Review | Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder (+ book swap footnote)

Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder (Study #1)
Published October 1, 2005 by MIRA, 431 pp.
Summary:

Murder, mayhem and magic…

Locked in a coffin-like darkness, there is nothing to distract me from my memories of killing Reyad. He deserved to die—but according to the law, so do I. Here in Ixia, the punishment for murder is death. And now I wait for the hangman’s noose.

But the same law that condemns me may also save me. Ixia’s food taster—chosen to ensure that the Commander’s food is not poisoned—has died. And by law, the next prisoner who is scheduled to be executed—me—must be offered the position.

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Ahh I love Yelena’s world! Even if I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes, I definitely want to explore more of Ixia. I thought Maria V. Snyder’s writing was great and her characters were all written pretty well, even if I couldn’t connect to them in this book. So glad I decided to start this on a whim while I was waiting and managed to finish this overnight!

Review | The Immortal Heights by Sherry Thomas

The Immortal Heights by Sherry Thomas (The Elemental Trilogy #3)
Published October 13, 2015 by Balzer + Bray, 432 pp.
Summary:

In a pursuit that has spanned continents, Iolanthe, Titus, and their friends have always managed to remain one step ahead of the forces of Atlantis. But now the Bane, the monstrous tyrant who bestrides the entire mage world, has issued his ultimatum: Titus must hand over Iolanthe, or watch as his entire realm is destroyed in a deadly rampage. Running out of time and options, Iolanthe and Titus must act decisively to deliver a final blow to the Bane, ending his reign of terror for good.

However, getting to the Bane means accomplishing the impossible—finding a way to infiltrate his crypt in the deepest recesses of the most ferociously guarded fortress in Atlantis. And everything is only made more difficult when new prophecies come to light, foretelling a doomed effort…

Iolanthe and Titus will put their love and their lives on the line. But will it be enough?

With The Immortal Heights, Sherry Thomas brings the acclaimed Elemental Trilogy to its breathtaking conclusion.

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If there’s one thing I will say about this series, it’s that this probably has one of my favourite romances ever. I love that Titus is so lovestruck and has zero qualms about expressing his love for Iolanthe.

That being said, The Immortal Heights is a satisfying end to the series: the characters we have come to know all have neatly tied ribbons around their stories, villains get their comeuppance, and I have another series finished under my belt!! Yay!

Farewell to August, Random Life Updates™, ETC. (ﾉ^∇^)ﾉﾟ

Well would you look at that! I read more books than I expected, even if most of them aren’t from my TBR…. *looks around shiftily* With the end of August I’ll once again pretend we have fall here, even if all the weather does until the end of the year is alternate between raining cats and dogs to scorching summer heat.

Review | Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch

Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch (Snow Like Ashes #2)
Published October 13, 2015 by Balzer + Bray, 479 pp.
Summary:

It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.

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Ice Like Fire is the broody, sulky sibling. The one that internalises everything because they feel that the burden is theirs alone, and they alone can solve the problems of the world.

Actually the latter statement is applicable to all the characters in Ice Like Fire, it’s like everyone is infected with a healthy dose of Noble Idiocy so everyone thinks they can solve Primoria’s problems by themselves. I know this is supposed to be Meira’s journey of self-discovery and reflection as she transitions from being warrior to queen, but I keep on thinking back to Invasion of the Tearling. Kelsea went through the same thing, of going from a place of having no responsibility but suddenly you’re thrust in the middle of it all and everyone expects you to fail but at the same time hopes you succeed. In equal measure. The difference is that I didn’t skim over the pages as I read and I didn’t find it so slow.

The Mid-Year Book Freakout Tag

I was tagged by Vivian @ Inked In Pages and Monique @ That Wild Soul. Be sure to check out their posts! I added a few books to my TBR thanks to their answers heh.

This tag was created by Chami @ ReadLikeWildFire and Ely @ Ely Jayne on YouTube. It’s where we look back at (and freak out over) the books we’ve read during the past six months.

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BEST BOOK YOU’VE READ SO FAR IN 2016

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

Six of Crows is probably my favorite book so far this year. My review probably didn’t do enough justice as to how much I loved this book, but I loved the setting, the writing, and most of all the characters. I’m rooting for a happy ending for everyone, although I have a feeling it won’t be that way…

Honestly I’m just happy that the hype was real and well-deserved. This, along with Uprooted by Naomi Novik, is a book I’d enthusiastically recommend to anyone.

Review | Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg

Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg
Published June 28, 2016 by 47North, 306 pp.
Copy provided by NetGalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Summary:

Maire is a baker with an extraordinary gift: she can infuse her treats with emotions and abilities, which are then passed on to those who eat them. She doesn’t know why she can do this and remembers nothing of who she is or where she came from.

When marauders raid her town, Maire is captured and sold to the eccentric Allemas, who enslaves her and demands that she produce sinister confections, including a witch’s gingerbread cottage, a living cookie boy, and size-altering cakes.

During her captivity, Maire is visited by Fyel, a ghostly being who is reluctant to reveal his connection to her. The more often they meet, the more her memories return, and she begins to piece together who and what she really is—as well as past mistakes that yield cosmic consequences.

From the author of The Paper Magician series comes a haunting and otherworldly tale of folly and consequence, forgiveness and redemption.

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If someone asks me what fantasy is, I’d probably show them this book. Granted, it might not be the best fantasy book, but as something that encompasses the general definition* of the genre, Magic Bitter, Magic Sweet I think fits the bill perfectly. It’s got magic (you don’t say), otherworldly creatures, and phenomenal baked goods. Yup.

August TBR!

Hello, August! This month features sequels, except for one. (Spot it, lmao) I find myself reading series most of the time, and this TBR reminded me of that. I need a really great standalone soon, haha. As always, I am open to recommendations! 😀

Ice Like Fire by Sara Raasch

It’s been three months since the Winterians were freed and Spring’s king, Angra, disappeared—thanks largely to the help of Cordell.

Meira just wants her people to be safe. When Cordellan debt forces the Winterians to dig their mines for payment, they unearth something powerful and possibly dangerous: Primoria’s lost chasm of magic. Theron sees this find as an opportunity—with this much magic, the world can finally stand against threats like Angra. But Meira fears the danger the chasm poses—the last time the world had access to so much magic, it spawned the Decay. So when the king of Cordell orders the two on a mission across the kingdoms of Primoria to discover the chasm’s secrets, Meira plans to use the trip to garner support to keep the chasm shut and Winter safe—even if it means clashing with Theron. But can she do so without endangering the people she loves?

Mather just wants to be free. The horrors inflicted on the Winterians hang fresh and raw in Januari—leaving Winter vulnerable to Cordell’s growing oppression. When Meira leaves to search for allies, he decides to take Winter’s security into his own hands. Can he rebuild his broken kingdom and protect them from new threats?

As the web of power and deception weaves tighter, Theron fights for magic, Mather fights for freedom—and Meira starts to wonder if she should be fighting not just for Winter, but for the world.

I have been eyeing Ice Like Fire with trepidation, to be honest. The reviews don’t give me much hope, but I’ll do it. I’ll dive straight into this one! (If Meira doesn’t want Theron, can I have him? I loved him in Snow Like Ashes.)

July Wrap-Up and Stuff to Come! ヽ( ･∀･)ﾉ

July has come and gone quicker than I expected – and with another month that has passed, we’re just that much closer to the releases of some of my most anticipated books of the year (The Beauty of Darkness! Crooked Kingdom! The Fate of the Tearling!). But before I welcome August, let me wrap up July first!

First Lines Fridays: 29 July 2016

It’s the last week of July you guys omgg. So has anything good happened to you all this month? 😀 Or this week? Today?

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

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Have you guys read this sequel?

Five enemies.

Five dented helmets sit lopsided over five equally dented breastplates; five black suns shine, scratched yet distinct, on the silver metal.

Review | The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas

The Perilous Sea by Sherry Thomas (The Elemental Trilogy #2)
Published September 16, 2014 by Balzer + Bray, 448 pp.
Summary:

Iolanthe and Titus continue their mission to defeat the Bane in this striking sequel to The Burning Sky—perfect for fans of Cinda Williams Chima and Kristin Cashore—which Publishers Weekly called “a wonderfully satisfying magical saga” in a starred review and Kirkus Reviews said “bids fair to be the next big epic fantasy success.”

After spending the summer away from each other, Titus and Iolanthe (still disguised as Archer Fairfax) are eager to return to Eton College to resume their training to fight the Bane. Although no longer bound to Titus by blood oath, Iolanthe is more committed than ever to fulfilling her destiny—especially with the agents of Atlantis quickly closing in.

Soon after arriving at school, though, Titus makes a shocking discovery, one that throws into question everything he believed about their mission. Faced with this revelation, Iolanthe struggles to come to terms with her new role, while Titus must choose between following his mother’s prophecies—or forging a divergent path to an unknowable future.

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Seriously, Titus can have my heart anytime. Take it, take it I say! Now that’s out of the way, I have to say I like this second book in the Elemental Trilogy! It didn’t lack action, there’s character growth, and the romance in this series is probably one of my favourites already.

I’d suggest skipping the summary altogether so everything still remains a bit of a mystery. And as always, if y’all would like an abridged version, head to the TL;DR at the bottom! 😀