Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas

*Warning this post contains spoilers for all the previous book in the Throne of Glass series- including Tower of Dawn*

Series: Throne of Glass, #7

Publication: October 23rd 2018 by Bloomsbury YA

Goodreads Description:

Years in the making, Sarah J. Maas’s #1 New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series draws to an epic, unforgettable conclusion. Aelin Galathynius’s journey from slave to king’s assassin to the queen of a once-great kingdom reaches its heart-rending finale as war erupts across her world. . .

Aelin has risked everything to save her people―but at a tremendous cost. Locked within an iron coffin by the Queen of the Fae, Aelin must draw upon her fiery will as she endures months of torture. Aware that yielding to Maeve will doom those she loves keeps her from breaking, though her resolve begins to unravel with each passing day…

With Aelin captured, Aedion and Lysandra remain the last line of defense to protect Terrasen from utter destruction. Yet they soon realize that the many allies they’ve gathered to battle Erawan’s hordes might not be enough to save them. Scattered across the continent and racing against time, Chaol, Manon, and Dorian are forced to forge their own paths to meet their fates. Hanging in the balance is any hope of salvation―and a better world.

And across the sea, his companions unwavering beside him, Rowan hunts to find his captured wife and queen―before she is lost to him forever.

As the threads of fate weave together at last, all must fight, if they are to have a chance at a future. Some bonds will grow even deeper, while others will be severed forever in the explosive final chapter of the Throne of Glass series. 

My thoughts:

Wow what a finale! I finished KoA in awe of Sarah J Mass. I was apprehensive going in since ACOWAR wasn't my favourite but by god has Sarah learned how to write an ending. KoA is an absolutely breathtaking finale and was definitely worth the wait. I wasn't sure she could pull it off with the scope of this series being so grand but it was perfect. I couldn't have asked for a better way for one of my favourite series to end.

I was an emotional mess reading almost every other chapter and when I wasn't tearing up I was on the edge of me seat freaking out over all the intense battles and action sequences that Maas packed into this massive book. 

I love Aelin to pieces but following her in this book was extremely difficult for me. She goes through lots of ups and downs but mostly downs and I was so emotional reading all her chapters because I didn't want to say goodbye to this badass brave woman who I have looked up to for the past 5 years of my life.

Dorian got a lot of page time in KoA which I was so happy about. I feel like he has been a bit neglected in the past few books but Sarah gave him so much opportunities to shine in KoA. In this book he is struggling with his trauma and his humanity and he even explores new aspects of his magic. I missed my sassy charming prince from the early ToG days but I've also loved how layered and complex his character has become over the last few books.

Manon- her arc- in this book alone

I ended up caring about the cadre a lot more than I expected. I grew to love Fenrys in this book because he was with Aelin. I also really grew to like Gavriel, he's so different to the other males. I loved how kind and gentle he was with Elide on their search for Aelin.

There was a few new characters introduced- mostly witches, which was interesting but we don't get to know them that well which is understandable considering the size of the cast. 

It was so interesting how Sarah managed to weave all these storylines so that all these characters started converging. There was at least 10 points of view and I found myself invested in every single one of them. I was surprised that Sarah J Maas pulled off the multiple POVs. It could have been a lot but she managed to write them in a way that made sense for them to cross paths.

A number of things I predicted did happen but she did it in a way that surpassed my expectations. There was lots of twists and turns and I loved how she played with some tropes and turned them on their head.

A note on the romance. Everyone knows Sarah's latest books have been full of romance and steamy sex sex scenes and while some readers enjoy that it's not my cup of tea so I was over the moon excited to see that she toned it way down with the sex scenes in KoA and focused on the plot and other aspects of the characters relationships!

People are going to argue that the ending wasn't what they wanted but it was exactly what I wanted .

I have no words to describe what this series has meant to me over the years. It has been my rock in so many ways and I am very sad it's over but am glad with how it ended. I couldn't have asked for a more epic conclusion for this badass character I love with all my heart. I know this series has its problems but I will love it until the day I die. And I want to say thank you to Sarah for writing it.

Thanks for reading,

A :)

A Court of Frost and Starlight

*This post contains spoilers for the first three books in the A Court of Thorns and Roses series; A Court of Thorns and Roses, A Court of Mist and Fury, A Court of Wings and Ruin* 

Read my review of book 1, here!

Read my review of book 2, here!

Read my review of book 3, here!

Series: A Court of Thorns and Roses

Publication: May 1st 2018 by Bloomsbury YA

Goodreads Description:

Hope warms the coldest night.

Feyre, Rhys, and their close-knit circle of friends are still busy rebuilding the Night Court and the vastly-changed world beyond. But Winter Solstice is finally near, and with it, a hard-earned reprieve. 

Yet even the festive atmosphere can't keep the shadows of the past from looming. As Feyre navigates her first Winter Solstice as High Lady, she finds that those dearest to her have more wounds than she anticipated--scars that will have far-reaching impact on the future of their Court. 

My thoughts:

This novella/book is completely unnecessary to read. It is an alright read but it has nothing in it that will not be mentioned in the next book in the series so you definitely skip it. If you want to read it, give it a go but I'd recommend going in with low expectations and here's why: 

There is absolutely no plot. We follow Feyre going on multiple shopping trips and a few other characters just hanging out around Solstice/Christmas. It felt very reminiscent of fanfiction I have read about multiple series I love. It was fun at times but boring at others and felt repetitive. 

Feyre in ACOFAS is not the Feyre we know and love from ACOMAF/ACOWAR. I was constantly annoyed at her while reading this novella. I was/am very disappointed in how Sarah J Maas took this badass role model female character we all love and made her into a stereotypical house wife in this 200 page story. In ACOMAF and ACOWAR it is constantly brought up that Feyre is a High Lady and Rhys' equal but in A Court of Frost and Starlight he's the one out at meetings and running the Night Court and Feyre is out shopping and cleaning their house and cooking for him and the others.

The writing is a bit all over the place. The book is told in multiple POVs but Feyre and Rhys's were in first person but Mor and Cassian's were in third person which confused me, like just pick one and stick to it. There was also a good few repeated phrases here and there and lines from previous books reused.

AVOFAS is not a necessary read I will say it is a quick one; I read it in a few hours and when I wasn't annoyed at Feyre I did enjoy it. Also I'm still SJM trash so I'll read anything by her. 

ACOFAS was marketed as a novella that was supposed to set up the storyline for the next book which it does but literally in the last few pages. The content of which could easily have been a prologue in the next book. 

Will I  be picking up the next book? Definitely. Was this one a waste of my time? Kind of. 

Thanks for reading,

A :)

Brave by Jennifer L Armentrout

*Warning this review contains spoilers for the first two books in the series, Wicked and Torn.*

Read my review of book 2: Torn here!

Series: The Wicked Trilogy, #3

Publication:  December 11th 2017 by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Goodreads Description:

Ivy Morgan hasn't been feeling like herself lately. Not like anyone can blame her. After all, being held captive by a psychotic fae prince hell-bent on permanently opening the gates to the Otherworld is bound to leave some mental scars. 

It’s more than that, though. Something dark and insidious is spreading throughout Ivy, more powerful than she could ever imagine... and it’s coming between her and the man she’s fallen deeply in love with, elite Order member Ren Owens. 

Ren would do anything to keep Ivy safe. Anything. But when he makes a life altering choice for her, the fallout of his act has far reaching consequences that threaten to tear their lives apart. 

If Ivy is going to have any hope of surviving this, she must put aside the hurt and betrayal she feels, and work with not only those she loves, but with an enemy she would rather kill than ever trust. War is coming, and it soon becomes clear that what Ivy and Ren thought they knew about the Order, themselves, and even their enemies, has been nothing but a cluster of dangerous, deadly lies. 

Ivy knows she must be more than just brave to save those she loves--and, ultimately, to save herself. 

Because behind every evil fae Prince, there’s a Queen…. 

My thoughts: 

I didn't enjoy Brave as much as books one and two. I had a bit of a weird reading experience and that might have been what hindered my enjoyment- I read the book in small chunks over a month. I don't know if that was because I read it over such a long period of time or what but it was definitely  my least favourite in the series. I still had fun reading just not as much as I did with Wicked and Torn.

I was kind of fed up with Ivy in this book, she made some stupid decisions and I felt like she was missing that fire in her that I loved in the previous books. She was a bit annoying and I get that she is going through PTSD after the events of the last book but I just didn't care about her like I used to.

I absolutely adored Tink, he is just such a fun character and to be honest he was one of the main reasons I kept reading. I loved any time he has page time.

I am not head over heels in love with Ren but he did have some great one liners in this one; not as much as in the previous books but enough to be entertaining.

I found myself not caring about the whole plot with the prince and the order. I was getting bored at times and found myself skimming some parts which never usually happens with Jennifer L Armentrout books for me. There was a few plot twists here and there but I didn't care enough to be shocked over them.

Overall Brave is an okay read and I would recommend the series overall if you are looking for something funny and dramatic with a paranormal romance in it.


Thanks for reading,
A :)

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Series: The Folk of the Air, #1

Publication:January 2nd 2018 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Description:

Of course I want to be like them. They’re beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.

Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.

To win a place at the Court, she must defy him–and face the consequences.

In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself.

My thoughts:

The Cruel Prince is a new all time favourite of mine! The Cruel Prince has the perfect mixture of an intriguing and engaging plot and characters you can't decided if you like or not. I had so much fun reading this dark story and was blown away with the second half of the book in particular.

Holly Black did an amazing job with the characters. I love how morally grey they all are, there's no good guy really which makes it so interesting to read.Jude was a great protagonist to read about. I really liked how I didn't always agree with her actions. She tough and determined I'll give her that. I loved how she would go to any lengths to achieve her goals. One of my only complaints is that I would have liked more from Jude's older sister who is half fae. Her story sounds so interesting but she is very absent from the story for the most part.

The plot was definitely slow in the beginning but that does not mean I wasn't completely engaged. The action definitely happens in the second half of the story. There was a good few plot twists which kept me on my toes and I only saw them coming a few pages before they happened. I loved how much political scheming and manipulation was going on; it kept me thoroughly engaged. One of the side plots involving Jude's sister had me theorising like mad. I was so intrigued with her storyline.

I loved how the romance in the book was very side lined and almost non existent for the majority of the story. There was this one scene though were the tension between Jude and one of the other characters was through the roof- so good! I think the romance storyline will be very minor in this series going forward which I like.

The world building was very detailed but never info dumpy. I think having all the court politics and the monarchy and everything really made it easy to get a grasp on the world. It also helped that Jude wasn't new to the world so she wasn't constantly asking for explanations which is what usually happens in books with these kinds of stories.

The ending had me like WHAT!!! I seriously cannot wait for the next book! I wasn't a fan of Holly Black (I read The Coldest Girl in Coldtown a few years ago and wasn't a fan) but now I want to give her another chance!

Overall it was a fantastic read and I would recommend it if you are looking for a dark fantasy with lots of political intriguing and morally ambiguous characters. 

Thanks for reading,

A :)

Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

Series: Wintersong #1

Publication:February 7th 2017 by Thomas Dunne Books

Goodreads Description:

Beware the goblin men and the wares they sell.

All her life, nineteen-year-old Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, mysterious Goblin King. He is the Lord of Mischief, the Ruler Underground, and the muse around which her music is composed. Yet, as Liesl helps shoulder the burden of running her family’s inn, her dreams of composition and childish fancies about the Goblin King must be set aside in favor of more practical concerns.

But when her sister Käthe is taken by the goblins, Liesl journeys to their realm to rescue her sister and return her to the world above. The Goblin King agrees to let Käthe go—for a price. The life of a maiden must be given to the land, in accordance with the old laws. A life for a life, he says. Without sacrifice, nothing good can grow. Without death, there can be no rebirth. In exchange for her sister’s freedom, Liesl offers her hand in marriage to the Goblin King. He accepts.

Down in the Underground, Liesl discovers that the Goblin King still inspires her—musically, physically, emotionally. Yet even as her talent blossoms, Liesl’s life is slowly fading away, the price she paid for becoming the Goblin King’s bride. As the two of them grow closer, they must learn just what it is they are each willing to sacrifice: her life, her music, or the end of the world. 

My thoughts:

I was so sure I was going to love Wintersong, the blurb was so intriguing and I had heard some really great reviews of it but I hated it. I feel bad saying it because I hardly ever dislike books but Wintersong is probably my least favourite book I've read of all time. Get ready for a negative review!

My first big problem was that it felt like it took me forever to read Wintersong. I wasn't busy so I expected to get it done in a few days. It took me 4 days which is how long it usually takes me to read a book this size but it felt way longer. I had such a hard time staying focused; I really struggled to get through it. It just didn't capture my attention. The plot just wasn't interesting, I could have cared less about the characters and the romance was awful. I started skimming about half way and I was seriously considering DNFing Wintersong but I didn't because I have never DNFed a book.

I was so confused at the start; I though Wintersong was going to be fantasy but it read like urban fantasy mixed with historical fiction but then they mention places in the real world but  clearly it wasn't set in modern times and there was no mention of dates... Then the world building in the Underground was well I cant really say anything about it because there was none! We are given the tiniest descriptions of the world and just have to roll with it.

Onto the writing, for the most part I was happy with the writing. There was some very pretty passages scattered throughout the book and some hauntingly beautiful pieces about music. The atmosphere the author created comes and goes though. I did have a few tiny issues though- I found it  a bit repetitive. I noticed that the same adjectives were being used again and again to describe people. There was also some weird sentence structure here and there (I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be more formal and reflect the time period but they kept saying "think you...?" ).

One of the big reasons I don't enjoy books is when I don't like the characters and I was not a fan of any in Wintersong. I didn't care about any of them. Liesl had so many problematic qualities I won't even go into all of them here it would be too long. Some things that turned me off her were that Liesl slut shames her sister and the only thing she cared about was getting the Goblin King to like her/find out if he desired her. I hated it. She was completely reliant on his affection because she needed validation that she was "desirable". The Goblin King was kind of interesting because of all the mystery surrounding him and his struggles with his crown and such but not enough that I was itching to find out more about him.

The main reason I hated this book was the romance. I am going to get into my problems with it now for the rest of this post and it may be a bit spoilery but I think it is implied in the blurb that Liesl and The Goblin King have a relationship.

First of all I found the romance so creepy. The Goblin King is immortal and immortality doesn't usually bother me (look at Sarah J Maas' books- I might not like a few of the ships but that has nothing to do with one person being immortal) but in Wintersong it was so weird. The Goblin King used to hang out with Liesl when she was a child. It is mentioned multiple times they were friends but we never saw them interact as friends and Liesl now thinks all theses visits were figments of her imagination. The Goblin King also says, on a few occasions, that he preferred Liesl when she was little. Creepy right?

There was also some pretty anti-feminist messages threaded throughout the book, the big one I hated was the theme of a girl only learns to define her identity and embrace herself is through her relationship with a man. This message is shoved down readers throats in the second half of the book. Liesl literally says "I want you to find me. Every last bit of me" kind of implying that she needs him to find herself.  

I don't usually talk about this stuff on my blog but I have too- sex. Liesl literally says that having sex with and I quote "made her into a woman" and that after "everything was changed now" and she splits her life into "before" and "after". And this is after she spent half the book pressuring him into it because she feels empowered to ignore his 'no'. I was fuming reading this. It is such an unhealthy relationship. I hate how it was portrayed as this defining thing- she was always described at plain and boring before but as special after. I have read a few unhealthy fictional relationships but never this bad. Also there was way too many sex scenes- i can deal with 1 or two but I had to skip over the rest- and the writing was like fanfiction and there was way too many musical metaphors.

I just couldn't get behind their relationship at all- they weren't even friends. There wasn't a single scene in the book where they had fun together. The didn't challenge each other. Their personalities didn't complement each other. It was awful.

I am so sad I disliked Wintersong as much as I did because I really wanted to love it. Wintersong is one of the worst books I've ever read and I will definitely not be picking up anything else by this author.

My rating: 1.5 stars

Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare

*Warning this review contains spoilers for the first book in the series, Lady Midnight.*

Series: The Dark Artifices, #3

Publication: May 23rd 2017 by Margaret K. McElderry Books

Goodreads Description:

Would you trade your soul mate for your soul?

A Shadowhunter’s life is bound by duty. Constrained by honor. The word of a Shadowhunter is a solemn pledge, and no vow is more sacred than the vow that binds parabatai, warrior partners—sworn to fight together, die together, but never to fall in love.

Emma Carstairs has learned that the love she shares with her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, isn’t just forbidden—it could destroy them both. She knows she should run from Julian. But how can she when the Blackthorns are threatened by enemies on all sides?

Their only hope is the Black Volume of the Dead, a spell book of terrible power. Everyone wants it. Only the Blackthorns can find it. Spurred on by a dark bargain with the Seelie Queen, Emma; her best friend, Cristina; and Mark and Julian Blackthorn journey into the Courts of Faerie, where glittering revels hide bloody danger and no promise can be trusted. Meanwhile, rising tension between Shadowhunters and Downworlders has produced the Cohort, an extremist group of Shadowhunters dedicated to registering Downworlders and “unsuitable” Nephilim. They’ll do anything in their power to expose Julian’s secrets and take the Los Angeles Institute for their own.

When Downworlders turn against the Clave, a new threat rises in the form of the Lord of Shadows—the Unseelie King, who sends his greatest warriors to slaughter those with Blackthorn blood and seize the Black Volume. As dangers close in, Julian devises a risky scheme that depends on the cooperation of an unpredictable enemy. But success may come with a price he and Emma cannot even imagine, one that will bring with it a reckoning of blood that could have repercussions for everyone and everything they hold dear.

My thoughts:

Lord of Shadows is everything a Cassandra Clare book we expected it to be and more! It is full of vivid characters, action packed plot and some romance and hits on some dark themes and let's be real it was heartbreaking.

I obviously love the plots of Cassie's books or I wouldn't have read all her books but to me it's her characters that really drive me to keep reading. They are all so vivid and we only scraped the surface of some of them in Lady Midnight. In Lord of Shadows we really get to know some of the other characters at a much deeper level such as Kit, Ty, Livvy, Dru and Diana. I loved Emma, Jules, Ty and Cristina in LM but now I love almost everyone! Kit is definitely a character that stands out in Lord of Shadows. The sass levels are real with this boy! He is hilarious, I lived for Kit's narration.

There are a few friendships that play a big role in Lord of Shadows which I liked. Romantic relationships are fun to read and ship but the relationships I live most are friendships and family so having new friendships develop was one of my favourite parts of the story. Livvy, Ty and Kit mesh so nicely together; I loved reading any scene with the three of them. I also liked how Emma and Mark's friendship was explored. I think it would have been easy for Cassie to go down the love triangle route and I'm so glad she didn't. Their friendship reads as very genuine.

It's a Cassandra Clare book so of course there is a lot of romantic relationships drama, but to be honest it was not as much as I anticipated. I loved how mature the characters were in dealing with the situations they were in. They came off as real people and not bratty annoying 15yr olds like some other YA books.

I loved the plot. We follow a few POVs in Lord of Shadows so it's actually like a few different storylines that all wove together! I loved how we got to spend more time with some characters who we didn't see a lot of in LM. All the different stories made the story fly by; especially when a chapter ended on a cliffhanger and hanged POVs. I couldn't stop reading. 

Because there is so many POVs Lord of Shadows is set in a variety of places such as London, Cornwall, Faerie and Idris. TID fans will be over the moon as we get to spend a good chunk of time in the London institute! In LM we just stay in LA so it was fun seeing the characters interacting with new environments.

Clave politics comes to the forefront in Lord of Shadows- there is a big emphasis on how corrupt it is which we already knew but I think it's a lot more relevant to our characters in Lord of Shadows because they are interacting with some of these corrupt people. Some of the stuff going on in the story is kinda reflective of stuff going on in the real world and I liked how it kind of reminded me of the affects of world war 1.

There is no lack of diversity in the Shadowhunter Chronicles but Cassie stepped it up another notch in Lord of Shadows by introducing our first transgender Shadowhunter! I think it was dealt with very well and people will be happy with the representation.

Another note on diversity: Cassie has said that Ty has autism on multiple occasions but it was never explicitly said in the books, the characters merely said he was just 'special' or 'different' of 'just Ty'; but in Lord of Shadows the term 'autistic' is used. While labels aren't everything I think it is important to acknowledge them and this highlights to readers who weren't aware that Ty has autism.

I have to commend Cassie for all the risks she took in Lord of Shadows. She went in certain directions a lot of authors would shy away from and to be honest I didn't think she'd have the guts to do what she did in Lord of Shadows but she did. And it terrifies me that she has no problems being brutal to her main characters because it really means no one is safe!

There are a few cameos from The Mortal Instruments characters and a few nods towards Cassie's other series The Infernal Devices and her upcoming series The Last Hours which fans will love. I know I got excited any time a TID name popped up! 

The ending was one of Cassie's best yet. I was complete thrown off guard and thoroughly distraught. I just wanted to remind readers that the next book in TDA isn't out until 2019 so if you are not one for cliff hangers probably wait until closer the time Queen of Air and Darkness is released.

Overall I absolutely loved Lord of Shadows but who's surprised? I had so much fun easing and am eagerly anticipating the third and final book in the series!

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Thanks for reading,

A :)

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas

*Warning this post contains spoilers for the first two books in the series, A Court of Thorns and Rose and A Court of Mist and Fury*

Read my review of A Court of Thorns and Roses:here!
Read my review of A Court of Mist and Fury: here!
(Bear in mind the above reviews were written at the time when i first read the books and are a bit outdated in terms of my feeling towards the story)

Series: A Court of Thorn and Roses

Publication:May 2nd 2017 by Bloomsbury Childrens Books

Goodreads Description:
Looming war threatens all Feyre holds dear in the third volume of the #1 New York Times bestselling A Court of Thorns and Roses series.

Feyre has returned to the Spring Court, determined to gather information on Tamlin's maneuverings and the invading king threatening to bring Prythian to its knees. But to do so she must play a deadly game of deceit-and one slip may spell doom not only for Feyre, but for her world as well.

As war bears down upon them all, Feyre must decide who to trust amongst the dazzling and lethal High Lords-and hunt for allies in unexpected places. 

In this thrilling third book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series from Sarah J. Maas, the earth will be painted red as mighty armies grapple for power over the one thing that could destroy them all.

My thoughts:
I loved ACOWAR, I had so much fun reading but ACOMAF is definitely my favourite in the series.

I thought it wasn't possible for Feyre to grow anymore after ACOMAF but I was wrong. Feyre's development in ACOWAR was perfectly paced might not be as visible as her journey in ACOMAF but i loved it all the same. She has an amazing arc and it is hard to imagine her as the girl she was in the beginning of ACOTAR. In ACOWAR we really get to see her struggle with balancing being High Lady and friend/family to those around her and coming to terms with some of the decisions that are on her shoulders as High Lady. I love she was never portrayed as anything less than Rhys and they acted as a team in their High Lady and High Lord duties.

I really liked how much page time all the other characters got. We really got to know the Inner Circle even more than we did in ACOMAF. Firstly, I love Rhys like most people but be warned he goes down the self sacrificing and blaming himself for everything route in AOCWAR and it got annoying at times and I was frustrated at him. I loved how much of Azriel we get. He quickly became one of my favourite characters. He has a lot more page time in AOCWAR compared to ACOMAF- I think his and Feyre's friendship is developed really well in this one. I loved Cassian in ACOMAF but not I am obsessed with him. He has so much great scenes in ACOWAR. I feel like Rhys, Cassian and Az's friendship really shines in this book.

There is lots of discussion going around the fandom regarding Mor- it is spoilery so I won't say what it is about but I will say I enjoyed her character and some of her badass scenes were my favourite to read but I have a few problem regarding her actions as they felt out of character sometimes. (If you've read the book you probably know what I'm talking about- if you want to discuss go on tumblr; there is loads of discussion going on over there!).

The Archeron sisters- I love Feyre and I will always love her but Nesta. Oh my god do I have so much respect and admiration for her. I connected so well to her and love her to pieces. She is one of my all time favourite characters. She really shined in this book! I liked getting to know Elain a bit more but didn't connect to her as much as i did Nesta.

I found the plot to be a bit slow at first; like the first 100 pages were good but it's not until about half way when it gets amazing! There is lots of twists and turns and the battles!! Oh the battles we have all been waiting for! They do not disappoint! There was a handful of things I found predictable but I still had fun reading. I do think the plot suffered a bit because  of Feyre's first person narrative. I think there was so much missed opportunities for exciting scenes because Feyre is our only narrator .

There is a little bit of world development but not much; we are introduced to all the High Lords which was interesting and we do visit multiple new courts but I don't think there was much development as there was just a lot going on so there wasn't much time to be exploring these new places.

The lack of diversity in SJM books is a known thing in the book community and many people hate on her for it and while she is one of my favourite authors I do agree 100% that there is a lack of diversity in her books. I think she did listen to her readers and I do think she made an effort on this front in ACOWAR. She does clarify on skin colour- something she was extremely vague about in her previous books. And there is more diverse range of sexualities represented in the book- were they all accurate? I can't say. But the fact that she included them means she is trying and while it might take a while to get it right I am glad she is listening to feedback and using it to improve her writing. The character's from the other courts we are introduced to as racially and sexually diverse. One of the storylines didn't work for some readers (me included) but I've read reviews of others who were thrilled about it so I guess it's up to you but I felt like this characters sexuality was used a bit like a plot device and was only added in to please readers and it contradicted a lot of the characters previous actions. 

There is two lines which people have been interpreting as acephobic which I think are important to highlight. They aren't spoilery so no need to worry. Personally I only noticed the first and I interpreted the second as something different so I'll only mention that one which is: “perhaps any sort of physical passion had long ago been drained away, alongside their souls.” - I can see why people were angry about this and thought it was important to mention.

All in all it was a satisfying 'conclusion' but readers can tell that Maas also consciously sets up plot lines to be explored in the spin offs and introduces unresolved conflict to ensure that the series has somewhere to go. I really really enjoyed but didn't love it as much as ACOMAF.

My rating: 4 stars out of 5
Thanks for reading,
A :)

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The Call by Peadar Ó Guilín

Publication:August 30th 2016 by David Fickling Books

Goodreads Description:
Imagine a world where you might disappear any minute, only to find yourself alone in a grey sickly land, with more horrors in it than you would ever wish to know about. And then you hear a horn and you know that whoever lives in this hell has got your scent and the hunt has already begun.

Could you survive the Call?

My thoughts:
The Call is dark and bloody and I loved it. I couldn't put it down.

Nessa, our main character, is a determined young girl who I really admired. I loved how she didn't let her disability stop her from anything. She had a strong mindset of not falling behind and trying her very best in spite of her legs.
We do get a good grasp of the other characters, but I would have liked a bit more. There was so many characters, I felt like we just skimmed the surface of them.  The story does swap POVs a lot; personally I would have preferred to stay with Nessa because she was my favourite but if we had then we wouldn't really see how bloodthirsty and twisted the Sidhe are.

The plot was super gripping and engaging. I couldn't stop reading, I had to know what was going to happen. It was so fast paced and chapters often ended on a cliffhanger which made me eager to keep reading.

The setting was great. I am Irish so I loved how the story was set in Ireland, I have never come across a YA set here! I loved how our culture really shined through and how some of the names were irish, like there was an Aoife! I have never come across an Aoife in my reading! I loved how our mythology was woven into the story with the faeries and stuff. Those who don't have Irish/ aren't from Ireland might have a hard time pronouncing a lot of the names/places.

One of my problems with The Call was that the ending wasn't an ending in my eyes. It was a bit anticlimactic. I really hope there is a sequel because there is still a lot of questions unanswered.

The book was marketed as horror but I didn't find it scary at all. It was pretty violent but nothing I haven't read before.

Overall I really enjoyed The Call and will definitely be picking up anything else Peadar Ó Guilin writes, especially if there is a sequel!

My rating: 4 stars
Thanks for reading,
A :)
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Empire of Storms by Sarah J Maas

*Warning this blog post contains spoilers for the first 5 books in the Throne of Glass series (Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight, Heir of  Fire and Queen of Shadows)*

Series: Throne of Glass, #5

Publication:September 6th 2016 by Bloomsbury

Goodreads Description:
The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those don't.

As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

Aelin's journey from assassin to queen has entranced millions across the globe, and this fifth installment will leave fans breathless. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down? 

My thoughts:
This series get better and better with each book. I personally think Empire of Storms is the best book in the Throne of Glass series. Everything is kicked up a notch to the next level. Sarah J. Maas continues to impress me with every book she publishes!

The plot of Empire of Storm was so well paced and full of twists and turns that has me at the edge of my seat at times. At nearly 700 pages I was surprised at how quickly the story flies by. I couldn't put the book down. The action sequences in this book...wow! I had so much fun reading all the sea battles that go down!

There is a lovely bit of world expansion going on in Empire of Storms which I loved. Readers get to visiting lots of places in Erilea. I won't say where- it's kind of a spoiler, but it was so much fun seeing more of the continent.We get to see new places and old- speaking of new and old; readers get to meet new characters and a few familiar faces from the novellas (The Assassin's Blade) show up! I definitely think The Assassin's Blade should be read before Empire of Storms- ideally before Queen of Shadows, because people and places from the novellas are a key part of Empire of Storms.

Empire of Storms is told from lots of different persepectives, which I think is a good thing but also a bad thing. There is so many that I feel like we see very little of Aelin. I wanted more of her chapters; it's not that the other POVs are bad- I love a lot of them- I just love Aelin's chapters the most. Elide has a POV which is really interesting, she gets a lot more page time than I was expecting. There was no Chaol, which I was expecting, and it didn't bother me because there was is much other stuff going on.

There is a lovely balance of badass girls and guys. My favourite part of this series is how much strong female characters it has. Aelin and Manon are as amazing as ever but Lysandra really stole the show in Empire of Storms for me.

I loved how much magic is used in this one.  Aelin uses it all the time, exploring what she can do and pushing the limits. Since the release of magic only happened at the end of Queen of Shadows it was fun being able to use magic again.

So Empire of Storms is definitely in the New Adult genre. There is a warning on the back of the book that it contains mature content so it wasn't like ACOMAF where I was shocked/not expecting to read some of the steamier scenes that make it NA. Personally I don't think it was necessary to make Empire of Storms NA; the scenes didn't do anything for the plot (if anything they slowed it down a bit) so you can definitely skip them. I skimmed them and it didn't affect anything really. I was disappointed how much time was spent on these scenes when so much other stuff was going on. They took up unnecessary page time.

Everyone knows a massive part of Throne of Glass is the ships. I was a hard core Celorian/Doraelin shipper earlier in the series and I haven't been the biggest Rowaelin shipper since that started so I'm not really reading this series for the ships anymore regarding Aelin. But I love Lysandra and Aedion so I was so happy to see that they got a good bit of page time in Empire of Storms to develop their relationship. A new ship was introduced and I am not a fan of it. (I won't say who it is because of spoilers), but to me it felt a bit weird. I would have preferred it to stay platonic. In fact there's a few new ships introduced in Empire of Storms and I feel like SJM is just pairing everyone off for the sake of it.

Overall, I loved Empire of Storms and if you have been following the series you should definitely pick it up! I can't believe the next book is the last book in the series! I'm so excited to see what SJM does in it considereing how many directions she can go with the end of Empire of Storms!

My Rating: 5 stars

Thanks for reading,
A :)

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