Tag: YA fantasy

Blog Tour | Empress of All Seasons by Emiko Jean

Posted November 13, 2018 in Blog Tours, Books, Reviews / 6 Comments

Today I’m partnering with The Royal Polar Bear Reads and Bookable Reads for the Empress of All Seasons Blog Tour! Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Google Play | Book Depository Empress of All Seasons may be another title in a sea of YA fantasy releases, however it immediately stood out to me within the first few chapters for several reasons, the strongest being the feminist themes and inversion of tropes generally associated with the male and female privilege in society. Protagonist Mari lives in a village comprised of shape shifting “Animal Wives” who are a kick-butt, take no prisoners, matriarchal society who highly value the […]

Caraval by Stephanie Garber | Review

Posted April 3, 2017 in Reviews / 11 Comments

Caraval was heavily marketed as pretty much THE BOOK of 2017, coming out in the first month of the year with an outrageous amount of hype. Usually I would be super wary of any book released under such circumstances, but I found myself SO excited to read this one after meeting Stephanie, attending the launch, and seeing how genuinely excited she was about her book finally making it into readers’ hands. I’m happy to report that I found Caraval to be utterly enchanting and strangely unique, and it’s nearly topped the list of fantasy worlds that I would eagerly volunteer […]

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J Maas | The Ultimate Book Hangover

Posted April 13, 2016 in Reviews / 7 Comments

“You make me want to live, Rowan. Not survive; not exist. Live.” It was only a few weeks ago that I was shouting from the rooftop (of my blog) about how much I loved Heir of Fire, and how the Throne of Glass series has come to shatter all of my preconceived notions of it after reading the first book. Now four books in, I have given each book that followed the first novel a solid 5 star rating. I am completely, devastatingly in love with this series, these characters, this universe, and anything Sarah J Maas writes in general. […]

Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas | Review

Posted March 14, 2016 in Reviews / 13 Comments

“She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one.” I never thought I’d be a Sarah J Maas fangirl. I read Throne of Glass and was underwhelmed. I read Crown of Midnight, and it was shockingly good, but I was suspicious that it was more due to certain plot elements rather than an overall love for the series itself. However after I discovered my love affair with A Court of Thorns and Roses, I decided it was time to give the Throne of Glass series another chance to wow me. And wow me it […]

An Unpopular Opinion on Winter by Marissa Meyer | Review

Posted December 21, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 30 Comments

I am an outlier. A black sheep. The reader who seemed to have missed the memo that this was an amazing, flawless, work of utter perfection. So I’m going to start with a disclaimer: I love Marissa Meyer. I’ve met her twice. I think her skill at writing fairy tale retellings is magnificent. Her characters have depth and feel like my own friends. I coveted the release of Winter. I dragged myself to Barnes & Noble after an eleven hour work day to buy it in person to ensure that I received a copy that was in pristine condition. And […]

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas | A Review of Redemption

Posted March 25, 2015 in Books, Five Star Reads, Reviews / 20 Comments

“Then Celaena and the King of Adarlan smiled at each other, and it was the most terrifying thing Dorian had ever seen.” I’ll admit, I was a skeptic. Going in, I was NOT expecting this to be a five star, or even a four star read. I was really underwhelmed by Throne of Glass, and I felt like a total outlier because of it. Everyone raved about the series, so when I was at the bookstore the other day looking for a new paperback, I decided to give the series another shot. And I am SO glad I did, […]

The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski | Review

Posted March 19, 2015 in Books, Five Star Reads, Reviews / 27 Comments

“People in brightly lit places cannot see into the dark.” How did I not read this book sooner? Sure I’d heard about it enough. I just went about my business, thinking this was nothing more than the usual and currently popular fantasy/dystopian YA love story. I am so delighted to have been proven wrong. I loved everything about this book, from the plot to the characters to the beautiful writing to the Greco-Roman inspired society. I don’t think I’ve been so passionate about a book since I finished Trial By Fire in January. The Winner’s Curse is the book […]

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard | Review

Posted March 6, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 10 Comments

“I see a world on the edge of a blade. Without balance, it will fall.” There seem to be two kinds of readers when it comes to Red Queen: Those who unabashedly love the novel in all of its dystopian glory, and those who were severely disappointed, after such a hyped up marketing campaign, and found it to be laden with tropes from other popular YA series. Despite knowing how polarized readers are on this title, I couldn’t help but order it (I succumbed to the cover, let’s be honest) and after having a few days to digest it, […]

5 Reasons Why Fairest is Everything a Novella Should Be

Posted March 2, 2015 in Books, Five Star Reads, Reviews / 14 Comments

It’s no secret that The Lunar Chronicles is a fan favorite for most YA fans. After the perfection that is Cress, I could hardly contain my despair at having to wait for Winter’s release date. When Marissa Meyer (who is a literary goddess, I mean, she’s influenced by fairy tales AND Sailor Moon) announced that there would be a novella chronicling Levana’s backstory, I knew it would be fabulous. However, even I underestimated how #flawless it would be. Below are 5 reasons why Fairest is the standard to which I will forever hold all YA novellas up against. Villainous Characters […]

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black- Review

Posted February 9, 2015 in Books, Reviews / 17 Comments

“We love until we do not. For us, love doesn’t fade gradually. It snaps like a branch bent too far.” I know what you’re thinking. You’re wondering how in the heck I only gave this book 2.5 stars. You’re probably wondering if I even read the same book as you did. Well, full disclosure: It breaks my heart to rate this book so low, but it just didn’t work for me. I was so so excited to read The Darkest Part of the Forest, as it was the first novel I picked up by Holly Black. I had read […]