Category: YA

YA

Review: The Princess Spy by Melanie Dickerson

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Fairy Tales #5

the princess spy -melanie dickersonA new suitor. A shocking discovery.

Margaretha has always been a romantic, and hopes her newest suitor, Lord Claybrook, is destined to be her one true love. But then an injured man is brought to the castle, claiming to be an English lord who was left for dead by Claybrook’s men. She convinces herself “Lord Colin” is just an addled stranger, until Colin retrieves an heirloom she lost in a well and asks her to spy on Claybrook as repayment.

Margaretha knows she could never be a spy—not only does she tend to talk too much, she’s sure Colin is completely wrong about her potential betrothed. But she soon discovers her romantic notions may have been clouding her judgment about not only Colin but Claybrook as well. She soon finds herself running for her life–and it may be up to her to save her father and her family from one man’s wicked plot.

2.5 Drink Me Potions

I had really hoped to like this one. The synopsis of The Princess Spy was intriguing, although it didn’t really remind me of any particular fairy tale story like the others in Dickerson’s collection. And after seeing Margaretha featured in The Captive Maiden, a book I enjoyed and read not long ago, I had SUCH high hopes.

Only to fall back gently into disappointment.

Margaretha talks a lot. She really does. Yammers on and on about whatever she’s thinking. And she knows this. Even her little brothers think she talks WAY too much. I’m gonna agree with this. It was a huge challenge to get beyond it. I mean, it’s not that I didn’t like Margaretha ’cause of it. I just wanted to skip reading over her huge monologues occasionally.

Oh, but that wasn’t the only thing. Oh no. The beginning was SO boring. Margaretha thinks Colin is kinda not fully there in the head, while he’s yapping away in a slightly crazy manner about Lord Claybrook. It was exhausting. Honestly. Nothing really happened until they got beyond that point of believing he wasn’t crazy.

Their building relationship and romance was believable, but it wasn’t in any way….exciting. Okay, basically the whole story lacked excitement. It was just on this constant level of emotion. There were “fight scenes”, and I’m putting that in quotations ’cause they didn’t last long, but I didn’t ever really think that anyone important was gonna die or anything. So there goes the suspense or potential edge-of-my-seat moments.

Colin was a good guy. He may have been trying to exact revenge and it took him a while to realize that what he was doing wasn’t necessarily bringing Claybrook to justice. I liked the moral of the story, but it wasn’t the kind of fairy tale quality I had been looking forward to. Therefore, disappointment just gives way to apathy. I read the whole thing but my heart was never really INTO it, if you know what I mean. I just didn’t really care in the end about anything or anyone in the book, and that’s never a good sign with me when reading a story.

Overall Recommendation:
There was potential from the synopsis for a fun and grand adventure with Margaretha. After all, she was already a familiar character from the previous Dickerson novel, and an interesting character who loved to talk a whole lot. And I do mean, a whole lot. Spying for Colin could’ve dragged out into many different areas, but it didn’t last. It was boring in the beginning, and nothing could really excite me from there on. It might just be me, but this latest installment really lacked the whole fairy tale theme. She was just a girl with a title back in the Middle Ages. There was no fairy tale magic to spice it up, and I think that was what could’ve saved The Princess Spy. I’d say it’s readable still, but not necessary.

YA

Review: The Thirteenth World by A.N. Willis

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: The Corridor #2

the thirteenth world -AN willisTime is running out for Stel Alaster.

The Corridor, the only portal between First and Second Earth, is failing and the barriers between all twelve worlds are thinning.

Using her unique ability to travel through the multiverse, Stel sets out to save the Corridor . . . and ends up discovering a mysterious new world.

In the sequel to The Corridor, will the thirteenth world hold the key to the Corridor’s secrets?

Or will the portal implode and take every last universe down with it?

3.5 Drink Me Potions

Thank you Alloy Entertainment for this copy in exchange for an honest review

**The Thirteenth World comes out on September 29th!**

It began a few weeks after the cliffhanger of The Corridor left us. And my, could I say that the cliffhanger had me itching to get my hands on this sequel so much faster??

Anyway, I have a lot less complaints about this one. For once, the sequel may have surpassed its predecessor, which is rather high praise coming from me.

From book one, you would know that all is NOT happy and well on First Earth where Stel and most of her friends were from. The Corridor is acting up and is even MORE unstable than before, if that’s possible. And now? She was separated from everyone she loved and her portal wasn’t working. Talk about jumping into serious stuff immediately.

If you read my review for The Corridor, you’d know just how much I wanted to punch a ton of the characters. My despise for Dr. Tabor, aka the worst family friend EVER, literally made me wanna lock her up somewhere to get a taste of her own medicine. She did not win any points with me, as I suppose that wasn’t the plan.

However, to my surprise, my huge dislike for Stel’s brother Justin has actually faded. I know, I know. He redeemed himself in my eyes, although I truly hadn’t wanted that to happen after all he did. His character really grew and I could understand a little on why he did what he did. I’ll let you judge for yourself whether he was worth redeeming.

Justin may have outgrew his asshole-ness, and so it also seemed that Stel’s old bestie Lissa didn’t suck as much either. She was truly helpful when it came to controlling Overprotective Brother Syndrome, and I guess what she did at the end of The Corridor was somewhat redeeming too.

“My brother had been shocked into silence when Cohl and I came home earlier…Unfortunately, the silence hadn’t lasted long.
‘He’s too old for you. Plus, I don’t like his attitude. And that hair.’
‘You sound like an old man right now…Can we please not have this conversation? I’m leaving in twenty minutes.’…
Lissa took one look at me and my brother, and swooped in between us. ‘Justin! I was hoping to find you. I need your help, um…lifting something very heavy.’
‘Oh?’ Justin gave me another glare, but his attention was rapidly moving to Lissa’s.
‘Yep. Very, very heavy. I know you’re the only guy around here who could lift it.’
Justin pushed back his shoulders, and crossed his arms. Which just so happened to make his biceps bulge. ‘I’ll take care of it for you.'”

I don’t know what it was about this book, but everyone that was pure AWFUL last time around was just….nicer? I guess the potential destruction of your life as you knew it could do that to you…

Stel’s identity crisis in this novel was hugely focused. What is she? Why could she do what she could do? And now everyone was counting on her to save the entire multiverse. Talk about big responsibilities.

She faced a lot of conflict about where she came from, and her actual birth heritage. Plus, did people see her for who she was, or just that girl with the super-portal-making powers? Was that all she summed up to now? It was nice to see some depth to the story, beyond the sci-fi/dystopian feel of the plot.

Likewise, The Thirteenth World wasn’t just great on character growth, but also more action-packed. Come on, the whole multiverse is coming to chaos and potential implosion of all the worlds. That’s crazy stuff. Sure, the astrophysics or pseudo-physics (I wouldn’t know if half of that stuff was true or made sense…) flew beyond me, but it sure was fascinating to hear how their ragtag group was gonna prevent such chaotic consequences from happening.

And more WORLDS! Who wouldn’t love visiting another world that oddly seemed like yours but isn’t? It’s just a shame that the world-building took a backseat in this sequel as there was more focus on the Corridor and fixing it. I would’ve loved to have known a little more backstory into one of the new Earths that was visited here.

And before you all berate me for this long review without talking about it….I will admit that Cohl has grown on me too. See? What IS with this book and redeeming characters? I didn’t feel the chemistry there with him in the last book. Hello? He was a TOTAL ASSHOLE to Stel in the beginning. Rude, much? And then you tell me you grew feelings for her? Uh, NOT buying it.

Anyway, that was in the past. Their romance and the predicament of being from two different universes really stresses the LONG in long-distance romance. I loved that beyond having those dopey “I-love-you-and-I-miss-you” kinda conversations, there was a level of friendship that felt lacking previously.

“Cohl said, ‘We’ll have to try somewhere else. One of the other Earths we’ve never visited. What do you think?’
‘I think your plan is perfect. And that you’re amazing.’
‘Anything else? Don’t stop now, this is just getting good.’
I inhaled deeply. ‘You smell pretty nice, too. Don’t let it go to your head.’
‘Too late.'”

Their love felt more real too. And in one scene, the writing was superbly touching. And so true. It described how real love should be like, and in that moment, I knew their love had won me over (’cause the writing didn’t make me wanna gag instead).

“We stayed there in the kitchen until almost midnight. We didn’t talk, didn’t even kiss, just held each other…..We’d said the words – that we loved each other – but that wasn’t really how I knew it was real. It was in the pauses, in this quiet moment when words had failed us. A touch, a look…It was the fierce ache around my heart, the stiffness in my lungs. It was being together until the very last priceless second.”

I’m assuming this is the last book of the series, although I had initially thought it’d be a trilogy. I will say that it won’t let you down. It wrapped things up nicely, but not too nicely like a stiff present. My only disappointment is that there won’t be any more exploration of the other 12 worlds. *secretly hopes for a spin-off book…*

Overall Recommendation:
The Thirteenth World definitely holds more grit and action, now that all the introductions to this slightly-futuristic-yet-not-too-far-off-into-the-future kinda world has been made. A ton of characters that I previously hated with a passion has surprisingly redeemed themselves without making me want to gauge out my eyes for reading it. And beyond character growth, it still held intrigue when dealing with multiverses, potential implosion of the worlds and, of course, the intricate workings of portal travelling. I think it summed up all the questions you ever asked and more. Definitely give it a shot.

Note: All quotes taken from this arc are subject to change

YA

Review: Reign of Shadows by Sophie Jordan

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Reign of Shadows #1

reign of shadows -sophie jordanSeventeen years ago, an eclipse cloaked the kingdom of Relhok in perpetual darkness. In the chaos, an evil chancellor murdered the king and queen and seized their throne. Luna, Relhok’s lost princess, has been hiding in a tower ever since. Luna’s survival depends on the world believing she is dead.

But that doesn’t stop Luna from wanting more. When she meets Fowler, a mysterious archer braving the woods outside her tower, Luna is drawn to him despite the risk. When the tower is attacked, Luna and Fowler escape together. But this world of darkness is more treacherous than Luna ever realized.

With every threat stacked against them, Luna and Fowler find solace in each other. But with secrets still unspoken between them, falling in love might be their most dangerous journey yet.

With lush writing and a star–crossed romance, Reign of Shadows is Sophie Jordan at her best.

3.5 Drink Me Potions

Thank you Edelweiss and HarperCollins for this copy in exchange for an honest review

**Reign of Shadows comes out February 9, 2016**

You think to yourself, here is a princess in a tower. Isolated in the middle of nowhere. Yearning for freedom. Doesn’t that sound a little familiar?

Uh, Rapunzel, anyone?

But oh no, that is where the only similarities start and stop.

Here is the setting of Reign of Shadows. On the day the princess was born (aka Luna), a deep darkness in the form of an eclipse settled on the land. And stayed there. Permanently.

In the midst of this, the kingdom was overthrown and Luna barely escaped unscathed to her little tower with two guardians. Now, after 17 years of almost total darkness, her world is shaken up by the arrival of….you guessed it. A boy. Or, young man I guess. Fowler’s too manly to be called a boy. At least, I think so from the REALLY detailed descriptions of his strong physique…

This isn’t my first Sophie Jordan book, but the storylines are so different that it almost feels like it is. She is still amazing at weaving together characters that seem real and tangible. Fowler is not a happy guy in the beginning. Being in a dog-eat-dog world, you learn to look out for yourself. Only the selfish survive, as he’d say.

Enter Luna. She’s an absolutely amazing character. I don’t REALLY want to ruin any surprise or anything, but she totally thrives in this world of darkness. She was born into it and therefore never knew what it was like to see with light. Her other senses are magnified which make her more capable in surviving these lands than most other people. I love that she can hold her own. She doesn’t require Fowler to save her everything. In fact, she saved him a couple times. She wasn’t a warrior or anything. Just an average girl who did what she had to for those she cared for. I can connect with her in that sense so much better than some kick-ass heroine, though those girls are great too.

Anyway, the romance and chemistry was almost tangible in the air. It wasn’t insta-love which I appreciated. Fowler was coming from a place where trust wasn’t earned so easily, so it wouldn’t make sense to feel anything too strong immediately. It had to build and grow into friendship and then into something more. Luna was good for him. Being locked in that tower protected her from the nastiness of the world. Yes, that might make her naive to the ugliness that humanity was, but it also made her hope more for a better outcome. And Fowler desperately needed that, in my opinion. Hope and love.

Although I loved the characters (the cast was really limited to those few small essential people), I can’t say the plot wasn’t dragging at times. They travelled. A lot.

Fought some night-adapted creatures called dwellers. And travelled some more. Fought some people more on the desperate and evil side. And, of course – you guessed it – they travelled some more.

So basically, the plot revolved around travelling and journeying towards some distant land for their various reasons, while trying to stay alive in the process from all the particular hazards. In the meantime, they fall in love (yay). That pretty much sums it up.

The world building wasn’t particularly strong in this first novel. It focused a lot on getting to know Luna and Fowler, and only peeking a little into Fowler’s backstory. I have some suspicions about certain elements of his backstory coming back to haunt him…but that may just be my overactive imagination. I am sure book 2 will open up a lot more of what evil darkness lives in the land and how to get rid of it.

The ending was a cliffhanger, and that was the only part where the story was potentially finally changing its course. Kinda sucks that I have to wait a long while before I can understand the hints that Jordan had slipped into Reign of Shadows.

However, this just means that the next novel is bound to get exciting from where this one left off. Hold on tight in this one. It’s a sweet, slow journey in acquainting ourselves with our dear protagonists. I don’t think it was badly prioritized, and I hope you would enjoy it too for what it is. I promise, the action will most definitely escalate later.

Overall Recommendation:
With a very small cast of characters, Reign of Shadows allows us to really get to know and love Luna and Fowler. Luna is a strong character who doesn’t let her “handicap” slow her down. Fowler is that bad boy who doesn’t trust anyone due to some tragic past, but the development of his character was realistic and sweet. Together, their journey towards a better land where there is freedom from danger truly highlights their chemistry, albeit lacking a little in the sense of adventure. All in all, it is a decent start to a series, and the ending hints for greater and more exciting things. At least you don’t have to wait as long as I do for the next installment.