown:
Pros:
*The book was easy to devour
*It was entertaining from the very first page
*The premise was intriguing
* It set up book #2 quite well
*That ending brought the whole rating up, what a twist
Cons:
*The writing was ok
*The MCs weren't loveable although the secondary character's were
Will I read on? With iffy MCs plus the slightly bland(ish) writing I have to say that my answer is a resounding, Maybe!

I had bouts of hysteria & silent tears while reading this book & I didn't want it to stop. It has great writing, characters that will have you fully invested & a backdrop perfect for a quirky story about misfits. Salem (our MC) leads a ragtag team of musically (& mentally) beautiful messes & he fits in perfectly. These cooky characters are perilously close to representing all it means to be Human, cracks, ragged shards and all. I 100% reccomend

This was a bingeworthy story of, (at times) mentally abusive & quite often toxic, kismet but in a good way (if there is such a thing). It's a (loveable) Douchebag-> Lover trope. Our two MCs weren't star crossed lovers so much as meteors being smashing together then repelled off one another, pulled along by the force of their intense gravitational pulls. It was a guilty little pleasure that quickened my pulse & had my attention 'til the very end.

An easy SFF romp through seven galaxies whose best quality was its bevy of unique species. There's an unfortunate insta-love & insta-power too. Our MC had Golden Child syndrome. She's the last hope to fight the Evil & save all “living“ beings. She's suddenly (all) powerful with a direct connect to the Goddess of Light. Lilla-“hey we need to chat“ & the goddess of all that's good & holy comes running. Overall a unique premise with a cliffy ending.

Perfect On Paper should be called Perfect Anywhere. It is a call to EVERYONE no matter what they identify as, telling EVERYONE that they are Perfect no matter what they feel to the contrary, no matter what they are told or who they love or what society has them feeling. It tackled relevant & complicated scenarios, ones they named, addressed, dissected & conquered coherently. It's all about acceptance & I'm happy just knowing that it exists.

High ranking demon passes on special powers to his mischievous progeny who perform in & are forever linked to a magical demonic circus from Hell for all time. There's betrayal, a love triangle, a perilous romp through the streets & ages of Paris, family drama, Bad Ass females & the men that love them, a treasure hunt & muuurder dum dum dum. The twist on Hell seen through the windows of the circus is unique plus a cool magical showdown at the end.

Fangirl here BUT I'll try to do this series justice. I'm blown away by Sabaa Tahir & her gorgeous mind, amazing characters, her writing's tone & tempo & all around Majesty. Steve West & Fiona Hardingham will FOREVER be Elias & Laia to me. The women showcase how to be both Woman & Warrior. ST writes loveable characters & then throws them into gut wrenching scenarios, killing them just when you've started to love them. I HIGHLY reccomend this series

This is one of those reads that has you thinking you know what sort of ride you're in for and by the third chapter you realize that you've severely miscalculated. This was twisty & turny & unique & hard-hitting. It had a nicely teased out character reveal. The writing was solid, the world(s) development was extraordinary. It's a great example of how unencumbered Scifi can be and ohh what a satisfying ending can look like. Loads of TWs like murder

Looking for a fun, unique PG read with a magical coming of age aspect + a very slow (cheeky) burn? Then you want to be here where we have England's Old World mythology mixed with Magically Realistic Urban Fantasy. That sounds like a steaming pile of mish mosh BUT it meshed together nicely. The old school Magic blended seamlessly with the New. There are creatures, friends forged in life threatening scenarios and I hope there's another in the works.

Are you a fan of National Treasure? Enola Holmes? Indiana Jones? If you said yes to even one of those then you're in the right place. This book was loaded, seams bursting, with action. There were puzzles, ciphers, curses, chases by car, train and on a steamer ship all topped off with a nefarious magical cherry on top. This Magically Realistic Historical Fiction period piece was beautifully crafted, fun to read and thoroughly unputdownable.

I loved Amelia Unabridged and all of the complicated Feels it is making me feel! It was a fairytale-esque book with the feel of a quaint town plus the magic of a sweetly budding Amore coming together to form a poignant memoir of how our drowning MC Amelia emerged from the tumultuous Sea of Grief and managed to find refuge on its shores with another who was coping with his own grief demons. This was beautifully written and beautifully narrated

A modern day take on the ole Immortals Living In A Mortal World Trying Not To Be Discovered or impacted too greatly by said Mortal World.
If you're looking for a simple, good, clean, wholesome read that is good for all ages then you should skip this one because it can be B.R.U.T.A.L! I really enjoyed it though and as long as you're not looking for some kind of whitewashed, scripture touting, Bible-centric read then I think you'll like it too.

3.5 Stars
This Korean tale's mythology merged nicely with the modern day backdrop. It was a quick, entertaining, jaunt through Cali that had a very relaxed vibe with laid back, modern dialogue. Then there was the foooood! There was a whole lot of eating going on and this foodie appreciated all of the enticing shout outs to yummy cuisine.
Overall: This is a fun, clean, magical adventure suited for all ages.

This compilation of tales was fascinating and whimsical and done with as much imagery and artistry as we have come to expect from a Holly Black novel.The writing was alluring and robust without being flowery or verbose. The characters were gorgeously poignant and brilliantly emotive (as usual)! The world building was ethereal, folktale(esque), charming and idyllic. If you liked the Folk Of The Air series, you'll 100% love this short read!

There are so many things to love about this book. The writing is solid, the world building crisp and lush and the characters, the characters are evocative and are of varying moral hues, just how I like them. Just like book #1, the characters are the main dish. I reccomend this one and think you should give it a shot, cliffy ending be damned! At least it didn't go all George R. R. Martin on us, although it was touch and go there for a while

This was a quick jaunt through the beautiful streets of Venice Italy. The premise of magical mobsters with a multitude of powers but 1 dominant gift was really promising but unfortunately it spent more time (quickly) building up the blasted insta-love that it never really (truly) came into its own as a well rounded, robust Fantasy novel. Although it was a good distraction, it ultimately is an adventure I won't be looking to continue.

~ Sorry

This book had such potential! I just couldn't get lost in its crazy/mish mosh/over saturated world. It had a lot going on like: vampires, ghosts, ghost whisperers, ghost pets (including a temperamental ghost dinosaur) bat people, coyote people and a nefarious, devilish deviant, most likely immortal, (human?) antagonist. Sounds pretty entertaining right? Nope! What a letdown. DNF @ 47%

~ Sorry

High ranking demon passes on special powers to his daughters. His magically mischievous progeny perform in & are irrevocably linked to this circus for time immemorial. There's a magical, demonic circus from Hell plus life or death events, a perilous romp through the streets (and ages) of Paris, familial drama and maybe the most imaginative and tempting depiction of Hell I've read in a while.. There's possible MUUUUURDERS... dum dum dum...

Good Girl meets Bad Boy. Good Girl aims to save Bad Boy. She annoys Bad Boy to the point that it becomes flirtatious. Bad Boy falls (hard) for Good Girl AND these mismatched lovers try desperately for Forever together. I'm not usually a fan of the Romance genre BUT I did have a good time with this tale of mismatched Amore. I suggest checking this book out if you're a fan of X rated, NA reads that have Star Crossed Lovers vibes.

This book is something I didn't realize I desperately needed until I was neck deep, wading through its depths. I want to bottle these emotions so I can take them out on gloomy days and reminisce about the happiness and sense of completion this book has gifted me. I went in a Skeptic and came out an Apostle. This is an ereader sized gem and I'm going to treasure it Smeagol style for all time.

This debut (audio)book was enjoyable. It was the Unreliable Narrator done right. There were schemes, machinations, betrayl, court juxtapositioning and misdirection aplenty. The audiobook was much more palatable than the print version. If you're having trouble soldiering through then I suggest switching things up and enjoying it auditorily!

I am at a loss as to why everyone is raving about this one. Maybe I wasn't in the right headspace. Maybe I wasn't in the demographic... or maybe we read different books entirely. Whatever the case may be, I could not finish this one. This was such a disappointment I might be off of vampire reads for a long while and I am most definitely off of Mrs. Armentrout.

Overall:
DNF 52%... Nuff said

I tried reading this book many times and I even bought it on Audible, hoping it would rectify some of the pacing problems I was having BUT no luck. I returned the audiobook unfinished, something just not done en mi casa but I think that speaks to how poorly we vibed. Now, maybe it is a me thing (quite possible), but I tried it on 2 different platforms and I just couldn't see it through... a travesty but unavoidable.

I really enjoyed this book! Besides a tame Sexy-Time scene that lasts for about 3 seconds, the book is suitable for teens through geriatrics. The story has good old Witches, Sapeshifters, Demons, Vampires, Holy men et al... AND that ending, wow! I need book #2 in my life STAT! If you like Fantastical Magical Realism infused with a variety of preternaturally occult elements culminating in a well thought out Cliffy then this book is for you!

I listened to this audiobook over the course of a few days and I was completely enamored. Star Daughter was an interesting foray into a bit of Hindu mythology that was both rich and intoxicating! The world building was robust and extremely ethereal. The writing was expressed in prose both subtle and divine. I believe this book will appeal to a myriad of bibliophiles. Pick this one up, you'll have a good time.

~ Enjoy

If a book was able to woo on technical aspects alone then The Mask of Mirrors would be a no brainer BUT, for some reason, it just didn't wow me. Even though it ticked off all of the technical boxes, it just didn't compel me or demand my undivided attention. It might be a 5 star read for others but for this gal, it was more of a drip than the tidal wave I was hoping for after reading the synopsis.

This magical period piece was incredibly charming! With loads of women fighting misogynistic societal views regarding what type of person they were expected to be, who they were allowed to associate with and whether or not they should be permitted to perform Magic plus the age old dilema of whether to fulfill family obligations vs doing what your heart desires. I'd gladly buy this book for a friend, myself or even my tween daughter!

Holy magical relic hunting this book was good! I tore through it with wild abandon and loved every second of it. I enjoyed this read with its delightfully quaint, small town witchy lore to its well crafted characters that were decidedly gray. I even fell for the insta-love that was one brash leg of a short lived love triangle. The writing was gritty and authentic feeling, the world building was solid. I definitely recommend giving this a go.

Two important factors to mention. 1) this book was published in the '60s and 2) it is a translated work. Early on, both of these facts were painfully obvious. The writing is clunky and OHHH so sexist. I wanted to like it, I truly did, but The City Among The Stars made it hard to love or even like. Unfortunately, the bottom line is that it wasn't for me and I wouldn't reccomend it to others.

I had trouble getting into this book so I read it in spurts. It felt like it could be a few books that were squished together to approximate the shape of a cohesive story. The technical aspects were all there. The writing was done well. The World Developement was rich, the Characters were likeable and it felt period appropriate. If bland Revolutionary, Alt- History, Magical Realism is your thing then you might want to give this one a go.

This YA coming of age story packs a punch! I laughed a little, I cringed a little and I cried a lot. This book was poignant in a way I haven't experienced in a long time. There are SO many feels right now having just this moment turned the last page. If you're into the YA genre. If you're into stories about people in shitty situations that manage to find a way to overcome and become their best versions, then this book is a must read!

~ Enjoy

I enjoyed this book and I adore Eoin Colfer! True to form, the characters are the best part of the book with his atypical premise coming in a close second. Ultimately I did a 180⁰ and went from wanting to quit to loving every second of it. If you are having a hard time getting into this one as well, I highly recommend persevering OR do what I did, get the audiobook... it was well worth the time... you'll laugh, cringe and cheer.
Great book!

This was an excellently written ride through a witchy town and the nightmarish forest that cradled it. It is an unputdownable read and I'm sad to have reached its end so quickly. The atmosphere was tense and thick, rife with endless (ghoulish) possibilities. I was enthralled, enraptured, and beguiled. There are definite Handmaid's Tale vibes and all sorts of Salem influences. I was creeped out and entranced at the same time. What a good read!

Although I was not as enamored with this book as much as the first, I still found this one to be a solid read. The characters are the stars of this show and you won't be bored or want for more action (eventually). This book has twists and turns and loads of action. Did I love this one? No. Was it worth the time and emotion devoted to it? YES!! Go ahead, give it a try... especially if you liked book #1!!

I loved it ...loved it... loved it with a capital L loved it! The writing is on point! The world building is impressively lush! The character development is a work of art and the overall product is sublime. Try this on Audiobook, it's intense!!

This book was fun and held my attention. It had me thinking about it even when my nose wasn't firmly planted within its pages.The writing was succinct. The characters were not only fleshed out nicely but were robust to boot. The world(s) were intriguing, intricate and unique. I truly believe it will appeal to a wide variety of readers.
*** I was given a copy of this book from LibraryThing and City Owl Press in exchange for an honest review ***