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!!!
Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson – When Monday Charles goes missing, her best friend, Claudia, seems to be the only person to take notice. Claudia knows that Monday would never leave her with a new school year looming and all that comes with that. Claudia brings up her concerns repeatedly to her parents, to adults at school, even to Monday’s family and everyone seems to brush her off. More and more confused and more and more concerned for her friend’s safety, Claudia decides to investigate the matter herself. This book is vivid, heart-wrenching and important. Jackson’s writing is so smooth and engaging. I finished this book in 2-days, absolutely loved it and have recommended it to friends since who have enjoyed it as well. This story takes place in present day Washington D.C. and focuses on missing kids who are overlooked and abandoned. It examines failures in our society in a really creative way and I feel it is quite an impactful read.
Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer – This is another vivid and heartbreaking story concerning loss, grief and the art of moving forward. Following two high school students with equally complicated histories, this story examines their relationship development and their efforts to rediscover happiness after great personal tragedies. Again, Kemmerer’s writing really set this book apart. I found it fluid and easy to enjoy. I felt connected to the characters and my heart truly hurt for them at times. I loved the format of this as well, which ties in correspondence, both in letter and email form. In my opinion, that trope tends to add depth to a story, as sometimes characters (and real people) are better able to express themselves through the written word than through interpersonal communications. I feel like it allows us to delve deeper into character’s inner thoughts, dreams, desires and motivations.
Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli – At the time that I read this, I felt like I was the last person on the globe who had not read this story. I won’t go into too much detail here, as with the movie released last year, I feel like everyone pretty much knows what this is about. A boy, corresponding with a crush, coming out to his family, friend drama, teenage angst, it was amazing and adorable and I loved it. The end.
