Tag: ya review

Reviews

Aurora Rising Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on Aurora Rising Review

They’re not the heroes we deserve. They’re just the ones we could find. Nobody panic.

9781760295738This was amazing!

Tyler is the best cadet at the Aurora Academy and he is about to recruit the best squad the academy has ever seen. That is until an incident occurs that forces him to miss the draft and he ends up with the dregs that nobody wanted.

I liked that the story was told in multiple perspectives; it really gave me the chance to get to know each of these highly distinctive characters individually. Granted at times I was a little confused as to whose perspective I was reading from but as I got a feel for each of the characters that went away pretty quickly.

I really enjoyed the whole premise and concept of the story, it felt really unique and original. I had qualms before reading this that it would remind me a lot of the Illuminae Files but I really didn’t get that at all. This is a completely fresh and creative plot that had me highly engaged throughout.

Aurora felt a little soft spoken and passive at the start of the book, but granted she had just woken out of being in cryo for 200 years in the fold so I wasn’t expecting her to come out guns blazing. I could really feel how lost and lonely she was, and how she was trying to come to terms with the fact that everyone she has ever known is dead basically. I like how she almost subtly evolves over the course of the story and she starts to get a feel for who she truly is.

Also the fact that even though Tyler is the one that saves Aurora they aren’t going to end up together. I thought for sure that these two are going to fall in love as they are the main male and female protagonists, but I don’t think that is going to happen, which was a nice twist I didn’t see coming. I like that the history between Tyler and Cat is valued and isn’t immediately dismissed because Aurora came into the picture.

I liked learning about the different species of Aliens and how they each have their own look and customs. I really took a shine to Kal; his broodiness and angst really captured my attention.  I am a sucker for a bad boy! Finding out about his history and the different clans of the Syldrathi and how their whole species was nearly eradicated and how he bonded with Aurora was touching!

I for some reason didn’t think I was going to like this book. I thought maybe since Illuminae was so good they wouldn’t be able to top it, but I love me a ragtag group of misfits who somehow fit together and have to save the world. The whole dynamic between Tyler and Scarlett and how everyone else seems to fit in so well despite being so different really pulls me in and has me wanting to see them succeed!

⭐️5/5 stars blew me away!!!

Reviews

The Poet X Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on The Poet X Review

y648This was wonderful!

The Poet X follows the story of Xiomara (X) who has had her guard up her entire life. Ever since she developed curves living in her Harlem neighborhood she has had to literally use her fists and fight for her right to be heard.

I loved the concept of this book and the way it was formatted. I think this was the first time that I read a book that was written entirely in verse and even though there wasn’t as many words on the page I feel that I got more of a grasp of the story and X’s feelings through the way she expressed herself in her poems. It really painted a picture in my mind of what X had to deal with on a daily basis and how through her passion for writing and poems she was finally able to find her voice.

X is such a relatable character. I can see so many young girls picking this book up and seeing themselves reflected in the words being written. There is a real feeling of isolation for many young girls out there that X evoked so well throughout the course of the book. It honestly brought me back to my own teenage years and had me reflecting on how I felt at that time of my life.

Even though it was a relatively short book there was a lot of growth shown in all of the characters. At the start X seems really angry with the world and almost resents being a girl and is jealous of her brother even though she is the strong one who always fights for him. She subtly softens throughout the course of the plot line and even though she has to endure so much through her mother and her religious beliefs she really comes out of the other side stronger and more at peace with herself.

It was really fascinating to see the way that something as innocent as writing down your innermost feelings in poems and kissing a boy on the subway could be construed as such a shameful act that literally brought Xiomara’s whole world down around her. I would have liked to see her brother stand up for her a little more seeing as how she was his protector for so many years, especially since her mother loves him so much. But I can understand why, he also had this whole other life that he was trying to protect for himself and he didn’t want to have that exposed like how X’s was. I just felt like she took most of the brunt of her mother’s wrath and he could of lessened it a lot more had he said something.

I adored this book, I loved the diversity of the characters, the setting, the concept, it all really come together beautifully into what I think is a compulsory read for everyone!

⭐️5/5 A MUST Read!!!

Reviews

Vow of Thieves Review

by amyleighreads3 Comments on Vow of Thieves Review

*THERE ARE A FEW SPOILERS*

34196663Absolutely loved this!

Vow of Thieves continues on about a month after the ending of Dance of Thieves. Kazi and Jase are on their way back to Tor’s Watch to let everyone know that the Ballenger’s will no longer be outlaws, they will be recognized as the First Kingdom in the Empire. However, a warning they receive on the journey forces them to rush back and they are ambushed on the road before they enter town.

I really love the direction the plot went. I assumed all of the conflict in the book was going to be between Kazi and the family trying to rebuild the trust that was broken at the end of Dance of Thieves, but I enjoyed this storyline so much more! Straight off the bat Jase and Kazi are thrust apart after being together constantly and are fighting tirelessly to be reunited all while trying to topple the King and reassert their power over Tor’s Watch.

All of the torture and imprisonment that Kazi had to deal with over the course of the book and still not break and relent was an amazing feat. She really proved how committed and in love she is with Jase after she assumed he was dead and to still stuck around and complied with the Kings’ demands in order to save the kids. She endured so much and come out of it still swinging which I love about her!

Jase also really proved his commitment to Kazi above all else. I really thought for a minute that he would focus on overthrowing the King and assuming his Patrei role but he was insistent upon getting better in order to go and find Kazi. The level of dedication he has for her over his family as the Patrei and the wrath he shows when he finds out they handed her over to the King was wonderful to read. You can really see the depth of his love for her and just the way that he expresses that to his family in his rage really encompasses everything that they’ve dealt with thus far. That was a really pivotal moment in the book for me, and the remorsefulness and guilt that they show after the fact proves to me that they are a real family and would do anything for their own.

This book was really a roller coaster from start to finish. Usually with political fantasy I get bored easily and loose interest but the amount of action and intrigue packed into this storyline really grabbed my attention and was highly engaging throughout the course of the book. There was some really touching and emotional moments spattered throughout the plot as well that tugged at my heartstrings and even brought a tear to my eye. I absolutely loved this book and this duology in my opinion really built on the foundation that the Remnant Chronicles forged and just surpassed it!

⭐️5/5 stars AMAZING 100% RECOMMEND

Reviews

King of Fools Review

by amyleighreads3 Comments on King of Fools Review

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

44783320._SY475_After I completed Ace of Shades I immediately knew I had to pick up King of Fools straight away!

King of Fools continues immediately after the events of Ace of Shades. Enne saved Levi’s life in the Shadow Game and now her identity of Séance has become a legend around New Reynes. Now that the Chancellor of the Republic is dead both Enne and Levi have massive bounties placed on their heads. With a street war brewing and the Vianca forcing them to play a dangerous game of crime and politics their demise seems imminent!

There was quite a lot of political maneuverings happening with the election and that kind of threw me off a little. I felt like the plot was leaning more in that direction instead of the more fantastical, fast paced, highly entertaining storyline I came to love from the first book. I am not that big of a fan of politics in fantasy and that was one factor that brought the book down a little for me.

On the other hand I love seeing the progression of Enne’s character. Now that she knows that he mother has passed and she has come into her Mizer powers she has really become this whole new character, who is unapologetically unique. She has embraced her past at the etiquette school and incorporated that into the Spirits which I loved! Their whole aesthetic of being female only, wearing their signature white lace gloves was fantastic. I just wish she tapped a little more into her families powers and made some volts. I would of loved to see her and Levi working together more in this book.

I felt like Levi really struggled throughout the storyline. He has so much riding on his partnership with Harrison and also has to worry about the Irons and building up their empire as well as his decision to send Jac into the underbelly of the Torren crime family. Some of the decisions he made throughout the book was questionable but I felt given the gravity of his situation they all felt realistic. He’s had a slow progression in this book but I think he came out of it stronger and ready to fight!

I like that there are always consequences in these books. The characters don’t really get a pass for anything that they do which makes the stakes so much higher. I thought the ending was a little rushed to be honest and a little all over the place. I really had to slow down my reading and focus on what was happening and who was doing what, which brought me out of the story a little. Definitely ended with a bang and the book went into a lot more detail about the gangs and the north and south side of New Reynes.

⭐️4/5 stars Really liked it, didn’t love as much as Ace of Shades!

Reviews

Sawkill Girls Review

by amyleighreads1 Comment on Sawkill Girls Review

*SPOILERS AHEAD*

38139409Sawkill Girls is about a town that is located on an island called Sawkill Rock where for the last 120ish years girls have gone missing and none have ever been found. The book follows the perspectives of three girls who live in this town; Marion who has just relocated to Sawkill Rock after her father passed away in a car accident, Zoey who has lived here for a few years now with her father who is the police chief and Valerie whose family have always lived on Sawkill Rock.

This was actually pretty trippy. I was a little lost for around the first 100 or so pages. There wasn’t really a lot going on at the start but I found I wasn’t really engaged in the story until like the last quarter or so of the plot.

I loved Zoey’s character the most. I found her to be super relatable. I love that she already had this established idea of what had happened to Thora and she wouldn’t let anyone talk her out of it or accept that she just simply disappeared.

I didn’t really like Valerie a whole lot. She was a super bitch at the start and the fact that she is complicit but then is kind of given a redemption arc that I felt wasn’t really justified. I get that she was really held hostage by her family and their circumstances but I didn’t feel like she was empathetic at all until she started getting feelings for Marion.

Marion kind of got on my nerves as well. I mean her sister befriends this girl and two minutes later goes missing and your only real friend is telling you that she thinks this girl and her family is behind everything and you go on a walk with her through the woods by yourself late at night and then make out with her? Her reasoning for everything just didn’t sit right with me I guess.

Other than that I actually really enjoyed my experience reading this book. It was super unique and a little bizarre but I was definitely intrigued enough to read on. I loved how strange everything kind of was and it got really weird but I was into it and I liked not being able to predict what was going to happen next because I can honestly say I’ve never read anything close to this storyline at all.

⭐️4/5 Cool mix of fantasy and horror!