A Court of Silver Flames - by Sarah J. Maas

Title:              A Court of Silver Flames

Author:         Sarah J. Maas

Published:   Feb 16, 2021

Series:           A Court of Thorns and Roses #4

Rating:          4 stars

Synopsis:

Nesta Archeron has always been prickly-proud, swift to anger, and slow to forgive. And ever since being forced into the Cauldron and becoming High Fae against her will, she's struggled to find a place for herself within the strange, deadly world she inhabits. Worse, she can't seem to move past the horrors of the war with Hybern and all she lost in it.

The one person who ignites her temper more than any other is Cassian, the battle-scarred warrior whose position in Rhysand and Feyre's Night Court keeps him constantly in Nesta's orbit. But her temper isn't the only thing Cassian ignites. The fire between them is undeniable, and only burns hotter as they are forced into close quarters with each other.
Meanwhile, the treacherous human queens who returned to the Continent during the last war have forged a dangerous new alliance, threatening the fragile peace that has settled over the realms. And the key to halting them might very well rely on Cassian and Nesta facing their haunting pasts.
Against the sweeping backdrop of a world seared by war and plagued with uncertainty, Nesta and Cassian battle monsters from within and without as they search for acceptance-and healing-in each other's arms.

I listened to this as an audiobook, but kept up with it in my physical book.

I'm not sure whether it was that it's a different narrator for this book than the previous ones, but something about the other characters didn't quite seem like it used to be; like their attitude and the things that they said sometimes.

Luckily I knew this was going to be from Nesta's point of view, but if you don't know that going into it then you're probably going to be a little confused when you begin reading it. However I did like that this one was from her viewpoint and not another Feyre/Rhys one. The book does tend to sway between both Cassian and Nesta's point of view, but it would have been nice if it was a little clearer at the start of each chapter or section when they switch view points (or maybe that's just my brain not registering the switch, which I'm starting to think is the case.

I loved seeing Nesta and Cassian together and the way that they interacted and grew as characters. I do wish that we'd seen a bit more of Elain, Lucien and Mor though and I do still love those characters. I did love Nesta's character arc though and also loved seeing her deal with the trauma that she'd gone through in constructive ways.

I would have liked to see more of the Trove and maybe have it turned into two books if necessary, but I did still like the story as a whole.

There was also apparently a scene cut from the book as it was essentially too much for the book and I agree that it would have been too... in-depth, I'll call it... and that it would have turned the book into more of a smut book than it already was. Personally, I think that one or two sexy scenes would have been okay, but there were too many for my liking. By about halfway through the book it felt less like they were steamy and more like I was just sitting through them to get to the next part.

One thing I was 100% not prepared for though was the 'C word'. I'm sure that I'm not the only person on the planet who loathes that word, but for it to be published in a book in the fantasy section of a book store? The words "fuck" and "cock" are also mentioned, so I wouldn't really recommend that younger teens read it.

Spoilers!

When Cassian brought the shield up to Feyre the second time I guessed that she was pregnant so I wasn't as shocked/proud/relieved of them when they finally told the Inner Circle the news.

It was also pretty underwhelming about how the Cassian and Nesta mating bond was revealed.

End Spoilers!

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All books in this series:

    1 | A Court of Thorns and Roses

    2 | A Court of Mist and Fury

    3 | A Court of Wings and Ruin

 3.1 | A Court of Frost and Starlight

    4 | A Court of Silver Flames

The Prison Healer - by Lynette Noni

Title:             The Prison Healer

Author:        Lynette Noni

Published:  30 March, 2021

Series:          The Prison Healer #1

Rating:         4 stars

Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Kiva Meridan has spent the last ten years fighting for survival in the notorious death prison, Zalindov, working as the prison healer.
When the Rebel Queen is captured, Kiva is charged with keeping the terminally ill woman alive long enough for her to undergo the Trial by Ordeal: a series of elemental challenges against the torments of air, fire, water, and earth, assigned to only the most dangerous of criminals.
Then a coded message from Kiva’s family arrives, containing a single order: “Don’t let her die. We are coming.” Aware that the Trials will kill the sickly queen, Kiva risks her own life to volunteer in her place. If she succeeds, both she and the queen will be granted their freedom. But no one has ever survived. With an incurable plague sweeping Zalindov, a mysterious new inmate fighting for Kiva’s heart, and a prison rebellion brewing, Kiva can’t escape the terrible feeling that her trials have only just begun.

I managed to read an early copy of this book from work and wanted to give it an honest, spoiler-free review.

All thoughts and opinions regarding this book are solely my own.

Our Characters:

Kiva: our main character who has seen Some Things in her lifetime.

Jaren: our main man who has also seen Some Things in his life but somehow remains positive.

Naari: our guard who seems to be nicer than the rest.

Tipp: our little cinnamon roll and my favourite character just for being the littler of sunshine that he is!

I loved Jaren's humour and I also love how natural the amputee, stutter and blindness are when they're mentioned in the story; they don't seem as if they're forced in just for the sake of being in the story. Also the casual mention of someone being gay and the other main characters not even making a fuss about it.

One thing I picked up on though, was how tunnel fever reminded me of back at the start of the coronavirus pandemic; how easily it was spreading and the precautions you had to take if you dealt with someone with the virus so you also didn't become infected.

I did like how when you look at the side of the book at the pages you can see two blacked out parts of pages which makes it interesting as you don't know what that's about until you get there and when you get to that point in the book, it makes total sense why they're blacked out.

One point reminded me of something I've read at some stage though -- how some prisoner's in real life somewhere are allowed to look after shelter cats in the prison and it helps not only the prisoners, but also the cats as both parties learn to love and trust again. The prison cat in The Prison Healer named Boots reminds me of that and I really like that it was mentioned.

There was something I wasn't really fond of in the book though which was how often something like "Those five words were..." was said. It just became little repetitive over time, but it didn't detract from the story which was good.

However the final chapter was shocking with what it revealed! It probably didn't help that I had to stop with only three pages left at one stage as I'd had something on a timer. I also later figured out that I'd already called what was going to happen, but it was still a shock to the system. But oh my goodness, I seriously can't wait for the second book in this series to come out! I need to know what happens next!

"What about Your Highness?"

He pulled a face. "Definitely not." 

"Your Grace?" 

"I'm not a duke." 

"Your Excellency?" 

"Nor a lord." 

"Your Majesty?" 

"Please stop."

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All books in this series:

    1 | The Prison Healer
    2 | The Gilded Cage

Enchantée - by Gita Trelease

Title: Enchantée

Author: Gita Trelease

Published: 21 Feb 2019

Series: Enchantée #1

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

Paris in 1789 is a city filled with beggars, thieves, revolutionaries - and magicians...
Seventeen-year-old orphan Camille has to provide for her frail sister and her volatile brother. They survive by using the pretty magic she learnt from their mother - transforming scrap material into coins. But when things take a turn for the worse, Camille must pursue a more dangerous mark: the glittering court of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette's Versailles.
Using magic, Camille transforms herself into a glamorous Baroness. But as she is swept up into a dizzying world of riches and finery, suitors and revolutionaries, Camille soon discovers that she's not the only one leading a double life.

I listened to this as an audiobook.

I loved the way that the narrator, Justine Eyre, pronounced the French words that were mentioned as, at least to my untrained ears, it sounded like someone French was speaking the words.

This was the first book I have read by Gita Trelease and I really like the way that she explained the world building and what was going on around the character in France. I did get a little confused between characters sometimes though, possibly because of the French names, but I was able to keep pace with the story by what was happening to each character to keep them apart from one another.

This book reminded me a little bit of the story of Cinderella -- a young girl who simply wants to go to the ball to escape her life at home and the troubles that keep her there; a girl who is able to find love in another world and become a part of it, though she wasn't born into it; a girl who is able to find friendship and her happily ever after in either of the worlds she sees.

I did guess that Lazare may have also been putting on a disguise to deal with his day to day life and I was both right and wrong. Camille's brother, however, was the one character I hated from the very start because of the way that he treated his sisters and how no matter what they gave to him it was still never enough to satisfy him.

Another thing that I really liked about this book was that there was a gay couple in Camille's inner circle but it wasn't treated as a big scandal or anything like that -- it was treated as a normal thing! I know that wouldn't be historically accurate, but I also didn't really care as they made a cute pair and it worked within the story.

I'm also not sure which cover I like more, the one pictured or the one with the face on the cover as I do like them both.

                                                  

All books in this series:

    1 | Enchantée
    2 | Liberté

Aurora Rising - by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff [Read 1]

Title: Aurora Rising

Author: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

Published: 6 May 2019

Series: The Aurora Cycle #1

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering
And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.
Nobody panic.

Everyone panic.

I received this book as an ARC from the publisher, Allen & Unwin, for winning their giveaway. Thank you so much for letting me read this one!

I don't think that I could sum up who this book is suited for any better than the dedication of this book did:

If your squad was hard to find, or you're still looking, then this one is for you.

I liked that after a bit of interesting story of Ty in space, we back up a little into the italics and find out what led up to that point. Aurora's chapters have the flashback italics too and I also like how the end of her present sentence is the beginning of her flashback.

Character-wise, I loved Scarlett's sass, humour and scarcasm plus Fin's sarcasm too! Finian may also be gay or bi, but it's never explicitly stated.

Also, did anyone else notice that all the Syldrathi cabals start with W? No? Just me?

The best swearing ever occurs within this book too! For example: Hole cake. Son of a biscuit. Mothercustard...

Oh, that's what be'shmai means... (If you want to find out what I'm on about with this part, then read the book.)

Every single damning way to protect something is being used all at once to protect things? Good luck, Squad 312! Side note:That star map is awesome and I want one!

What's Eshvaren? Is it going to get revealed and is it probably important? Yes and yes. I feel like I've heard that word somewhere before too but can't pick where.

I do wonder how everyone on the Hadfield ship died except for her. How was she the only one to survive? How did she even end up on the ship in the first place when the book ends like that?!

Doesn't the Illuminae Files trilogy also have "Foundation Day"? I know they're two different universes, but I’m still curious... I also like how there's info pages between every few chapters in this book though as it breaks it up a little and gives you a touch more info, plus the different font that they use for the texting they did with one another. It’s a similar style to the Illuminae Files, I think – but also very different.

Hold onto your undies, kids.

It's about to be a bumpy ride...

Spoilers!

What happened to Zila when she was 6? I'm worried for her.

Did Cat and Ty have a thing then broke up? I guessed that they may have because of the sort of matching tattoos.

Aurora said "I apologise" and "Forgive me" backwards?! What?! I didn't even notice that until Zila mentioned it!

Insulting their mothers. Just dont. -- I want to know the story behind that. Who insulted who's mother to make that a thing? Was there a brawl? Was the offender disowned and sent off world?

Human bodies squeezed out of their uniforms like toothpaste? WTF? Eww!

Side note: WHY WOULD YOU RUB YOUR HANDS AGAINST THE MOSS TO CLEAN THEM?! MORON! IT'S TRYING TO KILL YOU!

End Spoilers!

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All books in this series:

    1 | Aurora Rising
    2 | Aurora Burning

The Dark Unwinding - by Sharon Cameron

Title: The Dark Unwinding

Author: Sharon Cameron

Published: 27 Aug 2012

Series: The Dark Unwinding #1

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

When Katharine Tulman's inheritance is called into question by the rumor that her eccentric uncle is squandering away the family fortune, she is sent to his estate to have him committed to an asylum. But instead of a lunatic, Katharine discovers a genius inventor with his own set of rules, who employs a village of nine hundred people rescued from the workhouses of London. Katharine is now torn between protecting her own inheritance and preserving the peculiar community she grows to care for deeply. And her choices are made even more complicated by a handsome apprentice, a secretive student, and fears for her own sanity. As the mysteries of the estate begin to unravel, it is clear that not only is her uncle's world at stake, but also the state of England as Katharine knows it. With twists and turns at every corner, this heart-racing adventure will captivate readers with its intrigue, thrills, and romance.

Lane: Do you want to quit?
Katharine: No.
Lane: Good. Because you haven't really tried yet. Come on

I listened to this as an audiobook.

This book was actually sort of a surprise to me as I did think I'd like this one, but I liked it even more than I thought. I liked how things looked like magic but were most definitely science and mechanisms, even if you didn't know the intricate details of how they worked.


Davey was my absolute favourite character (plus Bertram, of course). Plus Mariana even though she has been long since dead at the start of this book - just because of what she did. Lane seemed like a fairly nice guy though, apart from his temper.

I hate to be that person, but I still think that Lane and Katharine would make a cute couple, even thought they're not even a couple.


Neither does your uncle belong in a lunatic cell merely for the crime of being created differently from his fellows

I loved Katharine's strength, courage and confidence when she called all the men over for an emergency meeting. Especially when the doctor can't seem to meet her gaze.

It's good that Mr Tully finally learned to change a little bit, but still mostly within his comfort zone. Also when Lane and Katharine taught Mr Tully that when people 'go away' then sometimes they only want to remember them in their head, but they taught him in a way that he would understand.

I like that in the end Katharine became a little less strict about certain things in life. Reading about Aunt Alice breaking all the things inside while Katharine and Mr Babcock sat out on the front step was quite amusing though!


And as surely as I had understood not five minutes earlier that our game was over, I now knew with just as much certainty that Lane had never been playing game at all. he had not been pretending. And God help me, neither had I

Spoilers!

I loved that Davey could read and talk, just that he was unwilling to when other people were around. It took the entire book, but I also loved that we got to find out that the laughter at the start was probably Davey.

It was sad when Katharine and Lane were up at Davey's grave in his secret spot though. Davey held so many secrets about so many things that I felt bad for the little boy. Especially when he lost Bertram. But the way that Little Davey shows her that she's been being poisoned was sort of cute.

I'm interested to know if Mr Babcock loved Mariana when they were younger and when she was alive? That would have been kinda of cute, I think - to have seen them interacting and working together.

I had a guessing spree in the span of maybe one minute where I thought Mrs Jeffries, Mary Brown and Ben Aldridge could all be the poisoner. Turns out I was right about Ben in the end though - except that I didn't guess that he wanted to blow up the ships - I believed his lies too.

End Spoilers!

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All books in this series:

    1 | The Dark Unwinding

    2 | A Spark Unseen

The Assassin's Blade - by Sarah J. Maas

Title: The Assassin's Blade

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Published: 4 March 2014

Series: Throne of Glass #0.1-0.5

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

Celaena Sardothien is Adarlan's most feared assassin. As part of the Assassin's Guild, her allegiance is to her master, Arobynn Hamel, yet Celaena listens to no one and trusts only her fellow killer-for-hire, Sam. In these action-packed novellas - together in one edition for the first time - Celaena embarks on five daring missions. They take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, where she fights to liberate slaves and seeks to avenge the tyrannous. But she is acting against Arobynn's orders and could suffer an unimaginable punishment for such treachery. Will Celaena ever be truly free? Explore the dark underworld of this kick-ass heroine to find out.

I listened to this as an audiobook, however I do have this as a beautiful hardcover book too.

This book is a bind up of the Throne of Glass novellas: The Assassin and the Pirate Lord (#0.1), The Assassin and the Healer (#0.2), The Assassin and the Desert (#0.3), The Assassin and the Underworld (#0.4), and also The Assassin and the Empire (#0.5). It shows what Celaena gets up to before some of the books happen, however it's probably best to read the last book in this bind-up at the end otherwise you'll have spoilers.

I like that it's based in the medieval sort of era, but it's worded in a way that doesn't sound too old and it doesn't pul away from the story as you read. There's also only one narrator, but as she reads you can tell the difference between characters when they speak.

My favourite thing about Celaena would have to be her sass and sarcasm though. Along with the fact that she's the only female assassin in the guild, but can run circles around the men with what she can do! That, and she absolutely loves to read. Also, if Ansel had stayed, I would love to think that her and Celaena would have been friends - murderous friends, but still. The friends that slay together, stay together?

In this bind-up of books, we also get to find out a little history of the Throne of Glass universe. Such as learning of the three Iron Teeth Clans and what they can do.

Spoilers!

Sam Cortland! Need I say more? Read the book and you'll see what I mean. Plus, we're reminded of him every time Celaena says "I am Celaena Sardothien, and I will not be afraid."

After you've read the books once, you realise how much foreshadowing there is!

"This girl wasn't like wildfire. She was wildfire."

I would love to see what the white stag actually looks like too because it sounds absolutely beautiful.

End Spoilers!

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All books in this series:

0.1 | The Assassin's Blade (The Assassin and the Pirate)

0.2 | The Assassin's Blade (The Assassin and the Healer)

0.3 | The Assassin's Blade (The Assassin and the Desert)

0.4 | The Assassin's Blade (The Assassin and the Underworld)

0.5 | The Assassin's Blade (The Assassin and the Empire)

    1 | Throne of Glass

    2 | Crown of Midnight

    3 | Heir of Fire

    4 | Queen of Shadows

    5 | Empire of Storms

    6 | Tower of Dawn

    7 | Kingdom of Ash

Ruby Red - by Kerstin Gier

Title: Ruby Red

Author: Kerstin Gier

Published: 10 May 2011

Series: Precious Stone Trilogy #1

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis:

Gwyneth Shepherd's sophisticated, beautiful cousin Charlotte has been prepared her entire life for traveling through time. But unexpectedly, it is Gwyneth, who in the middle of class takes a sudden spin to a different era!
Gwyneth must now unearth the mystery of why her mother would lie about her birth date to ward off suspicion about her ability, brush up on her history, and work with Gideon--the time traveler from a similarly gifted family that passes the gene through its male line, and whose presence becomes, in time, less insufferable and more essential. Together, Gwyneth and Gideon journey through time to discover who, in the 18th century and in contemporary London, they can trust.

I listened to this as an audiobook. It is also translated by Anthea Bell, but it's done well so you can't really tell it's been translated.

My favourite parts about this book are the cover, and that romance is involved in the story but action is the main focus.

I loved that  Gwynn grew up around all the time travel aspects in her family, but didn't really know a single thing about it. How does she solve this issue? The internet! Having a main character simply Google something when they didn't know the answer was quite nice.

The time travel machine using a drop of the traveler's blood is an interesting idea to help control when and where they travel to too. Plus Madam Risini sounded quite lovely, and little Rob sounded pretty cute.

One "Omg!" moment was who I guessed the people Gwynn saw when she time travelled at the high school were. I may be right, or I may be wrong, but if I'm right then I'm quite excited to find out about that story.

I do have a couple of questions though. Why does Gwynn see herself each time she time travels? And what is the note/quote after each chapter about?

Overall, this was a good story to read and I didn't really want to stop.

Spoilers!

From the start, my guess was that Charlotte probably couldn't time travel but Gwynn could, so it wasn't much of a surprise when we find that out.

I'm curious to see if Gideon is a double crosser or not. Can't remember what specifically made me think that, but it would be interesting to find out.

One confusing point for me was that I'd guessed that Paul and Lucy were the ones at the start holding the baby, but how were they holding Gwynn and calling her their daughter if they aren't her parents?

End Spoilers!

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All books in this series:

    1 | Ruby Red
    2 | Sapphire Blue
    3 | Emerald Green