January 2017 Book Review: The City Darkens

THE CITY DARKENS

By Sophia Martin

~Book Review~

 

Warning! Minor Spoilers!

THIS IS A DELICIOUSLY DARK NOIR where class politics mix with cries for revolution in an alternate Scandinavian decopunk world. Myadar is an endearing highborn protagonist who knows little of the games the court plays but will stop at nothing to get her son back.

It is rare to find a book that distinguishes itself, but The City Darkens has a voice all of its own and no shortage of creativity when interweaving gods with robots and fleshing out the religious and political issues that have reached a turning point amongst the people.

Myadar is content to raise her adorable son Bersi in the countryside. However, then her devious mother-in-law shows up and demand their appearance at court. This means reuniting with her cruel husband. As all loyal supporters of Game of Thrones’ Ned Stark know, going to court is always a very bad idea. However, Myadar has no choice and later watches in horror as her son is taken from her and used as a pawn against her to force her to toe the line with her husband’s political agenda. Luckily, Myadar begins to explore the world around her to create a space for her choices, choices that will change the fate of the court and their people in ways none of them, even Myadar, could expect.

This is an atmospheric novel that combines intrigue with passion. Myadar quickly grows on the reader as a capable heroine open to exploring her sexuality with multiple partners, several of whom she must tread carefully, as they have scheming motives of their own. All in all, this book succeeds at capturing an air of danger as Myadar must work fast to turn the tables on her enemies and navigate a just as swiftly changing world.

Recommend for fans of: The Kushiel Dart series by Jacqueline Carey

Upcoming Book Review: Fate Fallen by Sharon Stevenson

Year of the Boar (Changeling Sisters #1.5) Now Available for Nook, Sony, Kobo Arc

Hi Everyone,

Year of the Boar (Changeling Sisters #1.5) is now available on Smashwords.com, Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Apple for eBook download. 

A young girl suffering from a mysterious illness teams up with a vampyre prince to stop an ancient evil invading the tropical shores of Hawai'i, and in turn, learns the truth about her heritage.

Happy Reading!

January 2017 Book Review: Wake

WAKE

By Amanda Hocking 

~Book Review~

Warning! Major spoilers!

OH, CANNIBALISTIC SIRENS.

Amanda Hocking knows how to create great hooks. In Wake, there are four beautiful and mysterious girls with entrancing voices who seem to have an unhealthy obsession with swimming at night. But one day, one of them disappears. Cursed to always have four sirens in their pod (?) lest they should die, these scaly mean girls are looking for a replacement…

Like I said, great and creepy idea, but the execution lacked. The writing style is superficial, and it was difficult to connect to Mary Sue— I mean, Gemma—let alone her protective older sister, Harper, who spends her days mooning over a boy. Gemma is beautiful, sensitive to others’ feelings, and a supernaturally good swimmer. The siren Penn, the most interesting character in the book, evilly plots to transform her into a flesh-eating siren, and I was just hoping she would hurry up to get to the action.

Considering they have existed since the time of Greek gods, the three villainous sirens are vain and don’t seem to have learned much. Hocking tells their back story in one info dump: they failed to protect a rather catty goddess, and thus they were cursed to be immortal and seduce men to their doom, but will never be loved in return. There is an easy way to break this curse: if they don’t have all four members by the full moon, then they die. However, Penn thinks their immortal siren lives are pretty great and has no interest in breaking the curse. She threatens Gemma’s family so Gemma is forced to go along with their wicked ways.

I found myself skimming repeatedly. The first chapter was neat, but after that, Gemma and her cardboard family go about their normal lives and say repeatedly that there is “something not right” about the siren girls without connecting the dots until halfway through the book. Right when the story gets interesting toward the last pages, it ends. However, due to the lack of caring about any of the characters, I won’t be checking in for what happens next in Lullaby. This is more for younger fans of urban fantasy lite books.

Recommended for fans of: Colleen Houck, Alexandra Adornetto, and Lauren Kate

Upcoming Book Review: Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson