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Sensitivemuse (246 KP) rated Song of Blood and Stone in Books
May 27, 2018
Great fantastical world, excellent characters
I greatly enjoyed reading this one. Not only was the fantasy world written well and different, but the characters had excellent chemistry and the plot flowed to make the reading enjoyable and quick.
The world building is excellent and different. The story alternates in between with Jack and Jasminda’s point of view, but also there are some chapters that tell the background story of how their world was created. I enjoyed these alternating chapters. It provides better structure of the setting, it provides the mythology and a better understanding of the “True Father” and “The Queen who Sleeps”. It’s well written and everything comes together seamlessly.
The plot itself is also excellent. I love the concept of “Silents” and “Songbearers” and both are living side by side but marred by war and prejudice. And did you ever see the hate towards Jasminda throughout the book. You get angry at her treatment but Jasminda bears it and she does it well. The plot is pretty fast paced and it’s feels like a fast read - not to mention the fact that it’s very interesting. There’s a good mix of fantasy, action, and romance. What wasn’t really necessary was the Lizvette part. It made that aspect predictable and it didn’t really mesh well with what was going on with all the other things. It felt like it was placed there for filler reasons (I mean, we all know who Jack was going to go for a this point…)
Now for Jack and Jasminda.
I LOVED both of them together. They had this chemistry going on and you could feel it throughout the novel. It was heart wrenching in various parts of the book and you wanted to reach out to them and MAKE them go together (Jack you deserve some slaps of stupidity for some of the stuff you said). They’re both great characters and Jasminda’s development throughout the novel was excellent. Despite the changes she went through she didn’t lose her sass and her ferocious independence (love how this exasperates Jack by the way lol)
Definitely looking forward to the second book of this series! The ending was great (and I’m sure there’s way more battles to come)
The world building is excellent and different. The story alternates in between with Jack and Jasminda’s point of view, but also there are some chapters that tell the background story of how their world was created. I enjoyed these alternating chapters. It provides better structure of the setting, it provides the mythology and a better understanding of the “True Father” and “The Queen who Sleeps”. It’s well written and everything comes together seamlessly.
The plot itself is also excellent. I love the concept of “Silents” and “Songbearers” and both are living side by side but marred by war and prejudice. And did you ever see the hate towards Jasminda throughout the book. You get angry at her treatment but Jasminda bears it and she does it well. The plot is pretty fast paced and it’s feels like a fast read - not to mention the fact that it’s very interesting. There’s a good mix of fantasy, action, and romance. What wasn’t really necessary was the Lizvette part. It made that aspect predictable and it didn’t really mesh well with what was going on with all the other things. It felt like it was placed there for filler reasons (I mean, we all know who Jack was going to go for a this point…)
Now for Jack and Jasminda.
I LOVED both of them together. They had this chemistry going on and you could feel it throughout the novel. It was heart wrenching in various parts of the book and you wanted to reach out to them and MAKE them go together (Jack you deserve some slaps of stupidity for some of the stuff you said). They’re both great characters and Jasminda’s development throughout the novel was excellent. Despite the changes she went through she didn’t lose her sass and her ferocious independence (love how this exasperates Jack by the way lol)
Definitely looking forward to the second book of this series! The ending was great (and I’m sure there’s way more battles to come)
Merissa (13950 KP) rated Masters' Mistress (The Angel Eyes #1) in Books
May 6, 2020
Masters' Mistress is the first book in The Angel Eyes series and it tells the story of a post-apocalyptic world where women have taken over and men are kept as slaves. We start off in the past and then skip to the present where most of the story takes place.
A lot of thought has been given to the structure of this world, and like any, there are good and bad characters in it. Angel is one of the good ones (obviously) and is trying to get her world on a more even-footing. Darla and her cronies disagree and want things to remain as they are. There is some reference to how the two sides are 'at war' but nothing really happens in the book to emphasise that apart from Angel outbidding Darla for Bret.
Bret is the main male character with a huge chip on his shoulder. He has baggage in his past but instead of trying to work through it and let it go, holds it to him like a hot water bottle on a cold night. He wants Angel but doesn't like or trust her. Angel wants him but denies her feelings. This leads to a LOT of back and forth - the majority of the book. I'm all for overwhelming feelings of attraction but not when you do something you really don't want to do. I got a bit annoyed with Angel whenever she would "fall apart when he touched her."
This is a long book with plenty of descriptions in some areas and then not in others. I would have liked a bit more of a view of the world outside their ranch but maybe that is coming in the future books. On the whole, this was an enjoyable read that has a sort of HFN ending that leads you onto the next book.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
A lot of thought has been given to the structure of this world, and like any, there are good and bad characters in it. Angel is one of the good ones (obviously) and is trying to get her world on a more even-footing. Darla and her cronies disagree and want things to remain as they are. There is some reference to how the two sides are 'at war' but nothing really happens in the book to emphasise that apart from Angel outbidding Darla for Bret.
Bret is the main male character with a huge chip on his shoulder. He has baggage in his past but instead of trying to work through it and let it go, holds it to him like a hot water bottle on a cold night. He wants Angel but doesn't like or trust her. Angel wants him but denies her feelings. This leads to a LOT of back and forth - the majority of the book. I'm all for overwhelming feelings of attraction but not when you do something you really don't want to do. I got a bit annoyed with Angel whenever she would "fall apart when he touched her."
This is a long book with plenty of descriptions in some areas and then not in others. I would have liked a bit more of a view of the world outside their ranch but maybe that is coming in the future books. On the whole, this was an enjoyable read that has a sort of HFN ending that leads you onto the next book.
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
The Summer Wives
Book
In the summer of 1951, Miranda Schuyler arrives on elite, secretive Winthrop Island as a schoolgirl...
Elli H Burton (1288 KP) rated Soldier Girl in Books
Jun 16, 2019
Refreshingly different
This was my first Annie Murray and it made me love her storytelling. I found it was so different from what is usually written about women around the time of the war.
I didn't find out until after I had finished it that it was part of a series. I just had to know if there was a sequel as the ending was so abrupt, so many questions still unanswered, I was so relieved to see it was part of a series. I was surprised that it was the second as it was easy to fall into, you don't need to read the previous book to understand this one.
The main character isn't your usual woman in the early 1900's which makes you want to keep reading, to see how she is received in this world that is so strict, a world which anyone who was different were ostracized and frowned upon.
The way Annie Murray writes this story really does make you root for the characters, for me I felt I was there with them, not an easy thing to portray but Annie Murray does it well.
I am still on the look out for book 1 and 3 and hope I find them soon! I'd like to think others will read this (as I definitely think they should) and will fall in love with Annie Murray's books.
I didn't find out until after I had finished it that it was part of a series. I just had to know if there was a sequel as the ending was so abrupt, so many questions still unanswered, I was so relieved to see it was part of a series. I was surprised that it was the second as it was easy to fall into, you don't need to read the previous book to understand this one.
The main character isn't your usual woman in the early 1900's which makes you want to keep reading, to see how she is received in this world that is so strict, a world which anyone who was different were ostracized and frowned upon.
The way Annie Murray writes this story really does make you root for the characters, for me I felt I was there with them, not an easy thing to portray but Annie Murray does it well.
I am still on the look out for book 1 and 3 and hope I find them soon! I'd like to think others will read this (as I definitely think they should) and will fall in love with Annie Murray's books.
The Cosmopolitan Constitution
Book
Originally the constitution was expected to express and channel popular sovereignty. It was the work...
Great British Cycling: The History of British Bike Racing
Book
In 1868, the first ever documented bicycle race was held in a Paris park, and to the locals'...
The Greatest Raid of All
Book
A vivid account of the famous St Nazaire Raid that demonstrates the sheer bravery of the British...
The Possible World
9.5
Rate It
Book
An astonishing, deeply moving novel about the converging lives of a young boy who witnesses a brutal...
Historical Fiction
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #1) in Books
Aug 2, 2022
138 of 230
Book
Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Book 1)
By Laini Taylor
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Reread
Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.
When one of the strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?
When you start a book and realise you have already read it but continue because it was so good! Well this was better the second time round. All the emotions came flooding back and I love that a book can have that effect on you. Rereading Karou and Akivas story was just as enjoyable as the first time the world building and story is just beautiful. I really like this authors style.
Book
Daughter of Smoke & Bone (Book 1)
By Laini Taylor
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Reread
Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.
And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.
Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages--not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.
When one of the strangers--beautiful, haunted Akiva--fixes his fire-colored eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?
When you start a book and realise you have already read it but continue because it was so good! Well this was better the second time round. All the emotions came flooding back and I love that a book can have that effect on you. Rereading Karou and Akivas story was just as enjoyable as the first time the world building and story is just beautiful. I really like this authors style.