"We screamed, we yelled with all the power of our lungs, knowing the wind, hills, and distance plucked our nervous freedom from any ears that might li"We screamed, we yelled with all the power of our lungs, knowing the wind, hills, and distance plucked our nervous freedom from any ears that might listen. We screamed with giddy abandon and a primal need to believe in our flight. if we didn't believe, fear would overtake us. I already felt it nipping at my back as I pushed harder."
Mary E. Pearson is one of my favourite authors, period. I ADORED THE KISS OF DECEPTION in ways that you're unable to understand.
Beautiful book...
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I adored this book to death. It's probably my favourite book that was published this year, right next to Dissonance, by Erica O'Rourke. Pearson is the newest Stephen King, or any super popular and amazing author to qualify her as.
I originally had this at a 4.5 star rating, but now when I think about it, it definitely deserves a 5. I got that excited feeling in my stomach when thinking about that beautiful reading experience that it gave me, and so much more.
This is about Princess Lia, who's the First Daughter of Morrighan. She is about to get married, to a man that she's never met before. She unexpectedly flees from the royal lifestyle she's known forever with her mother's assistant, Pauline, and they end up in a small village where they begin to take a large responsibility of handling an inn and making new friends. There are two mysterious people there that Lia doesn't know about--and that's the prince that was off to marry her and an assassin that's off to kill her.
One of the reasons why this book was amazing is because Pearson kept us guessing. The chapters were split into three points-of-view--Lia's, the assassin's, and the prince's. We don't know who these people are, and we don't find out until the wee-end of the novel. I had my guesses, and I ended up completely darn-wrong.
The idea of this book was gorgeous. I love these medieval-dystopia-historical types, and coming from the protagonist of a princess-now-rebel? I'm absolutely hooked. This is absolutely fantasy, but it's not like we hear about faeries flying and goblins dancing. This is something believable and intriguing.
"Terravin is not paradise, Lia. Of course Terravin had its own problems. I didn't need Gwyneth to tell me it wasn't perfect. But in Civica, the air itself was tight, waiting to catch you, beat you down, always laced with the scent of watching and warning. Here in Terravin, the air was just air, and whatever it held, it held. It didn't take anyone hostage, and this showed on the townfolk's faces. They were quicker to smile, wave, call you into a shop for a taste, to share a laugh or a bit of news. The town was filled with ease."
I was drawn into this splendid world immediately. The world-development was mythical and stunning and let me with no questions asked, and this is the first novel in a series. The plot was amazingly defined and developed with thousands of plot-twists that left me scurrying for more. I was hooked, and unable to do anything else until I finished the 486 pages.
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Lia was the perfect heroine that I've been looking for in a YA novel. She was a princess, yes, but she wasn't selfish or rude or inconsiderate. She was relatable, and a real jewel. You don't normally find characters like her in books, and when you do, they're a real treasure. Her POV was my absolute favourite.
The assassin and the prince were kick-ass, too. When Pearson revealed the magic and wonders behind who was who, I was shocked. You never saw it coming. :') The action on what happened afterword when Lia found out about the assassin just laid the book into a beautiful ending and is getting its readers to snap for more.
If I had a million dollars, I'd spend it to have the sequel for this book. (Okay, maybe. Instead, what about a time machine?)
Gorgeous and petrifying with excitement and feels, The Kiss of Deception will take the top spot in your bookshelf. ...more
Every single time I pick up a Kelley Armstrong book, I am always left devastated and horribly di[image]
I had to, LOLOL. Ariel has done it again. :')
Every single time I pick up a Kelley Armstrong book, I am always left devastated and horribly disappointed and I always vowed not to ever pick up another of her books ever again. Of course, I broke that promise and here I am, reading Sea of Shadows, her latest new novel that is the first in a trilogy... at least I think it is.
I've read mixed reviews about this one, and I absolutely didn't know what to expect because it had such an intriguing summary that captivated me. Medieval-paranormal books sound so interesting, and here is a book from Kelley Armstrong featuring the exact idea.
This sounded very Game-Of-Thrones-like. You know, there are hunters and fighters and all that, and then there's the paranormal/supernatural aspect of it that just "supposedly blows you away." As I crept into the novel, I found myself doubting the positive thoughts that had originally blew me away and grabbed me into reading this book.
So here we have two twins who's mother originally had to keep the whole "twin-secret" away from the public because it's forbidden. The twins are Ashyn and Moira. They have to travel the secret forest, blah, bah, blah and are accompanied by others who might be keeping a secret, we know the story.
I hated the characters so much. Is it just me... or was Kelley Armstrong trying to get away with the whole "opposite personalities" thing here? Nope, it's not just me. Ashyn and Moira were so annoying, I hated both of their POVs and I only liked Ronan from all the characters and I wished that the book would have stayed with his POV because the prologue really took me in, and then the rest of the book eventually threw me out.
Get out of my head, you hideous characters, and don't ever come back, you hear me? -_-
The plot was hideous destructively disgusting. I felt like there was NO sense in this at all and the same things were happening over and over again, and I felt like I was waiting for something happen. (Nothing did, by the way.) I was just sitting there with my mouth open when I dropped the book with 100 pages left. It made me so angry, and I just couldn't bear to think about it or pick it up ever again.
I find that Kelley Armstrong's books always have the same problems over and over again, I'm so stupid for giving her a chance again. I found that I'm too nice of a person when judging what books to read. :) *snickers*
Dislikes:
-about everything -the characters -the boring plot with no sense at all -all the author's books -setting
Likes:
-Ronan -the idea/concept -almost nothing
Here, I'm giving you a favour: don't pick this book up. Just don't. ...more
"If you think it's stupid for me to go to the Firstwinter ball," she said, "you can be certain that it is far worse for me to take you along." He l"If you think it's stupid for me to go to the Firstwinter ball," she said, "you can be certain that it is far worse for me to take you along." He lifted one shoulder. "Or it could send a bold message of what we both know to be true: that you have nothing to hide."
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The worst thing that I care to admit: I hate historical fiction. It's basically the only genre that I hate that's been given so many chances by the boss ME. But of course, although I hate it so much, I still love to pick up those books that fall in the genre and have gorgeous covers. And obviously, you can see that I've picked this one up, and really liked it, according to the star rating system.
Marie Rutkoski has really made me proud to read this book. It had the mixture of many genres all in one, and it didn't give us loads of info-dumping, which I cannot stand in books. The Winner's Curse was one of those books that you will want to read every single paragraph, over and over again to catch every detail and feeling, because it's just that good.
This story all begins with Kestrel, the general's daughter, going off into the village, where she's not supposed to be in. There, she finds a young male slave ready to be auctioned. Kestrel ends up buying the slave but all she doesn't know is that she's going to fall in love with him. Kestrel has a choice: to be married or join the war. Either way, it's a tough decision, and it's all said with one word.
Wise words for Kestrel:
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Kestrel spent this whole book trying to find out who she is and what she wants her life to be. And she had to go through some tough decisions. It's not easy when you're stuck in the situation that she was stuck in. I guess you could say that that was the point and concept of the book, but it was also about her and Arin's tough relationship. A slave and a general's daughter falling in love? Hmm... probably not so easy to deal with in their world.
Kestrel was a wise, willing character. I've read reviews that have noted that she was stuck-up and selfish, but I think otherwise. Kestrel had a capability in her that most protagonists don't show that fast in the novel or sequence. She was kick-ass and didn't care what the other characters thought of her. She just could blast her country off the Earth's surface and still could be walking out of there like a boss.
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I had issues with Arin. This time around (which rarely ever occurs with fictional men) I didn't like him. He was so rude most of the time and acted like he was the "boss" around. He thought that he was the best around and treated Kestrel like a loser. If you don't treat a girl right,
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The romance in this book was real cute, though.
"If her heart were truly a scroll, she could burn it. It would become a tunnel of flame, a handful of ash. The secret she had written inside herself would be gone. No one would know."
In the end, I realized that Kestrel and Arin had a connection that most people don't have with each other. They understood each other and had an insta-love that was too powerful to tear apart. Together, they could rule the fictional world, right next to Tris and Four. :')
The other flaw that this book had was the plot. It was kind of slow through the middle, but I had a bigger problem with Arin. Nothing could beat my anger with that man. Grr. But overall, this book was great. I recommend it to lovers of Game of Thrones, although I didn't get to read that yet. It has a medieval/dystopia feel to it and is very unique compared to others. I am looking forward to the thrilling sequel! ...more
I expected this to be very similar to Game of Thrones, you know medieval and that kind of stuff? I guess that it was kind of like that, but the main
I expected this to be very similar to Game of Thrones, you know medieval and that kind of stuff? I guess that it was kind of like that, but the main problem was that the whole concept didn't mean anything, or interest me at all.
I just thought that this was okay. Not the best, but certainly not the worst book I've read. I'm definitely not reading the next book, that's for sure.
Alina was a very unpredictable character, I didn't really like her much. She didn't know how to be a "character."
I don't have much to say about this, it's complicated. Hopefully, you catch my drift. ;)...more
Grave Mercy wasn't what I expected. I learned that I should never, ever buy historical fiction books, or to never judge a book by 3.5 stars rating
Grave Mercy wasn't what I expected. I learned that I should never, ever buy historical fiction books, or to never judge a book by its cover, like I did for Alice in Zombieland. Zzzzzz.... Oh, where was I?
Okay, the plot was great, for the beginning, until the three years later part, which was like 30 pages. Then, it got boring, then great, and then boring for the rest of the book. Assassins are something that i have never read about before, so it was new to me, and I liked it.
Isamae was a fantastic heroine. She was fearless, wild, and mysterious, one of the best I've read about in a while. Although she was good, Davel wasn't. One minute he wants to kill her, then next he loves her! What type of guy is that?
Robin LaFevers isn't too much of a strong writer. Her details aren't complete, and I feel as if something's missing in the book overall, and that's why I'm not hooked into reading the sequel.
Overall, Isamae and the new concept to me was the only things that I liked in this book, and is why it has an average rating. Merci... ...more
Seraphina was.. uhh... modest, and dull. I know, I learnt my lesson, not to buy any kinds of books like this one, historical fiction, adventure type, Seraphina was.. uhh... modest, and dull. I know, I learnt my lesson, not to buy any kinds of books like this one, historical fiction, adventure type, because they just don't satisfy me. I don't see the point.
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Characters: To me, there were way too many characters to keep track of. Although there is a glossary of characters on the back, it's way too complicated! You think I'm going to go to the back of the book everytime there's a new character? There's way too many and it just confused me. Seraphina was the only one I liked, but she wasn't the best female heroine, Ana in Incarnate, Tris in Divergent, Lena in Beautiful Creatures, there's much better ones out there.
Plot: Okay, so what was the point of the plot? To get the Prince, even though he has a fiancee? I'm sorry I just don't get it.
Bleh.. Not much to say, not much to do. This is only a three-star rating because of Phina, basically. ...more
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