Realm of the Sapphired Dragon

This book has been sitting on my TBR shelf (literally) for over a year now. I almost picked it up a number of times but always had something else I wanted or needed to read first. I finally picked up it up on Sunday night because I was in need of a change of pace from what I had been reading and after reading just a page knew I was in for a treat.

The way Ms Plum writes is easy to read and friendly and the story engaging enough that before you know it you are are half way through the book and ready to finish it within a matter of hours.

I liked the characters. The way the characters were painted in tis book left me with a clear image in my head of what i though they should look like and how they would act. I found Kate likeable and endearing and wanted a Vincent of my very own :-)

The setting of Paris is the ideal Romantic setting and again, Ms Plum's writing painted me a picture of a glorious city.

However I need to go back to the story. It was fresh and original and I look forward to reading the next instalment, which I already have on my kindle. Hopefully it won't take me so long to get to it this time.

I give this book 4 stars

I hadn't heard too much about this book when I saw the sign up for the blog tour but it sounded interesting so I figured I would give it a try. The first two pages were enough to convince me I had made a good move and I finished the rest of the novel throughout the course of the day, first on kindle then when that died, my ipad and then when that battery went also on my phone. I was determined to finish the book and see how it would all turn out.

The story itself was quite original. The idea of Earth and Thera, day and night, the second chancers, it intrigued me from the beginning and while I saw some twists coming, I enjoyed where the story took me and they way that it did it.

The story is told from three different view points, Kira, Blake and Ethan's and this helped give the story a rounding out that made the story ultimately more satisfying.

I loved the subtle layers that Ms Thomason adds to this tale and the way they were artfully revealed.

I am glad I took a chance on this novel and was extremely to surprised to find out that this is a self published novel as it was one of the most interesting and original tales I have read in a while. This book finished in a way that made it seem like there could be a book two to follow. I definitely hope this is the case as I would love for this great idea and story to continue.

I give this 4 stars!

I wasn't sure quite what I was expecting when I started this book and when I saw it started with second person present tense, I got a little worried as that would have to be my least favourite tense to read books in as it is very rarely done well. However after the short prologue, it changed to third person present tense so I breathed a sigh of relief and read on.

I am so glad that I did. I found this novel as magical, mysterious and captivating as the circus the story is about. With a 9 month old daughter and New Years celebrations, I was unable to read this book in one sitting (it took me maybe 3-4 days?) but every time i put it down, I felt myself almost counting down till I could get back to it.

As I said, it wasn't what I expected. The story kind of creeps up on you and casts a spell or illusion much like the main characters, Marco and Celia might create. While still grumbling about the second person present tense, I was unaware of the illusion being formed around me and entrancing me until I was at the end and felt like I had been released from a dream.

Erin Morgenstern's writing was gorgeous and clever and the way she put the story together was genius. Even the second person present tense had its place. Weaved in bits and pieces throughout the book, it helped tie it all together and form a link with the reader.

I am so glad I didn't put it down when I read those first few pages as I would have missed out on an incredibly magical experience.

I give this book 5 stars

I love Maria V Snyder's books so was extremely excited to be offered this book to read and review. I hadn't read book #1, Touch of Power so I read the two of them back to back. I am happy to say I wasn't disappointed. Yet again, Maria V Snyder has created another interesting series that I cannot get enough of.

I loved the direction this book went in after the ending of the first book and that we saw the story from both Avry and Kerrick's point of views. As always, the peripheral characters are just as interesting as the main characters and just as 3 dimensional.

This series is not set in the world of Ms Snyder's previous books but instead she has created a whole new world that is rebuilding after a terrible plague. This second book continued the story created in book one, expanding on the story, the world and the characters and kept me completely in the story from beginning to end. And the ending... Once again book 3 cannot come fast enough.

I love stories with magic, strong characters, an interesting world and a captivating storyline and this book has all this. Another great series from Ms Snyder and I cannot wait to see what book #3 brings.

I give this book 4 stars!

Another great edition to the Mythos Academy series and probably the best one so far. What I like about this series is that they are always quick, fun reads, able to be devoured in a matter of hours. The content was slightly heavier, the stakes slightly higher but still it kept me engrossed from start to finish.

The story line was quite cleverly done and advanced the major plot crossing the books. I did pick a bit of it well before the conclusion but still found the conclusion a satisfying ending even if my heart had trouble with the cliff hanger at the end.

As usual, the characters were engaging and I liked the new characters that were introduced. We got to find out a little more about some of the peripheral characters which adds further depth to this already great series.

I am really enjoying this series and this instalment in particular. It's just a shame i now have to wait till August 2013 for the next instalment: Midnight Frost.

I give this 3 1/2 stars

I love Maria V Snyder's books so was extremely excited to be offered this book to read and review. I hadn't read book #1, Touch of Power so I read the two of them back to back. I am happy to say I wasn't disappointed. Yet again, Maria V Snyder has created another interesting series that I cannot get enough of.

I loved the direction this book went in after the ending of the first book and that we saw the story from both Avry and Kerrick's point of views. As always, the peripheral characters are just as interesting as the main characters and just as 3 dimensional.

This series is not set in the world of Ms Snyder's previous books but instead she has created a whole new world that is rebuilding after a terrible plague. This second book continued the story created in book one, expanding on the story, the world and the characters and kept me completely in the story from beginning to end. And the ending... Once again book 3 cannot come fast enough.

I love stories with magic, strong characters, an interesting world and a captivating storyline and this book has all this. Another great series from Ms Snyder and I cannot wait to see what book #3 brings.

I give this book 4 stars!

What an awesome start to a new series from Julie Kagawa. I always felt a little sorry for Ethan,kidnapped & terrorised by the fey then left behind by his sister (even if it was to keep him safe), I am so glad he finally got his own tale.

This book was every bit as good as the original Iron Fey series and I loved the mix of old and new characters. However it wasn't just a continuation. This a whole new adventure. From the first page I was again drawn in to the fey realm and remained there for the matter of hours it too me to read this.

Many first books in a series spend a lot of time setting up the series and not as much on the story. Maybe this is because we are already pretty familiar with the Faerie realm due to previous Iron Fey novels but I love that the main story of this book was a story in itself and resolved while still setting up the newest series in this world.

As mentioned before, I always felt sorry for Ethan and Julie Kagawa uses this at the beginning of the book to Gain Ethan more empathy as we find out what Ethan's life has been like growing up being able to see THEM and even worse...They can see him! Even though at 17 he presents such a tough front, all I could see was the vulnerable four year old inside who though he had never quite gotten over what had happened to him and has had to deal with the fey all his life has still managed to grow up with a clear sense of right and wrong and though he may not admit it to himself, a wish that no one lose he cares about or is even acquainted with gets caught up in the crazy warped world of the Faery. Due to previous history I was always going to love him but the way he is written in this novel made it that much easier.

Lastly, the plot line itself is intriguing and riveting as right from the beginning we want to know what this new menace is and why the fey exiles and half breeds are disappearing. Even better, what do find out is worth the wait!

Overall, this is awesome read. Some developments I did pick up quite early on but this did not impede my overall enjoyment of the book.

Julie Kagawa is at her best with this story. I give it 5 stars.

After reading book 1, Crave, in less than a day, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this novel. Overall I wasn't disappointed. At first, I was a little worried as I wasn't sure where it was going to go then Wham! the first few chapters unfolded and once again I was hooked.

This has a different feel to the first book. While the first one was mostly (obviously) about Savannah and Tristan and their secret love, there was a lot more happening in this second instalment, peripheral characters came into play and become less peripheral as the story broadened and deepened and more threads unravelled. We got to learn more about these characters and understand them and their point of views more which changed our perspective of the story as a whole.

Some of the revelations I saw coming, some I merely suspected and some I just did not see coming at all but all of them felt right for the story and I loved the direction it took.

And even though, there was more conflict, more mystery and more suspense, there was still just the right amount of angst between Savannah and Tristan and enough of their story to tie all threads together.

The ending left me breathless and all I can say is bring on book 3: Consume

I give this book 3 3/4 stars!

I had heard a lot of good things about Everneath before I picked it up from the library so I was expecting a lot when I got to reading it. While it took me a little while to get into it, i am so glad i persevered because in the end it became quite a compelling read.


At first glance, to me at least, the synopsis reads like a sequel. I kept checking to see if it was actually a book 2 in a series. The beginning of the book felt a little like this as well and I felt like I had missed something when it started and that feeling took a little while to shake.

Brodi Ashton juxtaposes the past and the present so that we can see the events leading up to the feed and how it connects with the now, in which Nikki has returned to the surface. At first this was a little confusing ( me, with my issues of having missed something) but as story progressed, this juxtaposition actually made the story more cohesive and added to the tension of the story as you learned what had gone before and how it related to present events.

I loved the connection between Nikki and Jack and though the reason for her leaving in the first place is never really resolved, I loved the fact that he was constantly there for her.

As mentioned, it took me a little while to get into this story as I felt like in some ways I spent the first third of the book 'catching up' however as the story went on I found myself turning the pages quicker and quicker and I think I read the last 200 or so pages in less time than it took me to read the first 100.

There are a lot of stories that play around with the myth of Hades and Persephone around at the moment and I liked this spin on it with the immortals feeding on humans and making out the underworld ( or Everneath) to not be the romantic place of so many of these stories and making Cole definitely not the hero.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and am ever so glad there is a sequel forthcoming as the ending... Well let's just say I am glad the is another book coming. One which I am placing on my Wishlist right now as soon as I finish this review.

It is only the slow beginning that stops this from getting 5 stars. 4 stars for this great debut!

So I have mentioned before that I am not usually a big fan of the Young Adult Contemporary Genre but I requested this novel because I found the idea of a high school girl choosing to take a vow of silence, after accidentally revealing one secret too many, intriguing.

I am glad I decided to take the plunge. This book was current and sensitive while leaving you with a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

This book deals indirectly with some heavy topics: homophobia, bullying, but does so in a way that is sensitive and delicate rather than in your face. Part of this because we see these issues the eyes of a teenage girl.

Chelsea is shocked at events that happen as a result of her being unable to keep her mouth shut. This event is enough to make her take a vow of silence so that maybe she will learn to watch what she says.

I liked that the author took Chelsea on a journey of self discovery that felt real and throughout the book you could really see her grow as a person as she learnt more about herself as a person, the other people around her and to start to see how what she says and does contributes to the bigger picture.

I also like that Chelsea is a strong female character, who at first seems quite shallow and weak. However, despite being on the receiving end of verbal abuse and some physical and mental attacks, she is able to stay strong, stick to her guns and stand up for what she believes in. Her strength is shown in how events affect her and how she responds.

The story flows from beginning to end, is believable and best of all leaves you with the warm glow of a satisfying conclusion.

A story with appeal for everyone, not just teenagers.

This book surprised me. I heard a bit about the series but had never read any of Rachel Caine's books so had no idea what to expect and I enjoyed it more than I expected to. While the subject of vampires is very much in vogue at the moment, this is a fresh perspective which I liked and I truly did not see where this book was going which made me enjoy it more and I certainly did not expect the ending...

Definetly reading the rest of the books in this series

So I know this book has been out for a while and there have been another 7 books published in this series since this one but I am now just started reading the series so wanted to post my thoughts.


What I really like about this instalment in the Morganville Vampires series is that that we start to get a bigger and more in depth of the workings of Morganville itself and some of how it came to be which really adds to the story that Ms Caine is telling.


We also get to see the consequences of some of the actions that both Claire and Michael took in the last book The Dead Girls Dance and Ms Caine does well to show the effects of these decisions on not only Claire and Michael but how it affects their relationships with all the other characters - Eve and Shane especially.


Action and story wise there is still a lot happening in every chapter and while this book took me a little longer to read than the other two I suspect that had more to do with me than the book because once again Ms Caine delivers on a story you can get your teeth into - pun not intended :-P, characters who can identify with both good and bad, widening of our understanding of the town of Morganville and all that living in the town entails. Lastly, the twists that are constantly being thrown in mean you can never quite tell what is coming next and this instalment is no different. No sooner do you think nothing else can go wrong for the main characters of Claire, Michael, Shane and Eve then Ms Caine throws in yet another couple of twists and a cliff hanger meaning that you will be heading for the book store or library for the next instalments as soon as you manage to put this one down.


All in all an enjoyable read and yes i am already reading book 4 : Feast of Fools. I definitely recommend this whole series :-)

Sapphired Dragon xx
http://sapphiredragon.blogspot.com

Review to come

Review to come

I really enjoyed this book. I initially went into it knowing little else than those i knew that had read it thoroughly enjoyed it. i hadn't read the synopsis even so I went into the book completely blind and just hoping for a good read.I was basically drawn in from the first page. Ms Hand built a solid foundation with characters that were both likeable and believable and drew you to the path you thought would lead you straight through the book. However then Ms Hand added twists and turns,side roads and off shoots that made you realise that maybe the path was not so straightforward after all and each additional twist or thread added to the over all story and kept drawing you further and further down its path.The only thing that, at least in my opinion, brought this book down from a 4 1/2 - 5 star book to a 4 star book was the ending... Not going to give give anything away but lets just say while I did guess some elements of it and i did like that I didn't expect other elements, I was as satisfied with the ending as I would have liked to have been and it left with me a more of "oh ok" feeling rather than an "Oh my goodness that was awesome"feeling.That being said, I immensely enjoyed this story and am anxiously awaiting next payday so I can buy book two HallowedA definite 4 star rating for this book and a recommendation to go read ASAP!! :)

check out more of my reviews at :

http://sapphireddragon.blogspot.com

I wasn't really sure what to expect when i started this novel. I has heard mostly good things and read the synopsis but when it started, I worried a little it miht turn out not much more than a Gossip Girl type story.

However I was pleasantly surprised instead to find a charming sweet story with that dash of supernatural in it that makes a story, at least in my opinion, so much more.

I guess having watched tv shows like Gossip Girl, it made may of Shultz's descriptions come to life even more and her descriptions made feel like i knew the locations well. However it was the characters that really made the story.

I liked the main character Emma, she was smart, witty and strong and Brendan made we want to swoon alongside Emma and the rest of the girls at Vincent Academy. The only characters I couldn't really get a handle on were Kristin and Anthony. Though I think was more to do with me necessarily than the writing.

Overall though this was a charming, smart, sweet story that had me pretty much hooked till the end. I definitely enjoyed it and thought it well worth 4 stars.

Sapphired Dragon xx
http://sapphiredragon.blogspot.com