Book Review

Review: The InComplete Book of Dragons by Cressida Cowell

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The InComplete Book of Dragons by Cressida Cowell

Title: The InComplete Book of Dragons (How to Train Your Dragon)
Author: Cressida Cowell
Genre: Fantasy, Humour, Middle Grade
Publisher: Hodder Children’s Books (12th June 2014)
Blurb:

Long ago, the world was full of dragons. This book is packed with dragon profiles, tips on how to ride and train them and, most importantly, how to deal with dragons if they attack.

These pages are taken from the notebooks of Viking Hero and Dragonwatcher, Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third when he was just a boy . . .

Rating: ***** (5 stars)
Review:

THE INCOMPLETE BOOK OF DRAGONS by Cressida Cowell is made up of the notes and journal entries of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third. In it he details notes on the dragons he himself has encountered with helpful tips and tricks, and he also notes the dragons that he has had to rely on other vikings for the details of.

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CLOVEN BLOG TOUR: Review & Giveaway Link

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Today I am taking part in the Cloven Blog Tour – you can find the tour schedule here. I got my copy of Cloven courtesy of the Blog Tour, but all opinions in the review below are my own.

Cloven by Georgeann Swiger

Title: Cloven (The Trinity of Souls #2)
Author: Georgeann Swiger
Category: New Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: CreateSpace (Self-Published)
Format: Ebook
Published: 21st October 2014
Blurb:

What would you do if the only things standing between you and the angel you love were another angel and the fiery pits of Hell?

When Anya and Micah declare their love for each other, the battle for the souls of the star-crossed angels stretches across the heavens. With Heaven forbidding their love, Micah vows to protect Anya by sentencing himself to Hell.

But Anya won’t let him go without a fight. She goes into Hell after him, only to discover an angel from Micah’s past is willing to do anything to keep Micah in Hell.

With love and lies blinding Micah, Anya fights to get him to face his demons and return to Heaven, even if it means hearts will be broken.

The battle for the angels begins where it left off. Between Heaven and Hell is forbidden love.

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

CLOVEN is the second book in Georgeann Swiger’s New Adult THE TRINITY OF SOULS. CLOVEN continues the story of Anya, who we first meet in ADORNED – the first book in the series. CLOVEN deals with the fall-out of the events in ADORNED, and continues Anya’s story.

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Review: Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong

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UK Cover of Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong

Sea of Shadows by Kelley Armstrong

Title: Sea of Shadows (Age of Legends 1)
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Genre: Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Atom (8th April 2014)
Blurb:

THEY HEAR THE SPIRITS.
THEY MUST OBEY.

In the Forest of the Dead, where the empire’s worst criminals are exiled, twin sisters Moria and Ashyn are charged with a dangerous task. For they are the Keeper and the Seeker, and each year they must quiet the enraged souls of the damned.

Only this year, they will not be quieted.

Ambushed by an ancient evil, Moria and Ashyn must race to warn the empire of a terrifying threat. Accompanied by a dashing thief and a warrior with a dark history, the sisters battle their way across a wasteland filled with reawakened monsters of legend. But there are more sinister enemies waiting for them at court – and a secret that will alter the balance of their world for ever.

The first volume of the Age of Legends trilogy, Sea of Shadows is a thrilling dark fantasy where evil hides in every shadow and the deadliest monsters of all come in human form . . .

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

SEA OF SHADOWS is the first book in Kelley Armstrong’s new trilogy AGE OF LEGENDS. SEA OF SHADOWS introduces twin sisters Moria and Ashyn who live outside of the Forest of the Dead. They are the Keeper and the Seeker for this area, and are charged with quieting the enraged souls of the criminals who are exiled to the forest as punishment. This is their first year on their own, and something goes terribly wrong – the souls will not be quieted.

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Review: Dark Vision by Debbie Johnson

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Dark Vision by Debbie Johnson

Title: Dark Vision
Author: Debbie Johnson
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Del Rey (27th March 2014)
Blurb:

LILY MCCAIN IS CURSED.

With just one touch she can see a person’s future, whether it’s a good fortune or a terrible fate. Afraid of the potent visions she foresees, she distances herself from the world, succumbing to a life of solitude.

But at the touch of a mysterious stranger – who has powers of his own – Lily sees a new, chilling future for herself: one where she is fated to make a terrible choice . . .

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

DARK VISION tells the story of Lily McCain, who is doomed to see the futures of the people she touches – good and bad. Having lived with this ability from when she was a child, Lily has turned the ability not to touch people – both physically and metaphorically – into an art form. Her life as a music reporter is pretty mundane, until she crosses the path of a mysterious stranger at a bar while she is working.

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Review: The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas

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The Assassin’s Blade

Title: The Assassin’s Blade (Throne of Glass Novellas)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Young Adult
Publisher: Bloomsbury (13th March 2014)
Blurb:

THE TWIST OF A KNIFE,
THE BIRTH OF A LEGEND . . .

Celaena Sardothien owes her reputation to Arobynn Hamel. He gave her a home at the Assassin’s Guild and taught her the skills she needed to survive.

Arobynn’s enemies stretch far and wide – from Adarlan’s rooftops and its filthy dens, to remote islands and hostile deserts. Celaena is duty-bound to hunt them down. But behind her assignments lies a dark truth that will seal her fate – and cut her heart in two forever . . .

THE PREQUELS TO THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER THRONE OF GLASS

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

THE ASSASSIN’S BLADE is an amalgamation of previously released prequel novellas in the THRONE OF GLASS series. The novellas all tell stories of what Celaena Sardothien’s life was like prior to the beginning of THRONE OF GLASS (review). THE ASSASSIN’S BLADE comprises of five novellas told in chronological order.

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Review: Night Broken by Patricia Briggs

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Night Broken UK cover

Night Broken by Patricia Briggs

Title: Night Broken (A Mercy Thompson novel, #8)
Author: Patricia Briggs
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Publisher: Orbit (11th March 2014)
Blurb:

MECHANIC.

SHAPESHIFTER.

FIGHTER.

Mercy Thompson’s life is never simple.

Her mate Adam’s ex-wife is in trouble, on the run from her new boyfriend. Adam won’t turn Christy away when she’s in need, but Mercy can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right.

Soon, Mercy learns that Christy has the furthest thing from good intentions. She wants Adam back and will do anything to get him, including turning Adam’s pack against Mercy.

Meanwhile, there’s an even more dangerous threat circling. Christy’s ex is more than a bad man – in fact, he may not be human at all. As the bodies pile up, Mercy fings herself facing a creature with the power to tear her world apart.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

NIGHT BROKEN is the eighth book in Patricia Briggs’ MERCY THOMPSON series, which follows the life of Mercy Thompson mechanic and skin walker as she tries to find her place in the world. In the eighth book Mercy has to deal with the return of Christy, Adam’s ex-wife, and the dangerous threat following in her wake…

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Review: Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

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Into the Still Blue UK cover

Into the Still Blue by Veronica Rossi

Title: Into the Still Blue (Under the Never Sky #3)
Author: Veronica Rossi
Genre: Dystopian, Young Adult
Publisher: Atom (6th February 2014)
Blurb:

WORLDS KEPT THEM APART.
DESTINY BROUGHT
THEM TOGETHER.

Outside the dome of Reverie, Aria and Perry are struggling to keep their people from tearing each other apart. Their situation is desperate and, with the Aether storms worsening, time is running out for them to rescue Cinder from Hess and Sable.

Cinder is both the key to unlock the Still Blue and their only hope for survival, so Aria and Perry assemble an unlikely team to attempt a daring rescue mission. They know that in a dying world, the bond of friendship is what matters most.

In this final book in the Under the Never Sky trilogy, the stakes are raised to the absolute limit and Aria’s love story is brought to an unforgettable close.

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

INTO THE STILL BLUE brings Veronica Rossi’s UNDER THE NEVER SKY trilogy to its conclusion. The story of Aria and Perry continues in this stunning conclusion. Things are not looking good for Aria, Perry, and their friends. To make matters worse Cinder is being held by Hess and Sable, so Aria and Perry hatch a plan to rescue him.

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Review: Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Title: Half-Blood (Covenant, 1)
Author: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Genre: Mythology, Paranormal Romance, Young Adult
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (14th August 2014)
Source: BookBridgr/Publisher
Blurb:

The Hematoi descended from the unions of gods and mortals, and the children of two Hematoi, pure-bloods, have godlike powers. Children of Hematoi and mortals – well, not so much. Half-bloods only have two options: become trained Sentinels who hunt and kill daimons or become servants in the homes of the pure.

Seventeen-year-old Alexandria would rather risk her life fighting than waste it scrubbing toilets, but she may end up slumming it anyway. There are several rules that students at the Covenant must follow. Alex has problems with them all, especially rule #1:

Relationships between pures and halfs are forbidden.

Unfortunately, she’s crushing hard on the totally hot pure-blood Aiden. But falling for Aiden isn’t her biggest problem – staying alive long enough to graduate the Covenant and become a Sentinel is. If she fails in her duty, she faces a future worse than death or slavery: being turned into a daimon, and being hunted by Aiden. And that would kind of suck.

And discover the very beginnings of Covenant in the prequel novella . . .

Daimon

Rating: **** (4 stars)
Review:

HALF-BLOOD is the first book in Jennifer L. Armentrout’s COVENANT series which follows the story of Alexandria Andros, a half-blood who isn’t a big fan of rules but who is determined to do her duty. In a society where few things have changed since the gods walked among them, Alex is in a dangerous position as half-bloods have little power. This review is also going to cover the prequel novella DAIMON, as my copy of the book also including the novella.

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Review: Rising Darkness by Thea Harrison

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Rising Darkness Cover

Rising Darkness by Thea Harrison

Title: Rising Darkness (A Game of Shadows Novel, 1)
Author: Thea Harrison
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Piatkus (2nd April 2013)
Blurb:

Bestselling author Thea Harrison begins and all-new, darkly romantic paranormal saga, in which the fate of existence itself lies in the balance – and the key to victory may rest in the hands of two eternal lovers . . .

In the hospital ER where she works, Mary is used to chaos. But lately, every aspect of her existence seems adrift. She feels disconnected from herself. Voices appear in her head. And the vivid, disturbing dreams she’s had all her life are becoming more intense. Then she meets Michael. He’s handsome, enigmatic and knows more than he can say. In his company, she slowly remembers the truth about herself . . .

Thousands of years ago, eight creatures came to our world: the Deceiver to destroy it, and the other seven to stop him. Reincarnated over and over, they carry on – and Mary finds herself drawn into the battle once again. The more she learns, the more she realises that Michael will go to any lengths to destroy the Deceiver. Then she remembers who killed her during her last life, nine hundred years ago . . . Michael.

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

RISING DARKNESS by Thea Harrison is the first book the GAME OF SHADOWS series. It tells the story of Mary, an ER doctor whose life is pretty ordinary apart from her dreams. Then her path crosses Michael’s, and everything changes.

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Review: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

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Cover of Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Title: Fangirl
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult
Publisher: Macmillan Children’s Books (30th January 2014)
Blurb:

Cath and Wren are identical twins and until recently they did absolutely everything together. Now they’re off to university and Wren’s decided she doesn’t want to be one half of a pair any more – she wants to dance, meet boys, go to parties and let loose. It’s not so easy for Cath. She would rather bury herself in the fanfiction she writes where there’s romance far more intense than anything she’s experienced in real life.

Now Cath has to decide whether she’s ready to open her heart to new people and new experiences, and she’s realizing that there’s more to learn about love than she ever thought possible . . .

A tale of fanfiction, family and first love.

Rating: *** (3 stars)
Review:

FANGIRL by Rainbow Rowell tells the story of Cath a first year University student whose life has altered from how she thought it would be thanks to her identical twin sister Wren, who wants to break free and live her own life without Cath hanging around. Cath is also a BNF – big name fan – in the Simon Snow fanfiction world and she has to complete her latest fanfic before the release of the final book.  Cath might be quite willing to bury herself in the fanfiction she writes but life isn’t quite that easy, sometimes for really good reasons.

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