Nice Dragons Finish Last (Heartstrikers #1) by Rachel Aaron

Nice Dragons Finish Last by Rachel Aaron
My rating: 5 of 5 stars 

It is quite the task to find a dragon shape shifter book that is A: Not a Alpha male seeking a mate B: Has great amount of action and a fantastic story line and C: Is funny as hell.  Nice Dragons Finish Last is probably one of the best Dragon books I have ever read. If not THE BEST.   I know I am throwing about big words here.. Contenders such as Dragon riders of Pern, Talon and Seraphina make it nearly blasphemous but this really is a read for yourself  kind of statement. Nice Dragons Finish Last is the first book of the Heartstrikers series (which is planned to have 4 or 5 books from what I have been able to find out) and such a creative take on dragons it will give you whiplash however somehow keeps staying true to the classic bad dragon image.

This witty combination of Urban, Fantasy, and Contemporary humor has totally caught me by surprise. Yes, after reading the synopsis I was already quite taken with the promise. A under performing Dragon about to get his ass whooped if he does not live up to the cunning and ruthless Dragon standards. The way Rachel Aaron has woven this story together is simply brilliant.

Cornerstone (Cornerstone #1) by Misty Provencher

Cornerstone by Misty Provencher
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Warning: This was suppose to be a review for Cornerstone, yet somehow I ended up reading all books in practically one sitting. It has thrown me off my usual format so you will  have to excuse me.. Actually, scratch that, I'd better not apologise as there is a pretty good chance it will happen again at some stage.. so yeah.. it may be slightly spoilery .

Cornerstone has been on my 'to read' list for at least a couple of years. I came across it as a recommendation based on previously read books and the synopsis sounded original and interesting. It really grabbed me. But then life got in the way, slowly pushing it further down my list and other books got scooted to the top as sequels kept coming out.

Finally, on a Friday I opened it up on my reader as I was sitting in the waiting room preparing to get my wisdom teeth removed. I can not tell you how glad I am that I did. I literally went on a reading binge for the following 4 days and blasted through the entire series (4 in all). Granted I was probably a little high from all the painkillers but I'm fairly sure they didn't impair my judgement to much..

It was simply unique, invigorating, touching and bitter-sweet. The books branch on a range of subjects in any young adults life as well as throw you into a fantastically imaginative world not found anywhere else. Misty Porvincher is most definitely not afraid of letting her readers stretch their imagination and take a bit of risk. It is not chewed out or easy to swallow but certainly refreshing in the current YA genre to have a writer not be afraid to go beyond the line. Though it is not all seriousness and crazy stuff.. it also shows a light and comical side..

The Divide (The Dreamland Series, #2) by E.J. Mellow

The Divide by E.J. Mellow


My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Divide has been on my list of most anticipated sequels for 2015. When it finally arrived in my mailbox I was ecstatic and slightly nervous. As the sequel to a smashing debut novel I was truly hoping it would live up to the awesomeness of the first book and that there would be a good chunk more of Devlin (though really the story was a reason enough of course hah!)...

The Divide jumps right into where The Dreamer left off. Molly is on her way to be put under for a few days in order to get her training under way. And ohh do we get thrown straight back into it! We finally get to delve a little deeper into Terra and get introduced to whole heap more interesting gadgets and what not's. There are some truly tension packed scenes right up my ally and I am extremely glad that this is a NA novel and did not have to conform to YA fadeouts. It delivered on all of my TGTBT expectations  (for anyone wondering , it's short for 'To Good To Be True').

Sweep in Peace (Innkeeper Chronicles #2) by Ilona Andrews

Sweep in Peace by Ilona Andrews

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ahhh I simply adore the Inkeeper Chronicles, you guys have no idea how happy I was when it got announced there will be more books to come!

Ever since I started reading Clean Sweep through the then hosted serial, I have been obsessively checking my email in the hopes another episode would have been posted. I devoured Sweep in Peace as soon as it followed. Luckily anyone that has missed out, the actual polished book form is to be released on the 13th of November pre-order here (awesome or what!).

  

We pick up a little while after Clean Sweep ended. Dina is in a bit of a slum. Sean Evans has left for the wider universe after one awesome kiss, making good on the favor he still owed. Neither is she any closer to finding out what happened to her parents or how she can get some much needed clientele into Gertrude Hunt. Then out of the blue she is proposed an offer she cant refuse when George knocks on her door in hopes of finding a place to host a peace summit (you will George and his team from the The Edge series which is funnily enough the first Ilona Andrews series I read and got me hooked on their work).

The Guardian, a Sword, & Stilettos (Enlighten series #1) by Kristin D. Van Risseghem

The Guardian, a Sword, & Stilettos by Kristin D. Van Risseghem
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The Guardian, a Sword, & Stilletos is a ya/teen novel. It plays on the fantasy genre and follows Zoe, our protagonist who finds out she is destined to fulfill a world saving prophesy. She has a best friend Kieran, whom she later finds out is an angel and is in fact in love with her. However bad boy and half angel Shay comes in the picture and steals her heart as her potential soulmate instead. Both have been appointed to look over her as her 18th B-day is destined to reveal what she truly is and if she is capable to make true to the prophecy. Not only that, but her best friend is a faerie and is ordered by the summer court to guard her as well.

The Collectors' Society (The Collectors' Society #1) by Heather Lyons

The Collectors' Society by Heather Lyons
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Collector's Society is a new adult modern day fairy tail retelling.

Whilst the book has multiple mentions of other literary works and it characters, it focuses mainly around Alice from Alice in wonderland and Finn from 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'.

The story begins with Alice who is institutionalized for reasons we will find out later on in the story. She is about to be released when a man comes to her in dire need of help. Alice reluctantly agrees to assist him in order to save loved ones she thought to have left behind for good. Though helping him means she gets thrown into a world and truth she had never imagined. She gets paired up with Finn, who is second in command in the Collector's Society and who's collective goal it is to ensure other worlds and their timelines are kept safe.

~ A doorway can lead a person into new spaces, and can allow in loved ones, enemies, new acquaintances, or horrible things that we never dare dream about. They can remove us from that we've just left, or present us a firm wall of acceptance we may or may not wish to embrace.

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This review may be a tiny bit biased.. 

Sarah J. Maas has been one of my favorite authors ever since I picked up Throne of Glass. I adore her writing style, her unique way with words and of course the fact that she has a knack for coming up with kickass heroines!

A Court of Thorns and Roses ticks all these boxes and delfs into a story involving Fea as well as some 'fairytail' aspects which we are all familiar with. I love books surrounding fae.. No really, I have a very special place for those and if you look through my fave list, you will spot 5 of them already! *insert girly sigh here*

The good part of those is that there are a lot out there. The lesser part, is that this abundance can make these feel regurgitated. ACOTAR is most definitely not one of those...

The story begins with Feyre who manages to get herself in a very tight spot when she kills a wolf in the woods to survive the barren winter with her family. The wolf is not just a wolf, no it's a Faerie wolf.

The Dreamer (The Dreamland Series, #1) by E.J. Mellow

The Dreamer by E.J. Mellow
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



 

When the cover and synopsis of The Dreamer where announced on my blog, I was brimming with excitement at the prospect of reading it. I couldn't wait to have it in my hands (release date is May 15th, you can buy it here)! This book has probably counted toward my most anticipated reads this year and it has fully lived up to my
 expectations!




The Dreamer is a New Adult story with a contemporary fantasy/paranormal twist. It really is a mixture of all my favorite genres and as such, it brings their best aspects to light. It's written in first person, modern day time.

Hidden Huntress (The Malediction Trilogy #2) by Danielle L. Jensen

Hidden Huntress by Danielle L. Jensen

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

 

When I picked up Stolen Songbird mid June last year (2014), I was swept away in the story of a curse, trolls, magic and a great cast of characters who quickly captured my heart. This book swiftly landed in my favorites list and has always burned in the back of my mind. My review of Stolen Songbird can be found here for anyone interested.

When I discovered the sequel Hidden Huntress was out on Netgalley, I was absolutely thrilled. And I have to say, it does not disappoint! In fact, it blew me away..

The Winner's Crime (The Winner's Trilogy #2) by Marie Rutkoski

The Winner's Crime by Marie Rutkoski
My rating: 4 of 5 stars (and 80% frustration)
Copy supplied by Netgalley in exchage for a honest review.

Still reeling from The Winner s Curse, I had the next instalment The Winner’s Crime waiting for me, which was a very good thing as the first book ends on a very sad note.

This book picks up shortly after the ending of the last instalment. We get faced with the aftermath of Kestrel’s decision to bargain with the emperor.

Kestrel is now betrothed to the crown price and he is just as unhappy about the engagement as she is. To top it off, she has not heard a word from Arin after the ‘peace offering’ she has given herself up for, which Arin views as betrayal.

When a royal summons pressures him to come to court, the two have to try and find a means of understanding. Kestrel can not jeopardize her efforts to keep peace and is faced with the horrible decision of lying to keep them both safe as the Emperor starts to question her loyalty to the crown and country.

The Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy #1) by Marie Rutkoski

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
4.5 Stars

For the longest time The Winner's Curse has been showing on my E-book shelf, and when I saw the sequel The Winner's Crime I could not resist putting my hand up to review it. I completely glanced over the fact I had not actually read the first.

Consequently, I started reading, and came to the conclusion that I was seriously missing something and I had better skim the previous installment to refresh my memory. Only to find out I had NOT in fact read it. Queue, me in a panic as my deadline was looming and now I had 2 books and reviews to finish.

Lark Rising (Guardians of Tarnec, #1) by Sandra Waugh

Lark Rising by Sandra Waugh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Lark Rising is a cross between a High Fantasy and YA genre with a lovely romance aspect. This sounds relatively simple, however it is a hard thing to pull off. I have previously read some horrid attempts and I’m glad to say that this has hit the nail on the head for me.

There are not many authors that create such world building. Lark Rising takes you on an intriguing quest (yes, your typical Fantasy cliché) and sprinkles it with a budding romance, without getting tacky, overburdened or an altered version of all of the above.

The Pledge (The Pledge #1) by Kimberly Derting

The Pledge by Kimberly Derting
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Pledge is an interesting combination of a YA Romance and Fantasy. I have seen a few references to a Dystopian theme fly by and even though there are some minor hints throughout the book, that it is a modern civilization thrown back into another era, I feel that people who are expecting a Dystopian will be left wanting more from this book.

It is written in alternate POV's and we mainly follow Charlie who is 17 and lives in a 'kingdom' segregated on language. In this world the language you speak dictates the social status of your family; and her family falls somewhat in the middle class.