Sara

even better than the first

Revisado: 02-17-25 El oyente recibió este título gratis

It felt like such a long wait between Feathers of Snow and Feathers in Blood, but oh so worth it! I loved Brianna in the first book, and the impossible situation she found herself in. But where book one ended in exile, book two shows her finding her courage and traveling to places and creatures undiscovered by most humans. It also veers far from the polite society of book one. Brianna learns to function outside of all the norms she is used to. She also lets anger get the best of her more than once, but I have to admit, I loved it when she and Jian fought, it made me love both of them so much more because it felt like the relationship mattered so much to both of them. They argued until they were understood and it was good. I also loved that they both rescued each other. It was much more violent than the previous book, but also an incredibly beautiful story.

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Remarkable Fairy Tale Retelling

Revisado: 03-01-24 El oyente recibió este título gratis

It's hard to tackle a fairy tale retelling when someone else has already done it well. In this case, The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale has become a classic. However, Alice Ivinya gave it a new twist and knocked it out of the park. First off, she reversed the roles. Imagine if the servant was forced by the evil princess to switch costumes so that the princess could go off and have fun rather than submit to an undesirable marriage. The worldbuilding was also incredible. Different regions were represented by different spirit animals. This is the first time an author had made Falada, the princess's talking horse, a logical part of the story rather than this odd magical nonsensical being. And Brianna, the lady-in-waiting, suddenly turned princess is a delight. She has her immature moments, but overall, she's such a good person. The same can be said of the prince. This made the twist at the end such a nerve-wracking experience. The false princess is always discovered, but how and by whom and what happens to her afterward, let's just say Brianna doesn't deserve any of those things. I'm happy to be left on a cliffhanger. There are a lot of details that remain unresolved, but I was pleased with the overall story arc and cannot wait for the next book to come out.

I received a free ARC from the author and have reviewed it willingly.

**Update for audio edition** Darn it, Alice, you made me cry again. I read this book three years ago. It was my introduction to Alice Ivinya's writing, and I loved instantly. When I saw she had just released an audio version, I knew I needed to revisit the story. It was as beautiful as I'd remembered. Alice has a beautiful way of writing characters that you fall in love with, despite their faults and struggles. Actually, it may be because of those very faults and struggles. It's a different experience to listen to a story, knowing how it's going to end, but I still rooted for Jian and Brianna. Despite everything, they're couple goals. I loved Brianna's guards as well. They each had a unique personality and so much heart. And I cried through the entire last chapter. I think audio frees up even more tears. But it's okay, I keep telling myself. I know what happens next. Lillian Rachel did a beautiful job narrating the story, and as always, I appreciate the author for giving me an audio ARC.

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A Delightful Romp

Revisado: 02-21-24 El oyente recibió este título gratis

Over the past year, I've developed a renewed love for fantasy that features as main characters. This charming story far exceeded my expectations.

Olifur, presumably named for his Dickensian counterpart, is a darling and precocious child. He experiences a great deal of tragedy as well as tremendous compassion. And while the story may be slow to start, the world building is delightful, and I enjoyed watching Olifur grow accustomed to his new life in the forest and getting to know his new companions.

But when a beloved mentor becomes gravely ill, Olifur sets out for the city by himself to find a doctor who can help. He is met with betrayal and learns how to be a bit more street-smart without losing any of the goodness that makes us love him so much. He might even be beginning to run off on some of his new friends.

This is a cozy story, with stakes that are personally high, without being world-ending. At least, not yet. And I loved Olifur so much. While this is a fantasy, it reminds us of how the good in one person can cause a ripple effect, changing the lives of far more people than one could ever anticipate.

I was given an audio arc by the author, which I solicited because I love her writing and her narrator so much, and I have reviewed this willingly.

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Fae Beauty and the Beast Selection

Revisado: 07-11-23 El oyente recibió este título gratis

Imagine The Selection, except the prince is a beast and the other contestants are all fae. Of course, we will root for the lone human girl. Because there are fae, you never know who you can trust, but some characters proved to be good and true while others were exactly what you might expect. There were also several love triangles, not my favorite trope, but they absolutely worked for this story. There were moments that felt a lot like The Selection and others that reminded me of Austenland. Were some of the characters planted to weed out deception and unlikely love interests? Or are they all who they say they are?

The world building was very fun. The castle grounds are a bit of Fairie that was transported to earth and hidden from the rest of the world. Fairies have four types of magic, and the first spell a faerie casts determines their specialty. And Aeryn, our favorite human girl, is sensible and loves research. Not quite your typical Belle character, but her love for books is very real.

This was a captivating tale with twists and turns that went all over the place. I found quite a few surprises at the end (even after all the backstabbing was finished). And for those of you concerned about the steam, it's mostly hinted at except for one open door bedroom scene that occurs just after a wedding (and you can easily skip over it if you want to). It was a delightful story. I'm thankful to have been given the opportunity to listen to it.

I was gifted an audio-ARC by the author who did a fabulous job narrating as she does with all of her books. I am reviewing willingly.

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Like How to Train Your Dragon, only Kinder

Revisado: 04-10-23 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This book was genius, and I could hardly put it down. Two kingdoms, Exclaimovia and Introvertia, are about as opposite as you can imagine, but a plot involving missing dragons brings together a teenager from each kingdom to prevent a war. The two are quite opposites, which makes their interactions fun, but I also loved to see how they both challenged each other. There was also a huge emphasis on kindness and empathy, far more than I am used to seeing in middle-grade books with their focus on action. There was still plenty of action though.

I also want to give a shout-out to the narrator, Chris Jackman. This is his debut audiobook, and the quality was fantastic. His character voicings were also particularly well done. I could listen to him read all day.

I received a free audio ARC from the narrator and have reviewed it willingly.

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Into the Unknown - Physically and Metaphysically

Revisado: 04-07-23 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This book is completely not a comfort zone read, but when the author described it to me, I was intrigued. It's also been one of those books that I kept talking to people about, with a lot of ideas that made me stop and think.

Ansel Black is the last detective in a world where crime is nearly non-existent. He works with ANI who seems to him like a person but is the artificial intelligence behind this brave new world. As he investigates a series of five murders, Ansel delves into the meaning of life and existence.

The book is initially hard to follow. The stories of the people murdered are interspersed throughout the book with no clear introduction or connection. There are also several flashbacks to how this strange civilization came to be (my favorite parts of the book, although they are also a bit painful). Ansel's philosophizing also brought up many significant questions, which are as well worth pondering in our world as in his.

I also listened to the audiobook version and was very impressed with the quality. The author's voice fit the tone of his novel perfectly, and the engineering was fantastic. It sounded very professional.

To be honest, this was a little too philosophical than I tend to enjoy, but I'm pretty sure that's a me problem. The author did a fantastic job balancing multiple styles of storytelling and if you like psychological and philosophical science fiction (is that a genre? if not, it should be), then you will love this book.

I received an audio ARC from the author and have reviewed it willingly.

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A Solid Watery Collection

Revisado: 10-10-22 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This watery collection included ten stories:

1. Daughter of the Selkie King
A girl learns her parentage and must decide whether she is meant to stay on land or sea.

2. Merrily Merrily
Zane should inherit his mother's ship and crew, but she has other plans. Will he find a way to win her approval or make his own way in the world?

3. The Kelpie of Loch Linnhe
A knight helps a maiden return to her home, but things may not be all they seem.

4. The Bridge
A woman learns a terrible secret and must decide if she will hold on to the past and her bitterness or move forward and accept good life for herself.

5. Kiss the Frog
When an enchanted frog tries to find a maiden to kiss him and break the enchantment, he ends up learning more than he bargained for.

6. Sea Ghost of the Isle
An American girl moves to Scotland and finds ghost stories coming to life around her.

7. The Naiad's Curse
This story felt like a fairy tale version of The Good Earth or The Golden Thread. A poor man makes a bargain that ends up costing more than he bargained for.

8. The Arctic Mermaid
A mermaid, an enchantress, and a king find their stories entertwined as the mermaid takes on an impossible quest and uncovers a story that could change the course of a kingdom.

9. Heartless Melody
The story of Peter Piper when he was a simple rat catcher, his first love, and how he got his enchanted pipe.

10. The Wishing Well
A girl of marriageable age makes a wish that affects her future in ways she doesn’t quite imagine.

I enjoyed most of the stories, but my favorites were Sea Ghost of the Isle, because of the way it delved into Scottish folklore and language, and Heartless Melody, because, well, I do love Peter and this explains so much of who he is. The Arctic Mermaid was also interesting and creative and I loved it until the ending. If you read it, we can talk, but I don't want to spoil anything.

All of the stories were well-written and engaging, and I would read any of the authors again. I was given a free review copy of the audiobook and have reviewed it willingly.

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Incredible Performance, Incredible Story

Revisado: 11-12-21 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This is such a fabulous series! This is my review of the first book because I don't want to spoil the series. But I just finished listening through the audiobooks for the entire series for a second time. Carol Beth Anderson does such an amazing job narrating her own books. I'm blown away every time. And the story itself is magical. I loved it so much. And without further ado, my review:

Princess Nora has lived a sheltered, protected life, which is perhaps why she is so intrigued by Krey's recklessness. After seeing him work magic on a tour of the country, she invites him back to the palace to intern (and hopefully help her strengthen her own magic). Little does she know that wrapped up in a world filled with his conspiracy theories and get more than a glimpse of life beyond the palace.

Krey just wants to find his girlfriend. After she was admitted to a special training program for those gifted with magic, he received a message that she wanted nothing more to do with him. Convinced that she would never write such a message of her own accord, he accepted Princess Nora's invitation so he could be closer to where his girlfriend was supposedly training. Unfortunately, proximity alone isn't enough to help him find her.

There is also a rebel group seeking to undermine the monarchy, but when negotiations fail, they seem willing to do whatever it takes to gain their independence. Would they risk an all-out war or secretly abduct magic users, forcing them to serve their cause?

Told primarily through Nora's perspective, the story is filled with twists and turns, new ideas, and her struggle to know who can be trusted. She begins to grow up as a result of her own quest, not for what is comfortable and known, but for what is true. She is also asked to make great sacrifices, and she comes through every time.

I liked Nora. I liked that even when she was a bit snotty, she always tried her best. I liked that she was willing to give up her own comforts, initially for the adventure of it, but ultimately for loyalty. I liked her idiocies with boys because she truly had no idea how to socialize with people of her own age. I was a bit annoyed by her constant "desire" for Ovrun. Sure, he was "hot," but he was also a really good person. It seemed like her distraction by his muscular physique overwhelmed the comfort she could have felt by his presence alone.

I liked Krey and his mistrust of everyone. His character made sense, especially when he finally revealed his history. I especially liked that there were dragons. Hopefully, future books in the series give us more of them.

The magic system was fascinating. While certain individuals were gifted with magic of various types, they had to feed their powers. Ice lysters gained power by eating ice, fire lysters by eating ashes, those with the power of flight by eating feathers, healers by drinking blood, etc. Some types of magic were definitely more repulsive and disturbing than others, but the system was consistent and it worked well for the story.

The beginning of each chapter also gave a hint at the history, as a former princess from the first generation after the change tells of conversations with her parents (who knew life before) as well as her own experiences.

I was given a free copy of the audiobook by the author and have reviewed it honestly.

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Epic Battle!

Revisado: 08-31-21 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This series is incredibly underrated. It is epic! I'm not even sure what to compare it to. It's like Prydain, but with a much larger scope and cast, Narnia but more complex, Lord of the Rings but for younger readers. I don't know how to give it justice. But the world that Jenelle has built is fantastic. There are dragons and minstrels, mermaids and sorcerers, kings and high kings, villains, and other great evils. This book was focused on an epic battle spanning multiple countries, revisiting old friends and older legends, and solving mysteries while hinting at greater ones to come. And what adventures to be had in this world! I can't wait to see where book four takes us.

I received a free copy of the audiobook from the narrator who did such a stupendous job with this novel (and all the complicated pronunciations) that I felt swept into this grand tale and I have reviewed it willingly.

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A Wonderful Adventure

Revisado: 08-28-21 El oyente recibió este título gratis

This review is for the audiobook version of The Queen's Opal. I want to mention first that John Pirhalla does a fabulous job with all the voices and I could listen to him read all day. Which is basically what I did when I was listening to this book.

The story is fantastic. The elven queen dies of sickness, and of course, that isn't supposed to happen because only humans die that way, but she dies. The thing is, she isn't the first to die of this mysterious sickness, although the two princes, Drynn and his brother Tayvin, weren't supposed to find that out. Together, they set off on a quest to learn healing from the humans. But the humans aren't a fan of elves and the brothers are soon separated. But who can be trusted in this new land they find themselves in?

I loved the characters in this story. They were so interesting and unique. They all had agendas, some darker and more mysterious than others, but it was fun to watch them play out. The story also felt like something entirely new, which caught me by surprise. I laughed aloud on several occasions, and I found myself rooting for many of the characters, wanting them to be good, wanting them to learn from their mistakes, wanting them to not lose their innocence and trust in others. And for the most part, I got those wishes.

And there are magical creatures too! But I won't spoil what kind.

I received a free audiobook from the author and have reviewed it willingly.

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