Tag: beautiful covers

YA

Review: Crystal Kingdom by Amanda Hocking

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Kanin Chronicles #3

crystal kingdom -amanda hockingThe kingdom she loves has turned against her. Can she save it before it’s too late?

Bryn Aven—unjustly charged with murder and treason—is on the run. The one person who can help is her greatest enemy, the gorgeous and enigmatic Konstantin Black. Konstantin is her only ally against those who have taken over her kingdom and threaten to destroy everything she holds dear. But can she trust him?

As Bryn fights to clear her name, the Kanin rulers’ darkest secrets are coming to light…and now the entire troll world is on the brink of war. Will it tear Bryn from Ridley Dresden, the only guy she’s ever loved? And can she join forces with Finn Holms and the Trylle kingdom? Nothing is as it seems, but one thing is certain: an epic battle is under way—and when it’s over, nothing will ever be the same…

4 Drink Me Potions

Wowza. And that completes the Kanin Chronicles.

That was my first thought upon completing Crystal Kingdom. Having read Frostfire at the very beginning of this year and getting to complete this trilogy by the end of it, it feels like a journey that I’ve taken with Bryn this year.

And I can’t say that her adventure doesn’t end off with a bang. Because it sure does. Right from the beginning, she’s off where we left her in Ice Kissed.

With Konstantin Black. Aka the Kanin’s #1 enemy and Bryn’s enemy (and secret childhood crush). Oh, and a total badass.

Amanda Hocking is an absolute genius when it comes to delivering epic adventures as that is what we get here with Bryn now being a fugitive on the run, stuck with an ally that is no help with getting her better connections. Written in a fast-paced sequence, we follow the two of them all around the different troll kingdoms.

Like, YES, we finally get to see the other troll kingdoms besides the Skojare. I absolutely adored their palace in Ice Kissed but there are plenty more interesting things to come here. I don’t want to ruin much beyond that. Of course, the synopsis already does a good job of implicating the Trylle kingdom. If you have read Hocking’s first series (which I haven’t, I will admit), you’ll be genuinely pleased to see some familiar characters popping up quite frequently.

And with grand adventure, there also comes grand sacrifices. Bryn was a strong and well-rounded character. She has that fight and courage in her that is found in a lot of battle-skilled/warrior-like heroines, but she also developed well over the course of the trilogy. It is here that I really saw her emotionally mature. She was always this person who relied solely on herself. Love had no place in her life. It was a distraction, a weakness. But it also showed that she could be lonely living a life like this. With love burning in her heart, she finally understood that maybe it wasn’t such a problem but rather a motivation for doing well.

However, as I said, there comes sacrifices. I won’t say what kind, but every great tale of heroism and adventure has their fair share of problems that just couldn’t be prevented. I will admit that one of those scenes had a really touching moment there. Let me just say that Hocking makes beautiful characters come alive but keeps it realistic, and I’ll leave it at that.

As for the romance, I am OVERJOYED that there was no love triangle. I honestly swear there were hints for one since Frostfire but I’m glad it wasn’t a necessary tool to add into a story that seemed perfectly fine the way it was. Ridley is still amazing as usual, but there’s some conflict between him and Bryn that they’d have to work out. I did wish there could’ve been more of him in the novel as he doesn’t pop in until mid-way. I suppose it was hard to realistically have him pop up on Bryn’s adventures so quickly, but still. My heart broke over the Ridley-less pages.

I may not have liked Konstantin at all for the last two books. Come on, how many people could’ve fallen for a guy who was known as Kanin’s #1 enemy? And Bryn hated him with a passion after what he did to her and her father. It’s fairly easy to dislike a guy with that kinda description and background. But he was always intriguing, and I think that’s where people fell for him a little. In Crystal Kingdom, he’s everywhere. And by the end of it, I wanted to be his best friend the way he seemed to be for Bryn. It was strictly platonic. She didn’t waver in her love for Ridley, but of course, there was a sort of love for Konstantin as well, just not strictly the romantic kind. And that goes to show how well-done this novel was to turn an opinion completely around.

I’m not sure if Hocking will ever come back to these troll kingdoms after having done two series with them. However, I will end off saying that it was a wonderful journey following the Kanin people and that she’s one ingenious author for creating such a captivating, mythical world within our everyday modern one. I do truly wish there would someday be more.

Overall Recommendation:
Bryn’s just been kicked out of the only home she’s ever known, but as the courageous and ever-determined heroine that she is, Crystal Kingdom follows her on a grand adventure to right the wrongs in her kingdom and set everything right once again. Allied with Konstantin Black, someone I once hated but by the end you’ll be calling him a best friend, and filled with treacherous battles and action, this fast-paced novel definitely fulfills the ideal of the word “finale”. Delicious romance, beautiful settings in varying troll kingdoms and a heart-stopping sacrifice, this is one book that you just have to read. Honestly.

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: The Captive Maiden by Melanie Dickerson

Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole

Series: Fairy Tales #4

the captive maiden -melanie dickerson Happily Ever After…Or Happily Nevermore?

Gisela’s childhood was filled with laughter and visits from nobles such as the duke and his young son. But since her father’s death, each day has been filled with nothing but servitude to her stepmother.

So when Gisela meets the duke’s son, Valten–the boy she has daydreamed about for years–and learns he is throwing a ball, she vows to attend, even if it’s only for a taste of a life she’ll never have. To her surprise, she catches Valten’s eye.

Though he is rough around the edges, Gisela finds Valten has completely captured her heart. But other forces are bent on keeping the two from falling further in love, putting Gisela in more danger than she ever imagined.

4 Drink Me Potions

Fairy tale retellings are a favourite of mine (and if you look at more of my reviews, you’ll really see what I mean by that). So I may get critical at times when it comes to fairy tales, as there are essentially so many of them out there, but especially when the retelling is on the most well-known fairy tale of them all – Cinderella.

Dickerson doesn’t disappoint. It was evident that her story weaved elements of the traditional tale, but it wasn’t so redundant and stuck on that plotline that it made it predictable and boring to read. With descriptions of the world back in the 1400s told through both Gisela and Valten’s POVs, it was remarkably easy to get enthralled and captured by their story.

Gisela was a fine heroine. The way Valten described her as how he saw her was truly accurate. She was beautiful but didn’t flaunt it like some other girls. She was brave and courageous in the sight of danger, willing to do anything for someone she loves. And most importantly for me, I found I could see parts of me in her. Psh, and no, not the part about being beautiful and having to work as a servant-slave girl to her stepmother. More like, she loved Valten even when she wasn’t sure he could or would ever love and marry her back. That isn’t easy. And that’s what I wish to be more like in character.

As for Valten, he grew and found his purpose over the course of the book. He had let the fame get to his head, winning tournament after tournament (which by the way, the descriptions of the jousting tournaments were very detailed – in a good way). Of course, all he needed was some danger and a girl he was willing to do anything for, and presto! The pride was eventually humbled.

All in all, it was a sweet retelling. I kind of wish I read the series in sequence order, but thankfully not a lot was spoiled from previous novels.

Overall Recommendation:
For a Cinderella retelling, Dickerson added her own umph and character to it. Our heroine wasn’t just some damsel in distress, and both she and her love interest Valten had a lot to learn about letting go of harmful things in their past. It wasn’t just the fairy tale that we all know and love. It was a story that chronicled their growth in character as well as their love.