So in my humble opinion, this book never quite reached the emotional highs and desperate lows of the Blades of Acktar series. It simply wasn'HOLY COW.
So in my humble opinion, this book never quite reached the emotional highs and desperate lows of the Blades of Acktar series. It simply wasn't quite as compelling-- I didn't love the characters /quite/ as much, and I wasn't quite as crazy about the characters. BUT! I think I felt the same way about Dare, the first book in Blades of Acktar, when I read it the first time. So, I'm not taking off points for that. It's just that I wasn't as crazy about this story (but Tricia Mingerink will absolutely always be an auto-buy author for me ;))
Despite this, there's SO MUCH to love about this first book in a new series! The fairy-tale retelling aspect is so fun (I loved the unconventional take on Sleeping Beauty, and the fact that the traditional elements were THERE but DIFFERENT...let's just say all the love for that). The "spindle" becomes a dagger, and I love the way that aspect was implemented. The "true love's kiss"....well, let's just say that I won't spoil anything because it's so much better to find it out for yourself when you read the book for yourself ;)
World-building! Perfection! I was initially a little weirded out by the Western aspect, but Mingerink had me convinced in just a few pages. Because this was PERFECT. The canoeing. The "tribal" feeling to the whole thing. The buffalo hunt! Log cabins and pioneers! Dangerous paths through the mountains!!!! I LOVED IT. ALL OF IT.
And the characters. I didn't feel like they were quite as wonderful as the Blades characters, but they were still amazing. I ADORE stories with strong character arcs (especially ones where an arrogant self-centered guy who could be so great figures out that he's got issues) and Alex's was no exception. He was terrific. Rosanna was a relatable heroine--strong but not ridiculous. I adored her. And DAEMYN. DON'T GET ME STARTED. He was amazing. (And the plot twist with him was just like O_o) The other characters weren't quite as amazing (although ZEKE WAS EXCELLENT, and I really appreciated Rosanna's brothers. Let me just say I love brother-sister relationships in fiction. ;)) Berend was terrific.
The allegory-type plot thread was brilliantly done. I loved it. SO INSANELY GOOD.
I think overall I'd give this book 4.5 stars. Because it wasn't QUITE as amazing as the Blades of Acktar, but as a series beginning it has SO much potential and I can't wait to see where Rosanna, Daemyn, and Alex go next! (And let me just say....that ending scene. With a certain character. If you've read the book, you know what I speak. If you haven't, WHY HAVEN'T YOU. My heart split into a thousand tiny pieces, but that's okay this time, Tricia...you put it back together XD)
Definitely recommend this one. Buy it. Read it. Love it.
So I made myself finish this. I did receive it in exchange for a review, but review was not required.
I'll be quite honest--I hated this book. I'm goiSo I made myself finish this. I did receive it in exchange for a review, but review was not required.
I'll be quite honest--I hated this book. I'm going to try to find some good things, but we'll see. XD
POSITIVES: +The 1400s was kind of a cool setting! I didn't feel like it was utilized as much as it could have been, but that's an era I haven't read a ton of fiction from.
+Childhood friends to lovers is a trope I enjoy, so the fact that it was present (despite the fact that I wasn't thrilled with the way it was executed) was fun.
+Abu, while not a terribly interesting character, was cute.
NEGATIVES: -Oh boy, where to start.
-For one thing there's the awkward fact that while this is ADVERTISED as an Aladdin retelling, other than the obvious fact that the male lead was named Aladdin and he had a little sidekick named Abu, I couldn't have told that for the life of me. I can kind of find some parallels? But for the most part they were not present at all.
-The characters were incredibly flat, and also insanely Mary-Sue and Gary-Stu-ish. The only word I can come up with to describe Aladdin is "perfect." Don't believe me? Take the word of the other characters for it. They probably called him that fifty times over the course of this novel. Aladdin is perfect. Kirstyn is beautiful. Abu is young. Michael is cruel. There's no depth to these characters, and it made it incredibly difficult to care about any of them. Eventually, I stopped trying.
-The writing style is uninspired, flat, and rank with "telling not showing." I'll concede that this is something I need to work on myself...I'm not always good at writing with showing and not telling. But in a published book by a famous author? I don't know. I never connected with the world, and I felt like the scenes that were supposed to be suspenseful were way too short and undetailed.
-On that note, I was never genuinely worried about the characters at all. So there's that.
-The world was simply never clear to me. Like, they were constantly talking about Aladdin being "King Midas with the golden touch" but when did that story originate? Was it around in the 1400s? I'm just not sure. And then there were some other things that maybe I simply wasn't picturing right...but again, it just didn't make sense.
-The dialogue. Oh, the dialogue. So cringey. I'm sorry. It was...sad, honestly. In context: They are drinking water from a stream in the woods. They're like twelve.
Kirstyn: "It's refreshing. Try some." Aladdin: "Good. Whoever lived here chose a favorable spot for fresh water."
This is just a random example. The book is full of dialogue like this, and I'm...just not a fan. Sorry. :/
-Then the sheer number of flashbacks to Aladdin and Kirstyn's childhood walks in the woods, where apparently all they ever did was talk about what good friends they were and how they never wanted this to change. I...don't know how accurate this is. Seems like they should have a lot more memories of chasing each other through a forest and swimming and playing games than of telling each other how much they love each other (JUST AS FRIENDS!!!!!) as little kids.
-The plot was kind of all over the place. I just....was there a plot, beyond Aladdin becoming successful? Besides the romance? I don't even know.
I'm going to give this book 2.5 stars, because I did finish it and I really tried to find a couple of positive things to say about it. But overall? I did not like this book. That doesn't mean I don't recommend it...this is more a matter of personal taste than anything, I think. But it does mean that I don't think I'll be reading anything more by this author in future. A pity...I had really hoped to like this one. ...more
Not really my genre, and a bit too short, I think--although it is a short story--but in and of itself, it's a sweet and quiet liThis book was so cute!
Not really my genre, and a bit too short, I think--although it is a short story--but in and of itself, it's a sweet and quiet little book that I very much enjoyed. I don't read a ton of contemporary romance, yet here we are, and Faith Potts certainly has a talent for writing lovable characters that draw me into the stories of a genre I don't particularly seek out.
Shay and Daniel were both sweeties; I loved the fact that there was so much ASL, and the way it was incorporated into the story. The plot was simple but sweet. Honestly, I think "sweet" is the perfect word to describe this little story.
Four stars. Well done, Faith! :D
Content: A character is punched a few times, not graphically described, but it is in there. A couple of cheek/forehead kisses, but the romance is incredibly clean and sweet. Overall, this book is VERY clean indeed. <3 ...more
This was a very excellent book, I must admit. It was a bit outside my usual genre, and historical has never been my favorite. However, I still very muThis was a very excellent book, I must admit. It was a bit outside my usual genre, and historical has never been my favorite. However, I still very much enjoyed it, and appreciated the whole mystery-interwoven-with-faith thing--you don't see that too often in fiction. <3
Poor Olivia. I felt so bad for her the whole time, although I think it would have been nice to know exactly how old she was--thirteen or fourteen, I was thinking, although it could have been slightly older? I don't know.
And poor Cyril! I spent much of the book disliking him, and then we found out what the real problem was and....POOR GUY. My goodness. :'(
The plot was good, although not as strong, perhaps, as it could have been. I felt a little more detail into Cyril's actual detective work might have been nice.
So much emotion in this story! My goodness! I actually wanted to cry once or twice. Sibling stories are always close to my heart. <3
I think I'd give this one 3.5 stars (seriously, Goodreads? Get some half stars!!!!) A good, solid, Christian historical mystery, and I can't wait to see what else Victoria Lynn has up her sleeve! ;) ...more
Disclaimer: I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own (although, seriously! This book isDisclaimer: I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own (although, seriously! This book is awesome! And it's been on my TBR forever, so I'm so happy that I got it for free!!!)
Okay... where to start? I guess I should provide a synopsis... Albany York has a secret.
Albany and her twin sister, Brooklyn, have spent years successfully hiding their telepathic connection. But when a girl falls unconscious at their doorstep, the girls learn that they might not be the only people in the world with extraordinary powers and that a memory thief is on the loose. As the twins try to help the girl find her memories, they discover that the superhero world might be bigger—and more dangerous—than they ever imagined.
This was a super fun book! I enjoyed every minute of it, and was really happy with the way it ended. Now I'd like book 2, please. ^_^
LIKES: -Albany! Normally, when writing a first-person protagonist, it's really hard to get much of a unique voice from them (or at least, that's what I've found.) Much of the time, despite the fact that the author claims the voice is different, it's just... not. That was definitely not the case with Twinepathy. Albany was a real, living, breathing character with a very unique and fun voice. I enjoyed reading from her POV, and didn't wish it away a single time. -Brooklyn. I love how she and Albany loved each other and were really close, even though they also whined about each others' personalities and got annoyed by one another. It felt like a very honest sibling dynamic, which I enjoyed. But Brooklyn was a terrific character! -Blaze. I didn't love him as much as some people did (based on the other reviews of the book) but he was still pretty awesome. His sense of humor was beyond amazing. (Also, I'd like to know what his real name is. I'm suspicious that it is... Blaze. -The locations! I felt like they were underused sometimes, but it was so cool that their HQ was in Antarctica (and the explanation for how they stayed warm there! That poor guy!) Trips to London, a beach island, and all over the place were rollicking fun, and I was constantly trying to guess where Blaze would take them next. -The pacing! The book kept me guessing and reading without being too fast-paced. It was basically perfect. -Maddie. She was adorable. -The plot, basically, was amazing.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: -There was a subplot with one of the characters that didn't really feel resolved. Cook is probably saving that for the sequel, but a lot of people were in serious danger during that scene and they just... paid no attention to it later on. (Also: Why is there no sequel yet. I need the sequel. Today, please, if possible. XD) -Some of the names were just...weird. Like Ezra (who's a girl?) And Keller and Genesis? I was seriously weirded out by a few of the names, although that didn't really tamper my enjoyment of the book. -Superhero stuff has never been my favorite, although I definitely still enjoy it. So simply because of the genre, it won't become one of my new favorite books.
However! It's so good, and I would 100% recommend! This book is completely clean, and just because I had a few minor quibbles with it does not for one second make it bad. I simply need the next book with more of Albany and Brooklyn and Blaze and Jen. Please, C.B. Cook? *puppy dog eyes*
Oh, boy. *sighs* Seems like I’m joining Mary Horton with the slightly controversial opinion on this book. I actually got a review copy several months Oh, boy. *sighs* Seems like I’m joining Mary Horton with the slightly controversial opinion on this book. I actually got a review copy several months ago and read it pretty fast...but I haven’t done a review til now. Because I needed a LOOOOT of time to process my thoughts on this book.
I will make a bullet list of likes and dislikes kind of jumbled together. :P
-So the setting was cool! I feel like it wasn’t optimized on anywhere near as much as it could have been, but it was still cool. Europe during WWII is one of my favorite his-fic settings, and I really did enjoy that.
-I went to the National Holocaust Museum in Washington DC last summer and it absolutely crushed my heart. I don’t think I will ever recover from that. So some of the scenes right at the beginning where people were sent away to the camps really affected me. That was nice, in a painful kind of way.
-However...I don’t know. It just didn’t feel quite as emotional as I might have liked, especially when (view spoiler)[Joyanna’s family was taken. I just feel like she got over it really really fast. (hide spoiler)]
-Erich’s love of reading was the BEST. I absolutely loved the fact that the thing that excited him the most about the new house was the library. XD
-Gil and David’s friendship really was the best. I love strong friendship in books, and theirs was amazing.
-And that one part? *scowls furiously at the camera* I didn’t think she was actually going to do it. Arghhhhh. Nooooo. I sniffled a few times, which is pretty good, cause I don’t usually cry while reading.
-Gil in general was just kind of amazing.
-However, the fight scenes—I don’t know, they Just felt kind of underwhelming. That may be because I have no experience with being a pilot, but I saw definite room for improvement.
-Some of the coincidences felt a little TOO coincidental. There was one scene at the end where it turned out that the same one person was important in some way to every other character. And that’s okay...it just felt waaaay too convenient to setting up the climax.
-The writing wasn’t astounding. There’s definite room for improvement. But having read snippets for Ms. Wheaton’s upcoming novels, I can see that that improvement has already grown in leaps and bounds. So kudos for that ^_^
Overall? This was a good book. It really was. I enjoyed reading it, and while there is much room for improvement, it has great potential. :D
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. ...more
WOW. I'll just say that now. This was a really well-written, good book! I have been friends with Faith on Goodreads for a little while now (tMy Review
WOW. I'll just say that now. This was a really well-written, good book! I have been friends with Faith on Goodreads for a little while now (two Faiths, it's a little confusing lol....) and she always has the sweetest things to say. It makes sense, therefore, that her book would be kind of adorable.
I Likey -The whole romance aspect was pretty darn cute. Charity and Ryder were very, very well-fleshed-out characters (especially Charity, but I'll get to that in a minute...) and they really seemed like they went well together :) -The Christian characters/prayer sections/etc. were just beautiful. I've always loved books where there are Christian characters who PRAY and LIVE THEIR FAITH and READ THE PSALMS IN TIMES OF TROUBLE and that was so prominent in this story. It made me so happy to read about them sitting in the hospital (I mean, not happy about them being there) and reading the Bible and praying the whole time for comfort and reveling in God's presence. It felt SO REAL. -There are three siblings in the Traven family, Ryder, Hannah, and Drew, and they are so well-done. I mean, there wasn't much conversation with Ryder in the hospital, but Hannah and Drew managed to get across, even in the kind of situation that draws a family closer than they've ever been before, both the get-out-of-my-room-before-I-smack-you-with-a-pillow dynamic and the you-are-my-best-friend-in-the-world-even-though-you-drive-me-crazy dynamic. -A beautiful and marvelous girl-girl friendship between Charity and Hannah. -The suspense! I mean, this book was mostly a medical drama. It's no spoiler to tell you that at the beginning Ryder gets in a terrible accident (I mean, it's on the back cover copy...) and he goes to the hospital, where the doctors are all unsure of his life. It rocks back and forth between "Will Ryder make it?" and "Ryder's going to die." I was convinced that it could go either way, with my opinion changing on it pretty much page by page. That's a pretty impressive feat. -It didn't gloss over the fact that the Christian life is hard. That made me really happy. I Not-So-Likey -Not much. -I wasn't initially sure if Ryder was supposed to be a bad boy? The way it was set up implied that Charity was going to discover he was actually cheating on her or something, or that he was just not such a lovely person. But it wasn't. I'll just get that out of the way now XD -Christian contemporaries (particularly romance style ones) are not my preferred genre. But this one blew it out of the water! The beauty of the Christian part (God was present in almost every page, and I felt the relationships the characters had with him) and the sweetness of the romance had me convinced. ...more
**Many thanks to Bethany House and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC for this book!**
The Silent Years. They passed between the days of Malachi an**Many thanks to Bethany House and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC for this book!**
The Silent Years. They passed between the days of Malachi and the first Christmas. Every Jew longed to hear God's voice, but he did not speak. At least not through the prophets.
Chava and her father, Daniel and brother, Asher, live in Alexandra, Egypt, during its glory days. Egypt is as prosperous as its ever been, and Daniel has work at the royal palace, tutoring princes and princesses. Even for Jews in Egypt, not a great position to be in, they're content.
Especially Chava, who's lucky enough to be friends with Urbi, the second princess of Egypt. One day Chava seems to hear YHVH's voice, telling her that she and Urbi will be together on Urbi's happiest and last days. For a while Chava is content to dwell like this, her life given to serve her best friend who will one day rule as the queen of Egypt.
But then political tensions rise as Julius Caesar and others vie for dominion of the Roman Republic. Chava finds herself caught in the middle- and when she is sold into slavery, it will take all her resilience and faith to escape- and survive.
Likes: -This was a genuinely well-written Christian book. It was all about the Silent Years, a period which fascinates many, and managed to weave Cleopatra and Mark Antony, Octavian and Julius, into the story of a small Jewish family. The writing was lush and descriptive, and it had the feel of a lovely mainstream book with great editors. -The characters make mistakes. Hallelujah, a Christian book where not everyone is a saint! -I was constantly guessing about what would happen next, although some of the foreshadowing got a little obvious. More on that later. -I thought the romance was genuinely well done and did not dominate the story at all. While the book never really talked about a call to singleness, it did incorporate that into the story, and it was well-done. -All the clever references to things that I know are true about Jewish life. Things like the name of God and the stories about the Septuagint. It felt very authentic. -Cleopatra was a real person, and truly made sense. Her figure was tragic, but still very human.
Dislikes: -The Chekhov's guns were frequent, and it got a little bit predictable. -I didn't feel like Chava was all that well-developed at first, but that got better as the story progressed.
Content warnings: -LANGUAGE: none -SEX: the story takes place in Rome, and many of the main characters are female slaves. The sexual aspect is not glossed over, but it is never depicted either with any kind of detail, and the main character is never taken advantage of. A few characters are pregnant, there is some talk of mistresses, and much of the later story deals with being a midwife. -VIOLENCE: While there are massacres and revolts mentioned, no violence is really straight-up depicted. A baby is still-born, a mother dies in labor, a character is found with throat slit. Another character commits suicide.
This was a good book, and I enjoyed it. Thanks again to Bethany for the ARC.
This was an amazing close to an as-amazing trilogy. The suspense did not let up and I was left gasping for breath at a couple of points, dyiWOOOOOOOW.
This was an amazing close to an as-amazing trilogy. The suspense did not let up and I was left gasping for breath at a couple of points, dying to skip ahead and find out what had happened...but I couldn't because kindle. *weeps*
But. Anyway. Review. Much of this will be spoilers, although I'll do my very, very best to avoid them. However! If you're interested in reading this book, and you see a spoiler tag, DO NOT CLICK. You will thank me. (Also I will try very hard not to spoil any of the HUGE plot points. I'll just vaguely allude to them. Mwah ha ha.)
LIKES -Casey. Dylan. My beautiful charries. <33333333 I love them to the moon and back. -Keegan. I mean, I hate him--he is so despicable, and if you thought he was bad in the last two, he takes it up several notches in this one--but he's such a good villain. Oy. I simultaneously shook my fist at him and grinned every time he came on--because he was so bad but so awesome. But still not awesome. I'm sure all you bookish nerds know what I mean. XD -There was less travelling in this one, which was kind of my least favorite part of the other two? Less swapping phones and chucking batteries away and stealing license plates and moving from hotel to hotel. Which I appreciated. -Dylan's friend--whose name I, embarrassingly enough, cannot remember. Was it Brant? I think it was Brant or Brett or something similar. Me being me, I'm probably very, very off. If you remember, remind me because I CANNOT FOR THE LIFE OF ME REMEMBER. -The suspense! I was on the edge of my seat the entire book--I do not trust this author. Sometimes you'll be reading a book and be fairly certain your precious characters will come out okay because no one else has died. But that was not the case with this book. SO MUCH SUSPENSE. -The ending...I will spoil nothing. But. Hee hee.... -Casey's boss (the google lawsuits guy) was hilarious. I loved him. Every series that's this intense needs some good comic relief. -Close to everything?
DISLIKES -OKAY HERE COME THE SPOILERS. I will try really, really hard not to bring out anything that would really destroy you if you read them anyway...but don't. -(view spoiler)[The romance felt a little bit fast-moving. The characters even concede as much at one point. And while it was adorable and precious romance, I was still slightly uncomfortable with the fact that it was SORTA insta-love-y. Not really a problem though. (hide spoiler)] -(view spoiler)[When the thing we've all been waiting for finally came, it was a little bit sudden and anti-climactic. The buildup to /this event/ had been strong and so I was expecting a bit more than was delivered. (hide spoiler)]
CONTENT
SEXUAL: Not much. Again, some kissing. But this book is 100% focused on Casey and Dylan at this point so there is no sexual abuse as in the last two books, which was nice.
VIOLENCE: SOOOOOOO much. I don't remember exactly how many people died in this one, but there were a LOOOOOOOOT. We don't see any of it depicted graphically, but there's a lot of death, and you feel all of them regardless of how well you know the character. (One in particular was pretty darn heart-wrenching...)
LANGUAGE: N/A I think, although if I'm wrong, feel free to correct me.
DRUGS/ETC.: The same character as before drinks a lot, which doesn't have great consequences for him. :/ I don't think there was much else.
4.5 stars and I totally recommend this wonderful Christian suspense series!!!!!!! ...more
There are lots of books about friends. There are lots of books about women. There are lots of books aimed at Christian women. But now, finally, there There are lots of books about friends. There are lots of books about women. There are lots of books aimed at Christian women. But now, finally, there is one about the importance of friendship in the lives of Christian women. Having read Christine Hoover's previous book From Good to Grace, I was excited to read a new book by her, and I thoroughly enjoyed it and benefited much from it. Messy Beautiful Friendship does not glamorize friendship; nor does it rake it through the mud. Instead, it presents it just as it is: messy but beautiful. And completely necessary to the lives of Christian women. As a high schooler, I understood that this book might not have much to say to me - I am, after all, not yet a woman. But Christine Hoover writes with precision and wide brush strokes that are more and more detailed the closer you zoom in. What could be taken as general tips leave lots of room for the Holy Spirit to work. Even I, who is still in the place where, as Christine puts it, friendship just "happens", found many ways to benefit. There's not much to say about this book that's negative. Christine covers the making of friends (this one is in a little less detail than I might like, but that's okay), how to grow friendship and reach out to the outcasts, how to be a good friend, and how to receive friendship from others. Proverbs 27:17 says: "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend." This verse is not mentioned in the book, as far as I can recall, but it is definitely one of the underlying themes. One thing I will mention is that there is not much on how a Christian woman is to be friends specifically with a non-Christian. The things said in the book will be helpful in friendship with just about anyone, but if you're looking for specific guidance in this tough area, this may not be the book to do it (although the chapters on inflicting loving wounds on your friends may be a help.) In short, this was a really excellent book that I would recommend to just about any Christian woman. If you have friends, you need this book. **Note: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, Baker Books. All opinions expressed are my own. I was not compelled to give a positive review, but I'm thrilled to be able to!**...more
R.F. Gammon
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