Posted on by Hermione · 19 Comments

Six of Crows//Crooked Kingdom-A Double Book Review (…’cause why not?)

Oh well, I guess it will be easier to write down my thoughts down for the TWO books otherwise my brain will be scattered all over the place. Oh and probably because I am too lazy to write separate reviews…*fakes a yawn*. *actually yawns*

Oh well, this might be a long post and instead of reading all the blurbs you can just skip them all and start reading after the ratings.

  • Title: Six of Crows
  • Series: Six of Crows #1
  • Author: Leigh Bardugo
  • Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, LGBT
  • Category: YA
  • Publishing Date/Publisher: September 29th 2015 by Henry Holt & Company
Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1)
Source: Goodreads

Ketterdam: a bustling hub of international trade where anything can be had for the right price—and no one knows that better than criminal prodigy Kaz Brekker. Kaz is offered a chance at a deadly heist that could make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. But he can’t pull it off alone. . . .

A convict with a thirst for revenge

A sharpshooter who can’t walk away from a wager

A runaway with a privileged past

A spy known as the Wraith

A Heartrender using her magic to survive the slums

A thief with a gift for unlikely escapes

Kaz’s crew is the only thing that might stand between the world and destruction—if they don’t kill each other first.

[From Goodreads]

JUST SKIP THE SYNOPSIS OF CROOKED KINGDOM IS YOU WANT TO READ THIS SERIES. CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR SIX OF CROWS.

But the part where I write my thoughts about those two books are totally spoiler-free. *rolls eyes* Just scroll down. It is found under the rating I give the two books.

  • Title: Crooked Kingdom
  • Series: Six of Crows #2
  • Author: Leigh Bardugo
  • Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, LGBT
  • Category: YA
  • Publishing Date/Publisher: September 27th 2016 by Orion Children’s Book
Crooked Kingdom (Six of Crows, #2)
Source: Goodreads

Welcome to the world of the Grisha.

Kaz Brekker and his crew of deadly outcasts have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn’t think they’d survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they’re right back to fighting for their lives.

Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz’s cunning and test the team’s fragile loyalties.

A war will be waged on the city’s dark and twisting streets – a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of the Grisha world.

[From Goodreads]

About the Author:

Leigh Bardugo

Leigh Bardugo is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels and the creator of the Grishaverse (now a Netflix original series) which spans the Shadow and Bone Trilogy, the Six of Crows Duology, the King of Scars Duology, and The Language of Thorns—with more to come. Her short stories can be found in multiple anthologies, including the Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy. Her other works include Wonder Woman: Warbringer and Ninth House (Goodreads Choice Winner for Best Fantasy 2019) which is being developed for television by Amazon Studios. She lives in Los Angeles. For information on new releases and appearances, sign up for her newsletter.

She would be delighted if you visited her at LeighBardugo.com and fairly giddy if you liked her selfies on Instagram.

[Picture and text taken directly from Goodreads]

SIX OF CROWS

My Ratings: 5/5

Rating: 5 out of 5.

CROOKED KINGDOM

My Ratings: 5/5

Rating: 5 out of 5.

My Thoughts:

A HEARTRENDER DOESN’T USE MAGIC. NO GRISHA DOES MAGIC. WHY DID THEY SAY THAT IN THE SYNOPSIS?!? GRISHA PRACTICE THE SMALL SCIENCE GUYS NOT MAGIC!! It. Is. The. Small. Science…😤 She uses her POWERS. AND POWERS IS NOT MAGIC.😠😡

Okay, since my mind needs sorting we will make things a little organized here. *huffs*

Kaz Brekker

I think Leigh Bardugo did a great job developing him. He had a unique “greyish” personality and I absolutely love it when the hero is a little grey; like he was neither a totally good person, but not a bad person. I guess it was definitely right introducing him as a criminal mastermind otherwise I would have asked myself how on Earth does he have the brains??To think of that up?? Like who does?? Though I wish I had his gift of lockpicking…

He is so different, internally and externally. Everybody sees him as this cold-hearted criminal mastermind but in the inside, he is just a boy who has a hard past and just trying to survive in a world of corruption and greed AND monsters like Pekka. I think the great challenge in this book was portraying him as this person who never believes he is wrong, full of calculated strategies and quite proud but also portraying him as this person who never believes he is worthy enough to deserve good things in life.

“How do you get your information, Mister Brekker?”
“You might say I’m a lockpick.”
“You must be a very gifted one.”
“I am indeed.” Kaz leaned back slightly. “You see, every man is a safe, a vault of secrets and longings. Now, there are those who take the brute’s way, but I prefer a gentler approach—the right pressure applied at the right moment, in the right place. It’s a delicate thing.
“Do you always speak in metaphors, Mister Brekker?”
Kaz smiled. “It’s not a metaphor.”
― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

Inej Ghafa

I tell you something…that girl has got a heart of gold…I absolutely love this young lady. I find her personality amazing. She is just ‘living’ proof that you don’t have to enjoy killing and have the ‘bad girl’ portray in order to be badass (thank you Miss Leigh for giving us characters like The Crows…). The way she believes in herself and how she cares for the others as well. She is so brave and her faith in people and her religion is extraordinary. I wish I knew more about her backstory…but other than that…well…I just find the way she believes that there is always good in people no matter how stained or bloodied they are…just…it just makes her so real. I just find her belief that there is some good left in Kaz really amazing. When you don’t believe in yourself, it is nice to have someone believe in you. Very valuable investment that girl is…Kaz should just be proud of her.

“Speak, she begged silently. Give me a reason to stay. For all his selfishness and cruelty, Kaz was still the boy who had saved her. She wanted to believe he was worth saving, too.”
― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

Jesper Fahey

HIS SENSE OF HUMOUR IS JUST SO BRILLIANT I CAN’T-

Oh well…I just love Jesper. His sarcastic comments, the way he talked with Wylan, the times he made me laugh and smile in the books…got to admit he is a real softie…He is just totally chaotic to the last degree. He is that sort of person who would do any sort of favours for those he cares for. If Inej was in some kind of trouble, he’d be here. Kaz? Wylan? Nina? Matthias? He would be here for them all. That show-off…him and his flashy guns…he is totally UNRELIABLE and reliable. You know what Jesper, I really love you and all but you’ve got to stop all of those silly detours to gamble your money away. But you could try gambling your talent for showing off here and there because I assure you, it’s just some useless thing but I like my characters a little galant so keep them. Though I’ve got to admit your flirting skills with cute boys are excellent.😏

“Take good care of my babies,” Jesper said as he handed them over to Dirix. “If I see a single scratch or nick on those, I’ll spell forgive me on your chest in bullet holes.”

–Leigh Bardugo

Wylan Van Eck

Wylan was the quiet and shy one but I loved his personality. He is the runaway with a privileged past. Abandoned by his father, Jan Van Eck because he couldn’t read and barely escaped being assassinated by his father’s men. The other five wouldn’t have completed there mission with less difficulty if Wylan hadn’t been there. He was the one with a great knowledge in bombs and created them and thus ensured successful diversions. He was this shy person, who rarely talked unless needed, which was very different from the picture Jesper, Matthias or Kaz even showed. He wasn’t the one who would just kill another person in order to get his way.

That quote below just…it just made me realize that I have never had friends that I loved like he loved Matthias, Jesper, Kaz, Inej and Nina. Or maybe that is because I have a much more personal attachment with fictional characters that actual people. And it isn’t something that I’m proud of.

“Until this moment, Wylan hadn’t quite understood how much they meant to him. His father would have sneered at these thugs and thieves, a disgraced soldier, a gambler who couldn’t keep out of the red. But they were his first friends, his only friends, and Wylan knew that even if he’d had his pick of a thousand companions, these would have been the people he chose.”
― Leigh Bardugo, Crooked Kingdom

Nina Zenik

Nina, a powerful Grisha Heartrender who uses her POWERS to survive in Ketterdam.

One thing I really love about Nina’s personality is how flirty and feminine she is and how she would kill to save Inej or the others. Leigh Bardugo managed to make her a total badass without taking away her feminine side and strong emotions which I just totally respect. She was extremely loyal and despite her squabbling with Matthias here, she was portrayed as someone who was strong and brave and would flirt her way into getting what she wanted. She was that one woman, everyone would want to meet. I don’t know exactly what to write about her but she just blew me away and I am still not sure for what reason.

A CHARACTER THAT LOVES FOOD…OKAY I’M IN NO QUESTIONS.

”Stay,” she panted. Tears leaked from her eyes. “Stay till the end.”
“And after,” he said. “And always.”
“I want to feel safe again. I want to go home to Ravka.”
“Then I’ll take you there. We’ll set fire to raisins or whatever you heathens do for fun.”
“Zealot,” she said weakly.
“Witch.”
“Barbarian.”
“Nina,” he whispered, “little red bird. Don’t go.”
― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

Matthias Helvar

He is that grumpy and grouchy person, I just couldn’t bring myself to dislike…having a characters who just hates everyone and everything and has the brain the size of an oversized pea is actually really refreshing. I don’t know how though…

Other than that, I really did think that the conflict in his mind between his loyalty to his native country and Nina really interesting. As a witch hunter himself, and actually having feelings for a person who is a witch…I just find it extremely interesting how he copes with that conflict. He has his own morals of his own but of course…love ends up wrecking people to the last degree anyway and sometimes it is for the better.

I absolutely adored the love-hate relationship between Nina and Matthias. It wasn’t useless. It made perfect sense and I enjoyed it along the way. I just after finishing the series did I realize how much Matthias grew up on me. I am literally at a lost for words at what to say right now. I am just feeling choked by the need to read all of Leigh Bardugo’s books over again.

Jesper knocked his head against the hull and cast his eyes heavenward. “Fine. But if Pekka Rollins kills us all, I’m going to get Wylan’s ghost to teach my ghost how to play the flute just so that I can annoy the hell out of your ghost.”
Brekker’s lips quirked. “I’ll just hire Matthias’ ghost to kick your ghost’s ass.”
“My ghost won’t associate with your ghost,” Matthias said primly, and then wondered if the sea air was rotting his brain.
― Leigh Bardugo, Six of Crows

Other than the characters, the little Ketterdam world-building was perfect. Leigh Bardugo did a great job, not only describing Ketterdam but also making me feel like I was there. The descriptions were extremely rich, I could literally imagine the city right there in my mind. And it wasn’t only the way the city looked that she described. She didn’t miss out anything in description. I am just head-over-heads over books that are absolutely atmospheric and actually feel real.

The plot was hands down just breathtaking. I love the way Leigh Bardugo unveiled it all to me as a reader and it wasn’t just all put down at one moment. It was slow, you have this part, then you discover another. It actually kept me really hooked into the books. I am just absolutely in love with the fact that they are actually doing the job because of the money NOT because their main concern is saving the world.😂 The plot was really rich and actually mostly character driven. I loved how harshly the consequences would have been if something about the characters’ actions would have been different.

I also really appreciate the amazing diversity in the characters in Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom. You have Kaz, dark haired and eyes(is he Kerch?), Inej, a brown skinned Suli girl, Nina, brown haired and green eyed native Ravkan, Jesper, brown skinned and grey eyed Zemeni, Matthias, a pale blond and blue eyed Fjerdan witch hunter and Wylan, golden haired and blue eyed. I think he is Kerch. Especially the fact that they weren’t whitewashed or given the whatever ideal body type is.

Do we have to talk some more about the characters? Yes. Well, I just dreadfully loved the way they didn’t fit together but did fit together.😂

Oh and we forgot the writing style. I don’t exactly know how to explain this but to me, it was the sort of book I would read, not only for the story and the characters, but also for the simple pleasure of appreciating the writing. I loved the quotes and the way they ran so deep. Sometimes, I just caught myself staring at the words on my phones and just reading them over and over again. The fact that Bardugo wrote each of the characters’ POV in the 3rd person was a really great idea. It made me see the book not through the characters eyes, but WITH the characters next to me. If that even makes sense.

Okay, this is probably the longest review I have ever written…but just suffer a little more and then I’ll be done.😃

Last thing, I’ll read this again next year…that book is definitely worth a read though I don’t think it might just please everyone because of the pace which is quite slow. It is worth it though.

It is really not necessary to read the Shadow and Bone trilogy before this duology but I think you should read the trilogy first. It helps you understand the world more, despite not being set in Ketterdam.

Sorry for making you suffer through such a long post,

~Hermione

Posted on by Hermione · 1 Comment

The Queen Will Betray You-A Book Review

Eeeeeeeeee! I finished The Princess Will Save You before last month and I am awfully glad I read this book! Not considering the fact that the third book of this series is to be released next year.😭. WHY?? It is coming out in in August 2021…..I’m SEETHING!

⚠ WARNING!! This post DEFINITELY contain spoilers for the first book so please don’t read ahead!! ⚠

I’m dropping a link for my review of the first book in the series: The Princess Will Save You (Kingdoms of Sand and Sky#1)

  • Title: The Queen Will Betray You
  • Series: Kingdoms of Sand and Sky #2
  • Author: Sarah Henning
  • Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, Retellings
  • Publishing Date/Publisher: July 6th 2021 by Tor Teen
43603842. sy475
Source: Goodreads

*falls in love with the cover and the way the artist portrayed those two characters*

Does anyone know who designed this cover? If you do please tell me!

⚠ WARNING!! AGAIN. IF YOU DON’T WANT THE FIRST BOOK SPOILED THEN FOR BOOKS’ SAKE DO NOT CONTINUE READING!! ⚠

Don’t say I didn’t say I didn’t warn yaaaaaaa!! *tries not to sing the lyrics out loud*

Amarande will have to separate with her true love and best-friend, Luca in order to reclaim her kingdom and for Luca to prove he is the heir to the throne in Torrent which is currently ruled by a Warlord after the whole royal family of Torrent was believed to be wiped out.

Surprises are always there of course and in the most unexpected situations. Amarande realizes that during her absence, her kingdom and castle has changed a lot and she discovered the unlikeliest surprises ever.

Meanwhile, Luca is constantly afraid of being discovered. Word has reached the Warlord’s ears and nobody wants the last of the royal family of Torrent which was supposedly eradicated, to come up, raise a rebellion, reclaim the rightful throne and the Warlord fallen forever.

Amarande and Luca’s mission to create peace in the whole of the Kingdoms of Sand and Sky and prevent any war from surfacing seems a very good idea but will they succeed?

About the Author:

Source: Goodreads

Sarah Henning is a recovering journalist who has worked for The Palm Beach Post among others and who is also the author of many books, Sea Witch and Sea Witch Rising just naming a few. When not writing, she can be found hanging out with her husband and two kids.

My Ratings: 4.5/5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

My Thoughts:

Well, there is me busy wondering what a beautiful name Amarande is whenever her name pops up. This is the way I pronounce it “Ah-mah-raan-day”. Isn’t the name beautiful??

It went WAY beyond my expectations and the end had me a little sad AND screaming I WANT THE THIRD BOOK NOW! I greatly recommend the whole series by the way and read it right now if you don’t mind waiting a lot. I MEAN A LOT.

It was nice getting back to all of these characters after so long and it picked up a few days after the ending of the first book I think. The book isn’t that big because I finished it in one day in one sitting (me reading for 4 hours straight). I don’t remember how much time it took me to finish the book because I could have started at eight in the morning and finished it before midday…

The book talks about so many things…there is Amarande discovering the hidden parts of her family and Luca discovering his true family and learning about them. There is the theme of loss, sadness, and betrayal above all and trust is something almost privileged. Before all of this chaos happened, the Kingdoms of Sand and Sky was a male-dominated place but now, it is almost female-dominated with Queens wanting to rule the whole of Kingdoms of Sand and Sky all for their own gain. And you imagine!! All of this started just with the death of the Warrior King, King Sendoa who is Amarande’s father! The tragic and sudden death of one powerful King sends all the of the Sand and Sky in complete mess. It is unbelievable the way Sarah Henning created such a story.

I am not sure if it was much better than the first one but there was definitely a little more action, suspense and things happening in the book. Amarande was as ruthless and badass as ever, Luca was as willing as ever to support Amarande and protect the ones he cares for and loves. This is what I love about Luca; his trust, humbleness, fierce protection of the people he cares about and bravery.

The person I found the most interesting in the book was Taillefer, Prince Renard’s brother. I didn’t like him AT ALL in the first book but he is now my favourite character. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of plants, potions and all these gruesome scary animals which he keeps in jars. I would love to meet him (he is not nice…he tortured Luca once with his Fire Swamp or whatever it is called) and we could be friends… I mean, in the book, we get to see him more often and sometimes feel a lot of sympathy for him because he is more human in this book. We get to see his fears, his sadness and hopes and dreams. He is very sarcastic (I mean VERY sarcastic) and with a weird sense of humour as well. I love his personality actually. Is he my favourite character? I guess so because I am not done talking about him😂. I think the end of the book didn’t do much justice to him and…I seriously don’t know why it his ending had to be this way. The only reason why I took half a star away is because of this😔.

I guess that is all for today! Next review will definitely be You Have A Match by Emma Lord because I finished the book yesterday so stay around for more!!😊😊

Lots of love,

~hermione

Posted on by Hermione · 5 Comments

The Fellowship of the Ring-A Book Review

Well, um, hi there! It took me around 4 days or more to read this book (it is so long!). Hemhem….it is like damn! A more than four hundred pages book! As soon as I finish this trilogy, I’ll probably start with a fantasy duology or a standalone fantasy novel. I should probably just start with the review! I am actually feeling a little like a hobbit right now. I feel like sitting by a fireplace and reading a book like Bilbo. Does Bilbo read books btw? Oh whatever I should be reviewing this book.

Title: The Fellowship of the Ring

Series: Lord of the Rings #1

Author: J.R.R Tolkien

Genre: Fantasy, Classics, Adventure

Publication Date/Publisher: September 18th 2012 by Mariner Books (first published July 29th 1954)

13356706
Source: Goodreads

Bilbo Baggins is back to The Shire, living in his nice and cozy hobbit-hole with his small cousin, Frodo Baggins who is also the heir of Bag End.

Bilbo Baggins and Frodo are celebrating their birthday party. Even though both of them aren’t of the same age, they share the birthday of September 22. What’s special is that Bilbo just reached his 111th birthday and Frodo is now an adult hobbit.

During the birthday party, Bilbo announces that he will go on a very long vacation and might probably never come back again, a permanent vacation (how cool this sounds!). He leaves Frodo in charge of the rest of the party and on Gandalf’s request, leaves his magic ring (a ring which makes the bearer invisible) to Frodo and then leaves Bag End.

When Gandalf visits Frodo, and when they discuss about the ring, Gandalf realizes that the ring is indeed the One Ring which was forged for Sauron the Dark Lord, as a Ring of power to control and rule everything. Gandalf tells Frodo that Sauron and his servants already know about the ring and he should leave as fast as possible to destroy it before it gets into the hands of the Enemy.

Some time later, Frodo leaves the Shire with three other companions, Sam, Merry and Pippin in the quest to destroy the Ring in one of the fires of Mordor where the ring was originally crafted, one of the most dangerous quests with dangerous roads and the Black Riders, servants of Sauron, to reach Mordor, where evil awaits.

About the Author:

J.R.R. Tolkien
Source of picture: Goodreads

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, WWI veteran, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the high fantasy classic works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings . It is also said that The Hobbit is a novel which was first written for his own children.

My ratings: 4.7/5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

This book was slightly better than The Hobbit but much complicated to understand. There are SO MANY PLACES! SO MANY PEOPLE! It wasn’t boring at all, not fast-paced either but something in the middle of fast-paced and slow-paced. My favourite character was Aragorn, also known as Strider and probably Legolas as well, and perhaps Sam or Pippin and Merry because they are just so lively and very loyal to Frodo.

Frodo is appointed as the Ring-Bearer and as soon as they leave the Elf-castle and bid farewell to Elrond the Elven King, Gandalf, Legolas, Aragorn, Merry, Pippin, Sam, Gimli the dwarf and Boromir along with Frodo leave all together in the quest to destroy Ring.

I love the element of friendship in the book, how all nine are willing to stick to each other even in the most dangerous of adventures on their way to Mordor to destroy the Ring.

Sam, Merry and Pippin as I mentioned above are one of my favourite characters because they are just so loyal. They know they can turn back and return to The Shire but they don’t. They are all so full of fierce courage and determination, I admire all of them for that. I feel like I am going to miss all those characters very much when I’ll finish the trilogy *sad face* but I guess this is how all books are. You are so eager to see what happens next, which means finishing the book but you don’t want to finish the book at the same time because suddenly, you realize that you aren’t sure what to do with your life next…

Well, hope you enjoyed this post! My computer should be exhausted after all this slamming and punching of the keys and I have to let it rest a little for now.

I also have so many things to do, like read The Two Towers next so I should probably go.

With 10 tired fingers and an annoyed computer,

Lots of love, Hermione

Posted on by Hermione · 4 Comments

The Hobbit-A Book Review

Hey people! Hope you all doing good! I have wanted to read THIS for so long and I am finally happy I picked it up. It reminds me so much of Harry Potter though because Gandalf looks just like Dumbledore in my imagination, saying that both of them are wizards and have very long beards and are equally very wise. Maybe, we’ll save all that for later at the end and begin with the review before I forget about this post. Oh, and I was actually wondering if Dumbledore is actually inspired by Gandalf but I’m not sure….

Title: The Hobbit or There and Back Again

Author: J.R.R Tolkien

Genre: Fantasy, Fiction, Adventure, Classics

Publication Date/Publisher: August 15th 2002/ Houghton Mifflin (first published September 21st 1937)

5907
Source: Goodreads

Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who lives in a very nice and cozy hobbit-hole, called Bad End found in Hobbiton. Not being a hobbit who is very fond of adventures he prefers staying comfortable in his home, listening to the kettle whistling or making smoke rings out from his pipe.

One day, he receives a visitor, Gandalf, the great wizard who offers an adventure. An adventure to steal back the treasures of the great dragon, Smaug, who had actually stole all those treasures from the dwarves and other people at the time when he used to terrorize the lands.

Bilbo refuses point blank and declines the offer right away only to find more than a dozen visitors entering his hobbit-hole the next day. Dwarves. Thorin of Oakenshield, Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Dori, Nori, Ori, Bombur, Bofur, Bifur, Balin and Dwalin. And Gandalf of course.

Finally, Bilbo reluctantly accepts to accompany the dwarves and Gandalf on the quest for the stolen treasure and off they go, to retrieve the treasure most guarded by Smaug, the great dragon.

About the Author:

J.R.R. Tolkien
Source of picture: Goodreads

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, WWI veteran, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the high fantasy classic works The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings . It is also said that The Hobbit is a novel which was first written for his own children.

My ratings: I’m still wondering if I should give this a 4.9 out of 5 or a 5 out of 5.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Reason I read this? Fantasy! It has a great fantasy and was quite fast-paced at times so you are totally hooked to the story and other times it was a little slow-paced so you read at ease. The world-building is breathtaking. I wish I could at least see the Misty Mountains, the Lonely Mauntains, the forest of the enchanted stream and the Elvenking. But it isn’t guaranteed you’ll be able to see it if you look out of the window or climb up on the roof and look on all sides though I’ll try that when I have time to see if I can see them from my house.

Bilbo Baggins is also a wierd character who has got two sides; his Baggins side and his Tookish side. The Tookish side of him takes over during his adventures because the Tooks are his family on his mother’s side who were always ready for some adventure of some kind.

Another thing I love about this book is the amount of songs and poems the dwarves make up on the spot and unfortunately, I won’t be able to write one of them down here because it would be too long. J.R.R Tolkien has a great mind, the way his characters are created, the world-building, the plot and his imagination in making songs for the dwarves are just so great.

A very enjoyable and fascinating read!

See ya soon!

-Hermione

P.S. I know this is absolutely irrelevant but I actually found my green ring yesterday and I am so happy! It was lost for 6 months and I found it in one of my pencil-cases. I mean I lost it twice (I don’t usually lose things) and both of the times I found it in very unexpected places! I mean like why!? I always find my things in wierd places and I bet the next thing I’ll lose and I find it back again will be in some place like my hair or my pocket. Well, nevermind about all those nonsense things, I’d better go now!!!

Oh and next post will probably be my June wrap up so stick around!

Posted on by Hermione · 2 Comments

The Princess Will Save You-A Book Review

Hi people! How are all of you? Doing fine I hope🤗

I guess I should start with the review right away but.I actually have one last thing to say: Hemhem, I heard that this book is a retelling of The Princess Bride though I haven’t heard of it or read it yet…oh and well, the cover is beautiful!

Title: The Princess Will Save You

Series: Kingdoms of Sand and Sky #1

Author: Sarah Henning

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, Retellings

Publishing Date/Publisher: July 7, 2020/ Tor Teen

The Princess Will Save You (Kingdoms of Sand and Sky, #1)
Source: Goodreads

Princess Amarande of Ardenia was utterly devastated to hear about the death of her father, King Sendoa but her sadness soon turned to fury when she learns that she has to get married to be able to rule as Queen in Ardenia.

Princes from all nearby kingdoms come in the hope of marrying Princess Amarande but their efforts were mainly useless because Amarande has something else in mind. She refuses to marry because she is sure that those princes don’t want her heart but only her crown and power. She is also suspicious of her father’s death and is determined to prove that he didn’t just drop dead from his horse but he was poisoned.

Another thing that bothers her is why her father didn’t change the law? Why does the rightful heir to the throne needs to marry to become Queen? Why can’t a Queen rule without a King?

With a hundreds questions swirling in her mind, Princess Amarande goes to her best-friend and her love, Luca, the stableboy, one of the only few people she trusts. When she reaches there, she finds no Luca but a note among the mess of the stable and horses. The note is addressed to her but it isn’t a note in Luca’s handwriting but in an unknown handwriting. It didn’t say much but it was a blackmail letter: Marry Prince Renard of Pyrenee or her love will die.

As stubborn and as strong as she is, Princess Amarande won’t marry Prince Renard, but she WILL find Luca no matter what it takes.

About the Author:

Sarah Henning is a recovering journalist who has worked for The Palm Beach Post among others and who is also the author of many books, Sea Witch and Sea Witch Rising just naming a few. When not writing, she can be found hanging out with her husband and two kids.

Source of Picture: goodreads.com

My Ratings: 4.5/5

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

It was a good book, very engaging and Amarande (her name is just so beautiful!) is such a bad-ass and fearless sixteen year old girl a little too perfect sometimes. I did feel like finding Luca was a little too easy but otherwise everything was nice.

I do regret reading this right now not because the book didn’t please me but because I have to wait to read the next book in the series, The Queen Will Betray You and I have to wait even more for the next book and final one, The King Will Kill You which is coming out NEXT YEAR!!

Seriously! I have definitely learned my lesson the hard way; before you read a book too fast, make sure the rest of the series is OUT for smooth reading….

I would recommend this book. DEFINITELY! But if you are like ME, then wait till next year to read the series so you don’t have to wait.

See you next time!

Hermione

Posted on by Hermione · 1 Comment

Namesake-A Book Review

Hi people! I hope all of you are feeling great. I believe that this is going to be a great month because I am almost 100% sure I am going to read more books than last month. I am feeling very much in the mood of reading fantasy books right now and I think I am going to read, Princess Will Save You by Sarah Henning next (I have been wanting to read this book for so long now). So let’s finally start with the review.

Title: Namesake

Series: Fable #2

Author: Adrienne Young

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Romance

Publication Date/Publisher: March, 16, 2021/ Wednesday Books

Amazon.com: Namesake: A Novel (Fable, 2) (9781250254399): Young, Adrienne: Books
Source: Amazon.com

When Fable wakes up, she finds herself on board on The Luna, one of Zola’s ships. Zola promises her that she can return to The Marigold but only when she has finished the job he requests of her.

Fable isn’t very sure of that knowing Zola’s dangerous nature but clings to the hope that she will return to The Marigold one day even if it means escaping The Luna.

The Luna drops anchor at Jeval, the place Fable promised to never return. Fable doesn’t see anything interesting in Jeval that a big trader might want to trade but it looks like Zola is recruiting more and more dredgers and to Fable’s horror, Koy, the very person who swore to kill Fable if she ever set foot in Jeval again.

The Luna arrives at Bastian with all the gemstones the dredgers have found in the reefs and Fable, dressed up for a gala. Fable gets to meet Holland a very powerful gem trader and who is Isolde’s mother and realises that Zola brought her here at an attempt to regain his license to trade in Bastian by bringing her to Holland, who didn’t know she has a granddaughter.

Holland, old but powerful will do everything to gain much more power and dominate the whole gem trade not only in Bastian but also in the Narrows and that includes eliminating all of the most powerful traders in the Narrows, Zola and Saint.

Fable will do anything to stop Holland from killing Saint and knows that she isn’t stupid. She strikes an almost impossible deal with Holland: If she finds the lengendary gemstone, Midnight, Holland has to leave Saint alone. Finding a stone that has been missing for decades is an impossible task for Fable because if what Holland says is true and that Isolde really did steal the stone and run away, it should have been for a reason and tricking the person who controls the whole gem trade isn’t easy either.

About the Author:

About – Adrienne Young

Adrienne Young is a young American author who was born and bred in Texas turned California girl. New York Times, Indie and USA Today bestselling author of the Fable duology and The Sky in the Deep duology, she started writing at the age of 24 and only decided to pursue publication at the age of 26.(and is a big foodie and addicted to coffee)

Source of Picture: adrienneyoungbooks.com

My Ratings: 5/5

Rating: 5 out of 5.

After finishing this duology, it felt like I had lost something in a manner of speaking because Fable had sort of grown on me and it felt a little sad to finish the book.

If I recommended the first book, it is obvious that I am recommending the second! It is of no disappointment because nothing is left out and you understand Saint, Isolde and West much better. Everyhting goes much in-depth in the book, and it moves at a quite fast-pace and West and Fable’s relationship becomes deeper. It was a marvelous and I am saying it again, this duology has become one of my all-time favourites and I am definitely going to read it all again next year perhaps;).

Love, Hermione.

Posted on by Hermione · 1 Comment

Fable-A Book Review

Hi guys! How are all of you? Well, I hope some of you decide to read this book because this book didn’t disappoint me, not a little bit. This has seriously become one of my favourite books and I cannot wait to read Namesake, the second book in the duology!!!

Title: Fable

Series: Fable #1

Author: Adrienne Young

Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure, Romance

Publishing Date/Publisher: September 1, 2020/ Wednesday Books

Fable (Fable, #1) by Adrienne Young
Source: Goodreads

Fable has been dredging for pyre and trading them for coppers to survive ever since her father had abandoned her four years ago when their ship, The Lark sank and her mother drowned. She had been left all to herself on Jeval, one of the toughest places to live in.

Since four years, Fable has been saving every single copper she earns in the hope of returning to her father, Saint, one of the most powerful traders in the Narrows.

Surviving in Jeval was hard for Fable since nothing is free and every copper she earns for herself was equally precious. She mostly lived by her father’s rules:

  1. Keep your knife where you can reach it.
  2. Never, ever owe anyone anything.
  3. Nothing is free.
  4. Always construct a lie from a truth.
  5. Never, under any circumstances, reveal what or who matters to you.

Finally after saving enough money, she decides to leave Jeval for good and be reunited with her father at her rightful place. She travel’s as a passenger in one of Koy’s ships but soon has to run away after Koy follows her and almost tries to drown her as she dives into the ocean to find pyre. With Koy gravely wounded by her kicks and punches and extremely furious, she screams for West another helmsman to save her.

Having paid for passage to Ceros with all the coins she had left The Marigold, West’s ship embarks with the crew and very relucantly, a passenger, desperate to find her father, Fable.

The sea to Ceros is a long and hard one with fierce storms and winds and Fable, well, she doesn’t know what her father will do when he will see her and if he refuses to take her as one of his crew, Fable doesn’t know what she will do because everyone made it clear on The Marigold, they all want her out of their ship as soon as possible and there is no turning back.

About the Author:

About – Adrienne Young

Adrienne Young is a young American author who was born and bred in Texas turned California girl. New York Times, Indie and USA Today bestselling author of the Fable duology and The Sky in the Deep duology, she started writing at the age of 24 and only decided to pursue publication at the age of 26.

Source of Picture: adrienneyoungbooks.com

My ratings: 5/5

Rating: 5 out of 5.

I absolutely loved this book and that is why I rated it 5 out of 5. It is a book full of unexpected things that really take you by surprise so I was always like, ‘Whoa. I didn’t even see that coming! Fable is such a lovable character with such a strong and brave personality I don’t think there can be somebody who will hate her even if they didn’t like the book.

Everything gets revealed little by little (for example about Fable’s mother, Isolde who even after the first book, is still so intriguing)so it just keeps you reading and reading because you cannot wait to see what happens next.

There is a cliffhanger at the end so nobody will be able to resist reading Namesake (which I am off to do as soon as I finish this post because the cliffhanger is killing me really!)

I would definitely recommend this book to practically anyone because it isn’t a such fantasy like Game of Thrones (with tons and tons of characters which requires you to memorise all the different places and seas though I am not complaining about it of course!) but a fantasy that is easy to understand with a good amount of characters, not too much and not too little that it isn’t focused only on Fable for example and the scenes happening mainly in Jeval, on the sea and in Ceros so no complicated geography guys!

I would also like to say a big thank you to the amazing author, Adrienne Young to have written this book because it has becme one of my all time favourites!

Thanks for reading!

Hermione.

Posted on by Hermione · 1 Comment

The Enchanted Castle-A Book Review

Name: The Enchanted Casle

Author: Edith Nesbit

Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Magic

Kathleen, Gerald, and Jimmy were spending their holidays at Kathleen’s school with Mademoiselle (the French governess) and Eliza, the only caretaker present for the holidays.

Gerald, having been able to convince Mademoiselle, tells the good news to his siblings. They pack a picnic basket and three horns, hoping to see the enchanted castle.

On reaching the picnic spot, they discover a cave which leads them to the garden of the enchanted castle. They find themselves in the middle of a maze looking at a princess, who they think to be Sleeping Beauty. Kathleen convinces Jimmy to kiss the Princess to wake her up.

The Princess shows them to her treasure chambers and when she tries on a ring, she becomes invisible! Thinking that her friends were just pretending, she shakes them and asks them to stop. When she looks around the silver mirror, she cannot see herself.

Amidst all of that, the Princess reveals herself to be the housekeeper’s niece, Mabel. Thus, she stays invisible for 21 hours before the ring could finally get off. Gerald takes over and becomes invisible for 14 hours when Eliza discovers him. Eliza then becomes invisible for 7 hours and Gerald realises that the ring is decreasing by seven all the time.

For their Beauty and The Beast play, Gerald paints people to be their audience called Ugly-Wuglies. Mabel being Beauty and wearing the ring, wishes for the Ugly-Wuglies to be alive… Gerald and Mabel go out in the dark and trap the Ugly-Wuglies in a cave with the help of the bailiff whom they tell their whole story.

The next day, they find the bailiff green in the face sprawled on the floor and the Ugly-Wuglies broken with their painted faces and clothes every where and to their horror they find an Ugly-Wugly like a real person!

Jimmy wishes to be rich and he becomes older not even recognising his siblings and Mabel. Fortunately, Gerald fixes the mistake, but Kathleen turns into a statue and Mabel 4 yards long. Kathleen invites Mabel and her brothers, and they become statues too being able to move around like the other statues.

Lord Yalding, of Yalding Towers, the Enchanted Castle is expected to come to the castle to rent it to a rich American. Mabel gets invited to a picnic with the bailiff and when Jimmy and Kathleen come too, Jimmy asks the bailiff to make a wish and Mademoiselle and Gerald appear. Soon it is learnt that the bailiff was actually Lord Yalding and Mademoiselle was Lord Yalding’s lover.

All of them return to the castle where they scare away the American thinking that this was what Lord Yalding wanted and they show him the treasures in Mabel’s treasure chambers when pretended to be a Princess.

Lord Yalding did not believe in the magic of the ring and refuses to marry Mademoiselle. On the day predicted by the statues, the light fell directly at the centre of the Temple and Mademoiselle makes a wish. ’’I wish that the magic ring and all of its causes disappear.’’ And so, it was. Mademoiselle married Lord Yalding and Mabel, Kathleen, Jimmy, and Gerald become friends with Lord Yalding.

And every holiday is spent at Yalding Towers…

The End

My ratings:

Rating: 5 out of 5.

It was a very interesting book. The sort of Famous Five type. I loved it. It was the sort of book that gets you into it and I finished the whole book in one day!