Library Book Haul

Library Book Haul!

So I've once again proved I have absolutely no self control when it comes to walking into a library. Despite having a TBR list that just keeps growing, and still being in a hangover after A Court of Mist and Fury, I decided that I should go and get more books from my local library. So, here is my haul of five books that I really didn't need to get, but decided to anyway.

So, first up I have Unmade by Sarah Rees Brennan and this is the third and final book in the Lynburn Trilogy series. I loved the first book in this series and I've just finished the second book Untold which was also really good (though I didn't enjoy it as much as the first) I'm currently reading this one and I'm loving it.

Next up I have I'll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson. I have heard so many good things about this book and I'm really excited to start reading it.

Next I have the slightly morbid sounding Playlist for the Dead by Michelle Falkoff. I picked this one up on a whim. It sounds a little bit like Saving June which is a book I adore. Music plays a big part in both of these books so I'm excited to see what new songs I find when I read this one.

Next up I have Dangerous Lies by Becca Fitzpatrick. I have a strange relationship with Becca Fitzpatrick. I actually really enjoyed the Hush Hush series, but I wasn't a big fan of Black Ice so I'm interested to see which side this book ends up being on.

Finally, and the book I'm probably most excited about is The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare, Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson. I am so excited to read these stories you don't understand. I'm planning a massive reread of The Infernal Devices and The Mortal Instruments before FINALLY getting to read Lady Midnight which is waiting on my bookshelf for me to get over ACOMAF, so I think this bind up of short stories will be the perfect start.

So there they are - the books I really didn't need to pick up, but...did. I can't wait to read these books, I think they're perfect to kick start the Summer!

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas - MAJOR SPOILERS!

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas - MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!

Rating: 10 out of 5 stars (I can do that, right?)

Synopsis: Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court—but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms—and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future—and the future of a world cleaved in two.

Review: Okay, so I normally don't review the second book in a series, but today I'm making an exception. I've just finished my second read of A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas, which is the second book in the A Court of Thorns and Roses trilogy and it was absolutely fantastic. This is going to be an incredibly spoiler heavy discussion of this book so, if you haven't read either A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) or A Court of Mist and Fury (ACOMAF) yet, then go and do that because they are absolutely amazing books. Go and read them and then come back and discuss with me! I have done a review of ACOTAR on this blog so if you're unsure about picking it up, I'll link my review here if you want to check it out. One more note before I move on to the discussion, ACOTAR is a YA book but ACOMAF is definitely in the New Adult territory as it does contain a few sex scenes, so bare that in mind if you are a bit younger, you might want to bookmark this series for a little while before starting it. Okay, so all those people who haven't read the book, this is your final warning. The rest of this article contains major spoilers so, go read the books and come back to discuss....

WARNING. THERE BE SPOILERS AHEAD...

You guys. This book was incredible. I loved ACOTAR, it was one of my favourite books of last year but I really had no idea what was going to happen in book 2. Sarah has completely surpassed any expectations I may have had about book 2 and it is so much better than ACOTAR. The world building and character development was phenomenal and I flew through it the first time I read it. I want to start with a confession. If you read my ACOTAR review, you may remember me not being thrilled about the possibility of Rhysand and Feyre being mates. At the time, I was firmly on the Feylin ship and thought they would be endgame after everything that had happened in book 1. I am now willing to admit that I was wrong. So, so wrong and I can't actually believe I didn't want Feyre and Rhys to be together. I think my main problem was that I didn't know much about Rhys in book 1, and what I did know, wasn't very nice. Sarah rectified that problem so well in this book. We got so many details about Rhys' time Under the Mountain, and his life before that and I just fell in love with him. I mean, it also helped that Tamlin was a jerk of the highest order but, hey. My point is, my issue from book 1 was solved.

Lets talk about the two guys for a minute, shall we? Tamlin, in book 1 was sweet and I loved the way he took care of Feyre. In book 2, that protective nature just went into overdrive. I'll admit, when I first read this book, I was a little confused about the direction Tamlin's character takes but, when you think back to ACOTAR, actually, a lot of the behaviour Tamlin displays in that book is about claiming power and order within his court, it was just a little more subtle because Feyre didn't pick up on it. She saw it as being loving and protective. With the return of his power, this protective nature just destroys his relationship with Feyre. He leaves her alone and takes her choices away. Tamlin is very traditional and so the gender roles in his court are very obvious. He is the High Lord and Feyre will be his wife. Her job is to look pretty and bear children. To me, this completely undermines the sacrifices that Feyre made for him Under the Mountain. He can't see that his actions (or in actions, depending on how you look at things) are actually killing the woman he loves. He uses her for sex and pleasure but, what she needs is completely overlooked by Tamlin. He knows best.
  I think that's why I fell in love with Rhys in this book. He looks after Feyre, but he gives her choices. He saves her in so many ways, by teaching her to read and to block her mind and, when she leaves the Spring Court for good, he starts to physically train her and her new magic, which is something Feyre has been desperate to do, but Tamlin wouldn't let her. He makes sure she eats and helps her through her nightmares and is just there for her. Simple, little things that Tamlin doesn't do. Feyre deserves to be with someone like Rhys and vice versa and I apologise for dismissing the potential for this relationship in book 1. I was a fool.

I really liked how Sarah dealt with PTSD. We obviously go through the book in Feyre's POV so we see more of her PTSD, but I did like the glimpses we saw of Rhys' nightmares and trauma, and we also get a few glimpses at Tamlin's PTSD and even Lucien to some extent. The book opens with Feyre feeling so guilty for what she did Under the Mountain. She has horrific nightmares that make her throw up after and Tamlin simply sleeps through them. He leaves her there to sort through her problems by herself and, when she tries to help him with his own nightmares, just shakes her off. She's disinterested in everything - she doesn't paint anymore because she can't see the colours and the pictures anymore and, even with planning her wedding, she can't dredge up any emotion. Rhys, obviously, picks up on this immediately when he crashes her wedding, his arrival stopping Feyre's panic attack. And when you realise that Rhys has known Feyre was his mate for a long time, you can start to understand how much it killed him to see her like that. When Tamlin locks her in the house I could have killed him. He knew that she had been kept locked up in a cell for three months and yet he honestly thought locking her in the house was a good idea? I love how gentle Rhys is with her after that, knowing that he shouldn't push her. But he still takes her with him when she asks him to. He lets her come and that means the world to her. He understands what it's like to have your choices taken away from you, and, for someone as headstrong and stubborn as Feyre, not having the freedom she desires will kill her.

My heart ached for Rhys when he was shot out of the sky. He used his powers to protect Feyre; to throw her far from the battle and let them take him. This was where Feyre came into her own for me. As soon as she landed, she went back for Rhys. There was no waiting around, wondering what to do, she just did it. She used the powers and survival instincts that she has and went back for Rhys. And she was a complete bad ass while she did it. All those training sessions with Cassian paid off! The fact that she winnowed them to safety, that she distracted Rhys with the story of how she painted her cottage with the few paints Elain had brought her, that she stayed up all night watching over Rhys to make sure he was breathing. It made my heart ache for them both because you could feel how worried Feyre was for Rhys. He's the most powerful High Lord in Prythian and he could have died if she hadn't found the Suriel. On another note, I think the Suriel really likes Feyre. She makes catching it seem really easy, yet Rhys hasn't been able to do it. Is the Suriel following Feyre around just in case she needs help?

I want to talk specifically about the mate bond just for a minute. I love how Rhys dreamed of Feyre for three years before he even met her, and that she gave him hope during those long nights with Amarantha. I loved that her drawer was the night sky because of him, because of the image he sent back. It's such a small moment in reality but I thought it was really sweet.
   Feyre's reaction to the mate bond was the only thing that annoyed me a little bit about her character. She knows how sick she was when she left Tamlin and she's told Rhys that she won't leave him, that nothing he can do could make her leave. And then she does just that. This had the possibility to go completely awry and make me hate Feyre's character but Sarah didn't let it. Actually, I ended up kind of liking Feyre for how she handled the surprise. Yes she got mad and left Rhys in the mud and didn't give him a chance to explain, but he had promised her no secrets. Instead of saying things she didn't mean, or would later regret though, like so many YA heroines do, Feyre removed herself from the situation. She took a step back and went away so that she could think things through alone, without any distractions. And, by that first night really, she knew she was wrong. She also used that time to heal some more. She took that time for herself in a way that she hadn't had chance to do throughout the book and she painted again. She got to a place where that hole inside of her was ready to be filled again and, when Rhys finally showed up, she was ready to hear him out and fully accept the mate bond. A scene which could have changed my perception of Feyre was handled expertly and is one of my favourite moments in the book.

One of my other favourite moments in the book, and I'm pretty sure it's shared by a lot of people, is Starfall. This is a holiday celebrated only in the Night Court and sounds amazing. I think it goes without saying at this point that the Night Court is my favourite of all the courts. Velaris sounds amazing (and is so worth keeping a secret from all the other courts) and even the Court of Nightmares is a really interesting place if only for the fact that that's the court everyone else sees. It deters people from looking too closely at the Night Court and lets everyone live in relative peace. Starfall sounds beautiful. Migrating spirits look like fallen stars and I love the fact that it only happens in the Night Court. That only a few people ever get to see it happen. This scene is where you can truly see the bond start to form. I loved the moment when they both got hit in the face with a spirit - it's one of the few moments that you actually see both Feyre and Rhys relax completely.
  The Court of Nightmares scene was also amazing. I loved that we got to see the contrast between the Court of Dreams and the Court of Nightmares and the persona that Rhys (and Feyre) adopt when they go there. That whole scene is really interesting to read and you can't help but feel smug about Rhys and Mor lording it over Mor's father in such an obvious way.


Rhys' Inner Circle. I love them. I love them all so much. Their dynamics were amazing and brought so much to the story. I loved Mor from the very first time we heard her speak. "That went well." Her backstory (as with all of the Inner Circle) is heart breaking, but the fact that she is so relaxed, that she doesn't treat Rhys like a High Lord, just her cousin, her family, is so nice to see, especially after Lucien and Tamlin's relationship break down in the Spring Court. Mor understanding Feyre as well, and being such a good friend to her is also really nice to see. I loved when she made Feyre add her eyes to Amren's in the cabin so they could both watch over the guys when they snuck away there. And then made her add the others eyes so Feyre knew they were watching her too. Mor sees Feyre as family too and I just love that. Azriel is an intriguing character because he's so secretive. I guess that's why he's such a good spy! Mor and Azriel need to get together ASAP because the tension there is driving me crazy. Cassian just makes me laugh. Him insulting Rhys from the porch of the town house in Velaris and his antagonistic relationship with Nesta is just brilliant and I love him to pieces. He's also there for Feyre when she breaks down and lets her work out her frustrations on him, even though she could have hurt him. He's a good friend to all of the Circle. Amren scares me. Seriously, she's terrifying but, I'm also dying to know what she is. I love how fierce she is and how protective she is of the family she's found. I also love that she uses the blood ruby that Tarquin sent as a paperweight. That was just pure genius. These people are the family that Feyre has always wanted. Oh, and the fact that Rhys has made Amren and Mor his Second and Third in command just warms my heart.

Rhys and Feyre's notes to each other were a thing of beauty. You know I love a good sarcastic couple and these two took it to a whole new level. I laughed so hard when I read those notes because most of them were designed just to annoy the other person. Rhys teaching Feyre to read as well was amazing. You just knew the sentences she had to copy were coming because they would have really wound her up. They were just so...Rhys. Yet doing this gave Feyre a way to survive in the Spring Court, it gave her a way to occupy her days by practising in the library.

I did like that we revisited Elain and Nesta in this book, though Nesta is still as prickly as ever. This did irritate me slightly because we kind of turned a corner with Feyre and Nesta in ACOTAR and yet, in this book we kind of reverted back to that initial relationship. I do understand why this happened, she's scared of the fey, in the same way that Feyre was when Tamlin first took her to the Spring Court. But she's still your sister, fey or not. I did like the fact that Elain acknowledged that they had let Feyre down by leaving her to keep them alive when the money ran out. I do also love the fact that Elain and Lucien are mates. With her love of flowers and gardening, Elain is literally made for the Spring Court so I hope she accepts the bond with him.

Speaking of Lucien I want to talk about him for a minute. The hate that he's got from people over how he behaved in the book is really annoying. I loved Lucien in ACOTAR - he had the same attitude as Cassian. Very sarcastic and funny but, he does come to consider Feyre a friend. Here's what you have to remember. Lucien was Under the Mountain too. He was whipped by his best friend for helping Feyre in the first trial. He almost died in the second trial because Feyre couldn't read the riddle, let alone the answers underneath. He wants to help Feyre in the Spring Court - he does keep bringing the subject up with Tamlin, trying to get him to let Feyre train. Feyre wasn't the only one abused by Tamlin, Lucien was as well. He's scared and he's caught in a catch-22. He did all he could to help Feyre without Tamlin turning on him as well. He doesn't deserve the hate that he's getting.

Ianthe on the other hand, does deserve the hate. I'll admit, I was suckered in when I first saw Ianthe. Feyre finally has a friend she can talk to, who can talk her through planning her wedding. She has Alis, but she's usually busy in the kitchens so it's nice Feyre has someone to talk to. That was up until the wedding. When Feyre walked down the aisle to see red rose petals on the ground. Red Rose Petals. The one colour, the one detail that Feyre specified not to be at the wedding, and Ianthe ignores her. That was the moment I saw Ianthe for the witch she truly is.
 The human queens as well. Apart from the one queen who decided to try and help Feyre and Rhys, and who died horribly for her actions, those other queens were terrible. The way they played Feyre and Rhys and got them to reveal the secret that Rhys has done everything to keep, to then sell them out to the King of Hybern. That Cauldron better not work right on them, I swear. They deserve everything that's coming to them.

Those final chapters with the King of Hybern and Jurian and Tamlin and Lucien were excruciating. Azriel was shot with a poisoned arrow like the ones that almost killed Rhys, Cassian's wings were pretty much destroyed when he tried to protect his fallen brother and Feyre's sisters were turned into Fae. I was so worried, and I still am worried about the group. Cassian better keep his wings. I honestly thought one of the sisters was going to die and I'm so glad they didn't. I loved how Nesta went down fighting at the end. It was so...Nesta.

The attack on Velaris was another chapter that I loved because we got to see how Feyre has grown over the course of the book. She doesn't hesitate to fight for the people of the Night Court - it's her court now as well and she'll do anything she can to protect it. I adored the scene where Feyre killed the Attor. It all came about full circle and it seemed right that Feyre was the person who killed it. The fact that Feyre shut Rhys out while she did what she had to do and he wasn't mad at her for it was so refreshing. Normally in YA, the guy gets mad at the girl when she does something dangerous. Instead, Rhys was proud of her. We need more of that in YA.

I want to end this incredibly long and spoilery discussion and just talk about that final moment when the bond was broken. This. Was. Gut. Wrenching. It was so hard to read that scene because I hated the idea of that bond disappearing. I was so relieved to find out that only the bargain bond had broken and the twist that had been thrown in. Feyre being the High Lady of the Night Court just made everything so much better, especially because Tamlin had told her there was no such thing as a High Lady. We also get a chapter in Rhys' POV which I love and makes me think the next book will be in dual POV. Tamlin has absolutely no idea what he's done and I can't wait for the next book to come out.

If you've made it to the end of this review, congratulations. I absolutely adored this book and it's left me with a pile of books (The Raven King and Lady Midnight to name two) that are demanding to be read but I can't because I cannot stop re-reading this book! Let me know what you're favourite moments were in ACOMAF and any predictions you might have.

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Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

Unspoken by Sarah Rees Brennan

Rating: 4.5 stars

Synopsis: Kami Glass loves someone she’s never met . . . a boy she’s talked to in her head ever since she was born. She wasn’t silent about her imaginary friend during her childhood, and is thus a bit of an outsider in her sleepy English town of Sorry-in-the-Vale. Still, Kami hasn’t suffered too much from not fitting in. She has a best friend, runs the school newspaper, and is only occasionally caught talking to herself. Her life is in order, just the way she likes it, despite the voice in her head.
But all that changes when the Lynburns return.
The Lynburn family has owned the spectacular and sinister manor that overlooks Sorry-in-the-Vale for centuries. The mysterious twin sisters who abandoned their ancestral home a generation ago are back, along with their teenage sons, Jared and Ash, one of whom is eerily familiar to Kami. Kami is not one to shy away from the unknown—in fact, she’s determined to find answers for all the questions Sorry-in-the-Vale is suddenly posing. Who is responsible for the bloody deeds in the depths of the woods? What is her own mother hiding? And now that her imaginary friend has become a real boy, does she still love him? Does she hate him? Can she trust him?

Review: I picked this book up on a whim from one of my frequent trips to the library because the premise sounded interesting. I thought I would enjoy it but I didn't expect to love it as much as I did. I flew through this book and as soon as I started reading it, I was hooked.

Last October I tried to start reading the Beautiful Creatures series because so many people told me how amazing it was. I think I got 100 pages in and then gave up. This book reminded me of Beautiful Creatures, except 1000 times better. To me, the characters were more alive in Unspoken - there was more chemistry between them than there is in Beautiful Creatures.

Kami is a headstrong, stubborn protagonist but I really loved her. She has an amazing personality that draws you in. Her determination to get to the truth of this mystery powers the plot which does inevitably lead to her doing some stupid things BUT, there the stupid stuff was acknowledged as being stupid and it's done because there isn't a better option. I liked that Kami is called on her ridiculous plans - it's not done very often but, in this book, where sarcasm and sass is abundant, it really worked  well. I liked how her insecurities were displayed as well. In 'Beautiful Creatures' I felt like the characters didn't really do anything to change the fact that they were outsiders - they were content to let it be that way. Kami doesn't like it at all, but has found friends despite it and hasn't let it stop her from doing what she loves and I think that's another reason why this book was better, in my opinion, than 'Beautiful Creatures'.

I did like Jared as a character. He's a very complicated person but, I think he does truly love Kami. The bond between them means they're so close that it can be difficult to discern whether their feelings for each other are real but, I think he truly does love her. His mood swings can be a lot to handle, but, I didn't find them all that annoying really, because he always came through for Kami when it mattered and, lets be honest, finding out your imaginary friend isn't so imaginary, and is living in the same town as you, is always going to be a bit of a shock!

I enjoyed the fact that magic was brought in fairly late in the book. It gave us time to set up the mystery and the characters properly, before bringing a lot of magic and crazy powers into play. Leaving the magic till later meant we really got a sense of the deep rooted fear of the Lynburns in the town and, like Kami, it infuriated me to not know why people were so afraid of them until everything was revealed. It kept me hooked and I was surprised when things were revealed in the plot.

Overall I loved this book and I'm dying to pick up the sequels to it to find out what happens!

Image from Goodreads - no Copyright Intended

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis: Rule #3: Don't stare at invisible faeries.
Aislinn has always seen faeries. Powerful and dangerous, they walk hidden in the mortal world. Aislinn fears their cruelty - especially if they learn of her Sight - and wishes she were as blind to their presence as other teens.

Rule #2: Don't speak to invisible faeries.
Now faeries are stalking her. One of them, Keenan, who is equal parts terrifying and alluring, is trying to talk to her, asking questions Aislinn is afraid to answer.

Rule #1: Don't ever attract their attention.
But it's too late. Keenan is the Summer King, who has sought his queen for nine centuries. Without her, summer itself will perish. He is determined that Aislinn will become the Summer Queen at any cost — regardless of her plans or desires.

Suddenly none of the rules that have kept Aislinn safe are working anymore, and everything is on the line: her freedom; her best friend, Seth; her life; everything.

Review: So I picked this book up this morning and by this afternoon I'd finished it. It's been so long since I've been able to just sit and read a book that I raced through this one! I did enjoy this book, although I didn't love it like I wanted to.

Aislinn seems to get a lot of criticism in other reviews but I did actually quite like her. She was stubborn and hard headed and she didn't let Keenan dictate to her. Yes, the constant reminder of the three rules was a little repetitive at times but, on the whole, I did actually like her. Seth was another character that I really liked. He protects Aislinn and works with her, listening to her plans and helping her sort through them. This is a practically unheard of characteristic in YA! A guy who lets the girl do what she needs to do without getting mad? Yay for Seth in my book! I also love the fact that he lives in a train. A train! I would love to see that place it sounds amazing (the boa constrictor he keeps as a pet, not so amazing, but nobody's perfect). I liked that Aislinn fought for him as well and she didn't get so caught up in Keenan and his faery charms that she forgot about Seth.

Keenan...confused me. In some ways, I did like him. I felt sorry for him when he was around the Winter Queen and, towards the end where he essentially had to choose between the girl he (supposedly) loves, and his Summer Queen; but when it comes to actually getting Aislinn to like him I really didn't like him. He knew that Aislinn didn't understand what was going on and yet he took it as fact that she was his Queen. He didn't know that for sure though and that really annoyed me. Yes, there's a chance that Aislinn is his Queen, but they don't know that for sure. His certainty of this meant that he did some really ridiculous things as he tried to get her to agree and I just wanted to hit him! Urgh! I hope that Keenan redeems himself in the next book - I hope so, because he is a good guy, he was just being fed misinformation and posturing in front of Aislinn but still. He has so much potential.

The plot itself was good but I found it a little...confusing with how it played out. I felt like the plot needed a little more explanation in the earlier stages of the book, rather than leaving it till later on in the book. One of the biggest things that confused me was the idea of the Winter Girl. To find out if you're the Summer Queen, you have to pick up a staff from the Winter Queen to prove that you can hold it without taking on the chill. Why? Why would the Summer Queen need to withstand the chill from Winter? That ability doesn't translate once you become Summer Queen - lets face it, no one likes to stand out in the cold for ages - so why does she have to hold it? It makes no sense to me. I'm hoping that this is maybe explained more in the next book - just more back story on how this 'game' came to be in the first place would be really interesting - because I really don't understand why that was a requirement. Also, why does the Winter Girl have to convince the next mortal girl that Keenan is no good? If they are no longer mortal anyway, they are technically bound to him either way, so why would it matter? These are all questions I want answering and they're questions that let this book down for me.

On the whole, I did enjoy this book. I thought most of the characters were quite interesting and the plot moved along nicely, although (possibly because it was a debut) there were a lot of things that I didn't like and a whole lot of questions left unanswered. I will read the next book, because apparently they get better and if I get through the next one as quickly as I did this one, then I'll be happy.

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No Place Like Oz by Danielle Paige

No Place Like Oz (Dorothy Must Die prequel novella) by Danielle Paige

Rating: 3.5 stars

Synopsis: After returning to Kansas, Dorothy Gale has realized that the dreary fields of Kansas don’t compare to the vibrant landscapes of Oz. And although she’s happy to be reunited with Aunt Em, she misses her friends from the yellow brick road. But most of all, Dorothy misses the fame and the adventure. In Kansas she’s just another prairie girl, but in Oz she was a hero. So Dorothy is willing to do anything to get back, because there really is no place like Oz. But returning to the land she left comes at a price, and after Dorothy is through with it, Oz will never be the same.

Review: I recently finished reading Dorothy Must Die and I really loved it. I'm loving my fairy tale re-tellings at the moment and reading that book did nothing to stop the obsession and it left me wanting to learn more about this world that Danielle Paige has created. However, I'm not quite willing to part with X amount of hard earned cash for the sequels (not least because I'm desperately hoping that book number 2 won't follow the pattern of sequel books being not so great) so, while I wait for my local library to order them in I decided to have a little hunt on the internet to see if there were any other books/tales from this world I could find. Low and behold - there are a bunch! Now I only bought this one novella and you can do that OR you can buy the bind up editions of all the novellas available. No Place Like Oz interested me though because this is the story of how Dorothy ended up back in Oz after going home, and how the events in Dorothy Must Die came to be.

I liked that we got to see some of Dorothy's life back in Kansas, and that we got a better glimpse at the struggles she faced there. This novella was a really good length and so we spent plenty of time in both Kansas and Oz and learnt more about both of them.
 Bullies are something that both Dorothy and Amy have in common in this series and it was nice to see how they each deal with it. Dorothy is torn - she doesn't fit in at home anymore and actually regrets her decision to go back to Kansas, even more so once her bully makes an appearance. Seeing this makes you realise just why Dorothy likes the way magic feels and the power it gives her.

When we meet Dorothy in DMD, she's been crazed by power for a long time and it was really interesting to see that change take place in No Place Like Oz and to see how her thoughts on using magic change over the course of this novella. At one point, Dorothy makes the distinct statement that "It wasn't right. I do realise that. People aren't little marionettes to be pulled this way and that without their say-so in the matter. On the other hand, just because it wasn't right didn't mean it wasn't fun." This statement really struck me as marking the change from the Dorothy Gale from the movie and the Dorothy Gale we meet in DMD and I loved that she did make this statement in the novella - I think it shows you a lot about Dorothy and her struggle to fit in.

Despite knowing all of this about Dorothy - I never felt sorry for her. Yes she's being told conflicting stories from everyone she meets but she also jumps to her own conclusions and that leads her to doing what she does in the final few scenes. There was never really any reason to victimise her aunt and uncle and yet she does so without a second thought, yet they're only looking after her and trying to protect her. All of this means that you finish the book with the same perception of Dorothy as you get in DMD which I think is a mark of a really talented writer. It would have been so easy for Danielle to make Dorothy the victim and make the readers feel sorry for her but she doesn't do that. She explains why Dorothy became power crazed but that's all and I really liked that.

I loved that Ozma played such a big part in this novella because we see that she's actually a really strong person who wants to do right by her people and I really felt for her - all she wanted was a friend and Dorothy could have benefited from that as well, but she chose not to. All I wanted to do was give Ozma a hug, she just seems like she needs someone to tell her that she's doing a good job.

The one thing about this novella and about DMD actually is that, although they're really engaging when you're reading them, I found that once I put them down; I could leave them for a couple of days or even a couple of weeks before picking them back up again. The plot and the characters are amazing and well thought out and engaging when you're reading them but, I found that I wasn't in any hurry to find out what happened next (until the final fight in DMD - then I was hooked till the very end). This is the only thing that let it down for me but, it doesn't stop me from wanting to pick up the sequels in any way.

If you've read Dorothy Must Die and want to know more, I would definitely recommend reading this novella at least because it does explain how we get to DMD and the motives behind why Dorothy does what she does.

Image and synopsis from Goodreads. Quote is taken directly from the novella. No Copyright Intended.

The Jewel by Amy Ewing

The Jewel by Amy Ewing

Rating: 4 stars

Synopsis: "Today is my last day as Violet Lasting. Tomorrow I become Lot 197."

Sold for six million diamantes, Violet is now Surrogate of the House of the Lake in the centre of the Lone City, the Jewel. Her sole purpose is to produce a healthy heir for the Duchess – a woman Violet fears and despises.

Violet is trapped in a living death, her name and body no longer her own. She fights to hold on to her own identity and sanity, uncertain of the fate of her friends, isolated and at the mercy of the Duchess.

Review: I really enjoyed this book. It was really fast paced which kept me engaged throughout; there was never a moment where the action or suspense really let up, there was always something happening which I thought was actually a nice change from most books and was something a little bit different. In most books, you have high and low or fast and slow paced moments, which can sometimes mean you becoming disengaged from the plot or the characters. In this book, you really don't have a chance to lose interest! I didn't feel like the plot was being rushed though - it just bumped along nicely, until the end. At the end of the book, it did start to feel a little bit rushed; like there was so much that needed to happen in such a short space of time, but overall I think the pacing of this book was amazingly well done.

I thought the characters in this book were really well developed and complex. Violet is a really strong protagonist and powered through all the obstacles and challenges thrown at her in the best way that she could. I actually really liked the Duchess. I thought she was such an interesting character because you're never sure whether you can trust her or not and, although what she's doing to Violet is horrible she does take care of her, a lot better than Raven's mistress looks after her, so you're left feeling a little bit confused about the Duchess and her true motives when it comes to Violet.
Lucien is essentially Cinna in The Jewel. He gets Violet ready for the auction and then helps her fight the system. I think Lucien is the one character that I just wasn't that interested in because of this similarity.

I loved the world building and specifically, the hierarchy of the houses. It was so interesting to see how the houses interacted with each other and the competitiveness of the lower ranked houses to get a good surrogate in order to move up in the social standing. Those scenes were some of my favourites in the whole book.

The romance was good, if a little rushed. It happened very quickly but, I did like the romance aspect of the book. I enjoyed finding out about Ash's past and how he ended up in the house under the Duchess' thumb like Violet. He was a really likable character and I loved the scenes with him and Violet, even if their romance was the definition of a whirlwind romance!

The only reason this book didn't get 5 stars is because the end was predictable. Not enough to stop me from reading till the end, or putting me off, it just was very predictable because most first books in a dystopian series end in the same way. All in all though, this was a really enjoyable book and, if you enjoy reading YA dystopia then I would really recommend it.

Image from Goodreads - no Copyright Intended

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Rating: 4.5 stars

Synopsis: I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero. But when you're whole life gets swept up by a tornado - taking you with it - you have no choice but to go along, you know? Sure, I've read the books, I've seen the movies. But I never expected Oz to look like this. A place where Good Witches can't be trusted and Wicked Witches just might be the good guys. A place where even the yellow brick road is crumbling. What happened? Dorothy. My name is Amy Gumm - and I'm the other girl from Kansas. I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked, and I've been given a mission:

REMOVE THE TIN WOODMAN'S HEART.
STEAL THE SCARECROW'S BRAIN.

TAKE THE LION'S COURAGE.

And then: DOROTHY MUST DIE.

Review: So it's only taken me three months to get started on the pile of books I got for Christmas, but I've finally finished the first one and I really enjoyed it. Dorothy Must Die was probably the book I was most looking forward to reading and it didn't let me down! We follow Amy Gumm, the other girl from Kansas, who has no friends besides her mothers pet rat and even then it's a rocky friendship. Her mother is a drunk who would rather go out on the town with her friend than stay behind with her daughter when there's a tornado warning in force, leaving Amy to force the wonderful world of Oz alone. Great - what could go wrong in Oz I hear you ask. Try just about everything...

I really enjoyed this book. The way that Danielle twisted the world and characters that we (think) we know and love was so different and kept me hooked right till the very end. Everything you think you know about Oz is essentially flipped in this story but even then, nothing is as it seems. Just because the Wicked Witches are working together to stop Dorothy, it doesn't mean they can be trusted. They're called the Wicked Witches for a reason after all. Everyone in this story has an agenda and everyone has secrets and that impacts how the story unfolds because Amy, our heroine, is only told enough information to keep her alive, which means Amy (and therefore us as readers) are kind of on our own in this story because you can't trust anyone, which is different from a lot of books I've read before. There's usually one character, or a group of characters that the main character can trust, but not in this book.

I loved Amy as the main character. I thought she was strong and witty and clever. All too often in YA books, the main character has moments of what I like to call great stupidity - where they do the one thing they're not meant to do, purely for the sake of proving someone wrong. What was really refreshing in this book was that Amy was smart about pretty much everything. For me, there wasn't really a moment of great stupidity - everything she did made sense to me as a reader. Even deviating from what the Order of the Wicked told her to do (which wasn't much to be honest) still felt like a smart move, even if it did put the original plan in jeopardy. It gave both Amy and us as readers more information about Dorothy and her 'friends' and what they're reign is like. She doesn't pull her punches either. She knows that the witches aren't telling her everything, and that she's at a distinct disadvantage next to Dorothy, and she lets everyone know that she's not happy about it. It's refreshing to have such a perceptive main character who understands the position she's been forced into and immediately starts thinking about what happens next rather than someone who lets themselves be dictated to by those in a higher position of authority.

I really enjoyed the scenes with the Order of the Wicked. The idea that the Wicked Witches have banded together to help overthrow Dorothy was really interesting and I loved how each of their distinct personalities helped to prepare Amy for her time as a spy. I loved Glamora who is Glinda's sister and how she had tried to turn her room in the caves into a boudoir kind of place. Her talents seemed rather useless at the time but, once the story moves on, you realise that actually, what she taught Amy was as useful as the fight training she was given. It kind of reminded me of the phrase 'don't judge a book by it's cover' because Amy kind of dismissed Glamora when she met her but she actually taught her some valuable information. I also loved Gert. She seemd to be the most human of the witches and could empathise in some way with Amy's situation and really tried to help her. Her methods could be a bit shady at times (she is a Wicked Witch after all) but I really liked her character and the part she played in preparing Amy to take down Dorothy. Mombi however, is the wild card of the bunch. Even now, I'm not entirely sure what to make of her. She definitely has something up her sleeves and seems to be the most wicked out of all the witches. I think she's only with the Order to save herself and, once Dorothy is overthrown, Mombi will make a move to take over herself. That's what I think will happen anyway.

Oh Nox. Nox is a complete mystery to us, to Amy and even to himself. It's alluded that the witches have done something to him to make him into such a good fighter and you can definitely see them doing that. He's very focused on the aim of the mission. Everything he does is about killing Dorothy - that is the only thing that matters to him - but, you can see something changing in him, especially towards the end of the book. I'm really interested in seeing how he develops over the rest of the series and how he's going to grow as a person. Another prediction of mine (or wish, depending on how you look at it) is that Nox is going to realise that the witches have done something to him and will rebel against the order and go to find Amy to help her. That's what I want to happen.

The Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and the Lion are terrifying characters. You wouldn't want to run into any of them in a light alley, let alone a dark one! The 'modifications' that the Wizard gave them have changed them in ways you can't even imagine. What I loved about these characters was that Danielle built them up to be these terrifying characters who will do anything for Dorothy but then, she also showed their weaknesses. Specifically, in this book, the Tin Man's weakness. As the story progressed, I found myself feeling sorry for him because he just wants Dorothy to notice him as something more than a guard. The Scarecrow and the Lion not so much - we saw more of them being cruel than not, but the Tin Man - yeah, I definitely ended up feeling sorry for him.

This book was so amazing. The only thing that let it down a little for me was the ending - it did seem a little abrupt BUT book 2 is already out and book 3 is coming out this year so it's not too much of a problem for me. Plus, there's a book of novella's as well set in this world that Danielle has created which I can't wait to get my hands on. The world, the characters and...just everything about this book was so interesting and engaging and it really lived up to my expectations. If you enjoy retelling's of stories then this is one to pick up!

Image from Goodreads - no Copyright Intended