Book Review | ROAR, by Cora Carmack

Roar (Stormheart #1), by Cora Carmack

Publish Date: June 13, 2017
Published by: Tor Teen
Length: 380 pages
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

In a land ruled and shaped by violent magical storms, power lies with those who control them.

Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. Long ago, the ungifted pledged fealty and service to her family in exchange for safe haven, and a kingdom was carved out from the wildlands and sustained by magic capable of repelling the world’s deadliest foes. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora’s been groomed to be the perfect queen. She’s intelligent and brave and honorable. But she’s yet to show any trace of the magic she’ll need to protect her people.

To keep her secret and save her crown, Aurora’s mother arranges for her to marry a dark and brooding Stormling prince from another kingdom. At first, the prince seems like the perfect solution to all her problems. He’ll guarantee her spot as the next queen and be the champion her people need to remain safe. But the more secrets Aurora uncovers about him, the more a future with him frightens her. When she dons a disguise and sneaks out of the palace one night to spy on him, she stumbles upon a black market dealing in the very thing she lacks—storm magic. And the people selling it? They’re not Stormlings. They’re storm hunters.

Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. And when a handsome young storm hunter reveals he was born without magic, but possesses it now, Aurora realizes there’s a third option for her future besides ruin or marriage. 

She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she’s brave enough. 

Challenge a tempest. Survive it. And you become its master.

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My Review:

Not going to lie, the cover was a real draw for me when it came to picking up this book. I was in the mood for a good high fantasy read, and I thought, “Magic and storms? Why not?” I was instantly drawn into the world of Caelira, where storms rampage sentiently, and only a certain handful of people can control them. It turned out to be a really enjoyable read, despite some qualms here and there about relationship situations and how certain plot devices were added into the storyline. 

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Book Review | BONE CRIER’S MOON, by Kathryn Purdie

Bone Crier’s Moon (Bone Grace #1), by Kathryn Purdie

Publish Date: March 10, 2020
Published by: HarperCollins/Katherin Tegen
Pages: 480
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.5 out of 5 stars)

**I received this as an egalley from the publisher through Edelweiss in return for an honest review.**

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Synopsis:

Bone ​Criers have a sacred duty. They alone can keep the dead from preying on the living. But their power to ferry the spirits of the dead into goddess Elara’s Night Heavens or Tyrus’s Underworld comes from sacrifice. The gods demand a promise of dedication. And that promise comes at the cost of the Bone Criers’ one true love.

Ailesse has been prepared since birth to become the matriarch of the Bone Criers, a mysterious famille of women who use strengths drawn from animal bones to ferry dead souls. But first she must complete her rite of passage and kill the boy she’s also destined to love.

Bastien’s father was slain by a Bone Crier and he’s been seeking revenge ever since. Yet when he finally captures one, his vengeance will have to wait. Ailesse’s ritual has begun and now their fates are entwined—in life and in death.

Sabine has never had the stomach for the Bone Criers’ work. But when her best friend Ailesse is taken captive, Sabine will do whatever it takes to save her, even if it means defying their traditions—and their matriarch—to break the bond between Ailesse and Bastien. Before they all die.

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My Review:

I know this book doesn’t come out for quite some time (March of 2020), but I was in a bit of a rut when it came to what I wanted to read next. I knew it wanted to be some sort of fantasy but I just wasn’t sure until I came across this on Edelweiss. What definitely got me was the bit about Ailesse having to kill her soulmate in order to become a Ferrier, only to be kidnapped by him instead, and everything inside me just went YES PLEASE. It sounded so interesting, and while the concept was really original and I thought the world-building was unique, I just feel like the writing style left a lot to be imagined and didn’t make for as magical a storytelling as this could have been.

Book Review | WILDER GIRLS, by Rory Power

Wilder Girls, by Rory Power

Publish Date: July 9, 2019
Published by: Delacorte Press
Pages: 354
Genre: YA Contemporary/Sci-Fi
My Rating: ★☆☆☆☆ (1 out of 5 stars)

**I received an ARC of this as a bookseller in anticipation of the August YA Book Club, as well as an egalley through Edelweiss in return for an honest review**

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Synopsis:

It’s been eighteen months since the Raxter School for Girls was put under quarantine. Since the Tox hit and pulled Hetty’s life out from under her.

It started slow. First the teachers died one by one. Then it began to infect the students, turning their bodies strange and foreign. Now, cut off from the rest of the world and left to fend for themselves on their island home, the girls don’t dare wander outside the school’s fence, where the Tox has made the woods wild and dangerous. They wait for the cure they were promised as the Tox seeps into everything.

But when Byatt goes missing, Hetty will do anything to find her, even if it means breaking quarantine and braving the horrors that lie beyond the fence. And when she does, Hetty learns that there’s more to their story, to their life at Raxter, than she could have ever thought true.

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My Review:

This book was kind of horrifying to be honest. I felt like a lot of the time I didn’t know what I was reading. It was fast-paced but strange, full of questions and unending mysteries that I felt like the characters were never closer to solving. The writing style was a little all over the place, with a beginning that was almost difficult to understand. It is also riddled with moments and scenes that could be extremely triggering for some people (see list at the end of review). Part of me wanted to like this book, but a larger part of me just spent it going “WTF?” the entire time I was reading it. It’s one of those books that I think could be right up some peoples’ alleys, but definitely not mine.

Book Review | BLOODWITCH, by Susan Dennard

 

Bloodwitch (The Witchlands #3), by Susan Dennard

Publish Date: February 12, 2019
Published by: Tor Teen
Length: 464 pages
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★★★ (5 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

High in a snowy mountain range, a monastery that holds more than just faith clings to the side of a cliff. Below, thwarted by a lake, a bloodthirsty horde of raiders await the coming of winter and the frozen path to destroy the sanctuary and its secrets.

The Bloodwitch Aeduan has teamed up with the Threadwitch Iseult and the magical girl Owl to stop the destruction. But to do so, he must confront his own father, and his past.

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My Review:

Holy moly. This book. THIS SERIES. I just….I swear with each book it just gets better and better. The intricacies of the world-building and plot. The complexity of the characters. The slow-burn, scream-at-the-characters-to-just-kiss-already romance that is so much more than just romance, its soulmates. The high-paced action and gut-dropping twists and turns. If you haven’t caught on by now, I LOVED this book.

Book Review | GOOD OMENS, by Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett

Good Omens, by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Publish Date: May 1, 1990
Published by: William Morrow/HarperCollins
Audiobook Narrated by: Martin Jarvis
Length: 12 hrs 33 min (412 pages)
Genre: Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

According to The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (the world’s only completely accurate book of prophecies, written in 1655, before she exploded), the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday, in fact. Just before dinner.

So the armies of Good and Evil are amassing, Atlantis is rising, frogs are falling, tempers are flaring. Everything appears to be going according to Divine Plan. Except a somewhat fussy angel and a fast-living demon—both of whom have lived amongst Earth’s mortals since The Beginning and have grown rather fond of the lifestyle—are not actually looking forward to the coming Rapture.

And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist . . .

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My Review:

There were parts of this I enjoyed (Crowley and Aziraphale) and parts that kind of dragged (every other character, especially Adam) so I wasn’t completely enthralled with this book. For much of it I felt like I was forcing myself to continue it, and seriously considered DNFing it several times.

Book Review | FAKE IT TILL YOU BREAK IT, by Jenn P. Nguyen

Fake It Till You Break It, by Jenn P. Nguyen

Publish Date: May 28, 2019
Published by: Swoon Reads
Pages: 304
Genre: YA Contemporary/Romance
My Rating: ★★☆☆☆ (2 out of 5 stars)

**I received this as an egalley from the publisher through Edelweiss in return for an honest review.**

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Synopsis:

Mia and Jake have known each other their whole lives. They’ve endured summer vacations, Sunday brunches, even dentist visits together. Their mothers, who are best friends, are convinced that Mia and Jake would be the perfect couple, even though they can’t stand to be in the same room together.

After Mia’s mom turns away yet another cute boy, Mia and Jake decide they’ve have had enough. Together, they hatch a plan to get their moms off their backs. Permanently. All they have to do is pretend to date and then stage the worst breakup of all time—and then they’ll be free.

The only problem is, maybe Jake and Mia don’t hate each other as much as they once thought…

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My Review:

I wish I could say I enjoyed this book but sadly it was just not for me. The premise is what initially interested me, and the first chapter hooked me easily. I immediately loved Mia for her sardonic one-liners and wanted nothing more than to see these two characters bicker with each other while struggling to put on a facade of being in love for their mothers. However, this was not the case.