Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman | Book Review

Vengeance Road by Erin Bowman

This is a book that I got back in September of last year because I won it on Goodreads but I was so busy with uni and family and other things that I never had a chance to give my complete attention to this book. I'm glad I picked it up and as soon as I did I finished it in 2 days.

Does this review have spoilers?

YES.

Title - Vengeance Road

Author - Erin Bowman

Publication - September 1st, 2015 by HMH Books for Young Readers

Format - Paperback ARC, 327 pages

Source - Goodreads giveaway

Genre - Young Adult, Romance, Historical Fiction, Western

Goodreads

Rating - ★★★★★

Revenge is worth its weight in gold. When her father is murdered for a journal revealing the location of a hidden gold mine, eighteen-year-old Kate Thompson disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers—and justice. What she finds are untrustworthy strangers, endless dust and heat, and a surprising band of allies, among them a young Apache girl and a pair of stubborn brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, a startling truth becomes clear: some men will stop at nothing to get their hands on gold, and Kate’s quest for revenge may prove fatal.

My Review:

I  actually won this book on Goodreads a couple of days before it was released. But I  don't know what it was that I  couldn't get myself to read it and now that I  have I  completely regret not reading it as soon as I  got it and never stopping till I  was done.

This is a book that tells the story of a young girl named Kate who witnesses her father being tortured and hanged by a notorious gang named the Rose Riders that's lead by Waylan Rose a very awful person. After she has to bury her own father she is filled with pure anger and sets off to kill Rose and his men for revenge. Hence Vengeance Road.
Not only does she accomplish what she sets off to do but she finds that she's not alone in the world. Because along this anger filled road to get revenge she meets the Colton brothers, Will, and Jesse, who tag along with her even if she doesn't want them to and throughout all of this they don't know she's actually a girl because to them she's a short skinny boy named Nate.
Kate is such a strong-willed girl on the hunt to figure out just what happened and kill her father's executioner. She's so brave and awesome and definitely one of my favorite characters in the books I've read. She dealt with so much that I  was glad she had a happy ending.
As for the Colton brothers they were so cool yet a bit irritating for most of the story. My favorite brother was Jesse. Not because he went through so much and was still helpful to Kate but because Will didn't get a good backstory. He didn't even feel like a good character to me. I still managed to find him very handsome though. 

The hardback edition is so beautiful and awesome. Plus the book has a map, a map for a western and it's gorgeous. I'm definitely getting it as soon as I  see it.
I  loved the story I  loved it so much but I  kinda hated that some of the characters were boring. Like The Colton sister, Sara and her family, Roy (husband), Jake (son) and Clara (sister-in-law). And then there's Evelyn which was such an interesting character but she didn't get much of anything. Though I 
really loved Liluye’s whole story. How she was taken from her family because she was an Apache and how thanks to Kate getting her out of a burning building even though she had something to do with it she managed to get home safely and be with her big family and be at home.


Do I  recommend this book? Yes, thousand times yes. It's a fast read and a super refreshing.

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Fragile Reign by Stacey O'Neale | Book Review

Fragile Reign by Stacey O'Neale

It had been a long time since I read the second book in the series Mortal Enchantments and I did have the third book but I just couldn't get myself to read it. I had found out that it happens a lot. I have a really good book in my TBR but I just pick other books to read instead and months or years go by before I pick it up and read it. But I was so glad I did pick Fragile Reign and finished it in a week and a half.

Does this review have spoilers?

YES.

Title - Fragile Reign

Author - Stacey O'Neale

Publication - November 25th, 2014 by Phoenix Reign Publishing

Format - Paperback, 306 pages

Source - it sent to me by the author in exchange for an honest review

Genre - Young Adult, Romance, Fantasy

Goodreads

Rating - ★★★★★

It’s been a week since all hell broke loose… Rumors of King Taron’s weakened powers have left the air court vulnerable. Kalin is desperate to awaken her akasha powers, except she doesn’t know how. Tension within the court is at an all-time high. Pressure is mounting for her to ascend to the throne, but a halfling has never ruled over any court. To solidify her position, the council has advised her to marry Sebastian—a high ranking air elemental she’s never met and her betrothed. Will Kalin sacrifice her relationship with Rowan to strengthen her court? Rowan and Marcus return to a fire court in turmoil. Liana’s death has fueled the fire elementals’ distrust against the air and woodland courts. The unbalanced elements have set off natural disasters all over the mortal world. Rowan takes the throne to restore balance, promising to unite the fire court. But not all elementals are happy with his leadership. Many are secretly loyal to Valac, which means Rowan needs to find allies for his cause. Can Rowan unify the court of fire before the elements destroy the world?

My Review:
First, I  completely recommend this series to anyone who likes fantasy and young adult novels, period.

For me, the whole Mortal Enchantment series was so good read them really fast without realizing it and I was never disappointed. In fact, I have given them all 5 out of 5 stars except the second one which I gave 4 but I don't really know why because it was really good. I actually think I gave it 4 because I had a headache when I finished reading it but it wasn't the book's fault.

Fragile Reign being the third book in the series and since so many good things had happened in the book I found that I had read 100 and more pages in my first sitting. I just picked it up and time flew by so fast and I wasn't stressed out or anything. I really liked that but then a member of my family came to visit and I had to stop reading it. But as soon as they left I picked it back up and finished it in a couple of days.

There's something about Stacey's writing that I just adore. It's the way she describes the castles and the elementals (characters) and the clothing that's so amazingly good. I ‘d say as I always say, that the writing is good for the imagination. Because as you read it takes you to those places and I don't often feel that way with other books. but with this series, I felt like I was there.

I simply adore Kalin and Rowan’s relationship in this book. They were so cute. But there was a part that I  hated and that was the part where Sebastian threatened Kalin into not telling anyone of his backstabbing and how Rowan reacted. He completely thought that after all, they want through that Kain was just going to drop him and go for that asshole. Granted he did not know what was going on but he should have gotten a bad feeling from her reaction and the way Bash was treating her.

I also adore Ariel because she is so talented with Kalin’s clothing and makeup and hair but I  do wish she had more time to show how diverse she would be like maybe in the last book she can fight with swords or something. I  just want her to be a badass and not just a side character created to make the man character look good.

And I  hope she and Marcus could end up together. I'm really rooting for them.

I  was so sad that King Taron had to die because of stupid poopy pants Sebastian and just when he and Kalin’s mom were getting close. I  was in tears. And so angry at the same time. Stupid Bash.

Also how stupid was Kalin for blindly accepting wine from someone she doesn't know or trust and for drinking mystery wine that someone just happened to leave in her room after she was threatened by Bash. Dumb move Kalin.

There's also the fact that she cut her wrists just to get the poison out of her system. A choice that was both badass and stupid, but it had to be done. I  guess.

Also! That Rowan was covering her up after King Orion was healing her. And! that short green dress and Rowan’s reaction by singing Pour Some Sugar On Me. That was the cutest most awesome moment in this entire book. Especially because it was after she almost dies and after her dad died and her mom almost died. Gold!

*Clears throat*

As for the ending, I  would really like to say that it was perfect. I  was literally flipping the page to see if there was more. How could she just leave us hanging like that? I  mean does Kalin really have to sacrifice herself for the world not to end in destruction and will she?

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The Good Sister by Jamie Kain | Book Review

The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

I have been putting off reviewing this book since I don't really know what to say about it but I'll be sure to find something to say about it. 

The Good Sister by Jamie Kain

Publication: December 8th, 2015 by St. Martin's Griffin

Format: Paperback, 304 pages

Source: It was sent to me by St. Martin's Press.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary

Goodreads

Rating: ★★★

Synopsis:

The Kinsey sisters live in an unconventional world. Their parents are former flower-children who still don't believe in rules. Their small, Northern California town is filled with free spirits and damaged souls seeking refuge from the real world. Without the anchor of authority, the three girls are adrift and have only each other to rely on.

Rachel is wild. Asha is lost. Sarah, the good sister, is the glue that holds them together. But the forces of a mysterious fate have taken Sarah's life in a sudden and puzzling accident, sending her already fractured family into a tailspin of grief and confusion. Asha has questions. Rachel has secrets. And Sarah, waking up in the afterlife, must piece together how she got there.

Jamie Kain brings us The Good Sister, a stunning debut young adult novel about love in all its joyful, painful, exhilarating manifestations, and about the ties that bind us together, in life and beyond.

Thoughts:

This book was sent to me to review by the publishers and here it is.
It did take me a long time to finish this book even though it was only 304 pages long but I was glad I didn't give up on it. The ending was in a way perfect because it made everything that had happened and was happening clearer to understand. At least for me.

So there are three sisters. Rachel, Asha, and Sarah but Sarah died. So from the beginning, I thought that one of the other sisters might have killed her because she supposedly fell off a cliff by accident. And the entire family suffers in many different ways because of that. 
This story is basically the sisters trying to deal with the aftermath of losing their older sister. It tells you the story through Rachel and Asha but Sarah also tells her story because of she's in some kind of purgatory.


My favorite character has got to be 

Asha just because she was truly trying to figure out what happened to her sister. When all along Rachel knew everything and just decided to keep quiet. Which was a dick move.

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Book Talk | Midnight in St. Petersburg by Vanora Bennett

Midnight in St. Petersburg by Vanora Bennett

Midnight in St. Petersburg by Vanora Bennett

St. Petersburg, 1911: Inna Feldman has fled the pogroms of the south to take refuge with distant relatives in Russia's capital city. Welcomed by the flamboyant Leman family, she is apprenticed into their violin-making workshop. She feels instantly at home in their bohemian circle, but revolution is in the air, and as society begins to fracture, she is forced to choose between her heart and her head. She loves her brooding cousin, Yasha, but he is wild, destructive and devoted to revolution; Horace Wallick, an Englishman who makes precious Faberge creations, is older and promises security and respectability. And, like many others, she is drawn to the mysterious, charismatic figure beginning to make a name for himself in the city: Rasputin.
As the rebellion descends into anarchy and bloodshed, a commission to repair a priceless Stradivarius violin offers Inna a means of escape. But which man will she choose to take with her? And is it already too late? A magical and passionate story steeped in history and intrigue, Midnight in St. Petersburg is an extraordinary novel of music, politics, and the toll that revolution exacts on the human heart.

Thoughts:

I had been given the opportunity to read and review the book The Violinist of Venice which I did review. So when I was sent an email asking me if I wanted to read another historical fiction book I had a strong feeling that I had to say yes and read and review it. Sadly I had a terrible experience when I was reading The Violinist of Venice and it wasn't a bad book it was just too big for me and it was the kind of book where you had to use your brain a lot to not get lost and confused so I got a bunch of headaches and high blood pressure at times. 

Now I have to read Midnight in St. Petersburg and I have a bit of trauma. Like I got this book a while back and I have only read 22 pages and its 371 pages long.

I may one day finish this book and go and write a review and post it but for now, I'll just do a book talk because it really is such an interesting book. It's about love, survival in revolutionary Russia.

Link to Goodreads

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