Amy Leigh Reads

A Curse So Dark and Lonely Review

April 15, 2019April 14, 2019by amyleighreads3 Comments

91lOPG2p6JL This is a dual perspective fantasy following Harper a girl who one night noticed a man dragging and unconscious woman down an alley and Rhen the crown Prince to the kingdom of Emberfall.

This was a great retelling! The original premise is there but I felt like it varied enough to keep me engaged and entertained throughout the book!

I really liked Harper. Her stubbornness and tenacity made her a very entertaining and unpredictable character. She wouldn’t back down to Grey or Rhen and she would do whatever she felt was right in the situation, even if it puts her in danger.

Rhen I found to be a little unlikeable at the beginning, but I think that was how we are supposed to perceive him because once we actually delve a little deeper into his backstory and his character throughout the course of the book I definitely warmed up to him. Especially when he started to show a bit more emotion and actually cared about what was happening outside of the castle.

I think I liked Grey a little bit more than Rhen though. He was so integral to the story and his staunchness really appealed to me. The fact that he stayed even though he wasn’t a part of the curse really proved how loyal he is to Rhen and the kingdom. I enjoyed the friendship that sparked up between him and Harper and the truthfulness that they shared between them!

Overall I really enjoyed my time reading this book! There were some passages that were a little slower paced but it was a pretty quick read for me. The plot was unique and went a completely different direction than what I originally thought it would be, which kept me intrigued. I liked how the storyline started off pretty contained and then as the book progressed it grew larger and more complex. It is a pretty good jumping off point to what I am assuming will be a series.

⭐️4/5 Dark, fierce and a little romantic…

Updates

Succumbing to the Hype 🤔

April 12, 2019April 12, 2019by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment

So I finally decided to pick up Daisy Jones and the Six and give it a try. I don’t know what it is about this book but ever since I first started hearing about it I just automatically assumed I wasn’t going to like it and I don’t know why. I absolutely loved The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo so why wouldn’t I also like another book Taylor Jenkins Reid has written? I’ve heard so many differing opinions and reviews on this book in particular because its so popular that I just have to read it and see what whether or not I agree with everyone… So far I am entertained, its a little jarring with everyone kind of introduced all at once and the jumping back and forth whilst speaking but I’m slowly getting situated! I guess I just have to keep reading to see why everyone went bonkers over this book!

Happy Reading 📚

Book Lists

5 Favourite Fictional Couples

April 11, 2019April 11, 2019by amyleighreads2 Comments

*There may be some spoilers if you haven’t read these books yet!*

These are five of my favourite fictional couples! Definitely not an all-time favourite list as I’m sure there are many more couples that I love also but these were the five that popped into my mind first!

Lucy and Josh – The Hating Game

One of my favourite tropes is the hate to love trope and I thought this was executed perfectly! This is only a recent read of mine but I feel perfectly comfortable putting these two in my top 5 favourite couples! The friction at the start of the novel and then to see the tension build throughout the storyline to their eventual romantic relationship was great to read!

514sa3HcecL

Lara Jean and Peter Kavinsky – To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

The whole premise behind this series was so endearing and fluffy and I enjoyed these two immensely! I loved how it started so impersonally with the contract and all the rules and then to see over the course of the series blossom into a full blown romance was very cute!

item_xl_8917056_9117895

Ron and Hermione – Harry Potter Series

Just simply iconic! Re-reading this series recently really reinforced how much I love these two as a couple. I was so glad that they eventually got together after years and years of wondering whether or not it was going to happen. Gratification!

6358687438948837351524740332_harry potter

Feyre and Rhysand – A Court of Thorns and Roses Series

A Court of Mist and Fury blew me away when I read it and it was mainly due to Feyre and Rhysand’s relationship! I fully thought that Rhysand was the evil, dangerous, wicked fairy that he was portrayed to be and then to dig deeper into his character and the connection with Feyre was amazing! I am trash for this series and I was very happy that Feyre ended up with Rhys and not Tamlin.

untitled

Kazi and Jase – Dance of Thieves

I loved these two together! Again it’s the hate to love trope that I cannot get enough of, just in a different scenario. Kazi as a Rahtan soldier undercover, Jase the Patriarch of the Ballenger Empire, it is just destined that they should be enemies, and yet… Oh the anticipation, the relationship, the betrayal. I loved it!

Dance of Thieves_FINAL 9.18

Reviews

The Hazel Wood Review

April 10, 2019April 11, 2019by amyleighreads1 Comment

35121240 This book follows the story of Alice who has been moving around her whole life with her mum Ella trying to outrun the bad luck that plagues them constantly. That is until Alice’s grandmother a reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood and Ella proclaims that they are free. Or are they?

The first half of the book I really enjoyed. The build-up of anticipation and tension really set the scene for the book and kept me on the edge of my seat. But the second half was a little disjointed and was a bit of a letdown. It got a little too fantastical all at once and I was a little lost in the woods. Had there been a little more information given about the Hazelwood prior to them actually entering might of made me appreciate the setting a bit more. But how it was kind of told just made me a bit confused and not really connected to what was happening.

I did enjoy the kind of mystery aspect surrounding what Althea had written, that component really intrigued me and had me wondering about what she encountered when she went missing. I like that we only got inserts from the book by Finch and how elusive it was to actually hold and read it.

Alice isn’t a favourite female protagonist of mine but I did appreciate how protective of her mother she was. How she would truly do whatever was necessary to try and find her and get her back even putting herself in danger was really courageous. But I liked the fact that she still kept secrets from her mother and tried to find out about her grandmother and the Hinterland. She was just a bit too standoffish and cold (lol) for my liking for me to personally warm to her as a character, but in the end it did make sense so that made me appreciate her.

This book is actually quite dark and a little bit macabre, the pacing was pretty fast but there were a few lulls in the plot and at times I did find myself a little confused but I pushed through and did get it in the end. The premise was very different and unique but I thought the execution and the twist wasn’t explosive enough for me.

⭐️3/5 Intriguing, dark and a little strange…

Updates

Membership Revoked!

April 9, 2019April 9, 2019by amyleighreadsLeave a Comment

I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I haven’t been utilising my local library…smh! I had a membership with them once upon a time but if you haven’t used it in the last 2 years it is revoked and its been at least 7/8 years since I’ve even stepped into the building! But I finally decided that enough is enough and went in and signed myself back up. It has gotten to the stage that there are sooooo many books that I am interested in but I’m not sure that I am going to like, so why would I buy it? If I do end up reading a book and I fall in love with it then I can buy it for myself, easy done! I thought why am I wasting my money buying complete series with 4/5 books if I’m not sure I am even going to like it? This is a very easy fix to a situation that I unnecessarily created… So with all that being said this is the haul of books that I loaned out for the next few weeks! I would really like to get to a few of them on top of my actual TBR for April but we will have to see how I go! 🙂