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Review: The Fiery Heart by Richelle Mead

May 10, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Bloodlines #4

Sydney Sage is an Alchemist, one of a group of humans who dabble in magic and serve to bridge the wolds of humans and vampires. They protect vampire secrets – and human lives.

In The Indigo Spell, Sydney was torn between the Alchemist way of life and what her heart and gut were telling her to do. And in one breathtaking moment that Richelle Mead fans will never forget, she made a decision that shocked even her…

But the struggle isn’t over for Sydney. As she navigates the aftermath of her life-changing decision, she still finds herself pulled in too many directions at once. Her sister Zoe has arrived, and while Sydney longs to grow closer to her, there’s still so much she must keep secret. Working with Marcus has changed the way she views the Alchemists, and Sydney must tread a careful path as she harnesses her profound magical ability to undermine the way of life she was raised to defend. Consumed by passion and vengeance, Sydney struggles to keep her secret life under wraps as the threat of exposure — and re-education — looms larger than ever.

Pulses will race throughout this smoldering fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling Bloodlines series, where no secret is safe.

4 Drink Me Potions

After committing to Adrian and the love Sydney just can’t deny between them anymore, things should be looking up, right? And then the bomb of a cliffhanger had to drop with Zoe Sage’s arrival.

Although, to be honest, not much really happens in The Fiery Heart by way of action or adventure, this fourth installment was quite enjoyable. There were MANY, and I highlight many , steamy and romantic encounters between Adrian and Sydney throughout. Maybe it was made a lot more fun as their relationship had to be kept secret, even among their close friends living in Palm Springs.

This was also the first book in the series to have alternating POVs between Adrian and Sydney. And my, it was an interesting experience to get into Adrian’s head as well. He really is such a loveable character, even though he has so many vices from spirit’s ups and downs. Maybe it’s because of his brokenness that makes him such a relateable guy. He’s by far from perfect, but his love for Sydney helps balance out his problems and makes him yearn to be a better person.

I love the progression of their relationship being such a main point of this book. When a book is part of such a long series, most books contain crazy plotlines amidst the romance that goes on as an after thought while the protagonists are off fighting whatever problems they have to face. This allowed readers to really explore their forbidden relationship as a major crazy plot line in itself that could ultimately lead towards more problems down the road, particularly the threat of re-education for Sydney.

With Zoe’s arrival, there just seems to be a ticking time bomb on their happiness. On top of that, Richelle Mead still added something big besides romance into the story. The emergence of a possible Strigoi vaccine for the Moroi is a major development for this world, which took up a huge part of Adrian’s POV. As for Sydney’s half of the book, she was exploring the potential ability with her magic to counteract heavier dosages of re-inking that would be able to protect ex-Alchemist rebels if ever captured by the organization. So, even with romance being the forefront of The Fiery Heart, it was by far from boring comparatively to the others as some new discoveries were explored.

And to conclude such a romantic story, Richelle Mead brings us back to the heart of action, as is her style, with that crazy ending. I’ll have to say, I’m just glad I read this series late and didn’t have to wait for the next book.

Overall Recommendation:
A well-written installment alternating between Adrian and Sydney’s POV that focused more on their forbidden romance than any other crazy schemes that have been introduced in the earlier novels. With plenty of steamy moments, Mead takes us to the heart of their strong love and shows us just how perfectly matched they are for each other, no matter how different their worlds were before. For a book that doesn’t necessarily contain too much action, I found it very enjoyable as it truly developed our two protagonists that sets the stage for whatever craziness is to come in the next book. A definite must-read!

Review: Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

May 8, 2015May 25, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Chantress #1

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.”

This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

2.5 Drink Me Potions

I was very excited for another historical fantasy, but my expectations may have been too much. Don’t get me wrong. The premise of the story was beautifully created. In this fictitious version of olden day England, evil creatures known as Shadowgrims create fear in the hearts of all people, especially in those that the Lord Protector to the King condemns as traitors to the crown. Chantresses, magical women who weave magic through “song spells”, have all been hunted down. Except Lucy, of course.

A lot of originality has definitely gone into creating such a world, with certain facts that are actually based on real English history. For that, I had to round up my rating. Because other than my admiration for this world the author has created, everything else was sub-par.

The beginning of the story was an information overload. I understand that to allow readers to fully grasp the history and background of this version of England, a lot has to be explained. However, it just wasn’t done very tactfully. The information felt more like it was dumped and squished into the first 100 pages in order to make sense of the next 200+ pages. That was NOT the end of it, though.

I thought there’d be some sort of adventure to this story. Come on! Throwing a rebellion against the Lord Protector? Learning magic in order to do that overthrowing? Sounds exciting, right? Please, I had to read continuously in order to get through those pages, as I knew I would never pick up the book again if I stopped in the middle. I kept hoping there would be more twists, but barely any came through. Learning magic? More like pages written about Lucy practicing scales and holding notes. For months. And explaining the goings of the scholars as they checked in on her for the months she was holed up in practice. Honestly, the plot could’ve gone in so many directions, but it was just TIRING. And dragged a whole lot.

Picture it. The whole chunk of the middle was like explaining what Lucy did that day, what problems she encountered with magic, and possibly who checked in to see her progress, which was namely Nat. Then multiply that by like quite a number of days that seemed endlessly the same. Talk about tedious.

Speaking of which, the romance part of Chantress? I had such hopes for that. There was barely any true chemistry between Nat and Lucy. Oh sure, it was actually written that Lucy felt a spark pass between them as they gazed at each other, but explicitly written chemistry doesn’t equate to a chemistry that is just felt through their banter and time spent together. They hardly hung out, and when they did, Nat was rather cold to her. So his change of heart to her and the magic she did felt kind of…off. I wanted to believe in it, but I’d rather Greenfield didn’t tell me to believe in their love but rather showed it through their actions.

I must say that although I am disappointed in the start of the series, I will give the rest of the series a shot. I do love the idea of Chantresses a lot, and maybe the author can redeem the story from here on out, considering all the background information has been laid out already. Here’s to hoping, optimistically.

Overall Recommendation:
Chantress could have been a beautiful historical fantasy set in olden day England (which by the way, is one of my favourite settings for historical books). However, it lacked an exciting plot, although its premise was creatively imagined. There was a lot of potential in the adventure of overthrowing a tyrant, but Greenfield never built the story up to any sort of climax and thus the whole story kind of fell flat. As for the rest of this series, I still believe in its potential and will give it a shot. However, I may not recommend this for those who bore easily.

Review: The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

May 7, 2015May 26, 2015 Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

When Gia Montgomery’s boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she’d been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend— two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley.

The problem is that days after prom, it’s not the real Bradley she’s thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn’t even know. But tracking him down doesn’t mean they’re done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend’s graduation party — three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies.

Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.

4.5 Drink Me Potions

The synopsis makes this story sound like it’s some light, fluff piece, but it’s so much more than that. The Fill-In Boyfriend follows Gia Montgomery, a girl whose life seems as normal as it gets. Popular, president of student council, has some close girlfriends and a family that hasn’t been torn apart by divorce. Everything looks perfect on the outside. That all started to change with the fill-in boyfriend (aka FIB) who is rather insightful.

Breaking from Perfection
With the arrival of the lies starting at prom, Gia’s life starts to unravel into imperfection. I love how it explores the family dysfunction in a way that’s different from other stories. Sure, her parents and brother get along fine with each other, but maybe, that’s the problem. When things don’t get resolved in order to maintain peace and have the appearance of perfection, you start to hide emotions deep inside and only work with surface emotions in every relationship. Who knew that not getting punished enough for something could cause just as many problems in a family? It also prevented Gia from being able to talk to her parents when her life was falling apart. Too emotional, right? And that would require admitting that something in her life wasn’t working just perfectly.

Outgrowing friendships
There was just so much emotion in Gia’s story. With a frenemy that was out to get her, it was awesome to have someone to hate. Sometimes, I find stories like to give redemption to those that may initially seem awful. Not this one. I absolutely can’t stand her friend who is so hell-bent on destroying Gia’s close friendships. And all for a reason that is rather lame. Although the story concludes without the neatly wrapped up ending, I was a little sad that there wasn’t as much closure with her friends. There was hope, but I guess the message is that sometimes, you outgrow even lifelong friends who may become different people as the years go by.

Finding out who you are
Besides family and friends, this story touches so much on Gia’s journey into opening up to people and finding out who she wanted to be. I love character development and this story focused so much on this gradual change that was working its way through her. By the end of it, she had grown so much that it literally brought tears to my eyes. My favourite advice was something the fill-in boyfriend’s mother had told Gia when her world started to fall apart. She was asking about how to truly gain life lessons and find herself when nothing terrible has happened to her. This is the wisest thing I’ve heard yet to answer such a question.

“We rarely find depth by looking inside of ourselves for it. Depth is found in what we can learn from the people and things around us. Everyone, everything, has a story. When you learn those stories, you learn experiences that fill you up, that expand your understanding. You add layers to your soul.”

Love, of course
Speaking of tears, The Fill-In Boyfriend definitely had a lot of romantic chemistry going on there. He brought so much insight into Gia’s life, that even though they were only going to spend just two nights together, it was hard to get him out of her life and mind. I’m so glad that there was this simmering attraction between them that was so tangible, I almost felt like I could reach out and touch it. It wasn’t only the attraction that was enjoyable, but also their witty banter that was hilarious to read. The path to romance doesn’t always have to have constant staring and romantic lines, but it may very well lie in a deep-rooted friendship. The ups and downs to their relationship was beautifully written. Falling for someone for real while pretending to only be each others’ dates definitely complicates things.

Although Kasie West’s On the Fence wasn’t as huge of a favourite with me, The Fill-In Boyfriend has quickly shown me that this author has so much to offer in YA literature. This is a beautiful story of finding who you are in the imperfections while falling for the very person who challenges all those cracks in your life and learning to let go of emotions. A definite must-read.

Overall Recommendation:
The Fill-In Boyfriend is so much more than its synopsis limits it to be. It’s a remarkably well-written story about finding love in the unexpected, seeing the beauty in life’s imperfections and staying strong when your world starts to crumble from the lies in your past catching up to you. This is Gia’s journey in finding herself, and all I can say is that it’s heart-warming and almost brought me to tears as it is so relateable in so many ways. I highly recommend this book to anyone to read. It’s way more than just fluff.