Review: Precious Stone Trilogy by Kerstin Gier

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I picked this up because I needed a book that involved time travel. This was a quick read and it was alot of fun. I really liked the historical aspects that were thrown in and the time travel concept in this book. I didn't want an overly complex sci-fi book at the time, and the time travel in this is very simple, so if you want something more complex and scientific, this may not be the book for you.

I thought the characters were completely believable as well. Gwenyth behaves exactly like a teenager who is interested in pop culture, boys, modern music, and just wants to spend time with her friends and family. She wants nothing to do with her stuffy relatives and the things they are interested in, even if it makes her look dull and uneducated in their eyes. She just wants to be herself and doesn't care what they think. When she finds out that she can travel back in time instead of her cousin, Charlotte, Gwenyth is completely unprepared and overwhelmed. All of those around her are bewildered because she isn't Charlotte, who has been preparing for time travel her entire life. I didn't appreciate everyone calling Gwen stupid and putting her down all the time, because she isn't perfect or training. She is also an immature teenager, which is to be expected. Her cousin is mature and groomed for the situation that Gwen has been trust into unwillingly and the insults were just unnecessary.

Overall, I found this very fast paced and entertaining. This is YA so the content is clean. The writing was good, but there is still so much unknown. I do feel like some of the plot could have been flushed out a bit more and more content could have been included. There are hints at a romance or a potential love triangle. It ends with a bit of a cliffhanger and a lot of unanswered questions. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

Sapphire Blue by Kerstin Gier
Narrated by Marisa Calin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I didn't enjoy this one as much as the first book. I expected more growth from the characters and more plot development in this book. Both of those fell a little flat for me. I want to know more about the prophecies and why Paul and Lucy stole the chronograph and ran away. Both of those plot points are kind of just hanging out there with no real explanation in sight. I'm hoping those come to some sort of conclusion in book 3.

I do love Xemerius, he is Gwen's dead demon gargoyle pet. If you don't know already, Gwen can see and talk to spirits of the undead. Xemerius meets up with Gwen and Gideon after a time travel event and once he realizes Gwen can see and hear him he won't leave her be. Xemerius adds and element of comic relief to the story, he is also able to get information for Gwen that she can't get because the people who are supposed to be training her and helping her get the hang of the whole time travel thing are keeping her in the dark and treating her like she is inferior.

Much like in the first book, I could have done without the constant barrage of calling Gwen stupid and telling her she's pretty much useless. She pretty much finds out she can time travel and they start sending her on missions the next day without any information and training, yet everytime she walks in a room she's called a name and told she's not worthy, called stupid, and made to feel inadequate. Gwen never speaks up for herself, I thought maybe she'd get fed up eventually and tell them enough is enough. She had a bit of a spine in the first book, which I liked. She's too focused on being boy crazy about Gideon in this book to really care. There is too much about how handsome Gideon is in this and too much jealousy for Charlotte, neither of which adds to the plot.
Gwen and Gideon's romance was a given, you know its coming from the first book. They just don't really have any chemistry. I appreciate that there isn't really a love triangle, but their romance is missing something. It might be that Gideon is kind of a jerk to her most of the time and you aren't yearning for them to get together.

This review makes it sound like I didn't like this book. I did enjoy it. It is entertaining, but I feel like this book and the first book could have been condensed. This book doesn't really move the plot along and the first book felt a bit too short.

Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier
Narrated by Marisa Calin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Much like my review of the second book, this one is more of the same. Gwen is constantly jealous of anyone talking to Gideon. She is unsure of herself at every step, some of that is warranted, while most of it is not. You aren't sure if you like Gideon or not because he's pretty much been a jerk to Gwen since day 1, and you aren't sure if he likes her or not.

I thought we were getting somewhere when Gwen's friend Leslie tells her at the beginning of the book to stop being sappy and get over her boy troubles, but the book is riddled with teenage angst and romance. I'm sure younger readers will eat this up, but I wanted something with a bit more substance. The ending was much to convenient. I kind of figured out who dun it earlier on, but I wasn't 100% sure, so I wasn't surprised at the reveal. There were still some plot holes that were left unresolved in the end that I would have liked wrapped up

I did love Xemerius, he is ever present and provides comedy at every turn. He is by far my favorite character in the series.

Overall, the conclusion of the series wasn't as strong as I would have liked. I was hoping for a strong ending. I'm glad to have read the series. It was entertaining, it just wasn't as plot driven as I would have liked and definitely had more focus on the romance than I prefer.

Review: Firestarter by Tara Sim

Firestarter by Tara Sim
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received an ARC via Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review.  This will be released on January 15, 2019.

I really loved this series. The clock spirit idea is very unique and I really liked how it was developed.  The mythology element is really nice, though I would have liked a bit more, similar to the myths we got in book 1, but that's just me. I'm a sucker for mythology. In this installment we continue to follow Colton and Danny as they both try to stop the crew of the Prometheus from destroying more clock towers. As they learn what the motivations are behind the crew, they also learn more about how the clock spirits were created and that the crew of the Prometheus may not be the worst entity out there. Danny, Colton, Daphne and the rest of the gang have to devise a plan to protect time itself and escape from the Prometheus unharmed. There is a ton of travel between different cities with clock towers and a good deal of action as the plot unfolds.

I really love Colton and Danny as a couple, Daphne and Akesh too. I could have done without so many love scenes though. I felt like there was too much focus on the romance and I felt like it took away from the plot at times. I really loved the plotline of the series, but the series took a turn and kind of became a romance with fantasy elements at some point instead of a fantasy with a romance.

I highly recommend the series and I feel like this is a great ending. Tara Sim isn't afraid to take you on an emotional roller coaster with characters you've come to care about. You weren't sure what was going to happen in the end and I'm really happy with the ending. I liked the writing, the plot, and the characters.

I think I'm going to use this to fill the prompt on the Popsugar Reading Challenge to read 2 books with the same title.  I'm going to read Firestarter by Stephen King to complete the prompts.

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Top 5 Wednesday: Hyped 2019 Releases You Don't Care About

Topic: Hyped 2019 Releases You Don't Care About - If you dare, now is your time to get shady.

I've got nothing against any of these books, but for one reason or another I just have no interest in reading them.  These are probably great books, but they just don't call out "Read Me" when I look at them.  Never say never though, I never know when my new favorite is hiding in a book I never thought I'd read.

• The Wicked King by Holly Black - I haven't read The Cruel Prince, and I really have no interest in this series.  I've got nothing against it.  It just never called out to me.  I have read The Darkest Part of the Forest which I liked, but this series just never made it onto my must read list.  
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• There's Something about Sweetie by Sandhya Menon - I'm not a huge romance reader, and this is YA Contemporary Romance.  Again nothing against it, just not my preferred genre.
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• Again, But Better by Christine Riccio - This is another YA Contemporary Romance I keep seeing everywhere.  Just not one I see myself reading.  I prefer the more fantastical or sci-fi.
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• Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid - I loved The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.  It was a surprise love for me and I hope to read more of Jenkins' work.  This one might be the same, but I have no interest in the subject matter of this particular story.  
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• The Princess and the Fangirl by Ashley Poston - This actually looks cute, it's a Prince and the Pauper retelling that happens at ComicCon kind of thing.  Again a YA Contemporary Romance, that just isn't in my wheelhouse.  I have read Poston's Heart of Iron which is an Anastasia retelling in space and that fits my tastes much better.  I'm looking forward to the 2nd book which is coming out later this year.
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Review: Freefall by Jessica Barry

Freefall by Jessica Barry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received an advance copy of this book from Harper in exchange for an honest review. It is always hard to review thrillers without giving too much away. I highly recommend this if you are into survival stories and thrillers.  This book comes out on January 8, 2019.

This is told from alternating perspectives of Allison (daughter) and Maggie (mother) after Allison is involved in a plane crash. Maggie is obviously distraught, but something tells her that her daughter isn't dead. Even though they have been estranged, Maggie is determined to learn what happened to Allison in the time they have been apart and leading up to the plane crash. Having been a librarian, Maggie is no stranger to research and uncovering the unknown. Maggie is dragged into something she never imagined, while Allison is trying to escape the life she was living.

This was so unexpected. I expected Maggie to go trudging through the woods to find Allison or them both to have been on the plane and separated when I first requested this. It totally surprised me with the multiple plot points going on and the twist at the end that I kind of didn't expect but didn't totally shock me when it happened.

I really enjoyed the writing. For a debut this was really great. It is well written, the plot was engaging, the pacing was great, and I liked the characters.

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Review: Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart

Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I wasn't quite sure how to rate this at first.  I ended up giving it 3 stars.  I quite enjoyed it. I really liked the trip this took me on, but I struggled with the ending. It didn't give me the closure I wanted. I'm not a fan of open endings. I swapped back and forth between the ebook and the audiobook. Both were very good. I liked the writing style and I will be checking out more of Lockhart's work in the future.

You can definitely tell that this was very much inspired by The Talented Mr. Ripley, the author mentions this in her note at the end. I've only ever seen the movie.

This isn't a suspenseful kind of thriller, I kind of figured out what happened early on and the unconventional timeline kind of guides you to figure out what is going on early on. Because you jump back and forth between present day, before, and somewhere in the middle of the mystery you find out what happens and then are left sorting out the aftermath as well as some things that happened even beforehand. I liked the journey this took me on, it was kind of wild, but I was kind of left scratching my head at the end.

You follow Jule, our unreliable narrator, from the present day and you jump around until you come full circle and end up back in the present. Jule hasn't had a great life, but you are never quite sure if what she is telling you actually happened or if it is one of the stories and personas she's concocted as part of her survival mechanism. Jule spends most of her time with her friend Imogen, who have formed a bond over being orphans. Neither of them are very likeable, none of the characters are, but they are both very complex as is their friendship. I liked getting to know them even if I ended up not liking either of them in the end.

I'm using this to fulfil the prompt of a book with unusual chapter headings as they start at 18 and go backwards.  There are also breaks in the book that look like they should be chapters but they are just breaks within the chapters.  The chapters appear like the book is told backwards, but the timeline is non-linear. 

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Top 5 Wednesday: 2019 Reading Resolutions

Topic:  2019 Reading Resolutions - This one is pretty self explanatory.

1. Read more of the books I've already bought.  I use my library a ton, and I still plan to do so, but I have a ton of books on my Kindle and my bookshelves that are waiting to be read.  My goal is to read books I've bought.  I am not going to resolve to stop buying books because I'll break that resolution, but I can try to be more selective with my purchases.
2. Post more reviews.  I was lucky enough to get quite a few ARCs last year, and I reviewed all of them.  I reviewed plenty of the books that weren't ARCs, but about half of the books I read went unreviewed.  I want to up my review percentage.
3. Read some of the books on the Great American Read list.  I printed off the list of finalists for the Great American Read to see how many I had read.  I've only read 19, some of those were entire series, but I want to cross some of them off.  This will likely been a long term goal but if I get to a couple of them this year I'll be happy.
4. Complete the 2019 Popsugar and Book Riot Read Harder Challenges.  I'm being ambitious by trying to complete 2 challenges this year, but some of the prompts overlap and both of these help me read more diversely and expose me to new authors.
5. DNF books if I don't love them.  Life is too short for bad books or books you don't love right?  I can count on 1 hand the books I've never finished.  I always trudge through books even if I can't stand them.  I think it is time I start passing on books if I just don't like them.  

Review: White Stag by Kara Barbieri

White Stag by Kara Barbieri
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  This will be released on January 8, 2019.

I loved the premise of this. It has a fairy tale feel with some Norse mythology mixed in. It is very dark and violent. I would caution anyone with a weak constitution and if you are triggered by mentions of rape, violence or torture this may not be for you. THis is also placed in the YA genre, but it is fairly violent. Just because the main character is 17, doesn't make this YA. This is for mature readers. Overall I did enjoy this, but I did have some issues with the information development and delivery throughout the story. Having received an ARC, this is something that may be resolved by the time the book is published and this is a good start for such a young author.

While there is a great deal of potential with this story, there are almost too many fantasy elements that don't have enough details. I was often confused about what was going on and felt like I missed something. I went back several times to see if I missed information and it just isn't there. Often times things just aren't explained well in terms of what information the characters are seeking or why they are doing the actions they are doing. There are times of great detail and action which is commendable, I just think there are parts that need flushed out a bit more. For example there is a ritual that one character wants to perform and other characters want to stop, we never actual find out what that ritual entails. There are entire scenes devoted to finding out about this ritual but we never actually learn what it is. This type of unresolved information happens several time in the book with the plot and the character development. Having read an early release, this may be resolved by the time the final publication is out. The author has already done the hard part in coming up with the ideas, a couple sentences here and there would have done a lot to clear things up for me.

Our main character Janneke, is the 7th daughter and being raised as her father's heir. She is taught to hunt and track and pretty much her identity as a woman is taken from her because she is being raised as a boy. Janneke is 17 when goblins burn her village to the ground, and she is captured by Lydian who is pretty much awful and insane. Janneke is tortured by Lydian until the brink of death until he gives her to another goblin, Soren. Soren is kind and while Janneke is technically his slave, he treats her with respect and doesn't hurt her.

Janneke is tormented by the horrors she suffered during her time under Lydian's hands, but she has become stronger and more skilled in the 100 years she's spent with Soren. As the goblin's gather to pay their respects to the current king in his last days and begin the hunt to determine who will become the new king, Janneke learns that she is much more powerful than she ever knew both physically and mentally. She overcomes some very tough battles within herself, in her relationship with Soren, and they have some pretty epic battles on their hunt for the stag.

I did really enjoy Soren and Janneke's relationship. He never pushes her to hard to or too far, he lets her decide what she wants to do. Janneke has had a pretty traumatic life and this journey to find the stag really comes into herself. I feel like her character developed well throughout the story. There were also some really good side characters that complimented the main characters nicely.

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