Blood Rose Rebellion

Quick heads up: I actually had some pictures taken, but I had over exposed them and rather than not wait an extra day to post this I thought I would post without. 

Blood Rose Rebellion

Rosalyn Eves

Blood Rose Rebellion, Book #1

This book was full of surprises. Honestly, I went into it with a set of expectations based on other books that this sounded like and I had read in the past, which really isn’t the best way to go into a book because it’s pretty unfair to both the current read and past ones. But as I read it—and let me clear this up, I actually listened to it on audible (and the narrator is absolutely stellar)—I would make guesses about where it was going and the ilk, only to find myself pretty much completely wrong the entire time. And not because the book is trying to surprise the reader in the same way something like Game of Thrones is, but because the story was just that original. I don’t know why more people aren’t talking about this one because it definitely deserves a lot more hype. 

Legendary

Legendary

Stephanie Garber

Caraval, Book #2

Related Reviews: Caraval

I loved Caraval back when I read it, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that I went into Legendary expecting to love it. I was feeling a bit iffy about Tella being the narrator because I really didn’t see much potential based on her role in Caraval, but that worry turned out to be totally unfounded as she turned out to be an awesome main character. I was also worried that the new setting wouldn’t be able to capture all the magic of the original, but, again, totally unfounded because I was as in love with this new city as I was with the last.

Dating Apps & Loving Myself First

This isn’t my regular type of post; in fact, it’s not book related at all. But it’s something I needed and wanted to get off my chest and this is one of my favorite digital spheres to inhabit. I’m not going to say this is the start of a new blogging “feature” per se, but I will warn you that I’m not closing the door to making more of these on here in the future. I doubt they’ll be very frequent, but I’m not closing the door on that either. Anyway, don’t worry, I have more bookish posts coming, but I needed to publish this first.

Rave Review: Vicious

Vicious

VE Schwab

The Villains, Book #1

I Love This Book. It is, in fact, one of the best books I've ever read and I have a feeling I will always rate it highly. Reading this book feels like keeping a secret close to your heart (although it's not a secret since everyone's pretty much already read this one, and also I alone have told about two dozen people they need to get on it). It's somewhat frightening, somewhat enchanting, and definitely extraordinary.

May and June Wrap Up + Updates

Hello dear readers! It's been ages since a wrap up, which is how I knew it was time to post one. I'm pretty proud of the amount of reading I've been able to accomplish this summer, and also the amount of reviews I've been able to write. It has been slow, but it's also been steady (and you can expect next month to have more posts because I have a bit of a backlog at this point, oops). I know the last wrap up promised a lot, but those promises have to stay on hold for just a little longer. My new job has kept me busier than intended and I'm still adjusting.

Finished

The Eye of the Queen

Tess of the Road

The Humans

All That She Can See

A Midsummer Night's Dream

To Kill a Kingdom

Assassin's Apprentice

The Dressmaker and the Prince

Circles in the Stream

Starlings

Be Prepared

Vicious

The Hunter's Moon

Blood Rose Rebellion

Leviathan Wakes

All Summer Long

Legendary

Upcoming Posts

Reviews for Vicious, Blood Rose Rebellion, Leviathan Wakes, and Legendary are in the works, as well as a combined review of The Dressmaker and the Prince, Be Prepared, and All Summer Long.

I'll also (finally) be posting my spoiler-filled review of Infinity War and another installment in "debut's to be excited for".

Currently Reading

I'm just shy of 100 pages in The Cruel Prince, which I'm enjoying but also not seeing what all the hype was for (yet, at least), and then I'll be reading West, My Lady Jane, and Caliban's War. I'm also hoping to stop at the library and stock up on some spur-of-the-moment books.

Upcoming Reads

I have a bunch of books I really want to get to this summer and while it's still to far away to say for certain when I'll get to them, I thought I'd share.

Letter for the King

Call for the Dead

Bluets

My Plain Jane

Circe

Google It!

Sky in the Deep

 The Wrath and the Dawn

Any books you recommend that I must, must, MUST pick up?

Starlings

Starlings

Jo Walton

Goodreads Link

I received an eGalley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

(This also means that any quotes may not read the same in the final copy.)

"[...] a universe without pain is a universe without change, without movement, without stories [...] What you have to ask yourself is whether the pain is necessary for the story."

Sometimes I request a book, receive it, and then forget why I requested it. It's a bad habit of requesting every shiny book that comes across my path and something I'm trying to stop doing. This book, though, was the most magical surprise and the best thing to come out of my bad habits. In fact, Starlings may be my favorite read of the year. It's definitely up there and it's definitely been something that changed my life for the better.

This book is a collection of short stories and poems by Jo Walton. I've never read Jo Walton before this (though I promise I'll be devouring everything she's put out). I do, however, work on a genre literary magazine for my school, and the stories here (the fact that they are not at all conventional short stories and genre short stories on top of that) reminded me of Quiver (my magazine) so much. It made my heart soar to find that in the wider world there is a home for stories like these.

Assassin's Apprentice

Assassin's Apprentice

Robin Hobb

Farseer Trilogy, Book #1

This is one of those series' I've had on my shelf for way too long. I bought them with the intention of reading them pretty much immediately and then never actually did. But a few weeks ago, in Gatwick airport, I was anxious for my flight and needed to buy something to calm myself down so I bought another copy of this book. And then I actually did immediately start reading it. I think I read more on that flight than any other flight I've ever been on, I was that engrossed in the book. And this book was nothing like I expected it to be. Not only was it a really good fantasy novel, but it was deep and dark and beautiful and it made me cry because of how close the story touched me. I don't think I've been this moved by a "traditional" fantasy novel in a long time.

Writing Update

Hello dear readers! I actually wrote a version of this post three weeks ago but I never published it because it had ceased to be accurate. Like most times I had bitten off more than I could chew and had really grand plans to write a novel this summer. One can dream, can't they? Well, my new job, while only part time, does take more energy than I had planned and every time I sat down to work on my novel words would not come out at all. It was a terrible case of both writer's block and lack of motivation to write anything, so I stepped back and reevaluated my plans because I still wanted to write this summer and I settled on a happy medium that I couldn't be more excited to share with you all, now.

Quick digression: I do plan to try and do writing update's every month or so because I like the idea of keeping you updated with how this is going. Both for my own motivation and because it's fun to talk about my current projects.

I've decided to work on a passion project of mine that I've been too afraid to try and attempt because it at once seems like a huge task and a very personal one because it definitely deals with a lot of the internal things I deal with. And that project is a collection of original fairy tales.

So far I know three of the stories that will be in there. One of them is a novel I worked on and finished last year (or maybe it was two years ago at this point). You may remember me talking about a project called The Queen's Ransom. Originally the idea for that was a novella but I reshaped it into a novel with really poor results. I want to take it back to the original novella format and high light the fairy tale aspects like it originally wanted to be. (When I wrote it as a novel it became more focused on a quest portion and not the Grimm fairy tale vibe I really wanted for it.) The other two are more traditionally structured fairy tale stories. The first one I'm working on is tentatively titled The Winter King and the other very, very tentatively titled The Thames Spirit.

I've begun writing The Winter King and have been handwriting it on scraps. I want to finish handwriting it before the end of the day on the 12th and I think as long as I put time aside I should be fine, I'm already about a third of the way through. I'm then going to type it up and edit it a bit as I type, make it more cohesive and such. After that I'll do a proper edit and send it out to some friends I trust.

That's where I am with writing so far this summer and I hope to finish at least two of the stories in the collection before I have to go back to school. As of right now I don't really have a title for the collection (though I would like it to be an ode to Midsummer Night's Dream, I think) so I'll probably just continue to refer to it as my fairy tale book.

I'd love to talk shop with people so feel free to hit me up on twitter or even in the comments here. I hope everyone is having a great summer so far and thanks for sticking around!

To Kill A Kingdom

To Kill a Kingdom

Alexandra Christo

Goodreads Link

I received an eGalley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

This book has gotten a lot of love from the community lately. I keep seeing it appear on my feeds when people tote it as one of their favorite reads of the year so far. I really wish I could have been one of those people because I was looking forward to it. Sirens are pretty much always a win with me, so are fairy tale retellings. AND pirates. But even though it had all three the book just failed to grab me the way I wish it could have. I will say, it was a good book in the fact that it told a story beginning to end and was satisfying with it's conclusion. There are so rarely standalone novels in YA and I do appreciate that this did a good job in that category. I will also say I wouldn't say no to a spinoff featuring Madrid... but that's just me.

Tess of the Road

Tess of the Road

Rachel Hartman

Tess of the Road, Book 1

Seraphina Review

I read Seraphina a while ago, back when I first got my Net Galley account, so I think it’s safe to say I have a bit of a foggy memory on what exactly happened during it. I still remembered, roughly the world of the book… okay, no, that’s kind of a lie I only remembered that there are dragons that look like people and that Seraphina herself was a half-dragon, which was not a good thing for her. And then I never read the sequel, even though I really enjoyed the first. Because it was so long between Seraphina and Tessthere was a lot of important world building I had completely forgotten, or even missed because I skipped book two, and I will admit that it hindered my experience of the book a bit. There were just some tidbits that it was expected the reader to know going into it, and while none of these were plot-changing, they were plot-relevant, so I’d recommend reading the originals (which are an absolute treat) before diving into this one.

Summer Comment Challenge Participation & Life Updates!

Hello lovelies, it's been some time! I didn't intend for such a large gap in my blogging to happen (it's been a week and a half but it feels like much longer on my end) but it did because my time in London ran short and quickly. Right now I am actually writing this from my own bed, in my own room, surrounded by all my books, with my window open. It's so surreal to be back here and I am so happy about it. But traveling, plus packing, plus unpacking has led to little reading and even less blogging. I feel bad about it especially considering how many blog posts I have planned! In fact... here are some of the posts you should be able to expect as the month winds down:A general life update (talking about time in London and looking forward towards the future)

• The Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down review I promised here
• A spoiler-filled review of Avengers: Infinity War
• mini reviews for I Kill Giants & Coco
• Tess of the Road book review
• writing update

I'm also currently powering through Assassin's Apprentice (a very unexpected book I picked up in the airport) and can guarantee a review for this one sooner than later. After this I'll be reading Starlings (an ARC I have), finishing up Leviathan Wakes (it's really good I just got pulled away and distracted), West (an ARC I have; I read East last year and enjoyed it), Blood Rose Rebellion, Letter for the King (an ARC I have), and Bluets (it was my secret Santa gift last Christmas but sadly didn't arrive until I had already left for London). Barring Bluets I think it's safe to say you can look for reviews of all of these (though since West and Letter for the King come out much, much later in the year those reviews may be pushed back quite a bit).

Something else I'm participating in this season is the comment challenge hosted by Lonna @ FLYLēF and Alicia @ A Kernel of Nonsense! I participated for a bit last summer (or was it two summers ago?... I've lost track of things so badly) and loved it. I'm so happy to be able to participate again and will be partaking every month this summer. The Comment Challenge is one of my absolute favorite ways to connect to the book community and make new friends and I 100% recommend participating! Sign up here; you won't regret it!

I hope you all join in on the fun because it really is a blast. And I promise to be better about posting going forward into this month.

Introduction to Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down

Welcome to a new feature on this blog! Normally I wouldn't do a whole post talking about the why's and what's of a feature, but because this isn't like anything I've done here before I thought it would be a good idea to preface it. Basically, thumbs up/thumbs down is going to be a unique rating system used when rating and reviewing a certain type of book. This isn't replacing my old way of reviewing, it's just supplementing it in a way.

So, what's this idea? Well, I'm glad you asked. The basic idea is I go hunting through used books for a book that meets these qualifications:

1. I've never heard of it
2. It's a sci-fi or fantasy published before 2000
3. It has a corny cover
4. It has a corny description
5. I can go into it a blank slate with no expectations

Basically, it's a campy old SF&F novel that's probably out of print and may not even be that good. And then I read and review it. How is this a feature or that different from a regular review? Because I'm going into this novel expecting nothing but hoping to have a good time. Even if it's awful I want to read it start to finish and then discuss. And discuss in pretty good detail as if it's a classic novel they might teach in school. Because of this, the reviews are going to look different than normal reviews, also. Structured like:

1. Anecdotal where I got the book/first impressions
2. Summary/spoiler filled explanation of what happens in the book
3. Basic review: did I like it, was I surprised, would I recommend
4. Detailed discussion, possibly with quotes and proof

So, yes, that's the plan. The first of these will be up tomorrow and I'm hoping to do about one a month maybe. I won't say much about the book yet, but I hope you all stick around to see what this feature turns out to be. And, if you have a book recommendation that you think will fit the qualifications please let me know and I may try to hunt down a copy.

The Girl of Ink and Stars

The Girl of Ink and Stars

Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Goodreads Link

When I picked this up I was really in the mood for a children's lit book and it was being featured on a table at the bookstore. While I still really enjoyed it I wasn't really in that mindset anymore when I got around to reading it. Still, it's a pretty good read and I'm glad to be adding it to my collection. One aesthetic complaint I have (that didn't really affect my review of this book I'm just being a little picky here) is that the map on the inside doesn't really make sense. It's very minimalist and while it's a nice touch it didn't quite line up with how things are described in the book. And I tried to follow it. Look, I love maps in fantasy stories so this was just a bit disappointing.

Avengers Infinity War

This is going to be a SPOILER FREE discussion/review of the movie. I'm a huge fan of this franchise and will, honestly, be doing quite a bit of gushing in the following paragraphs. Honestly I have pretty much nothing bad to say about this movie and I think it was ample reward for ten years of following this franchise pretty closely. That being said, there's definitely things to talk about in more spoilery detail and a follow up post with that kind of information will be coming in the next week or so.

Quick Life Update

Hey everyone sorry for the sporadic posting lately. I was working on my final essay for Junior Year and now it is turned in and I am one year closer to graduation and the real world. What a ride! Tomorrow I'll be back to posting regularly and there shouldn't be much to interrupt since I don't exactly have a practical job this summer. I think I'll be posting a longer life update at some point in the near future reflecting on my time abroad and my time as a junior. Everything I learned this year and what I intend to learn next year. Also, what my summer plans are since they're very interesting. Talk to you all soon!

Frequently Used Words In YA Fantasy Titles

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl and you can click her to join up in the fun. This week is frequently used words in [insert genre] books. I think we can all agree that there's only so much originality in titles these days but it's often a bit of fun to point these things out. Without further ado:

17 2019 Debuts To Be Excited For (Already)

It's never to early to get excited for a new release and I often find myself perusing Goodreads looking far into the future to see what's coming out down the pipeline. A lot of times all I get for a description is a X meets X kinda thing, but it's finally getting to that time of year when full descriptions are coming out for some 2019 debuts. I spent several hours looking through Goodreads and compiling this list of books that I'm genuinely excited for and I hope to make you excited, too.

I did something similar to this in April of 2016 which, whoah, that's a long time ago, and I'd like to bring that tradition back. Last go around I had a few interviews with authors and I'm going to be reaching out again because that was such a fun way to connect. But, anyway, that's pretty far in the future at this point, but do look for bi-monthly updates on these releases.

Now, without further ado, let's get excited:

Sandman Slim

Sandman Slim

Richard Kadrey

Sandman Slim, Book 1

There are some light SPOILERS down below. I don't give away anything super important to the plot but I do talk about certain things in depth. While it won't ruin your experience reading it if you're wary of any spoilers at all you may want to skip.

Sandman Slim has sat on my kindle unread for I don't even know how long at this point. I first downloaded it sometime around when I discovered The Dresden Files and urban fantasy as a genre but never got around to it even though the title, cover, and description had me incredibly intrigued. Plus, like Dresden Files, it's a pretty large series so I would have plenty to bite into. Now, after having discovered Lucifer, the show not the comic (as soon as I get home it's on top of my list though), and being on another urban fantasy kick (plus Kadrey having written for the Lucifer comics) I decided it was finally time to sit down and read this one. And I must say, I feel like it was a bit of a waste of time.

March & April (So Far) Wrap Up + Updates

Hello everyone! Look at me, actually on top of my game recently and posting regularly. Who'd have thought? In my last update I talked about how I've been away from home and how that hasn't resulted in stress, exactly, it has resulted in my time being taken up by different things. Well, that flipped didn't it? I've actually been dealing with a lot of stress and anxiety at the moment, and while that hasn't kept me from posting or reading it has made it harder, which is why I'm doubly proud of myself for posting and interacting as much as I have. Classes are done for me and I've only got one essay left (due early next month so there's plenty of time) and now that I've let myself unwind I am feeling pretty relaxed and overall enjoying the nice weather and free time. (I've also been writing again but there's not much to say on that front... yet.)

Honestly things have been pretty low-key and I have little to report on the personal front except that I'm seriously homesick for my bookshelves. But there are a lot of changes-- or should I say new features?-- coming to the blog and I couldn't be more excited!

Top Ten Books I Wish Would Be Adapted as Movies or Television

Top Ten Tuesday is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Every week a new prompt is posted and you can participate by visiting her blog and linking up.

This week was a freebie so I thought I'd do something I've been thinking about a lot: which books I've read that I think will do well as televisions or movies. I'm not counting three of my favorite series-- ACOTAR, Throne of Glass, and The Kingkiller Chronicles-- because they're all on their own little paths to being adapted at the moment. Suffice it to say I'm pretty excited for all those adaptations. Here are some books that I have no idea where they stand in Hollywood at the moment but dearly hope my wishes will come true and someday they'll be on screen.

Now, in no particular order, here they are:

The Song of Seven

The Song of Seven

Tonke Dragt

Goodreads Link

I received an eGalley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

"Does that happen often? he wondered. That the stories you dream up aren't just fantasy, but came from somewhere and really happened, in another time, in another place, without you knowing it?"

One of the perks of being a review is getting the opportunity to review translated stories. In America, or at least the Midwest, it's hard to find anything translated unless it's already famous. Here, in the UK, it's much easier to just stumble across translated fiction and fantasy, and it's definitely an area of the bookstore I'd love to spend more time. There are so many lovely stories out there not originally in English and reading them just expands my heart. But I digress; let me speak of this book particularly. Originally The Song of Seven was written in Dutch and published in 1966. Recently it was republished with a new English translation. While it's definitely a book intended for younger readers it doesn't talk down to the readers (as some middle grade can do) but treats them as equals. Honestly, I think it's the perfect book to read to kids; the experiencing of reading a book about storytelling is just so poetic and perfect.

The Art of Asking

The Art of Asking

Amanda Palmer

Goodreads

This may be the most important book I've read all year, if ever. I think it's also the only book I've  read that I whole-heartedly recommend to everyone I know and will continue to recommend to every person I meet. The Art of Asking is a nonfiction memoir type book written by the amazing Amanda Palmer. I picked it up because one of my friends had recommended it and because I had picked up some tickets to see Amanda in Brighton in May (so excited for this, by the way). My audible credit came right on time and, honestly, I recommend listening to the book (at least the first time you read it; definitely a book worth reading more than once) because she narrates it herself and it drives home a lot of the points in really emotional ways. I can already tell this is going to be less of a review and more of a post where I try to convince you to read this book. Let's get started:

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

Douglas Adams

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Book 2

The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Review

I can say, far and away, as much as I enjoyed the first in this series, the second one is really the better book. I can also say, based on my limited experience with the series so far, that you will enjoy these books all the more if you read them right after one another. Because, really, as much as they are individual books, they really aren't the "proper" sort of books one might be used to reading and they just kind of bleed into and fall on top of one another as they go along. There's little distinction between the end of one and the beginning of the next. Which is, honestly, what makes this a better book than the first one.

Sky Song

Sky Song

Abi Elphinstone

Goodreads Link

Can we just take a moment to bask in how gorgeous this book is? And it's even prettier in person with stained edges and everything. 

Alright, but seriously, I picked this book up because of how lovely it was. I had no idea what it was about and I didn't really care. I think it was also discounted by one get one half off so I picked up another beautiful middle grade at the same time. Regardless, this was a spur of the moment purchasing decision and I don't regret it in the least.

Top Ten Books On My Spring TBR

It's been a while since I partook in this meme (in fact, the last time I posted was April 2016) but now that I have my feet under me again I'm ready to participate. I know I won't be posting every week but I think it's safe to say this will become a regular part of Tsundoku again.

Top Ten Tuesday is now hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. Every week a new prompt is posted and you can participate by visiting her blog and linking up.

In no particular order here are the top ten books I am excited to dive into this season:

Poison's Cage

Poison's Cage

Breeana Shields

Poison's Kiss, Book 2

Poison's Kiss Review

I received an eGalley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

I really enjoyed book one in this series so I had high hopes going into this one. It wasn't a bad read at all, and it was just as quick and easy to get through as book one. However, while it did all the proper things a sequel should do, and even wrapped the series up nice and neatly, it also fell through for me a bit. Not to say this is a bad book because it's not, but it didn't make me fall in love the way book one did.

January & February Wrap Up + Updates

It seems like it's been forever since I've posted one of these, but really, the last one was in December so it hasn't been that long. Last time I posted I promised some giveaways to celebrate my three year anniversary blogging, and rest assured I still want to do something, even as it gets later and later. There will be three giveaways, but please don't expect to see anymore information posted for a while yet. As you may have noticed I've been pretty silent on the blog until recently and that's the way things have to be right now.

It hasn't been stress, exactly, that I've let keep me from reading and blogging, it's that I've been away from home. I'm currently living in London and studying here and my time has been taken up by exploring, meeting people, and taking classes. February was a good month for reading, though, because for the first time I feel as if I've mastered the balance of school and pleasure and things have been going really well on that front. I've also put almost no pressure on myself to blog. For the time being I'm tackling blogging the way I used to: after I read a book, if I have things to say about it, I write the review and post it then and there. I don't let it sit until the time is right to publish the post. I don't worry about scheduling. I don't worry about being professional. I worry about having fun and enjoying this hobby. And things are looking up because of all of this.

The Hazel Wood

The Hazel Wood

Melissa Albert

The Hazel Wood, Book 1

I received a copy of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Earlier this year I gave Good Omens five stars, but going into that one I had a pretty good feeling about it, since it was by my two favorite authors, and even though I loved it to death it didn't inspire anything in me beyond what a normal book does. It was just, simply, a really REALLY good read. But this book... Oh man, The Hazel Wood is my first true, five-star, one hundred percent in love with it, book of the year.

Poison's Kiss

Poison's Kiss

Breeana Shields

Poison's Kiss, Book 1

This was one of my most anticipated books last year, but like many things, it got swept off to the side when other, new, shiny books kept coming out. In fact, it was only that I got an ARC of book two (that review coming soon) that finally convinced me to sit down and read this one. Most of the reading was done while I was traveling and I can, one hundred percent, say this is a perfect book for flights and train rides because it's quick, easy to digest, and has a really solid main character and setting to get lost in.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Douglas Adams

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Book 1

Book Depository Link

I have, for just about forever, been on the lookout for matching covers of these books and finally they have been found! That's really the only reason I haven't started this series before now. It's a classic science fiction series that has always been, in my mind, something I need to read before I die. It's also been a nice experience to begin these while in London (it means I can go buy a towel at Marks & Spencers if nothing else, hehe), because it strikes me as a rather British book.

Unearthed

Unearthed

Amie Kaufman & Megan Spooner

Unearthed, Book 1

Book Depository Link

I received a copy of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

This is my first Kaufman/Spooner book that I've read, which seems a bit like a sin considering how long I've had their other series sitting on my shelf. I've heard tons of good things and I also loved Illuminae, which Kaufman had a hand in. This book, though, was a bit of a let down. I think a lot of early info was praising it as Indiana Jones/Tomb Raider in space, which it essentially is, and which is actually a great idea, but just didn't do much for me. A side note before the proper review: even though I had an egalley of this, I actually listened to it on audiobook, which I can strongly recommend because I thought the two voice actors were pretty fantastic.

The Girl in the Tower

The Girl in the Tower

Katherine Arden

Winternight Trilogy, Book 2

The Bear and the Nightingale

Book Depository Link

I received a copy of this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

A few notes: It was an exciting day when an ARC of this book came in the mail because I couldn't wait to dig right in. But I had a few other books lined up first and few months before the release so I pushed it off... and right into my reading slump. Sadly I couldn't bring the ARC with me to London, but I did have a copy on my kindle and was able to read a finished copy. I also want to make clear that the rating for this falls a lot closer to 4.5 than 5, because this has been the first book this year to make my heart rage and love and cry this much.

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch

Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett

Goodreads Link

Book Depository Link

I'm a big fan of both Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett (RIP) so the fact that I never got around to picking up one of their greatest works, if not one of the greatest works in all of literature (don't @ me), is a bit sad. I had only high expectations going into this and I was not let down. Where did it start for me: my car, evening, some gushers, and a half hour break from work. Not even a page into the story and laughing so hard the car is shaking. I won't tell you why, I won't ruin the joke. Let me tell you, I did not stop laughing the entire time. It was a wonderful rollercoaster good time, even as the Bad Times were happening. And don't let that make you think there isn't an emotional underpinning that will absolutely gut you. As I turned the last page and ventured into the author notes I did so with wet cheeks and blurry vision. This is a book you should read and should read now.

The King of Bones and Ashes

JD Horn

Witches of New Orleans #1

Book Depository

Release Date: January 23rd, 2018

I received an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Reading this book could not have come at a more perfect time for me! I was craving something really autumn-y and early winter-y and witches were on my mind quite a bit. I requested this book way before I realized how badly I wanted a good witch story but I'm so glad I did because it really filled the gap I was looking for. Something I do want to mention before I go further-- I'm pretty sure this is a companion series and not a spinoff series to JD Horn's Witching Savannah series. That one has actually been on my TBR for a while and now I'm more keen than ever to pick it up.

Since it is a companion series there's little to no info-dump world building and I loved that. The reader is immediately thrust into the world and the lives of these witches and not even given that much information on how magic even works or what it can do, but because it plays by pretty familiar "witch-rules" it's pretty unnecessary. The author takes advantage of the pop culture idea of a witch and both plays into that magic system and works their own as they go. The politics between the different groups was also not spelled out for readers, as it shouldn't be, and is unravelled naturally and well. The subtle world building works so well here, also, because it is more urban fantasy than  straight-up paranormal story.

As I tend to say with every review-- it is the characters that make or break a book for me-- and I have to lean towards... they make the book for me. There are several narrators and the one I loved most was Alice. For me she was both the most interesting and most promising in terms of storytelling. The other narrators were good... but there were so many of them! I don't have an issue with multiple narrators (and in fact, I loved all the female power these women narrators had!) but sometimes I had a hard time connecting with them or figuring out why they were really important, or at least important enough to warned POV chapters. That being said, every narrator had a very clear and defined voice that I truly appreciated, as sometimes authors can get bogged down telling the story and not defining character voices. Something I find incredibly interesting is that I often loved the side characters and connected with them more than the main characters (looking at you Lucy, the real MVP of this book) and felt like sometimes they were even more three dimensional than those whose minds we got to peek into. One last note on characters: the diversity among them was so great! It's so lovely to read about women from all types of walks of life, from race to sexuality to class, without feeling like they were forced in there as token's for the white hero.

While the plot was nice and tight, something I always appreciate, it wasn't the driving force of the novel for me. I never forgot what it was, mostly because it was a pretty basic plot, but I was also never quite invested in it the way I wish I could have been. There certainly weren't any tangents and I also appreciated that it took place over such a short period of time while keeping the stakes pretty high, but this is what really kept the book a step away from being truly amazing.

TL;DR If you're looking for something that reads like a good autumn night and features of diverse cast of women, then you've found the perfect book. With a tight plot, easy to understand magic system and world, and really well developed side characters, this one is a keeper. It has a few short falls, but nothing that couldn't be fixed in a sequel.

From the bestselling author of the Witching Savannah series comes the first book in a fascinating trilogy following the quest of a young witch to uncover her family’s terrifying secret history…
Magic is seeping out of the world, leaving the witches who’ve relied on it for countless centuries increasingly hopeless. While some see an inevitable end of their era, others are courting madness—willing to sacrifice former allies, friends, and family to retain the power they covet. While the other witches watch their reality unravel, young Alice Marin is using magic’s waning days to delve into the mystery of numerous disappearances in the occult circles of New Orleans. Alice disappeared once, too—caged in an asylum by blood relatives. Recently freed, she fears her family may be more involved with the growing crisis than she ever dared imagine.
Yet the more she seeks the truth about her family’s troubled history, the more she realizes her already-fragile psyche may be at risk. Discovering the cause of the vanishings, though, could be the only way to escape her mother’s reach while determining the future of all witches.

JD Horn was raised in rural Tennessee, and has since carried a bit of its red clay in him while travelling the world, from Hollywood, to Paris, to Tokyo. He studied comparative literature as an undergrad, focusing on French and Russian in particular. He also holds an MBA in international business and worked as a financial analyst before becoming a novelist. . He and his spouse, Rich, and their pets have settled (at least temporarily) outside Sisters, Oregon.

Cover linked to Goodreads; cover, description, and author bio taken from Goodreads.
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