SERIES REVIEW: Tales from the Kingdoms by Sarah Pinborough

At less than 200 pages each, I thought it would be a lot easier to combine all three of these books into one review - there's not really enough to say about them individually!

'Poison' - 2 stars

"I want to take his power. Men take it so much for granted. You need to learn that the only way to wield it in the kingdoms is by making a great match." 

I really enjoyed the first half of 'Poison'.
The beginning is quite repetitive: Snow White's father goes off to war, and her stepmother repeatedly states that she's going to make people fear her, she's going to rule them with fear, everyone will fear her, blah, blah, blah... But once you get through that, the pace picks up. Everyone knows the story of Snow White so the approaching events are obvious, but the way that Sarah Pinborough gets to them is unique, bringing in other fairytale characters including Aladdin and the witch from Hansel and Gretel.
'Poison' is a very feminist retelling. Lilith, the evil queen, uses the male gaze to get her own way, and isn't afraid of manipulating men with her beauty. Forced to marry the king despite being only four years older than his daughter, she's making the best of it.
In her own twisted way she tries to teach Snow to be stronger before it's too late, but their relationship is too strained. Snow doesn't have any interest in marriage, and openly mocks the men that she thinks might propose to her, and Lilith is bitter about this because she didn't have a choice. Snow also wakes up after the apple in her throat is dislodged, not needing true love's kiss at all.
But then it all goes downhill. The previously independent Snow is proposed to by the prince who has fallen in love with her unconscious body, and her reply is "Why not?". For someone who was so adamantly against marriage a few pages ago, this is a bit of a twist! Snow's not a virgin - having slept with the huntsman earlier in the story - which disgusts the prince. She apologises profusely for concealing the truth from him. She was so strong-willed before eating the apple, but quickly shrivels into a meek and mild character. It makes no sense.
There's a nice twist: the prince gets the cursed apple made into juice, so that when Snow drinks it the apple can't be easily dislodged from her throat. It's certainly the most evil ending to a retelling that I've read!
Bonus points for the fact that Snow performs oral sex on the prince and then makes him reciprocate it before they can consummate their marriage - female pleasure definitely needs to be normalised.

'Charm' - 3 stars

"Princes are just men. Mainly not very good ones. And a castle can't give a girl like you what the woman inside will want." 

This is a rather brutal Cinderella retelling, with scenes of self-mutilation and near rape: not for the faint of heart.
Lilith's back, masquerading as the fairy godmother. She allows Cinderella to go to the ball, on one condition: she has to search every inch of the castle once she's won the prince's heart. Working with the huntsman, who has received a brief reprieve from life as a mouse, Lilith is desperate to track down the missing Snow.
Cinderella charms the prince by wearing her enchanted diamond shoes, but life in the palace isn't all fun and games. The prince is quickly disinterested by her, her step-sister Rose has to walk with a cane after attempting to cut off one of her toes, and she can't find anything that could be of interest to the fairy godmother.
Passing information on to the huntsman every night is probably the worst chore. He's arrogant and abrasive, and Cinderella hates the way he's constantly laughing at her. She wants her life to go back to normal, and wishes she'd never wished to go to the ball in the first place.
Surprisingly, this book had a happy ending.
Cinderella is the girl of the huntsman's dreams, and she realises she was annoyed at him because she was falling in love.
Rose gets the prince, and starts to change the kingdom for the better.
The new power couple find Snow and get her back to Lilith, before walking off into the sunset for their happily ever after (making love a couple of times in the forest for good measure).
I thought this was going to be the moment when Lilith would murder Snow and all of the warm and fuzzy feelings would be destroyed, but that wasn't the case. Instead of killing her, she kisses her... And true love's kiss wakes her from the curse.
A LESBIAN ROMANCE IN A FAIRYTALE RETELLING?
FINALLY!
(Well, other than the fact that they both have heterosexual marriages and multiple sexual relationships in 'Poison' and this only happens in the epilogue, making it feel more like a last minute aside than a planned plot...)
The attempts at diversity bumped this book up to a three star, but the fact that there's a lesbian romance that feels like an afterthought and a disabled character who has special shoes crafted to make her limp non-visible both make me too apprehensive to bump it any higher.
Cinderella also annoys me with her attitude towards Buttons (Robin Hood). He has a crush on her but she isn't interested, and she states that she's not going to lead him on or encourage him. Within a couple of pages, she's got his hand up her skirt and she's letting him get her off... Good for female empowerment, not so good at sticking to her word and not using him.

'Beauty' - 4 stars

"I should kiss her," he murmured. 

"No, you really shouldn't." Petra glared at him. "That would be all manner of wrong. If someone kissed me without my permission - handsome travelling prince or not - I'd punch them."

This is the most satisfying of the three installments.
Set before the start of 'Poison', the events of 'Beauty' tie up all of the loose ends. The prince's father sends him on an adventure and hires the huntsman to keep his son safe. The end of their quest puts them in the forest where we meet them in the first book, effectively looping the trilogy in an endless cycle.
This story introduces us to more fairytales, meeting Beauty (who is both Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast) and Petra (who is Red Riding Hood and a gender-swapped version of Peter from Peter and the Wolf). Petra is the most realistic character in the entire series, and I loved her dry humour and witty comments (even if she did get far too soppy when she met her true love).
There are no random masturbation scenes in this novel, which is something I'm grateful for. I was pleased to see it included in the first book because it's not something that's regularly featured in novels, but Sarah seemed to be using it whenever the plot slowed down, making the previous stories move even slower.
This is certainly the most daring of the three. The violence isn't gratuitous because it adds to the plot, but if you're offended by people getting brutally murdered, or don't want to read a book that launches you right into the middle of an orgy, it might be worth leaving this one alone.

Overall, this series gets three stars.
I was interested by the storytelling choices that Sarah made while attempting to make her mark on the classic fairytales, but I wasn't too impressed with the execution. Not much seemed to happen, and I think I'm going to have forgotten about the events of all of these by the end of the month...

'The Dollhouse' by Nicole Thorn

*This review will contain spoilers!*

First things first, I need to say a huge thank you to Curiosity Quills publishing for allowing me access to this title in exchange for an honest review. 

'The room was pitch black as I lay in bed, and my heart pounded against my ribs as I waited. It was my turn tonight. Any second now, I would see a shadow of feet under my door. The hinges would squeak. The door would open wide. He could get into my bed.'

I started reading this on the bus on the way to Oxford, and shudders were instantly running down my spine. The opening few chapters of this book make it impossible to tear your eyes away - I almost forgot to make notes!

Seven years ago, Riley, Layla, Adalyn and Kylie were kidnapped by a man who forced them to call him Master and kept them captive in his Dollhouse. Until the night the girls decide it's time to end it all: either their Master dies, or they'll set the place on fire and burn to death with him.
They manage to get free, and after a whirlwind couple of hours they're reunited with their own families. Riley gets to meet her new little brother, Kylie's parents are back together and Adalyn discovers her mother died just a couple of weeks before they escaped. But it's difficult to readjust to life on the outside, particularly because the four girls are separated from each other for the first time in almost a decade.
Riley's parents don't want her to see the others anymore: they think it'll be too hard for Riley to be reminded of such a harrowing experience every time they see each other. But her parents also don't want her to hang out with Wilson, the boy who lives next door and the only one who isn't treating her like the fragile doll the Master saw.
Tackling the question of what exactly makes people family and how mental scars can be much deeper than physical ones, 'The Dollhouse' doesn't shy away from discussing serious topics, putting itself firmly at the higher end of the young adult age bracket.

I hate to say it, but I was bored almost constantly while reading this. I loved the first 25%, but then scenes kept repeating and I felt as though I was getting stuck in a loop.
Wilson and Riley's relationship moves very slowly. I appreciated that he was very respectful of the fact that she'd been locked away and hadn't ever had a romantic relationship, but they have the same conversation multiple times and it's exasperating.
She wants more and he refuses, then he caves, then he feels guilty, then she tells him it was fine and she wants more, but he refuses... Over and over, repeating the same sequence of events.
It's a great excuse to insert more passionate dry humping scenes, but it didn't feel natural at all, and I found myself skim reading some of the hotter scenes because they were repetitive and nothing new was happening.
In all honesty, their entire relationship felt grating. I don't appreciate characters that use pet names on people they've just met - particularly girls that they're determined they aren't flirting with - so Wilson constantly referring to Riley as 'babe' and 'sweetheart' made me feel very uncomfortable and a little nauseous.
However I was happy to see female masturbation represented. Male masturbation features regularly in YA but I've never stumbled across female characters exploring their sexuality alone before. Equal opportunities for pleasure, yo!
This book was overwhelming, with too much being dealt with in an awkwardly paced way. The scenes between Riley and Wilson drag, and there are multiple rambling inner monologues of Riley wishing she'd never been taken and wondering what her life would have otherwise been like - things that didn't really need stating, because who would be grateful that they were kidnapped? (Not discounting Stockholm Syndrome sufferers, of course).
But when there's a lot going on (such as a fire towards the end of the novel and Riley getting involved in a car accident and almost drowning) the scenes are very brief and are hardly explored. The important scenes are rushed and it's disorienting. This is a book trying to deal with first love, family relationships, friendship, suicide, PTSD, and actually attempting to wrap it all up at the end with a epilogue... It might have been better if there'd been less included, to make the things that were - such as the brilliant discourse regarding pharmaceutical treatment vs. counselling trips in dealing with mental issues - more effective.

'The Dollhouse' feels more NA than YA, so if you're a younger reader and don't feel comfortable reading sexually tense scenes then you should avoid this one.
However, if you're interested in reading a novel that's a bit more mature and unflinchingly tackles serious topics, this is the one for you. The beginning is very high octane but the pace quickly diminishes, making it a slow burner - don't expect to be flying through this novel, because it does take a bit of work to get it finished.
It'll also appeal to you if you're a fan of 'Pretty Little Liars' - 'The Dollhouse' is a very similar concept, even if only for the first couple of chapters.

'One Chance Night' (Take A Chance #1) by Eliza Boyd

*This review will contain spoilers!*

First things first I need to say a huge thank you to Patchwork Press, for accepting my request to review this title on NetGalley, and to NetGalley for the service that they provide.

'Change has never done me any favors--mostly because I've never tried it-- so I don't know why I imagined that tonight would be any different.' 

I was only involved with the release day blitz for Eliza Boyd's debut novel yesterday - but I absolutely flew through this book, so I've already finished it! Following Chelsea Greer, an (un)happily married woman, through her 'One Chance Night' - in which she takes a chance and heads to a bar with a work colleague and her roommate, two women she hardly knows, despite the fact that her husband would go crazy knowing she was sneaking out of the house while he spent time with his friends. While on this night out, she meets mystery man Brett, who recognises the fact that she isn't happy and takes it upon himself to help her talk through her problems and decide what changes to make with her life - and whether to take a chance on the possibility of true love...

The premise of 'One Chance Night' kind of reminded me of the idea behind Gayle Forman's 'Just One Day' (which, admittedly, I haven't read yet - but it's one of those books that is very high up my TBR!) and I was interested in reading a novel entirely set in Chelsea's evening, but I was worried it was going to get a little stale.

Surprisingly, it didn't! The first half was well developed and perfectly set up Chelsea's back story, letting us see inside her life with Wesley - her loveless and passionless relationship, Wesley subtly manipulating her with abusive comments which she tries her hardest not to retaliate to. When Chelsea gets invited out by a friend at work, she automatically disregards it, believing that Wesley would be angry if she went out, showing just how debilitated her self possession is by this man who is supposed to love her. You can't resist feeling completely empathetic towards Chelsea, who finds herself in a marriage she doesn't want with no friends and her parents over the other side of the world. 

When Chelsea meets Brett in the bar at the open mic night, her nervous disposition also made me feel so bad for her - even just harmless joking around has her flinching in case he verbally reprimands her. This might have been more effective if we'd seen some more of Wesley's behaviour towards her in the past - all we have to go off of are her recollections and anecdotes, but we don't actually get to experience any of his harsh words or the actions verging on violence, meaning it seems a bit sudden when she starts flinching and reacting terribly.

The only complaints I have about 'One Chance Night' can all be equated down to the length of the novel. First off, the fact that we don't get to see as much of Chelsea and Wesley's back story as I would have ideally liked - because we only get the one side of the story, it could almost seem like she was an unreliable narrator, over-exaggerating her troubled past to woo a guy in a bar. I know this isn't the truth, but when you combine that with the fact that she took her wedding ring off before going out with friends... 

Secondly, the jump between the one night and the eight months later just seems a bit too harsh. We find out that Chelsea and Wesley have divorced after having a long talk about their relationship and the reasons why she left him, but this is reported to us rather than us getting to see it. It would have been a lot more intriguing to see the exchange between them and how it played out, and I think one of Eliza Boyd's strongest aspects of writing is definitely in dialogue, so I would have preferred to see her make full use of this talent. I understand that it was meant to be a harsh change to show exactly how much Chelsea changed in the time, but it made her decision to go after Brett at the end seem quite unfounded - it would have been stronger if we'd seen her thinking about him and wondering after him when her and Wesley had finally confirmed their split and she'd moved out to face the big wide world on her own. 

However, despite the fact that there were some issues with the length of the novel, overall I did really enjoy it. Eliza Boyd crafts brilliant characters, and I loved the constant referencing of country songs (some that I knew, some that I didn't, but all that I've written down to listen to as a playlist!) because it is a really under-appreciated genre, and definitely one that specialises in the storytelling aspect of lyric writing, lending itself perfectly to this kind of inspiration. For a first novel this was definitely successful - Eliza took a serious topic and dealt with it in a sensitive way, and I'm sure that if any readers are in this situation themselves it will definitely make them consider their options more fully, which is definitely a positive thing. If you're in the mood for a more serious contemporary, I'd definitely suggest this one - it can't be called light-hearted, because it deals with very heavy topics and conversations, but it's very well written and the characters will stick in your head. 

I'm rather excited for the second novel in the Take A Chance series, 'Two Pink Lines', which is briefly set up at the end of 'One Chance Night' - this sounds like it's going to be a companion series quite similar to the 'Anna and the French Kiss' series by Stephanie Perkins (but NA, obviously) and I'm looking forward to it - getting to see what happens in Chelsea's future, but also getting to experience another story will be a great way to keep the series alive. 

'The ReArranged Life' by Annika Sharma - SPOILER FREE REVIEW (+ giveaway!)

First off I need to say a massive thank you to Curiosity Quills Press, for sending me an e-copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review, and for allowing me to be a part of the 'The ReArranged Life' Blog Tour! 

Nithya, a vivacious, intelligent and driven college senior has always known what she has wanted: a successful career in medicine and the love of her family. She’s even come to terms with the idea of an arranged marriage, a tradition her conservative Indian family has held up for thousands of years.  

When a night of partying puts her on a collision course with danger, Nithya’s entire life changes. 

Enter James St. Clair, the smart, challenging and heartbreakingly handsome American. As Nithya and James fall in love, she questions the future she and her parents have always planned. 

Now, Nithya has a choice to make: become a doctor and a good Indian bride, or step away from her family and centuries of culture to forge her own path. The decision she comes to takes her on a journey that transforms how she sees her future, her relationships with loved ones, and how she learns to put herself back together when even her best-laid plans fall apart. 

The synopsis for 'The ReArranged Life' grabbed me instantly, because it was so unlike any book that I'd ever read before. I'm a huge supporter of the We Need Diverse YA campaign, and I've always thought that it should definitely branch out into the New Adult genre, so it was brilliant to see a contemporary novel like this with an Indian protagonist whose entire world was so deeply rooted in traditional beliefs. 

One of the most striking aspects of this novel was how surprisingly easy it was to relate to the main character. Despite the fact that Nithya was constantly referring to Indian terms that I hadn't heard of before (Google became a great friend during my reading of this book!) I didn't feel any less connected to her, because she had such an endearing personality. Throughout her burgeoning romance with James, and the quickly developing feelings of love she was having, she still constantly worried about what her family would think, and how it would affect their reputation, meaning that she wasn't just a self-absorbed and shallow protagonist. This all made it very easy to fall in love with her, and to feel for her throughout her conflicting and nerve-wracking experience. Similarly, despite the fact that the situation was so different from any that I'd experienced myself, I still felt as though I could relate to it to a lesser extreme - the idea that the boy you're falling in love with might not be the best for you or for your family is probably one that will resonate within all of us.
It was also very easy to fall in love with James, who was written fabulously. Instead of being instantly accepting of the fact that Nithya was supposed to have an arranged marriage, he took it very hard and contemplated where their relationship was going with an extremely mature approach. It was nice to have such an honest reaction to a sensitive subject - instead of getting over it straight away it took time and a lot of discussions between the two of them to come to a mutual agreement.
I didn't know much about Indian culture or arranged marriages before I read this novel, so I'm coming away feeling enlightened and intrigued. It's definitely a topic I want to read further into, because the pictures that Annika was painting with her words were so beautiful. When describing the wedding Nithya attends towards the beginning of the novel it was very artfully worded, and even though some of the specialist language Nithya used went straight over my head, it didn't dampen my enjoyment of the novel one iota.
I'm not going to give anything away about how this all gets wrapped up towards the end of the novel, because I really want you to read it and find out for yourself, because it's a great read. If you haven't read a novel with an Indian protagonist before, why not branch out and try it now? You will not regret it, I can assure you. This is Annika's debut novel, and I cannot wait to read more - her voice is so refreshing and it's great to get some more diversity in the field of NA, especially diversity that maturely discusses and weighs up a subject as controversial as this one. I've heard a lot of opinions about arranged marriage before I read this novel, but none of them have ever been from an Indian's perspective, and I think it's something that we should all really research a little bit more before judging.

To celebrate the release of 'The ReArranged Life', and the setting for James and Nithya's first date, I'm happy to offer you the chance to win a $25 Starbucks gift card, in conjunction with Curiosity Quills! Enter the giveaway below - good luck! And if you haven't checked out 'The ReArranged Life' yet, I highly recommend that you purchase it: it's available on both Amazon UK and Amazon US!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author:

Annika Sharma was born in India and moved to the United States (Pennsylvania!) when she was a baby. Annika was a daydreamer from day one, always coming up with stories and games of pretend that seemed real. She was a serious journal-writer from fifth grade to college and wrote dramatic scenes for stories often, inspired by soap operas she watched in summers off from school.

Eventually, when the time for college came around, Annika’s parents encouraged her to pursue journalism. Convinced she couldn’t make a living from writing, Annika disagreed. After five years, two degrees, two minors, working with children, being a dancer teacher, and creating a two-and-a-half page resume in college that had interests so all-over-the-place that even she couldn’t make sense of it, Annika finally decided her parents were right. Writing was where her heart was, all along.

In the month before graduate school, the idea Annika had in mind for years finally poured out in the form of the novel, The Rearranged Life. Annika began editing in earnest after she finished her Master’s degree in Early Childhood Special Education, landing Stacey Donaghy of Donaghy Literary Group as an agent. Three months later, she had a book deal with Curiosity Quills.

In her spare time, Annika loves spending time with her family and friends, often indulging in the three S’s: Starbucks, shopping and superhero movies. As a chocolate lover and general all-around vegetarian foodie, Annika also adores cooking.

If you love 'The ReArranged Life' as much as I do, you should contact Annika on her Twitter to congratulate her for writing an amazing novel! I'd also like to say thank you to Curiosity Quills once again for offering me such a brilliant opportunity to read such an insightful and enlightening novel.

'The Truth About Jack' by Jody Gehrman - SPOILER FREE REVIEW

First things first I need to say a massive thank you to Rachel Silberman at Entangled publishing, for reaching out to me and asking if I wanted to read and review this Entangled Teen Crush novel! 

Just looking at the front cover for 'The Truth About Jack', it was obvious to me that it was going to be one of those contemporary novels that I would just fly through, and the fact that I read it in one sitting of just over four hours definitely proved that.
Throughout this novel, we follow the perspectives of both Dakota and Jack: Dakota has just found out that her boyfriend cheated on her with her best friend, and Jack has just spotted Dakota and become instantly infatuated, convinced that he needs to get to know her and he needs to get to know her now. Through a series of coincidences, Jack and Dakota end up at the same stretch of beach near their respective hometowns, and after seeing Dakota throw a message in a bottle out to sea Jack retrieves it and decides to contact her, but not as himself. Overhearing a conversation between her and one of her friends, he discovers that she's interested in travelling to Barcelona, and he creates the character of Alejandro Torres, an enigmatic Spanish man travelling in California for the summer. However, when Dakota and Jack start to grow close, he realises how difficult it is to compete with a fictional guy, and how difficult it is to keep secrets from the woman he's starting to love...
I really did love this book, and I'm not quite sure why, because there were aspects of it that rubbed the wrong way with me. At times, the secrets and lies Jack were keeping and telling to Dakota did get on my nerves, but on the other hand he seemed like such an innocent character - due to being homeschooled he had no experience with girls, so in some ways his inability to be himself in front of Dakota was understandable. I found myself empathising with him a lot more than I thought I'd be able to, because it did seem that his reaction to Dakota was more of an instant obsession than an instant crush, so I was a bit spooked by him towards the start of the novel, but I think it's a credit to Jody's writing that she managed to display how desperate he was to meet Dakota without making him seem like a psychopathic stalker.
I think one of the reasons I loved this book was because of Dakota's character; she has such a strong personality and she doesn't take any shit from anyone. When she received the email from River telling her that her and Cody were getting together, she got emotional but she didn't argue back or even reply, demonstrating her strength in a way that I never could - when someone hurts me they will know it instantly, because I'm not great at pulling the cold shoulder. Similarly, when her father was complaining about her desire to go travelling, she put him down smoothly without seeming like a bitch; she's just a character that really seems to know herself and know her own mind, and she doesn't like other people trying to get control of it.
But really I think the main reason I enjoyed this book is because it was just so good. There wasn't anything that irritated me - the similarities between the two main characters weren't slap you in the face obvious, they were understated and cleverly written, and there were no scenes that were pointless or unnecessary; everything in this book was crafted to get you to the end result, not just to fill pages. I also loved the letters that were exchanged between Dakota and 'Alejandro', because they both had such unique voices in their writing and it really fleshed out their characters without being over the top on unrequired back story. In fact, one of my only complaints is that we didn't get enough of the letters - I was hoping for a few more exchanges!
I don't want to say too much because I really want you guys to be able to experience and enjoy this book as much as I did, but just know that this is a great contemporary novel and if you're looking for new releases in the genre this is where you need to be. With the weather warming up and the sun starting to shine, this is definitely a summery book and it'll be perfect to take on holiday with you if you're going somewhere where you need something light to read while you sunbathe. I hadn't heard of Jody Gehrman before, but I was absorbed by her writing style and I flew through this book, so I'm definitely going to look into her other novels soon.

If you enjoyed this review, you might want to come back to my blog on Thursday, because I'm going to have a guest post from Jody to celebrate the release of 'The Truth About Jack'. See you then! 

'Cruel Summer' (Undertow #0.5) by K. R. Conway

*This review will contain spoilers!*

First things first I need to say a massive thank you to Wicked Whale Publishing for accepting my request to review this book on NetGalley, and to NetGalley for the service that they provide.

When I requested this book on NetGalley, I didn't realise it was a prequel to K. R. Conway's Undertow series; I thought it was a standalone with an extremely intriguing cover and a unique and compelling synopsis, so I requested it. I found out it was a prequel when I went to start it, so I looked up the first book in the Undertow series, and the synopsis didn't grab me, so I questioned whether or not I really wanted to read this book. 

In fact, I questioned until this morning, when I decided to start it... And then finished it in one sitting. 

'Cruel Summer' tells the story of Ana and Kian (who I'm guessing are minor characters in the Undertow series) and how they met. I was expecting to struggle with this book and I was extremely apprehensive, but I was grabbed from the word go, which is where we meet Kian driving along the road with the dead drug dealer in the trunk of his car. YEAH. That's what I thought; it's unexpected, question provoking and damn gripping. When Kian's car breaks down, the guy who stumbles across him lets him know that his friend is a mechanic and that she will come and have a look at it for him, to which Kian scoffs "A girl? Your mechanic is a chick?". This automatically annoys Ana, who hears him from the other end of the phone, and their relationship jump starts on the wrong foot - or at least it does for Ana, but Kian has strong feelings for her from the moment he sees her.

However, their characters are both so deep that they are developing throughout the entire novel: it's not a case of insta-love that grates and irritates. Ana is a strong and independent teenager who finds it hard to trust people due to her alcoholic and abusive father, only having one friend in the form of MJ. Despite the fact that she's strong, kicking Kian to the curb at multiple times when his ego gets too big for him, she also really loves her father, painting a picture of the abuse victim who constantly believes her abuser can get better. It really is heart-wrenching stuff, seeing Ana get her hopes built up and crashed down around her multiple times, like the waves that she rides when she surfs every day to help relieve her emotions. Instead of the victim being written in a condescending way, constantly questioning why they stay and making their escape route completely obvious, Ana's character is written in such a way that you really do empathise with her decision to try to help her father - you can't see any other way around the situation, because you can tell that her father does love her, or at least he did once upon a time. As well as Ana being a victim of abuse, she's also partially psychic - partially meaning that she can't read minds but she can read emotions - which adds yet another layer to an extremely multi-dimensional character.

Meanwhile, Kian isn't just any normal psychotic murderer - Kian is a Mortis. The Mortis are soul sharks, who live off of the energy that they can suck out of their victims: immortal, beautiful, dangerous creatures. Most Mortis feed solely off of humans, as their souls contain the most energy, but some can live off of animals. Kian is one hundred and eighty two years old, but he looks like a twenty year old, so it's not too surprising when him and Ana begin falling for each other. 

I was worried about the romance aspect of this novel, because it does seem as though Kian develops strong, almost obsessive, feelings for Ana a bit too quickly, considering the fact that he's had a hell of a lot of time to look for a woman. However, Ana's feelings for him are written extremely realistically; she doesn't want to trust him, but when he shows how much he cares for her he breaks her defenses down and she can't help but fall for him.

I was so happy that it seemed that their relationship was going to work out, because every hurdle they came across, they faced together. At points I felt myself verging on rolling my eyes, like when Ana accepts the fact that Kian is a Mortis with hardly a blink of an eye, but she is such a strong character you can imagine that she would be able to make up her own mind about that kind of situation within a matter of minutes. However, with their separation at the end of the novel I was left shouting, desperate to know how their relationship ends up and what happens to them. 

K. R. Conway's writing is very good at encapsulating realistic emotions, and I highly recommend this novel because, unlike some dual perspective novels in which the characters sound similar and it's easy to get confused, both of the characters have extremely strong voices and personalities, making them very easy to fall in love with. If you're looking to read this as a standalone I wouldn't say that's a good idea: for one, you won't be able to resist reading the rest of the series, and for two there are a few things left open at the end of this book, events that I'm sure will be wrapped up in the main bulk of the series. I've definitely reconsidered my aversion to the 'Undertow' synopsis and I'm definitely going to look into reading it - it's not something I would have attempted before, but because I really like K. R.'s writing I'm definitely going to pick it up as soon as I can. 

'Volition' by Lily Paradis - SPOILER FREE REVIEW

I have been excited for the release of 'Volition' since I was involved in the cover reveal all the way back in December, so when it released at the start of this week I knew I needed to get it read as soon as I possibly could. I just didn't know it was going to have such an earth-shattering effect on me. 

'Volition' is a story of two halves: the 'Then' and the 'Now'. Tate McKenna is a woman on the run, escaping from her tortured past in Charleston with a one way ticket to New York, a fresh start with no men in her life. This quickly goes out of the window when a handsome stranger starts talking to her on the plane, but Tate's flight risk attitude isn't going to go away that easily, and she flees, leaving nothing but a postcard behind to help him find her.

I really don't want to go into the story of this book too much, or really review it that closely, because there's nothing I can say apart from the fact that I am sat here in a dazed, tear-stained mess, and it's been the most brilliant reading experience I've undertaken in the last year or two. Lily Paradis has a way of cultivating her words to portray everything I've ever wanted to express, but just haven't had the means to do so. As Tate debates between whether you can ever have two soul mates, whether your soul mate and the love-of-your-life can be two different things, and whether you can ever truly let go of the past and move on and be happy, I was hooked with every sentence. 

If you've ever been in love, you will relate to this book.

If you've ever had your heart broken, you will relate to this book. 

If you've ever had the soul-crushing realisation that the person who makes you feel more at home than you've ever felt in your life is not 'the one', you will relate to this book.

I generally try to keep my emotions out of my reviews, to make them less biased and more informative, but I'm throwing everything out of the window with this book.

In all honesty, I stopped believing in soul mates, because I grew apart from mine. Sometimes life just happens that way - it's not fair, but it's the way it happens, the way it's meant to be. But because of that situation I started kidding myself into believing that soul mates couldn't exist and it was all a lot of bull. At the start of this novel, I was rolling my eyes at the implication of soul mates, because the eternal cynic in me was being completely rubbed up the wrong way. Recently I've just wanted to dismiss all young love, because it won't last so it's pointless to watch it develop. But after going through Tate's story of love, loss and learning to live again, I've felt myself come to terms with a lot of the things that have happened in my life over the last year. 

This book was utterly cathartic. If you're grieving for a relationship that you've lost, a friend that you've lost, a 'what if' that you'll never close the door on - this is the book for you. I haven't cried while reading a book since 'Looking For Alaska' by John Green, and that was such a revolutionary experience for me that I didn't think it would ever be matched again. However, I think Lily's book has completely surpassed the depth that it moved me. 

I don't want to give too much away about this book, because it really is a lot better to watch the story unwind, but just trust me when I say bare with it. The beginning of the book was a little bit sticky, because of the jumping between the past and present, but it doesn't take long to get into the rhythm of the book and connect the dotted timeline of the flashbacks we're presented with. If you find yourself getting confused, just trust me when I say that everything is unwound and linked up by the end of the novel, and you will not regret it if you just stick with it and power through. 

'Learning To Live' (Learning To Live #1) by Kira Adams

*This review will contain spoilers!*

First things first, I want to say a massive thank you to Kira Adams, who sent me a free pdf of this novel in return for an honest review. 

"I can't explain the way you make me feel, but I can tell you I've never felt more alive in my entire life than when I'm with you."

'Learning To Live' is an upper Young Adult/New Adult novel, which tells us the story of Ciera and Topher. Ciera is an outcast at her high school, constantly bullied by the group of popular kids she not so affectionately refers to as 'The A-Team', trudging her way through school and wishing for the last day to hurry up and arrive. Topher is the complete opposite to Ciera, a popular jock, a member of 'The A-Team' and one of her biggest tormentors. He's dating the hottest girl in school and everyone wants to be him, or be with him, but he doesn't feel anything but contempt for his girlfriend or for the people around him. 

At the start of the novel, you will absolutely hate Topher. It's an unavoidable fact. He is the most arrogant, self-important, uncaring boy that I have ever read in YA or NA - ever. Ciera is a little sweetheart, trying her hardest to be invisible and to avoid all of the bullying that she's being tormented to, so you can't help but have your heart break for her, and watching her going through her transformation (all thanks to Madalynne, who seemed to be one of the most unappreciated characters in this novel) and finally get the confidence to look people in the eye is very inspiring. Sometimes characters go through big changes before you can really get a feel for who they were before, but Kira wrote 'Learning To Live' very cleverly, in that we get to know both of the main characters very well very quickly, making us fully appreciate the transformations that they both undergo throughout the book. 

I did think it was pretty obvious that Ciera was ill from quite early on, so the reveal of her having an incurable brain tumour was not the most surprising announcement, but it was dealt with extremely well, appreciating the fact that it was a sensitive subject that could affect many of the readers. When Ciera decided to reveal the fact of her condition to her best friend, Mack, and Topher, it definitely pulled at my heartstrings, and despite the fact that it normally takes a heck of a lot for me to cry during books, I did feel myself welling up at the unfairness of the entire situation. 

However, despite the fact that it was a sad book, it was also very inspiring. Ciera's positive attitude is infectious, and the way she grabs life by the horns with her bucket list made me want to start doing more exciting things with my life, suddenly gripped with an unshakable desire to go camping. Similarly, the discussion about what it's like for the people we love after we go definitely made me think, and I thought it was a definite positive thing that it was a dual perspective novel, because it was good to get the insight from Ciera of how the illness was affecting her, but also from Topher and how the illness and the draining of her life affected him, too. 

A lot of people have compared this book to 'The Fault In Our Stars' by John Green because of the doomed love story element, but I actually think it has a lot more in common with 'Before I Die' by Jenny Downham (also known as 'Now Is Good' after it was adapted into a film). In 'Before I Die', a teenage girl is dying with cancer, so she writes a bucket list and attempts to complete it all before her time comes, falling in love with her hunky attractive neighbour in the process. I got a lot of the same vibes I felt during that novel throughout this one, but because 'Learning To Live' was only one hundred and fifty pages I didn't feel as attached to the characters, so I didn't feel so emotional when the eventual death of Ciera came around. 

Despite the fact that I really did like this book, I did still have some issues with it. Ciera decided to set her death day at February 20th, so after we know that her and Topher are completely in love with each other I thought that maybe we would have a super romantic and soul-crushing Valentine's Day meal scene, but that didn't happen, which left me feeling slightly flat. Furthermore, Mack and Topher seemed to be making progress when they found out that Ciera was dying, but then when Topher took her and her family to Disneyworld, Mack didn't even get a mention, and then from there on to the end of the book we didn't even get a scene of him saying goodbye to her. If Mack really was in love with her, and they'd been best friends for years, it would have been extremely emotional to see a scene between the two of them, possibly with him announcing his feelings and them coming to terms with the fact that they would be separated. There were also quite a few grammatical errors throughout this book, but it didn't annoy me as much as it normally would have because the book was a quick read, so it didn't interrupt my flow too badly. 

This book was only released yesterday, and it's definitely worth giving it a read because it is always interesting reading about how love can transform, and apart from the serious nature this is actually quite a light read - Ciera has a bubbly personality that flows from the page and her positive spin on her traumatic situation definitely makes it easier to look on the bright side of live. It is more of a New Adult novel than a Young Adult novel, so if you're a strong advocate that there should never be sex scenes in YA this is not the kind of book that you should read, and that's the only case that I wouldn't recommend picking it up and giving it a try. Be warned, Topher's personality at the start of the novel is very abrasive and definitely rubbed me up the wrong way, but keep on with it because it gets better after the first fifty or so pages. If you read 'Learning To Live' and enjoy it, I would also suggest picking up the next book in the series, 'My Forever', which focuses upon Madalynne and Parker, and I haven't looked up the other two novels in the series for fear of getting spoilers, but I'm sure I'll be continuing on with it eventually. 

'Elsker' (Elsker Saga #1) by S. T. Bende

*This review will contain spoilers!*

Firstly, and most importantly, I need to say a massive thank you to S. T. Bende, for sending me an electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I hadn't heard of the Elsker Saga before I had the opportunity to read and review it, but I will probably be buying the next two books in the New Year, because it's a story that I'd definitely like to continue on with.
'Elsker' is a New Adult novel that tells the story of Kristia Tostenson, a girl from a one-spotlight town called Nehalem who decides to start living her life, based off of the advice of her best friend, Ardis, and decides to transfer to Cardiff University for a year as an exchange student. Once in Cardiff, she meets the dreamboat Ull Myhr, who is automatically abrasive and rude towards her, irritating and intriguing her in equal measures. As they start to get closer she still holds back, terrified about the 'nice Ull' reverting back to his brutish counterpart, but it's not long before she's fallen head over heels in love with him. Everything's going swimmingly - until she finds out he's a mythological God?!
I absolutely adored the first half of the novel. Yes, it had aspects of a lot of YA novels that I'd read (most blatantly, 'Twilight': clumsy, awkward girl relocates to a new town and falls for an out-of-this-world beefcake - check! Accepts his paranormal/otherworldiness without batting an eyelid, check!) but it was endearing: I loved Kristia's character, her interactions with her roommates, Emma and Victoria, were funny and endearing, and Ull had enough intrigue to keep me turning pages. However, after the first half it just went downhill quite quickly, because nothing was happening.
You might be thinking - of course there was something happening, there were pages flicking past so there must have been events - but really, it was nothing of consequence. The arguments between Ull and Kristia grated on my nerves, he kept trying to control her and she kept defying him so there was quite a big impasse there, so I just wanted to bang their heads together to shut them up. Their relationship was equally annoying - her constantly trying to jump his bones while he desperately tried to stay chivalrous wasn't attractive in the slightest, and the fact that he proposed to her and then exclaimed "I hope you want a short engagement" was an obvious ploy to get her into bed, so that exasperated me even further. I knew this was the first book in the trilogy, so I was expecting a lot of set up, but after the first half of the novel it was all just unnecessary babble.
Don't get me wrong, there were some scenes that I enjoyed. All of Kristia's visions were ominous and threatening, sending chills down my spine, but as soon as Kristia told us 'I didn't see the Elf Man again while I was at Cardiff' a little piece of me gave up all hope, because the Elf Man premonitions were so utterly captivating and heart racing that I was desperate for another one. I do think it was clever of S. T. to make sure to write that in, because if there are many readers that are like me they won't be able to resist picking up the second book, just to see when the Elf Man reappears, and what he does to Kristia.
Furthermore, the mythology spread throughout the book interested me in a way that most things don't. Maybe this is because I've always been interested in mythology - particularly of the Norse gods - but I'm almost definite that it was because of S. T's gorgeous writing style. The appearance of Thor towards the end of the novel was a stroke of genius (who doesn't love Thor?! Even though this wasn't the gorgeous Chris Hemsworth, I still couldn't help picturing him while reading the novel) and the knowledge that Kristia can be turned into a God was also intriguing, but the fact that it wasn't exactly explained how that can occur left me feeling a little bit cold. The ending of the novel cemented that feeling; knowing that Kristia and Ull are going to get married in the next book makes me worry that that will be the focal point of the next installment in the series, when I really just want that over and dealt with so that we can move on with the action that I'm sure will be occurring while Kristia trains to be a goddess.
If you're thinking about picking up 'Elsker', I would definitely suggest buying the Kindle box set of all three novels (and the shorter novella) because I found it to be a very quick read, and because of where it finishes you definitely need to pick up the second book quickly. I'm going to try and read it within the next month or two, because my interest is definitely piqued at the moment and I'm sure that the story is going to speed up in the future installments, but if you're looking for an action filled novel, don't just pick up the first segment of this saga, because it's much more character driven than I'd been expecting. I really wanted to love this book, but I'm coming away feeling quite ambivalent - hopefully I'll be swayed in the positive direction over the next book or two. 

COVER REVEAL! 'Volition' by Lily Paradis

I bought 'Ignite' by Lily Paradis a couple of weeks ago (meaning that it will be included in my December Book Haul blog when I publish it in a couple of weeks time), and even though I haven't read it completely yet I have been dipping in and out of it, and I'm completely in love with Lily's writing style.
This meant that when I saw there was an opportunity to be involved in a cover reveal for her second book, 'Volition', which is being published in early 2015, I jumped on it immediately, and can I say that I am overjoyed with how gorgeous this cover is.

Are you ready to see it?

Are you sure?

Well you better scroll down and look at it then!

AHHHHHHH! Isn't it beautiful? I for one absolutely LOVE it. Compared to the cover of 'Ignite', it's so much darker and that makes me so much more excited and intrigued for the story. 

If you haven't heard anything about 'Volition', this is the description that is on the back of the novel. 

You know that feeling in the pit of your stomach that stays with you, then tears you apart slowly at first, and all at once shreds every fiber of your being?

It’s because you’re contradicting the universe.

Everything lines up so perfectly that you couldn’t have imagined it to work out any better, but then you have to go and do everything humanly possible to ruin it because you can’t stand to have it go right?

That’s what I did.

I did it because there’s a darkness that surrounds me, and I think I want it there.

My name is Tate McKenna, and my soul is blacker than my heart. 

 ...
I am speechless. I mean, not many book blurbs absolutely grab me and make it impossible for me to miss a release, but this is one of those.
If you're with me, and you want to pre-order 'Volition', you can pre-order on Amazon or pre-order a signed physical copy. I'll hopefully be ordering mine early in the New Year, and I can't wait for it to just be here already!
I'd also suggest following Lily on her Twitter, because she is one of the loveliest people, and she'll be giving a lot more information about 'Volition' gearing up to the release in the New Year. The people who have already read the novel can't seem to give it high enough reviews, so the hype surrounding this book is really high, and I'm beyond certain that it IS going to live up to that hype, so keep an eye out for my review when the book is released!

'Sweet Damage' by Rebecca James

*This review will contain spoilers!*

Wow. 

There are not even enough words to describe how impressed I am by this novel. 

'Sweet Damage' tells the story of Tim Ellison, a twenty-ish guy who is lounging around, not really doing anything with his life apart from working in his fathers restaurant. He's lodging with his ex-girlfriend, Lilla, and her current boyfriend, Patrick, so tensions are high which is what causes him to move out. He moves to a large house called Fairview, one of the largest houses in all of Sydney, moving in with a reclusive young woman called Anna London. Anna is suffering from agoraphobia, so Tim is giving a very low rent price in exchange for him keeping her company and buying things from the shop for her. 

And then things get creepy. 

Tim wakes up in the middle of the night, sure someone is watching him. Then he hears footsteps following him home from a night at work. A birthday present gets delivered for him - a box full of spiders that quickly take over his room. A mysterious message written in red appears on the wall. Tim automatically assumes Anna is behind the creepy goings-on, but the truth is much worse than that...

The reveal comes very quickly in the last fifty pages of the novel, meaning for a little bit before that it starts to drag. When you know there's going to be a big reveal and it's slowly building up to it, it definitely raises the anticipation but it made me extremely impatient; surprisingly, it was absolutely worth the wait. 

Along with the main plot line of what the hell is going on here what is all this, there is the more emotionally centered and heartbreaking story of Anna's past. Anna is suffering with agoraphobia and depression following the death of her son, Ben, who drowned a little over six months before the novel commences. It takes a lot of time for Anna to open up to Tim, so there are a lot of questions waiting to be answered over the first half of the novel, but I think the revealing and Tim's subsequent dealing with the new information on her past was handled so amazingly well. I was extremely impressed with seeing agoraphobia tackled in a novel anyway; I've never seen another book about it and I found it very interesting getting inside Anna's head and learning more about how the disorder really makes you feel about yourself and about the world around you.

I hated Lilla's character from the beginning, so the fact that the big reveal ended up with her being an absolute psychopath didn't annoy me but it definitely did surprise me. I'm normally good at seeing hints coming along the way but there were a lot of little things (the mention of Anna's fathers affairs, Tim seeing the satchel in Lilla's house) that I let slip through my net because I thought they were completely irrelevant, so I was very happy to actually be surprised by the ending of a novel for once. It's reminiscent of 'Blood Brothers' (if you haven't heard of it, it's a play about two twins who are born to a poor mother; she gives one away to a rich family to give him a chance of a better life and then everything kicks off when the poor son finds out that his twin is loaded) but that's not a negative, it's really good to see a modern twist on it and the female point of view as well.

Tim is probably one of the best male narrators I've ever experienced; too often they're painted to be inconsiderate, unemotional and fearless, but Tim demonstrates all too well that he can be terrified and in love, so I enjoyed seeing a male character so in touch with their emotions. 

I haven't read any other Rebecca James novels, but I'm definitely going to keep an eye out in future because this is one of the best books I've read in the entirety of 2014. It blends horror/spooky elements with enough mystery to keep you guessing, but it's also a contemporary new adult novel with Tim and Anna's developing relationship and them learning how to be together and to know each other. I'd definitely recommend picking up this book, especially if you can get hold of it before Halloween because it's the perfect atmospheric spooky read for this time of the year. Not many books make my heart race but this was indeed one of them!