Showing posts with label Rating: 4 Stars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rating: 4 Stars. Show all posts

28 May 2015

Review: Trouble by Non Pratt

Title: Trouble
Author: Non Pratt
Published: March 6th 2014
Source: Paperback
Pages: 384
In this dazzling debut novel, a pregnant teen learns the meaning of friendship—from the boy who pretends to be her baby’s father.

When the entire high school finds out that Hannah Shepard is pregnant via her ex-best friend, she has a full-on meltdown in her backyard. The one witness (besides the rest of the world): Aaron Tyler, a transfer student and the only boy who doesn’t seem to want to get into Hannah’s pants. Confused and scared, Hannah needs someone to be on her side. Wishing to make up for his own past mistakes, Aaron does the unthinkable and offers to pretend to be the father of Hannah’s unborn baby. Even more unbelievable, Hannah hears herself saying “yes.”

Told in alternating perspectives between Hannah and Aaron, Trouble is the story of two teenagers helping each other to move forward in the wake of tragedy and devastating choices. As you read about their year of loss, regret, and hope, you’ll remember your first, real best friend—and how they were like a first love.

REVIEW

This review will be short and sweet!

Trouble did not meet my expectations (which were very high because of all the hype) but it was still a really enjoyable read and I loved how different it was! It addressed a lot of the problems that teenagers faced like trying to fit in, bullying, family problems etc. Slut shaming also played a huge part in the book. Non Pratt did an amazing job of addressing these issues without being preachy at all. Aaron also had an atypical best friend (Neville) that I thought was really cool. How often do you read about a young guy having an old man as a best friend? It was a really interesting way of looking at the elderly.

Trouble had a slow start but I thought that it was a great build up towards the mystery surrounding Hannah's pregnancy and Aaron's past! The writing was simple but highly effective in conveying emotions and it really helped in the pacing of the story. It didn't feel draggy even at the slower parts of the book because it was such a quick read! 

One issue I had was the ending. It felt very rushed and I wanted to know MORE! What happened after the birth of the baby? I wish there was an epilogue. It just felt like the character arcs never really completed. 

VERDICT

This is one of those books where all the emotions creep up on you. You don't realise how attached you are to the characters until the book end and you realised that you have been rooting for all of them!

I would recommend this to anyone that is looking for a funny and different YA contemporary!


Plot:4/5 
Pacing: 3.5/5
Originality: 3.55 
Writing style: 4/5
Characters: 4/5 
Feels: 4/5
Enjoyment: 4/5
Cover: 4.5/5
Overall rating: 

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11 May 2015

Review: The Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen

Title: The Queen of the Tearling
Author: Erika Johansen
Published: July 8th 2014
Source: Paperback
Pages: 630
Series: The Queen of the Tearling #1
On her nineteenth birthday, Princess Kelsea Raleigh Glynn, raised in exile, sets out on a perilous journey back to the castle of her birth to ascend her rightful throne.

Plain and serious, a girl who loves books and learning, Kelsea bears little resemblance to her mother, the vain and frivolous Queen Elyssa. But though she may be inexperienced and sheltered, Kelsea is not defenseless: Around her neck hangs the Tearling sapphire, a jewel of immense magical power; and accompanying her is the Queen’s Guard, a cadre of brave knights led by the enigmatic and dedicated Lazarus. Kelsea will need them all to survive a cabal of enemies who will use every weapon—from crimson-caped assassins to the darkest blood magic—to prevent her from wearing the crown.

Despite her royal blood, Kelsea feels like nothing so much as an insecure girl, a child called upon to lead a people and a kingdom about which she knows almost nothing. But what she discovers in the capital will change everything, confronting her with horrors she never imagined. An act of singular daring will throw Kelsea’s kingdom into tumult, unleashing the vengeance of the tyrannical ruler of neighboring Mortmesne: the Red Queen, a sorceress possessed of the darkest magic. Now Kelsea will begin to discover whom among the servants, aristocracy, and her own guard she can trust.

But the quest to save her kingdom and meet her destiny has only just begun—a wondrous journey of self-discovery and a trial by fire that will make her a legend…if she can survive.

REVIEW

I was so skeptical when I started reading this book because of all the mixed reviews but Emma Watson's approval of this book helped me push through. :P

The writing style is very simplistic and because of the large fonts that I was reading it in, sometimes it felt like I was reading a YA but a curse word or gross bloody description would jump out and I am reminded that it is an adult book again. I loved the writing style because it was so easy to digest and despite the length of the book, I did not find it draggy at all and this was all thanks to the great writing! And yes there is a decent amount of rape and slavery in The Queen of the Tearling but it is not a huge part of the book. Some people seem to have a huge problem with it so I thought I should mention it.

World building is seriously lacking in this one, especially in terms of the history of The Crossing. Only two countries crossed the sea? What happened to the rest? (p.s. there are more than two countries in the world.) Apparently there are only white and the occasional black people left. And the way white people looked at the rare black people in this book sounded like they were zoo animals. White supremacy anyone? What really helped me get through this huge problem with world building was telling myself that this is fantasy instead of dystopian. As a dystopian, this gets a big fat F.

I did not like Kelsea at all. Her attitude towards everything was honestly annoying. Her ego inflates like crazy as the book goes on. She was extremely judgemental and looked down on everyone; mocking their religion, decisions, looks etc. It is rather shocking and out of character imo. I am not sure if this was the intended characterisation but I highly doubt so. I think that readers are supposed to like her as she is the 'hero' that saves the kingdom. However,  I can't deny that she has an incredible character arc and you really see her grow in front of your eyes as the book progresses. Ironically, I still did not like her as she became a stronger female character. Her 'strength' was a little extreme. I get that she is supposed to be a strong female character and she is a queen so she has to be firm but it felt like she changed too much in her growth process and she seems more like an anti-hero now.

The other characters were amazing! I found myself wanting to know more about every single character, especially the Red Queen and Mace. If you are looking for a novel with great characters then you should check this out!

Also, there was no romance! Crushes? Yes, but no lurveee. Love the slow burn of the hinted romance.

The plot is not the most original and is actually reminiscent of the Falling Kingdoms series but it had sufficient twists and the pacing was on point! This book is very plot-driven and may not be everyone's cup of tea.


VERDICT

This book was a weird one for me. On one hand, I hated so many things about it but at the same time I liked so many things about it. The world building was just puzzling and I wished that more effort was put into it. I have the same issue with the magic system as well. I am curious to see how Kelsea continues to grow in the next book and I hope she stops saying idiotic things. The story and pacing is amazing and it really helped me to overlook all the other major problems of the book. The key to enjoying this is to honestly just let yourself get suck into the story and you will start to ignore the annoying bits about the book.

Also, I personally feel that this is the kind of book where you have to read at least 60% of it before you decide to DNF it. The story just gets so so so good!

Tips to enjoy this book:
1) Keep your expectations low. This is NOT GoT and this reads more like a YA than adult.
2) Kelsea (the main character) says stupid things once in awhile, chalk it down to her immaturity. 
3) Do not read this as a dystopian, it is easier to suspend your beliefs if you read this as a fantasy.

The sequel: The Invasion of the Tearling is coming out next month so now would be a good time to check this book out! :)

Great book for fantasy lovers and anyone looking for a really strong female character. (I think this was why Emma Watson loved the book and agreed to be in the movie.) 

Plot: 4/5 
Pacing: 4/5
Originality: 3.5/5 
Writing style: 4/5
Characters: 3/5 
Feels: 4/5
Enjoyment: 4.5/5
Cover: 5/5
Overall rating: 

29 April 2015

Review: On the Island by Tracey Garvis-Graves

Title: On the Island
Author: Tracey Garvis-Graves
Published: August 16th 2012
Source: ebook
Pages: 346
Series: On the Island #1
When thirty-year-old English teacher Anna Emerson is offered a job tutoring T.J. Callahan at his family's summer rental in the Maldives, she accepts without hesitation; a working vacation on a tropical island trumps the library any day.

T.J. Callahan has no desire to leave town, not that anyone asked him. He's almost seventeen and if having cancer wasn't bad enough, now he has to spend his first summer in remission with his family - and a stack of overdue assignments -- instead of his friends.

Anna and T.J. are en route to join T.J.'s family in the Maldives when the pilot of their seaplane suffers a fatal heart attack and crash-lands in the Indian Ocean. Adrift in shark-infested waters, their life jackets keep them afloat until they make it to the shore of an uninhabited island. Now Anna and T.J. just want to survive and they must work together to obtain water, food, fire, and shelter.

Their basic needs might be met but as the days turn to weeks, and then months, the castaways encounter plenty of other obstacles, including violent tropical storms, the many dangers lurking in the sea, and the possibility that T.J.'s cancer could return. As T.J. celebrates yet another birthday on the island, Anna begins to wonder if the biggest challenge of all might be living with a boy who is gradually becoming a man.

REVIEW

I enjoyed this book so much more than I thought I would! I was expecting this to be like the typical adult/new adult that is filled with raunchy sex scenes and I was prepared to DNF it but I wanted to give new adult/adult romance another go since the last time I read one was probably 1.5 years ago. I also thought that the teacher-student relationship would be a total turn off. (p.s. it doesn't really come into play because the plane crashes before Anna actually teaches)

On the Island only had 2 explicit scenes, if I remember correctly, and they were not overdone. What I really enjoyed about this book was that there was so much more to it than just the romance/relationships. It was also about survival, think Lost but without the weird sci-fi elements. Everything seemed very realistic and even though I was just reading about their day to day lives and the occasional near-death situations, it was surprisingly interesting and I finished this entire book in 2 seatings! The writing style was just amazing and it flowed so well with the story.

The only gripe I have is probably the ending of the book. I was really curious about how the whole older woman-younger man relationship issue was going to be resolved but it seemed rushed. We spent years on the island with Anna and T.J and we really got to know them so well but I felt like we didn't really get to see their actual relationship once they were back in the 'real world'. With that being said, there is actually a novella from another character's POV but there are also updates on Anna and T.J. so maybe we could see more of their relationship in the novella?

VERDICT

On the Island has such an interesting premise and it did not disappoint at all! You have to read this just for the novelty. It is so rare for a contemporary romance to be set on a deserted island, featuring a 'cougar' sorta relationship and spans multiple years. A lot more could've been explored with regards to the out of the norm relationship but it was still an interesting insight! Also, there was very little angst compared to many romance books out there, so definitely check this out if you need a little break from the angst :P

Recommended for chick lit or contemporary romance lovers.

Plot: 4.5/5 
Pacing: 4/5
Originality: 4.5/5 
Writing style: 4/5
Characters: 3.5/5 
Feels: 4/5
Enjoyment: 4/5
Cover: 3/5
Overall rating: 

6 April 2015

Review: The Book of Ivy by Amy Engel

Title: The Book of Ivy
Author: Amy Engel
Published: November 11th 2014
Source: Paperback
Pages: 282
After a brutal nuclear war, the United States was left decimated. A small group of survivors eventually banded together, but only after more conflict over which family would govern the new nation. The Westfalls lost. Fifty years later, peace and control are maintained by marrying the daughters of the losing side to the sons of the winning group in a yearly ritual. This year, it is my turn.

My name is Ivy Westfall, and my mission is simple: to kill the president’s son—my soon-to-be husband—and restore the Westfall family to power. But Bishop Lattimer is either a very skilled actor or he’s not the cruel, heartless boy my family warned me to expect. He might even be the one person in this world who truly understands me. But there is no escape from my fate. I am the only one who can restore the Westfall legacy.

Because Bishop must die. And I must be the one to kill him…

REVIEW

Never would I pick this up in a million years if it were not for the amazing reviews. This cover is a disaster.

I am so glad I did though! This was a really short and quick read and I managed to finish this in 2 seatings. I was ready to give this a 4.5 star rating but I did not get Ivy's decision towards the end of the book. There are so many other ways to handle the situation and I honestly did not think that that was the most logical/would actually solve the problem. Other than that, everything was really good and I am looking forward to the sequel!

The plot itself is very predictable but I think the pacing, romance and Bishop really made up for it. I am pretty sure anyone would be able to predict 90% of the book just based on the synopsis alone. It is a typical post-apocalyptic/dystopian world with a huge fence surrounding it and a mysterious 'outside world'. It is also the typical over-throw the government scenario. BUT I think the romance played a more important role in this which was quite refreshing. I don't usually do book boyfriends because they are usually bad boys (which is not really that attractive to me IRL), but Bishop is the sweetest boy ever <333 The romance was just so realistic and it was not overly dramatised or dragged out for drama sake. I wasn't a huge fan of Ivy because she was so naive but I loved how Bishop changed her for the better.

The Book of Ivy was also very well-paced and I was never bored. I would've finished it in one seating if I didn't need to sleep :P I loved the interesting issues this book raised; your idea of freedom may not be what others view as freedom and having freedom may not be a priority when it comes to survival. This was really interesting to me because the Western world constantly criticises the lack of freedom in Singapore and while I would enjoy more freedom, I do recognise that some individual restrictions are better for the society as a whole. I was pleasantly surprised that this unassuming short book managed to bring up this grey area and I can't wait to see how it unfolds.

VERDICT

This was very enjoyable even though nothing really amazing stood out for me, it is a little difficult to explain why I enjoyed it so much, I can't quite put my finger on what made this good. It was just such a great combination of pacing, romance, characters and writing. Do give this a go if you are intrigued by the premise and you will most likely enjoy it too! :)

Recommended for anyone who is looking for a new book boyfriend :P

Plot: 3/5 
Pacing: 4.5/5
Originality: 3.5/5 
Writing style: 3.5/5
Characters: 4/5 
Feels: 3.5/5
Enjoyment: 4.5/5
Cover: 1/5
Overall rating: 

27 March 2015

Review: Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes

Title: Falling Kingdoms
Author: Morgan Rhodes
Published: December 11th 2012
Source: Hardcover
Pages: 412
In the three kingdoms of Mytica, magic has long been forgotten. And while hard-won peace has reigned for centuries, a deadly unrest now simmers below the surface.

As the rulers of each kingdom grapple for power, the lives of their subjects are brutally transformed... and four key players, royals and rebels alike, find their fates forever intertwined. Cleo, Jonas, Lucia, and Magnus are caught in a dizzying world of treacherous betrayals, shocking murders, secret alliances, and even unforeseen love.

The only outcome that's certain is that kingdoms will fall. Who will emerge triumphant when all they know has collapsed? It's the eve of war.... Choose your side.

REVIEW

The prologue was amazing! The only other book that has really sucked me in right from the prologue is The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. It was such a great peek into the world, writing style, plot and pace of the story. If you are hesitant about starting this book, read the prologue and if you enjoy it, you will most likely enjoy the rest of the book. :) I simply love it when I am hooked from page 1 of the book.

All the characters were so well-developed and everyone had their own arc! We follow 4 different characters' POV and it was amazing getting to look at the issues/drama from the different angles! You will find yourself rooting for every single one of them even though they have conflicting opinions. The writing was just that good! It is a very interesting and refreshing way to tell a story and I really appreciated it!

My favourite character is probably Magnus. He has so much inner conflict and I just find him so intriguing. His love interest situation kinda disturbed me but I am surprisingly open to how it plays out and I have faith that Rhodes is going to handle this really well. The way Magnus describes his love for her just makes me feel his pain and I'm willing to overlook to unconventional aspect of it.

Cleo has so much room for growth. We can see her slowly growing in this book and if she keeps continuing in this direction I think I am going to love her! I think that Cleo is supposed to be a strong female character by the end of the series so we are witnessing her progress towards that. I love how realistic the book was in portraying her, she was not perfect and could not just go around doing whatever she wanted to just cause she was the MC. She knew her limits and did not behave like the usual bratty YA female characters. I also really loved how the other characters belittled her because she was female and did not praise her for being rash or when she was making stupid decisions. THANK YOU FOR THE MANY DOSES OF LOGIC, RHODES.

Jones was kind of annoying and idiotic, he was the only one that I didn't really get but thank god he had very small parts in this book so I could easily overlook him. Maybe he'll play a bigger role in the future? For now he seems to only be there to drive the plot along.

This is high fantasy done right. Rhodes was smart to only have 3 kingdoms in her world and I think that was a good move. The number of characters and kingdoms were kept to a decent number so that things didn't get overly convoluted *ahem*Snow Like Ashes*ahem*. This is YA and with the comparatively shorter length, unlike adult fantasy, there just isn't even enough time to really flesh out an eight kingdom world. Keeping it simple is key, quality > quantity. Final Kingdoms was very well-paced, it wasn't bogged down with unnecessary info-dumping and the injection of world building was spaced out very well. HOWEVER, I had issues with the lack of depth in world building. I wanted to know more about the day-to-day life of the commoners outside of the palace so that I could really imagine the world. We also never really got to witness all that talk about the citizens being overly religious and whatnot in the kingdoms. I felt a little disconnected to the world, there was a lot of telling and very little showing when it came to world building. I am really hoping that this will change as the series progresses!

The number of plot twists really kept me on my toes! Shocking things happened throughout the book (like GoT) and I can see why this is compared to Game of thrones but tbh they should not have marketed it as such. Many people went into this expecting the depth that GoT has and were obviously disappointed. The plot started off a little shaky but it got better as the story progressed.

VERDICT

Falling Kingdoms is definitely a great start to an amazing series with a decent cast of characters, great pacing and amazing storytelling. World building is a little lacking, it is not lacking per say but it would've been nice if there was more depth to it. The writing was a little dry at times but the plot really made up for it. I already have the next 2 books checked out from the library and I can't wait to continue on with this! I would recommend this to anyone who appreciates a well-paced high fantasy and is looking for a very exciting read!

Plot: 4/5 
Pacing: 4.5/5
Originality: 4/5 
Writing style: 3.5/5
Characters: 4/5 
Feels: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
Overall rating: 

24 March 2015

Review: Mistborn: The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson

Title: Mistborn: The Final Empire
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Published: October 1st 2011
Source: Paperback
Pages: 647
In a world where ash falls from the sky, and mist dominates the night, an evil cloaks the land and stifles all life.

The future of the empire rests on the shoulders of a troublemaker and his young apprentice. Together, can they fill the world with colour once more? In Brandon Sanderson's intriguing tale of love, loss, despair and hope, a new kind of magic enters the stage - Allomancy, a magic of the metals.


REVIEW

When I first heard about how metals were consumed for magic in this world, I imagined that they were bitting off from long poles of metal lol :P Imagine my surprise when I realised that they were only consuming small flakes of metals. Despite all the hype surrounding this book, I went in with pretty low expectations and I was pleasantly surprised!

One problem I had with the book was the pacing. There was a lot of repetition of various information (eg. the magic system) throughout the book and it really bogged down the book. I usually read at a pace of 100 pages/hour but this book was very dense and I averaged only about 60 pages/hour. I really enjoyed the first and last 1/3 of the book. The middle portions felt a little redundant and did not really add much to the whole plot. It was frustrating whenever Vin spends a ton of time discovering something new but it often turns out that the rest knew about it all along but just never told her. WHAT. We could have shaved off at least 50 pages. I get that this is the first book in a high fantasy trilogy so I am not being too fussy about it.

The monologues felt overdone and it was obviously done for the benefit of the readers, it does not truly reflect the thoughts of the characters. It felt jarring and I do prefer books where I am allowed to have some space for my own imagination rather than the characters telling me EXACTLY how I should be feeling at that point in time.

World building was very amazing and I was hooked from the get go. Even though we were basically thrown into the world, it was very easy to grasp. It really proves that no info-dumping is necessary to build a world.

I expected more character development considering the length of this book, hopefully we will get to see this in the rest of the series! Vin was a very nosy character that I personally could not stand, she reminded me of one of those insecure friends that had to know everyone's secrets. Anyhow, her character arc was pretty good as we see her mature as the book goes on. I did not really like the romance, Vin was out of character (overly eager and trusting). I mean I get the attraction but I feel like it was mostly her throwing herself at him and even resorting to revealing too much just to get into his good books. Kelsier's character development was extremely well done. His character arc was probably the best: he changed from a reckless and cocky guy to one that was more responsible for his decisions and actions.

The plot was very intriguing and I loved the tidbits we get from the lord ruler at the start of every chapter. I loved reading from his POV and learning more about the world as the story goes on. It was a very intelligent way to build such a complex world.

VERDICT

This plot uses the same formula as Harry Potter so I get where the comparisons come from but a lot more gets done in one book compared to Harry Potter which is probably where the adult aspect comes in? This book was more plot driven than anything else and I would love to have had more character development but perhaps this would come in the subsequent books. I love the magic system but it does require some memory work if you don't wanna constantly refer to the list provided in the book. There is lots of politicking, scheming and action, I highly recommend this to anyone that enjoys a book with a good does of those elements!

Plot: 4/5 
Pacing: 3.5/5
Originality: 4.5/5 
Writing style: 3.5/5
Characters: 4/5 
Feels: 4/5
Cover: 5/5
Overall rating: 

7 March 2015

Review: Explorer: The Mystery Boxes by Kazu Kibuishi

Title: Explorer: The Mystery Boxes
Author: Kazu Kibuishi
Published: March 1st 2012
Series: Explorer #1
Source: Paperback
Pages: 128

Goodreads | Amazon
Seven clever stories answer one simple question: what’s in the box?

Funny, fantastic, spooky, and suspenseful, each of these unique and beautifully illustrated short graphic works revolves around a central theme: a mysterious box and the marvels—or mayhem—inside. Artists include middle school favorites Kazu Kibuishi, Raina Telgemeier (Smile), and Dave Roman (Astronaut Academy), as well as Jason Caffoe, Stuart Livingston, Johane Matte, Rad Sechrist (all contributors to the groundbreaking comics anthology series Flight), and upcoming artist Emily Carroll.
I don't usually like short stories but I was drawn by the different art styles so I decided to give it a go! The stories were really good even though they were only a few pages long. All in all, there were very powerful drawings. I envy all the creative that went into this! I have pictures of the title pages for each short story to give you a sneak peek at the different art styles. :)

I will talk about each short story briefly without spoiling anything:

Under the floorboards by Emily Carroll

Dark, creepy and suspenseful
Story was amazingly executed

A solid 5 stars
Spring Cleaning by Dave Roman and Raina Telgemeier

Fun and quick read but it did not have a conclusive ending.

3.5 stars
The Keeper's Treasure by Jason Caffoe

Loved the humour and the message of the story, I did not see the ending coming at all! Amazing stuff!

5 stars
The Butter Thief by Rad Sechrist

I did not really like the art style for this story but oh boy, the story was AWESOME! It transitioned between the real world and the spirit world so seamlessly and it reminded me of the Miyazaki films.

5 sparkly stars
The Soldier's Daughter by Stuart Livingston

This was a morality tale that had so much potential and sadly it was just not well executed as a short story. There was a sever lack of world building and character building. TBH, I can't remember the story and I am writing this based on the notes I took while reading it. This short story sounded like a great intro to a full length comic series.

2.5 stars
Whatzit by Johane Matte

This was very quirkly, adorable and entertaining!
I can imagine totally imagine this as a cartoon series :)

4 stars
 The Escape Option by Kazu Kibuishi

Great great ending to the entire collection! Loved the art style and the message of this story. This one was deep and made me think, it exceeded my expectations of short stories. This was my favourite out of the entire collection!

5 stars for sure




VERDICT:
Great great great short stories, executions were spot on and these stories are surprisingly memorable. I would really recommend that everyone check this out! It is also a great introduction to these comic book authors and I will definitely be checking out the works of most of them!

My rating: 

12 February 2015

Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Mass

Title: Throne of Glass
Author: Sarah J. Mass
Published: August 2nd 2012
Series: Throne of Glass #1
Source: paperback
Pages: 404

Goodreads | Amazon
Meet Celaena Sardothien. Beautiful. Deadly. Destined for greatness.

In the dark, filthy salt mines of Endovier, an eighteen-year-old girl is serving a life sentence. She is a trained assassin, the best of her kind, but she made a fatal mistake: she got caught. Young Captain Westfall offers her a deal: her freedom in return for one huge sacrifice. Celaena must represent the prince in a to-the-death tournament—fighting the most gifted thieves and assassins in the land. Live or die, Celaena will be free. Win or lose, she is about to discover her true destiny. But will her assassin’s heart be melted?
It took me quite awhile to get through the first few chapters because I was getting used to the writing style. It is written from a 3rd person POV that follows about 4 characters, this is a pretty uncommon style but I really loved the writing style once I got the hang of it.

Things I liked:

1) I loved Celaena although her name is weird as heck. I kind of like how she dealt with the situations she was thrown into and how girly she was at the same time. :P

2) I actually enjoyed the love triangle, I liked how being with either guy was considered forbidden love. A love triangle where the parties have equal chances are so fun! Also, I don't really care who she ends up with but I like rooting for the underdog! :P GO CHAOL (another weirdass name)

3) The second half of the book was definitely a lot more enjoyable for me. The pacing was amazing, it was so exciting and addictive, I couldn't put it down.

4) Loved loved loved the fantasy aspect. The fantasy wasn't too in-your-face and overwhelming, it was easy to understand and didn't overpower the rest of the story. I really liked how the (sort-of) magic was kind of subtle but the monsters were so scary.

5) I also throughly enjoyed all the plot twists, a few were predictable but most of them caught me by surprise!

6) World building was amazingly done! I enjoyed the history, the politics and the overall descriptions about the world.

7) Also, the adorable puppy - Fleetfoot. CAN I HAVE ONE TOO?


Things I did not like:

1) There was too little action for a book about an assassin. She did not really kick butt until the end of the book and even that was more of a joint effort. I wish that there was more focus on the tests because they sounded so good! (think Triwizard tournament)

2) I couldn't really tell Dorian and Chaol apart for a good 20 chapters, I really hope that there is more character development for them in the subsequent books. (Something other than just the romance aspects)

Verdict:

This book is amazing and Sarah J. Mass is a great author! I can't wait to read the rest of the series.

I overlooked a lot of the issues I had because I understand that Sarah J.Mass is probably setting up her world for the rest of the series. I am crossing my fingers and hoping that these issues don't resurface again in the next book!

Can't believe I have to wait to read the next few books in the series. I am still deciding between ordering them online or getting them at a bookstore, books are so incredibly pricey here :/

My rating:
Recommended for anyone that enjoys fantasy and loves cute puppies.