Saturday, July 13, 2019

Short and Simple Reviews: Sorcery of Thorns, Tell Me No Lies, & I Wanna Be Where You Are


This is a place for books that I didn't fully review.
Maybe I listed my likes and dislikes, had a little short paragraph, or a few sentences to convey my feelings on the book, but whatever the "review" is, all of them are short and simple. (hence the clever name)

Sorcery of ThornsAll sorcerers are evil. Elisabeth has known that as long as she has known anything. Raised as a foundling in one of Austermeer’s Great Libraries, Elisabeth has grown up among the tools of sorcery—magical grimoires that whisper on shelves and rattle beneath iron chains. If provoked, they transform into grotesque monsters of ink and leather. She hopes to become a warden, charged with protecting the kingdom from their power.

Then an act of sabotage releases the library’s most dangerous grimoire. Elisabeth’s desperate intervention implicates her in the crime, and she is torn from her home to face justice in the capital. With no one to turn to but her sworn enemy, the sorcerer Nathaniel Thorn, and his mysterious demonic servant, she finds herself entangled in a centuries-old conspiracy. Not only could the Great Libraries go up in flames, but the world along with them.

As her alliance with Nathaniel grows stronger, Elisabeth starts to question everything she’s been taught—about sorcerers, about the libraries she loves, even about herself. For Elisabeth has a power she has never guessed, and a future she could never have imagined. 
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Review
This book had a lot of hype surrounding it. It promised book magic, badass librarians, and a hate-to-love romance. I thought this was a pretty great book, although it was not utterly amazing. The best part about this book was the magic. I loved the magic of the Great Library and how the books had their own personalities. I think the world itself was unique and I loved how we found out more and more about the magic and how it worked as the book went along. I was engrossed in this book, but there were moments when it felt like we missed time (we would get a scene and then jump 2 months ahead) and so in some cases, I didn't quite feel the connections between the characters. I think I also just over-hyped this book in my mind. Overall, it is still a fantastic fantasy and I love that it's a standalone! I know most folks prefer series, but I really like reading a beginning and an ending in one book instead of having it drawn out over six books (and six years of forgetting and waiting).

 I hereby give this book
4 Stars
Meaning: It was amazing



Tell Me No Lies (Follow Me Back #2)Love. Obsession. Jealousy. Murder.

No one knows what happened to pop icon Eric Thorn. His Twitter account? Frozen. His cell phone? Cracked and bloody, buried in the snow.

Agoraphobic fangirl Tessa Hart knows the truth, but she's finally left her #EricThornObsessed days behind. She has no intention of ever touching her Twitter app again. But Snapchat... That's safer, right?

After months of living under the radar, Tessa emerges from hiding, forced to face the deadly consequences of her past. But in the interrogation room, answers only lead to more questions in the pulse-pounding conclusion to the Follow Me Back duology.

  
  Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Book Despitory



Review
After reading the last book, and that confusing ending, I wanted to read this one right away. Things were "solved" pretty quickly in this book and it is clear that the ending in Follow Me Back was there for shock. Like the last book, I found this to be strangely riveting. It was certainly unputdownable with lots of twists, turns, and physiological elements. It continues the technology/ social media aspect from the last book but there is a lot more communication in person as Eric and Tessa are now together. Also like the last book, I found this to be a guilty pleasure read. Some things are still improbable, there were a lot of parts that were simply meant to be shocking, and I wasn't really pleasured with the mystery reveal, but it overall kept me entertained. This is a pretty good follow up to Follow Me Back and I will likely read more from A.V. Geiger in the future. 
 I hereby give this book
3 Stars
Meaning: I liked it

I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest


"In a world where it's easy to lose faith in love, I WANNA BE WHERE YOU ARE is a brilliant burst of light. A dazzling debut." ― Nic Stone, New York Times bestselling author of Dear Martin and Odd One Out

When Chloe Pierce’s mom forbids her to apply for a spot at the dance conservatory of her dreams, she devises a secret plan to drive two hundred miles to the nearest audition. But Chloe hits her first speed bump when her annoying neighbor Eli insists upon hitching a ride, threatening to tell Chloe’s mom if she leaves him and his smelly dog, Geezer, behind. So now Chloe’s chasing her ballet dreams down the east coast―two unwanted (but kinda cute) passengers in her car, butterflies in her stomach, and a really dope playlist on repeat.

Filled with roadside hijinks, heart-stirring romance, and a few broken rules, I Wanna Be Where You Are is a YA debut perfect for fans of Jenny Han and Sandhya Menon.



Review
I have a bit of a soft spot for road trip books, especially those involving hate-to-love relationships. So I of course wanted to read this book. This was exactly the feel-good book I expected. Don't get me wrong, it does go into more serious topics--like trying to go against what your parents want for you--but throughout most of the book it just made me smile and you know that somehow things will go right. This did make it predictable at points, but I loved the hijinks along the way, the conversations between Chole and Ei, and I especially loved Geezer (because what's a road trip book without a pupper along for the ride?). Overall it was an enjoyable read. I have been reading depressing books lately so this got me out of that funk. I'm glad I picked it up and I will certainly see what else Kristina Forest writes in the future.

 I hereby give this book
3.5 Stars
Meaning: I liked it, but it wasn't quite amazing

2 comments :

  1. I'm so glad to see that Sorcery of Thorns was good. I've been eyeing that one!

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    Replies
    1. There's a lot of hype surrounding that one! I hope you get the chance to read it!

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