Tag Archives: Must Read Series

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Review: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

Title: Bitterblue
Author: Kristin Cashore
Series: Graceling Realm
Rating: ★★★★

I’m sure there will be people who read Bitterblue who find it too long, too complex, and with too little romance. I am not one of those people. Bitterblue was a fantastic way to wrap up this series. It was the culmination of everything that had happened in the pervious novels.

Bitterblue, the little princess of the first novel, has grown up and must face the world her father created. The people of her country are confused and unsure of how to move forward. King Leck, Bitterblue’s father, was a tyrant who stopped at nothing to make the world the way he wanted it. Unimaginable things happened, but because of Leck’s grace, his entire rein comes with a cloud of fog that people are still working through. Bitterblue is trying to move her people forward to a place of piece and trust, but there are people fighting against her at every turn.

I liked the queenly side of Bitterblue, but I also found her secretive side wonderful as well. She starts sneaking out of the castle, wanting to know more about the city that bears her name. She finds that things are not as her advisors tell her and that people are unhappy. There’s a group of people wanting to find the truth of King Leck’s rein and people are working hard to keep those years unknown. Posing as a baker of the castle, she finds a group of friends that shows her the truth. When she starts to fall for one of her new friends, things begin to get messy.

There are a couple stories being told within this novel. There’s the story of Bitterblue trying to be the queen her people need. She’s coming of age and finding love for the first time. There’s a disturbing mystery surrounding her father’s rein. All of this could easily make its own novel, but Cashore was able to weave the stories together amazingly. It never feels like it’s too much going on. Just when a break from the evils of King Leck is needed, Cashore picks up the romantic storyline. Before the romantic storyline gets too emotional, Bitterblue must deal with a queenly problem. There’s a wonderful balance between everything that must happen.

I know the end won’t be for everyone. Without giving anything away, I’ll say the ending fit. Would it have been nice if everything had ended perfectly, wrapped in a perfect red bow? Of course, but then it wouldn’t have been real. There’s still happiness and peace, with the closure the characters need.

Bitterblue is an amazing novel that wraps the Graceling series up the way it needed to be. It ties everything together and gives hope for the future of the world Cashore created. Everything is not perfect, but it’s moving towards being the best world it could be. Bitterblue makes this series a must read. It’s fantastic and beautifully written with characters that will pull at your heart.

If Bitterblue sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: The Boleyn Deceit by Laura Andersen

Title: The Boleyn Deceit
Author: Laura Andersen
Series: The Boleyn Trilogy
Rating: ★★★★★

If a book is good, it makes me feel a lot of emotions. If a book is amazing, it makes me feel too many emotions and I end up face-first on the floor because the emotions take over and I can’t function. The Boleyn Deceit had me on the floor, unable to figure out what to do with my emotions and wondering why history wasn’t Andersen’s books.

The Boleyn Deceit follows shortly after The Boleyn King. Minuette and Dominic are in love, but William has his heart set on Minuette. Elizabeth is wishing she could admit her feelings for Robert Dudley without repercussions. Minuette is still searching for the person behind the death of her friend, and is becoming the center of rumors and death threats. All the drama and intrigue of the Tudor court is there and it’s hard to believe this isn’t how history happened.

Elizabeth is the same, stubborn, strong, determined woman in this series as she is written in the history books. She is levelheaded most of the time, but both she and William have the Tudor temper to deal with at times. Dominic is calm, controlled, and rational. Minuette is innocent, but not as naive as others believe. She may not be as experienced in the darker side of court life, but that doesn’t mean she can’t play the game.

The dynamic between these four has changed from the first novel. In the beginning, the weight of responsibilities didn’t weigh so heavy on them. They were never carefree, but they were able to forget their troubles, if only for a little while, and just be friends. William looked to these three to be his support, to always tell him the truth because they are the only ones he trusts. In The Boleyn Deceit, secrets have changed their relationships and even though they say they still trust each other completely, William becoming king means that is not always true. As William adjusts to being king, his relationships become more about usefulness and that in turn changes the relationships between the close four.

The weaving of the deception and trickery is so fantastic that just when I thought everything had been revealed, Andersen adds another twist that fits to perfectly that I couldn’t believe I didn’t see it coming. There are layers of deceit and just as one knot unravels, another forms. It’s deliciously tangled and I love it.

The Boleyn Deceit is a novel just as amazing and breathtaking as any story from history. Andersen has created characters and plots that are so perfectly in tune with the period that I forget I’m reading an alternate history novel. I’m a huge history buff and while I contemplate how things would have turned out if one thing were changed in the story, I’m usually sticking with the facts. Andersen makes me wish this is how everything turned out. Her writing and story are so perfect that for once, I want to change history. The Boleyn Reckoning cannot get here soon enough.

If The Boleyn Deceit sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Thank you to Random House publishers and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Deception by C.J. Redwine

Title: Deception
Author: C.J. Redwine
Series: Courier’s Daughter
Rating: ★★★★★

I’ve been not so patiently waiting for Deception from the moment I finished Defiance. I loved the action and romance of the first novel, and couldn’t wait to see what Redwine had in store for her characters next.

The city of Baalboden has been destroyed and the Commander has run off. All that remains is a small group of survivors who selected Logan to be their leader. Logan and Rachel have both lost nearly everyone they love and care about, with their love for each other needing to be strong enough for each other. Logan decides to take the group of survivors across the Wasteland in search of asylum in the northern territories. With the Commander’s army at their backs, a traitor in their camp, and the unknown in front of them, their travels are dangerous.

Logan and Rachel have moved past the unknowns of their relationship. Redwine doesn’t have to build up their relationship. They love each other and have that foundation to build upon. They have to figure out how to fight for each other while still fighting against the outside forces bent on their destruction. They both have lost their family and a large majority of their friends, and need the other in order to keep their strength going.

For Logan, Rachel is the only person her has left that he considers family. His worries that her self-sacrificing ways will get her killed make him take extra steps to ensure her safety. Rachel has lost all family except Logan and is just as worried about losing him. She’s not sure if she can survive losing another person she loves. The death that has already surrounded her haunts her and she doesn’t know how to get past it, or if she’s even strong enough to. It causes her to become even more self-sacrificing and take bigger risks, even when she knows she shouldn’t.

I loved the storyline of this novel. The trek across the Wasteland, with possible dangers at every turn, and the traitor within the group made for an amazing read. I was never really sure what was going to happen next. I was kept guessing at who the traitor was and I must say, I was pretty shocked. The character deaths made me cry, one especially, and as much as I hated seeing those characters go, I understand why they happened. Everything had a purpose, whether it was to move the story along or to have a character change and grow.

Deception was just as amazing as I hoped, and knew, it would be. It made me weak in the knees. It made my heart race. It was everything I wanted. The ending left me breathless and I really wish I didn’t have to wait to read the next novel. Redwine has an amazing series going and I can’t wait to see how she ends it.

If Deception sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

Title: Crown of Midnight
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass
Rating: ★★★★★

I am nearly speechless. It’s rare for me to lose words when it comes to books I love, but Maas has managed to write a book that took the words from me. I’ve been eagerly awaiting Crown of Midnight and it did not let me down at all. I mean…wow.

Celaena is now the King’s Champion, doing his bidding by getting rid of his enemies. He tells her a name; she goes to get rid of the “problem.” It’s the bargain she has made for her freedom. She is anything but loyal to the king, though, and that puts not only herself in danger, but those she cares for as well. Chaol is the man she finds herself drawn to, but she values her friendship with Prince Dorian as well. Things only get more complicated when secret plots and long forgotten information start finding their way out.

Celaena is a dichotomy. She is fearless, yet cowardly. She’s strong, yet powerless. She’s incredibly brilliant, but confused. She has no problem taking on someone in a fight. She knows how to handle herself there. But when faced with secrets and cover-ups, she cowers. She can fight against the most well trained fighter and win, but she can’t fight against forces she can’t see. When faced with horrible tasks, she figures out a way around them in order to save lives, but lets her emotions cloud her judgment at times. She’s a fascinating character and after the last chapter, I really cannot wait to read more about her.

Chaol and Dorian are still wonderful. Dorian has accepted that he may not be her first choice and that creates a bit of tension between the three of them. He still wants to remain friends, but the lines are blurry and need to be sorted out first. Chaol is loyal to the crown and he lets that interfere with what he wants to do. And then trouble hits and the three of them fall apart and roles are changed. It’s amazing how Maas can write a love triangle that’s not really a triangle, but still lets you have those warm, fuzzy feelings about both boys. I love it.

The plot. My, oh my. The entire story is a thing of beauty. There are creates and fights and secrets and it’s simply lovely to read. Everything that happens answers one question but leaves you with more. It’s a twisting, winding maze that I can’t see the end of, but can’t help but try to piece together. That I have to wait until next year to get more of the story is leaving my insides curling.

Crown of Midnight is a stunning novel that has me declaring that this is a must read series and author. Maas can write an amazing novel and the wait for the next novel is way, way to long. I need it in my hands as soon as possible.

If Crown of Midnight sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: The Bitter Kingdom by Rae Carson

Title: The Bitter Kingdom
Author: Rae Carson
Series: Fire and Thorns
Rating: ★★★★★

This is such a bittersweet review to write. One the one hand, the book was amazing. Everything I wanted, could have asked for, and more. But it’s the last of the series, and I almost didn’t want to read it, just so I could make the series last.

Elisa is on the run. Not only is she a fugitive in her own country, but her enemies have taken the man she loves to lure her to them. Her Godstone is more alive than ever and she knows she still has more to accomplish. She is driven and determined to not fail the man she loves, her country, her friends, and herself. Every choice she makes is important and the pressure she is under is immense.

Elisa is amazing in The Bitter Kingdom. She doesn’t let worry or fear cloud her judgment. She knows she faces many problems, but instead of losing control, she decides what to do and when. She uses her voice powerfully and doesn’t back down when she knows she’s right. There is so much she accomplishes in this novel.

There is also a glimpse into Hector’s mind in The Bitter Kingdom. They don’t take up a large section of the novel, but they are enough. They show the respect and admiration he has for Elisa as well as the love he has for her. They carry so much weight in so few pages, but they give you such a good, warm feeling. As for the romance between Elisa and Hector, Carson isn’t building it up as much in this novel, but instead focuses on showing how Hector and Elisa are equals, and how their love built on friendship, trust, and admiration is a guiding force for each of them.

The storyline just about did me in. I couldn’t stop reading, deciding sleep wasn’t necessary and that caffeine loading the next day would be completely worth it. I just had to know what was going to happen next. There was no easy spot to stop and say “here is good, I’ll pick it up here tomorrow.” I even had trouble stopping to make myself lunch and dinner. The action and fighting was intense, and even the times when there wasn’t fighting, I still couldn’t put the book down.

The Bitter Kingdom is one of the best series ending novels I’ve read. It has a little bi of everything and is incredibly well written. I’m extremely sad to see this series end, but it ended perfectly. I cannot wait to see what Carson comes up with next.

If The Bitter Kingdom sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

Title: The White Princess
Author: Philippa Gregory
Series: The Cousins’ War series
Rating: ★★★★★

Philippa Gregory has written yet another fantastic historical fiction novel. This time it centers on Elizabeth of York, the wife of Henry VII and the mother of Henry VIII. She’s forced into marriage in order to unite the two sides of the Cousin’s War, but rarely feels at peace with her role in the new world her husband is forging. Her story is compelling and rich, and Gregory does an amazing job of telling it.

Elizabeth has always known she would be a pawn somehow, someway. As a female, she can’t rule, but she can give her husband the authority he needs to rule. So when Henry VII defeats her lover Richard III in battle and takes the title of king, she knows it will be her job to marry the victor. Their relationship starts out on horrible terms, with neither trusting the other or even liking each other. They know their marriage is one for show; Henry must marry Elizabeth to show a united front and Elizabeth must marry Henry to show the country who is king.

Even though their relationship starts out on bad terms, they come to form a type of love and respect for each other, even though it can never fully form. Henry doesn’t trust anyone who once sided with the York cause, including Elizabeth. There is always someone around the corner trying to take the throne away from him and that makes it hard for him to trust in others. Even when Elizabeth truly does not know anything about the plots surrounding her husband, the fact that she is a York is enough for Henry to distrust her.

Elizabeth played a different role in this novel than the women of the previous novels. In the previous novels, the women were determined and worked as hard as they could to secure their line on the throne. The men may have gone off to war, but the women were fighting their own battles. For Elizabeth, the struggle isn’t so much for the throne, but for who she is as queen. She is relatively safe with either side on the throne, but she must decide where her loyalties lie. She was raised a York, believing her brothers were the true heirs to the throne. However she creates a new line with the birth of Arthur, the Tudor line. She is played by both sides and must figure out which future she is willing to fight for.

I liked this internal struggle as compared to physical battle. There is still fighting and the battles one expects of a war, but getting inside Elizabeth’s mind as she is isolated yet loved, respected yet distrusted, fought over yet pushed aside was amazing. As much as Henry never felt secure, Elizabeth was just as questionable. Her fate was tied to people she had no control over, but she still fought to make her own path anyway. I wasn’t ready for a character like her, but I’m glad Gregory wrote her the way she did.

The White Princess has a different feel to it when compared to the other novels of the series. The fighting between the cousins has slowed, but not ended, and that leaves room for other factors to come into play. Instead of reading about the fight for a crown, this novel feels more like a fight for loyalties. Do you side with the family you are born with or with the family you have created? It’s a difficult question to answer but I feel like Gregory did a wonderful job looking at how Elizabeth of York handled that very question. This is yet another fantastic novel in the Cousin’s War series and it feels very bittersweet that it’s the second to last novel. Almost every story has been told and as much as I hate to see the end, I am looking forward to reading The Last Rose.

If The White Princess sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: Dead Silence by Kimberly Derting

Title: Dead Silence
Author: Kimberly Derting
Series: The Body Finder series
Rating: ★★★★

The end of The Last Echo was the perfect set-up for Dead Silence. The little bit of a cliffhanger had me so anxious to read what came next that I picked up the book and didn’t put it down until I had finished, only a few hours later. Everything from the previous books had been building until it finally came to a head in Dead Silence.

Violet is being blackmailed into staying with the group run by Sara. She’s having trouble balancing her normal life with her paranormal life. Things between Violet and Jay are getting messy because she doesn’t understand where to turn when she needs help. The secrets she’s held her entire life are starting to weigh her down and she’s not sure where she can turn. Things in her life are getting messy and she can’t figure out how to clean them up.

The relationship between Violet and Jay is one of the most realistic portrayals of a healthy relationship I’ve read in a while. They love each other, but still have so much to work around before they can be a true couple. Violet may trust Jay with her secret, but she finds it hard to trust him with information related to what she does. She wants to protect him, but she does so by keeping him out of the loop, something Jay doesn’t want to put up with. There really isn’t any outside threat to their relationship, but everything comes from within their relationship. They have issues they need to work through before their relationship can mature and it was refreshing to read something that real.

Something I liked more than I thought I would was the incorporation of Violet’s “normal” friends with her paranormal ones. I knew that she could keep them separate for so long before they would collide, but I wasn’t sure how the collision would be handled. Derting was able to mix the two worlds without giving one or the other extra emphasis, making sure they stayed on level ground as Violet tried to figure out how to mix the two in her personal life.

The killer in this novel was something else. I got chills from the killer in The Last Echo, but this was something else entirely. There was something about how sane his little pieces seemed to be, even as I could tell he was losing touch with reality, that made him all the more evil. I also liked that he wasn’t after Violet specifically; he was just evil because he could be. He thought he was being the good guy, though, and that’s what made him especially villainous.

Dead Silence closes the door on a fantastic series while still leaving a window open for more. Things are wrapped up and taken care of, but it’s easy to picture life going on for Violet, Jay, Rafe, and everyone else. You know the story doesn’t end here, yet there was closure. The Body Finder series has been one of the most interesting and well-written paranormal stories I’ve read, striking the perfect balance between all its elements. This is definitely a must read series.

If Dead Silence sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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Review: The Last Echo by Kimberly Derting

Title: The Last Echo
Author: Kimberly Derting
Series: The Body Finder series
Rating: ★★★★

Derting has an amazing ability to make each story unique and yet tie together perfectly. The Body Finder, Desires of the Dead and The Last Echo are all individual books that bleed together to create an amazingly suspenseful story that kept me turning page after page.

Violet has discovered a group of people with unique abilities and she doesn’t feel so strange when she’s around them. Soon, that side of her starts to take over and her old friendships and life begin to suffer. She’s struggling to find the balance between her paranormal abilities and being a regular teen. Derting doesn’t gloss over this struggle, but uses Violet’s friendships as a way to highlight the two halves of Violet. The one tie between everything is still Jay, the best friend turned boyfriend who keeps her centered in reality.

The Last Echo goes back to the serial killer idea, but there’s something especially creepy about this novel. The glimpses into the mind of the killer are chilling and disturbing and I couldn’t get enough of them. Violet doesn’t mean to enter the killer’s radar, but once she does, you know it can’t end well. Each novel has been building on the deaths of the previous novels, with Violet learning more about herself and her ability each time. She’s tired of relying on others to save her, so when she’s faced with evil and she’s the only one who can fight; she must step up and take control. I’m glad Derting waited until this novel to have Violet find herself. It felt real and I could tell the slow build is exactly what Violet needed to find her strength.

I’m extremely interested to see how Derting handles the relationships going into the final novel. Violet’s friendships with her “normal” friends are starting to suffer and the relationships she’s formed with the teens like her take a hit as well. There’s a not-really-a-love triangle that Violet needs to deal with along with her relationship with Jay. She has to deal with a shift in the family dynamic as her parents start to take more control over her life, creating conflict between what Violet feels is right and what her parents feel is safe.

The Last Echo had me on the edge of my seat the entire time I was reading. The mind of the killer is just insane enough to be chilling and knowing that Violet will somehow end up tangled with him had me frantically reading. The build-up from the previous two novels is starting to peak and the set-up for the final novel gave me chills. Derting is proving to be an amazing paranormal series author, finding just the right balance between the normal and the paranormal. The Last Echo makes the Body Finder series a must read and I can’t wait to see how this series is wrapped up. If this book is any indication, it’s going to be a fantastic ride.

If The Last Echo sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
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IndieBound

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Can’t Wait for Mondays: Champion by Marie Lu

The Legend series is one that kind of came out of nowhere and hit me in the face. I really hadn’t meant to read Legend, but a friend gave me the book and told me I should read it. I trust her judgment, so I picked the book up and read. Thank god I did. Legend hooked me right away, pulled me into the world of June and Day, and made me care. Then Prodigy came out and I had to have it right away. I needed to see what was going to happen next. And then I finished it and thought I would have to wait a year until getting my hands on the final book.

So imagine my surprise and joy when Lu told the world the final chapter in the Legend series would be released in November. I think the smile stayed on my face for a couple days and I had to explain that it was over a book being released earlier than I thought. Only true book lovers understood why that would etch a smile onto my face that wouldn’t leave.

Copied from the Champion book page:

He is a Legend.
She is a Prodigy.
Who will be Champion?

June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic—and each other—and now their country is on the brink of a new existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps Elect while Day has been assigned a high level military position. But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them once again. Just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities. This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything he has. With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion.

Let’s be real, with a description like that, the sooner it can be released, the better. There’s only so much my heart can handle and I am certain Lu is going to push, bend, and break it in all the right ways before hopefully putting it together again. There are so many possibilities within this book that just thinking about what might be coming gets overwhelming.

Champion will be published on November 5th, 2013 by Putnam publishers. Let me know if you’ll be joining me as a midnight reader!

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Review: Losing Hope by Colleen Hoover

Title: Losing Hope
Author: Colleen Hoover
Series: Hopeless series
Rating: ★★★★★

Companion novels make me hesitate. As much as I love the original story, I always worry a companion will be a rehashing of the original and won’t be its own book. Even if the original is one of the most amazing stories I’ve ever read, if the companion novel doesn’t have its own story, I’m not going to love it.

Losing Hope is what a companion novel should be. Yes, it retells Hopeless from Holder’s point of view, but it also tells Holder’s story. Not only do we get to see him fall in love with Sky, we see him dealing with the suicide of his sister. It may be a companion novel, but it can stand on its own.

Holder is the one who finds his sister after she overdoses. He feels as though he let her down by not being what she needed. He second guesses his choices when it comes to her, trying to figure out where he could have done something different to save her. His guilt eats away at him slowly.

When he moves back home with his mother, he runs into a girl who reminds him of the first girl he let down, Hope. Her name is Sky, though, and he tries to convince himself that who he sees is false and that he needs to let go of Hope and focus on Sky. From reading Hopeless, I knew this part of the story, but I still enjoyed reading it from Holder’s point of view.

I think what made this novel so amazing was Hoover’s split focus. Part of the novel is spent telling Holder’s point of view of Hopeless, but the other half, the half that really made me love this book, is about Holder coming to terms with his sister’s suicide. He writes her letters and through those letters, he works through his emotions. It’s easy to see how much her death has affected him, but how he’s able to work through his grief and find a way to move beyond seeing her death every time he looks at her room.

Companion novels are just that…companions. They still need to have their own story. Simply retelling the original doesn’t give you well developed characters or plot. It doesn’t give you a book you can sink into. Losing Hope is everything a companion novel should be. It makes the series stronger, the story more meaningful. It is a heartfelt, touching story that enhances Hopeless, but stands on its own.

This is a definite must read book, and a must read series as well.

If Losing Hope sounds like your kind of novel, you can purchase it here:
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
IndieBound

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.