Top Ten Tuesday is featured by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Topic: Halloween Freebie!
I didn’t really know what to do so what you’ve got is…….
What’s Your Ghost Name?!
1st letter of your forename A to I = Raven J to R = Gloomy S to Z = Twilight
Birth month Jan to April = the Dark May to August = the Whispering Sept to Dec = the Cruel
1st letter of your surname A to I = of Gloomy Grove J to R = of Chillington S to Z = of Spirit Swamp
White Roaring is sharpening its fangs after the deadly night that left the city in shambles. The press are dead, the public calls for justice, vampires are in danger, and amid the turmoil, the Ram announces a celebration.
Still reeling from the bloodshed, Arthie Casimir has no time to mourn the death of anyone, let alone her own. She has no time for love, either, but it had saved her life. As Arthie navigates new emotions and new allies, she must reassemble her scrambled crew and scrape what little they have left to fight one last time – and she will need to face the ghosts of her past to do it.
In Ceylan.
What a fabulous duology this was!
We’re back with the gang, Arthie, Jin, Matteo and Flick, and start right where we left off in A Tempest of Tea.
I want to be really careful of spoilers so I am going to keep this vague (and I want to slap myself because I want to do this book justice but alas I cannot write what I want to write as the unread will want to slap me for revealing stuffs!!!)
So….there was action, drama, heartache, twists and turns…..and I was so drawn in with the romances, like completely, utterly hooked!
I can honestly say my heart is a bit broken. I am not ok…..but I do want to visit the tea shop!
After years of seeing her sisters suffer at the hands of an abusive prince, Marra—the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter—has finally realized that no one is coming to their rescue. No one, except for Marra herself.
Seeking help from a powerful gravewitch, Marra is offered the tools to kill a prince—if she can complete three impossible tasks. But, as is the way in tales of princes, witches, and daughters, the impossible is only the beginning.
On her quest, Marra is joined by the gravewitch, a reluctant fairy godmother, a strapping former knight, and a chicken possessed by a demon. Together, the five of them intend to be the hand that closes around the throat of the prince and frees Marra’s family and their kingdom from its tyrannous ruler at last.
A Nun, a dust wife, a Knight and a demon chicken go on a quest….
No, it’s not the start of a joke, but a really good read! I listened to the audiobook and it was such a good narration!
Anyway, Mara needs to save her sister from a Prince and death is the answer, so the band goes to dole out vengeance!
There was banter, some darker elements, friendships, family, blossoming love and a bone dog! (And, just to add, I love Fenrys, he’s so honourable!)
Top Ten Tuesday is featured by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Topic: Atmospheric Books
Thorns Remain 9th HouseSpells for Forgetting Girl in Tower
Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by VE Schwab Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo The Thorns Remain JJA Harwood
LuminariesBelladonnaDiscovery of Witches
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller Sabriel by Garth Nix The Luminaries by Susan Dennard A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
Lyra Bien intended to live a quiet life to avoid the attention of the magic-obsessed king in the fortress of Stonegate. Until Roark Ashwood—the prince’s silent guard and rumored killer for the crown—invades her village and uncovers the truth behind the silver scars in her eyes. To save her best friend from death, she’s forced to reveal her abilities, and is immediately claimed by the crown as the next melder.
To be the King’s melder is to be revered and feared in equal measures, but above all it is a slow death sentence. Lyra is determined to find a way to free herself and her friends from bondage. But first she must get more information from the silent, brooding sentry who first took her captive: Roark.
As Lyra gets closer to Roark, she soon learns he’s nothing like she assumed—and in fact everything she needs. The more they work as allies, the harder it becomes to ignore the growing passion between them. After a sinister truth is revealed, Roark and Lyra must choose to stand against all they know, or accept their dark destiny.
Lyra, a melder, is caught after hiding for her entire life because of her power. But who she is caught by catches her interest more than it should!
Roark Ashwood, guard to Prince Thane, finds himself drawn to Lyra more than he should…….
I did find it a bit fantastical that Lyra picked up Roark’s sign language that quick, however, the romance was so well written that I forgot all about that!!!!!
~ Enemies to lovers ~ Slow burn ~ Found family ~ Secrets and twists ~ Power hungry Royals ~ Fabulous magic system
Wow! That ending was something I didn’t see coming! I thought I had guessed what was going to happen, but I was SO wrong! Amazing! Roll on March 2026 so I can see what happens – I need it!
Here’s what’s tantalising me that’s releasing in November…
It’s going to be a bad month for my bank account as I’ve preordered them all!!!!!
The House Saphir by Marissa Meyer Silver and Smoke by Helen Scheuerer Fallen City by Adrienne Young Brigands and Breadknives by Travis Baldree Hollow by Caroline Peckham
Top Ten Tuesday is featured by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.
Topic: Gluten free cooking/celiac awareness
I did think hard about what to do and decided to do my favourite gluten free bakes…..but then I wanted to add in some awareness of why I (and my son) have to eat gluten free….so here we are!
My son and I have celiac disease. It’s a serious illness where the body’s immune system attacks its own tissues when you eat gluten.
Five facts:
~ It’s not an allergy or food intolerance, it’s an auto immune disease. ~ BROWS (barley, rye, oats, wheat, spelt) – we cannot eat these! ~ Cross contamination is a big problem. ~ Coeliac disease affects 1 in 100 people. ~ But only 36% who have the condition have been diagnosed.
Five gluten free bake recipes I’ve found, tried and loved!
The Sunday Post is a blog news meme hosted by Caffeinated Reviewer It’s a chance to share news, a post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received.
I hope you had a great week!
Back to work for me this week. I went back on a phased return, so only doing half days, but it became clear pretty quickly that my brain had actually left the building! I was there more in body than mind!
I only did rereads this week, being back at work after 8 weeks and getting back used to it, I just wanted that comfort!
Throne of Glass/Crown of Midnight/Heir of Fire by Sarah J Maas (rereads) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
See my reviews soon!
Unboxing – Illumicrate: September Review – Cinder House by Freya Marske Unboxing – Fairyloot Romantasy: September
Feature – November releases Review – Broken Souls and Bones by LJ Andrews
Luzia N.E. Drainway never really thought too much about the Astrosi. They lurk above and below Bastion City – a giant multileveled megalopolis she calls her home – and they tend to keep to themselves. On the rare occasions they use their magics to meddle with human affairs, most people with an ounce of sense steer clear of whichever unfortunate soul happens to be their victim. Luzia is far too dedicated to repairing and maintaining the frequently-damaged Bastion to pay them much attention, and prefers to ignore the Astrosi just like everyone else.
That disregard gets blown out of the water when a rogue Astrosi and nefarious trickster named Carrion kidnaps her nephew and sells him to the Eoi, one of the Astrosi courts.
With no other options to save her nephew, Luzia trades her life for his and finds herself in service to the Eoi. Unfortunately for her, Astrosi logic is acrobatic in ways even the most devious human mind can barely comprehend. It’s not until the deal is struck that she realizes she’s trapped in the most abstruse verbal contract imaginable. She is essentially conscripted into their ranks, and her devotion to her city becomes stretched to breaking point by her new masters’ orders.
As she struggles under this weight, she begins to uncover the secrets of the Astrosi people – the internal battles for power between the two kingdoms, the never-ending conflict between them, the trickster Carrion who somehow bridges that gap, and the very nature of the Bastion itself.
I absolutely loved The Hunters Gambit so dived headfirst into this and I really enjoyed it – I do love a sci-fi/fantasy read!
We meet Luzia who is a world called Bastion but she is thrown into the world of the Astrosi when her nephew gets taken and Luzia swaps places with him.
It had:
~ A unique story ~ Fae ~ Small but of romance ~ Fabulous world building ~ Retribution vibes ~ Relatable characters ~ Twists!
I actually loved the world building so much that I would love to go and see it all with my own eyes!
I totally recommend this book! What are you waiting for, go get it!
CJRTB Books 