Feathers of Blood by Alice Ivinya

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 320
Series: Kingdom of Birds and Beast #2
Genre: Fantasy, YA
Published: Oct. 6, 2021
Rating: DNF

Synopsis:

Rejected by her betrothed and banished into the wilderness, Brianna finds herself broken-hearted with nowhere to turn. She wants nothing more than to be left alone.

But greater threats loom across the Border, and there are whispers of war on the breeze. The Spirit-Beasts are coming and Brianna might be the only thing that can stand in their way and stop the massacre of a nation.

But to do this she will have to face her worst enemy, who wants nothing more than to see her dead, and, worse, the man she once loved who let her down.

Review:

If you have not read the first book then fair warning spoiler alert!

I had always been scared because I had been in danger my whole life. First from Elyanna, then from my unknown husband and his country, and finally, from the risk of my true identity being revealed. But now I was free of all of them. I had the freedom I had longed for my whole life, yet still no peace.

We ended the first book with the real Elyanna coming in and being her murderous self, ruining Brianna’s chance at happiness. Brianna is then banished for her safety. She decides to head after the voice that has been calling to her. She also decides she is going to find out who really killed Prince Han.

Sadly, I am bored. I just couldn’t bring myself to continue with the series. I may pick it up later on but as of right now I am not in the mood to read this and I couldn’t care anymore about any of the characters. This might be a good storyline but it’s a no from me.

Feathers of Snow by Alice Ivinya

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 294
Series: Kingdom of Birds and Beasts #1
Genre: Fantasy, Romance. YA
Published: Feb. 12, 2021
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis:

In Brianna’s new world of ice and snow, the coldest things by far are the eyes of her betrothed…

Brianna bears a deadly secret: she’s not the princess she is pretending to be. If the prince finds out, her life will be forfeit and her country plunged into war.

But there is more to the icy prince than meets the eye, and Brianna slowly unravels the secrets of his dark past while surviving in a strange culture.

However her goodness and wit will only get her so far. Terrifying beasts stalk the border and a murderer is at work in the town. They know the truth of Brianna’s identity and will stop at nothing to destroy all she has fought for.

Review:

Didn’t she understand that this was always going to happen? There had always been a political marriage awaiting her. This was the price for her life of privilege and luxury.

Brianna was Princess Elyanna’s lady-in-waiting. When it is announced that Elyanna’s father and his council have proposed marriage to the prince of the Boarderlands, Elyanna and her mother come up with the idea to send Brianna instead.

Elyanna can only be described as a selfish, cruel, abusive girl. Her mother isn’t any better. In fact, she is worse because she knows how to be manipulative.

This is a retelling of Goose Girl which is a fairy tale I am unfamiliar with. While I liked the story it felt like it dragged on. I liked Brianna and Jian was okay. He didn’t really have much until after the halfway mark. At first, I was glad to start reading this book. It seemed like it was going to be amazing, but I figured out where the plot was going and from there on it was just waiting. Waiting for the attack to happen and for everything to blow up.

If it wasn’t for the last chapter, I wouldn’t continue with the series. But that last chapter shed a bit of light on the situation and it wasn’t the normal betrayal issue that plagues many YA books.

Not with the Band by Kelli Warner

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 359
Stand alone
Genre: YA, High School
Published: May 5, 2017
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis:

Drama. Jerks. Another new school. Those are three things Kassidy Perry vows to avoid her senior year of high school. Unfortunately, it looks like the Universe didn’t get the memo. When her mom marries the football coach from a rival high school, Kassidy’s forced to move (again), enroll in a new school (again) and adapt to life with three stepbrothers, including the school’s star quarterback who’s barely said two words to her. And what’s up with her incredibly hot-yet-cocky neighbor who’s developed a weird habit of climbing the trellis to her bedroom’s balcony? Nothing about her senior year is turning out the way Kassidy planned-and that’s before a revealed family secret drops the biggest bombshell yet. Jordan Lawson could care less about football, even though he’s starting his senior year on the radar of college recruiters. He just wants to play music with his band, win a national contest with a record label and pursue his dream of being a musician. When those plans are threatened, his saving grace lies in the hands of his new stepsister. But how can he ask Kassidy for a monumental favor, when he’s partly to blame for derailing her life? And what if getting what he wants puts her dreams in jeopardy?

Review:

Kassidy and Jordan have found themselves living in the same house. Both are having issues in their lives and the move shifts everything they know and understand. Jordan just wants to play music but his father wants him to focus only on football. Kassidy has to change schools and find a place at yet another new school. Kassidy and Jordan must learn to lean on each other and go through the changes that have turned their lives upside down.

I love the communication in this book. There are many times in YA that the relationships the character has with other people aren’t always healthy. I really liked this book. It was going to be a four-star for me but the drama between Lucas and Kassidy just didn’t feel right with where these characters were at. It felt more like the drama needs to happen so throw it in at the wrong time. But it did turn out for the better.

Monthly Best Read: October 2022

I know I am late with this and I completely missed September. I’m trying to get better at this. Better late than never. I read a lot in October. So bare with me.

Books Read:

What Are Friends For by Sarah Sutton
Fight Like a Tomboy by Stephanie Street
Rumor Has It by RH Tucker
How To Kiss a Guy in 10 Days
Beyond the Tower by JacQueline Vaughn Roe
Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young
The Lochlann Treaty series by Robin D Mahle
Homecoming by Carolyne Aarsen
Something New by Amanda Abram
Hearing God Every Day by Doug Addison
Rock Valley High books 2 & 3 by Lacy Andersen
Where to Find it In the Bible by Ken Anderson
Five Kisses by Rachel Anderson
One Perfect Day by Jennifer Youngblood
I Hate You, Fuller James by Kelly Anne Blount
Shadow Fall by Audrey Grey

Books DNF

Her Bodyguard Swap by Laura Ann
My Heart to Touch by SB Alexander
Shadow Rise by Audrey Grey

Books that stuck out

The Lochlann Treaty series and Sky In the Deep are the books in the fiction that stood out to me. The Lochlann Treaty series started out iffy for me but got better as the series continued. Sky In The Deep was amazing from start to finish.

With non-fiction Hearing God Every Day helped answer some questions that I had that I didn’t really know I had.

Books that disappointed

Most of the books I read in October fell flat. Sadly I didn’t remember most of them. Shadow Fall was really sad for me. I’ve read Grey before and I absolutely loved it so this was a big surprise to me.

Challenges

I have going right now a year-long challenge TBR Dwindle. The quarter challenge is the Holiday Challenge. I do plan on making a monthly challenge for December.

I hope you are having a great November.

Faceless by Rob Ashman

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 284
Series: DI Rosalind Kray
Genre: Crime, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
Published: May 31, 2018
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis:

After surviving a vicious knife attack, which left her husband dead, DI Rosalind Kray returns to work and is handed a serial killer investigation.

This killer is different, he doesn’t just want to take the lives of his victims, he wants to obliterate their very existence. The murders appear random but the killer selects his quarry with meticulous care.

While fighting her superiors Kray must conquer her own demons, which are tearing her apart.

Kray has the ability to think like a killer and her skills lead to a series of horrifying revelations that turn the case on its head. She believes she is getting close, then her world comes crashing down with devastating consequences.

Will Kray find the murderer and escape with her own life in tact?

The truth is closer than she could have ever imagined…

Review:

Rob Ashman has a beautiful way of writing descriptions without it seeming like it’s overkill. The book shifts from third person when focused on Kray to first person when it’s the killer talking. This is a great technique when used correctly which I feel like Ashman did here. I couldn’t guess the gender of the killer at the beginning. He does a wonderful job making you think it’s one gender than it’s another.

Kray was okay. I wasn’t a big fan of her. I understand she dealt with some trauma and may have PTSD. Ashman does a good job with that. I have found out the difference between OCD and OCPD. Kray I feel suffers from OCD. When she gets nervous or anxious she is twisting her wedding ring. The main reason I think she has OCD is her fascination with having pens on one side of the desk and pencils on the other. She hates them put together. Most times when this happens in the book something stressful has just happened or she is anxious, having anxious thoughts. Ashman does a great job of hinting at some kind of anxiety disorder. Since I am not a licensed professional I can’t actually say that she is suffering from this but I am going to make that assumption.

I don’t like her as a cop. The bad thing with crime stories no matter if it is a book or movie if it is done by someone who doesn’t really know the full depth of what an investigation takes, some stuff comes off as fictional. Ashman does quite well with the investigation. He did thorough research and even had a few things in the story which I had to research to make sure it was true. Bravo points! The only thing I can’t be fully sure of is the difference between how British police investigations work versus American police.

One thing I love is that Ashman points out that Chloreflorm doesn’t work in a matter of seconds. It actually takes several minutes which most people don’t know thanks to Hollywood. So thank you, Mr. Ashman.

While I like most crime mysteries. Here, lately, I have been sort of meh with them. I think Ashman did a terrific job, but I wasn’t connecting with Kray. Kray as a character just wasn’t the best to me. Everything else about the story I liked. I ended up skimming to the end to see who the killer was, because I couldn’t stand Kray much longer.

Never Have I Ever Kissed My Brother’s Best Friend by Juliet Bardsley (Brown)

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 106
Series: Never Ever Love #1
Genre: YA, High School
Published: Feb 12, 2019
Rating: 3 star

Synopsis:

She’s crushed on him for the past six years. He’s always seen her as his best friend’s little sister. What happens when they’re forced together?

Gavin Mitchell is a star soccer player, the best looking senior at Cedar Oaks High, and a potential recruit for the college of his dreams. But if Gavin doesn’t raise his English grade, all his plans of playing soccer for his dream school will be crushed. Enter Kenzie Fair, his best friend’s smart little sister.

Mackenzie (Kenzie) Fair has the best friend in the world, an enviable collection of books, and the highest grades in the junior class. But there’s one thing she doesn’t have—Gavin Mitchell—the guy she’s crushed on for forever. The guy she acts like a total spaz around. The guy who also happens to be her brother’s best friend.

When the two are forced to spend time together studying Shakespeare, it’s only a matter of time before Gavin sees Kenzie as more than his best friend’s little sister.

The problem is, she still is. Is it worth risking his lifelong friendship for the chance to date Kenzie?

Review:

I needed something short and easy to read. Super cute and of course, there is a little drama but nothing too angst.

Again I just needed something cute after the two DNFs of today.

Rise of the Ram’s by Christopher Artinian

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 382
Series: Safe Haven #1
Genre: Dystopia, Zombies, Horror
Published: Feb 12, 2017
Rating: DNF @ 11%

Synopsis:

The planet has succumbed to a monstrous virus. Those who die from the infection return as savage predators hell-bent on spreading the virus to the rest of the human population. The UK and Ireland are the last hold-outs, but when the infrastructure supporting their self-imposed quarantine collapses, it’s everyone for themselves.

Mike Fletcher and his sister Emma live in Leeds. With the city’s streets overrun by the dead, their only option is to flee. They take their younger siblings and set off to find their last remaining relative in the far north-west of Scotland.

As they travel north they encounter other survivors – but who can they trust? Their terrifying journey will require them to confront horrors both human and inhuman, in the outside world and within themselves. Will they ever find a safe haven?

Review:

I remember now why I don’t do zombies. This starts to slow and I am just not interested.

It’s not you, it’s me.

Peter Pan by J.M Barrie

My edition: Hardback library book
Pages: 217
Standalone
Genre: Classics, YA
Published: Dec. 27, 1911
Rating: 1 star

Synopsis:

Peter Pan, the mischievous boy who refuses to grow up, lands in the Darling’s proper middle-class home to look for his shadow. He befriends Wendy, John and Michael and teaches them to fly (with a little help from fairy dust). He and Tinker Bell whisk them off to Never-land where they encounter the Red Indians, the Little Lost Boys, pirates and the dastardly Captain Hook.

Review:

All children, except one, grow up.

Want to read this book? I will do you a favor. Go to youtube, and look up Jon Solo and his messed-up origins series. He will tell you everything about 1. the Disney movie, 2. the book, and 3. the author. I promise you it’s better than picking this up.

I could not get past the writing style. Also should not be classified as a child’s book. Middle grade, yes. But basically, we all know who the real villain is… Peter.

The Homesteader’s Sweetheart by Lacy Williams

My edition: Kindle Unlimited
Pages: 296
Series: Wyoming Legacy #1
Genre: Western, Romance, Historical, Christian
Published: Dec. 28, 2018
Rating: 2.5 stars

Synopsis:

Pursued by an unwelcome suitor, banker’s daughter Penny Castlerock will do anything to escape town and Mr. Abbott’s advances – even visit her grandfather’s homestead for an undetermined amount of time. Out of her element, she must rely on neighbor Jonas White and his brood of adopted children.

Scandal chased Jonas out of Philadelphia five years ago. A scandal that socialite Miss Castlerock knows about. Since then, Jonas has kept to himself, worked his homestead, and focused on raising his seven adopted boys and his daughter. The last thing he needs is to be reminded of the past and the young woman he once fancied – especially when she’s so far out of his sphere…

As circumstances force the two to work together, their tentative friendship blossoms into something more. But can two people from such disparate backgrounds find true love with each other?

Review:

If you like slow burns, this book is for you. I normally do, but not with this one. I couldn’t connect with either of the characters. I wasn’t a fan of Penny. She was wishy-washy. Jonas was alright. It must have been hard for a man in his position and everything that happened with Millie.

I don’t remember much of what was going on. I ended up skimming most of the second half. Maybe I just read this at the wrong time.

Letters from Rifka by Karen Hesse

My edition: Hardcover library book
Pages: 148
Standalone
Genre: WWI, Immigration, Racism, coming of age
Published: Jan. 1, 1992
Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis:

In letters to her cousin, a young Jewish girl chronicles her family’s flight from Russia in 1919 and her own experiences when she must be left in Belgium for a while when the others immigrate to America.

Review:

I read this back in sixth grade. I remembered it as them escaping the Nazis, not the Russians. Sixth grade was almost seventeen years ago. That is how long I have been trying to find this book again. There for a little bit, I couldn’t remember the name but I could remember the cover. A picture of a bald girl holding the star of David.

Most people don’t know that Jews faced racism far before WWII and the Nazis. The Russians did not like them. They were blamed for everything. So during WWI, most Jewish men were more likely to be killed by their fellow soldiers than were by the enemy. Rifka’s family goes on the run to America to escape enlistment. Rifka tells of her journey to her beloved cousin Tovah who remained behind with her family.

I love the story of immigration told through the perspective of a twelve-year-old. Rifka’s story is not warm and fuzzy but it isn’t completely dark either. It is tragic. But so riveting.

… and from
The gloomy land of lonely exile
To a new country bad me come…

-Pushkin