If you’re a fan of Cassandra Clare or love romance and Europe and demons, you’ll love The Red Scrolls of Magic.
When Magnus Bane and his boyfriend, the heroic Alex Lightwood, go on a vacation across Europe, they encounter a cult known as the Crimson Hand, which was founded by Magnus or the Great Poison. A new leader threatens to summon Lucifer’s right hand man, Asmodeus. Also known as Magnus’s father. They go across Europe to stop them, and to prove Magnus’s innocence.
We left Theo on a pirate ship sailing away from Astrea. Over the course of Ash Princess she had managed to transform herself from a hostage to a queen. She lied and spyed and manipulated until she had won back a sliver of power she needed (she really is the ultimate slytherin). Now the Thane is dead, Soren is captured and Theo is safely escaped from the Kaiser; but those victories came with a cost. Elpis is dead, Cress survived— and may have gained dangerous powers nobody thought possible for a Kalovaxian, meanwhile, Blaise’s gift is growing harder to control as he tips closer to mine-madness and Dragonsbane isn’t all that she seems.
Now Theo is in a new kind of game and her allies are just as few as they were in Astrea, despite Dragonsbane’s ‘loyalty.’ The pirate has different ideas on how to take back Astrea and now Theo is being taken to a foreign court to find a husband with a big enough army to take back her kingdom.
I loved Theo in Ash Princess for her intelligence and her adaptability. She is a genuinly good person, but she’s willing to do what it takes to survive and take back her kingdom. She loves Blaise and Soren, but she won’t put them first if doing so endangers her larger goals. She knows how people work and how to use that knowledge to her advantage.
In Lady Smoke I think she loses a lot of that. I still liked the book, but I thought that Theo’s character deteriorates somewhat. Part of this is attributed to Theo’s new situation, her diffuculty in adapting to a new game in a new place that she doesn’t fully understand, but it is more than that. I was disapointed by how much stress was put on the love triange as a main plot point rather than a supporting and driving factor as it had been in the previous book. I felt this turned a strong, smart women into a lovestruck girl who keeps making stupid descisions that seem incongrous with the character in the first book.
Still, that said, overall it was a good book. It had strong worldbuilding and set up the third book quite well. There were enough surprising twists that I was kept engaged. I’ll definitely buy Ember Queen to find out how the trilogy ends.
Holly Black’s The Cruel Prince was a masterpiece of magic and intrigue that followed Jude, adopted daughter of a Faerie general, as she fought for power in the Faerie court. In the Wicked King, Jude has the power she always wanted as seneschal and handler of the newly crowned King Cardan, and is struggling to hang onto it.
Before he became king, Cardan swore to obey Jude’s every command for the next year, but with over half that time gone, Jude is scrambling for a way to extend her power over the unpredictable young king. If she doesn’t manage to, then her little brother Oak will be forced to take the throne and she will lose all the influence and control that she fought so hard for. On her side is the Shadow Court, a dangerous team of spies and assassins who work for her and the king, but even their loyalty is only as valuable as the highest bidder is willing to pay for it.
They say old friends make the worst of enemies and between the adopted father she betrayed, the boy who betrayed her and her twin sister, Taryn, Jude has a surplus of foes and is perilously short on allies. If she wants to stay alive— and stay in power— Jude will have to be more clever and more ruthless than ever before.
In Renegades Marissa Meyer blurred the lines between hero and villain as Nova began to question whether the Renegades, an organization of superheroes that run her city, are truly as bad as she has always been told. In Archenemies Nova faces a different internal struggle. After the reveal of Agent N, and the council’s plan to destroy the powers of all prodigies that oppose them, she has made her peace with taking down the organization; to her mind it is a necessity. The problem isn’t the Renegades, it’s her teammates. The problem is Adrian Everheart, son of Captain Chromium and the Dread Warden, her best friend and crush that won’t quite believe that Nova’s secret anarchist alter-ego, Nightmare, is truly dead, despite the stunt she pulled off with Ingrid to convince the Renegades. The problem is Ruby and Oscar, her friends who are, despite their proud status as Renegades actually really good people, and the worst problem of all may be her last teammate, Dana, who is becoming increasingly suspicious of Nova.
The stakes have risen for everyone as time grows short and new dangers arise from every side. Nova must find— and steal— Ace’s helmet from the Renegades before the superheroes catch up, while Adrian struggles with keeping his own secret identity— the Sentinel— hidden from his family, and from Nova. Archenemies is an epic sequel that will take you on a wild ride of secrets, betrayal and action and leave you wanting more!
Six of Crows was a brilliant heist-adventure set in an original world with compelling, 3 dimensional characters. Gilded Wolves is… not. I was excited when I picked up Gilded Wolves, it sounded interesting and unique and as an added bonus it has a gorgeous cover and an intriguing title! I was, sadly, disappointed. Gilded Wolves turned out to be a total rip off of Leigh Bardugo’s book, that, to make matters worse lacks the character and plot depth that sets Six of Crows apart.
While the world was interesting, the author didn’t take the time to develop it enough to give the reader an understanding of its culture and more importantly, although multiple main characters have magic, she neglects to tell us how it works or even the limits of what they can do. The characters too were somewhat lacking. Chokshi’s strategy seemed to be to simply dump their backstory in at some point without making it an organic thing or showing how it shapes the characters in the present and influences their actions. Lastly, the plot structure was unfortunately predictable: the group would be in danger, they’re about to die, the same two characters (who later develop a forced and rushed love interest) solve the problem using math and some random fact that one of them somehow knows.
Perhaps I am being overly harsh, but it is my opinion that if a book is that similar to another book (especially if it is marketed to the same demographic) then it has to be at least as good as the one it is ripping off. Gilded Wolves may be a good fit for younger readers who aren’t quite ready for Six of Crows, but I would not recommend it to people who have already read the aforementioned book, since as a fan of Leigh Bardugo’s book I found myself spending the entire time reading Gilded Wolves measuring it up to Six of Crows and finding it lacking.
The Faithful Spy, by John Hendrix, is a riveting true story about the enemies of Hitler, presented in illustrated form. It tells the story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a young theologist who loved his home country of Germany, but despised the man who gained control of it. Dietrich’s only wish is to protect his beloved country and restore it back to what it used to be. For this to happen, he has to get rid of Hitler. Dietrich and his friends conspire, travel, and spy, all in the name of German safety.
John Hendrix writes with determination and interest, sharing the unknown details of many important figures in Germany’s unfathomable history. This book is riddled with knowledge about World War II and the Holocaust. It is informational, yet also a journey through one man’s sacrifices. Stunning pictures and an amazing format bring the images to life as the book takes you through the entirety of World War II and the Holocaust, all through Dietrich’s eyes.
The Faithful Spy is intense and emotional, but teaches so much lost history about these tragic events. This book is great for history buffs, or anyone interested in learning more about these events and the different sides of humanity.
Beneath the Citadel, by Destiny Soria, is an impeccably crafted fantasy novel with everything planned out perfectly. There are plot twists and moments of relief, and this story makes you feel like you’re with the characters in the citadel.
Beneath the Citadel tells about four teenagers who live in a place ruled by rooks and seers; sentients and diviners. Nothing is private, and it seems as if everyone’s future is written in prophecies. But the citadel has secrets of its own: what’s beneath the citadel. Something so unimaginable. These four friends are the last of the rebels, trying to destroy the corrupt government. Will the citadel’s secret ruin or help their plan?
Destiny Soria wrote a truly amazing novel here. I recommend this to any fantasy lover, or anyone who wants to read a book impossible to put down. It is thoroughly engulfing from the first page to the last, and makes you want more. I cannot begin to describe how interesting this story is. There’s nothing else like it and it’s bound to become huge like Harry Potter or Red Queen. I hope there is a sequel!
The book People Kill People, by Ellen Hopkins, is extraordinarily written. The writing hits your emotions in all the right places, and it gives insight into many different people’s lives and their views on things such as gun laws and immigration rights. People Kill People tells the story of six different teenagers. They are all connected, in more ways than just firearms in the state of Arizona. One thing brings them together; the thought of using a gun on someone. Themselves, a stranger, the person they love most. There is a little voice in their heads, whispering, controlling, saying what if. Hopkins writes in an amazing style, each character getting a spotlight and summarizing it with poems after. She addresses the issues and lets you decide for yourself, whatever your opinion is. At the end of the story, someone shoots and someone dies. This is how the world goes. Read People Kill People to find out.
I would recommend this book to anyone who is politically active, and who wants to make a difference. Anyone on either side of the political spectrum. If you have lost a loved one to gun violence, read this book to know you are not alone. If you want to find out more about these issues, read this book. If you think any aspect of it is interesting, read this book because you will not be disappointed. People Kill People is the next big thing, and it will change hearts, minds, and lives.
Several months ago, a friend of mine sent me a book for my birthday: Caraval. In retrospect, I should have picked it up much sooner. Caraval has become one of my favorite YA books to date, and its sequel- Legendary is, if possible, even better. In her amazing debut Stephanie Garber redefined fantasy in this twisting tale seeped in dark magic and unexpected revelations.
Scarlet Dragna lives on the Isle of Trisda with her sister Tella and their cruel father. For years Scarlet has written letters to Legend, master of the magical circus-game of Caraval, begging him to come to Trisda. Now engaged and ready to escape Trisda with her sister, Scarlet finally recieves a reply from Legend- and three tickets. Now Scarlet must make a choice: marry the man her father chose for her, or run away to attend Caraval with Tella and the handsome young sailor who has offered his help in exchange for a ticket.
Bridge of Clay is a book about stories. It’s about an immigrant girl whose father sent her across the sea with the Odyssey, the Iliad and a love of the piano. It’s about a boy who loved the girl in his paintings more than the one he painted them of. It’s about a jockey and her horse and a very stubborn mule. It’s about a family. It’s about Clay and his brothers. It’s about how everything and everyone has a story if you look hard enough, and those stories shape us into the people we are.
Clay Dunbar’s mother died when he was in middle school. His dad left a few months later. For years it’s just been him and his four brothers and that’s been okay. They made it okay. But now their father is back, and with a request. He wants one of his sons to come back home with him, and help him build a bridge.
Bridge of Clay is a bittersweet story of a father and son reconnecting after years of estrangement. The main plot is interwoven with the lives of the people around Clay, a resonant reminder that there are always other sides to the story and always past experiences that influence the present. Once again, Zusak thoughtfully weaves a masterful tale to stir the hearts of readers everywhere.