Title: The Girl in the Tower

Series: Winternight #2

Author: Katherine Arden

The Bear and the Nightingale, Katherine Arden’s enchanting first novel, introduced readers to an irresistible heroine. Vasilisa has grown up at the edge of a Russian wilderness, where snowdrifts reach the eaves of her family’s wooden house and there is truth in the fairy tales told around the fire. Vasilisa’s gift for seeing what others do not won her the attention of Morozko—Frost, the winter demon from the stories—and together they saved her people from destruction. But Frost’s aid comes at a cost, and her people have condemned her as a witch.

In The Girl in the Tower, Vasilisa faces an impossible choice. Driven from her home by frightened villagers, she has only two options left: marriage or the convent. She cannot bring herself to accept either fate and instead chooses adventure, dressing herself as a boy and setting off astride her magnificent stallion Solovey.

But after she prevails in a skirmish with bandits, everything changes. The Grand Prince of Moscow anoints her a hero for her exploits, and she is reunited with her beloved sister and brother, who are now part of the Grand Prince’s inner circle. She dares not reveal to the court that she is a girl, for if her deception were discovered it would have terrible consequences for herself and her family. Before she can untangle herself from Moscow’s intrigues—and as Frost provides counsel that may or may not be trustworthy—she will also confront an even graver threat lying in wait for all of Moscow itself.

Back in the world of Vasilisa and Morozko….and I couldn’t be happier!

This book was so magical, it captured my heart, it was everything! I loved everything!

So we know Vasilisa leaves her village with Solovey and wants to be free, she doesn’t want marriage or a convent, the only options available for a maiden in those times. So what’s a girl to do?! Well become a boy and cause chaos!!!!!

Vasilsa is such a strong character (even though she annoyed me turning down Morozko’s proposal!) Plus in this book we get more of Vasilisa’s siblings, Sasha and Olga. I love their family dynamic!

I read this book with my heart in my throat, there was so much action and adventure but it was Solovey that captured my heart the most! I love him!

Roll on book 3!!! But I don’t want this to end!

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: Favorite Heroines

Manon Blackbeak (Throne of Glass)
No list of mine would be complete without her! I mean who else could pull off iron teeth and nails and still be beautiful?!

Geraldine Gruss (Zodiac Academy)
She is the cats pjs and is the glue that holds the Vega’s together!

Gideon (Locked Tomb)
She needs no introduction. She just is!

Jude (Cruel Prince)
I mean….she schemes, she plots and she tamed Cardan!

Dora (Half a Soul)
I just love her. All of her!

Cress (Lunar Chronicles)
Defeated evil, cut her beautiful hair, got her first kiss and got her man!

Alex Stern (Ninth House)
Strong, resilient, sees ghosts and I’m hoping, gets Darlington!

Bryce (Crescent City)
Her brother is Ruhn Danan and her bf is the Umbra Mortis, Hunt Athalar. Say no more.

Viv the orc barbarian (Legends and Lattes)
Looks can be deceiving and I loved everything about her!

Mika Moon (Secret Society of Irregular Witches)
Just living her best life…..the embodiment of witchcore and she appreciates Jamie’s forearms, as do I!!!

What would you have picked?

Title: Chain of Thorns

Series: The Last Hours #3

Author: Cassandra Clare

Cordelia Carstairs has lost everything that matters to her. In only a few short weeks, she has seen her father murdered, her plans to become parabatai with her best friend, Lucie, destroyed, and her marriage to James Herondale crumble before her eyes. Even worse, she is now bound to an ancient demon, Lilith, stripping her of her power as a Shadowhunter.

After fleeing to Paris with Matthew Fairchild, Cordelia hopes to forget her sorrows in the city’s glittering nightlife. But reality intrudes when shocking news comes from home: Tatiana Blackthorn has escaped the Adamant Citadel, and London is under new threat by the Prince of Hell, Belial.

Cordelia returns to a London riven by chaos and dissent. The long-kept secret that Belial is James and Lucie’s grandfather has been revealed by an unexpected enemy, and the Herondales find themselves under suspicion of dealings with demons. Cordelia longs to protect James but is torn between a love for James she has long believed hopeless, and the possibility of a new life with Matthew. Nor can her friends help—ripped apart by their own secrets, they seem destined to face what is coming alone.

For time is short, and Belial’s plan is about to crash into the Shadowhunters of London like a deadly wave, one that will separate Cordelia, Lucie, and the Merry Thieves from help of any kind. Left alone in a shadowy London, they must face Belial’s deadly army. If Cordelia and her friends are going to save their city—and their families—they will have to muster their courage, swallow their pride, and trust one another again. For if they fail, they may lose everything—even their souls.

‘Once you had lost everything, she reasoned, there was no reason not to embrace whatever small happinesses you could.’

This book was huge! 845 pages of Shadowhunter goodness!

The end. It’s the end. I don’t want it to end! The thought of never reading about my Will again makes me so sad!

So lets get into it. I must admit the first half was a slog, the only light and gasp moment part was a Paris bit!!!! However once I hit around 50%, I was hooked!

The angst, omg the angst! There was miscommunication everywhere and I was on the edge of my seat shouting ‘tell them’!!!!

Whilst I love James, Cordelia and Matthew for their own reasons, I don’t really care for love triangles but:

Lucie and Jesse,
Thomas and Alistair,
Anna and Ari,
I lived for them!!!!!

The book was filled was quotes and illustrations that were utterly superb. I highlighted so many that really resonated with me! Also, I’ll say no more apart from at 67% my heart was torn out!

I love being immersed into the Shadowhunter world, I am addicted and I never want it to end so I’m probably going to do a complete reread of all of them later on in the year!

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.

Hi everyone, hope you’ve had a good week?

I’m on a mission to read a chunk of my tbr shelf this year. I am hoping for 60 books off it and so far I’ve read 7 🤣 Requesting arcs is not helping me here!!!!

However I didn’t feel like picking up an actual book this week so I read not one but 2 graphic novels! They were the first ones I’ve ever read! Audiobooks also saved my week!

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What I’ve Read

Demon in the Wood by Leigh Bardugo
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Heartstopper volume 1 by Alice Osman
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧 Percy Jackson and the Titans Curse by Rick Riordan
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧 Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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New arrivals

The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
The Raven Spell by Luanne G Smith

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You might have missed…..

Review – The Thorns Remain by JJA Harwood
Review – Bloodmarked by Tracy Deonn

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What have you read lately?

Title: Bloodmarked

Series: Legendborn #2

Author: Tracy Deonn

The shadows have risen, and the line is law.

All Bree wanted was to uncover the truth behind her mother’s death. So she infiltrated the Legendborn Order, a secret society descended from King Arthur’s knights—only to discover her own ancestral power. Now, Bree has become someone new:

A Medium. A Bloodcrafter. A Scion.

But the ancient war between demons and the Order is rising to a deadly peak. And Nick, the Legendborn boy Bree fell in love with, has been kidnapped.

Bree wants to fight, but the Regents who rule the Order won’t let her. To them, she is an unknown girl with unheard-of power, and as the living anchor for the spell that preserves the Legendborn cycle, she must be protected.

When the Regents reveal they will do whatever it takes to hide the war, Bree and her friends must go on the run to rescue Nick themselves. But enemies are everywhere, Bree’s powers are unpredictable and dangerous, and she can’t escape her growing attraction to Selwyn, the mage sworn to protect Nick until death.

If Bree has any hope of saving herself and the people she loves, she must learn to control her powers from the ancestors who wielded them first—without losing herself in the process.

Legendborn was one of my best reads of 2020 and I didn’t think anything would be as good as that. Massive props to this author as she is a genius!

The next installment and we’re back with Bree, Nick, Sel and some old faves and a lot of new!

Bree goes through so much in this book! It was full of drama and action, completely filled to the brim with it. It made me breathless!!!!

This book is large but I couldn’t actually put it down! But one thing got on my nerves quite a bit….Bree. I know she’s learning but gawd, she is so reckless and just doesn’t think!

And the parts I lived for?! Sel. Selwyn Kane. I love him so much. Sigh. Nick who?!

But that ending? Is there a book 3? There must be!

Title: The Thorns Remain

Author: JJA Harwood

A dance with the fae will change everything.

1919. In a highland village forgotten by the world, harvest season is over and the young who remain after war and flu have ravaged the village will soon head south to make something of themselves.

Moira Jean and her friends head to the forest for a last night of laughter before parting ways. Moira Jean is being left behind. She had plans to leave once – but her lover died in France and with him, her future. The friends light a fire, sing and dance. But with every twirl about the flames, strange new dancers thread between them, music streaming from the trees.

The fae are here.

Suddenly Moira Jean finds herself all alone, her friends spirited away. The iron medal of her lost love, pinned to her dress, protected her from magic.

For the Fae feel forgotten too. Lead by the darkly handsome Lord of the Fae, they are out to make themselves known once more. Moira Jean must enter into a bargain with the Lord to save her friends – and fast, for the longer one spends with the Fae, the less like themselves they are upon return. If Moira Jean cannot save her friends before Beltine, they will be lost forever…

‘I am lord of the Land Under the Hill and I shall take what the children of men have denied me. I shall have my tribute.’

I love a historical fantasy, I love the Fae and I love a Scottish based book (it’s so magical there!) It was like I was transported to Scotland in 1919, so lush and atmospheric.

People were strong back then. All the work they had to do just to survive. I wouldn’t have been able to do it. Maybe that’s how mankind has gone wrong?

Anyway……we have Moira Jean. Her and her friends cut loose for the night and go drinking…but they aren’t alone. The Folk have arrived and with it, their Lord. When everyone goes missing apart from Moira Jean, she has to piece back together what has happened and take action!

Here’s some notes I took of my thoughts and feelings – apologies, there’s a few but really these are reasons why you should read this!

~ the time period,
~ reading about life then,
~ the descriptions of Brudonnock,
~ Moira Jean, her grief made me so sad but she was so strong,
~ Angus, how I wished he had been there,
~ Mrs Iverach, gawd love her,
~ The Dreamer, how he wanted to learn (and he needed to learn humility!)
~ The glaistig (baby moo, IYKYK!)

Wow, for me that was a long one. To get a long review out of me is a miracle. So you need to read this to experience it too!

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: Love/Valentine’s Day Freebie

Ooo I do love a freebie but I do find it hard to come up with a subject…..but I’ve chosen my favourite romances as it’s Valentines day!

Ride Steady by Kristen Ashley
Rock Chicks by Kristen Ashley
Cash’s Fight by Jamie Begley
The Three Series by Kristen Ashley
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Fear Me by BB Reid
Untouchable by Sam Mariano
Sinners MC by Bella Jewel
Hook, Line and Sinker by Tessa Bailey
Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

What would you have picked?

Happy Valentines Day to all you book lovers!

Tuesday is here and so is Valentines Day!

Hope you have all your book boyfriends close to hand so you can hug them!

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

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.

Hi everyone, hope you’ve had a good week?

It’s been a normal type of week! School has now broken up until the 20th Feb but I still have to work (boo!) so I’ve told my son that we’ll do something together on Wednesday on my day off (and I’m hoping whatever he chooses won’t be too expensive!!!!)

We had a pneumococcal vaccine on Friday for the first time and I woke up Saturday feeling ok…..but then had the shivers all afternoon and ok today so I call that a win!!!

I’ve had a really good reading week with a new release, an arc and a tbr book read!

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What I’ve Read

Chain of Thorns by Cassandra Clare
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

In the Lives of Puppets by TJ Klune
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🎧 Dead Romantics by Ashley Postin
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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New arrivals

Spice Road by Maiya Ibrahim

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty

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You might have missed…..

Review – One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig
Review – A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Review – Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young
Unboxing – Fairyloot YA January 2023
Feature – Books I want releasing March

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What have you read lately?