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Jenny Houle (24 KP) rated The Weight of This World in Books

Jan 13, 2018  
The Weight of This World
The Weight of This World
David Joy | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I received an ARC from FirstToRead for an unbiased review of THE WEIGHT OF THE WORLD.

It's particularly hard to explain the details of this book without spoilers, beyond the blurb already posted about it: "A combat veteran returned from war, Thad Broom can’t leave the hardened world of Afghanistan behind, nor can he forgive himself for what he saw there. His mother, April, is haunted by her own demons, a secret trauma she has carried for years. Between them is Aiden McCall, loyal to both but unable to hold them together. Connected by bonds of circumstance and duty, friendship and love, these three lives are blown apart when Aiden and Thad witness the accidental death of their drug dealer and a riot of dope and cash drops in their laps. On a meth-fueled journey to nowhere, they will either find the grit to overcome the darkness or be consumed by it."

I don't entirely think I knew what I was getting myself into reading the book, which was well written but a little too graphic for me. I think in referring others to it, I will consider those who handle certain scenarios well, versus those who do not (for example, I'm not exactly rushing out to recommend this to any of my friends who've returned home from war and are dealing with PTSD).

The development of the three main characters and the intensity of their bonds and loyalty, despite all the ways they continued to fail one another, were a true depiction of human spirit. How we can love someone so much that we never mean to fail them, yet we can never do fully right by them.

I loved the epilogue but not the ending...if that makes sense (I'm afraid to say much for fear of spoilers). Part of me wanted so desperately for Aiden, Thad and April to all find their way away from Little Canada, alone or together, having beaten all their demons. Part of me, though, is realistic enough to know that is not how life works.

I will absolutely be hunting for other books by David Joy having read this one. So glad I took the time and stuck out the scenes that were hard to stomach.
  
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Hazel (1853 KP) rated The Smoke Thieves in Books

May 8, 2018  
The Smoke Thieves
The Smoke Thieves
Sally Green | 2018 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
7
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Review This ARC was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

From the author of the popular fantasy trilogy, Half Bad comes a brand new historical-fantasy series: The Smoke Thieves. Featuring a princess, a traitor, a soldier, a hunter and a thief, Sally Green’s fictional world is a dangerous place for these five teenagers. From demons to tyrannical fathers, they must do their best to overcome every obstacle placed in their way to survive a world that is destined for conflict.

The five main characters are a mixed bag of personalities and status. Princess Catherine is preparing for her arranged marriage, which aims to politically unite two nations, or so she believes. Her brutally ambitious father, on the other hand, has other ideas. Ambrose, Catherine’s guard and a traitor to her father, escapes death by chasing after Catherine with news of her father’s real plans.

Meanwhile, March, a soldier whose entire family and heritage were wiped out in a war, aims to get revenge by finding his king’s illegitimate son and only heir, however, he does not anticipate the prince being the naïve thief, Edyon. March and Edyon travel through the country in the company of an elderly man until they are ambushed by a demon hunter and his thirteen-year-old assistant, Tash. All Tash wants to do is hunt demons, collect their drug-like smoke and sell it so she can buy a pair of boots, but fate has other plans, and it is all because of demon smoke.

Coming from all walks of life, the unlikely characters join forces at the conclusion of the book, preparing to face the biggest battle of their young lives. The first book of the series is an exciting introduction to the action promised in the following novels. Slow to start but growing increasingly interesting, The Smoke Thieves is an engaging story with fantastic main characters.

As a work of historical fantasy, The Smoke Thieves is a welcome change from the contemporary fantasy Sally Green has previously written. This book suggests the author has great ideas to come in the near future.
  
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Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Angelbound (Angelbound Origins #1) in Books

Jul 16, 2020  
Angelbound (Angelbound Origins #1)
Angelbound (Angelbound Origins #1)
Christina Bauer | 2013 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
8
7.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
This is another book that has been on my Kindle for years. It's been a little over six years since I bought this from Amazon so it's about time I read this.

This starts with Myla, a quasi-demon, waking for school, only to find she has to fight in the arena again, something she lives for. There's some politics going on with the angels and demons and she finds herself being drawn into it. Add in Prince Lincoln of the thrax, a group of human demon killers, and she's not having the best time... Not with the tension that sparks between them.

I'll admit I'd been put off by the number of pages in this. I am not a fan of really long books and this is listed as being 500+ pages... But, I was quickly drawn into this. It had a really easy to read style and I quickly grew to like Myla. She's the kick arse, evil soul defeating, demon killing quasi-demon that want's to know who her dad is. And it is a mystery that I enjoyed seeing unravelled. There were quite a few twists and turns along the way.

The romance was kinda cute. They really don't like each other much to start with what with Lincoln being a demon hunter and Myla being part demon but the more time they spent together, it was pretty obvious that they had a spark between them and I enjoyed the build up to their relationship starting and flourishing.

I also really liked a few of the secondary character's such as Walker and Cissy. Zeke also wasn't so bad when he stopped being so "I'm hot, no-one can resist me" and started acting more normal.

It was a very well thought out and detailed story that I enjoyed getting my teeth into but I'm not going into too many details as it would totally ruin it for you. Let's just say Purgatory is in for a hell of a ride. If you like stories involving demons and angels then I'd give this a go.