Dawn of Mist by Helen Scheuerer Review

Title: Dawn of Mist
Author: Helen Scheuerer
Publisher Info / Release: Talem Press | April 16, 2020
Source: ARC from Helen Scheuerer
Rating: 5 / 5 *’s
Synopsis:
Discover where The Oremere Chronicles journey began in this epic bind-up of all 16 prequel short stories from bestselling author, Helen Scheuerer.

Before their fight to save the realm from mad tyrants and toxic mist, Bleak, Henri and Swinton led separate lives.

Delve into the secrets, the triumphs and tragedies of their earlier years, and the defining moments that made these much-loved characters who they are.

Teenage Bleak sails across the seas, seeking adventure with her best friend, Bren, and guardian, Senior – only to discover that trouble often finds her first.

Fiercely loyal Henri and her sister, Sahara, train relentlessly to become elite warriors, but soon learn that the Valian Way can be crueller than they ever thought.

A young and ambitious Commander Swinton struggles to prove himself worthy of knighthood, but an encounter with a beautiful stranger shows him that there are things in life more important than titles.

Thank you to Helen for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Review | Reign of Mist

Title: Reign of Mist
Author: Helen Scheuerer
Publisher Info / Release: Talem Press | September 13, 2018
Source: E-ARC from the author
Rating: 5 / 5 *’s
Synopsis:

The realm’s darkest secret is out.

The cruelty of the capital and the power-hungry King Arden have scattered Bleak and her companions across the continents.

On the run in a foreign land, Bleak finds herself tied to some unexpected strangers. When the answers she yearns for are finally within reach, she must face the hard truths of her past, and take her fate into her own hands before it’s too late.

Meanwhile, secrets and magic unravel as a dark power corrupts the realm. Bleak’s friends are forced to decide where their loyalties lie, and who, if anyone, they can trust.

But one thing is certain: war is coming, and they must all be ready when it does.

Thank you, Helen, for sending me a free copy of your book in exchange for an honest review! If you haven’t read Heart of Mist, this review may contain spoilers.

Review | Rule

Title: Rule
Author: Ellen Goodlett
Publisher Info / Release: Little Brown Books for Young Readers / September 11, 2018
Source: ARC from The NOVL
Rating: 4.5 / 5 *’s
Synopsis:
Three girls. Three deadly secrets. Only one can wear the crown.

The king is dying, his heir has just been murdered, and rebellion brews in the east. But the kingdom of Kolonya and the outer Reaches has one last option before it descends into leaderless chaos.

Or rather, three unexpected options.

Zofi has spent her entire life trekking through the outer Reaches with her band of Travelers. She would do anything to protect the band, her family. But no one can ever find out how far she’s already gone.

Akeylah was raised in the Eastern Reach, surrounded by whispers of rebellion and abused by her father. Desperate to escape, she makes a decision that threatens the whole kingdom.

Ren grew up in Kolonya, serving as a lady’s maid and scheming her way out of the servants’ chambers. But one such plot could get her hung for treason if anyone ever discovers what she’s done.

When the king summons the girls, they arrive expecting arrest or even execution. Instead they learn the truth: they are his illegitimate daughters, and one must become his new heir. But someone in Kolonya knows their secrets, and that someone will stop at nothing to keep the sisters from their destiny… to rule.

Magic, mystery, and blackmail abound in the first book of this sensational and striking fantasy duology.

Thank you to The NOVL for sending me this ARC for free in exchange for an honest review!

Wonder Woman: Warbringer Review

Title: Wonder Woman: Warbringer
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher Info / Release: Penguin Random House / August 29, 2017
Source: ARC from Penguin Random House
Rating: 4 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: 

She will become one of the world’s greatest heroes: WONDER WOMAN. But first she is Diana, Princess of the Amazons. And her fight is just beginning. . . .
Diana longs to prove herself to her legendary warrior sisters. But when the opportunity finally comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law—risking exile—to save a mere mortal. Even worse, Alia Keralis is no ordinary girl and with this single brave act, Diana may have doomed the world.

Alia just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she is being hunted. When a bomb detonates aboard her ship, Alia is rescued by a mysterious girl of extraordinary strength and forced to confront a horrible truth: Alia is a Warbringer—a direct descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery.

Together, Diana and Alia will face an army of enemies—mortal and divine—determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. If they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war.

I was given this ARC for free for an honest review of the book. 

A Court of Frost and Starlight Review

Title: A Court of Frost and Starlight
Author: Sarah J Maas
Publisher Info / Release: Bloomsbury / May 1, 2018
Source: Amazon
Rating: 4 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: Feyre, Rhys, and their close-knit circle of friends are still busy rebuilding the Night Court and the vastly-changed world beyond. But Winter Solstice is finally near, and with it, a hard-earned reprieve. Yet even the festive atmosphere can’t keep the shadows of the past from looming. As Feyre navigates her first Winter Solstice as High Lady, she finds that those dearest to her have more wounds than she anticipated–scars that will have far-reaching impact on the future of their Court.

 

Review Tour: Spindle Fire by Lexa Hillyer

Hi everyone! I’m partnering with Glasstown Entertainment to do a review for Spindle Fire for the upcoming release of the last book in the duology, Winter Glass (coming April 10, 2018!).

An Enchantment of Ravens Review

Title: An Enchantment of Ravens
Author: Margaret Rogerson
Publisher Info / Release: Margaret McElderry, Simon & Schuster / September 26, 2017
Source: ARC from KT Literary
Rating: 4.75 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: 

Isobel is a prodigy portrait artist with a dangerous set of clients: the sinister fair folk, immortal creatures who cannot bake bread, weave cloth, or put a pen to paper without crumbling to dust. They crave human Craft with a terrible thirst, and Isobel’s paintings are highly prized among them. But when she receives her first royal patron—Rook, the autumn prince—she makes a terrible mistake. She paints mortal sorrow in his eyes – a weakness that could cost him his life.

Furious and devastated, Rook spirits her away to the autumnlands to stand trial for her crime. Waylaid by the Wild Hunt’s ghostly hounds, the tainted influence of the Alder King, and hideous monsters risen from barrow mounds, Isobel and Rook depend on one another for survival. Their alliance blossoms into trust, then love, violating the fair folks’ ruthless Good Law. There’s only one way to save both their lives, Isobel must drink from the Green Well, whose water will transform her into a fair one—at the cost of her Craft, for immortality is as stagnant as it is timeless.

Isobel has a choice: she can sacrifice her art for a future, or arm herself with paint and canvas against the ancient power of the fairy courts. Because secretly, her Craft represents a threat the fair folk have never faced in all the millennia of their unchanging lives: for the first time, her portraits have the power to make them feel.

I received this book from KT Literary for free in exchange for an honest review! Thank you so much for the opportunity to review such a highly anticipated novel!

Heart of Mist ARC Review

Title: Heart of Mist
Author: Helen Scheuerer
Publisher Info / Release: Talem Press / August 31, 2017
Source: E-ARC from the Author
Rating: 4 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: 
In a realm where toxic mist sweeps the lands and magic is forbidden, all Bleak wants is a cure for her power.

Still grieving the death of her guardian and dangerously self-medicating with alcohol, Bleak is snatched from her home by the Commander of the King’s Army, and summoned to the capital.

But the king isn’t the only one interested in Bleak’s powers.

The leader of an infamous society of warriors, the Valia Kindred, lays claim to her as well, and Bleak finds herself in the middle of a much bigger battle than she anticipated.

Heart of Mist is the gripping first book in The Oremere Chronicles, a fantasy series of epic proportions.

I received this book from the author for free in exchange for an honest review!

The Traitor’s Kiss Review

Title: The Traitor’s Kiss
Author: Erin Beaty
Publisher Info / Release: Imprint / May 9, 2017
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 3.75 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: 
An obstinate girl who will not be married.
A soldier desperate to prove himself.
A kingdom on the brink of war.

With a sharp tongue and an unruly temper, Sage Fowler is not what they’d call a lady―which is perfectly fine with her. Deemed unfit for marriage, Sage is apprenticed to a matchmaker and tasked with wrangling other young ladies to be married off for political alliances. She spies on the girls―and on the soldiers escorting them.

As the girls’ military escort senses a political uprising, Sage is recruited by a handsome soldier to infiltrate the enemy ranks. The more she discovers as a spy, the less certain she becomes about whom to trust―and Sage becomes caught in a dangerous balancing act that will determine the fate of her kingdom.

I received this book from NetGalley for free in exchange for an honest review. May contain some slight spoilers.  To me, this was a Poison Study meets Kiss of Deception. So if you liked either of those books, you’d most likely enjoy this one as well!

Stalking Jack the Ripper Review

Title: Stalking Jack the Ripper
Author: Kerri Maniscalsco
Publisher Info / Release: Jimmy Patterson Books, Little Brown / September 20, 2016
Source: Barnes & Noble
Rating: 5 / 5 *’s
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Audrey Rose Wadsworth was born a lord’s daughter, with a life of wealth and privilege stretched out before her. But between the social teas and silk dress fittings, she leads a forbidden secret life.

Against her stern father’s wishes and society’s expectations, Audrey often slips away to her uncle’s laboratory to study the gruesome practice of forensic medicine. When her work on a string of savagely killed corpses drags Audrey into the investigation of a serial murderer, her search for answers brings her close to her own sheltered world.

**Post may contain spoilers, so read at your own discretion **