Review: Anger is a Gift by Mark Oshiro

~ megs14malloy

Anger Is a GiftAnger Is a Gift by Mark Oshiro
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is an absolutely engrossing story.

I don’t think I will ever ‘review’ this.
I don’t think it is my place to review this.

This is a hard story to read but one that needed to be told and heard.

This one will be going on my ‘books everyone should read in a lifetime’ list.

Taken from the synopsis on Goodreads: “A story of resilience and loss, love and family, Mark Oshiro’s Anger is a Gift testifies to the vulnerability and strength of a community living within a system of oppression.”

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Review: Second Lives by P.D. Cacek

~ megs14malloy

Second LivesSecond Lives by P.D. Cacek
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

My exact thoughts upon completing this:

Eight people die.
Four come back but not as they were before. Or should I say WHO they were before.

Intriguing premise, right?
It certainly is and I think Cacek did a wonderful job of weaving this highly detailed tale together.

The writing was very solid. You can definitely tell that Cacek is an experienced author.
Each chapter was like a short story unto itself. It was quite impressive. For those of you who enjoy short story collections, I feel like this book could really work for you.

Creative and unique, this story made me really sad. I feel like it is suppose to be a story about hope, love, relationships and sacrifice for others but honesty, it bummed me out. Some of the characters end up in fairly hopeless circumstances and are forced to begin again with no choice.

I thought going into this that it was a horror novel but after reading it, I wouldn’t personally classify it as such. It seemed more speculative fiction to me. There were a few chilling moments, mostly due to the thought of imagining something like this actually happening to you or a loved one.

We get a couple of hints throughout that the events of this story are a phenomenon occurring around the world but this book focuses on patients in one hospital. They are all strangers but through various doctors have their cases ultimately connected. The book seemed to be broken up into three distinct parts: learning about each character, the soul shuffle and the aftermath. I liked the format a lot and thought it was an agreeable way to present the story.

Other than that, I can really not say too much more without giving anything away. I think if you like eccentric stories that explore life’s darker side, you should give this one a shot. I definitely am interested in chatting about this with some other bookworms, so if you ever read it, message me!

A big thank you to the publisher, Flame Tree Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity!

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Review: The Vanishing Stair (Truly Devious #2) by Maureen Johnson

~ megs14malloy

The Vanishing Stair (Truly Devious, #2)The Vanishing Stair by Maureen Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Dear Maureen Johnson,

How dare you?

Truly devious of you to slay me with yet ANOTHER cliffhanger ending!

I had many thoughts whilst reading this, the second installment of the Truly Devious trilogy. There was this:

Followed by this:

Wrapped up like this:

Okay. I still love you but you hurt me.

Kindest Regards,

Meg

Okay, y’all, let’s try an actual review.
That ending!?!?

I really wasn’t expecting that, even though Ms. Johnson has played me like that before.

I was totally invested in this. I loved being back with Stevie and the rest of the cast at Ellingham Academy. We got to meet some new folks and have a few puzzle pieces filled in as far as the Ellingham cold case went.

I really enjoyed that aspect of the story again. Alternating timelines between past and present is an aspect I always seem to enjoy in a story. I feel like it keeps me more engaged than sometimes a single, linear storyline will.

If you enjoyed the first book, I think you will continue to do so with this. Honestly though, I did not love this quite as much as the first book.

I think part of my swooning over book 1 was being new to Ellingham Academy and learning about the place, the history and all of the people. We had less of that excitement in this one, at least for me.

Does this book suffer from the dreaded ‘middle book syndrome’?
Maybe a little.

Calm down.
Not much, just a teeny-tiny bit.

I can tell you that I am completely stoked for the conclusion to this trilogy and will definitely be ordering it to add it to my bookshelves!

Side Note: Really hoping the cover is a nice, deep green.
That would make my Slytherin heart so damn happy.

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April Wrap-Up!!!

~ megs14malloy

Hey bookworms! Another month come and gone.

April was a strange month for me. It felt like I barely read at all but somehow, I still ended up completing 12-books; the last of which I finished up last night. This brings me to 61-books for the year!

In other news, I actually just got back from Nashville. I had a Girls Weekend there with some friends. What a blast! We ran in a road race but it was also the NFL Draft so a lot was going on. I highly recommend it if you have never been. Fantastic music all the time!

But y’all don’t care about that. Let’s get into the books I completed this month:

  1. Part of Your World: A Twisted Tale by Liz Braswell – YA Fantasy Retelling of The Little Mermaid, 2.5-stars.
  2. The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides – Adult Psychological Thriller, absolutely fantastic, great reveals, easily 5-stars.
  3. We Set The Dark On Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia – YA Dystopian with a great LatinX setting and characters, definitely will be picking up the sequel, 4-stars.
  4. In Another Life: A Novel by C.C. Hunter – YA Contemporary with two kids that were either adopted or part of the foster care system, a bit of a mystery as well, 3.5-stars.
  5. Down Among the Sticks and Bones (Wayward Children #2) by Seanan McGuire – YA Fantasy, prequel to Every Heart a Doorway, wonderfully rich and dark setting, 5-stars.
  6. Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan – YA Fantasy debut, amazing world, absolutely loved this, cannot wait for the next book, 5-stars.
  7. Ivon by Michael Aylwin – Adult Dystopian where society is divided up based on individual’s propensity for sport, highly unique, 4-stars.
  8. Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa – Japanese-inspired YA Fantasy, my favorite YA book of the month, bloody fantastic, 5-stars.
  9. The Lies We Told by Camilla Way – Adult Psychological Thriller that I received as an ARC last year and am now kicking myself for not picking up sooner, 5-stars.
  10. The Vanishing Stair (Truly Devious #2) by Maureen Johnson – YA Mystery, one of my preorders for earlier this year, really enjoyed the continuation of the mystery, 4-stars.
  11. Second Lives by P.D. Cacek – Adult Horror, although I would consider it more speculative fiction, very well written, different than anything I have ever read, 4-stars.
  12. The Dark Game by Jonathan Janz – Adult Horror, not my favorite from him but a pretty fun story, 3.5-stars.
  13. Blood & Sand by C.V. Wyk – YA Historical Fiction Retelling of the legend of Spartacus, gender-flipped, surprise of the month, super under-hyped, 4-stars.

If you are interested in finding out more about any of these books, click on the covers above! My favorite YA books for the month were Shadow of the Fox and Wicked Saints. Now I need to wait for the second books in both of those series. The wait begins…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My favorite Adult books for the month were definitely The Silent Patient and The Lies We Told. Both very solid psychological thrillers. My most disappointing read of the month was hands down Part of Your World. (SMH)

For my monthly TBR challenge, I didn’t do great. I think this is the first time this year that I didn’t complete two of the challenges. I completed the following: read a new release from 2018, read a new release from the current month, read a sequel. The challenges I failed to complete were: read a new release from next month (ARC) and my TBR Jar pick. I am in the middle of a May release right now, King of Fools, that I was hoping to complete in time but with my Nashville trip, I just couldn’t pull it together. I am hoping to complete all five of my challenges this month!

What were your favorite reads of April? What was your most disappointing book? Are you participating in any readalongs/readathons in May? I want to know! Leave a comment below or contact me through any of my social media links!

Cheers & Happy May!

 

Review: Blood & Sand by C.V. Wyk

~ megs14malloy

Blood and Sand (Blood and Sand, #1)Blood and Sand by C.V. Wyk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

HOLY UNDERRATED BOOK!!

This one took me by surprise.
Gender flipped Spartacus retelling?
I am so here for that!

When Attia, a warrior princess who has lost all of her people to slaughter by the Romans, finds herself handed over as a gift to a champion gladiator, all she can think of is escape. Escape and revenge.

Trained from a young age to fight in hand-to-hand combat, Attia is a force to be reckoned with from the very first pages.

This girl is badass and not afraid to show it. Navigating her captivity, Attia begins to feel out who she can consider an ally and who is an enemy.

Xanthus, the man to whom Attia is gifted, is a prized Gladiator. Known as the best of his kin, he ruthlessly slays down all who come before him. Things are often not as they appear however and overtime you learn Xanthus may not be as ruthless as they would have you believe.

As is often the case, it turns out the rock of a man has a heart of gold, and that’s just how I like them.

Attia and Xanthus become attached to one another in a deep and meaningful way over an admittedly short amount of time. Did I care? No.

If you loathe an instalove trope, you may have some issue with this. Honestly though, the way this is told, you may be too busy dodging the blood and guts to even care.

Ancient Rome was brutal, y’all, and I like that Wyk doesn’t shy away from that. Sure, this is a romance, but it is wrapped in a historical cloak that makes it so much more than that. I found the atmosphere of this vivid and visceral.

There were scenes set in Pompeii that made you feel like you were there. I mean, really the whole book made you feel that way, but I have always been intrigued by the volcano. Fascinating, right!?

Overall, I was really impressed with this. There is a bit of a cliffhanger ending that has left me chomping at the bit. Let’s hope the release happens in 2019!!!

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Review: The Dark Game by Jonathan Janz

~ megs14malloy

The Dark GameThe Dark Game by Jonathan Janz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

This is the story…
…of 10 writers…
…picked to live in a mansion…
…and compete against each other…
…for one prize.

Find out what happens when people stop being polite…
…and start getting KILLED.

This was a fun little read!
I could definitely picture this as a movie and I actually think it may have worked better for me in that format.

As you may know from reading the synopsis for the book, 10 writers are selected to attend a summer-long writing retreat at a private estate property. Their host, Roderick Wells, is a renowned author himself who is eccentric and creepy AF.

We meet the 10 writers fairly rapidly at the beginning of the book and for me, I had a hard time distinguishing between some of the characters throughout; particularly the male characters.

We learn a bit about each of their pasts with particular focus on the personal demons haunting them. Some of these past reflections were definitely cringe-worthy. Something about the estate brings these pasts back to life to each character in vivid detail and with often horrific consequences.

The gruesome scenes were definitely that and well done in my opinion.
But again, I just had a hard time keeping track of the who and the what; it was a lot to take in.

The general story line was interesting AF. I loved the premise. I wanted a bit more from the atmosphere. I think it was so large in scope, as far as the estate and its grounds went, that it lost a bit in translation.

This is my second Janz novel and I would say I enjoyed my first, The Nightmare Girl more. This being said, I will absolutely continue to read his works.

If the premise of this one sounds interesting to you at all, pick it up! I would be interested to hear what other readers think of this one.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Flame Tree Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I always appreciate the opportunity!

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Review: Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa

~ megs14malloy

Shadow of the Fox (Shadow of the Fox, #1)Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

FAVORITE BOOK OF THE YEAR!!!

This book stole my heart.
My whole freaking heart!

I went into this knowing one thing: Japanese-inspired fantasy. Nothing else.
I was hooked from the very first chapter.
The tone of the writing, the lush world…

Anime brought to the page in the best way imaginable.

In the land of Iwagoto, the Scroll of a Thousand Prayers, has the power to bring forth the Kami Dragon. The dragon is capable of granting the summoner a single wish. If they are pure of heart, theoretically, all goes well, if they are not, all hell breaks loose.

This has happened before and in order to protect the land, the scroll was divided and the separate parts hidden away to prevent such disastrous consequences from happening again. People are always in search of the parts, however, as combining them whole could grant the summoner unrivaled power.

Yumeko, has been raised in the Silent Winds Temple where one piece of the scroll has been hidden. When the Temple is attacked by demons, Yumeko is forced to flee, with the scroll. She promises the monks she will transport it to another hidden temple where she will receive further directions.

Trained her whole life to hide her Yokai nature, Yumeko, half kitsune/half human is a master of illusion and mischief. She is also the most sweet and sticky baby cinnamon roll I have ever read in my whole life and I just love her to the moon.

On the run, Yumeko meets up with Kage Tatsumi, a samurai of the mysterious Shadow Clan. Tatsumi has been sent out in search of the scroll. He finds Yumeko close by the now destroyed temple and promises to get her to her destination safely. Of course, he has no idea, she carries on her what he seeks.

They meet up with another character along the way, Okami, a ronin, basically a traveling samurai without a master. He begins to travel with them and quickly became my favorite character. A source of almost constant humor, I just cannot imagine this story without him.

One of my most loved tropes in literature is a quest. I heart a quest all day long. A ragtag group of characters trying to get from Point A to Point B, overcoming obstacles along the way, nothing keeps me turning pages faster.

This was a great set-up for a fantastic quest. The stakes, the secrets, the magic, the world, I fell head-over-heels for it all. And don’t even get me started on the hella SLOW-BURNING romance!

I am actually happy I didn’t read this right when it released because I would have been in agony waiting for the next book. Now I only have to wait two months…
Wait a minute, two months!!?!!?

That still feels like an extraordinarily long time.
Maybe I will have time to read this one again…

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Review: The Lies We Told by Camilla Way

~ megs14malloy

The Lies We ToldThe Lies We Told by Camilla Way
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Clara’s boyfriend, Luke, doesn’t return home one night, she prays there is some sort of logical explanation. He had too much to drink and slept it off at a mate’s flat, or he worked too hard prepping for an interview and fell asleep at the office. But as the hours tick by, she begins to suspect something much darker may have happened to him.

Increasingly concerned about his whereabouts, she ends up contacting their old friend, Mac, as well as Luke’s parents. No one has seen or heard from him. After some prodding, she notifies the authorities and he is formally listed as a missing person.

After the police find CCTV footage of Luke getting into a mysterious van, Clara knows for sure, something sinister has happened to him but what?

Along with her good friend, Mac, Clara begins an investigation of her own and discovers Luke may not be the person she thought he was.

I had so much fun with this book. I flew through it, I couldn’t put it down!

There’s no boring domestic drama prattle here. This is a right and proper Adult Thriller.

The dual narrative kept the story flowing at such a sensational pace with reveals coming just when you needed them. I trusted no one. Everyone was a suspect in my eyes and that made it so exciting. The ending — chills. LOVED IT.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley Publishing Group, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I am only sorry I didn’t pick it up sooner.

If you are an Adult Thriller fan, and you have been sleeping on this one like I had been, just stop. Pick this up. I would be shocked if you were disappointed!

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Q1 2019: Best Books

~ megs14malloy

The first quarter of 2019 has come and gone. Thus far this year, I have completed 55 books. This is amazing to me. I cannot even believe it! I am 26 books ahead of schedule to meet my Goodreads 2019 Reading Goal.

In addition to the sheer number, I have also been amazed by the quality of books I have been reading. I have given a lot of 5-star reviews so far this year. I am not sure if this is luck or if perhaps I know better what I like since I am reading so much and am just selecting better for myself. Who knows? Regardless, I have been very pleased with the outcome.

Some standouts for me during the first quarter (completed between January 1st and March 31st) are the following:

  1. An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen – This was actually the first book I completed this year and I was so impressed. What a great way to kick off a reading year. This is a fast-pace and suspenseful Adult Thriller examining what happens when the line between doctor and patient blurs. Highly recommend for Thriller Readers!
  2. Full Dark, No Stars by Stephen King  – This short-story collection by the King was published in 2010 and is comprised of four stories, three of which have been adapted into Netflix movies. I was blown away by how much I loved this set as a whole. All four of these were 4.5-to-5 stars which is a rarity, in my opinion, among short-story collections. King knocks another one out of the park!
  3. Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage – This Adult Horror/Thriller novel uses the old ‘evil child’ trope to tell a wickedly delightful and horrifying tale. Man, I loved this. Hooked from the very first chapter, I absolutely flew through this one! For fans of The Omen and The Orphan horror movies but really, any horror fan should give this one a try!
  4. They Both Die At The End by Adam Silvera – Set in a future world where you are told when you have 24-hours left to live, this story follows two boys who make a friendship on that last day and teach each other how to live. I laughed, I cried, I loved. This book. My heart. That is all.
  5. One Day in December by Josie Silver – This Adult Romance novel is the shock of the year for me. As you may know if you follow me, I’m not really a romance reader or a romantic person in general. I picked this book from my TBR jar and am infinitely glad that I did! This was funny and well-paced. It was messy and real and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It reminded me a lot of Bridget Jones Diary (the movies, I haven’t read the books) and I am so down for that ‘type’ of romance. I would definitely recommend this to any Adult reader; particularly if you cherish good humor in your books.
  6. The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley – This Adult Mystery/Thriller had all the plot points of a classic Christie work but wrapped with a nice, big modern bow. The characters were unlikable, the setting was brilliant, the whodunit was compelling and I was guessing right up to the very end. This book played on one of my favorite tropes, the ‘locked room’ mystery trope and I am here for that all day and all night. Definitely recommend for Mystery fans who do not need to ‘like’ their characters.

That’s it, guys. Those are my favorites for Q1. What are some of your favorites from the first part of the year? Tell me about them in the comments below or you can contact me through any of my social media.

For more information on any of the books I talk about in this post, just click the book covers pictured above!

Cheers & Happy Reading!

xo

Final Thoughts: Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan

~ megs14malloy

Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy, #1)Wicked Saints by Emily A. Duncan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

((Savage SCREAM))

That was SO GOOD.
Help me, I’m dying.

Wicked Saints is the first book in an all new YA Fantasy trilogy called, Something Dark and Holy. A more apt name for a trilogy has NEVER existed. This is so dark, so damn holy. ((clutches pearls))

This is a debut novel for this author and guys, WOW. If this is Duncan’s debut, she is definitely an author to watch.

I picked this up the day before release, as I was generously provided a copy by the publisher, Wednesday Books, in exchange for an honest review, and I am hella obsessed with this story.

The tone of this is very grimdark and we all know, I live for that. Basically, in this world, there is a holy war that has been raging for centuries between two kingdoms: Kalyazin and Tranavia. We follow three main characters: Nadya, Serefin and Malachiasz.

The world is vast and complex, yet feels like nothing to learn. Last week I reviewed another YA Fantasy book, I won’t name here, but I mentioned how I felt like I needed to be taking notes as the town the characters lived in was being explained.

That shook me out of the story and made it hard for me to connect. With this book, even though this is a vastly more complex world, I never felt that. Whilst reading Wicked Saints, I felt like I am living these events along with the characters. I never felt that I didn’t understand what was going on or how the world worked.

This, to me, is a sign of a great fantasy construct; well thought out and balanced. Even though this story takes place in a world that is being created from scratch, although clearly based on Russian/Eastern European lore, culture, etc., it never feels overwhelming and in my opinion, does not suffer at all from the dreaded ‘first book in a series’ syndrome.

Nadya, the main female protagonist, is the most fascinating to me. She was raised in a monastery in the mountains of Kalyazin where the clerics and others can commune with their pantheon of gods. Nadya is very special as she is able to commune with all the gods and she can gain magical powers from them.

Even more interesting is the fact that the gods talk back! She wears a necklace around her neck with a different bead representing each of the different gods. Depending on the situation, and what powers she may need, she holds that bead and asks that god for help. The gods are all developed with their own personality and they can offer up guidance, a friendly chat or just be silent.

I love this aspect! It makes me think of the Disney animated movie, Hercules, all the different gods you meet in that and their personalities; so much fun. It is a very unique element. I have never read anything quite like this in a YA Fantasy before.

So, due to circumstances I won’t get into here, Nadya is forced to flee the monastery, fearing for her life, and once on the road bumps into a traveling trio that includes another of our main characters, Malachiasz.

Now, Malachiasz is a complex character and one that would be a little difficult to explain without going into too much of the story. Let’s just say he was once part of a very dangerous and secretive order of powerful blood mages in the kingdom of Tranavia called the Vultures.

I know, right!? Doesn’t that sound creepy and ominous AF?

Yep. The Vultures are hella creepy masked guys and gals with the most murderous of intentions. They are so scary and powerful that they are referred to as ‘monsters’ by people outside the sect. Malachiasz is a defector from the sect. The only person known to have done so. He confesses this to Nadya and tells her he is essentially on the wrong side of the law in Tranavia.

Our final main character is Serefin, the crown Prince of Tranavia. He has been leading armies for the past few years in the never-ending war with Kalyazin but has recently been summoned home by his father, the King. Serefin is convinced his father has one goal in mind, to take him out. Is he just paranoid or does his father really want to kill him? It is clear the King isn’t playing with a full deck and he is quite volatile and secretive; whispering around with the Vultures.

When Nadya, Malachiasz and their traveling companions arrive in the capital city, set on stopping the war, whatever the cost, they come into contact with Serefin and begin to wonder, exactly whose side is he on?

The writing in this is so delicious. Dark and gothic from the very start! If you love that kind of story, set in a harsh and unforgiving world, you need to pick this book up.

I enjoyed this so much, I am already planning a reread — no joke. Most of all I am looking forward to discussing this with other readers. This is so compelling, I just know there is going to be a huge fandom for this story, this world, these characters and this author!

I am so excited to see where Duncan is going to go with this story. I just can’t even imagine what ultimately is going to happen. There are so many ways it could go, all of them bloody and brutal.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity and will definitely be buying a finished copy for my collection!

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