Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo It is so hard to give a review of this series without spoilers! So I'll just say that the action starts right away in Siege and Storm as Alina and Mal are at sea and soon on the hunt for the mythical sea whip (which I took as a water dragon). But as we all know, with great power comes great responsibility. Both Alina and Mal deal with this theme throughout this book, and sadly the Darkling is fairly absent. But no worries, he has a bit more presence in the last book, Ruin and Rising.
Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo This trilogy is turning out to be amazing. But to stay focused on the first book, Shadow and Bone introduces us to Alina a peasant military mapmaker in a Russian-inspired place called Ravka. Part of this society is a class of people who practice the Small Science, known as Grisha. Unbeknownst to Alina, she is thrown into the world of Grisha for an ability to summon light that she'd suppressed since childhood. Soon the Darkling is vying for both her heart and her power, but if anyone cannot be trusted it is the Darkling. This book is well-written and the world-building is fantastic. I really like Alina and her snarky attitude and the banter between both her an
I wanted to love this series and went in with high hopes. Unfortunately, for me the writing missed the mark. I can't quite place my finger on it. The short synopsis of this series is that our protagonist, Tessa Gray, has been kidnapped by the Dark Sisters. The Dark Sisters torture Tessa to tap into a power she didn't even know she had. Soon, she is rescued by Will Herondale and Jem Carstairs, who are Shadowhunters protected by the angels. The trilogy follows the love triangle that ensues, and it is a heavy part of the story. In the meanwhile, we deal with Tessa trying to come to terms with her identity, Will trying to break a curse from his youth, and Jem's mortality. Book one, Clockwork Ang
Nightbird by Alice Hoffman Nightbird is a middle grade novel about friendship, love, and acceptance. Twig Fowler is not allowed to make friends. Her mother abruptly moved Twig and her brother James back to her small hometown where she takes over the family orchard. Despite Twig’s mother’s popularity in the town (helped by her pink apple pies), the family keeps to itself due to Twig’s brother’s condition. James is cursed. Long ago, there was a love affair between a Fowler man and a witch named Agnes Early. Agnes suffered the fate of a jilted lover and set a curse on the men of the Fowler family that causes them to grow wings. Things become complicated when the abandoned witch’s house gets new
As an indie author it can be difficult to get your book in front of readers. In this video I discuss my first attempt at using ARCs (Advance Reader Copies).
