Review: The Pirate's Wish by Cassandra Rose Clarke

Series: The Assassin's Curse #2

Publisher: Strange Chemistry

Published date: June 18th 2013

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Netgalley.com, in exchange for a fair review.

Previous series reviews: The Assassin's Curse

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

After setting out to break the curse that binds them together, the pirate Ananna and the assassin Naji find themselves stranded on an enchanted island in the north with nothing but a sword, their wits, and the secret to breaking the curse: complete three impossible tasks. With the help of their friend Marjani and a rather unusual ally, Ananna and Naji make their way south again, seeking what seems to be beyond their reach.

Unfortunately, Naji has enemies from the shadowy world known as the Mists, and Ananna must still face the repercussions of going up against the Pirate Confederation. Together, Naji and Ananna must break the curse, escape their enemies — and come to terms with their growing romantic attraction.

So it has been a little while since I have actually written a review so I apologise if I am a little rusty. Before I begin, just a little warning that this will contain spoilers for the first book of the series. I read The Assassin’s Curse earlier in the year and I really enjoyed it, so I had been really looking forward to reading this.

This started off where The Assassin’s Curse left off, with Naji and Ananna still being stuck on the Isle of the Sky with the three impossible tasks left to complete to break the curse. Therefore, once a way off the Isle arrives, after making a new friend, Ananna and Naji must find a way to break the curse.

For me, The Pirate’s Curse wasn’t as good as the first book. The main reason for this was that I didn’t like Ananna as much. I felt that Ananna wasn’t as strong a character this time around. She was sulky and bitter at times and what I like about her character in The Assassin’s Curse, wasn’t present as often. She was still strong at times and showed leadership and bravery, but she got on my nerves occasionally. There were also times when her loyalty wavered a little, which annoyed me.

Naji was a character that I liked getting to know a bit better. It was good to see him open up more and see more of his good qualities such as his loyalty and bravery. I also liked that Naji was a realistic character. There were times when he would despair that the curse wouldn’t be broken, which I think we all would if we had to complete three impossible tasks. I also really enjoyed watching him become more accepting of the way he looked and less self-conscious.

The new characters were great additions to the story. Each had their own part to play and each were fairly different from the others. I also really enjoyed exploring the history of some of the established characters and finding out more about their pasts.

I really enjoyed the relationships. I think that they were all realistic. The romantic relationships were a little tough and rocky, and didn’t necessarily have the perfect ending. The relationship between Ananna and her parents was what I expected it to be like. The friendships were also realistic with their up and down moments, but some of them were also amusing.

Another reason that I didn’t like The Pirate’s Curse as much as the first book was that I found the plot to be more predictable. I think that this was because there was a certain convenience to the storyline that made it easier to guess what was to come. I felt that the tasks weren’t actually all that impossible and that they were accomplished neatly and conveniently such as knowing someone who just so happened to have an item to break the curse. It was still an enjoyable plotline, but the predictability took away from it.

I did still enjoy reading The Pirate’s Curse, but it did have a few flaws in it so I give it 3.5/5 stars.

Mel.

Review: Sworn to Raise by Terah Edun

Series: Courtlight #1

Publisher: Amazon Digital 

Published: April 10th 2013

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy 

Source: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review.

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Seventeen-year-old Ciardis has grown up in poverty, a cleaner in a small vale on the outskirts of the kingdom. But beneath her kingdom’s seemingly idyllic surface lies a hidden secret. Whispers of an inept crown Prince are growing ever louder—intensified by the five year anniversary of the soulbond initiations. Amidst scandalous whispers, Ciardis finds herself chosen to train for the Companion’s Guild. She leaves her home and sets off on a personal journey to become a Court Companion. A position she’d never thought possible for a lowly servant to obtain, she must prove that she has the skills to attract a Patron.  But she must master those skills quickly. If the legends are true, only Ciardis can harness the power to raise a Prince in an Imperial Court sworn to bring him down.

Sworn to Raise was an interesting book that I enjoyed reading. It was a reasonably well written, quick read that was full of magic and action.

I really liked the main character, Ciardis. I felt that she was a strong female character, who still remained fairly feminine, which to me doesn’t necessarily happen all that often in young adult books. I liked that despite her strength, she still had fears and she still had a vulnerable side. I also liked Sebastian, who was loyal, strong and willing to take a stand. I did find him a little arrogant at times, which annoyed me a little, but overall I still liked him. Damias was another character I liked because of how he mentored Ciardis and was what she needed. I didn’t really like Serena because I found her to be too shallow and vain for my liking.

I really enjoyed the magical elements in the story. I loved that there were different types of mages and that they varied so much in skills and strength. I felt that maybe this could have been explored a little bit more in the story, but maybe that is to come in the next book.

The plot was enjoyable and I thought that it was fairly unique. I hadn’t read a book that really covered what this story was about before. The problem that I had with the plot though was that it was a little simple and predictable. Not much really surprised me with the story and I was never really pushed to think about the story line. This did make for a quick and easy read, but I was wishing for a little more complexity.

I also felt that everything was convenient for Ciardis. For example, Ciardis just so happened to come across the only person who could get her out of her situation and have her offer Ciardis the way out. This happened quite regularly throughout the book and I was often sound sitting there rolling my eyes and going “of course she would happen to find that thing there, without really looking,” which did annoy me a little. I also felt that the ending was a little too neatly wrapped up.

Another issue I had with the story was the pacing. I felt that the story was too fast-paced. It was all action, action, action and there wasn’t any time for really processing what was going on. I think that this was one of the reasons that I found the story to be simple. I also think that it was one of the reasons that I didn’t really connect emotionally with the story. There was a point in the plot where I should have felt even a little bit upset but I hardly felt anything. I also would have liked there to be a little more exploration into the character’s past because I didn’t feel like we really learnt much about anyone.

Despite my issues with the book, I did really enjoy it and I can’t wait to read the next book. I give this book 4 stars. 

Mel.

Up next - Review: Why I Let My Hair Grow Out by Maryrose Wood

Review: Runes by Ednah Walters

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Seventeen-year-old Raine Cooper has enough on her plate dealing with her father’s disappearance, her mother’s erratic behavior and the possibility of her boyfriend relocating. The last thing she needs is Torin St. James—a mysterious new neighbor with a wicked smile and uncanny way of reading her.

Raine is drawn to Torin’s dark sexiness against her better judgment, until he saves her life with weird marks and she realizes he is different. But by healing her, Torin changes something inside Raine. Now she can’t stop thinking about him. Half the time, she’s not sure whether to fall into his arms or run.

Scared, she sets out to find out what Torin is. But the closer she gets to the truth the more she uncovers something sinister about Torin. What Torin is goes back to an ancient mythology and Raine is somehow part of it. Not only are she and her friends in danger, she must choose a side, but the wrong choice will cost Raine her life.

 

Runes is a book that takes elements of Norse mythology and places them in a modern day setting. I have always been intrigued by Norse mythology but I don’t know that much about it. I really liked this aspect of the story and it was great to learn a little more. It was a really intriguing storyline and I really enjoyed it.

I thought that the characters were well written. I found Raine was easy to connect to and she was a good main character. She was strong and she certainly wasn’t whiny. I thought that she acted realistically to all the crazy stuff that was going on in her life and I thought that she was a realistic character. I really liked Raine’s friendship with Cora and I loved Cora’s loyalty and also her humour. I am not really sure I like Eirik, he was fairly loyal but I felt that his character lacked a little depth. I loved how evil Maliina was and how twisted Andris was. I absolutely loved Torin St. James. He was badass, loyal and he was always there for Raine when she needed him.

As I said before, the storyline was intriguing. I found the plot to be convoluted and twisted with people who seemed to have their own agenda working for someone and people who seemed to be working for someone else having their own agenda. There were some great surprises in the plot, and it wasn’t predictable for me. It was complex and you could never really guess what was coming and what/who people were. The ending was really well done and a great way to set up for another book, even if it was a mean ending.

I really enjoyed the writing style. I found that the story was fast-paced and it was really well balanced between action scenes and scenes that built up the story. The story flowed really well and the writing style sucked you in. I also found the descriptions to be short, but detailed enough that you could picture everything vividly.

I only had one small problem with this book, and that was the love triangle. I did think that it was really well done, but I still didn’t like it. I really wanted her to end up with the guy she wasn’t with but I didn’t want that guy to get hurt. I felt that the love triangle was a little unnecessary, too. I think that the story would have worked well without it. In saying that, I think that it has been set up so that it can be resolved in a way where no one will get hurt.

Overall, this was an intriguing, quick read and I really enjoyed Runes. I rate 4.5/5 stars!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review.

Mel.

Up next - Review: Froi of the Exiles by Melina Marchetta

Review: Through the Door by Jodi McIsaac

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

It’s been seven years since the love of Cedar McLeod’s life left with no forwarding address. All she has left of him are heart-wrenching memories of happier times and a beautiful six-year-old daughter, Eden. Then, one day, Eden opens her bedroom door and unwittingly creates a portal that leads to anywhere she imagines.

But they’re not the only ones who know of Eden’s gift, and soon the child mysteriously vanishes.

Desperate for answers, Cedar digs into the past and finds herself thrust into a magical world of Celtic myths, fantastical creatures, and bloody rivalries. Teaming up with the unlikeliest of allies, Cedar must bridge the gap between two worlds and hold tight to the love in her heart…or lose everything to an ancient evil.

The first in the Thin Veil series, Through the Door is a pulse-pounding adventure that takes readers across the globe and deep into the hidden realms of Celtic lore.

I am still not really sure how I feel like this book. I found it to be a quick and easy read, and I liked it, but I felt that it was missing something. I really enjoyed the mixture of our modern day world with Celtic and Irish mythology.

When I read the synopsis, I was immediately intrigued by the idea. I felt that it could be a really interesting story if it was executed correctly. In terms of the plot, I did feel that it was well done, but there was a certain predictability that didn’t make the read as enjoyable as it could have been. I found that I was guessing what was going to happen before it did happen and not once was I surprised by the storyline. In saying that, I still enjoyed the story, it just wasn’t as captivating as I would have liked.

As I said earlier, I really liked the Celtic and Irish Mythology that was incorporated into the story. The addition of magic and mythical beings really added to the story. I felt that the mixture of mermaids, leprechauns, druids and old gods/fairies was really well balanced.

The writing style was reasonably good. I felt that sentence structure was good and made it easy to read. I did feel that maybe things were described in too much detail, or unnecessary things were mentioned. I felt that this took away from the pacing of the story, and I often found myself skimming through the descriptions because I wanted to know what was happening in the story.

Another thing that I didn’t really like was the changing in perspectives. I was never confused by which character’s point of view I was currently reading but it made the story feel a little choppy and I felt at times that the story was jumping around different time points of the story when we changed perspective.

I also felt that I couldn’t connect the characters that well. There were times in the story when I should have felt emotion and I didn’t really feel anything and I think it was because I couldn’t relate to the characters. It may be because I have never been in the character’s shoes, but that hasn’t really stopped me from connecting before. In saying that, I did like the characters. I felt that each character was an individual and there were no unnecessary characters. I liked that despite everything she had been through, Cedar was a strong character and I also liked how twisted Nuala was.

Overall it was a good read, but not a story that I felt was memorable. I give it 3/5 stars, because I did like the story, I just feel it could have been executed better.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review.

Bout of Books read-a-thon update.

Currently Reading: Runes by Ednah Walters

Books read so far: 1

Goal: 4 books

Mel.

Up next – Review: Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare