• ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    PASSION MARKED by Ophelia Silk | ARC Review

    23rd November 2021

    PASSION MARKED by Ophelia Silk

    Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.

    A romance between a racehorse trainer and Nocturne centaur! The first few chapters really sucked me into the story but I was slightly disappointed in how the rest of the book played out. Ellie (human, she/her) and Nadine (centaur, demi-girl, she/her, Mx.) are cute together and I really liked their interactions and small touches. Note that there is also quite some sex scenes going on, but I’m here for the cuteness and Ellie’s attempt at winking.

    The writing of Passion Marked was enjoyable. It is my second book by Silk, and while the first one Spellbound (my review) was a fantasy romance with a simplistic plot, this book was somewhat too expansive for me. I had some issues with the pacing of the story where the first half was slow and everything happened close to the end. There is a lot of talk about magic, like Nadine’s Nocturne magic, but we don’t really get to understand how these magical elements worked. The only thing I know about Nadine’s magic is that… she has shadows that curl up at her hooves? So the world-building didn’t work great for me and I had the feeling of the world setting being just out of reach. I did enjoy the fact that there were phones and high school students of different species (just random characters; this book is NOT YA), making the world in Passion Marked feel more like ours.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    The Tangleroot Palace by Marjorie Liu | ARC Review

    15th June 2021
    Cover of The Tangleroot Palace (Marjorie Liu)

    The Tangleroot Palace by Marjorie Liu

    Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.

    The Tangleroot Palace contains six short stories (“Sympathy for the Bones,” “The Briar and the Rose,” “Call Her Savage,” “The Last Dignity of Man,” “Where the Heart Lives,” “After the Blood”) and one novella (“Tangleroot Palace”), all of which are fantasy with hints of horror and gorgeously written. At the end of each story, there is also brief commentary by Liu, providing some background and thematic connections between the stories.

    I adore the writing, which flowed beautifully, and I love how effortlessly detailed each sentence is. Fantasy short stories are extremely difficult to pull off, given the need to provide enough world building and plot within the limited word count, and Liu delivered not one but six satisfying stories.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    Spellbound by Ophelia Silk | ARC Review

    8th April 2021
    Cover of Spellbound (Ophelia Silk)

    Spellbound by Ophelia Silk

    Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.

    Check trigger warnings on the author’s website.

    I went into the story knowing I’m going to get cottagecore sapphics with a simplistic plot, but I didn’t expect it to be so cute.

    Jane Paris (20) and William make a striking couple. Or so the villagers say. One day, after another dissatisfying evening with William, Jane walks into the dangerous forest for a shortcut back home. Soon, a poisonous beast attacks her and it is only because of the witch Adelaide Thompson’s magic and cure that Jane survives. Raised to be proper and polite and marry a man, Jane learns that not all expectations are meant to be fulfilled, especially when there are other things that bring her happiness.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    Destiny’s Choice by Karen Frost | ARC Review

    12th September 2020
    Cover of Destiny’s Choice (Karen Frost)

    Destiny’s Choice (Destiny and Darkness #3) by Karen Frost

    Content warnings: ableism, deaths of secondary characters, kidnapping

    If Daughter of Fire shares the theme with the MG/YA fantasy series by a certain transphobic author, Destiny’s Choice feels like an ode to The Lord of the Rings (which I have only watched onscreen).

    Knights Asher, Taz, Henrek, Jazmen, and shapeshifter Great Mage Marandir accompany Knight Commander Bronwen (paraplegia) to negotiate for peace with the Souththerners. But no Iliryan has ever came back from the Southlands alive.

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  • ARCs,  Book Reviews,  Fiction

    Daughter of Fire: The Darkness Rising by Karen Frost | ARC Review

    11th September 2020
    Cover of Daughter of Fire: The Darkness Rising (Karen Frost)

    Daughter of Fire: The Darkness Rising (Destiny and Darkness #2) by Karen Frost

    Content warnings: death, blood, cult, kidnapping, mind control

    This story has certainly kept me on the edge of my seat. Frost made great decisions on where a chapter should break, and I find myself unable to even pause reading.

    In part two of Daughter of Fire, Aeryn (16) finally learns that her family is likely alive. And some people around her are definitely up to no good. When things break into chaos, can Aeryn and her fellow students save the kingdom they don’t really care for?

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