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Dana (24 KP) rated A Darker Shade of Magic in Books
Mar 23, 2018
Alright you awesome nerds, listen up. I loved this book. Like, so much. Victoria Schwab is a master wordsmith and I cannot contain the excitement I have for this damn book and the entire series. So let me tell you of my love for this book in detail.
The characters are amazing.
I have a deep love for Kell, not only because he is the sassy, brooding male character, but because he is a genuinely great person. He wants to protect everyone he loves, even if that can sometimes be to a fault. He begrudgingly takes in this girl from a non-magical place and then becomes attached. Something I think he has a hard time understanding himself.
Delilah Bard is a superhero. She is a scrappy little street fighter who is going to one day rule the world. She wants to be free at any cost. That means trying not to make connections, to be able to keep herself alive, and have a little fun while doing it. She can hold her own against a magical Antari and won't think twice about it. She is so confident in herself that she doesn't have time for doubt. I admire her willingness to dive head first into any sign of trouble, even if that means risking her own life to do so. She claims to be this person who does not care, who only wants self preservation, but when she loves, she loves deeply. She, like Kell, will do anything she can to protect those close to her. And for some unknown reason to herself, she lets a couple of boys from a magical London close to her heart. I want to be Delilah.
Rhys is a beautiful french fry and I love him. Thank you Victoria for making his such a compelling character in the little amount of page time he gets in this book. I love him as much as I do Kell and Delilah (okay, well almost) and I just want what's best for him. He is the precious cinnamon roll too good for this world and I will stand by that forever. I hate whenever he thinks he is not strong enough. Hon, even if you are not magical, you are amazing. You can lead people, they listen to you. You are stronger than you think.
Holland is an ass. I did not like him from the first moment he came onto the page. I hate what he does and, ugh. Nope. Nope. Nope.
The plot was super interesting. I love the idea of multiple Londons and anchor points and magic. All of those were tied up in here! Woo! Even the villain in the book (which I won't say what it is because spoilers) is so cool. I did not expect anything to happen how it did. Overall, just excellent. Simply magnificent.
I picked this book up because I had read This Savage Song last year and fell in love with Schwab's writing. I knew I would feel the same with this book. It is rare for me to so instantaneously fall in love with characters. Most of the time it takes a while for me to warm up to them in the book, but not here. Nope. There was an instantaneous connection to the world, the characters, and the writing.
All in all, I guess you could say I liked this book. A lot. If you haven't read it yet, what are you still doing here reading this review? Go out and get it. Right now! Go!
The characters are amazing.
I have a deep love for Kell, not only because he is the sassy, brooding male character, but because he is a genuinely great person. He wants to protect everyone he loves, even if that can sometimes be to a fault. He begrudgingly takes in this girl from a non-magical place and then becomes attached. Something I think he has a hard time understanding himself.
Delilah Bard is a superhero. She is a scrappy little street fighter who is going to one day rule the world. She wants to be free at any cost. That means trying not to make connections, to be able to keep herself alive, and have a little fun while doing it. She can hold her own against a magical Antari and won't think twice about it. She is so confident in herself that she doesn't have time for doubt. I admire her willingness to dive head first into any sign of trouble, even if that means risking her own life to do so. She claims to be this person who does not care, who only wants self preservation, but when she loves, she loves deeply. She, like Kell, will do anything she can to protect those close to her. And for some unknown reason to herself, she lets a couple of boys from a magical London close to her heart. I want to be Delilah.
Rhys is a beautiful french fry and I love him. Thank you Victoria for making his such a compelling character in the little amount of page time he gets in this book. I love him as much as I do Kell and Delilah (okay, well almost) and I just want what's best for him. He is the precious cinnamon roll too good for this world and I will stand by that forever. I hate whenever he thinks he is not strong enough. Hon, even if you are not magical, you are amazing. You can lead people, they listen to you. You are stronger than you think.
Holland is an ass. I did not like him from the first moment he came onto the page. I hate what he does and, ugh. Nope. Nope. Nope.
The plot was super interesting. I love the idea of multiple Londons and anchor points and magic. All of those were tied up in here! Woo! Even the villain in the book (which I won't say what it is because spoilers) is so cool. I did not expect anything to happen how it did. Overall, just excellent. Simply magnificent.
I picked this book up because I had read This Savage Song last year and fell in love with Schwab's writing. I knew I would feel the same with this book. It is rare for me to so instantaneously fall in love with characters. Most of the time it takes a while for me to warm up to them in the book, but not here. Nope. There was an instantaneous connection to the world, the characters, and the writing.
All in all, I guess you could say I liked this book. A lot. If you haven't read it yet, what are you still doing here reading this review? Go out and get it. Right now! Go!
Rachel King (13 KP) rated Lion's Honey: The Myth of Samson in Books
Feb 11, 2019
I was a little surprised as to what comprised this book, as I expected to find a fictional retelling after the reproduction of Judges 13-16 of the King James Bible. Instead, what follows is a detailed commentary that examines and dissects the Biblical account, using even the original language to understand the full meaning of the text, with all of its nuances and allusions. As many times that I have studied the story of Samson in church growing up, there is apparently quite a bit that I never knew about such an interesting character in Hebrew history.
As any person chosen of God to do His will, Samson is a man plagued by his destiny and how it separates him from the rest of humanity. Though chosen of God from the womb to live as a Nazarite, he is still very much human with human urges. Almost constantly at war with himself, Samson seems to set himself up to be hurt by those he puts his trust in so that he may let loose his anger and rage against those who hold his people captive -- the Philistines. Like so many modern-day psychological head cases, much of his choices are also driven by a need for that hidden something lacking in his relationship with his parents. He looks for it in the wrong places and the wrong women, even paying a visit to a prostitute. He seems to use his strength and anger with an artistic flair, first setting up a group of Philistines at his wedding with an unsolvable riddle, and later finding rather unique ways of further punishing the Philistines, such as using the jawbone of an ass to kill a thousand of them. Furthermore, every verbal account from Samson is spoken poetically.
What I found most interesting is the way that David Grossman explored the account of Samson and Delilah. He alludes that Samson in fact knew the betrayal that Delilah harbored and welcomed it in order to finally shed his God-given destiny. While he ends his life in a final act of redemption, I have to wonder if he did complete the task that God had given him to "begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines."
Despite the intense detail that David Grossman goes into when writing this study of Samson, the book is a very good read and well worth my time.
As any person chosen of God to do His will, Samson is a man plagued by his destiny and how it separates him from the rest of humanity. Though chosen of God from the womb to live as a Nazarite, he is still very much human with human urges. Almost constantly at war with himself, Samson seems to set himself up to be hurt by those he puts his trust in so that he may let loose his anger and rage against those who hold his people captive -- the Philistines. Like so many modern-day psychological head cases, much of his choices are also driven by a need for that hidden something lacking in his relationship with his parents. He looks for it in the wrong places and the wrong women, even paying a visit to a prostitute. He seems to use his strength and anger with an artistic flair, first setting up a group of Philistines at his wedding with an unsolvable riddle, and later finding rather unique ways of further punishing the Philistines, such as using the jawbone of an ass to kill a thousand of them. Furthermore, every verbal account from Samson is spoken poetically.
What I found most interesting is the way that David Grossman explored the account of Samson and Delilah. He alludes that Samson in fact knew the betrayal that Delilah harbored and welcomed it in order to finally shed his God-given destiny. While he ends his life in a final act of redemption, I have to wonder if he did complete the task that God had given him to "begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines."
Despite the intense detail that David Grossman goes into when writing this study of Samson, the book is a very good read and well worth my time.
(Im)Perfectly Happy
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Radio personality Raina, known as 'the black Delilah', hates the wholesome persona that's made her a...
From a Certain Point of View: Star Wars
8.3
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Book
40 Years. 40 Stories. In honor of the 40th Anniversary of Star Wars: A New Hope, this unique...
The Killer Collective (John Rain #10)
7.0
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A fast-paced, page-turning novel of betrayal, vengeance, and depraved secrets in high places from...
Dana (24 KP) rated A Gathering of Shadows in Books
Mar 23, 2018
So you all know how I felt about the first book. Yeah, those feeling are continuing over to this one.
I honestly could not put this damn book down if I tried. Which I didn't try because that would have been me depriving myself of something amazing and there is no reason to do that.
If I thought the first book hit my feelings, which it did, this one ran them over with a damn truck.
I loved the addition of Allucard Emery. He was my favorite new character because he is amazing and beautiful and just so great. I love his sass. He is such a great magic mentor for Delilah and I want him to have the world. He deserves to be happy. Anyone who thinks differently can fight me.
I love the idea of this competition. It's cool to see different kinds of magic users with the different elements, but also how they use them. Some are more defensive users, some more attack based. But all of them are really cool. I won't give away too much, but I am happy with the last couple of fights and how they went on. Especially that one. You know which one I'm talking about. Just great stuff there.
I love how Delilah and Kell's relationship is evolving in this book. They don't necessariily see all that much of each other, but when they do, sparks are FLYING. I was listening to the audio book when I was out running errands and in the middle of Michael's, I burst out laughing when they got to the ball part. It was just so cute and fun to see them relaxed for a change. Big fan. I ship them so hard it hurts. So whenever they were cross with each other, in my head, I was pushing them together saying "make up damn it. You will make beautiful children."
Those plot twists though. All of them got me right in the feels.
I will say without shame that I cried in this book. More than once. And almost in public. Those people in Michael's must have thought I was crazy.
The ending was mean. I mean, come on Victoria. That hurt. Why would you put me through that? I mean, yes, it was amazing that you wrote it so well I almost threw the book across the room, but still. My heart. I have to wait a bit until I can read the next one because I don't have any book stores around me to be able to get it and my library doesn't have it in physical copy either. But they do have an audio book version that I am on hold for. So there's that. I cannot wait.
I honestly could not put this damn book down if I tried. Which I didn't try because that would have been me depriving myself of something amazing and there is no reason to do that.
If I thought the first book hit my feelings, which it did, this one ran them over with a damn truck.
I loved the addition of Allucard Emery. He was my favorite new character because he is amazing and beautiful and just so great. I love his sass. He is such a great magic mentor for Delilah and I want him to have the world. He deserves to be happy. Anyone who thinks differently can fight me.
I love the idea of this competition. It's cool to see different kinds of magic users with the different elements, but also how they use them. Some are more defensive users, some more attack based. But all of them are really cool. I won't give away too much, but I am happy with the last couple of fights and how they went on. Especially that one. You know which one I'm talking about. Just great stuff there.
I love how Delilah and Kell's relationship is evolving in this book. They don't necessariily see all that much of each other, but when they do, sparks are FLYING. I was listening to the audio book when I was out running errands and in the middle of Michael's, I burst out laughing when they got to the ball part. It was just so cute and fun to see them relaxed for a change. Big fan. I ship them so hard it hurts. So whenever they were cross with each other, in my head, I was pushing them together saying "make up damn it. You will make beautiful children."
Those plot twists though. All of them got me right in the feels.
I will say without shame that I cried in this book. More than once. And almost in public. Those people in Michael's must have thought I was crazy.
The ending was mean. I mean, come on Victoria. That hurt. Why would you put me through that? I mean, yes, it was amazing that you wrote it so well I almost threw the book across the room, but still. My heart. I have to wait a bit until I can read the next one because I don't have any book stores around me to be able to get it and my library doesn't have it in physical copy either. But they do have an audio book version that I am on hold for. So there's that. I cannot wait.
BG
Bad Girls of the Bible: And What We Can Learn from Them
8.3
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Women everywhere marvel at those “good girls” in Scripture–Sarah, Mary, Esther–but on most...
Merissa (11800 KP) rated Bishop Takes Knight (Redclaw Origins #1) in Books
Oct 9, 2019
BISHOP TAKES KNIGHT is the first book in the Redclaw Origins series. Now, I have read two books of the Redclaw Security series, and thoroughly enjoyed them. So I was intrigued by the thought of going back to see where it all began. I was NOT disappointed.
This book takes you back to the 1950s, with socialites, and women trying to find their way into work now the men are back. There is so much glamour in this book. I loved it! The story is twisted and intriguing, with plenty of humour and wit to keep you going.
Rhett Bishop is full of sass, determined to make her own way and not rely on friend's handouts. Peter Knight thinks he has reached the bottom, only to discover things aren't as bad as he thought. These two end up working together and taking advantage when life hands them opportunities.
There are no steamy moments in this book, but don't you worry. There is tension aplenty and you just know they will end together with fireworks. You just don't see anything apart from one kiss. Trust me, this is absolutely perfect, and exactly as it should be in this book.
This book was the 'living end' that I devoured in one sitting. Between Delilah and the flaming chicken, I couldn't put it down. I really can't recommend this highly enough, and I can't wait for the next book.
Just read it. You'll see what I mean!
This book takes you back to the 1950s, with socialites, and women trying to find their way into work now the men are back. There is so much glamour in this book. I loved it! The story is twisted and intriguing, with plenty of humour and wit to keep you going.
Rhett Bishop is full of sass, determined to make her own way and not rely on friend's handouts. Peter Knight thinks he has reached the bottom, only to discover things aren't as bad as he thought. These two end up working together and taking advantage when life hands them opportunities.
There are no steamy moments in this book, but don't you worry. There is tension aplenty and you just know they will end together with fireworks. You just don't see anything apart from one kiss. Trust me, this is absolutely perfect, and exactly as it should be in this book.
This book was the 'living end' that I devoured in one sitting. Between Delilah and the flaming chicken, I couldn't put it down. I really can't recommend this highly enough, and I can't wait for the next book.
Just read it. You'll see what I mean!