Category: Romance

Books, Indie, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy

BOOK REVIEW: The Mine (Northwest Passage #1) by John A. Heldt

by ZaheerahLeave a Comment on BOOK REVIEW: The Mine (Northwest Passage #1) by John A. Heldt

You Can Find the Book At:

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GoodReads Summary:

In May 2000, Joel Smith is a cocky, adventurous young man who sees the world as his playground. But when the college senior, days from graduation, enters an abandoned Montana mine, he discovers the price of reckless curiosity. He emerges in May 1941 with a cell phone he can’t use, money he can’t spend, and little but his wits to guide his way.

Stuck in the age of swing dancing and a peacetime draft, Joel begins a new life as the nation drifts toward war. With the help of his 21-year-old trailblazing grandmother and her friends, he finds his place in a world he knew only from movies and books. But when an opportunity comes to return to the present, Joel must decide whether to leave his new love in the past or choose a course that will alter their lives forever.

My Review:

Rating: ★★★★☆

~Review copy provided by author in exchange for an honest review~

For twenty-four hours, beginning about noon Eastern Daylight Time, six planets from our solar system will fall into a rough alignment with the sun

Joel Smith is a brash college senior who enters an abandoned mine shaft at the same time as a rare alignment is taking place. He enters the mine in the year 2000, and leaves in the year 1941.The summer before December 7, 1941, and Joel Smith is the only one who knows what’s to come.

Joel has no choice but to adapt to life in the 40s. With nothing more than the clothes on his back, and the item in his pockets that shouldn’t exist, Joel has a keen wit and warm heart that allows him to embark on a journey to his hometown Seattle where he manages to befriend his grandmother and embarks on an adventure that could change the course of his life.

Joel is a likeable main character, who is resourceful but is constantly burdened with guilt when he has to hide his knowledge of upcoming tragedies. Despite his best efforts, he grows to love the life of the 40s. Heldt has created a cast of interesting character and a plot that wasn’t confusing which made it easier to read and understand. The side characters were deep in detail and very likeable. Heldt did a great job and made this book a quick, and delightful read.

My only complaint about this story is how easily Joel adapted to life and how he had taken it quite easily when he learnt that he was in the 1940s. I wanted a little more action and suspense within the novel but, overall, Heldt has created a time travel novel was interesting and enjoyable to read.

Books, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Young Adult/ Teen

BOOK REVIEW: The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1) by Samantha Shannon

by ZaheerahLeave a Comment on BOOK REVIEW: The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1) by Samantha Shannon

you can find the book at:

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Amazon
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Author Website

goodreads summary:

The year is 2059. Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people’s minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.

It is raining the day her life changes for ever. Attacked, drugged and kidnapped, Paige is transported to Oxford – a city kept secret for two hundred years, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. Paige is assigned to Warden, a Rephaite with mysterious motives. He is her master. Her trainer. Her natural enemy. But if Paige wants to regain her freedom she must allow herself to be nurtured in this prison where she is meant to die.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine and also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

my review:

Rating:★★★☆☆

 

The novel follows Paige, a dreamwalker in 2059, her ability alone makes her a criminal. But when she accidentally kills someone, she is sent to a prison-like place which is controlled by creatures called Rephaim who want to use the voyants abilities for their own gain. She is assigned to a keeper called simply “Warden”, a mysterious man who takes a deep interest in her. (lmao you can already tell can’t you?)

I know this sounds stupid, but I feel really guilty for not liking this book as much as I should have. For the past two years, in every trip to the bookstore, I always saw this on the shelves and really wanted to read it.

The author creates a fantasy novel that is already familiar and fundamentally over complicates it by throwing in new words for things that already existed making it such a long-winded read that’s so overly descriptive, it all sounds original. The book, primarily, is a massive info dump, making it difficult to read. The novel prioritises action over a plot that makes more sense and better character development.

The characters were too dull in my opinion. You could probably kill them all off, and I wouldn’t care at all. They lacked any sort of personality or development that was built gradually. It felt as if the author only included such moments at the time it felt appropriate and useful to the plot.

Despite all the cons in this book for me, what really dragged it down to three stars was the romance. So forced and completely unnecessary, with no decent development at all. It literally comes out of nowhere. Paige gets captured by the Rephaim and is told that she is part of Bone Season XX. The Rephaite catches people and saves them for every 10 years to compete in this unique contest to see who gets to be their exclusive servant. Paige is then picked by the Warden to be his individual slave. And their romance is literally stretched throughout the novel, the gradual development just didn’t feel realistic because of the situation. It is a master/slave type of a relationship, which felt so disbelieving and was slightly uncomfortable to read.

Paige as a character was completely weak. People hail her as such a strong woman, but the author has literally only created a character with one good quality, the power everyone is using her for, and even she doesn’t realise it fully. She just felt too predictable. Also, I did like her growing relationship with Seb. His character was interesting since he was the only one of the leading group with no ability, but it’s a shame it didn’t last long.

I will probably read the next book in the series. Hopefully, the info dump had lessened, but the prospect of an eight-book series does not excite me at all, maybe the sheer number of books is what made it felt stretched out.

Overall, I think the writing is well done, and the action scenes were exciting and thrilling, but the plot and characters were all over the place, and the flashbacks which tried to give insight just took too long, and some scenes felt non-contributing to the book or could have been shortened.

Books, Contemporary, Romance

BOOK REVIEW: The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

by ZaheerahLeave a Comment on BOOK REVIEW: The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

you can find the book at:

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Author Website

goodreads summary:

This is a book about books. All sorts of books, from Little Women and Harry Potter to Jodi Picoult and Jane Austen, from to Stieg Larsson to Joyce Carol Oates to Proust. It’s about the joy and pleasure of books, about learning from and escaping into them, and possibly even hiding behind them. It’s about whether or not books are better than real life.

It’s also a book about a Swedish girl called Sara, her elderly American penfriend Amy and what happens when you land a very different kind of bookshop in the middle of a town so broken it’s almost beyond repair.

Or is it?

my review:

Rating: ★★★☆☆

~ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review~

Sara worked in a bookstore in Sweden and over time became friends with Amy, an elderly American who lived in Broken Wheel, Iowa, creating a bond of friendship over their love of books. So when Sara loses her job and is invited to Broken Wheel, Sara takes that chance.

But not everything has a fairy tale ending. Upon entering Broken Wheel, Sara learns that Amy has died and Broken Wheel isn’t at its best. No jobs, few businesses, Broken Wheel reeks of hopelessness. With the help from the townspeople, Sara decides to stay and starts up a bookstore in memory of Amy.

Sara is easily an identifiable character for me, a shy woman who escapes real life into the world of literature and this book was great to read. Filled with charm, and a weird (but loveable) array of characters, this book was a joy to read. Although the romance was light, it was still a story of love: love for books and friendship, this truly is a wonderful read.

However, the beginning of the book was intriguing to read; the responses to the friendship of Sara and Amy was interesting but as the book progressed, it did lose a bit of charm and felt like it was dragging on far too much. I wanted to care about the inhabitants of Broken Wheel, but a select few were often flat and blurred together.

Overall, the bookish element is enjoyable and satisfying to read as it’s pretty much constant and there was a load of lovely moments, including Amy’s letters to Sara..

Books, Contemporary, LGBTQIA, Romance, Young Adult/ Teen

BOOK REVIEW: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

by ZaheerahLeave a Comment on BOOK REVIEW: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz

You Can Find the Book At:

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Author Bio

GoodReads Summary:

Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common.

But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.

My Review:

Rating: ★★★★★

(spoilers in review)

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe is a story of two friends, Ari and Dante, who meet at age 15 and forge a friendship through a summer of sheer boredom. Their developing friendship is sweet and playful, making it a fantastic story of friendship which later develops into love.

The story is narrated by Ari a loner who lives in a state of constant anger: at the secrets, his family keeps from him, at his father for not being open. Then he meets Dante, who is his opposite. Dante’s quick to laugh, an artist and a philosopher. Except as it turns out, they are not so different after all. Ari learns to let go of his anger and goes through a series of moments of self-discovery. It’s fascinating to see that Ari’s narrative is somewhat unreliable because it is apparent that Ari represses his feelings because he doesn’t know them either – and his actions speak louder than his words.

However, I really wished there had been more of a development with Ari and his brother. The mystery behind his brother was absorbing and I wished it was followed through to the end. The ending of the book also felt rushed and abrupt.

Overall, Aristotle and Dante is an engaging coming-of-age story and a thoughtful exploration of identity and sexuality. This story is heartwarming and an extremely worthwhile read.

Books, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Young Adult/ Teen

BOOK REVIEW: Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell

by ZaheerahLeave a Comment on BOOK REVIEW: Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell

you can find the book at:

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Author Website

goodreads summary:

Nicolette’s awful stepsisters call her “Mechanica” to demean her, but the nickname fits: she learned to be an inventor at her mother’s knee. Her mom is gone now, though, and the Steps have turned her into a servant in her own home.

But on her sixteenth birthday, Nicolette discovers a secret workshop in the cellar and begins to dare to imagine a new life for herself. Could the mysterious books and tools hidden there—and the mechanical menagerie, led by a tiny metal horse named Jules—be the key to escaping her dreary existence? With a technological exposition and royal ball on the horizon, the timing might just be perfect for Nicolette to earn her freedom at last.

Gorgeous prose and themes of social justice and family shine in this richly imagined Cinderella retelling about an indomitable inventor who finds her prince . . . but realizes she doesn’t want a fairy tale happy ending after all.

my review:

Rating: ★★★☆☆

~ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review~

I’m so disappointed with this book because it had the potential to be brilliant. Like other Cinderellas, Nicolette is at the mercy of her cruel stepmother and sisters. She’s treated like dirt and forced to work as a servant in her own family home. Unknown to her stepfamily, Nicolette has a talent for engineering and hides her mother’s old inventions away in her workroom. She plans to sell her designs to make enough money to leave and, hopefully, repurchase her family home from her stepmother’s clutches.

The concept is fantastic. Nicolette wants to save herself, remove herself from her toxic environment but on her own terms. The emphasis is not on romance but on the importance of friendship. And the importance of loving yourself rather than loving the prince. But there is no climax. The story flows quick and easy, but there’s nothing that fuels excitement, no internal conflict that was satisfying to read.

Overall, this book was enjoyable. How likely I would recommend this book will be varying, depends on my mood I think. But the ending was was cute, and honestly one of my favourite for a fairy tale retelling.

Books, Romance, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Young Adult/ Teen

BOOK REVIEW: An Ember In The Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

by Zaheerah2 Comments on BOOK REVIEW: An Ember In The Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

you can find the book at:

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Amazon
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Author Website

 

my review:

Rating: ★★★★☆

“You are an ember in the ashes, Elias Veturius. You will spark and burn, ravage and destroy. You cannot change it. You cannot stop it.”

 

Laia is one of the Scholars – now ruled over by the Martial Empire – many of whom are poor and illiterate. When her brother is arrested by the Masks, she seeks out the Resistance for help. However, they demand that in return she must enter Blackcliff Military Academy as a slave to spy on the Commandant. Elias – the son of the Commandant – makes up the other perspective in this book.

The two main characters each have their own point of view, which I loved and was captivated by both. Laia and Elias have some major internal struggles going on. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I felt strongly for the characters, and the plot kept me going and I couldn’t put this book down! Both are unsure of the person that they are and what kind of person they want to be. It was beautiful to see them find the strength within themselves to survive in the very different but equally challenging positions they are in. It was lovely seeing their stories intertwine and seeing these similarities come to light. I was engrossed in the story, while it was slow-paced and the action not present throughout, I never felt the lack of it. A right balance was offered.

However, this isn’t really a complete story. The beginning doesn’t spend any time at all fleshing out the characters before everything changes for them. Rather than laying a foundation, Tahir pushes us right into the action. While this would annoy me for most books, but with Embers, it worked, and I was sped through this. It’s getting a sequel, and I’m glad because this is in no way a functional standalone, that some people thought it would be, since so many storylines were left unresolved. I thought it was well-paced and remained engaging throughout. There are a lot of flaws to point out, and a lot could have been improved.

Another aspect that had room for improvement was the romance. I’ll give Tahir credit, as I didn’t find it as bad, but I had a hard time buying some of the attractions between characters because they rarely interact. Overall, I had a fun time reading this, it’s an alright starter for a promising YA fantasy series. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for book 2!