Wednesday, May 29, 2019

WoW: RETICENCE (Gail Carriger)


Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blogging event in which one spotlights an upcoming release they are eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:


Reticence (Custard Protocol, #4)
Title: Reticence
Series: The Custard Protocol #4
Author: Gail Carriger
Release Date: August 6, 2019
Publisher: Orbit
Summary:

Bookish and proper Percival Tunstell finds himself out of his depth when floating cities, spirited plumbing, and soggy biscuits collide in this delightful conclusion to NYT bestselling author Gail Carriger's Custard Protocol series.

Percival Tunstell loves that his sister and her best friend are building themselves a family of misfits aboard their airship, the Spotted Custard. Of course, he'd never admit that he belongs among them. He's always been on the outside - dispassionate, aloof, and hatless. But accidental spies, a trip to Japan, and one smart and beautiful doctor may have him renegotiating his whole philosophy on life.

Except hats. He's done with hats. Thank you very much.



Why I'm Looking Forward To It: The Custard Protocol completes with Percy at the forefront in what is set to be a finish of flamboyant proportions!! I adored his and sister Prim's first POV book, Competence (see review here), and am seriously excited for the promised wedding - this book is going to be epic fun!


So what book are you waiting on?

Monday, May 27, 2019

Review: Aurora Rising (Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff)

Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle, #1)
Title: Aurora Rising
Series: The Aurora Cycle, Book 1
Author: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Release Date: May 7, 2019
Genre: Young Adult Science Fiction
Told: First Person Multiple, Present Tense
Content Rating: Older Teen (strong innuendo, language, violence, some gruesome images)
Format Read: ARC (publisher)
Find OnGoodreads
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Summary:

The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are being assigned their first missions. Star pupil Tyler Jones is ready to recruit the squad of his dreams, but his own boneheaded heroism sees him stuck with the dregs nobody else in the Academy would touch…

A cocky diplomat with a black belt in sarcasm
A sociopath scientist with a fondness for shooting her bunkmates
A smart-ass techwiz with the galaxy’s biggest chip on his shoulder
An alien warrior with anger management issues
A tomboy pilot who’s totally not into him, in case you were wondering

And Ty’s squad isn’t even his biggest problem—that’d be Aurora Jie-Lin O’Malley, the girl he’s just rescued from interdimensional space. Trapped in cryo-sleep for two centuries, Auri is a girl out of time and out of her depth. But she could be the catalyst that starts a war millions of years in the making, and Tyler’s squad of losers, discipline-cases and misfits might just be the last hope for the entire galaxy.

They're not the heroes we deserve. They're just the ones we could find. Nobody panic.


*          *          *

Review copy provided by publisher for an honest review. 
Thank you, Penguin Random House!


Aurora Rising is sadly yet another last-picked team of misfits story that, once a favorite premise of mine, I'm now growing weary of. Although this set-up can have a plethora of mix-and-match plot options, Aurora Rising (like most) unfortunately stuck to the popular (overused) storyline and checked most of the popular (overused) subplot boxes: A "special" girl and her mysterious quest get the misfit team into trouble and send them on the run whereby they seek refuge on a criminal space station and are forced to stage a heist that leads to the discovery of governmental cover-up and a universal conspiracy.

Been there, done that more times than I care to count. Despite a colorful team of diverse, snarky characters and an intriguing space setting, I found myself bored around the halfway mark and considered throwing in the towel. It didn't help that there were over half a dozen FIRST PERSON point of view characters, and all those "I's" had me unsure whose head I was in at all times.

But I persevered, and eventually finished. Am I glad I did? Sure. The beginning was pretty good, the action eventually picked back up during the heist, and the Kal/Aurora bond relationship (my favorite kind) added a certain sweetness to the otherwise violent plot. There were also a few small twists at the end that diverted from the overused norm, and with its "We're off to save the universe" conclusion I'm now curious enough to try the next book if I get my hands on a softcover.

Do I recommend it? If you love Firefly reboots and really enjoyed M.K. England's The Disasters (which I sadly never finished due to almost exactly the same reasons I barely finished this one), Aurora Rising may be just the read you're looking for.


STRENGTHS:

✔  The snark

✔  The Kal/Aurora bond relationship

✔  The way the team meshed while still maintaining individuality

✔  Magellan

✔  Hitchhiker's Guide-esque entries between chapters


WEAKNESSES:

  Overused premise, story, plot and subplots

  Over half a dozen first person point of view characters I couldn't tell apart

  Choppy writing style


For Fans Of: FireflyThe Disasters by M.K. England


Scribble Rating
3 of 5 Scribbles


Friday, May 24, 2019

The #FridayReads Review (5/24/19)



Welcome to The #FridayReads Review, a regular Friday segment where I share what I've been reading the past week, and what I'm planning to read next! Want to join the Friday fun? Post your own #FridayReads Review and leave the link in the Comments below, or just Comment with what you've been reading!


>> CURRENTLY READING <<
The Stars We Steal
The Stars We Steal by Alexa Donne (ARC)
Borrowed this from the library's teen ARC shelf. It's a retelling of Jane Austen's Persuasion meets "The Bachelorette in space," both of which I'm definitely recognizing. Currently a little over 70 pages in and with its familiar feel and undercurrent of intrigue I'm actually quite enjoying it.


>> JUST FINISHED <<
Aurora Rising (The Aurora Cycle, #1)Truly Madly Royally

Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff (ARC)
3 Stars. Yet another last-picked team of misfits story that, although once my favorite premise, I'm now growing weary of. With its colorful team of diverse, snarky misfits and lots of action it was entertaining enough, for the most part, but overall I was not impressed with the overused plot structure they stuck to. Review to come.


Truly Madly Royally by Debbie Rigaud (ARC)
3 Stars. A cute and innocent interracial summer romance with some fun puns and banter but a very confusing rhythm. Review to come.



>> [POSSIBLY] READING NEXT <<
(subject to change with my ever-shifting reading whims)
Roar (Stormheart, #1)Ao Haru Ride, Vol. 1

Roar by Cora Carmack (ARC)
I was just accepted onto the street team, so time for a re-read!!


Ao Haru Ride vols. 1-3 by Io Sakisaka (PBK)
Getting the first 3 volumes from the library today! I really enjoyed Strobe Edge so I've been interested in trying this series.


So what are you reading this week?

Monday, May 20, 2019

DNF Review: Die For Me (Amy Plum)

Die for Me (Revenants, #1)
Title: Die For Me
Series: Revenants, Book 1
Author: Amy Plum
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: May 12, 2011
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal Romance
Told: First Person (Kate), Past Tense
Content Rating: Teen (up to Page 126: death by subway train)
Format Read: Paperback (purchased)
Find OnGoodreads
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Summary:

In the City of Lights, two star-crossed lovers battle a fate that is destined to tear them apart again and again for eternity.

When Kate Mercier's parents die in a tragic car accident, she leaves her life--and memories--behind to live with her grandparents in Paris. For Kate, the only way to survive her pain is escaping into the world of books and Parisian art. Until she meets Vincent.

Mysterious, charming, and devastatingly handsome, Vincent threatens to melt the ice around Kate's guarded heart with just his smile. As she begins to fall in love with Vincent, Kate discovers that he's a revenant--an undead being whose fate forces him to sacrifice himself over and over again to save the lives of others. Vincent and those like him are bound in a centuries-old war against a group of evil revenants who exist only to murder and betray. Kate soon realizes that if she follows her heart, she may never be safe again.
 


*          *          *

I did not finish this book. I stopped at Chapter 16 (36% through).


The full Revenants trilogy has been lingering on my shelves for years, so when it caught my eye yet again last week I finally decided to give it a try. I recalled this 2011 release was supposed to resemble Twilight, and boy did it. A "normal" girl moves to a new place and catches the eye of a beautiful immortal boy who accidentally but irrevocably entangles her in his dangerous paranormal world. Also like Twilight, I found the writing inexplicably engrossing, and despite the stupidity of a young girl insta-falling for a "bad" boy, I couldn't put the book down.

Until Chapter 15. The confusing paranormal element had been revealed, leaving just the romance to look forward to - and I almost never look forward to romance. There I was, reading about their sweet date and gorgeous view (Paris and Vincent), and I was immediately bored.

All interest suddenly lost, I searched the reviews for how the paranormal elements might intriguingly expand and add action to the romance. I read the summaries of the next two books, looking for twists and reasons for me to continue reading. But sadly, I didn't find any. Clearly Kate continues to be a teenage girl making bad decisions in the name of instalove, and after I really didn't find the paranormal element all that plausible I just didn't feel like devoting any more of my hard-earned reading time to the rest of the series.

Do I regret trying it? Surprisingly, no. I've been curious about it for years and now know exactly what it's about. And although it wasn't my kind of read, with its engaging writing style, unique paranormal elements, and (as far as I read, anyway) innocent teen romance, I could easily recommend it for paranormal romance lovers who enjoy exotic settings.

Wednesday, May 15, 2019

WoW: RAGE (Cora Carmack)


Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly blogging event in which one spotlights an upcoming release they are eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:


Rage (Stormheart, #2)
Title: Rage
Series: Stormheart #2
Author: Cora Carmack
Release Date: August 27, 2019
Publisher: Tor Teen
Summary:

Princess or adventurer.

Duty or freedom.

Her Kingdom or the Stormhunter she loves.

If Aurora knows anything, it's that choices have consequences. To set things right, she joins a growing revolution on the streets of Pavan. 

In disguise as the rebel Roar, she puts her knowledge of the palace to use to aid the rebellion. But the Rage season is at its peak and not a day passes without the skies raining down destruction. Yet these storms are different—they churn with darkness, and attack with a will that’s desperate and violent. 

This feels like more than rage. 

It feels like war.



Why I'm Looking Forward To It: The wait is finally almost up! I really enjoyed Roar's solid writing and unique storm magic (see review here) and have been looking forward to continuing Rora's story since an early April 2017 read. I even applied for the author's street team this year, I'm that excited! If you love fantasy and romance and haven't yet given Roar a try, I definitely recommend you do (purchase links in my review).


So what book are you waiting on?

Monday, May 13, 2019

Paragraph Review: Ghostly Echoes (William Ritter)

Ghostly Echoes (Jackaby #3)
Title: Ghostly Echoes
Series: Jackaby, Book 3
Author: William Ritter
Publisher: Algonquin Young Readers
Release Date: August 23, 2016
Genre: New Adult Historical Supernatural Mystery
Told: First Person (Abigail), Past Tense
Content Rating: Older Teen (violence and supernatural violence, dead bodies, death, gruesome images)
Format Read: Paperback (trade)
Find OnGoodreads
PurchaseAzon | B&N | BookDepo | Indiebound
Summary:

Tread lightly, Miss Rook, warned Mr. Jackaby. It would not do to push Miss Cavanaugh too far or too fast. 

Jenny Cavanaugh, the ghostly lady of 926 Augur Lane, has enlisted the investigative services of her fellow residents to solve a decade-old murder--her own. Abigail Rook and her eccentric employer, R. F. Jackaby, dive into the cold case, starting with a search for Jenny s fiance, who went missing the night she died. But when a new, gruesome murder closely mirrors the events of ten years prior, Abigail and Jackaby realize that Jenny's case isn't so cold after all.

Fantasy and folklore mix with mad science as Abigail's race to unravel the mystery leads her across the cold cobblestones of nineteenth-century New England, down to the mythical underworld, and deep into her colleagues' grim histories to battle the most deadly foe she has ever faced.


*          *          *

Series: This is the third book in the 4-book Jackaby series. Click on the titles to read my reviews of Book 1: Jackaby and Book 2: Beastly Bones. The books do follow and connect with each other and must be read in order.

The shadowy loose threads of the first two books entangle in this knot-like mystery as deadly history repeats itself and Jackaby finally tackles the case of their beloved resident ghost. This book picks up just a short while after the open end of Book 2, Beastly Bones, and soon sends the team into even darker and more deadly situations than ever before. Abigail's signature voice with its cheeky dialogue, colorful description, and light touch on the gruesome details made for yet another fast and engrossing read that I was reluctant to put down, and the fortitude of her personal growth continues to delight. Quirky Jackaby doesn't disappoint as a steady role of strength and information into the unseen, and as always I enjoyed Charlie in his many applicable forms (hound, protector, boyfriend). The mystery did get a bit convoluted with its many technical and supernatural parts and I didn't quite follow all the reasoning, but the action and intrigue kept me engaged. Although I typically avoid stories involving the fae, I've come this far with Jackaby and after this book's "we're off to save the world" ending I'll definitely be finishing the series with Book 4, The Dire King. Highly recommend this New Adult Alternate History Mystery for fans of Sherlock Holmes, Black Butler, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Scribble Rating
3.5 of 5 Scribbles