Showing posts with label sarah j maas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sarah j maas. Show all posts

Monday, 7 August 2017

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas

03:13:00 0
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin’s maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit—and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well. As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords—and hunt for allies in unexpected places. 
Reading the Riot Act
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas
Published May 2nd 2017 by Bloomsbury
Paperback 699 Pages

Despite my best efforts, this series has slowly wormed it's way into my heart. When A Court of Thorns and Roses was released, I was ride or die with Throne of Glass. Then, Celaena died and Feyre was born. Aelin, was second to Feyre - and in the place of my beloved Chaol, was Rhysand. I know, I know, how disloyal of me. But A Court of Mist and Fury was one of the best books I have ever read. So, as you can imagine, I waited for this conclusion with bated breath. 

This book, was a wild ride. We start slow, building like a roller-coaster and Feyre - honey, I gotta say - is acting like a bit of an idiot. She's undercover in the Spring Court and every two minutes she's like...'Guys, how good a spy am I?' Not a great one Feyre. She's having mysterious headaches and her powers weakening but she notices none of it, she's too busy patting herself on the back for a job she hasn't even finished yet. There are 100 Rhysand-less pages and when everything finally kicks off, it is worth the wait. 

Hyberns men attack, Feyre EFFS up Ianthe (totally justified) and Lucien is along for the ride. Turns out Feyre was being poisoned the whole time and she had no clue. (Nice one, babe.) They flee into Autumn Court, on foot, and low and behold. More shit goes down. BAM. FIGHT. ICE. MOUNTAINS. AHHHH! It's so dramatic. I'm on the edge of my seat. We're only 150 pages in and could this be the end? Of course not! Sexy Illyrians fall from the sky, smashing into ice with bat-wings and chiseled jaws. The Court of Dreams. Whoosh, swept up, back to Velaris and our beloved friends. 

I've never been so happy to return to a setting before. Now with Lucien and Feyre's sisters and our darling, darling Rhysand. It's like I was coming home, and I didn't expect to miss Mor and Amren as much as I did. Suddenly the pace is different. It feels fast but so much is happening. Raunchy love scenes, sister drama, training. It's all so detailed but my mind is gone. I'm not reading the words, I'm there, trying to grow Illyrian wings and readying myself for battle. 

Though it's good to be back, there's still Hybern to deal with. The gang organise a meeting, getting the leaders together and try to unite Prythian against Captain Crunch. Sorry, The King of Hybern. I loved how political this book was, it was like Game of Thrones, where wars aren't just won on battlefields. There is diplomacy, working together and it is so interesting to watch it all come together or unravel. 

Hybern attacks Velaris and the meeting is pulled forwards. Nesta, who's been acting like a straight-up biatch is having a change of heart. I mean, we get what her problem is because Elain is acting nuts. Everything she says is sinister and random. Nesta, in her worry, basically becomes a meaner Amren. (I know, who thought that was possible!) The meeting with the High-Lords is pulled up, it has to be now and they are not happy about having a High-Lady in the midst. Neither are the High-Lords wives - Feyre seems to be giving them ideas. Everything is tense but working out and then boom! The moment we have all being waiting for...in walks Tamlin. 

Tamlin is ruthless. For some reason, I love it. He's catty, talking about Feyre's climaxing noise and just bating Rhysand, begging for a punch. Then, Rhysand takes away his ability tio speak. As someone who didn't even like Tamlin in book one, this is extremely satisfying. I preferred this scene of the numerous Rhys/Feyre sexy times. After this, although a lot of stuff happens, the war seems to come at you fast. Before I know it, Elain is a seer, we've been winnowing the humans to safety and the battle is on us. 

I was sure there was going to be death. Lots of death, and with Feyre rallying the Bone Carver, The Weaver and whatever the hell was in the bottom of the library, the odds seemed good. Until we saw Hyrberns army. The gang don't stand a chance. Lucien has gone to rally the human queens and as it turns out - Tamlin and Jurian are good guys. But, it's not enough. I know it, and the characters know it. They are saying goodbye and it all feels horrible. 

I start to dread the ending, dread knowing the finale is coming for Throne of Glass too, knowing this will only be the beginning of my sorrow. Nesta feels it, having taken something from the Cauldron. She knows when it is about to attack, and it obliterates.

They have to nullify it, Amren says she knows how, the Suriel told her where to look. But Elain is mad and Nesta is down. Cassian at her side. More Goodbyes. They need to get Hybern away from the Cauldron, so Amren and Feyre have a chance of nullifying it. Ships appear and there is Feyre's father. Lucien didn't bring the human queen, their father did. With ships named after the daughters, he fights for. I won't pretend I didn't cry. 

Damn. This review is long. 

We flip between Nesta and Feyre, the latter with her hand on the Cauldron and Amren apologising for lying. They aren't;t there to stop the Cauldron, they are there to release Amren. Feyre is pulled into the Cauldron, watching Hybern battle Nesta and Cassian. He's killing them, both of them. Feyre screams. She can't do anything to stop it. 

Then, Elain, with a knife in Hybern's throat. Nesta is on it, twisting the dagger in his throat, pay back for killing their father. The armies don't know Hybern has fallen. They keep fighting and Amren is released, laying waste to the fighters below. The Cauldron is destroyed, the beast inside Amren released. The very fabric of their world is shattered, and it needs to be fixed. 

Made and Unmade. Rhys appears. They all know the world will end if the Cauldron is not remade. Feyre does it, but everyone is depleted. Rhys offers his limited power, insists on it. She takes and takes, healing the cracks and saving them all, until she turns, and has killed Rhys. 



I know. I know, I crapped my pants. 
I had forgotten about Feyre. About how Rhys had held onto her and the High-Lords had brought her back. Spoiler Alert! It happens again. 

Then, the war is over. Time passes quickly and everything is such a shock. Amren is back and no one is dead. There is a happy ending. And it feels...disappointing. The final 50 pages are like lightning. I can barely comprehend where we are until we are there, at the end. And it feels like there should be more. 

I gave A Court of Wings and Ruin a solid 4 stars. 



Despite the slow beginning and the too fast ending - the journey in between was stunning. It was crazy and wild and one hell of an adventure. Besides, it's the journey that counts, not the destination. You can find me on TwitterInstagramGoodreads and Facebook. Until then...Happy Reading.

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Saturday, 18 June 2016

A Court of Mist and Fury By Sarah J Maas

13:27:00 0

Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Feyre is immortal.

After rescuing her lover Tamlin from a wicked Faerie Queen, she returns to the Spring Court possessing the powers of the High Fae. But Feyre cannot forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people - nor the bargain she made with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court.

As Feyre is drawn ever deeper into Rhysand's dark web of politics and passion, war is looming and an evil far greater than any queen threatens to destroy everything Feyre has fought for. She must confront her past, embrace her gifts and decide her fate.

She must surrender her heart to heal a world torn in two
.
Image from staybookish
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas
Published May 3rd 2016 by Bloomsbury Childrens Books
Paperback 624 pages

We join our heroine Feyre (Fay-RUH) once again in Prythian, where we left off in the first book A Court of Thorns and Roses. I gave the first book in the series a pitiful 3.5 stars. This doesn't seem too pitiful but I hold Maas to a much higher standard. When I read the first book I couldn't connect with  the characters or the plot.

However, A Court of Mist and Fury is a gamechanger!

I have always loved Throne of Glass, it has been my ultimate pick whenever people ask me for book reccomendations. Maas has just beat herself to my favourite book series, she now holds the top two spots, which is pretty impressive.

Feyre defeated Amarantha in the last book, died and was brought back to life as a Fae. A Court of Mist and Fury shows the fallout from this beautifully. Feyre is not only emotionally changed, she is more fearful at first, suffering nightmares and just a downright wreck. She loses a lot of weight and under the pressure of Tamlin's overprotective gaze she is in a very, very bad place. She has these growing powers, accidentally passed on through the high Fae who brought her back to life and within the first 100 pages, all of this comes to a fantastic climax. The bond with Rhysand is immediately a key factor, she calls to him on her wedding day and flees, leaving Tamlin in the lurch.

Fans of the first book will be upset if they started with a Tamlin/Feyre ship, though I don't know many who did. Honestly Tamlin turning into a controlling and arguably abusive boyfriend was the best thing that could have happened to Feyre. I didn't find him particularly endearing in the first book and I'm glad to be rid of him. Rhysand shows up and frees our heroine from Tamlin's clutches, for a time. As the deal permits, he begins taking her for a week every month and honestly, I see the appeal of Rhysand. He reminds me of Tom Hiddleston's Loki, only fitter, way fitter.

Eventually life with Tamlin gets too much and Feyre ends up at Rhysand's side. We've been waiting for it and we love. Here we begin a labyrinth of beautifully entwined stories, a love story that feels worthy of a Sarah J Maas novel and a supporting cast that is mind blowing. We see the world from the night court, learn about the intricities of actually running a court and of Rhysand himself. This is not some measly romantic story. This a grand love story with a background in supernatural political warzone. It's stunning just stunning.

There are these moments, when Feyre is alone and the way it is written is stunning. She looks at the stars and they start falling to the earth and I fall in love with Feyre, I fall in love with all of them in the way she does and I fall in with Rhysand. This love story is so beautiful because you fall in love with these characters, it takes the story to a new level.

We have this looming threat of war in the background. Hybern is readying for war and the night court are the doing the same in secret, they need to destroy the cauldron and defeat Hybern before they break the barrier to the human world and massacre everyone. This is the largest part of the plot and it takes most of the time. Our love story moves with it, almost until they inseperable and it comes to a fantastic climax when Tamlin is working with Hybern to kidnap Feyre or reclaim him property as he sees it.

I know rught, what a fucking ARSEHOLE! I HATE TAMLIN, I HATE HIM. I hope he dies next book I am so ready for it. It causes so much pain. I knew when he showed up there wasn't enough pages left for good things to happen. Feyre pretends not to love Rhysand, demands the King severe the mating bond between them (yeah that happened) and her sisters become Fae and one of them mates with Lucien! AHHHH! It ends with Feyre in the midst of spring court again, pretending to love Tamlin, pretending she was a prisoner with Rhysand. Even though they already got married and YOU CAN'T BREAK A MATING BOND BRO!

FEYRE + RHYSAND 4 LYF!XO

It was all very exciting and I can't believe I have to wait a year for the concluding novel.

It is worth mentionging that though ACOTAR is a YA book, ACOMAF is not. A Court of Mist and Fury is a new adult because there are a lot of sex scenes. Normally I have a lot of distaste for scenes like this, they can be crude and not sexy at all. Just see Fifty Shades of Grey is you don't believe me. They were hot, that's all I'm going to say. Hot.

It was great, it really was great and I would highly recommend it. I haven't been excited about a series properly in a while and this book cured my reading block. Love it. LOVE IT! Get it read.

If you do please do let me know what you thought.
Comment below.
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Send me it in Morse code.
Whatever's convenient.

Thank you for your time and
Happy Reading!


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Tuesday, 6 October 2015

My Book Kryptonite

09:24:00 0

There are some books, you think you're above. You snort at "tweens" reading twilight or roll your eyes dramatically at the thought of Shakespeare, but then there are those other books. Those books that you have a weakness for. If your reading ability was Superman, these books are your Kryptonite. You are defenseless against them and as soon as a book presents itself in that way, it is immediately in your basket.

For me, it  Fairy tale re-tellings. I want to pretend I'm above it, silly little genre with barely any originality - but I don't. Fairy tale re-tellings are some of the most outstanding literature I have read. They are so original and it is so interesting to have people take the same story and twist and manipulate it into something completely new. So to honour my book kryptonite, here is a list of my favourites, and if that's not enough, you can find more of the genre here.

1. Angela Carter


Angela Carter was an English Novelist. She wrote Angela Carter's Book of Fairy tale and The Bloody Chamber and other stories. These are by far her most popular books and they aren't like regular re-tellings. Often seen as feminist literature, Carter's writing is violent and terrifying and really takes a good look at the female position within fairy tales and society. She looks at the impact of fairy tales on our society and flips them on their head. I would highly recommend any of her literature to any human person ever.

2. Leigh Bardugo

If you have not read Leigh Bardugo - do it now. Don't even bother with finishing this article. Just go. For a little context Bardugo's fairy tale stories are all companion novellas to the Grisha Series:
The Witch of Duva
Little Knife
The Too Clever Fox
Little Knife is my favourite and all of them are so mystical and amazing. The world she builds in these tiny little stories are just stunning.

3. Marissa Meyer

Cyborg Cinderella? Moon-person Rapunzel? NUFF SAID! Lunar Chronicles are amazing.

4. Sarah  J Maas

Throne of Glass and A Court of Thorns and Roses, do seem far away from a fairy tale, but in fact TOG was originally based on Cinderella and ACOTAR is based on Beauty and the Beast. These series are both amazing representations of the ways authors interpret different stories. It is one of my favourite aspects of this genre. One of my all time favourites.


5. ONCE UPON A TIME

I'm afraid I am about to be a cheater. This series is not a book, but it is still a masterpiece of fairy-tale makeovers. ABC'S Once Upon a Time is one of the most enjoyable shows I have watched. I adore the series and Emma and the way it uses contemporary life and society in order to highlight the characters past lives. Evil Peter Pan? Whhaaaatt? I love it. I love it so much, it has snuck it's way into my book blog. DAMN YOU EMMA SWAN!


So that's it, a few of my favourite book kryptonite. I sincerely hope you enjoyed this quick little bit and I urge you to let me know in the comments, what your kryptonite is.

Happy Reading





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Friday, 2 October 2015

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas

01:00:00 2
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)



The Queen has returned


Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight. She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return. The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series continues Celaena's epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world. 

Welcome all Fire Breathing Bitch Queens! It's that time again, that time I wait all year for.


IT'S THRONE OF GLASS FOUR Y'ALL!


This is where you cheer, I know, it's exciting. So I'm just going to get on with it, because we have alot to discuss. Now, for those of you who don't know, Throne of Glass is in essence the story of a Notorious Assassin who happens to be a Lost Queen of a country at war. It is by far cooler than it sounds. I wrote a review of the previous book, so go here for that:


 CLICK ME FOR HEIR OF FIRE

Okay, so where do I even begin? A bit of time has passed between Heir of Fire and Queen of Shadows. We skipped the journey back to Adarlan and even the first few weeks of Celaena *cough* I mean Aelin - this is gonna be tough. So we miss Aelin getting settled in, and I thought that it would be awhile before we saw Arobynn Hamel. I was wrong, first chapter, Celaena has a new name, new hair and has tracked down Arobynn in the Vaults. It was great to just get into it, just to kick off with what I was waiting for once she realised she was going to see Arobynn again.

Now In The Assassin's Blade, I wasn't sure what to make of Arobynn, he was sadistic and violent and almost kind of like an abusive boyfriend. I never got to feeling there was anything sexual going on between them other than his need to be dominant over everyone else but in this book he was super creepy. I think he was initially shocked to see her and his guard was dropping a little because things weren't fully under his control. He had sent Aelin to Endovier, waiting for her t learn her lesson so he could save her as and when he pleased. It was way twisted, but I'll get to that.

We start this book and Celaena Sardothien is "gone". After all the awful things she has done Aelin decides to cast off her name and become Aelin instead. I can't imagine this will be permanent. She says hroughout the book that Celaena is gone but she isn't. There are moments, when she's joking with Lysandra (who is rad is this book) and with Rowan that are still Celaena. As fan theories go I believe Celaena's journey now is going to be accepting that she is Celaena and she is also Aelin. She has to accept the life that was before she can move on. That means accepting Nehemia's death, all the death she caused and Sam's death. She cannot just remove that grief by tattooing her back and changing her name. So I have a feeling this is going to take part over the last two books.

Aelin is just as bad-ass as Celaena. She's like demon Buffy the Vampire Slayer just slashing around being awesome. After seeing Arobynn the first time, we kick off with Aedion's rescue. I loved this section of the book, Aelin keeps all her plans a secret from the reader, so as it all happens it is so shocking and keeps you on the edge of your seat, The thing with the roses and the dancers and Dorian. Oh Gods, Dorian. I feel for Dorian in this book and generally he just annoys me. I never really understood his relationship with Sorscha. It felt very forced to me, whether that was Dorian forcing it to get over Celaena or Sarah J Maas herself. Demon Dorian is kind of terrifying and I honestly worried he would die. During the rescue, when he's grinning at Aelin and she's about to mercy kill him. Then she pauses, begging for him to remember, giving him a minute. This book made my heart race.

Then, there's Chaol. I have always been a Celaena and Chaol ship. My ship is sunk, though I still retain hope. Gods when he sees her and he is such and arsehole through the entire first half of the book. It's not until they have the talk on the rooftop that I finally realised, he was waiting for her. He'd heard the rumours of her and Rowan and then she showed up this different person. I had so much hope for them after her speech at the docks before she left in Crown of Midnight, and now I realise that's what Chaol felt. He was waiting for her and was so blind sided when she came back. Even as she first saw him, she started talking about how her heart has healed and without him in their. Despite the holes in my ship, I do still hold up hope. As long as she doesn't end up with Dorian I am happy. I was really surprised to love Rowan in this book. He was okay in Heir of Fire, a bit dark and broody for my taste. Rowan in this book is a lot more fun, the back and forth between the pair is so funny. And the thing with the almond oil and Arobynn made me laugh for a good twenty minutes. Gods it was so funny.  On the subject of new ships, I like Nesryn, I think her and Chaol are an excellent match. If Aelin and Chaol are off the cards, then Nesryn is awesome enough to be with Chaol. She's basically medieval Katniss.

My ultimate favorite scene in this book, my favorite scene of the whole series was Manon VS Aelin SMACKDOWN! I thought it would be a while before Aelin and Manon met but Maas surprised me again. This entire scene was perfection. These two amazing fighters just whooping each others butts was the ultimate in awesome, and then when Aelin saved Manon from the temple they had knocked down with their fighting was great. Then the life debt came into play and it was so cool. This entire series is not only impeccably written, so well written that as a writer it makes me feel awful every time I read it. It is edited to perfection. I would love to see a first draft and see how it compares. Maybe that would make me feel better. This book is not just well written and funny, it is cool. There is so much cool going on, like the best action film with the best romance and characters you could ever imagine. Each book gets better and better.

Now here's a ship I can get behind. MANON & DORIAN! I can get behind that, the little moment they had. Not to mention that Manon is vaguely Celaena-like, maybe explaining his attraction to Celaena in the first and second book. They just immediately had chemistry, and when she flies past his window and they both catch each others eyes despite being miles in the air. It was so romantic. I liked Rowan and Aelin, they have banter and I knew as soon as Rowan showed up in Adarlan that it was going to happen. It felt very natural, really liked them together.

Lysandra was a lovely little flower in this book. If you remember her from The Assassin's Blade, I hated her in that. Then it turns out she was playing the game, and that she is a shapeshifter. Way cool. I love how easy their friendship is. Girl friendships are always portrayed with a little jealousy and snideness between them but even after years of being manipulated into hating each other, it is as simple as saying they are now friends. Loved it. And now she's joining us in Terrasen, so I can't wait to see what will happen.

Fan Theory Time: What do you think will happen in the last two books? (That is very sad to say)

Personally, I think Rowan will die. I don't want him to, but there is no way they could break up and Aelin end up with someone else and in two books a lot can happen. I think he will die and it is gonna suck but I will be surprised if Rowan is endgame. He will also die before they "bang". There has been too much emphasis on them wanting to do it and not having ht time or privacy which if you recall the prequels, is a very Sam situation.

Manon and Dorian are total endgame, as are Aedion and Lysandra but she is gonna make him work for it.

I have said since the first book that Sam isn't dead. My theory keeps being pulled apart each book, but I am still waiting for him to like walk in and be all 'Hi guys, not dead. My bad.'

I think Aelin will learn to accept her past and Celaena will come back in atleast some form.

Obviously at some point we will finds this Valg King and have to kill or trap him or something, but we literally just learned about this so it feels like the beginning of a whole new series.

I am way behind Manon to be in Aelin's court. I love it. I could even ship them. What a twist that would be. It would be like Korra and Asami all over again and I was way happy about that.

I am hoping Elide will make it to Aelin. I felt  so bad when she had to walk to Terrasen, she can barely walk upstairs and now she's going on a cross country hike. It was sad but also the imagine was kind of hilarious.

Anyway, thank you so much for reading.  I utterly love this series and I hope you do too. Give me your fan theories. Slag off the Aelin name switch or just say how cool it was.

I will go down with this ship! CHAOL & CELAENA FOR LIFE!
Happy Reading.


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Monday, 11 May 2015

Cover Reveal: Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

11:34:00 1
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.
Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.





I mean look at it. It's beautiful. Celaena looks fierce and like a Queen. This entire book and it's cover has me so excited! I love that this series actually incorporates a face as well. Most books cut off the face but this works. The red! Oh my god the red! Like blood and destruction and ...love?

TEAM CHAOL TIL I DIE! 

Celaena has stolen my heart and I don't know what I could possibly say to explain my excitement.
Do you like it?

Happy Reading.
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Sunday, 10 May 2015

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

12:06:00 2
Warning: Spoilers! (duh.)


When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin—one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow grows over the faerie lands, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin—and his world—forever.


In the aftermath of a Fae vs Human deathmatch war, the world has gotten heavily into segregation. With Fae on their side of the wall and humans on theirs, co-existing together is never going to happen. Living in this world is human Feyre (Fay-ruh) a young woman who hunts in order to provide for her impoverish family. After finding a doe, Feyre sees a wolf after her catch  and quickly takes its life in order to claim the doe for herself. Afterwards a beast shows up and demands retribution, a life for a life and without spoiling anything good for you, what follows is an enthralling love story based on Beauty and The Beast.


Feyre is our typical Sarah J. Maas heroine, which is a compliment I promise. Selflessness and strength paired with human imperfections but a desire to do whats right, yet with many entertaining opportunities to do wrong. Much Like Celaena (Like Selena but with an A) from Throne of Glass, Feyre is a badass, although doesn't seem like it at first. For the introductory half of the book, most is world and relationship building. The audience does get a sense that their is something being unsaid - or that just doesn't add up logically, which is down to the fantastic writing skill of Maas. She is ace as preemptive writing, she can suggest something and you won't even realise it until its to late, but back to Feyre. Feyre is a delight to read, she comes into herself and stands with such courage at the end of the novel that it is hard not to love her. Much like her TOG counterpart she also has to endure the terrible and inflict the terrible upon others and not only does she do it with dignity, she does it with remorse and a heaviness that I can imagine will run throughout the trilogy. 


This book was far more romance based than I originally expected. The second half was primarily what I thought the entire book would be like but then it worked. ACOTAR doesn't follow typical fantasy techniques as it takes out INSTA-LOVE which permeates through YA literature these days. The reason the first half is slower and less action packed is because it is about the journey of falling in love, we know they will and it will be crucial to the story but pulling it out slowly and gently to a natural fall is such a beautiful and realistic way to write. 


Not to mention Maas' romantic Acknowledgement to her husband:



As a girl also in love with a Josh, this is giving me all sorts of swoony.

In conclusion I didn't enjoy this as much as TOG, but I didn't expect to. I mean I connected with TOG so incredibly I tattooed words on my body. But this book is good in it's own right. Even if TOG never existed, this would still be a great book and worthy of a 4.5 star recommendation.



Happy Reading
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Tuesday, 3 February 2015

Title Reveal! Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas.

04:15:00 0
The new title for TOG4 dropped last week and I personally...LOVE IT!


It fits so well and I can't believe I didn't guess it would be this. Of course like most book lovers I immediately start plotting what could happen, what the title could be suggesting.
And I have nothing.
I know I want Arobynn. I want her to confront him asap and considering this book is supposed to be longer than the last, so there is time for it. I also have always had this sneaky suspicion that Sam wasn't really dead or that Ansel will show up, otherwise why would they have the publish The Assassin's Blade so quickly? And more than that we also have a blurb!

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.

Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.
 


You would like more? I can give you more. 

You can now get the first four chapters of Maas' new series A Court of Thorns and Roses for free on ebook  here.

Big week or so for Sarah J Maas and my obsession with her books is feeling looked after. Good old Bloosbury, they never let us down. 


What about you, what reveals are you excited about? 

Let me know in the comments and lets start discussing. 

Happy Reading.


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Tuesday, 9 December 2014

Sneak Peek: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas.

23:59:00 0
This is a brand new sneak peek from Maas' newest novel out May 2015.
Chapter 1
The forest had become a labyrinth of snow and ice.
I'd been monitoring the parameters of the thicket for an hour, and my vantage point in the crook of a tree branch had turned useless. The gusting wind blew thick flurries to sweep away my tracks, but buried along with them any signs of potential quarry.
Hunger had brought me farther from home than I usually risked, but winter was the hard time. The animals had pulled in, going deeper into the woods than I could follow, leaving me to pick off stragglers one by one, praying they'd last until spring. They hadn't.
I wiped my numb fingers over my eyes, brushing away the flakes clinging to my lashes. Here there were no telltale trees stripped of bark to mark the deer's passing—they hadn't yet moved on. They would remain until the bark ran out, then travel north past the wolves' territory and perhaps into the faerie lands of Prythian—where no mortals would dare go, not unless they had a death wish.
A shudder skittered down my spine at the thought, and I shoved it away, focusing on my surroundings, on the task ahead. That was all I could do, all I'd been able to do for years: focus on surviving the week, the day, the hour ahead. And now, with the snow, I'd be lucky to spot anything—especially from my position up in the tree, scarcely able to see fifteen feet ahead. Stifling a groan as my stiff limbs protested at the movement, I unstrung my bow before easing off the tree.
The icy snow crunched under my fraying boots, and I ground my teeth. Low visibility, unnecessary noise—I was well on my way to yet another fruitless hunt.
Only a few hours of daylight remained. If I didn't leave soon, I'd have to navigate my way home in the dark, and the warnings of the town hunters still rang fresh in my mind: giant wolves were on the prowl, and in numbers. Not to mention whispers of strange folk spotted in the area, tall and eerie and deadly.
Anything but faeries, the hunters had beseeched our long-forgotten gods—and I had secretly prayed alongside them. In the eight years we'd been living in our village, two days' journey from the immortal border of Prythian, we'd been spared an attack—though traveling peddlers sometimes brought stories of distant border towns left in splinters and bones and ashes. These accounts, once rare enough to be dismissed by the village elders as hearsay, had in recent months become commonplace whisperings on every market day.
I had risked much in coming so far into the forest, but we'd finished our last loaf of bread yesterday, and the remainder of our dried meat the day before. Still, I would have rather spent another night with a hungry belly than found myself satisfying the appetite of a wolf. Or a faerie.
Not that there was much of me to feast on. I'd turned gangly by this time of the year, and could count a good number of my ribs. Moving as nimbly and quietly as I could between the trees, I pushed a hand against my hollow and aching stomach. I knew the expression that would be on my two elder sisters' faces when I returned to our cottage empty-handed yet again.
After a few minutes of careful searching, I crouched in a cluster of snow-heavy brambles. Through the thorns, I had a half-decent view of a clearing and the small brook flowing through it. A few holes in the ice suggested it was still frequently used. Hopefully something would come by. Hopefully.
I sighed through my nose, digging the tip of my bow into the ground, and leaned my forehead against the crude curve of wood. We wouldn't last another week without food. And too many families had already started begging for me to hope for handouts from the wealthier townsfolk. I'd witnessed firsthand exactly how far their charity went.
I eased into a more comfortable position and calmed my breathing, straining to listen to the forest over the wind. The snow fell and fell, dancing and curling like sparkling spindrifts, the white fresh and clean against the brown and gray of the world. And despite myself, despite my numb limbs, I quieted that relentless, vicious part of my mind to take in the snow-veiled woods.
Once it had been second nature to savor the contrast of new grass against dark, tilled soil, or an amethyst brooch nestled in folds of emerald silk; once I'd dreamed and breathed and thought in color and light and shape. Sometimes I would even indulge in envisioning a day when my sisters were married and it was only me and Father, with enough food to go around, enough money to buy some paint, and enough time to put those colors and shapes down on paper or canvas or the cottage walls.
Not likely to happen anytime soon—perhaps ever. So I was left with moments like this, admiring the glint of pale winter light on snow. I couldn't remember the last time I'd done it—bothered to notice anything lovely or interesting.
Stolen hours in a decrepit barn with Isaac Hale didn't count; those times were hungry and empty and sometimes cruel, but never lovely.
The howling wind calmed into a soft sighing. The snow fell lazily now, in big, fat clumps that gathered along every nook and bump of the trees. Mesmerizing—the lethal, gentle beauty of the snow. I'd soon have to return to the muddy, frozen roads of the village, to the cramped heat of our cottage. Some small, fragmented part of me recoiled at the thought.
Bushes rustled across the clearing. Drawing my bow was a matter of instinct. I peered through the thorns, and my breath caught.
Less than thirty paces away stood a small doe, not yet too scrawny from winter, but desperate enough to wrench bark from a tree in the clearing.
A deer like that could feed my family for a week or more.
My mouth watered. Quiet as the wind hissing through dead leaves, I took aim.
She continued tearing off strips of bark, chewing slowly, utterly unaware that her death waited yards away.
I could dry half the meat, and we could immediately eat the rest—stews, pies...Her skin could be sold, or perhaps turned into clothing for one of us. I needed new boots, but Elain needed a new cloak, and Nesta was prone to crave anything someone else possessed.
My fingers trembled. So much food—such salvation. I took a steadying breath, double-checking my aim.
But there was a pair of golden eyes shining from the brush adjacent to mine. The forest went silent. The wind died. Even the snow paused.
We mortals no longer kept gods to worship, but if I had known their lost names, I would have prayed to them. All of them. Concealed in the thicket, the wolf inched closer, its gaze set on the oblivious doe.
He was enormous—the size of a pony—and though I'd been warned about their presence, my mouth turned bone-dry.
But worse than his size was his unnatural stealth: even as he inched closer in the brush, he remained unheard, unspotted by the doe. No animal that massive could be so quiet. But if he was no ordinary animal, if he was of Prythian origin, if he was somehow a faerie, then being eaten was the least of my concerns.
If he was a faerie, I should already be running.
Yet maybe...maybe it would be a favor to the world, to my village, to myself, to kill him while I remained undetected. Putting an arrow through his eye would be no burden.
But despite his size, he looked like a wolf, moved like a wolf. Animal, I reassured myself. Just an animal. I didn't let myself consider the alternative—not when I needed my head clear, my breathing steady.
I had a hunting knife and three arrows. The first two were ordinary arrows—simple and efficient, and likely no more than bee stings to a wolf that size. But the third arrow, the longest and heaviest one, I'd bought from a traveling peddler during a summer when we'd had enough coppers for extra luxuries. An arrow carved from mountain ash, armed with an iron head.
From songs sung to us as lullabies over our cradles, we all knew from infancy that faeries hated iron. But it was the ash wood that made their immortal, healing magic falter long enough for a human to make a killing blow. Or so legend and rumor claimed. The only proof we had of the ash's effectiveness was its sheer rarity. I'd seen drawings of the trees, but never one with my own eyes—not after the High Fae had burned them all long ago. So few remained, most of them small and sickly and hidden by the nobility within high-walled groves. I'd spent weeks after my purchase debating whether that overpriced bit of wood had been a waste of money, or a fake, and for three years, the ash arrow had sat unused in my quiver.
Now I drew it, keeping my movements minimal, efficient—anything to avoid that monstrous wolf looking in my direction. The arrow was long and heavy enough to inflict damage—possibly kill him, if I aimed right.
My chest became so tight it ached. And in that moment, I realized my life boiled down to one question: Was the wolf alone?
I gripped my bow and drew the string farther back. I was a decent shot, but I'd never faced a wolf. I'd thought it made me lucky—even blessed. But now...I didn't know where to hit or how fast they moved. I couldn't afford to miss. Not when I had only one ash arrow.
And if it was indeed a faerie's heart pounding under that fur, then good riddance. Good riddance, after all their kind had done to us. I wouldn't risk this one later creeping into our village to slaughter and maim and torment. Let him die here and now. I'd be glad to end him.
The wolf crept closer, and a twig snapped beneath one of his paws—each bigger than my hand. The doe went rigid. She glanced to either side, ears straining toward the gray sky. With the wolf's downwind position, she couldn't see or smell him.
His head lowered, and his massive silver body—so perfectly blended into the snow and shadows—sank onto its haunches. The doe was still staring in the wrong direction.
I glanced from the doe to the wolf and back again. At least he was alone—at least I'd been spared that much. But if the wolf scared the doe off, I was left with nothing but a starving, oversize wolf—possibly a faerie—looking for the next-best meal. And if he killed her, destroying precious amounts of hide and fat...
If I judged wrongly, my life wasn't the only one that would be lost. But my life had been reduced to nothing but risks these past eight years that I'd been hunting in the woods, and I'd picked correctly most of the time. Most of the time.
The wolf shot from the brush in a flash of gray and white and black, his yellow fangs gleaming. He was even more gargantuan in the open, a marvel of muscle and speed and brute strength. The doe didn't stand a chance.
I fired the ash arrow before he destroyed much else of her.
The arrow found its mark in his side, and I could have sworn the ground itself shuddered. He barked in pain, releasing the doe's neck as his blood sprayed on the snow—so ruby bright.
He whirled toward me, those yellow eyes wide, hackles raised. His low growl reverberated in the empty pit of my stomach as I surged to my feet, snow churning around me, another arrow drawn.
But the wolf merely looked at me, his maw stained with blood, my ash arrow protruding so vulgarly from his side. The snow began falling again. He looked, and with a sort of awareness and surprise that made me fire the second arrow. Just in case—just in case that intelligence was of the immortal, wicked sort.
He didn't try to dodge the arrow as it went clean through his wide yellow eye.
He collapsed to the ground.
Color and darkness whirled, eddying in my vision, mixing with the snow.
His legs were twitching as a low whine sliced through the wind.
Impossible—he should be dead, not dying. The arrow was through his eye almost to the goose fletching.
But wolf or faerie, it didn't matter. Not with that ash arrow buried in his side. He'd be dead soon enough. Still, my hands shook as I brushed off snow and edged closer, still keeping a good distance. Blood gushed from the wounds I'd given him, staining the snow crimson.
He pawed at the ground, his breathing already slowing. Was he in much pain, or was his whimper just his attempt to shove death away? I wasn't sure I wanted to know.
The snow swirled around us. I stared at him until that coat of charcoal and obsidian and ivory ceased rising and falling. Wolf—definitely just a wolf, despite his size.
The tightness in my chest eased, and I loosed a sigh, my breath clouding in front of me. At least the ash arrow had proved itself to be lethal, regardless of who or what it took down.
A rapid examination of the doe told me I could carry only one animal—and even that would be a struggle. But it was a shame to leave the wolf.
Though it wasted precious minutes—minutes during which any predator could smell the fresh blood—I skinned him and cleaned my arrows as best I could. If anything, it warmed my hands. I wrapped the bloody side of his pelt around the doe's death-wound before I hoisted her across my shoulders. It was several miles back to our cottage, and I didn't need a trail of blood leading every animal with fangs and claws straight to me.
Grunting against the weight, I grasped the legs of the deer and spared a final glance at the steaming carcass of the wolf. His remaining golden eye now stared at the snow—heavy sky, and for a moment, I wished I had it in me to feel remorse for the dead thing.
But this was the forest, and it was winter.
So what do you think? Is this going to be just as good as Throne of Glass? Are you excited? Well, you should be. 
Here she is, the author herself  to introduce the new series. 
My hopes are high...very high.
Happy Reading.


This excerpt was originally published on http://www.teenvogue.com/
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Friday, 24 October 2014

Cover Reveal: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas.

06:29:00 0
When nineteen-year-old Feyre plucks a forbidden rose from the ground, a wolfish creature arrives to punish her for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from stories, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin, a High Lord of the faeries. And as she learns more about him, her feelings for Tamlin transform from hostility to a fiery passion. But the threats against the faerie lands are growing, and Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse . . . or lose Tamlin forever.

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I mean, it's beautiful. I think anyone who has glanced at this blog knows how much I adore anything by Sarah J Maas but my god it a beautiful cover. I cannot wait until people start cosplaying that dress.

The thing is, it's all still very mysterious. The cover doesn't tell us much which is great and neither does the blurb really. I know it a retelling of beauty and the beast, it's a trilogy and it is due out May 5th 2015, so not that far away. So this book will get is through the long wait for Throne of Glass #4 and I have high expectations for it.
How could I not?!
I mean it's gorgeous and it's by this incredible woman.
Better get my pre-order in!

Happy Reading.
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