Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas - A Court of Thorns and Roses #1

A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a beast-like creature arrives to demand retribution for it. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she only knows about from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not an animal, but Tamlin-one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled their world.

As she dwells on his estate, her feelings for Tamlin transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie and warning she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But an ancient, wicked shadow over the faerie lands is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it . . . or doom Tamlin-and his world-forever.

What I think:

I was never really drawn to this book. Didn't find the premise interesting and never really understood the hype. The reason I picked this book up is the last book in this series coming out. So why not give it a try? Boy was I wrong for letting this masterpiece almost slip me by.

This book is so beautifully written and after a couple of chapters you even forget it's a retelling. The main story of beauty and the beast is still there, but it has been manipulated in such a beautiful way. The characters are wonderful, the world is wonderful. I feel like I don't have the words to describe this book.

It's been a while since I've been so pleased by a book, not only by the story, but also by the author's writing.

View all my reviews

Review: By Your Side by Kasie West

By Your Side by Kasie West
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

When Autumn Collins finds herself accidentally locked in the library for an entire weekend, she doesn’t think things could get any worse. But that’s before she realizes that Dax Miller is locked in with her. Autumn doesn’t know much about Dax except that he’s trouble. Between the rumors about the fight he was in (and that brief stint in juvie that followed it) and his reputation as a loner, he’s not exactly the ideal person to be stuck with. Still, she just keeps reminding herself that it is only a matter of time before Jeff, her almost-boyfriend, realizes he left her in the library and comes to rescue her.

Only he doesn’t come. No one does.

Instead it becomes clear that Autumn is going to have to spend the next couple of days living off vending-machine food and making conversation with a boy who clearly wants nothing to do with her. Except there is more to Dax than meets the eye. As he and Autumn first grudgingly, and then not so grudgingly, open up to each other, Autumn is struck by their surprising connection. But can their feelings for each other survive once the weekend is over and Autumn’s old life, and old love interest, threaten to pull her from Dax’s side?

Review: Last Stand by Rachel E. Carter - The Black Mage #4

Last Stand by Rachel E. Carter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

He’s the Black Mage and she’s the traitor to the Crown.

Ryiah’s world was shattered the night she discovered King Blayne’s nefarious plans. Now, she has to betray the one she loves most in order to save the realm from war. Torn between love and duty, Ry finds herself on a perilous mission to help the rebels and convince the kingdom of Pythus not to honor its pact with the corrupt king of Jerar—all the while deceiving the most powerful mage in the realm, the very man sworn to protect the Crown and hunt the rebels at all costs: her husband.

She’s one step ahead, but sooner or later the curtain will fall.

Sooner or later, she’ll have to fight.

Emojiathon June 2017

In June I'll be joining the Emojiathon, hosted on Twitter. Here are the challenges I decided to tackle.

read a book that was gifted to you
I'll be reading White Hot Kiss by Jennifer L. Armentrout for this. I got this book from my sister for my birthday almost a year ago. She really loved it, so I think I should read it too.

read a book that makes you happy just thinking about it.
Last Stand by Rachel E. Carter. I got this book for review a while ago and I absolutely loved the previous three books of this series. So I have to finish it and it makes me happy thinking about the fact that I still have another book to fuel my love fot this series.

read a 2016/2017 release.
By Your Side by Kasie West. I have this recent release just hanging around on my shelves so...

read a book in under 24 hours.
I really have to read Vals Nest by Beatrijs Peeters. It's only 99 pages so I'll be able to easily finish it within 24 hours.

Review: Glass Faerie by Rachel Morgan - Creepy Hollow #7

Glass Faerie by Rachel Morgan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Emerson Clarke: Sarcastic. Independent. Possibly losing her mind.

Because that’s the only explanation for why she occasionally sees things that aren’t there, right? But one night, an impossible power erupts from her, and Em realizes the truth is crazier than she ever thought: she isn’t losing her mind; she’s magical.

Thrown into an entirely new world of faeries, enchantments—and the annoying guy from down the road who, it turns out, isn’t human either—Em barely has time to learn even the most basic of magic before another startling truth reveals itself: she has a Griffin Ability. A special kind of magic feared by most fae. Now she’s at the top of everyone’s most-wanted list—including the mysterious glass faerie carrying out random attacks on fae.

In this magical and terrifying world that she’s entirely unprepared for, Em must try to figure out who she really is, whom to trust, and how to stay alive long enough to get back to her normal life.

What I think:

Finally had the chance to sit down and finish this book to finally review it.

I'm kind of running out of things to say about this series. I feel like I'm getting repetitive. Rachel Morgan's writing is fenomenal and she doesn't fail to amaze me with every word she writes down. This book is amazing and I just can't get enough of the old characters that come back and fell in love with the new ones introduced.

So I'll just be here, waiting for the next book.

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Reading challenge catching up

HELP!!

It's almost June already and so for i've only read 5 books. Which is insane to me. Friends tell me it's great, like, five books, wow, that's not nothing. For me, it is close to nothing. I used to read two books a week easily, and now I'm barely reading a book a month.
It's not a big deal, I know, you can read whenever you feel like it a d shouldn't feel forced to do so. But reading is somethign that makes me happy and the reason I don't read as much anymore is because I have so many things to do during the day, that I'm way to tired to read in the evening and decide to do something else like watching YouTube video's or Netflix.
With exams coming in two weeks I feel like I should read more, because that's really something that relaxes me.

Anyway's here's an update of the books I've read so far (since monthly wrap-ups weren't really in order these past few months)

First Year by Rachel E. Carter

Rating: 4/5

Review: How to Be a Bawse by Lilly Singh

How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life by Lilly Singh

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

From actress, comedian and YouTube sensation Lilly Singh (aka Superwoman) comes the definitive guide to being a BAWSE - a person who exudes confidence, reaches goals, gets hurt efficiently, and smiles genuinely because they've fought through it all and made it out the other side.

Told in her hilarious, bold voice that's inspired over 9 million fans, and using stories from her own life to illustrate her message, Lilly proves that there are no shortcuts to success.

WARNING: This book does NOT include hopeful thoughts, lucky charms, and cute quotes. That's because success, happiness and everything else you want in life needs to be fought for - not wished for. In Lilly's world, there are no escalators. Only stairs.

Review: Candidate by Rachel E. Carter - The Black Mage #3

Candidate by Rachel E. Carter
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Welcome to the Candidacy. Where dreams go to die.

Twenty-year-old Ryiah is a black mage of Combat, but she’s not the Black Mage. Yet. She’s had her eyes on the legendary robe for as long as she can remember, and in just one year, she will have a chance at her country’s prestigious—and only—tourney for war mages... Too bad she is going up against a certain prince—the one person she has yet to beat.

The Candidacy finally arrives and a winner is robed, but something dark is lurking in her kingdom’s midst. Rival nations are closing in, and it’s time to make an alliance. 

Unfortunately for Ryiah, that’s only the beginning. The worst enemy resides in the palace.

Review: Apprentice by Rachel E. Carter - The Black Mage #2

Apprentice by Rachel E. Carter

Synopsis:

She survived a trial year at the Academy of Magic, but that was the easy part…

Now sixteen-year-old Ryiah is an apprentice of Combat, her school’s most notorious faction. When she finishes, she will be a war mage, but in order to do so, she has to survive four years traveling across Jerar, training with a master she hates, her old nemesis, Priscilla, and Prince Darren, her sometimes-rival sometimes… more?

Ry’s new apprenticeship is nothing like what she prepared for. War is on the horizon and her lessons aren’t just for practice anymore.

It’s time to fight.

Lost Legacies new cover reveal

A Lost Legacy: Awakening (Lost Legacies 1) 

By C.E Dimond

258 Pages | Write Addictions Publishing

Finn Adams thought she knew what her life had in store for her; a mundane existence of day to day life. The arrival of a stranger in town turns her world upside down. When her mother goes missing, Finn soon discovers that she is a witch and she is being hunted for her power. Ripped from the only life she’s ever known, Finn is transported across the country to Broadhaven, Maine to discover the secrets she never knew about herself, her heritage, and the tremendous power that's been kept from her for so long. Her loyalties are tested when she learns of her true parentage and discovers she is part of a prophecy, destined to awaken an ancient power that has been lost for centuries. As she struggles to learn from her mother’s past, she is faced with the ultimate struggle of good and evil, family or friends, she must learn who she can trust and find the power within herself to stop the prophecy from coming true.

A Lost Legacy: Wandering (Lost Legacies Prequel)

By C.E Dimond

110 Pages | Write Addictions Publishing

Seventeen-year-old Warlock Eamon O'Neill was born and raised in the Broadhaven Coven. Life at Broadhaven meant two things; One, he was inherently magic and two, he had a role to play. What his role was, never seemed to be clear. Descended from Celtic royalty, the expectations on young coven members are high. Coven life is a series of ancient rules, traditions, and secrets. Eamon has always trained to be the perfect Warlock and the perfect son but struggles living in his father's shadow. When a threat from the past resurfaces, the opportunity of a lifetime presents itself. One of his own will be chosen to track down the last living Witch in their Coven, and he is determined to be the man for the job. Eamon will need to place his own issues aside and focus his most powerful magic to complete the trials. He must prove he is the only one powerful enough to protect their only weapon.

About The Author

C.E Dimond is an Irish-Canadian author. She has always had a passion for literature and from a young age indulged her mind in the fantasy fiction world. As a child, her bedtime stories consisted greatly of Irish folklore and songs that inspired a true love of her heritage. She has a love of World Religions, psychology, languages and history and has put all of these inspirations to work in her writing. She is an alumna of St. Mary’s Academy and studied Theatre and Film at the University of Winnipeg. Currently, she lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.

Connect with C.E

Website - Twitter - Facebook - Goodreads - Instagram

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T5W - Favorite Underrated Books

"Give some love to those books that aren't as widely talked about. Those hidden gems. Those books that maybe used to be popular but people have forgotten about and they still deserve some love."

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

People who have been reading my blog for a while or who have been following me on Instagram (@the_secrets_in_books) may already know that my number 1 on this list is the Creepy Hollow series by Rachel Morgan. Right now this book counts 6 books. Books 1-3 tell Violet's story and books 4-6 follow Calla, who's already introduced in books 1-3 but grew older by the time book 4 starts with her story. Soon the next 3 books, and last ones in this series, will come out and I'm way to excited to find out who the next 3 books will be about.

Besides the obvious choice of Creepy Hollow, some other series are:

• The Black Mage series by Rachel E. Carter (only recently started reading this series and loving it)
• The Hidden Wings series by Cameo Renae
• The Creatura series by Nely Cab

Do you have any series who deserve more hype? Please comment your favorite underrated books below.

Much love,

Ellen

Review: First Year by Rachel E. Carter - The Black Mage #1

First Year by Rachel E. Carter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

Before the age of seventeen, the young men and women of Jerar are given a choice —pursue a trade or enroll in a trial year in one of the realm’s three war schools to study as a soldier, knight, or mage…

For fifteen-year-old Ryiah, the choice has always been easy. Become a mage and train in Combat, the most prestigious faction of magic.

Yet when she arrives, Ry finds herself competing against friend and foe for one of the exalted apprenticeships. Everyone is rooting for her to fail—first and foremost among them is Prince Darren, the school prodigy who has done nothing but make life miserable since she arrived.

Will Ry survive, or will her dream go down in flames?

T5W - 2017 Debuts You Are Excited For

"There is already a ton of hype for well established authors, but here is an opportunity to discuss some debut (new) authors and showcase their books. There are plenty of debut author challenges and lists you can find if you are having trouble with this one :)"

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

I looked into this and ended up getting pretty excited over these books:

• What I Lost by Alexandra Ballard
• Frostblood by Elly Blake
• The Wood by Chelsea Bobulski
• Cinderella, Necromancer by F.M. Boughan
• Confessions of a High School Disaster: Chloe Snow's Diary by Emma Chastain

Feel free to put a link to your T5W of this week in the comments. It's always fun to have some new books to look forward to.

Much love,

Ellen

T5W - 2017 Goals

"These do not need to be reading goals specifically, they can be any goals you want to talk about. Reading goals, blog/channel/instagram goals, personal goals...anything!"

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

I haven't had the best 2016 when it comes to reading. I don't regret it, because I have had a great year. But reading is something that makes me happy and I really want to get back into it in 2017. Time for a change.

I decided to put myself some reading goals, some books, genres, authors, etc. that I really want to read this year and they're the following:

• Start reading Rick Riordan's books (I know, I know,... My friends are totally in love with this books, time for me to get on this train) and maybe catch up on all primary works of all his series so far.
• Finish rereading the Vampire Academy series. (I've gotten to book 5 in 2016, time to round things up)
• Try to get all my school reading done on time and try to actually enjoy it instead of seeing it as an annoying task.
• Get to read 50 books, which I wasn't able to last year.
• Read books I feel like I'll enjoy, not just because of any hype going on.

These are pretty reasonable goals and I look forward to reading in 2017. I have a pretty tame semester starting in februari, I'll be able to read a lot and won't have English literature classes, so no mandatory reading for that.

Hope you're all celebrating the holidays with friends or family.

Much love,

Ellen

Review: The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West

The Fill-In Boyfriend by Kasie West
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

When Gia Montgomery's boyfriend, Bradley, dumps her in the parking lot of her high school prom, she has to think fast. After all, she'd been telling her friends about him for months now. This was supposed to be the night she proved he existed. So when she sees a cute guy waiting to pick up his sister, she enlists his help. The task is simple: be her fill-in boyfriend—two hours, zero commitment, a few white lies. After that, she can win back the real Bradley.

The problem is that days after prom, it's not the real Bradley she's thinking about, but the stand-in. The one whose name she doesn't even know. But tracking him down doesn't mean they're done faking a relationship. Gia owes him a favor and his sister intends to see that he collects: his ex-girlfriend's graduation party—three hours, zero commitment, a few white lies.

Just when Gia begins to wonder if she could turn her fake boyfriend into a real one, Bradley comes waltzing back into her life, exposing her lie, and threatening to destroy her friendships and her new-found relationship.

Review: Raven by Rachel Morgan - A Creepy Hollow Story

Raven by Rachel Morgan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Synopsys:

The glittering magic of high society faerie life, with a hint of forbidden romance ...

When design student Raven Rosewood, daughter of high society fae, is almost killed in an explosion, her parents insist on assigning a bodyguard to protect her at all times. Raven agrees, but only if she can choose the guard.

Flint’s life couldn’t be more different from that of his employers. He doesn’t agree with their extravagant ways, but he’s admired their daughter Raven since he first met her. When asked to guard her more closely after her life is threatened, Flint is happy to take on the assignment.

Despite the gulf between their stations in life, Raven and Flint can’t help growing close to one another. As the pressure of Raven’s final fashion show builds, along with the threat of her parents discovering her relationship with a guard, Raven and Flint must decide whether their differences will push them apart or bring them closer together.

Raven is a companion story to the bestselling YA fantasy Creepy Hollow series. While it is best enjoyed in conjunction with the rest of the series, it is a standalone story that can be read on its own.

T5W - Most Unlikable Characters

"NOT VILLAINS! These are protagonists or side characters that are unlikable! (These should lean more towards characters who aren't intentionally unlikeable. Not villains, or mean girl/guys, etc.)"

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

1. David Chios in the Creatura series by Nely Cab. He's great in the first book, but damn he needs to get his sh*t together in the sequel. I didn't like him in that part of the story, don't know what the hell is wrong with him.
2. Tris Prior in the Divergent series by Veronica Roth. She's fine in the first book, but starting from the second book and definitely the third book she just acts supid, emotional and impulsive.

Don't have more than those two, sorry guys.

Much love,
Ellen

T5W - Most Recent Additions to Your Wishlist

"Books you are dying to get your hands on for your collection, or if you are a library-exclusive reader, books you recently added to your list there."

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

I'm going to list books that will soon be released and tat I can't wait to finally read.

1. A Lost Legacy: Descending by C.E. Dimond (Jul. 9 2017)

2. Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth (Jan. 17 2017)

3. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor (Sep. 27 2016)

4. P.S. I Like You by Kasie West (Jul. 26 2016)

5. Marker of Hope by Nely Cab (Dec. 2016)

Much love,

Ellen

Review: The Gang Leader's Angel by Chibz_Love

The Gang Leader's Angel by Chibz_Love
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis:

In Jacob Hunters world there is no place for innocence. Becoming a gang leader at the age of 19 he was forced into a position he never wanted in the first place but a year later, he's embraced it completely by becoming the ruthless, menacing leader of the 'Scorp' gang. His life is all guns and no play. At least it was until he bumps into a girl who gives him first aid after he got shot.

Juliet Harper is an angel to say the least.Some would call her naive as well and they wouldn't be wrong. She's just a living breathing ball of happiness, sarcasm and kindness. So imagine what would happen if she were to stumble across a guy slightly older than her walking down the street with a bleeding arm from where he was shot. I'll give you a hint; she offers him help.

And from them on starts the journey between the two. A relationship with two polar opposites. It doesn't take long till he becomes her hero and she becomes the devils little angel or you could call her the gang leaders angel...

T5W - Books You Wish Had Sequels

"Standalones that you wish had a sequel or the last book in the series that you wish wasn't the last."

Join the Top 5 Wednesday and check out the weekly topics on the T5W Goodreads page!

1. P.S. I Still Love You by Jenny Han (and the sequel is in fact coming for this book!)
2. My Life with the Walter Boys by Ali Novak

Again I didn't find 5 books. I don't read a lot of standalones and am usually happy with the endings of series and don't feel like I need more books.

Much love,

Ellen