Review: Rage by Cora Carmack

I received this book at BookExpo in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own! This book comes out Tuesday August 27th

Synopsis:

Please see my review of Roar here for my original thoughts and synopsis of the first book

My Review:

4/5 ⭐️

I enjoyed this book, but I felt at times it was very slow. But the ending chapters were very good! The Storm magic is still pretty ambiguous though which kind of annoys me… Because I would like it explained. I’m still a bit baffled that no one figured out who Roar was until book 2… I still don’t find it plausible in my own head but 🤷🏻‍♀️ Overall though I did enjoy the story though as I said it felt a bit slow. It could have been shorter to help with the flow of the story.

~Basically me @ these characters when they still hadn’t figured out Roar was the princess~

About the Author:

Cora Carmack is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of New Adult Romance and YA fantasy. Her books have been translated into more than a dozen languages around the world. Cora lives in Austin, TX, and on any given day you might find her typing away at her computer, flying to various cities around the world, or just watching Netflix with her kitty Katniss and her dog Sherlock. But she can always be found on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and her website www.coracarmack.com.

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Review: Nyxia by Scott Reintgen

Synopsis:

Emmett Atwater isn’t just leaving Detroit; he’s leaving Earth. Why the Babel Corporation recruited him is a mystery, but the number of zeroes on their contract has him boarding their lightship and hoping to return to Earth with enough money to take care of his family.

Forever.

Before long, Emmett discovers that he is one of ten recruits, all of whom have troubled pasts and are a long way from home. Now each recruit must earn the right to travel down to the planet of Eden—a planet that Babel has kept hidden—where they will mine a substance called Nyxia that has quietly become the most valuable material in the universe.

But Babel’s ship is full of secrets. And Emmett will face the ultimate choice: win the fortune at any cost, or find a way to fight that won’t forever compromise what it means to be human.

My Review:

4/5 ⭐️

Hunger Games in Space!

I enjoyed this book! I thought it was different, and liked seeing how it unfolded. Definitely had some thriller vibes that I was digging, plus it was high stakes. Emmett was definitely a character I was rooting for most of the time, and the revelations and ending were well executed and planned. Now we will see what happens next 👀 If you like high stakes space adventures read this. Perfect for sci-fi fans, Aurora Rising fans, and those who want a different take on the ‘fight for your life’ trope Hunger Games had.

~Don’t mind me just hysterically laughing at some of the decisions the characters made, plus the reveal of the better crew~

About the Author:

Scott Reintgen grew up in North Carolina, and took full advantage of the fact that he lived on the same street as fourteen of his cousins. It could be a little crowded, but he threw a few elbows and carved out a space for himself as the family storyteller. He enjoyed the role so much that he decided to spend most of college and graduate school investing in the world of literature. This led to a career teaching English and Creative Writing in the great state of North Carolina, where he currently lives with his wife and family. To his great delight, the demand for stories and storytellers is alive and well. As such, he can often be found at local coffee shops laboring over stories that he hopes his family, and fans, will love. 

Review: Roar by Cora Carmack

Synopsis:

In a land ruled and shaped by violent magical storms, power lies with those who control them.

Aurora Pavan comes from one of the oldest Stormling families in existence. Long ago, the ungifted pledged fealty and service to her family in exchange for safe haven, and a kingdom was carved out from the wildlands and sustained by magic capable of repelling the world’s deadliest foes. As the sole heir of Pavan, Aurora’s been groomed to be the perfect queen. She’s intelligent and brave and honorable. But she’s yet to show any trace of the magic she’ll need to protect her people.

To keep her secret and save her crown, Aurora’s mother arranges for her to marry a dark and brooding Stormling prince from another kingdom. At first, the prince seems like the perfect solution to all her problems. He’ll guarantee her spot as the next queen and be the champion her people need to remain safe. But the more secrets Aurora uncovers about him, the more a future with him frightens her. When she dons a disguise and sneaks out of the palace one night to spy on him, she stumbles upon a black market dealing in the very thing she lacks—storm magic. And the people selling it? They’re not Stormlings. They’re storm hunters.

Legend says that her ancestors first gained their magic by facing a storm and stealing part of its essence. And when a handsome young storm hunter reveals he was born without magic, but possesses it now, Aurora realizes there’s a third option for her future besides ruin or marriage.

She might not have magic now, but she can steal it if she’s brave enough.

Challenge a tempest. Survive it. And you become its master.

 

My Review:

4/5 ⭐️

Overall I enjoyed this book. I wasn’t blown away like I thought I would be. It felt a bit generic honestly? Though the storm magic was a nice change and the characters were refreshing! I was hoping a bit more would happen though, plus it had the ‘ooo MC is special’ trope which is a bit overdone. The villain was also a bit… Overdone? Like this book just felt like other things I’ve read. I do have an ARC of Rage that I am currently reading. The only thing I did really like is the romance and can’t wait to see that play out more!

~Me because this book is like super beloved from what I’ve seen~

 

About the Author:

Cora Carmack is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of New Adult Romance and YA fantasy. Her books have been translated into more than a dozen languages around the world. Cora lives in Austin, TX, and on any given day you might find her typing away at her computer, flying to various cities around the world, or just watching Netflix with her kitty Katniss and her dog Sherlock. But she can always be found on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and her website www.coracarmack.com.

Review: Sweet Black Waves by Kristina Pérez

Synopsis:

Not you without me, not me without you.

Two proud kingdoms stand on opposite shores, with only a bloody history between them.

As best friend and lady-in-waiting to the princess, Branwen is guided by two principles: devotion to her homeland and hatred for the raiders who killed her parents. When she unknowingly saves the life of her enemy, he awakens her ancient healing magic and opens her heart. Branwen begins to dream of peace, but the princess she serves is not so easily convinced. Fighting for what’s right, even as her powers grow beyond her control, will set Branwen against both her best friend and the only man she’s ever loved.

Inspired by the star-crossed tale of Tristan and Eseult, this is the story of the legend’s true heroine: Branwen. For fans of Graceling and The Mists of Avalon, this is the first book of a lush fantasy trilogy about warring countries, family secrets, and forbidden romance.

My Review:

4/5 ⭐️

I knocked this down a whole point because of Essie. Seriously, she was ANNOYING. I get she was supposed to be but OOMGGGG like GIRL STOP! Branwen is seriously a saint for putting up with that girl I swear. And speaking of Branwen, she’s so loyal… Loyal to a fault. It kind of sucked how the book ended but I’m hoping Branwen comes into her own and messes stuff uuuppp!!

~Essie STAHP~

Review: Blood and Sand by C. V. Wyk

Synopsis:

Forged in battle…
From the dust of the arena…
A legend will rise

The action-packed tale of a 17-year-old warrior princess and a handsome gladiator who dared take on the Roman Republic—and gave rise to the legend of Spartacus…

Roma Victrix. The Republic of Rome is on a relentless march to create an empire―an empire built on the backs of the conquered, brought back to Rome as slaves.

Attia was once destined to rule as the queen and swordmaiden of Thrace, the greatest warrior kingdom the world had seen since Sparta. Now she is a slave, given to Xanthus, the Champion of Rome, as a sign of his master’s favor. Enslaved as a child, Xanthus is the preeminent gladiator of his generation.

Against all odds, Attia and Xanthus form a tentative bond. A bond that will spark a rebellion. A rebellion that threatens to bring the Roman Republic to its end―and gives rise to the legend of Spartacus…

My Review:

4/5 ⭐️

This book was SO GOOD. Like really good, though it did drag just a bit for me. I love a gender-bent retelling though and Attia did NOT disappoint, she can rival even Mia from Nevernight in fierceness. This book was also super short which didn’t help with the dragging, which was why I knocked it down a star.

~My surprise at Attia’s fierceness~

Review: Sea Witch by Sarah Henning

Synopsis:

Wicked meets “The Little Mermaid” in the captivating origin story of the sea’s most iconic villainess, perfect for fans of Heartless and Dorothy Must Die.

Ever since her best friend Anna died, Evie has been an outcast in her small fishing town. Hiding her talents, mourning her loss, drowning in her guilt.

Then a girl with an uncanny resemblance to Anna appears on the shore, and the two girls catch the eyes of two charming princes. Suddenly Evie feels like she might finally have a chance at her own happily ever after. 

But magic isn’t kind, and her new friend harbors secrets of her own. She can’t stay in Havnestad—or on two legs—without Evie’s help. And when Evie reaches deep into the power of her magic to save her friend’s humanity—and her prince’s heart—she discovers, too late, what she’s bargained away.

My Review:

3/5 ⭐️

This dragged for me 😫 Which sucked because I really wanted to love it. It was super predictable and even the ‘twist’ I saw coming. I don’t know… I’m just wholly disappointed because people RAVE about this book… And I’m like… Meh…

~Me just being disappointed in this book~

Review: Deadly Class by Rick Remender, Wes Craig, and Lee Loughridge

Synopsis:

It’s 1987. Marcus Lopez hates school. His grades suck. The jocks are hassling his friends. He can’t focus in class. But the jocks are the children of Joseph Stalin’s top assassin, the teachers are members of an ancient league of assassins, the class he’s failing is “Dismemberment 101,” and his crush has a double-digit body count. Welcome to the most brutal high school on earth, where the world’s top crime families send the next generation of assassins to be trained. Murder is an art. Killing is a craft. At Kings Dominion School for the Deadly Arts, the dagger in your back isn’t always metaphorical.

My Review:

5/5 ⭐️

Please note that this comic is for audiences 18 and up, it’s not for the faint of heart or stomach.

I received this comic for free at BookExpo from Imprint Comics, all thoughts are my own and I was interested in this comic because of the SyFy TV show.

Alright guys! Lets crack into this now shall we?

This first volume was basically the first half of the show so it wasn’t new info for me. I did enjoy it though! The art style is very different than any comic I’ve ever read. We got a glimpse of that through the first season.

Review: The Ring and the Crown by Melissa De La Cruz

Synopsis:

In this extended edition of #1 New York Times best-selling author Melissa de la Cruz’s dazzling tale of glamour, enchantment, and betrayal, love is risked and lives are lost in a desperate battle to save the kingdom from a devious foe determined to control the empire. 

Once, they were inseparable, just two little girls playing games in a formidable castle. Now Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the mightiest empire in the world, and Aelwyn Myrddyn, a bastard mage, face vastly different futures.

As the annual London season begins-a whirlwind of wealth and magic marked by lavish parties and gorgeous girls vying for the attention of young royals-the talk of the town is Ronan Astor, a social-climbing American with only her beauty to recommend her. After falling for a handsome rogue on the voyage over, she must balance her desire for love with her duty to save her family’s position.

Meanwhile, Isabelle of Orleans finds herself cast aside by Leopold, heir to the Prussian crown, in favor of a political marriage to Marie-Victoria. Isabelle is bent on reclaiming what is hers, but Marie doesn’t even want Leopold-she lost her heart long ago to a boy she will never be able to have.

Desperate to escape a life without love, Marie turns to Aelwyn, and the girls form a perilous plan that endangers the fate of the monarchy.

My Review:

3/5 ⭐️

Had potential but ultimately fell flat. I read up to page 250 and skipped to the last two chapters… Basically found out what the rest had in store which was not much. Very dragged out and way too many characters t keep track of. Barely any world building, questionable character choices… No thanks 🤷🏻‍♀️

~Nah I’ll pass~

Audiobook Review: Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Synopsis:

Everyone knows DAISY JONES & THE SIX, but nobody knows the reason behind their split at the absolute height of their popularity . . . until now.

Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing at the Whisky a Go Go. The sex and drugs are thrilling, but it’s the rock ’n’ roll she loves most. By the time she’s twenty, her voice is getting noticed, and she has the kind of heedless beauty that makes people do crazy things. 

Also getting noticed is The Six, a band led by the brooding Billy Dunne. On the eve of their first tour, his girlfriend Camila finds out she’s pregnant, and with the pressure of impending fatherhood and fame, Billy goes a little wild on the road. 

Daisy and Billy cross paths when a producer realizes that the key to supercharged success is to put the two together. What happens next will become the stuff of legend. 

The making of that legend is chronicled in this riveting and unforgettable novel, written as an oral history of one of the biggest bands of the seventies. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer who takes her work to a new level with Daisy Jones & The Six, brilliantly capturing a place and time in an utterly distinctive voice. 

My Review:

5/5 ⭐️

This audiobook was fantastic! A full audiobook cast that captured the voices of the characters perfectly. I flew through this book and absolutely LOVED IT! I can see why everyone is raving about this. The story was so good and I honestly wish I could forget everything that happened and listen to it for the first time again. The overall flow of the story was perfect and the ending left it open for something more to happen but behind the scenes. Like you WANT to know but you respect these characters enough now to say ‘nope’.

~Person: Kris you need to read Daisy Jones! Me: *shrugs* sure~