Hi everyone!

I want to talk about a book that only came out in October and has been talked about non stop ever since!

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater is a YA magical realism novel that follows the Sorias, a family of saints living in the dusty part of Colorado that regularly receive pilgrims and regularly perform miracles. Everything is going smoothly until the family’s current saint, Daniel, runs away and leaves his two cousins Beatriz and Joaquin in a difficult situation that may or may not result in his eternal doom. Stiefvater’s newest novel looks at the science behind magic, the impracticalities of falling in love when you have a hole in your heart and the importance of family.

Ever since I read the first paragraph of the Raven Boys I have had infinite respect for Stiefvater as a writer and ATCS could very well have damaged that respect- I’m glad it didn’t!

Despite possessing such a fantastical plot, All the Crooked Saints is really a book about people and the relationships they build and tear apart. This hit home to me very early on simply from my reading of the characters themselves. Each are uniquely displaced in their own worlds and yet each of them manage to come together and act as a unit when the time comes. This is what I mean when I say that this book is about family: It is as though through ATCS Stiefvater is trying to remind her young audience how important it is to respect and value your loved ones even at a time in life when everything seems to be about ones self. The conversation that is had in this book about parents and family is an important one that too many Young Adult books forget to include (why is it that no one seems to ever have any parents in YA? Amirite?).

The topic of miracles and sainthood is very dangerous to talk about when catering to a mass audience because it borders subjects that are personal, like religion. Stiefvater, in my opinion, balances the line between the spirituality behind Saints and the fictional attributes she gives them so perfectly that I don’t think it could ever be argued that she was attempting to encourage any religious sect through her narrative. Rather, I feel that ATCS is a book of whimsy that is constantly tip-toeing the line between reality and the otherworldly; It is like a experiment being carried out by the author in front of the readers eyes at how much magic she can find in our boring old world.

Lastly I want to talk about language. Stiefvater, similar to writers like Claire North and April Genevieve Tucholke, writes about people and events as though they are songs or poems. Her work feels like some sort of grimoire and you can see this massively in ATCS. Every chapter feels parabolical and every line feels ornate. This hyper sensitive and transcendental way of writing is something that always makes me love a book and is certainly something that I could never describe in just one blog post. You will just have to read one of these author’s books to find out what i’m talking about!

All the Crooked Saints was a massive delight to read and I thoroughly recommend it to all of you.

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Hey guys!

First I would like to apologise for my lack of blog post last week! It snowed heavily where I live and it kind of messed with all the plans I made for the day (in a good way) which ultimately meant I didn’t have time to write a review.

I am back this week though and I want to talk about a book that has been on my radar for a while but has only recently become apart of my own collection.

Spellsinger is a Young Adult Fantasy book by Sebastien de Castell. The story follows Kellen, a young apprentice training to become a mage in a world where magic is held supreme. There is just one problem. He doesn’t have any himself. This book is a whimsical and enchanting adventure that follows card-wielding cow boy women, talking squirrel cats and an old, dark secret.

This novel was excitedly recommended to me by a fellow book worm who is always well informed on the good stuff and the positively bad stuff that is being released in the young adult world. As such, I trusted her opinion, and jumped at the chance to read Spellsinger. And I was not disappointed.

Right from the beginning this book possesses a steady kind of lighthearted banter and whimsy that holds true across the whole narrative. The writing style felt young and casual which, to me, was the correct choice coming from a narrator who was experiencing youth himself. Moreover, I felt that the pace and the style linked quite nicely to the subject matter of much of the plot itself: magic. The fact that almost all of the story was bordered with laid-back hilarity was important when exploring a force that innately does not take itself too seriously.

The characters were all generally very interesting. There were some questionable choices regarding the plausibility of Kellen’s parents and the situation he finds himself in at the end of the story (I will say no more). These must, to some degree, be overlooked when considering the context of the world that the events of the book existed in. My personal favourite was Ferius Parfax, for two reasons: her name is Ferius Parfax and that to me is delightfully intriguing. The second and more important reason being the fact that she was a total bad ass throughout the whole story and became a feminist icon to me by the end. As a main character Kellen possessed everything he needed not to be lost amongst the massive cast such as an interesting motive and an anti-power  but at times I felt he was just making random choices that did not feel natural in line with the plot that I was learning about.

The plot itself wouldn’t stop moving and undulating and pulsing. It felt sad and happy and rocky, just like real life is. It was this and the core focus on magic (which is always a big sell for me) that allowed me to genuinely enjoy Spellsinger immensely.

I would certainly recommend this book!

I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Hello everyone!

Finally I was able to finish a book that I have been dying to talk about for some time.

Touch by the wonderful Claire North is an adult sci-fi mystery novel that follows Kepler, the being without a face or a body of their own. Kepler is not a male or a female, Kepler does not die and Kepler’s name is not Kepler. In this novel North imagines a world where a separate species of life is able to jump between human hosts by nothing more than a touch of skin. This book is a whirlwind race across the world through different lives, different loves and different faces.

If you know anything about me as a book worm you will also know that Claire North is one of my all time favourite authors without any shadow of a doubt. Seemingly effortlessly, she weaves fine tapestries of weird and whimsical tales into stories that feel bold and true. Touch did not fall short of my expectations.

Kepler, like all of North’s anti heroes, was both extremely intelligent and extremely interesting. The writer creates a wealth of nooks and crannies and corners of detail within the houses of her cast that stitch together and intermingle into words that become real people. From the multiple languages Kepler spoke to the past lives in past bodies she recalled it was fascinating to get inside the head of a character who is eternal and eternally lonely in their most unique set of circumstances.

I have always said that North has an enormous grasp on the world despite realistically never being able to have visited all of the places that we visit inside of her books. She is a purveyor of the small details. Like the smell of a train station in a French city or the colour of the trees in a German city. All of these rivulets of information, big and small, bind together into a more full and vivid image that feels nostalgic despite being the first time read.

Lastly, I’d like to comment on the plot. Obviously everything I have said so far has been positive and I would like to finish with a positive ending too which thankfully due to the stunning plot of this book I am able to do. I won’t give spoilers but North’s grasp on mystery and thrill is bespoke. She understands how to play with narratives and dance with time all within the confines of a couple hundred pages and for that I commend her greatly.

I largely enjoy the books I review because I always vet them out before starting but for this book I can’t say I enjoyed it. I can only say I loved it.

I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Hi everyone!

This week’s post is about a VERY interesting book that looks at the concept of time

My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares is a young adult romance science fiction novel that follows Daniel, the boy who has lived many lives and has spent all of them falling in love with the same girl. This book spans multiple ages, multiple societies and multiple love stories. In a deadly race across time Daniel must save his love’s life and all of her lives so that maybe one day they can be together. But first she needs to remember him.

Firstly I would like to note that I read this book absolutely ages ago so my knowledge of it may be semi-shoddy however when I saw it on my shelf the other day I knew I had to talk about it.

The characters, specifically Daniel and Sophia are both very well written. One of the major strengths of this book, and one of the first things I felt upon reading it was how real their love felt. Brashares does a superb job at crafting Daniel in a way that shows how ancient and wise he is as one who ‘remembers’ but also how pure and innocent he is a perpetual teenager in love. Sophia and her lack of memory is both frustrating and also fascinating because as a reader we learn of what romance looks like from two perspectives: one that is fresh and one that is matured with time.

My favourite part of this book, without a doubt, is the role time plays in the plot. The fact that Daniel has lived multiple lives felt extremely cool to me and the concept of rebirth within My Name Is Memory felt very unique too. Unlike many of it’s contemporaries this book never over dramatises Daniel’s situation or makes it feel like he is some weird isolated godlike figure. Instead he is just a man who is very old which I found was both endearing and natural.

The only downside to My Name Is Memory has to lie in it’s ending. Due to the fact that the plot is so strong (notice I haven’t spoiled it because I want you to see for yourself) it only felt fitting that a strong ending should exist too however in this case there was a simple lack of one. In my opinion Brashares bit off more than she could chew in the time frame of the narrative and this led to a hasty and weirdly broken up ending that did not feel conceivable.

Would I recommend this book? Certainly. Just be aware that the ending is pretty horrible!

I give this book a 3.6 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Hey everyone,

I am back after that brief and busy two week interlude.

This week I want to give a follow up review for the final book in the Grisha Trilogy.

Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo is the last instalment in her widely acclaimed Grisha trilogy. The book follows Alina Starkov, a peasant who became a saint who became an exile. In this final adventure Starkov must save the lives of her nation and her world from the Darkling, an ancient and devilishly handsome ruler who has taken control of Ravka and now wants to take control of Alina. This is Bardugo’s tying of ends and farewell to the world she created for some of her most beloved characters.

Firstly I’d like to comment on how proud I am of myself for actually finishing a trilogy. This task never used to be such a rare occurrence but recently i’ve been finding myself unable to care about a story long enough to stick with it across books. So bravo me!

Now I always find it difficult to review end books because endings to me are such a personal thing. The role of an author is an impossible one that always ends in heartbreak and saltiness from the fandom and so this review has to, to some degree, remain subjective.

Bardugo has always been good with worlds. In Ruin and Rising her talent is no less prevalent. Ravka in this final production is even more gorgeous. We certainly see much less of the urban areas that the authoress is so skilful in creating however the countryside and landscape that the crew of characters explore is described so carefully that the pages I was reading felt like a memory I had lived.

The setting was a big win for me and so with all big wins that has to be some losses too. I did feel as though the amount of characters introduced into the main plot were not relevant at this stage. It felt forced- like the writer was trying to inject something fresh by adding new people despite there being no actual logistical need for them. Sometimes the blur of names being mentioned did take away from the thrilling plot which was a shame.

I will not give any spoilers regarding the romance because it is always one of my favourite parts and I’m pretty sure that it’s probably one of your favourites too. What I will say is that the romance just became plain confusing and unnecessarily ambiguous at this stage. There was a lot of umming and arring that I didn’t care for. Quite frankly it was the situation of me staring at the page and wanting to scream: just be in love!

Alina continued to be a powerful and intelligent lead but there was some unneeded immaturity and whining that I felt was only put in to make her feel more real. Don’t get me wrong- as I’ve said many times before – the best books are realistic but Alina just annoyed me at parts which I felt was a let down.

The ending itself was very satisfactory (in my opinion). I always believe that in fiction there never should be a true happily ever after because it simply makes for a boring and un-provoking plot. Bardugo did not let me down in this department because the trade off between wins and losses was so balanced.

Would I recommend this book/trilogy? Yes if not to fill in the gaps in Six of Crows or simply show allegiance to the queen that is Leigh Bardugo then just because it is a good read. Was this book a sensational life changing experience? No- I would say that that was book one. The Grisha trilogy, like many things in life, just went gradually down hill. But thats ok.

I give this book a 3.6 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth.

Hi guys!

Today’s review is a follow on from a book I talked about a few weeks ago.

Siege and Storm is the second instalment in the Shadow and Bone trilogy by Leigh Bardugo.

The story picks up right after Alina and Mal have escaped the Darkling and are now onboard a ship to Novyi Zem across the True Sea in search of a better, safer life.

I started this a few days after my reading of Shadow and Bone but I found I was able to jump right back into the world with great ease. This was probably down to Bardugo’s skill at world building but also the action and drama your thrown right into from the beginning probably also has something to do with it.

In Siege and Storm we see a wiser and more considerate Alina who has clearly grown up from book one. Further than this, the protagonist’s attitude to her power and her bestfriend/boyfriend also evolves in a way that feels more realistic and mature. The writer, I feel, in this instalment very clearly defined her characters and their personalities and I believe that was a real credit to this book.

The pacing of the plot as previously mentioned was lightning fast but I never felt like details were being left out; in fact I found it only made the narrative more exciting.

All of the delicate world and culture that Bardugo forged in book one carries over nicely into Siege and Storm and I was really glad to see that places like Os Alta and the Little Palace were revisited and described in greater depth. It felt like I was returning to a fictional home.

My review is largely in favour of the story yet I do have one qualm about SaS: The romance. I didn’t really care much for Alina and Mal’s relationship at the end of SaB but I thought it was reasonably fluffy and nicely carried out. However moving into the second book Bardugo puts a lot of effort into investing you into these character’s love and then, like some evil masterful authoress, destroys it all. And I hated it. I wanted them to be together because it had always felt so right within the context of the world and so it didn’t really make sense to me when they weren’t.

This book was definitely great if not fantastic but some details made me feel a little less positive. Maybe it was just mid book syndrome.

I give this book a 3.8 out of 5 stars.

Keep on reading!

And thanks again Beth. HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!