Book Review: Sea Witch

Title: Sea Witch
Author: Sarah Henning
Genre: Young Adult | Retelling | Mermaids
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Publication Date: July 31, 2018
Source: Author
Format: ARC

Everyone knows what happens in the end.A mermaid, a prince, a true love’s kiss.But before that young siren’s tale, there were three friends.One feared, one royal, and one already dead.
~~~~~~~~~~
Ever since her best friend, Anna, drowned, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. A freak. A curse. A witch. 
A girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears offshore and, though the girl denies it, Evie is convinced that her best friend actually survived. That her own magic wasn’t so powerless after all. And, as the two girls catch the eyes—and hearts—of two charming princes, Evie believes that she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after.
But her new friend has secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad, or on two legs, unless Evie finds a way to help her. Now Evie will do anything to save her friend’s humanity, along with her prince’s heart—harnessing the power of her magic, her ocean, and her love until she discovers, too late, the truth of her bargain (goodreads).  

Sea Witch will break your heart. 

Book Review: The Dark Days Pact

Title: The Dark Days Pact (Lady Helen #2)
Author: Alison Goodman
Genre: Young Adult | Historical Fantasy | Romance | Magic
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: January 31, 2017
Format: Audiobook
Source: Purchased

June 1812. Just weeks after her catastrophic coming-out ball, Lady Helen Wrexhall—now disowned by her uncle—is a full member of the demon-hunting Dark Days Club. Her mentor, Lord Carlston, has arranged for Helen to spend the summer season in Brighton so that he can train her new Reclaimer powers. However, the long-term effects of Carlston’s Reclaimer work have taken hold, and his sanity is beginning to slip. At the same time, Carlston’s Dark Days Club colleague and nemesis will stop at nothing to bring Helen over to his side—and the Duke of Selburn is determined to marry her. The stakes are even higher for Helen as she struggles to become the warrior that everyone expects her to be (goodreads).

Oh, the angst!

Book Review: Listen to Your Heart

Title: Listen to Your Heart
Author: Kasie West
Genre: Young Adult | Contemporary | Romance
Publisher: Point
Publication Date: May 29, 2018
Format: Audiobook
Source: Hoopla

Talking to other people isn't Kate Bailey's favorite activity. She'd much rather be out on the lake, soaking up the solitude and sunshine. So when her best friend, Alana, convinces Kate to join their high school's podcast, Kate is not expecting to be chosen as the host. Now she'll have to answer calls and give advice on the air? Impossible.
But to Kate's surprise, she turns out to be pretty good at the hosting gig. Then the podcast gets in a call from an anonymous guy, asking for advice about his unnamed crush. Kate is pretty sure that the caller is gorgeous Diego Martinez, and even surer that the girl in question is Alana. Kate is excited for her friend ... until Kate herself starts to develop feelings for Diego. Suddenly, Kate finds that while doling out wisdom to others may be easy, asking for help is tougher than it looks, and following your own advice is even harder  (goodreads).

This book can be summed up with 'awwwww'. 

Book Review: Kiss of the Royal

Title: Kiss of the Royal
Author: Lindsey Duga
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy | Romance
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Publication Date: July 3, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

In the war against the Forces of Darkness, the Royals are losing. Princess Ivy is determined to end this centuries-long conflict once and for all, so her new battle partner must succeed where the others failed. Prince Zach’s unparalleled skill with a sword, enhanced by Ivy’s magic Kiss, should make them an unstoppable pair—but try convincing Zach of that.
Prince Zach has spent his life preparing for battle, but he would rather be branded a heretic than use his lips as nothing more than a way to transfer magic. A kiss is a symbol of love, and love is the most powerful weapon they have—but try convincing Ivy of that.
With the fate of their world on the line, the battlefield has become a testing ground, and only one of them can be right. Falling for each other wasn’t part of the plan—but try convincing their hearts of that (goodreads).

Kiss of the Royal was a fun read!

Book Review: The Opposite of Here

Title: The Opposite of Here
Author: Tara Altebrando
Genre: Young Adult | Mystery | Thriller
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Publication Date: June 5, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC

There's no hiding on a cruise ship-not even from yourself. Natalie's parents are taking her and her three best friends on a cruise for her seventeenth birthday. A sail-a-bration, they call it. But it's only been a few short months since Natalie's boyfriend died in a tragic accident, and she wants to be anywhere but here. Then she meets a guy on the first night and sparks fly. After a moonlit conversation on a secluded deck of the ship, Natalie pops down to her cabin to get her swimsuit so they can go for a dip. But when she returns, he's gone. Something he said makes her think he might have . . . jumped? No, he couldn't have. But why do her friends think she's crazy for wanting to make sure he's okay? Also, why do they seem to be hiding something from her? And how can she find him when she doesn't even know his name? Most importantly, why is the captain on the intercom announcing the urgent need for a headcount (goodreads)?

The Opposite of Here was unexpected!

Book Review: Whisper of the Tide

Title: Whisper of the Tide (Song of the Current #2)
Author: Sarah Tolcser
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy | Romance | Adventure
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Publication Date:  June 5, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC

Caro Oresteia spent her life waiting to be called by the river god, as those in her family had been for generations. But when she’s swept away on an adventure to save the Akhaian royal prince, Markos, her destiny is sealed by the sea god instead.
For now, Caro is landlocked, helping Markos reclaim his throne after nearly his entire family was assassinated in a political coup. Without any financial or military support, Markos is desperate for allies, and Caro has fought off more than one attempt on his life. When a powerful Archon offers his army in exchange for Markos’s marriage to his daughter, Caro must choose: Her love for Markos, or the fate of Akhaia? And more importantly: How much is she willing to risk to defy the sea god’s wishes and chart her own course? 
With shipwrecks, lost treasure, old and new enemies, dark magic, and breathtaking romance, Sarah Tolcser weaves another epic story about chasing your fate (goodreads).

That was the ending Caro deserved!

Book Review: Bruja Born

Title: Bruja Born (Brooklyn Brujas #2)
Author: Zoraida Cordova
Genre: Young Adult | Urban Fantasy | Magic
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: June 5, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

Three sisters. One spell. Countless dead.
Lula Mortiz feels like an outsider. Her sister's newfound Encantrix powers have wounded her in ways that Lula's bruja healing powers can't fix, and she longs for the comfort her family once brought her. Thank the Deos for Maks, her sweet, steady boyfriend who sees the beauty within her and brings light to her life.
Then a bus crash turns Lula's world upside down. Her classmates are all dead, including Maks. But Lula was born to heal, to fix. She can bring Maks back, even if it means seeking help from her sisters and defying Death herself. But magic that defies the laws of the deos is dangerous. Unpredictable. And when the dust settles, Maks isn't the only one who's been brought back...(goodreads)

This series needs to be no fewer than 10 books, I never want this to end!

Book Review: A Court of Frost and Starlight

Title: A Court of Frost and Starlight (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: New Adult | Fantasy | Romance
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Publication Date: May 1, 2018
Source: Purchased
Format: Physical

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 (goodreads). 

A Court of Frost and Starlight felt like a reunion between old friends. 

Book Review: Furyborn

Title: Furyborn (The Empirium #1)
Author: Claire Legrand
Genre: New Adult | Fantasy | Magic
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: May 22, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

When assassins ambush her best friend, the crown prince, Rielle Dardenne risks everything to save him, exposing her ability to perform all seven kinds of elemental magic. The only people who should possess this extraordinary power are a pair of prophesied queens: a queen of light and salvation and a queen of blood and destruction. To prove she is the Sun Queen, Rielle must endure seven trials to test her magic. If she fails, she will be executed...unless the trials kill her first.
A thousand years later, the legend of Queen Rielle is a mere fairy tale to bounty hunter Eliana Ferracora. When the Undying Empire conquered her kingdom, she embraced violence to keep her family alive. Now, she believes herself untouchable--until her mother vanishes without a trace, along with countless other women in their city. To find her, Eliana joins a rebel captain on a dangerous mission and discovers that the evil at the heart of the empire is more terrible than she ever imagined.
As Rielle and Eliana fight in a cosmic war that spans millennia, their stories intersect, and the shocking connections between them ultimately determine the fate of their world--and of each other (goodreads).

Furyborn is for us fantasy lovers!

Book Review: Song of Blood and Stone

Title: Song of Blood and Stone (Earthsinger Chronicles #1)
Author: L. Penelope
Genre: NewAdult | Fantasy | Romance | Magic
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: May 1, 2018 
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

Orphaned and alone, Jasminda lives in a land where cold whispers of invasion and war linger on the wind. Jasminda herself is an outcast in her homeland of Elsira, where her gift of Earthsong is feared. When ruthless soldiers seek refuge in her isolated cabin, they bring with them a captive--an injured spy who threatens to steal her heart. 
Jack's mission behind enemy lines to prove that the Mantle between Elsira and Lagamiri is about to fall nearly cost him his life, but he is saved by the healing Song of a mysterious young woman. Now he must do whatever it takes to save Elsira and it's people from the True Father and he needs Jasminda's Earthsong to do it. They escape their ruthless captors and together they embark on a perilous journey to save Elsira and to uncover the secrets of The Queen Who Sleeps. 
Thrust into a hostile society, Jasminda and Jack must rely on one another even as secrets jeopardize their bond. As an ancient evil gains power, Jasminda races to unlock a mystery that promises salvation. 
The fates of two nations hang in the balance as Jasminda and Jack must choose between love and duty to fulfill their destinies and end the war (goodreads).

Song of Blood and Stone was exhilarating and thought-provoking!

Book Review: Brightly Burning

Title: Brightly Burning
Author: Alexa Donne
Genre: Young Adult | Retelling | Science Fiction | Romance
Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: May 1, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

Seventeen-year-old Stella Ainsley wants just one thing: to go somewhere—anywhere—else. Her home is a floundering spaceship that offers few prospects, having been orbiting an ice-encased Earth for two hundred years. When a private ship hires her as a governess, Stella jumps at the chance. The captain of the Rochester, nineteen-year-old Hugo Fairfax, is notorious throughout the fleet for being a moody recluse and a drunk. But with Stella he’s kind.
But the Rochester harbors secrets: Stella is certain someone is trying to kill Hugo, and the more she discovers, the more questions she has about his role in a conspiracy threatening the fleet (goodreads).

Brightly Burning was a creative sci-fi!

Book Review: Ash Princess

Title: Ash Princess (Ash Princess Trilogy #1)
Author: Laura Sebastian
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy | Romance
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: April 24, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: eARC

Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Queen of Flame and Fury, was murdered before her eyes. Ten years later, Theo has learned to survive under the relentless abuse of the Kaiser and his court as the ridiculed “Ash Princess.” Pretending to be empty-headed and naive when she's not enduring brutal whippings, she pushes down all other thoughts but one: Keep the Kaiser happy and he will keep you safe.
When the Kaiser forces her to execute her last hope of rescue, Theo can't keep her feelings and memories pushed down any longer. She vows revenge, throwing herself into a plot to seduce and murder the Kaiser's warrior son with the help of a group of magically gifted and volatile rebels. But Theo doesn't expect to develop feelings for the Prinz. Or for her rebel allies to challenge her friendship with the one person who's been kind to her throughout the last hopeless decade: her heart's sister, Cress.
Cornered into impossible choices and unable to trust even those who are on her side, Theo will have to decide how far she's willing to go to save her people and how much of herself she's willing to sacrifice to become queen (goodreads).

If it wasn't for the love triangle, Ash Princess would have been a 5-star read. 

Book Review: Devils Unto Dust

Title: Devils Unto Dust
Author: Emma Berquist
Genre: Young Adult | Historical Horror | Zombies
Publisher: Greenwillow
Publication Date: April 10, 2018
Source: Publisher
Format: e-ARC

Ten years ago, a horrifying disease began spreading across the West Texas desert. Infected people—shakes—attacked the living and created havoc and destruction. No one has ever survived the infection. Daisy Wilcox, known as Willie, has been protecting her siblings within the relatively safe walls of Glory, Texas. When Willie’s good-for-nothing father steals a fortune from one of the most dangerous shake-hunters in town, she finds herself on the hook for his debt. With two hunters, including the gruff and handsome Ben, to accompany her, she sets out across the desert in search of her father. But the desert is not kind to travelers, and not everyone will pass through alive.
Western meets horror for this riveting story about survival, family, and inner strength. Tense, short chapters propel readers from one action-packed scene to the next, while Willie’s distinctive, introspective voice deepens the emotional stakes with every turn of the page. High concept and character-driven, Emma Berquist’s debut will satisfy fans of The Magnificent Seven, Rae Carson’s Walk on Earth a Stranger, and HBO’s Westworld (goodreads).

Devils Unto Dust was a zombie book with a lot of heart. 

Book Review: American Panda

Title: American Panda
Author: Gloria Chao
Genre: Young Adult | Contemporary
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Publication Date: February 6, 2018
Source: Library
Format: Physical

At seventeen, Mei should be in high school, but skipping fourth grade was part of her parents' master plan. Now a freshman at MIT, she is on track to fulfill the rest of this predetermined future: become a doctor, marry a preapproved Taiwanese Ivy Leaguer, produce a litter of babies.
With everything her parents have sacrificed to make her cushy life a reality, Mei can't bring herself to tell them the truth--that she (1) hates germs, (2) falls asleep in biology lectures, and (3) has a crush on her classmate Darren Takahashi, who is decidedly not Taiwanese.
But when Mei reconnects with her brother, Xing, who is estranged from the family for dating the wrong woman, Mei starts to wonder if all the secrets are truly worth it. Can she find a way to be herself, whoever that is, before her web of lies unravels (goodreads)? 

American Panda was a refreshing tale of a young girl finding her own way. 

Book Review: Into the Black Nowhere

Title: Into the Black Nowhere (UNSUB #2)
Author: Meg Gardiner
Genre: Adult | Thriller | Mystery | Murder
Publisher: Dutton
Publication Date: January 30. 2018 
Source: Library
Format: Physical

In southern Texas, on Saturday nights, women are disappearing. One vanishes from a movie theater. Another is ripped from her car at a stoplight. Another vanishes from her home while checking on her baby. Rookie FBI agent Caitlin Hendrix, newly assigned to the FBI's elite Behavioral Analysis Unit, fears that a serial killer is roaming the dark roads outside Austin.
Caitlin and the FBI's serial crime unit discover the first victim's body in the woods. She's laid out in a bloodstained, white baby-doll nightgown. A second victim in a white nightie lies deeper in the forest's darkness. Both bodies are surrounded by Polaroid photos, stuck in the earth like headstones. Each photo pictures a woman in a white negligee, wrists slashed, suicide-style--posed like Snow White awaiting her prince's kiss. 
To track the UNSUB, Caitlin must get inside his mind. How is he selecting these women? Working with a legendary FBI profiler, Caitlin searches for a homology--that elusive point where character and action come together. She profiles a confident, meticulous killer who convinces his victims to lower their guard until he can overpower and take them in plain sight. He then reduces them to objects in a twisted fantasy--dolls for him to possess, control, and ultimately destroy. Caitlin's profile leads the FBI to focus on one man: a charismatic, successful professional who easily gains people's trust. But with only circumstantial evidence linking him to the murders, the police allow him to escape. As Saturday night approaches, Caitlin and the FBI enter a desperate game of cat and mouse, racing to capture the cunning predator before he claims more victims (goodreads).

Into the Black Nowhere was the perfect follow up to UNSUB with an emphasis on Hendrix's emotional side.  

Book Review: Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic

Title: Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy | Short Stories
Publisher: Imprint
Publication Date: September 26, 2017
Source: Purchased
Format: Physical

Love speaks in flowers. Truth requires thorns.
Travel to a world of dark bargains struck by moonlight, of haunted towns and hungry woods, of talking beasts and gingerbread golems, where a young mermaid's voice can summon deadly storms and where a river might do a lovestruck boy's bidding but only for a terrible price (goodreads).

The Language of Thorns was an eerie collection of short stories filled with magic, fairytales, and twists. 

Book Review: Pacifica

Title: Pacifica
Author: Kristen Simmons
Genre: Young Adult | Dystopia 
Publisher: Tor Teen
Publication Date: March 6, 2018
Source: ALAAC
Format: ARC

Marin is cosario royalty, a pirate like her father and his father before him. Sailing the ocean to chase adventure is in her blood. But these days no one cares that the island town her people call home is named after her grandfather. They have a new leader, one who promises an end to their hunger – and one who thinks that girls are meant for the kitchen or the brothel. Marin knows she's meant for more than that, and with the sudden influx of weapons on the island, and rumors of a pending deal with the enemy oil nation in her wake, she knows a big score to gain the council's favor is the only way to save her people, and herself.
Ross lives a life of privilege. As the president's son he wants for nothing, but he longs for a life of adventure. On a dare, he convinces his best friend Adam to sneak out to the Docks, the site of local race riots between the poor Shorlings and the upper class. But when Adam is arrested along with the other Shorlings, and not even the president is willing to find him, Ross finds himself taking matters into his own hands. He journeys back into the Docks, ready to make deals with anyone, even a beautiful pirate, if it means Adam's safe return.
When Marin and Ross meet in dangerous Shoreling territory he sees a way to get his friend back and she sees her ticket home. The ransom a president’s son would command could feed her people for years and restore her family’s legacy. But somewhere in the middle of the ocean, Marin must decide if her heart can handle handing over the only person who has ever seen her as more than a pirate (goodreads).

Pacifica was a thrilling adventure that will make you think.