Outer Domain by Terence Thomas My rating: 2 of 5 stars Thank you NetGalley and First Edition Design Publishing for providing me with an ARC of Outer Domain in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Gist Outer Domain has been on my NetGalley reading list for a few years and at some point I started reading it, but had to stop because life kind of took over. I’m not a fan of having to abandon a book mid-chapter, but sometimes it can’t be helped. So, once again I’m full of determination to keep up with my readings and reviews because they truly help me relax,…
-
-
The Iron Raven
The Iron Raven by Julie Kagawa My rating: 5 of 5 stars Thank you to the publisher, Inkyard Press, for providing me with an ARC of The Iron Raven in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Gist I had the strangest déjà vu when I first saw the name and the cover of Kagawa’s newest book. I swear I saw this book years ago and put it on my to-read list. Goes to show how one can be truly mistaken. Regardless, I have heard of the author’s other series, The Iron Fey, and the first book has been on my to-read list for a very…
-
This Golden Flame
This Golden Flame by Emily Victoria My rating: 4 of 5 stars Thank you to the publisher, Inkyard Press, for providing me with an ARC of This Golden Flame in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Gist I have been looking forward to reading a good YA fantasy book for a while. I patiently worked my way through my to-read list until I got to This Golden Flame. And I really very much enjoyed it. The story had a few surprises up its sleeve that added a lot to the fantasy/adventure aspect. Without further ado, let me jump right in. The Details I want to…
-
Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder
Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder by T.A. Willberg My rating: 1 of 5 stars Thank you to the publisher, Park Row, for providing me with an ARC of Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Gist I have wasted almost an hour trying to write this review for Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder. During that time, I have cleaned the kitchen, made myself a tea, ate chips, moisturized my hands three times and watched 22:39 minutes of an episode of Grey’s Anatomy. The thing is, I don’t want to sound mean. I am not a mean person.…
-
Aurora Rising
Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman My rating: 2 of 5 stars The Gist The time stamp says I read Aurora Rising in May of this year. I didn’t write the review until a few months later, because I didn’t really know how I felt about it. And I guess by December this hasn’t changed, so I’m finally going to post this review. 70%! 70% of Aurora Rising was absolutely fantastic. Then, it had to take a most spectacular nosedive. My god why?! I have been in a bit of a sour mood, since I finished this story yesterday afternoon. For good reason, too. I feel more than a little duped…
-
A Clockwork Orange
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess My rating: 3 of 5 stars The Gist I have known about A Clockwork Orange as long as I can remember. As a literature student ten years ago I meant to read as many popular literary books as I could, but working 20 hours a week, going to school fulltime and being part of the school theatre tech group didn’t leave much spare time. I am slightly ashamed to say that I still have to read many well-known classics to this day. So, how did I come about reading A Clockwork Orange? Well, it’s kind of a long story that includes a very tenacious…
-
The Forgotten Sister
The Forgotten Sister by Nicola Cornick My rating: 3 of 5 stars Thank you to the publisher, Graydon House Books, for providing me with an ARC of The Forgotten Sister in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The Gist The duality of the narration The Forgotten Sister promised to offer intrigued me greatly. One part historical fiction plus one part contemporary fiction makes for an interesting read for sure. Throw in the promise of a murder mystery, a ghost and a special gift and I’m all yours. The Details I did not particularly like the two main characters. I thought they were both very self-absorbed, but…
-
Brightly Burning
Brightly Burning by Alexa Donne My rating: 5 of 5 stars The Gist I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I am a sucker for space stories. Throw some young adult plots with a sprinkle of classic literature retelling and I’m a very happy reader. Brightly Burning is all that. It is a retelling of Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre…set in space with quite a bit of young adult drama. Yes, please! The Details As with the author’s other retelling (The Stars We Steal) I was excited trying to figure out what character was based on the characters in the original classic and also what changes were made to…
-
The Stars We Steal
The Stars We Steal by Alexa Donne My rating: 5 of 5 stars So, I read this book in two days. I was obsessed with it. I wanted to know what would happen, even though I was fully aware that this was a retelling of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Anyone, who has been following my reviews for the last year knows by now that I did my graduate thesis on Austen’s six major novels, which included Persuasion. It was never my favourite of the six, but I still loved it, nonetheless. So, to come across a retelling of Persuasion set in space had me intrigued from the start, because I do…
-
Unearthed
Unearthed by Amie Kaufman My rating: 2 of 5 stars I was very excited to read another collaboration of Kaufmann and Spooner’s, I just didn’t have the time to do so until now. I read other reviews saying that the split first-person narration doesn’t work, and I have to agree, it really doesn’t work with this story. Not because the structure itself doesn’t work, but simply because it wasn’t utilized to its fullest potential. The two protagonists each get their time to interchangeably share their side of the story, their inner feelings and thoughts to bring them closer to the reader. However, instead of taking that opportunity, the reader gets…
