Book Review | EVERMORE, by C. J. Archer

Evermore (The Emily Chambers Spirit Medium Trilogy #3), by C. J. Archer

Publish Date: November 1, 2012 (audiobook published January 31, 2017)
Published by: Tantor Audio
Narrated by: Gemma Dawson
Length: approx. 7 3/4 hours
Genre: YA Paranormal/YA Romance
My Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.5 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

When ghosts begin to disappear from the Otherworld, Emily Chambers and her friends must hunt down those responsible before every last spirit, including Jacob Beaufort, is destroyed and Emily’s livelihood along with them. But there is one thing stopping them-Jacob’s killer. Weakened and fading fast, the ghost of Jacob Beaufort is determined to save Emily from a bleak and uncertain future. With her family facing financial ruin and the Otherworld in chaos, he knows her only hope is to wed Theo. As lives and afterlives hang in the balance, Emily is forced to make the ultimate sacrifice, or lose everything she loves.

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My Review:

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Book Review | POSSESSION, by C. J. Archer

Possession (The Emily Chambers Spirit Medium Trilogy #2), by C. J. Archer

Publish Date: August 27, 2012 (audiobook published December 15, 2016)
Published by: Tantor Audio
Narrated by: Gemma Dawson
Length: approx. 6 hours
Genre: YA Paranormal/YA Romance
My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

When the ghost of a notorious killer possesses the body of an upper class youth, London’s preeminent medium, Emily Chambers, must exorcise it before the spirit goes on a rampage. As if this isn’t distraction enough, she must fight her feelings for brooding ghost, Jacob Beaufort, who doesn’t like the new man in her life-the handsome and very much alive, Theodore Hyde. With reputations and lives at stake, Emily discovers that navigating the poorest suburbs of London in search of the evil spirit is almost as dangerous as finding her way in a Society that thinks “freaks” like her belong in the circus.

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My Review:

Book Review | THE MEDIUM, by C. J. Archer

The Medium (The Emily Chambers Spirit Medium Trilogy #1), by C. J. Archer

Publish Date: June 30, 2012 (audiobook published November 15, 2016)
Published by: Tantor Audio
Narrated by: Gemma Dawson
Length: approx. 9 1/2 hours
Genre: YA Paranormal/YA Romance
My Rating: ★★★★☆ (3.5 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old spirit medium Emily Chambers has a problem. Actually, she has several. As if seeing dead people isn’t a big enough social disadvantage, she also has to contend with an escaped demon and a handsome ghost with a secret past. And then there’s the question of her parentage. Being born an entire year after her father’s death (yes, a year) and without the pale skin of other respectable English ladies, Emily is as much a mystery as the dead boy assigned to her. Jacob Beaufort’s spirit has been unable to crossover since his death. It might have something to do with the fact he was murdered. Or it might not. All he knows is, he has been assigned by the Otherworld’s administrators to a girl named Emily. A girl who can see and touch him. A girl who released a shape-shifting demon into the mortal realm. Together they must send the demon back before it wreaks havoc on London. It should be a simple assignment, but they soon learn there’s nothing simple when a live girl and a dead boy fall in love.

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My Review:

This was a fun audiobook to listen to. I really enjoyed the world-building and Emily was a wonderful protagonist. All of the other characters were well rounded as well. The pacing was good and easy to follow, with lots of intrigue and action all around.

Book Review | EMPIRE OF IVORY, by Naomi Novik

Empire of Ivory (Temeraire #4), by Naomi Novik

Publish Date: September 25, 2007
Published by: Del Rey Books
Pages: 404
Genre: Historical Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★★☆ (4 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

Tragedy has struck His Majesty’s Aerial Corps, whose magnificent fleet of fighting dragons and their human captains valiantly defend England’s shores against the encroaching armies of Napoleon Bonaparte. An epidemic of unknown origin and no known cure is decimating the noble dragons’ ranks–forcing the hopelessly stricken into quarantine. Now only Temeraire and a pack of newly recruited dragons remain uninfected–and stand as the only means of an airborne defense against France’s ever bolder sorties.

Bonaparte’s dragons are already harrowing Britain’s ships at sea. Only one recourse remains: Temeraire and his captain, Will Laurence, must take wing to Africa, whose shores may hold the cure to the mysterious and deadly contagion. On this mission there is no time to waste, and no telling what lies in store beyond the horizon or for those left behind to wait, hope, and hold the line.

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My Review:

Book Review | THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL, by Baroness Emmuska Orczy

The Scarlet Pimpernel, by Baroness Emmuska Orczy

Publish Date: 1905 (audiobook published March 16, 2007)
Published by: librivox.org
Narrated by: Karen Savage
Length: approx. 8 hours
Genre: Classic Literature/Historical Fiction
My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3 out of 5 stars)

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Synopsis:

In the year 1792, Sir Percy and Lady Marguerite Blakeney are the darlings of British society—he is known as one of the wealthiest men in England and a dimwit; she is French, a stunning former actress, and the cleverest woman in Europe—and they find themselves at the center of a deadly political intrigue. The Reign of Terror controls France, and every day aristocrats in Paris fall victim to Madame la Guillotine. Only one man can rescue them—the Scarlet Pimpernel—a master of disguises who leaves a calling card bearing only a signature red flower. As the fascinating connection between the Blakeneys and this mysterious hero is revealed, they are forced to choose between love and loyalty in order to avoid the French agent Chauvelin, who relentlessly hunts the Scarlet Pimpernel.

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My Review:

Book Review | GIRLS OF PAPER AND FIRE, by Natasha Ngan

Girls of Paper and Fire, by Natasha Ngan

Publish Date: November 6, 2018
Published by: Jimmy Patterson Books
Pages: 336
Genre: YA Fantasy
My Rating: ★★★☆☆ (2.5 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:

Each year, eight beautiful girls are chosen as Paper Girls to serve the king. It’s the highest honor they could hope for…and the most cruel.

But this year, there’s a ninth girl. And instead of paper, she’s made of fire.

In this lush fantasy, Lei is a member of the Paper caste, the lowest and most oppressed class in Ikhara. She lives in a remote village with her father, where the decade-old trauma of watching her mother snatched by royal guards still haunts her. Now, the guards are back, and this time it’s Lei they’re after–the girl whose golden eyes have piqued the king’s interest.

Over weeks of training in the opulent but stifling palace, Lei and eight other girls learn the skills and charm that befit being a king’s consort. But Lei isn’t content to watch her fate consume her. Instead, she does the unthinkable–she falls in love. Her forbidden romance becomes enmeshed with an explosive plot that threatens the very foundation of Ikhara, and Lei, still the wide-eyed country girl at heart, must decide just how far she’s willing to go for justice and revenge.

TW: violence and sexual abuse.

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My Review:

I really wanted to like this book. Going in, I was so excited for an Asian-inspired fantasy story about two girls falling in love while prisoners to a tyrannical King. It sounded inspiring and beautiful, and while there were moments of both, particularly in certain passages and quotes, I was just so utterly bored throughout the whole story that I can’t help but being disappointed in this book. The plot dragged, with characters that were only slightly interesting, and the twists were so predictable that I was completely unenthused even when the action started happening. If it hadn’t been for the fact that I made it past the halfway point and was not in the mood to start something new while I was in tech for a show, I would have DNF’ed this a lot sooner. But with all the positive reviews I just kept hoping it would get better, but it just never did for me.