Tag: book review

Mini Review: The Mystery of the Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodfine

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31202255The Mystery of the Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodbine
Genre: Mystery, Middle Grade
Publisher: Egmont Books
Pages: 352
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★
Note: We received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. 

This summer, I read the first book in the Sinclair Mystery series. It was my first new Middle Grade book in a decade, and I was really excited to find something that was a genre I love, in a historical setting (also LOVE), just with younger protagonists. The third book in the series, The Mystery of the Painted Dragon is no different from the first in the lovely vibes it gave me, and the pure rush of enjoyment I get from reading a mystery, and solving it along with the protagonists.

Katherine Woodfine knows how to put together a great mystery, one with interesting characters, a devious hidden plot and historical markers that always put a smile on my face.  Continue reading “Mini Review: The Mystery of the Painted Dragon by Katherine Woodfine” →

Review: The Witch’s Tears by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr

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30796767The Witch’s Tears by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr
Genre: Fairy tale, Fantasy
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 320
Format: ARC e-b00k
Rating: ★★★★
Note: We received this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review. 

After loving The Witch’s Kiss, and getting to meet the Corr sisters, the sequel was something I was dying to get my hands on, and I’m happy to report that I loved it just as much as the first book! While the fairy tale theme that drew me to the first book isn’t as prominent, there are lots of things that bubble to the surface in its absence and I really loved. Please tell me there’s a third book coming?

Continue reading “Review: The Witch’s Tears by Katharine and Elizabeth Corr” →

(Spoiler) Review: Take the Key and Lock Her Up by Ally Carter

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30336923Take the Key and Lock Her Up by Ally Carter
Genre: Mystery
Publisher: Orchard Books
Pages: 320
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★

After not loving the sequel to the Embassy Row series, See How They Run, I was a little nervous to how I’d take the final book! But, it was still one of my most anticipated books, because I feel like Ally Carter will always have my loyalty, no matter what. So, with rocky expectations, I dived into The the Key and Lock Her Up, but was pleasantly surprised to have a solid conclusion to a series that started with a bang and ended with a knotted bow. Be warned, I’m going to be talking about the ending, so if you haven’t read the series yet, or are just interested, there will be spoilers!

Continue reading “(Spoiler) Review: Take the Key and Lock Her Up by Ally Carter” →

Review: The Cahill Witch Chronicles by Jessica Spotswood

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Born Wicked, Star Cursed, Sisters’ Fate by Jessica Spotswood
Genre: Supernatural (Witches), Romance. Sisters = buzzword
Published by: Speak. Pages: 352, 384, 368 respectively
Rating: ★★★★

This series has quickly become one of my absolute favourites. It’s the story of three sisters who are all witches in a society where if you’re rumoured to be a witch you’re either imprisoned or hanged. There’s also a prophecy that claims one of the sisters will either be the undoing of witches or will help them rise. I loved the drama and the the way every single relationship is written! For a series that was recommended to me by a friend in my Lit class almost four years ago, I’m surprised I didn’t pick it up sooner, because it’s really not one to be missed!

(Warning: As I’m going to be discussing all three books in one post, you might find the reviews of books 2 and 3 spoiler-y since I’ll be noting how the plot progresses.)

Continue reading “Review: The Cahill Witch Chronicles by Jessica Spotswood” →

Review: A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom

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31279174A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 400
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★.5
Note: We received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

After quite liking Eric Lindstrom’s debut Not If I See You First, I was really intrigued when his second book came up on NetGalley. The premise sounded so interesting, and I’m always geared up to add another book about mental health to my TBR. But, it turned out that Mel’s bipolar disorder was the only thing that kept me reading the book, and there were a few other things that almost caused me to DNF…for the first time ever. Continue reading “Review: A Tragic Kind of Wonderful by Eric Lindstrom” →

Review: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore

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12680907Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
Genre: Fantasy
Published by: Gollancz
Pages: 563
Format: e-book
Rating: ★★
Series: Graceling (#1) | Fire (#2)

Just so long. This book was SO LONG. It seriously didn’t need to be, and by the end I was certainly trudging my way through it, however, despite all that it was still my favourite of the trilogy and that can entirely be attributed to the fact that it followed Bitterblue, who is not the Queen of her kingdom. This story takes place a few years on from the events of Graceling, so it’s not really a direct sequel, but you still get to see Katsa and Po, so I’m going to classify this a regular series rather than a companion one, just with a random prequel shoved in the middle there.

Continue reading “Review: Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore” →

Review: She is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick

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21248666She is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick
Genre: Thriller
Publisher: Indigo
Pages: 354
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★

After reading and really liking Marcus Sedgwick’s story in the UKYA Christmas anthology, I went straight to my local library to see which of his stand alones were available. It turns out they had not one but three copies of She is Not Invisible, so this was obviously The One To Read.  Continue reading “Review: She is Not Invisible by Marcus Sedgwick” →

Review: Girl Online On Tour by Zoe Sugg

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27271640Girl Online On Tour by Zoe Sugg
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Penguin
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★

Last year, I read Girl Online and only gave the book one star. I mostly wanted to read it to see what all the fuss was about, and the reviews were generally split between the five stars given by fans, and the lower star ratings given by habitual YA readers. I feel that it’s been long enough for me to give this series a second chance, and since I’ve actually fallen in love with watching Zoe’s videos, I was more invested in reading the book that she wrote 100% on her own. I seem to have fallen into both categories! While I can say that this book was a definitely improvement on the first book, it wasn’t by a very big margin! Let’s chat about it, shall we? Continue reading “Review: Girl Online On Tour by Zoe Sugg” →

Review: Seven Days by Eve Ainsworth

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18679049Seven Days by Eve Ainsworth
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 245
Format: Paperback
Rating: ★★★

This was the first YA book I read for the #cramathon and I’m really pleased because it was the perfect book to start with: fast, short and overall enjoyable. Seven Days was a book I also got from the library, which I’m so grateful for, because while I did like reading it, it’s not the kind of book I would have wanted to spend lots of money on. So, if you’re dying to read a certain book but are apprehensive about whether you’ll like it or not, why not check out libraries? Now, on to the review… Continue reading “Review: Seven Days by Eve Ainsworth” →

Review: This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton

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33135198This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton
Genre: Contemporary
Publisher: Atom Books
Pages: 288
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★.5

While waiting for Kill the Boy Band to arrive in the post, we saw this boyband book pop up on NetGalley and thought it would be the perfect way to fill the time! This Beats Perfect, and any kind of book that deals with fame, is a guilty pleasure for me, so I was  looking forward to seeing what manufactured boy bands were really like, after you pull back the layers of hair gel and leather jackets. For me, this book played it a little too safe with the story line, an interesting cross between the Jem and the Holograms movie and Camp Rock.  Continue reading “Review: This Beats Perfect by Rebecca Denton” →