Review: Paper and Fire (The Great Library #2) by Rachel Caine

Title: Paper and Fire (The Great Library #2)

Author: Rachel Caine

Published: 27 August 2016
Publisher: Faber Factory Plus Ffp
Source: Allen and Unwin in return for an honest review
Aust RRP: $16.99
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: **** 1/2  

My Review:

I am completely loving this series. I adored book 1 and raved about it in my review last year so I was both eager to get my hands on book 3 but also apprehensive as it had been a year since i read the first book, and I wondered how I would now connect with book 2. I needn't have worried as the moment I opened it and started reading the first page, I was right back in to the story.

Now that we know just how corrupt the library is, and that there is a figurative axe above the heads of Jess, Scholar Wolfe and Jess' fellow recruits, it was hard not to feel the air of malice and mistrust dripping off every page as the characters constantly worry about whether they are making progress in their mission or are heading for a trap. The pace of the story worked well with a good mix of action, character interaction and story progression.

I also loved Ms Caine's world building. The mix of old and new due to the library holding back or suppressing certain technologies made for an interesting world and Ms Caine's writing painted vivid pictures of the main locations of Alexandria, London and others to make the reader feel like they are really there in the moment. In a world where Knowledge (and the library) hold all the power, things like religion and technology have not made their mark as strongly and Ms Caine reflects this wonderfully in her world building, which gives the story all that much more authenticity.

I also think I love pretty much all the main characters in this book; Jess, Glain, Khalila, Scholar Wolfe, even Dario. They are also drawn so vital and alive and real, that you cannot help but connect to them. The only one I had trouble connecting to in this book was Morgan but that cpould be a by product of the estrangement between jess and Morgan and the beginning of the book as Jess struggles with his guilt about being the one to put Morgan in the Iron tower.

Overall, I was just as riveted in book 2 as I was in book 1, and the story just keeps getting better and better. I cannot wait for book 3.

I have no hesitation in giving this book 4 1/2

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Paper and Fire (The Great Library #2) by Rachel Caine

In Ink and Bone, New York Times bestselling author Rachel Caine introduced a world where knowledge is power, and power corrupts absolutely. Now, she continues the story of those who dare to defy the Great Library—and rewrite history…

With an iron fist, The Great Library controls the knowledge of the world, ruthlessly stamping out all rebellion, forbidding the personal ownership of books in the name of the greater good.

Jess Brightwell has survived his introduction to the sinister, seductive world of the Library, but serving in its army is nothing like he envisioned. His life and the lives of those he cares for have been altered forever. His best friend is lost, and Morgan, the girl he loves, is locked away in the Iron Tower and doomed to a life apart.

Embarking on a mission to save one of their own, Jess and his band of allies make one wrong move and suddenly find themselves hunted by the Library’s deadly automata and forced to flee Alexandria, all the way to London.

But Jess’s home isn’t safe anymore. The Welsh army is coming, London is burning, and soon, Jess must choose between his friends, his family, or the Library willing to sacrifice anything and anyone in the search for ultimate control…


Purchase: Angus & Robertson Bookworld  | Booktopia  | Book Depository

Exclusive Prelude for The Song Rising (Bone Season #3) by Samantha Shannon

I am super super excited to announce that I have been chosen as one of the advocates for the compelling Bone Season Series by Samantha Shannon. I have been a huge fan of this series since I first reads books 1 and 2 last year, and feel truly privileged to be able to bring to you exclusive content and updates on both the next book, The Song Rising, due out in March 2017 and the rest of the series in general.

This series is one of the most original series I have encountered in a long long time and I cannot tell you how impatient I am in awaiting the release of book 3.  The world building is incredible, the characters vivid and real, the story line gritty, compelling and unforgettable.

Please note there will be spoilers to books 1 and 2 in the below post.

Today's special treat is a is an exclusive prelude to book 3, The  Song Rising.  At the end of book 2, Paige Mahoney has won the fight to become Underqueen and goes to confront Nashira Sargas by possessing one of the guards.  However another surprise finds her there.

The ending to book 2, The Mime Order, came as something as a shock and the below prelude picks immediately where The Mime Order finished.  Read on to enjoy an exclusive sneak peak at the prelude to Samantha Shannon's book 3 of the Bone Season series, The Song Rising:

Prelude

The lights scalded my borrowed eyes. I was still inside a

different body, standing on the same floor, but everything

had changed.

There was a smile on his lips. That old gleam in his eye, like I’d

just brought him good news from the auction house. He wore a

black waistcoat embroidered with interlinked gold anchors, and a

scarlet cravat was tied at his throat. One silk-clad hand grasped an

ebony cane.

‘I see you have mastered possession at a distance,’ he said. ‘You

are full of surprises.’

The cane’s handle was porcelain, shaped like the head of a white

horse.

‘I believe,’ Nashira said, her voice soft, ‘that you are already

acquainted with my new Grand Overseer.’

I let out my first breath since laying eyes on him.

He had tried to stop me. The scheming worm had silenced me

for weeks, kept me from telling the world about the existence of

the Rephaim. Yet here he was, looking as easy with them as he was

with his own shadow.

‘Oh, dear. Have you swallowed that pilfered tongue?’ Jaxon let

out a deep laugh. ‘Yes, Paige, I am here, with the Rephaim! In the

Archon, wearing the anchor! Are you aghast? Are you oh-so- scan-

dalised? Is this all a terrible shock to your fragile sensibilities?’


‘Why?’ I whispered. ‘Why the hell are you here, Jaxon?’

‘Oh, as if I had a choice. With you as Underqueen, my beloved

syndicate is doomed to self-destruction. Consequently, I have

decided to return to my roots.’

‘Your roots?’

His smile widened.

‘You have chosen the wrong side. Join this one, darling,’ he

continued, as if I hadn’t spoken. ‘I can’t tell you how it hurts me

to see you in the pocket of those despicable Rephaim who call

themselves Ranthen. Unlike the Rag and Bone Man, I have

always believed you could be saved from their indoctrination.

From Arcturus’s . . . seduction. I thought you had more sense than

to blindly obey the man who was once your master.’

I stared at him coolly. ‘You’re asking me to do that now.’

‘Touché.’ A fresh bruise cast a shadow on his cheekbone. ‘To

Terebellum Sheratan, you are a convenient pawn in an age-old

game. Arcturus Mesarthim is nothing but her lure. Her bait. He

took you under his wing in the penal colony on her orders, to

entice you into the Ranthen’s net. And you, my darling – you fell

for it . . . and everyone but you can see it.’

A chill warned me that something was wrong. Elsewhere in the

citadel, someone had touched my body.

‘This is a fight you cannot win. Don’t mutilate the syndicate, O

my lovely,’ he purred. ‘It was never meant as a weapon of war, and

you were never meant to rule. Step back from the brink. All any of

us in the Archon want is to protect you – you, and the wonder of

your gift. If we must pull off your wings to stop you casting your-

self into the fire, so be it.’ His pale hand reached out. ‘Come to us,

Paige. Come to me. All this can be avoided.’

He had shocked me. We both knew it. If he thought he could

scare me, he would have to try harder.

Another shiver. I felt myself falling out of the stranger’s dreams-

cape, back into the æther’s embrace.

‘I’d rather burn,’ I said.


My brain was liquid, slithering out through my nose and down my

front. I had to get out, get air into my lungs . . .



A hand took hold of my arm, but my skin was taut with goose-

flesh, excruciatingly sensitive. I clawed off the oxygen mask, got

the door open, and spilled out of the car in a jumble of limbs,

gasping. The jolt peeled open the stitches in my side, wetting my

shirt.

All of my composure fell apart. Jaxon was many things, but I

couldn’t believe that he had gone to Scion. He had made his career

out of living in their shadow, not their arms.

My wounds from the scrimmage flared, white-hot in my torso,

deep and throbbing in my back. I pitched into the night, down the

moss-slick steps to the Thames, and fell to my knees at the water’s

edge, where I gripped my head between my hands and cursed my

own stupidity. How, how could I have not foreseen this? There

must have been some clue. Now he would be our most formidable

enemy, a vital asset to the anchor.

I will find other allies, he had told me after the scrimmage.

Be warned: you have not seen the last of me.

I should have killed him in the Rose Ring. The blade had been

against his throat, but I’d been too weak to cut.

A very old ally, Nashira had said. One who returned to me . . .

after twenty long years of estrangement . . .

A shout in the distance stopped time, or started it again. I

hunched over the water, holding myself.

I have decided to return to my roots.

‘No,’ I breathed. ‘No, not you. Not you . . .’

He had been standing so comfortably alongside the Sargas. Not

like someone who had only laid eyes on them for the first time

a few hours ago. And there were other things I had brushed off,

that I hadn’t seen from behind the blindfold. He had always been

wealthier than other mime-lords. Absinthe alone cost a fortune on

the black market, and he drank it almost nightly. How had he leapt

from pauper to prince? Surely not just from his writing; there was

no money in pamphlets. Then there was the fact that he had spear-

headed my rescue from the colony with no exit plan – senseless. It

wasn’t in his nature to go blindly into anything. But if he had left

the colony once before . . . if he had known there was a way out –

or if the Sargas had allowed him to take me away . . .


An old ally. Twenty long years. Those were the only words I

needed to work out who Jaxon Hall had once been, and who he

was. I had no absolute proof, but I knew – I knew, in my heart,

that my instinct was right.

He wasn’t just a traitor. He was the traitor.

The man who had betrayed the Ranthen twenty years ago to buy

his freedom from the Rephaim.

The man who had left the scars on Warden’s back.

The man who was responsible for the deaths of every prisoner he

had left behind in the colony.

And I had been his mollisher. His right hand.

The sound of footsteps broke through the white noise in my

ears. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Warden sink into a crouch

beside me.

I had to tell him. I couldn’t carry this knowledge alone.

‘I know who betrayed you twenty years ago,’ I said. ‘I know who

gave you the scars.’

Silence. I realised I was shivering.

‘It is not safe out here,’ Warden finally said. ‘We can discuss this

at the music hall.’

The thoughts tangled like barbed wire in my head. I was every-

body’s puppet, caught in a thousand strings.

Nick ran to the railings above us. ‘Vigiles,’ he shouted. ‘Warden,

bring her up here!’

Warden stayed where he was. I was afraid he would lack the

ability to read my expression – that I might have to say the name

myself – but as the moments ticked past, I watched it dawn on

him, just as it had on me. A fire entered his eyes.

‘Jaxon.’

**********

About The Book:

The hotly anticipated third book in the bestselling Bone Season series – a ground-breaking, dystopian fantasy of extraordinary imagination

Following a bloody battle against foes on every side, Paige Mahoney has risen to the dangerous position of Underqueen, ruling over London's criminal population.

But, having turned her back on Jaxon Hall and with vengeful enemies still at large, the task of stabilising the fractured underworld has never seemed so challenging.

Little does Paige know that her reign may be cut short by the introduction of Senshield, a deadly technology that spells doom for the clairvoyant community and the world as they know it…

Pre-Order: Bloomsbury

Review: Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins

Title: Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2)

Author: Kim Wilkins
Published: 22 August 2016
Source: Harlequin Teen Australia/Mira via netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *****

My Review:

I do believe I liked Sisters of the fire even more than Daughters of the Storm. And I adored Daughters of the storm. This book takes up the story 4 years after the end of book 1. All 5 sisters and their offspring are spread across Thrysland and Bluebell hears that one of her sisters has the trollblade that can kill her and she is determined to her her hands on the sword before it gets her.

Again, from page one I fell headlong in to the story. Each sisters thread was spell binding as the next and drew me ever deeper into the story. the way the threads are pulled and weaved is genius with each on pulling the reader ever towards the end.

I love Ms Wilkins storytelling. She manages to weave this extremely intricate yet seemless story that with characters that are so well drawn they leap off the page in all their flawed brilliance. I was invested in each and every one of them in one way or another and they really added and extra layer to an already riveting story.

This book is full of secrets from beginning to end, the sisters and other characters have secrets from each other and from those around them, even from their selves and they way ms Wilkins slowly reveals these secrets and the consequences of their revealing is nothing short of perfection. This book really advances the series whilst still leaving the reader with a sense of satisfaction with the end of this book.

This book is a perfect mix of action, romance and fantasy with well developed characters and a story that will keep you glued to the pages from beginning to end.

This is Australian fantasy writing at its finest and I give this book 5 stars!

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

 Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins

An action-packed, compelling historical fantasy, from the pen of an award-winning author

The battle-scarred warrior princess Bluebell, heir to her father’s throne, is rumoured to be unkillable. So when she learns of a sword wrought specifically to slay her by the fearsome raven king, Hakon, she sets out on a journey to find it before it finds her. The sword is rumoured to be in the possession of one of her four younger sisters. But which one? Scattered as they are across the kingdoms, she sets out on a journey to find them.

Her four sisters all have their own paths to tread, the gifted magician Ash is on a journey to find a dragon that could determine her destiny. The beautiful, unhappy Rose has left her undermagician Aunt and is speeding to the aid of her daughter, Rowan, who has been lost to her. Ivy, sold into marriage for the sake of an alliance, is now set to become the ruling Duchess of Seacaster with the imminent death of her much older and sick husband, and the power-hungry Willow is raising her infant child as a potential trimartyr king and training to be a warrior for the fanatical religious order Maava.

From wild rocky coastline to granite-topped tors, from bustling harbours to echoing ghost towns, from halls of kings to ancient primal woodlands, this story follows five sisters upon whose actions kingdoms will rise and fall.

Publication Date: 22 August 2016

Purchase: Booktopia  |  Harlequin Teen/Mira Australia | Amazon

Teaser Tuesday #123: Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins #TeaserTuesday

Welcome to Teaser Tuesdays.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books and a Beat. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

4. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My current read is Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins and my four lines are from location 1644 of 5103

"'Someone calling Snowy has sent for you from Nether Weald. He says it is urgent.' Bluebell frowned. Snowy had never sent for her, let alone urgently"

 Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins

An action-packed, compelling historical fantasy, from the pen of an award-winning author

The battle-scarred warrior princess Bluebell, heir to her father’s throne, is rumoured to be unkillable. So when she learns of a sword wrought specifically to slay her by the fearsome raven king, Hakon, she sets out on a journey to find it before it finds her. The sword is rumoured to be in the possession of one of her four younger sisters. But which one? Scattered as they are across the kingdoms, she sets out on a journey to find them.

Her four sisters all have their own paths to tread, the gifted magician Ash is on a journey to find a dragon that could determine her destiny. The beautiful, unhappy Rose has left her undermagician Aunt and is speeding to the aid of her daughter, Rowan, who has been lost to her. Ivy, sold into marriage for the sake of an alliance, is now set to become the ruling Duchess of Seacaster with the imminent death of her much older and sick husband, and the power-hungry Willow is raising her infant child as a potential trimartyr king and training to be a warrior for the fanatical religious order Maava.

From wild rocky coastline to granite-topped tors, from bustling harbours to echoing ghost towns, from halls of kings to ancient primal woodlands, this story follows five sisters upon whose actions kingdoms will rise and fall.

Publication Date: 22 August 2016

Purchase: Booktopia  |  Harlequin Teen/Mira Australia | Amazon

Stacking The Shelves #32 #Stackingtheshelves

Welcome to Stacking The Shelves! Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga Reviews and is a meme to share those books, both print and e-book, that have been added to your shelves in the last week/s.

I know I said last week that this will be a monthly event rather than  a weekly one but after receiving a few titles this week decided I needed to do another stacking the shelves post before September started.



Have a great week!

Review - E-ARCs & Blog Tours (via netgalley)

Two ARCs via netgalley this week.  Including one that I am participating in a blog tour for.  Come check out my Tour Stop for Keeping her Secret on September 6.

Olivia Decoded (Olivia Twisted #2) by Vivi Barnes
Entangled teen via Netgalley

This isn’t my Jack, who once looked at me like I was his world. The guy who’s occupied the better part of my mind for eight months.

This is Z, criminal hacker with a twisted agenda and an arsenal full of anger.

I’ve spent the past year trying to get my life on track. New school. New friends. New attitude. But old flames die hard, and one look at Jack—the hacker who enlisted me into his life and his hacking ring, stole my heart, and then left me—and every memory, every moment, every feeling comes rushing back. But Jack’s not the only one who’s resurfaced in my life. And if I can’t break through Z’s defenses and reach the old Jack, someone will get hurt…or worse.

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

keeping Her Secret (Endless Summer) by Sarah Nicolas
Entangled Crush via netgalley

Two girls. One Kiss.

The last person Riya Johnson expected to run into at her new summer camp is Courtney Chastain—her childhood best friend and the girl who broke her heart after a secret, mind-blowing, life-altering kiss. She definitely didn’t expect to be sharing a bunk bed with her for four long weeks.

Courtney has what every girl wants—she’s beautiful, rich, and the object of every boy’s desire at Camp Pine Ridge. Too bad none of them make her feel an iota of what Riya’s kiss did all those years ago. But Courtney needs to uphold appearances at all costs—even if it means instigating an all-out prank war with Riya as her main target.

Neither girl can stop thinking about the other…but that doesn’t mean they can give up past hurts and take a chance on a future together.

Disclaimer: This Entangled Teen Crush book contains drinking, sexual situations, and a fairy-tale romance sure to make your heart melt

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

Purchased - Print Books

Another load of awesome book mail arrived this week.  I finally started both these series last month and immediately knew I would be needing book 2 for both.  And such pretty covers :-)

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer  Purchased: Book Depository

The Rose & the Dagger (The Wrath and the Dawn #2) by Renee Ahdieh  Purchased: Book Depository

Purchased - Audio  Books

The Unexpected Everything by Morgan Matson  Purchased: Audible

Borrowed - Library

Since You've Been Gone by Morgan Matson

So what did you add to your shelves this week?

Stacking The Shelves #31

Welcome to Stacking The Shelves! Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga Reviews and is a meme to share those books, both print and e-book, that have been added to your shelves in the last week/s.

At the end of last month I decided to make this a monthly feature rather than a weekly one so I could put more of my focus on reading and reviewing and I think it has helped as I had a really productive reading month and better reviewing month also 

In terms of books for review, I have really been trying to limit what I request to things I absolutely want to or must read so as to limit the amount of DNFs and books that I just run out of time to read.  I have also spent the month going through my TBR list and reading a lot of books that have been sitting on my shelves, literally, for a year or more.  I have joined a number of reading challenges on Goodreads also that focus on reading and reviewing as well as choosing books to read that fit certain categories or certain tasks and I am having a lot of fun.



Have a great week!

Review - Print ARCs ( with thanks to Bloomsbury Australia)

Stealing Snow (Stealing Snow #1) by Danielle Paige
Bloomsbury (UK & ANZ) 

Seventeen-year-old Snow lives within the walls of the Whittaker Institute, a high security mental hospital in upstate New York. Deep down, she knows she doesn't belong there, but she has no memory of life outside, except for the strangest dreams. And then a mysterious, handsome man, an orderly in the hospital, opens a door – and Snow knows that she has to leave …
She finds herself in icy Algid, her true home, with witches, thieves, and a strangely alluring boy named Kai. As secret after secret is revealed, Snow discovers that she is on the run from a royal lineage she's destined to inherit, a father more powerful and ruthless than she could have imagined, and choices of the heart that could change everything. Heroine or villain, queen or broken girl, frozen heart or true love, Snow must choose her fate …
A wonderfully icy fantastical romance, with a strong heroine choosing her own destiny, Danielle Paige's irresistibly page-turning Snow Queen is like Maleficent and Frozen all grown up.

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

The Devil You Know by Trish Doller
Bloomsbury (UK & ANZ) 

Eighteen-year-old Arcadia wants adventure. Living in a tiny Florida town with her dad and four-year-old brother, Cadie spends most of her time working, going to school, and taking care of her family. So when she meets two handsome cousins at a campfire party, she finally has a chance for fun. They invite her and friend to join them on a road trip, and it's just the risk she's been craving-the opportunity to escape. But what starts out as a fun, sexy journey quickly becomes dangerous when she discovers that one of them is not at all who he claims to be. One of them has deadly intentions.

A road trip fling turns terrifying in this contemporary story that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

Review - E-ARCs (via netgalley)

Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck
Hachette Australia via Netgalley

From Colleen Houck, New York Times bestselling author of The Tiger’s Curse, comes Recreated, the second book in the epic Egyptian-inspired Reawakened series, in which a seventeen-year-old must literally go to hell to save the love of her life.

Lily Young thought traveling across the globe with a reawakened sun prince was a grand adventure. Now she’s about to embark on the journey of a lifetime.

When Amon and Lily part tragically, he transports himself to the Netherworld—what mortals call hell. Tormented by the loss of his one true love, he’d rather suffer in agony during Lily’s mortal years than fulfill his duty to protect humanity.

Heartbroken, Lily seeks refuge on her grandmother’s farm. Yet she can feel Amon’s pain, and she has been having dreams—dreams of Amon continually suffering.

For before he departed, Amon gave Lily something very special, an item that connects them even though they are worlds apart. Now Lily must use this object to free him, and to free their realms from darkness and utter chaos. She will do whatever it takes.

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

Sisters of the Fire (Blood and Gold #2) by Kim Wilkins
HarlequinTeen/Mira via netgalley

An action-packed, compelling historical fantasy, from the pen of an award-winning author

The battle-scarred warrior princess Bluebell, heir to her father’s throne, is rumoured to be unkillable. So when she learns of a sword wrought specifically to slay her by the fearsome raven king, Hakon, she sets out on a journey to find it before it finds her. The sword is rumoured to be in the possession of one of her four younger sisters. But which one? Scattered as they are across the kingdoms, she sets out on a journey to find them.

Her four sisters all have their own paths to tread, the gifted magician Ash is on a journey to find a dragon that could determine her destiny. The beautiful, unhappy Rose has left her undermagician Aunt and is speeding to the aid of her daughter, Rowan, who has been lost to her. Ivy, sold into marriage for the sake of an alliance, is now set to become the ruling Duchess of Seacaster with the imminent death of her much older and sick husband, and the power-hungry Willow is raising her infant child as a potential trimartyr king and training to be a warrior for the fanatical religious order Maava.

From wild rocky coastline to granite-topped tors, from bustling harbours to echoing ghost towns, from halls of kings to ancient primal woodlands, this story follows five sisters upon whose actions kingdoms will rise and fall.

Goodreads | Galaxy Bookshop | Amazon | Booktopia

Replica (Replica #1) by Lauren Oliver

Hachette Australia via Netgalley

Gemma has been in and out of hospitals since she was born. 'A sickly child', her lonely life to date has revolved around her home, school and one best friend, Alice. But when she discovers her father's connection to the top secret Haven research facility, currently hitting the headlines and under siege by religious fanatics, Gemma decides to leave the sanctuary she's always known to find the institute and determine what is going on there and why her father's name seems inextricably linked to it.

Amidst the frenzy outside the institute's walls, Lyra - or number 24 as she is known as at Haven - and a fellow experimental subject known only as 72, manage to escape. Encountering a world they never knew existed outside the walls of their secluded upbringing , they meet Gemma and, as they try to understand Haven's purpose together, they uncover some earth-shattering secrets that will change the lives of both girls forever...

Goodreads | Book Depository | Amazon | Booktopia

Purchased - Print Books

I had a pretty awesome book mail month this month with some awesome titles arriving/being purchased all in the space of a week.  I was even lucky enough to attend the Sydney Nevernight launch and have my copy signed by Jay Kristoff!

Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle #1) by Jay Kristoff  Purchased Dymocks

And I Darken (The Conquerors Saga #1) by Kiersten White  Purchased Dymocks

Paper and Fire (The Great Library #2)by Rachel Caine  Purchased: Book Depository

The Raven King (The Raven Cycle #4)by Maggie Stiefvater  Purchased: Book Depository

Borrowed - Library

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2) 

A Corner of White (The Colours of Madeleine #1)

The Cracks in the kingdom (The Colours of Madeleine #2)

So what did you add to your shelves this week?

Review: Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck

Title: Recreated (Reawakened #2) 

Author: Colleen Houck

Published: 9th August 2016
Publisher: Hodder & Staughton as part of Hachette Australia
Source: Hachette  Australia via netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Reviewed: Sapphired Dragon
Rating: *** 1/2

My Review:

I read the first book in this series at the beginning of the year and really enjoyed it so I was looking forward to this read. I started it with great excitement and whilst overall I did mostly enjoy, I am sad to say i didn't enjoy it as much as I enjoyed awakened.

Whilst Reawakened is a story about lily and Amon, this story is mostly about Lily and her journey to rescue Amon who has ended up in the netherworld as a result of the events at the end of reawakened. As the holder of Amon's heart scarab, Lily is still intricately linked to Amon and needs to use this link to rescue Amon from the netherworld otherwise Chaos could be allowed back in and potentially destroy Lily's world.

I think my biggest problem is that I had trouble connecting with Lily in this book and i felt the beginning of the book with the random visit to the nana in Iowa so she could leave to save Amon didn't make sense to me. I mean she is told that if all goes well, it will be as if she never left so why did she need to go to Iowa to be able to do this. The visit itself seemed quite out of character of either the Lily from the beginning of book 1 or even from the end.

That aside my connection with Lily was haphazard at best as Lily went through all the trials to get to and be ready to enter the netherworld, I found the pace a little frustrating and at times the story struggled to hold my attention. It sometimes seemed like the author was trying to weave some threads that would be needed later in the book, but at times they just seemed confusing and made the story that little bit harder to get through.

The second half of the book moved a lot better than the first half in my opinion. Some of the earlier threads started to come through and make more sense and the story itself seemed to flow that little bit better. I felt the addition of Asten and Ahmose to the story and finding out more about their roles in the afterlife when their bodies are sleeping added a lot to the story as a whole and helped to fill out the world building of the story in general.

I though the last 20% of the story got quite exciting and I devoured it pretty quickly and overall I was left with the feeling and the need to see what happens next in this series. So I will definitely be reading book 3.

Overall I did enjoy this book even if I did struggle for a while in the middle. I felt the world building and attention to detail in regards to the ancient egyptian mythology was stronger in this book and this really solidified the story for me. I look forwrad to seeing how this all plays out in book 3.

A mostly solid and enjoyable read and I gave this book 3 1/2 stars

Sapphired Dragon xx

About The Book:

Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck

The second book in Colleen Houck's Reawakened Series, where Lily must now not only travel across the globe, she must enter the Netherworld (hell), to save the love of her life, Amon.

If Lily thought traveling across the globe with a reawakened sun-prince was an epic adventure, she's now in for the journey of a lifetime. Amon has left his sacred duty to the gods and transported himself to the Netherworld, what we know as hell, to live out the rest of his years in agony. He is tormented by the loss of his love, Lily, and wishes to relinquish his obligation to the gods until they can reunite again.

Lily has sought refuge on her grandmother's farm until she must attend the college of her parents' choice, and it is there that she is visited by Anubis, the Egyptian god of mummification, who fills her in on Amon's choice and that she is the only one who can save him.

What Lily doesn't tell Anubis is that since she's left Amon she has known something went wrong. Lily can feel Amon's pain and she's been having dreams, dreams filled with Amon fighting awful beasts and crying out in agony. She will do whatever it takes to save him. For his life means more to her than anything in the world, which may not exist if she doesn't bring him back home.

Purchase: Booktopia  | Book Depository | Hachette Australia | Amazon

   

     

Teaser Tuesday #122: Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck #TeaserTuesday

Welcome to Teaser Tuesdays.

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books and a Beat. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

1. Grab your current read

2. Open to a random page

3. Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

4. Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My current read is Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck and my two lines are from location 3095 of 5143

"A judgement has been requested and a judgement has been made," Ma'at said "I have judged the heart of the deceased, Amon; the wandering spirit, Tia; and the still living , Lily.  Their souls stand as witnesses against them. In all sincerity I decree that..."

Recreated (Reawakened #2) by Colleen Houck

The second book in Colleen Houck's Reawakened Series, where Lily must now not only travel across the globe, she must enter the Netherworld (hell), to save the love of her life, Amon.

If Lily thought traveling across the globe with a reawakened sun-prince was an epic adventure, she's now in for the journey of a lifetime. Amon has left his sacred duty to the gods and transported himself to the Netherworld, what we know as hell, to live out the rest of his years in agony. He is tormented by the loss of his love, Lily, and wishes to relinquish his obligation to the gods until they can reunite again.

Lily has sought refuge on her grandmother's farm until she must attend the college of her parents' choice, and it is there that she is visited by Anubis, the Egyptian god of mummification, who fills her in on Amon's choice and that she is the only one who can save him.

What Lily doesn't tell Anubis is that since she's left Amon she has known something went wrong. Lily can feel Amon's pain and she's been having dreams, dreams filled with Amon fighting awful beasts and crying out in agony. She will do whatever it takes to save him. For his life means more to her than anything in the world, which may not exist if she doesn't bring him back home.

Purchase: Booktopia  | Book Depository | Hachette Australia | Amazon