Tag: ya book review

Reviews

The Guinevere Deception Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on The Guinevere Deception Review

43568394This book is a retelling of the Arthurian legend. Princess Guinevere has come to Camelot to wed the charismatic King Arthur. With magic clawing at the kingdom’s borders, the great wizard Merlin sent in Guinevere his apprentice and daughter to be Arthur’s wife and his protector from those who want to see the young king’s idyllic city fail.

I actually really enjoyed Guinevere’s character. She was quite young and naïve at times, which usually bugs me but it was written in a way that endeared me to her instead. She is very determined and committed to her duties but still comes across and acts like the 16 year old that she is. She displays emotions and understands Arthur’s position yet she still yearns for his attention thus drawing herself closer to Mordred who is giving her what she wants. I think since we aren’t given her true name and identity that she is definitely not who we assume her to be, I’m thinking she has something to do with the River Queen since she is so terrified of water.

Mordred was an interesting character. He is always around and I feel has a lot more focus in this book than even Arthur. He remains quite standoffish and mysterious for the majority of the book yet I was intrigued by him and what his intentions were with Guinevere. Why was he always around her, why didn’t he expose her magic and is his feelings for her true?

Arthur didn’t get a lot of time in this book. Even though he is one of the main protagonists we don’t really get enough of him for me to be quite so invested in his character over the others. I think he definitely should have spent more time with Guinevere and kind of neglected her. I get that he was actually the one who was protecting her in the end but we don’t get enough scenes with the both of them together. I was disappointed when he didn’t go straight after her when she was kidnapped and it felt like it was a too little too late when he did eventually choose her over the kingdom.

The twists were interesting but the first half of the book was a little slower paced and we didn’t really get any answers until the right around the end, and even then there is still so much we don’t know. Hopefully the next book expands more and we are given more context and details!

⭐️3/5 stars good not great, has potential!

Reviews

The Devouring Gray Review

by amyleighreads3 Comments on The Devouring Gray Review

*Spoilers Ahead*

44564202._SY475_The Devouring Gray is about a town called Four Paths where there are four founding families who protect the town from an ancient monster that lurks in the forest surrounding the towns.

I was very much invested right from the start of this book. There is a little bit of an info dump and it took me a second to get all the characters and their names down but around the 50-100 page mark I was definitely settled into the story and wanted to know more!

I found both Justin and May to have a bit of a superiority complex, their mum as well. I thought the fact that he has deceived the whole town for so long and still revelled in their admiration for him to be a little problematic. I did appreciate how he did see the error of his ways and apologised to Harper but like she said I think it’s too little too late, especially when she found out how much of a hypocrite he is. He came across quite douchey and I couldn’t really warm up to him for the majority of the book.

Violet was an interesting character. I liked the fact that she did whatever it took to find out the truth and got every side of the story before she made a decision on who she was siding with. Finding out the history of her family was fascinating and seeing how she struggled with her sister’s death whilst in the middle of this chaos was admirable.

I really enjoyed Harper’s tenacity and determination. It’s quite heartbreaking to learn about her history with Justin and the way he ostracised her when she needed him most. I thought her anger was very much justified and I almost wish she would have made him grovel more.

Isaac was one of my favourite characters. His broodiness and staunch loyalty to Justin fascinated me and I very much wanted to find out more about him and his family and why they left. Hopefully what really happened at the time of his trial is revealed in the coming book, it was alluded to but not directly specified so I want to know more about that for sure. I thought his friendship with Violet was cute and I was thinking they were developing feelings for each other, but when he dropped that bombshell at the end of the book I wasn’t so sure.

Like a lot of people have been saying this is like an episode of Riverdale mixed with the Raven Boys and Stranger Things. The whimsical setting, the family lore and history of the town, the impending doom, the bi rep throughout, all solid plot devices that had me engaged and eager to read on!

⭐️4/5 stars I’m invested!!

Reviews

When Dimple Met Rishi Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on When Dimple Met Rishi Review

28458598This book is a fun contemporary about a girl named Dimple who has just graduated high school and is going to a 6 week course at San Francisco University where she meets Rishi. They have been brought together by their parents to hopefully get married one day, Dimple is very much opposed to the union and Rishi wanting to appease his parents has agreed.

This seems unrealistic but I have a feeling this kind of situation probably happens often. I think the fact that Dimple’s parents didn’t warn her first was a little problematic especially when they feigned innocence when she called and confronted them. But they do end up apologising and supporting Dimple’s decision in the end.

Dimple came across a little arrogant at times for me. She can be quite dramatic and doesn’t really take into consideration other people’s thoughts and opinions. She writes Rishi off pretty quickly and then once she gets to know him realises how wrong she is and then pushes him away again. It was a little frustrating and I thought it was a little ironic that she called Rishi the coward.

 I actually really enjoyed Rishi, I found him adorably naïve when it came to Dimple and their first meeting was hilariously cute. The respect he has for his parents was honourable and even though he disagrees with them in the end he was able to work it out maturely. I loved that he has a backbone and calls out inappropriate behaviour from those around him, not caring if he made people uncomfortable!

Culture really means a lot to both Dimple and Rishi and I loved that it was explored throughout the course of the plot line. Their beliefs had an impact upon every decision that they made and we see them both reflecting a lot on what their parents would think and how they would be perceived in their community.

I just thought the relationship progressed too quickly and felt a little rushed to me. I would have liked if they would have more time to cultivate their friendship before jumping straight into a quite serious relationship in the course of a month. Even though they met when they were younger it wasn’t as if they were ever friends.  Just a tad too insta-lovey for me personally!

⭐️3/5 Cute, fun, didn’t blow me away by any means!

Reviews

Winterwood Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on Winterwood Review

*Spoilers Below*

43822698This book is about a girl named Nora Walker who comes from a long line of Walker women who are rumoured to be witches. They have always lived on the edge of a haunted wood named the Winterwood that only Walker woman can traverse as finders of the mysterious objects that’s appear there.

I absolutely loved the overall premise and atmosphere of this book. I think it is definitely one of Shea Ernshaw’s strengths in her writing, I felt like I was actually there on the mountain experiencing the freezing cold along with Nora.

The history of the Walker women was super fascinating and I absolutely loved the fact that we got inserts from their history and their recipes they’ve come up with over the years. It added much needed depth and a sense of history that really reinforced the whimsical nature of these women and how each of their stories impacted Nora throughout the plot.

Nora at times I thought was a little naïve and unprepared for the situations that she walked into. Going to that party and trying to confront those boys and ending up stranded and locked in the room unable to help herself was a little frustrating at times. She definitely had the best intentions, especially when they built the fire too close to the trees, but she lacked a bit of assertiveness. Even when she was leading them to the Winterwood even though she knew they shouldn’t go in there she didn’t really do anything to prevent the situation.

The romance was a little too insta-lovey for me as well. They didn’t really know each other for that long and the fact that this girl literally went back in time to save him demonstrating how much she loved him was a tad much for me to be really convinced. If they had maybe spent a little more time together and actually cultivated a relationship I would be more inclined to believe it.

Other than that I was swept away into the story line and I just kind of enjoyed myself. The few plot twists that were thrown in there were entertaining, a few I predicted a mile away and others, especially Nora’s magical ability I didn’t see coming at all!

⭐️4/5 stars A quick, fun, kind of spooky, ominous read!

Reviews

A Winter’s Promise Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on A Winter’s Promise Review

40969531._SX318_Better than I was expecting!

This book is about a girl called Ophelia who is able to read inanimate objects and travel through mirrors. She can trace the origins of the object and is able to glean the owner’s thoughts at the time of touching the object.

Ophelia is one of those main protagonists who doesn’t see herself as special and would describe herself as scraggly and ugly. She doesn’t have much self-confidence, is timid and at the start just succumbs to the rules and regulations set forth by her and Thorn’s family. Usually when we have female main protagonists like this I end up hating them and becoming disinterested in the story but because the plot line was so compelling I was still very much engaged. She does show some growth over the course of the story line and develops a little more of a backbone, demanding answers and figuring out what was actually happening.

Thorn we didn’t see enough of in the book in my opinion. I was very interested in his character, especially his broodiness, which just appeals to me. Gradually we find out a little more about him and his background, why he is estranged from the rest of the Dragon clan. The twist at the end where Ophelia finds out he’s actually the one calling the shots confused me at first but as his plans become clear it does make sense.  I’m hoping he is a little more present in the next book. The banter between him and Ophelia was entertaining and I am starting to see a connection between the two of them, I’m interested to see how that progresses.

I loved the premise of the book; I found it highly unique and fresh. The world building could have been a little more developed; I was a little confused about the whole ark situation and what kind of world they are actually in. I would love a bit more history and origins of the different clans. I definitely want to find out more about what spurred the animosity between the different clans and how the heads of the families came to be! The magic system is what really grabbed my attention within the novel. How each of the different clans specialises in something and how that speciality manifests uniquely in each person. 

⭐️4/5 I’m intrigued, engaged and want to know more!