Ordinary Monsters

By J.M. Miro

I knew it from the beginning, there was something special about this novel. I could tell it was nearing 5 star territory and by the end it wound up being an all time favorite. It had all the elements I love in a fantasy novel, excellent characters, found family, intriguing mystery, and plenty of scary don’t read this in the dark moments.

Not only was the writing impeccable, the atmosphere gave me chills. Set in England 1882, we are thrust into a time of the past. This element made the scary parts even more intense. Knowing the characters don’t have access to modern day amenities added to the tension they were feeling.

Synopsis

England, 1882. In Victorian London, two children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness —a man made of smoke.

Sixteen-year-old Charlie Ovid, despite a lifetime of brutality, doesn’t have a scar on him. His body heals itself, whether he wants it to or not. Marlowe, a foundling from a railway freight car, shines with a strange bluish light. He can melt or mend flesh. When two grizzled detectives are recruited to escort them north to safety, they are forced to confront the nature of difference, and belonging, and the shadowy edges of the monstrous.

What follows is a journey from the gaslit streets of London, to an eerie estate outside Edinburgh, where other children with gifts—the Talents—have been gathered. Here, the world of the dead and the world of the living threaten to collide. And as secrets within the Institute unfurl, Marlowe, Charlie and the rest of the Talents will discover the truth about their abilities, and the nature of the force that is stalking them: that the worst monsters sometimes come bearing the sweetest gifts.

I feel in love with all the characters in this book. That doesn’t happen often for me. I even liked the bad guy, Jacob Marber. I liked how we got little bits of back story for each of them, but only at the right moments. Everything was revealed in time and that added to the mystery surrounding them. Their stories were complex and they all had hidden secrets.

If you like the found family aspect in books you will love this one! Charlie Ovid and Marlowe have an amazing brotherly relationship. They grow to trust each other and by the end you will be sobbing. In fact you might cry a few times. I won’t say anything else, but don’t get too attached to these characters.

The “super power” parts of this book were perfection. It never felt gimmicky or super heroish. In fact if people really did have special abilities or “talents” this is how I would imagine it. We were there when the characters discover their powers and are able to connect with their wonder and fear throughout as they learn to live with these new abilities.

Luckily for us this is scheduled to be a trilogy so we can get more of this complex world. I will definitely be continuing the series.

Happy Reading

Xoxo Tricia

The Fifth Season

By N.K. Jemisin

Do you ever read a book and really like the writing, the characters and the story but don’t feel the pull to continue in the series? That happened for me with this read. I’m not sure where it lost me, but for now I don’t plan to continue this series.

The overall plot felt slow and it’s definitely something you have to have patience with. The book starts with being thrown into a post apocalyptic world that is quite confusing. I really had to stick with this one to grasp all the concepts and give it a chance until I started to understand what was going on.

The female characters were excellent! I felt liked I really cared for them and I understood their struggles. They were strong and real. Probably some of the best female characters I’ve ever read.

The hardest part for me to get use to was the 2nd POV narrative. It’s very different to read because it’s not done very often. The other POV’s were done in 3rd person, so switching back and forth took a little bit for me to feel comfortable with.

I liked the blend of sci-fi and fantasy and the emphasis on the importance of family. Maybe this is one I will continue later, but for now I’ll wait to hear more reviews for the rest of the series.

Synopsis

This is the way the world ends. Again.

Three terrible things happen in a single day. Essun, a woman living an ordinary life in a small town, comes home to find that her husband has brutally murdered their son and kidnapped their daughter. Meanwhile, mighty Sanze — the world-spanning empire whose innovations have been civilization’s bedrock for a thousand years — collapses as most of its citizens are murdered to serve a madman’s vengeance. And worst of all, across the heart of the vast continent known as the Stillness, a great red rift has been torn into the heart of the earth, spewing ash enough to darken the sky for years. Or centuries.

Now Essun must pursue the wreckage of her family through a deadly, dying land. Without sunlight, clean water, or arable land, and with limited stockpiles of supplies, there will be war all across the Stillness: a battle royale of nations not for power or territory, but simply for the basic resources necessary to get through the long dark night. Essun does not care if the world falls apart around her. She’ll break it herself, if she must, to save her daughter.

Happy Reading

Xoxo Tricia

Seasonal Fears

By Seanan McGuire

Seasonal Fears, the sequel to Middlegame, takes you on a journey through another parallel world where the seasons are much more than they seem. Thank you to Netgalley for the arc in exchange for my review.

Melanie is a cheerleader, her boyfriend is on the football team and besides her failing heart her life seems pretty great. Harry loves her, and would do anything to protect her, and he might just get the chance sooner than he thought. Without warning they are thrust into a new world full of violence and unexplainable magic that has their heads spinning.

The intricacies of this world are beyond anything I could ever come up with. This is the complex world in Middlegame on steroids. There are familiar concepts including alchemy, but there is also an entirely new direction, each layer being peeled away to reveal more complexities.

The side characters became just as important, if not more important, than the main characters because they are the ones explaining everything to us. Without their detail we would surely be lost. I can see how that may not be everyone’s cup of tea but I love detail in a book.

The book felt a little slow throughout and then the ending rushed by so quick I felt cheated. I would have preferred less in the middle and a more drawn out ending as that was what the entire book was building up to. That being said I look forward to more from this world and I’m curious to see which direction the next one takes.

SYNOPSIS

The king of winter and the queen of summer are dead. The fight for their crowns begins!

Melanie has a destiny, though it isn’t the one everyone assumes it to be. She’s delicate; she’s fragile; she’s dying. Now, truly, is the winter of her soul.

Harry doesn’t want to believe in destiny, because that means accepting the loss of the one person who gives his life meaning, who brings summer to his world.

So, when a new road is laid out in front of them―a road that will lead through untold dangers toward a possible lifetime together―walking down it seems to be the only option.

But others are following behind, with violence in their hearts.

It looks like Destiny has a plan for them, after all….

“One must maintain a little bit of summer even in the middle of winter.” ―Thoreau

Seasonal Fears comes out May 3rd, 2022.

Happy reading,

Xoxo Tricia

King of Battle and Blood

King of Battle and Blood By Scarlett St. Clair

I usually like a little romance with my fantasy novels but this was more like a little fantasy with your romance novel.

SYNOPSIS:

Their Union Is His Revenge.

Isolde de Lara considers her wedding day her death day. To end a years-long war, she is to marry vampire king, Adrian Aleksandr Vasiliev, and kill him. ⠀

But her assassination attempt is thwarted and Adrian threatens that if Isolde tries to kill him again, he will raise her as the undead. Faced with the possibility of becoming the thing she hates most, Isolde seeks other ways to defy him and survive the brutal vampire court. ⠀

Except it isn’t the court she fears most—it’s Adrain. Despite their undeniable chemistry, she wonders why the king——fierce, savage, merciless—chose her as consort. ⠀

The answer will shatter her world.

MY REVIEW:

I really did enjoy the world building and plot of this vampire story, but it was VERY steamy. Usually I don’t mind that, but it was almost every 20 pages or so. The tension between Isolde and Adrian kept me going throughout the book, but I could have done with less romance scenes.

There was a good twist at the end that I kind of guessed early on so it wasn’t as surprising as it could have been for me. The ending wrapped up quickly and left me wanting more in this book. I don’t know if I’ll continue on in the series yet. I enjoyed the story and the added elements like witches and scary creatures throughout the world, but the romance was a little heavy. Overall I gave this one 3 stars!

Happy Reading!