Book Review: The Girl King

Title: The Girl King
Author: Mimi Yu
Genre: Young Adult | Fantasy
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Publication Date: January 8, 2019
Source: Publisher
Format: ARC

Sisters Lu and Min have always understood their places as princesses of the Empire. Lu knows she is destined to become the dynasty's first female ruler, while Min is resigned to a life in her shadow. Then their father declares their male cousin Set the heir instead—a betrayal that sends the sisters down two very different paths.
Determined to reclaim her birthright, Lu goes on the run. She needs an ally—and an army—if she is to succeed. Her quest leads her to Nokhai, the last surviving wolf shapeshifter. Nok wants to keep his identity secret, but finds himself forced into an uneasy alliance with the girl whose family killed everyone he ever loved…
Alone in the volatile court, Min's hidden power awakens—a forbidden, deadly magic that could secure Set's reign…or allow Min to claim the throne herself. But there can only be one Emperor, and the sisters' greatest enemy could turn out to be each other (goodreads).

The Girl King is dense and full of magic every step of the way. 

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: 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.