Review: The Golden Cage by Kaitlyn Davis

The Golden Cage by Kaitlyn Davis

 

Series: A Dance of Dragons (0.5)

Release date: March 27, 2014

Publisher: Smashwords Edition

Format: ebook, 51 pages

Source: Purchased from BN

Genre: Fantasy, YA, Romance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

         

The Overview

 

 

  In the land of Ourthuro, cruelty is a way of life. The king rules with an iron fist and no one dare defy him—no one except his daughter. Princess Leena is keeping a dangerous secret, she has fallen in love with a soldier and it would mean both of their lives if her father ever discovered their affair.

  But Leena will risk it all to be with the man she loves—her heart, her life, her freedom. And when her brother's birthday celebration takes a dangerous turn, Leena is forced to make a decision that will change the fate of her nation and eventually the world.

 

 

My Thoughts

   I found this novella (and the next book in the series) by complete accident. I was just browsing the BN bookstore and was intrigued by the cover.  I'm way too often guilty of picking books simply by how much I like the cover.  I end up with a lot of new books I like most of the time.
   This story follows one of the many princesses of Ourthuro, Princess Leena, who is keeping a most dangerous secret.  She has fallen in love with her personal guard, Mikzahooq, something that could mean Mikza's death if brought to light.  Together they fight for the life they want together.
   Even though the novella was only 50 pages, it was so wonderfully written that it completely ensnared me in and left me wanting to know the rest of the story.  I've always been a big fan of books that featured fantasy worlds so different from our own.


My Rating: 5 Stars

 

Too Long a Break

    So, it's been a very long while since I last posted a review.  Due to a lot of changes, a new  full-time job, and a very boisterous child to take care of, it's been very hard to find time to read and review like I want to.  But now I'm back and hopefully I can start cranking out reviews again.
   Thanks for your patience!

Review: Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

 

 

Series: The Chemical Garden Trilogy (#1)

Release Date: March 22, 2011

Publisher: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Format: eBook, 368 pages

Source: Personal Bookshelf

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Dystopian

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Overview:

 

  By age sixteen, Rhine Ellery has four years left to live. She can thank modern science for this genetic time bomb. A botched effort to create a perfect race has left all males with a lifespan of 25 years, and females with a lifespan of 20 years. Geneticists are seeking a miracle antidote to restore the human race, desperate orphans crowd the population, crime and poverty have skyrocketed, and young girls are being kidnapped and sold as polygamous brides to bear more children.

  When Rhine is kidnapped and sold as a bride, she vows to do all she can to escape. Her husband, Linden, is hopelessly in love with her, and Rhine can’t bring herself to hate him as much as she’d like to. He opens her to a magical world of wealth and illusion she never thought existed, and it almost makes it possible to ignore the clock ticking away her short life. But Rhine quickly learns that not everything in her new husband’s strange world is what it seems. Her father-in-law, an eccentric doctor bent on finding the antidote, is hoarding corpses in the basement. Her fellow sister wives are to be trusted one day and feared the next, and Rhine is desperate to communicate to her twin brother that she is safe and alive. Will Rhine be able to escape--before her time runs out?

  Together with one of Linden's servants, Gabriel, Rhine attempts to escape just before her seventeenth birthday. But in a world that continues to spiral into anarchy, is there any hope for freedom?

My Thoughts:

 

 

  I've been holding out on reading ANY dystopian novels, since they've become this big thing since The Hunger Games came out.  I chose Wither to be my first, because I remembered the cover from when it first came out.  And for the fact that I already had the rest of the trilogy and wouldn't have to wait to purchase or borrow them.

  So as I started the novel, I had no idea what to expect, never having read a book quite like this one.  But I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it.  Rhine was a strong and somewhat likable character.  Sometimes she was entirely too whiny for my tastes.  I mean, her fate could have easily been worse, but all she could do was bemoan her fate.  She had an adoring husband, who she could have easily influenced had she opened up to him a little more.

  Most people had trouble with the world building, but I kind of looked past it to the fact that Linden and his father basically kidnapped 3 girls and forced them to marry him, and still expected them to love him like he didn't do anything like that.  How do you get over something like that?  And especially, how does he even think that's okay?   
  I easily felt for Rhine in her anger and desperation for escape to find her brother.  To me, that's what made the book relatable.  Anger and escape would have been the first things on my mind, though I doubt I'd ever have the courage to go through with it.  I enjoyed this book and can't wait to finish the next in the trilogy, Fever.

 

 

My rating: 4 stars

Review: Hidden by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast

Hidden by P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast

 

Series: House of Night (#10)

Release Date: October 16, 2012

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Hardcover, 320

Source: Borrowed from a friend
Genres: YA, Fantasy

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Overview:

 

   Neferet’s true nature has been revealed to the Vampyre High Council, so Zoey and the gang might finally get some help in defending themselves and their beloved school against a gathering evil that grows stronger every day. And they’ll need it, because Neferet’s not going down without a fight. Chaos reigns at the House of Night.

 

 

My Thoughts:

 

   I had really high hopes for this book. I've read the entire House of Night series, and waited so eagerly for this one.  The series has always been one of my top favorite YA series, but this book moves it down my list a little.
  In my opinion, this book is nothing more than a filler book, something that's really not necessary.  I've almost given up trying to make sense of all the different POVs, because really, who needs to know what almost every character is thinking about the same thing.  I didn't feel like this book moved forward at all. 
   I love that Kalona is trying to move on and become redeemed in Nyx's eyes.  I love that the characters are evolving.  I did not, however, like how Zoey freaked out every time she got around Aurox.  She's been in the vampyre world for how long and still thinks it's impossible for Aurox to be who he really is as well?
  I simply didn't resonate with this book like I have some of the others.  Of course, I know not every book is a gem, but like I said, I had high hopes for it that just didn't pan out.  Not saying I'm not going to read the next one, but I sure wish I could forget this one.


My rating: 3 stars



First reads winner!

Just received my free copy of Shadow on the Crown thanks to Goodreads and Penguin Group publisher!

Review: Torrent by Lisa T. Bergren

   Torrent by Lisa T. Bergren

Series: River of Time (#3)
Publisher: Cook, David C.
Release Date: September 1, 2011
Format: eBook, 290 pages
Source: Purchased through Barnes and Noble
Genres: Romance, YA, Historical Fiction

The Overview:

 

 

“Hold tight,” I said. “No matter what happens, do not let us go.”

“We won’t,” my dad said.

“Never,” Mom added.

And with a look at Lia, we laid our hands upon the prints.

   Gabriella and Evangelia Betarrini are just two normal American teenagers. Normal except for the fact that they time travel to fourteenth-century Italy, where they’ve lived in castles they’ve seen as crumbling ruins, become swept up in historic battles, and fallen in love with handsome knights willing to do anything to keep them alive.

   

   They’ve returned to the present to save their father, just short of his tragic death, and now all four return to the place that holds the girls’ hearts, medieval Italy. But remaining there means facing great risk as the battle for territory wages on and the coming Black Plague looms. Can they convince their parents to stay and leave behind everything they’ve worked so hard to accomplish? And will the girls sacrifice their futures in an uncertain past? Or in facing death head-on, will they discover life as it was always meant to be lived?

 

 

My Thoughts:

 

 

   In this final installment in the River of Time series, Torrent picks up where Cascade left off.  Gabi and her family has managed to save her father from his future death.  Together, they all travel back to 14th century Italy.  More than a year has passed for Marcello, making him even more eager to marry Gabi. 

   But before any of this happens, they must try to rescue Fortino, Marcello's imprisoned brother.  With poor Fortino's fate, Gabi realizes too late it was all a trap to simply spirit her away to become another man's wife.  She has to deal with coming to terms with the fact that she actually feels something for someone other than Marcello, which she feels really guilty about.

  All in all, this was an amazing book. I find myself really sad that it's over, besides the two novellas that I haven't had a chance to read as of yet.  But that's for a later date.  I would completely recommend this book for anyone looking for a little adventure.

 

 

My rating: 4 stars

Review: Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren

Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren

 

 

Series: River of Time (#2)

Publisher:  Cook, David C.

Release Date: June 1, 2011

Format: eBook, 290 pages

Source: Purchased through Barnes and Noble

Genres: YA, Romance,

 

 

 

 

The Overview:

 

 

 

 

   When Gabi and Lia find themselves back in the fourteenth century-and in the middle of major battles alongside romantic knights in shining armor-they have no idea if they can get back. Or if they even want to. In the first book of the River of Time series, two bored American sisters stumble on a door to the past, where Gabi is rescued by a handsome knight who vows to love her forever. But there is a rival for his affections, and the girls flee into the present to escape. 

  Now lovestruck Gabi persuades Lia to help her return, even though she knows dangers abound in medieval Italy, including an entire city that seeks revenge. But Marcello awaits, and Gabi must decide if she's willing to leave her family behind for love.

 

 

My Thoughts:

 

 

   This was a great followup to Waterfall.  After fleeing back to the future, Gabi and Lia convince their mother to return with them.  Gabi is desperate to return back to Marcello as she realizes that for every minute they dally in the present, a day passes in his time.  But before they can go back, Gabi must convince Lia, who is reluctant to return after the near demise of her sister at the Rossi's hands.

   After returning, Gabi is reunited with Marcello, and Lia with Luca. Arriving at Castello Forelli, Gabi is very pleased to find that Fortino, Marcello's brother, in better health.  However she is horrified to find that Lady Rossi (once Marcello's intended) is now Fortino's intended, as Marcello now only wants Gabi.

   This book really shows how much stronger Marcello and Gabi's relationship is becoming.  I liked how the sisters were becoming stronger and more independent from the girls they were when they first came back into time. While I am not a huge fan of cliffhangers, I'm eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, Torrent.

 

 

My Rating: 4 stars