Fantasy – Page 17 – Jill's Book Blog

Review: House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City #1)

Title: House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City #1)
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Fantasy, Romance
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: March 3, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Bound by blood.
Tempted by desire.
Unleashed by destiny.
Bryce Quinlan had the perfect life—working hard all day and partying all night—until a demon murdered her closest friends, leaving her bereft, wounded, and alone. When the accused is behind bars but the crimes start up again, Bryce finds herself at the heart of the investigation. She’ll do whatever it takes to avenge their deaths.
Hunt Athalar is a notorious Fallen angel, now enslaved to the Archangels he once attempted to overthrow. His brutal skills and incredible strength have been set to one purpose—to assassinate his boss’s enemies, no questions asked. But with a demon wreaking havoc in the city, he’s offered an irresistible deal: help Bryce find the murderer, and his freedom will be within reach.
As Bryce and Hunt dig deep into Crescent City’s underbelly, they discover a dark power that threatens everything and everyone they hold dear, and they find, in each other, a blazing passion—one that could set them both free, if they’d only let it.
With unforgettable characters, sizzling romance, and page-turning suspense, this richly inventive new fantasy series by #1 New York Times bestselling author Sarah J. Maas delves into the heartache of loss, the price of freedom—and the power of love.

Review:

Bryce Quinlan was a carefree party girl until her best friends were brutally murdered by a demon. Two years later, the investigation of her friends’ murders is reopened when some similar attacks happen. Hunt Athalar is a fallen angel, who is sent to assassinate the enemies of his boss. He’s given a deal to earn his freedom if he helps Bryce find the murderer. Bryce and Hunt butt heads a lot at first, but then they work together to uncover the dark secrets hidden within Crescent City.

I usually read books quickly, but I had to take my time with this one. I loved the world building of Crescent City. It was an urban city, filled with different fantasy creatures and a complex political system.

I went into this book blind and I’m so glad I did. There were some fantastic twists that I didn’t see coming. I fell in love with the characters instantly. Bryce was sassy and determined while dealing with a lot of trauma. I hope we learn more of Hunt’s past in the next book because he seemed complex too.

House of Earth and Blood is definitely worth the hype!

Other books in the series:

House of Sky and Breath

Have you read House of Earth and Blood? What did you think of it?

Blog Tour Review: The Iron Sword

Title: The Iron Sword (The Iron Fey: Evenfall #2)
Author: Julie Kagawa
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: Inkyard Press
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: February 1, 2022
Rating: ★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

As Evenfall nears, the stakes grow ever higher for those in Faery…
Banished from the Winter Court for daring to fall in love, Prince Ash achieved the impossible and journeyed to the End of the World to earn a soul and keep his vow to always stand beside Queen Meghan of the Iron Fey.
Now he faces even more incomprehensible odds. Their son, King Keirran of the Forgotten, is missing. Something more ancient than the courts of Faery and more evil than anything Ash has faced in a millennium is rising as Evenfall approaches. And if Ash and his allies cannot stop it, the chaos that has begun to divide the world will shatter it for eternity.

Review:

Prince Ash has stood by Queen Meghan, the Iron Queen, since he was banished from the Winter Court. Now, their son, King Keirran of the Forgotten, has gone missing. There is an evil force approaching Nevernever that they will have to stop so that they can find Keirran and save their world.

I haven’t read the original Iron Fey series, but I really enjoyed the previous book in this spin off series. This book began with a great, quick recap of the last book, which was very helpful. I was situated right in the action immediately.

Since I haven’t read the original series, I wasn’t as invested in the characters as I could have been. In the last book, Puck was the narrator, and he was charming and funny. Ash was the narrator in this book, and he didn’t have the same entertaining narrative. Though I also didn’t have a connection to the characters in the first book, Puck kept me interested in the story. Unfortunately I couldn’t get as invested in this story.

The Iron Sword would be great for fans of The Iron Fey series.

Thank you HarperCollins for providing a copy of this book.

About the author:

Born in Sacramento, CA, Julie Kagawa moved to Hawaii at the age of nine. There she learned many things; how to bodyboard, that teachers scream when you put centipedes in their desks, and that writing stories in math class is a great way to kill time. Her teachers were glad to see her graduate.

Julie now lives is Louisville, KY with her husband and furkids. She is the international and NYT bestselling author of The Iron Fey series. Visit her at juliekagawa.com.

Have you read The Iron Sword? What did you think of it?

Review: Blackwells and the Briny Deep

Title: Blackwells and the Briny Deep
Author: Philippa Dowding
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Publisher: Dundurn
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: September 29, 2018
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Do you hear the distant drums? And what about that weird screaming … It’s BOOK 5 in the award-winning Weird Stories Gone Wrong series!
Emma Blackwell used to love mermaids. Jonah Blackwell used to love pirates. And William Blackwell tried to be a good captain. Which he would be, if he could get his twin brother and sister to stop fighting long enough to sail their boat, the Peregrine, across the bay. But after the Blackwells see a phantom ship, barely survive a terrible storm, and then mysteriously wake up with seaweed in their mouths, everything changes.
They’re becalmed in fog. They run aground on a strange island. They hear distant drums, and their weird adventure begins! The Blackwells face zombie pirates, terrifying mermaids, and a shipwrecked group of cursed ship’s figureheads, including a Roman gladiator and an English knight, all led by the strange dolphin-boy, Finn.
It’ll make a great sea yarn one day, if they can just survive it.

Review:

Siblings Emma, Jonah, and William like to sail their boat, the “Peregrine,” around the bay. While sailing one day, they’re caught in a storm and are all knocked out. They wake up with seaweed in their mouths and eventually reach the shore. While on this mysterious island, the three siblings are separated. They each encounter different creatures, including zombie pirates, evil mermaids, and ghostly ship figureheads. They must figure out how to find each other so they can return to their real world.

This was a fun adventure story. At the beginning, Emma, Jonah, and William bickered a lot. Their relationship evolved when they were thrown into danger, so they learned how important they were to one another.

There was a lot of ship lore in this story. The kids knew how to drive their own sailboat. The ghostly figureheads that Emma met on the island were based on true stories of shipwrecks or curses. I’m really curious to learn more about those real stories after reading this one.

Blackwells and the Bring Deep was a great middle grade adventure!

Thank you Dundurn for providing a copy of this book.

Other books in the series:

Jake and the Giant Hand
Myles and the Monster Outside
Carter and the Curious Maze
Alex and the Other

Have you read Blackwells and the Briny Deep? What did you think of it?

Review: A Spindle Splintered (Fractured Fables #1)

Title: A Spindle Splintered (Fractured Fables #1)
Author: Alix E. Harrow
Genre: Fantasy, Novella, LGBTQ
Publisher: Tordotcom
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: October 5, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

It’s Zinnia Gray’s twenty-first birthday, which is extra-special because it’s the last birthday she’ll ever have. When she was young, an industrial accident left Zinnia with a rare condition. Not much is known about her illness, just that no one has lived past twenty-one.
Her best friend Charm is intent on making Zinnia’s last birthday special with a full sleeping beauty experience, complete with a tower and a spinning wheel. But when Zinnia pricks her finger, something strange and unexpected happens, and she finds herself falling through worlds, with another sleeping beauty, just as desperate to escape her fate.
USA Today bestselling author Alix E. Harrow’s A Spindle Splintered brings her patented charm to a new version of a classic story.

Review:

Zinnia Gray never expected to live past her twenty-first birthday. She has a rare medical condition, which destroys her organs. No one with her condition has ever lived to twenty-two. As a child, she became obsessed with Sleeping Beauty, who also had an expiry date on her life. Since it’s Zinnia’s last birthday, her best friend, Charm, throws her a Sleeping Beauty party, that ends in Zinnia pricking her finger and ending up in an alternate universe. Zinnia goes to another version of the Sleeping Beauty story, where she must save the princess to return to her world.

I love any fairy tale themed story so I was excited to read this one. I went into it without knowing what it was going to be about. Zinnia goes into the Sleeping Beauty universe, where all versions of the story live. She had to interact with a few different girls who are living through that storyline.

A big theme of this story was the toxic masculinity surrounding the Sleeping Beauty story. There are versions that are much more terrorizing than the Disney version that we all think of. The whole idea of a woman being awoken by the non-consensual kiss of a man is problematic enough, without looking at other versions where the men did more than that. This story had a good twist on that ending that made it more pleasant and feminist.

A Spindle Splintered was a great modern fairytale. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series!

Review: The Awakening (Zodiac Academy #1)

Title: The Awakening (Zodiac Academy #1)
Author: Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
Genre: Romance, Fantasy, New Adult
Publisher: Independently published
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Release Date: July 13, 2019
Rating: ★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

You have been selected to attend Zodiac Academy, where your star sign defines your destiny.
If you’re one of the Fae, elemental magic is in your blood. And apparently it’s in ours. As twins born in the month of Gemini, we’re a rare breed even in this academy of supernatural a-holes.
Changelings were outlawed hundreds of years ago but I guess our birth parents didn’t get the memo. Which means we’re totally unprepared for the ruthless world of Fae.
Air. Fire. Water. Earth.
No one has ever harnessed all four of them, until we arrived. And it hasn’t made us any friends so far.
As the rarest Elementals ever known, we’re already a threat to the four celestial heirs; the popular, vindictive bullies who happen to be some of the hottest guys we’ve ever seen. It doesn’t help that they’re the most dangerous beasts in the Academy. And probably on earth too.
Our fates are intertwined, but they want us gone. They’ve only got until the lunar eclipse to force us out and they’ll stop at nothing to succeed.
We never knew we had a birthright to live up to but now that we do, we intend to claim our throne.
We can’t expect any help from the faculty when it comes to defending ourselves. So if the dragon shifters want some target practice, the werewolves want someone to hunt or the vampiresfancy a snack then we have to be ready. But we’ve been looking after each other for a long time and fighting back is in our blood.
Today’s horoscope: totally screwed.

Review:

Darcy and Tory are eighteen-year-old twins from Chicago. Their parents died when they were babies so they went through many foster families who didn’t treat them well. Soon after their eighteenth birthday, a man shows up in their lives to take them to their home world. They are actually fae, and the true heirs to the throne. Darcy and Tory are taken to the Zodiac Academy, and they must pass their Awakening to earn their places as heirs. However, they don’t know anything about this world or their extraordinary magical powers. The sisters have to face bullies, hazing, and potential romances, while also learning about their powers.

I’ve been seeing this book everywhere so I had to read it. I’ve seen it described as Hogwarts as a university, with some spicy romance. It had Hogwarts vibes, since Darcy and Tory had to go to a magical school and learn about the world, like Harry Potter. However, these girls didn’t seem to have any allies in the other students, so it was more difficult for them to navigate this world.

This was my first time reading “bully romance.” I didn’t even know what that was before reading this. The men in this book were very toxic. They treated the women terribly. Yet they were physically attractive and from powerful families, so people were drawn to them. There were some moments that I thought the guys were going to redeem themselves, but it didn’t last very long.

The Awakening is a great start to this series!

Review: Compass to Vinland

Title: Compass to Vinland
Author: Dani Resh
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Contemporary
Publisher: Warren Publishing Inc.
Source: Author
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: September 7, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Wren Larkin has a lot of things working against him-too tall, too thin, and living in a house that looks like an old boot. His only friends are a group of noisy crows that are always bringing him random trinkets. Needless to say, he’s not the most popular kid in town.
But things change when a girl named Maria moves to town and instantly befriends Wren. She continues to do the unexpected when she defends Rusty, the resident bad boy, who might not be as rebellious as Wren thought. Wren learns that it isn’t just coincidence that brought the three of them together when he discovers a shoe workshop under the heel of his house that’s holding-or hiding–three pairs of magical shoes intended for each of them.
When strangers arrive on Wren’s doorstep looking for the shoes, Wren and his new companions have no choice but to flee to Underfoot, an underground settlement full of magical creatures. In just a matter of days, Wren is immersed into a whole new reality that’ll take him on an incredible journey and reveal a lineage that might be better left secret.

Review:

Wren Larkin has never understood why he lives in a house shaped like a shoe. It was his mother’s childhood home, but he now lives there with his father while his mother is in a coma. His father is distant and never has time for Wren. One day, a new girl, Maria, arrives at school and they instantly become friends. She makes a scene when she defends Rusty, the bad boy in class. An accident brings Wren, Maria, and Rusty to Wren’s home, where they discover a mysterious and magical shoe workshop hidden beneath it. However, dangerous people have been searching for this workshop, and are willing to do anything to get to it. The three friends have to use the pairs of magic shoes to flee to a magical world called Underfoot. Wren has to figure out how much of his life was a lie, and how many of the fantasy stories he heard growing up were actually true.

This was a fun fantasy story. Wren had to discover that the secret magic that his family had was hiding in his house the whole time. There were hints of magic in their family, since his aunt would tell him stories of Vinland, but he never guessed that the stories were real. This classic storyline of discovering secret magical family history never gets old.

I would have liked the beginning to be more fast paced. There was a lot of description of Wren’s life at home and his time at school for the first few chapters. It took a while for the real action to begin. Once the magical aspects began, it was a really exciting story!

Compass to Vinland is a great start to a new series!

Thank you Dani Resh for providing a copy of this book.

Review: My Contrary Mary (Mary #1)

Title: My Contrary Mary (Mary #1)
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows
Genre: Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Publisher: HarperTeen
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Audiobook
Release Date: June 22, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens?
Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she’s a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It’s a secret that could cost her a head—or a tail.⠀
Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But after the king meets a suspicious end, things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis are forced to navigate a viper’s nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary’s secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll.

Review:

Mary Queen of Scots has a secret. She’s secretly an Eðian (a shapeshifter), who can turn into a mouse. Her best friend, and betrothed, Francis knows her secret and is keeping it for her. However, when Francis’s father, the King of France, dies suddenly, Francis is put on the throne. Francis and Mary have to navigate this political world, while also facing supernatural threats.

This book is the first in a trilogy which continues from The Lady Janies books. One thing that I love about these books about historical figures is that they alter history to have the outcome everyone wants. There are some things in Mary’s real life story that I would have liked to be different, and they were written that way in this story.

I love the hilarious narrators with clever references. There were numerous references to the TV show Reign, which was about Mary Queen of Scots. I learned a lot of that history from the show. There were many references to the show that weren’t necessarily historically accurate, such as characters who didn’t really exist, but I loved how that show was tied into the story. There were also jokes about modern day things which were hilarious. One character who could see the future would have visions of movies or inventions from our time. The characters in the story didn’t understand, but it was a hilarious break from history in this story.

I listened to the audiobook edition of this book and I loved it! The jokes were so fun to listen to. I highly recommend this austiobook.

My Contrary Mary is a great historical retelling!

Thank you HarperCollins Audio for providing a copy of this book.

Review: A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3)

Title: A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic #3)
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Tor Books
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: February 21, 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Witness the fate of beloved heroes – and enemies.

THE BALANCE OF POWER HAS FINALLY TIPPED…
The precarious equilibrium among four Londons has reached its breaking point. Once brimming with the red vivacity of magic, darkness casts a shadow over the Maresh Empire, leaving a space for another London to rise.
WHO WILL CRUMBLE?
Kell – once assumed to be the last surviving Antari – begins to waver under the pressure of competing loyalties. And in the wake of tragedy, can Arnes survive?
WHO WILL RISE?
Lila Bard, once a commonplace – but never common – thief, has survived and flourished through a series of magical trials. But now she must learn to control the magic, before it bleeds her dry. Meanwhile, the disgraced Captain Alucard Emery of the Night Spire collects his crew, attempting a race against time to acquire the impossible.
WHO WILL TAKE CONTROL?
And an ancient enemy returns to claim a crown while a fallen hero tries to save a world in decay.

Review:

The darkness of the other Londons has bled through to Red London. Kell must focus on saving his brother and protecting his world. Lila has new magic that she has to learn how to control. Alucard returns to a place he thought was lost. They all must work with an unlikely ally to save London from the darkness that threatens to take over.

This was a fantastic conclusion to the Shades of Magic trilogy. It was action packed and fast paced. The short chapters made it easy to read.

Despite the fast pace, the beautiful, poetic writing made me want to savour it. There are so many great quotes in this series. My favourite one in this book was, “A myth without a voice is like a dandelion without a breath of wind. No way to spread the seeds.”

A Conjuring of Light is a wonderful book. I can’t wait for the story to continue in future books.

Other books in the series:

Have you read A Conjuring of Shadows? What did you think of it?

Review: ExtraOrdinary (Villains #1.5)

Title: ExtraOrdinary (Villains #1.5)
Author: V.E. Schwab, Enid Balám
Genre: Graphic Novel, Science Fiction, Fantasy
Publisher: Titan Comics
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: November 16, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Written by #1 New York Times bestselling author V.E. Schwab, Extraordinary expands deeper into the world of Schwab’s critically acclaimed novels Vicious and Vengeful.
Torn from the world of ‘Vicious’, where death is not the end, only the beginning of extraordinary powers… Three new “EO”s must grapple with their new abilities… and with those who would hunt them down! Featuring unseen character design galleries from Andrea Olimpieri and story commentary from V.E. Schwab!

Review:

After a near death experience when her school bus is involved in an accident, teenage Charlotte Tills gains extraordinary powers. When she looks at someone, she can see that person’s death in their reflection. Her own reflection shows her the man who will kill her: Eli Cardale. She has to find other EOs to figure out how to use her new power.

This graphic novel is part of the Villains series. It can be read as a stand-alone, but it does mention characters from the novels in the series, such as Eli and Victor.

Charlotte’s power of being able to see someone’s death was such an interesting power. It made it difficult to look at people, since she could see them dying, but at the same time she knew what to expect. The ending had a great cliffhanger. I didn’t know this was going to be a series of graphic novels but now I’m so excited!

ExtraOrdinary is a great Villains graphic novel!

Other books in the series:

Have you read ExtraOrdinary? What did you think of it?

Review: The Thirteenth Fairy (Never After #1)

Title: The Thirteenth Fairy (Never After #1)
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Contemporary
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: December 1, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Nothing ever happens in Filomena Jefferson-Cho’s sleepy little suburban town of North Pasadena. The sun shines every day, the grass is always a perfect green, and while her progressive school swears there’s no such thing as bullying, she still feels bummed out. But one day, when Filomena is walking home on her own, something strange happens.
Filomena is being followed by Jack Stalker, one of the heroes in the Thirteenth Fairy, a series of books she loves about a brave girl and her ragtag group of friends who save their world from an evil enchantress. She must be dreaming, or still reading a book. But Jack is insistent–he’s real, the stories are real, and Filomena must come with him at once!
Soon, Filomena is thrust into the world of evil fairies and beautiful princesses, sorcerers and slayers, where an evil queen drives her ruthless armies to destroy what is left of the Fairy tribes. To save herself and the kingdom of Westphalia, Filomena must find the truth behind the fairytales and set the world back to rights before the cycle of sleep and destruction begins once more.

Review:

Filomena Jefferson-Cho lives an ordinary life in North Pasadena, but she loves to escape to the world of Never After in her favourite book series. When she gets the disappointing news on the release day that the thirteenth and final book in the series won’t be published, she’s so disappointed. As she walks home, she’s followed by someone who looks like Jack Stalker, the main character in the series. Jack catches up to her and tells her the world of Never After is real and she must go there with him to save it. The world is being taken over by ogres and Filomena has to help Jack and his friend Alistair. Filomena gets to enter her favourite fictional world that is closer to her reality than she can imagine.

As an avid reader since I was a kid, being able to enter my favourite fictional worlds would be a dream come true. It was so fun to read about Filomena being able to enter Never After. There are a few series I would have loved to enter as a kid, so this was such an entertaining premise.

I loved the references to fairy tales throughout the story. There were many fairy tale characters mentioned in passing, such as Goldilocks and the Three Little Pigs. This was a great set up for more books in the series to explore other fairy tale stories.

The Thirteenth Fairy is a fun middle grade fairy tale story!

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

House of Sky and Breath by Sarah J. Maas

From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Other books in the series:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

About the author:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Alex and the Other by Philippa Dowding

Carter and the Curious Maze by Philippa Dowding

Other books in the series:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Ruthless Fae by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

The Revenge of Magic by James Riley

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows

Reign: The Prophecy by Lily Blake

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Shades of Magic, Vol. 1: The Steel Prince by V.E. Schwab

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Other books in the series:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

Vicious by V.E. Schwab

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Other books in the series:

Goodreads Synopsis:

Review:

What to read next:

The Isle of the Lost by Melissa de la Cruz

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani