Souls in Ruin - Richly seductive, bound dark fantasy

 Dark Fantasy Readers alert! This book by Jacqueline White is just that - sensual, dark, graphic with a seesaw between hurt and pleasure and a hurtling towards a hairpin bend of twists and POV surprises towards the end!

I ravished the book in 32 hours, the angst of Mireille reminded me of Robin Hobb's Assassin Fitz, a similar bastard who has little to no happiness in his life, and has to crave every crumb of his existence, the ruthlessness and ferocity of the Gods with complex interrelations and divine power, the hopelessness of an illegitimate princess' situation and her subsequent will to win at all costs, came through stunningly! The book shines if you crave pain versus pleasure power plays and an absolute God complex!

What didn't work was inconsistent pacing, repeated phrases and the casual dismissal of pain. On the other hand, the exploration of choice, acceptance of physical versus mental fortitude and the volte face in adversity and loss were all explored in gory detail. I cannot wait for the next book in the series and watch Mireille come into her own power and subjugate those that tormented her and unleash her wild side!

My bound and shackled thank yous to Scarlett Press and Netgalley for the ARC, and my star space gratitude to Jacqueline for dooming me with this venture!

#NovemberReads #SoulsinRuin #ScralettPress #DarkFantasy

Drown the Bones - A study of duality

 Dearest reader, if your heart thrums for a slow burn, immersive romance, your heart stutters to an enemies to lovers trope, your rebellion kindles at an insecure royal finally stepping into her own power, with myths, Goddesses and a murky mystery ties two kingdoms with beliefs based on justice and mercy, and magical powers stemming from a lake... if dark smirky and thoughtful heroes sing to you, and ghosts make their presence felt strongly, atmospheric vibes and a murder mystery to boot, sounds like a Saturday afternoon read, then this MUST be on your spooky Halloween TBR!

This book gave me mistborn vibes in the misinformation stemmed in beliefs, shades of iconoclast in the Princess Merridan and a sensitive, thoughtful Prince Phoenix, replete with misunderstandings, faux pas, and the ache of waiting to confess your feelings, it had a devastating effect whilst being read. The set of secondary characters were absolutely lust worthy - may i just say i have never felt a dead character more strongly in a tale - Von, with all the enigmatic charisma, hit me hard! Fayette and Eva were the femme fatale warriors, unapologetic and absolute in their opinions,  and the whole vibe of Lux and Nox / Roth and Nova, very well played indeed!

I LOVED this stunner from Alexandra Kennington and I polished this book off in 24 hours as I couldn't stand the wait!

My Lux and Nox thank yous to Berkley XO and Netgalley and my most ardent admiration to Alexandra Kennington for this moving, symphonic experience! 

#NovemberReads #DrowntheBones #enemiesxlovers #BerkleyXO

To all the Earls I've loved before - Second chance romance with Italian overtures

 Dearest Reader, should you tire of a season with the ton, amidst its doldrum affairs and smog covered streets, spilling with gossip and ever churning scandal, cast your eyes to Italy, loves, there lies a story.... 

Emma Orchard returns us to the Constantine sisters - the littlest, Bianca, an artist who wished to travel unchaperoned through a pilgrimage of Europe, seeking inspiration to paint, creates a persona of a recently widowed Italian (thank her roots), to escape the scrutiny a heiress and debutante would receive. Xan, a by the book, if you please, middle brother, and recent widower, with a child, finds himself entranced and infatuated with Signora Rossi, as they explore and savor their new fledgling lust (the pastry scene reminding me of Bridgerton's Simon moment in reverse)...

They part ways suddenly, until they meet again with Bianca as the artist booked to paint Xan's son.... what ensues is gossip most salacious, a slew of meddling sisters and aunts and two people who will wilfully misunderstand why they can't seem to fall out of love!

I loved this romp through the Venetian gondolas and revisited Viola and Sabrina, and Bianca was a force of nature, unique, unbridled and very very lucky! 

My curtsies to Boldwood Books and Netgalley and my renewed allegiance to Emma Orchard and her growing collections!

#octoberReads #RegencyRomance #SummerIntrigueXLondonReality

To Dream In Darkness - Mellifluous ode to loss and love

 If you have never encountered Ann Liang, i think this quote by Khalil Gibran best summarizes her works 

"Your joy is your sorrow unmasked.

And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears.

And how else can it be?

The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain."

Ann crafts a potent, moving and immersive tale with Rujia, a healing Goddess and Keran, the marble chiseled Death God - when the Death God pays a visit, you do not refuse, and that is exactly what Rujia offers, she suggests she can heal him of his psychosomatic curse. As they spend time in the Night Realm, and learn more of each other, baring their essence, and truly seeing each other, it begins a beautiful melodic relation. And then the tussles with the crown prince, learning their natures and truly living life in the mortal realm - aah, it is like a breath of fresh air, after a storm has blown through - you revel in the smell of grass and petrichor... 

This book seeped into my senses, flavorful and redolent in exploring loss, realization of oneself and the effacing of tragedy in the light of hope and the magnificent power love wields to build or destroy.... The interwoven roles and complex connections intertwined through the second half were truly amazing and I LOVED this book as a study of slow drops filling an ocean and the ending is PERFECTION!

I absolutely cannot wait for the next tale from this talented author's pen - she has been an auto buy for many books now! My overwhelmed and emotional thnak yous to St Martin's Press and Netgalley for providing me with the Arc, and a million pages will be insufficient to express my ardent adoration of Ms Liang's works!

#OctoberReads #ToDreaminDarkness #HealerXDeath #poeticslowburn #StMartinsPress #Netgalley

Never Ever After - Lotus blossom perfection of a magical adventure across realms

 Sue Lynn Tan can do no wrong!! She effortlessly brings us along to a successful closure of her latest duology, brimming with political chaos, simmering with half truth driven mistrusts and the fear of filing one's people reign supreme. Battling these geopolitical headwinds, Yinning, finally, finds her family, and tries to assimilate herself in the mores and beliefs of her people. Her promise to the Lord of Thorn Valley hangs in balance, as the Mist Island and Thorn Valley are still at odds. With a spreading decay and a dying Sun dragon, Yinning has been charged with its revival at the eternal night waterfall.

The duality that Yinning faces from how she has grown, and what she is fighting for, is beautifully and achingly wrought, in the simplest of things like the definition of belonging, set out with the humble sharing of meals. Her bond with the mercurial Zixin is also explored and brought to a well wrought circle. The machinations and mistrust of long held prejudices are railed against as Yinning steals, plots and brazenly charts her course for a head on collision with ChunLei , the Queen of the Iron Mountains. Replete with surprises, second chances and soul searing betrayal, this is a 5 course meal of slow burn, magical adventure, dark secrets, reunions and new found family!

This book was an absolute delight to read! and I cannot wait for the next myth inspired fairy tale from the talented pen of Sue Lynn Tan!

My spirited thank yous to Little Brown Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for providing the ARC

#OctoberReads #Duology #ForEverMore #LotusBlossomPerfection

Mortal Things - Tangled web of past, present and all thats in between

 "Oh, what a complicated web we weave, when first we practice to deceive"

This book is a revelation! like a pendulum the linearity, morality and epicenter shifts, sweeping the reader away in its undertow. The epicurious flight into self realization, the drive to assimilate the kernel of truth nested in the web of lies and the ability to live past death. each of these topics is explored like a prized collection of stamps, marking the journey of a soul through this world...

Marie Lu weaves masterfully, Rose Lin is a harbinger for Death, having traded her soul for the life of her friend. In order to rise to Regent of Death, she is tested by Etienne, the Regent of Lies, and needs to break his illusions in order to pass his tests. Add in a supernatural disruption in the form of wraiths attacking other Regents, you have a wholesome mystery to hang a tale of Gods and their sworn mortals....

You learn to love Rose Lin as a passive protagonist, she catalogues and filters emotions by the application of facts and science to ground herself - her drive or ambition is not built on power but understanding and this thirst for her place, her sense of belonging are what tide the chapters. The proverbial twist in the tale is absolutely exquisite and is reminiscent of a knife sheathed in silk, skittering over an old wound, shallow and dripping ruby red drops on a gossamer carpet of green earth, a blessing of Death, wrapped in the chains of Love and clinging yet to life...

This is book is best enjoyed slow read but the true connoisseur enjoys the journey as much as the destination, so full 5 stars from me!

My eternal thank yous to Macmillian Children's Publishing Group and Netgalley for providing the ARC. My curtsies to Marie Lu for executing this in such spectacular panache!

#MortalThings #OctoberReads #GodsvsHumans #Slowburn

Chain Reaction - Anytime, anywhere, inevitable

Lee Child and Andrew Child bring back Reacher, in his best avatar - analyzing, strategizing and using the good old noggin where technology may be abundantly overused. Susan Turner calls on Reacher to providing a clinically detached external review of her G-99 department, where she suspects a mole may have caused the death of one of her investigators, leaving behind a widow and a young child.

Reacher, as per norm, grabs the bull by the horns, operating with the dispassionate ruthless efficiency, cataloguing all his environments and making incisive deductions on the way. The AI forte is a new one, and this plotline and culmination was quintessentially Reacher - calm, collected and utterly devastating read. May i just say, I couldn't help but picture Alan Ritchson, in many of the scenes - he has come to embody my fantasy Reacher to the T. 

The death of a subordinate, culminates into a slew of hit and miss, cat and mouse like chase between the baddies and Reacher, the scenes with the tree hugging are also fantastic as is the moving part with Amanda - but if you're reading this for the ACTION, do not panic - there is BUCKETLOADS of cheeky conversations, implied threats and danger assessments to keep your inner A team aligned!

All in all, a magnificent thriller to chase the spooks out this halloween! My EEF thankyous to Ballantine and Netgalley for the ARC and my salutes to the five starred authors for this slick, throwback to good old fashioned police work!

#ChainReaction #Ballantine #Reacher #Everythingeverywhereforever