Review: Bloodleaf

Bloodleaf by Crystal Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My thanks to NetGalley, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children’s Book Group, and Crystal Smith for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Prepare to enter a beautiful, harsh world where magic is forbidden and to practice the ancient ways means certain death. Princess Aurelia can feel the magic coursing through her veins and to survive a coup for her throne she must escape to the neighbouring city of Achleva and pose as a commoner until she can figure out who is friend or foe. Led by a Harbinger, a terrifying ghost, who leads her along with clues, Aurelia tries to understand and use her magic to help unlock the secrets of both cities. Along the way she falls in love with a man forbidden to her, as she is already promised to someone else. She must put her family and the crown ahead of all her desires. Loosely based on the fairy tale “The Goose Girl”, Crystal Smith’s debut novel is a rich story that will satisfy any fantasy reader.

This world is truly incredible. You have the blend of feudal law, which exacts a strict and often violent penalty for any infraction. You have the political machinations of different factions trying to gain power. There is the royalty structure which has kings and queens and princesses who are promised in marriage to a prince that they don’t even know. The paranormal elements of the ghosts who know too much and want to communicate with the living. Lastly you have the magic, “blood” magic that extracts a cost to those who draw on its power. Smith does an amazing job of combining all of these elements together to create this fantastical world. Inside of this world are colourful characters that come to life. The best treat is a strong female lead who must fend for herself while she is still discovering who she is. To sweep you off your feet is a love story that is like the cherry on top. Gives you all sorts of good feels.

I found that this was a strong addition to what is getting to be a crowded field. I really found myself carried away with the story and had a huge smile at the end. Yup, colour me sucker for a great ending. Can’t wait for the next one in the series!

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Review: Before She Knew Him

Before She Knew Him by Peter Swanson
My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley, Faber and Faber and Peter Swanson for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

What we have here is a good old fashioned psychological thriller that finally lives up to the hype. I’m late in the game for Peter Swanson books but now that I have read this one, I’m checking out all his other books. Wow, can he write. Great characters, clear storyline with lots of surprises and a build up of suspense that propels you forward until the end. You almost want to slow it down, draw it out because even though you want to know what happens, you don’t want it to be over.

There are lots of places you can read a recap of the story, and they do a much better job than I would be able to do so please go and check those out. I’m just going to lay it out a bit differently. You have the main character Hen. She is an artist who makes really creepy art, which ties in with her fascination with death and all things morbid. She also happens to be bi-polar and has, in the past, experienced manic episodes. Once she ended up hospitalized after she became obsessed with a neighbourhood boy’s murder. With her meds corrected and a move to a new area, she and her husband, Lloyd, are looking for a fresh start. I didn’t much care for Lloyd’s character, his personality didn’t seem to stand out one way or the other. He seems to be this perennial nice guy, that does everything right, supportive, loves his wife and has stood by her through her mental health issues. Then you have their neighbours, Mira and Matthew. Mira seems a little desperate to make friends, a little uncomfortable with her husband, and a lot insecure. Matthew is the other main character and Hen suspects him to be a murderer. We get to learn a lot about Matthew and what makes him tick.

So, there were at least a couple of times that I though I had this story figured out. At first I almost didn’t finish it because I thought “Uch - here is one of those books where Hen will slowly descend into crazyville, no one will believe her because of her past, the murderer will play mind games with her and it will take the whole book to figure out that either Matthew or Mira is the murderer. But just when you think you have this book figured out, zup, left turn. Swanson takes us in a new direction. I so appreciated being kept on my toes. I figured out the last twist but it didn’t detract from the experience. It was dark, scary and thrilling. I found the main characters fully realized and complex and you get a sense of them as a whole person.

As any good psychological thriller should, there was lots of suspense and fast paced action to keep you interested right to the end. Do yourself a favour and pick this one up. It is a really great read and something a little different than the normal fare, which is so refreshing. I really enjoyed it.


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Review: The Dysasters

The Dysasters by P.C. Cast
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and P.C. and Kristin Cast for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

Guys, I really wanted to like this one. It checked a lot of my boxes. Kids with cool powers - check, mad scientist mutates DNA - check, secret island slash training facility - check, a little romance action - check, written by an author whose other works I like - check, was in the mood and looking forward to reading it - check, check, check. Not what I was hoping for. I found the premise played out, the characters cardboard cut-outs and nothing about the action interesting enough to keep me hooked. It was easy to read and although I never had the urge to give up, or not finish, I just plodded along, hoping it would get better, then realizing yeah, that wasn’t gonna happen, and like a kid on a long car ride I kept asking “are we there yet” waiting to arrive at the destination. Look, I don’t mind familiar, or done before as long as the how-you-get-there is interesting.

Foster and Tate are on the run and trying to stay one step ahead of Foster’s father and his four minions. Foster’s adoptive mother has spent the last year and a half teaching Foster how to stay off the grid and before her tragic death made Foster promise to protect Tate, find the safe house and locate six other teenagers who are also in danger. It turns out that Foster and Tate share more than a birthday. They also can control the element air. Each pair of the other teenagers will also come into their powers on their eighteenth birthday and be able to control one of the elements. Foster’s father, who was a brilliant scientist, did some experimenting while they were in-utero and modified their genetic make-up. Now he wants to kidnap the kids, study them on his secret remote island and exploit them for their powers. Can Foster and Tate stay safe? Will they be able to learn how to use their powers without causing weather disasters like hurricanes and tornadoes? Can they find the other kids in time?

This reminded me so much of “I Am Number Four”. There are small differences like Foster, Tate and the other kids are human, but they are all alone in the world, with no one to guide them. They have this power that has always been calling to them that they haven’t yet got under control. They make friends who will help them in their journey. They are on the run and must hide who they are. I found the romance between Foster and Tate inconsistent, unbelievable, uncomfortable and kind of icky. I think I didn’t respond to the writing. I am also tired and just plain angry when the misunderstood, alone in the world, girl has to be written as bitchy until she is understood, or she lets her walls down or whatever other nonsense. What was missing that I Am Number Four had was really evil and violent people chasing them and super cool monsters that got in on the fighting. These thirty year old whiners behaved worse than the children they were chasing and again the writing flip flopped between do we not like them or are we supposed to feel sorry for them. Overall, more danger to create some tensions, more connection or build up for the romance (I mean can they at least like each other before they fall in love) and some sort of super cool effects (if no monsters) would have really upped the ante in this story.

You know when you read a book and then see the movie and the movie is such a disappointment. This is one of those cases where I think the movie might be better than the book. Now, to my knowledge, no one is making the movie. In case anyone cares about my two cents, I think it would make a really good movie, if done well, a really great movie. The book, however, was just a yawn-fest. Am I going to check out the next in the series - you know me too well. But I will only go one more round. There are just too many other really good books out there, waiting for me to discover. But one more in the series, just in case things get interesting.

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Review: The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One

The Mermaid's Voice Returns in This One by Amanda Lovelace
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley, Andrews McMeel Publishing and Amanda Lovelace for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy. Rating 3.5 stars.

This is the third volume of poetry from Amanda Lovelace and 13 other guest artists and is the final offering that follow the “women are some kind of magic” theme. In this one the mermaid has found her voice…

“nobody
has
the right
to lure
your voice
out of
you-

not
even if
they’re
a sea witch
looking
to make
a bargain”

The poetry deals with heavy subjects like sexual assault, violence, death, and child abuse, but really relates to all kinds of trauma. I don’t think you have to have necessarily have to have gone through something horrendous to get these poems. Just being a woman qualifies you get it. I love taking these fairy tale tropes that we have all grown up with and turning them on their heads, challenging them. A castle or a cell - both can be cages. Some of the poems I loved, some were okay, some pulled at my heart strings, others broke my heart, some spoke to me. My favourite:

“trauma didn’t change you all at once
it carved slowly every day
like rivers do
it was patient while it hollowed you out

so it’s a sculptor or it’s a knife
you take your pain and you other it
you give it a new name
and a new face

you say this might have helped shape me
it it is not a part of me

you say i meant to break open
to make room for stars”

untitled by trista mateer

Lovelace encourages us not to stay silent and to write your own story. Find your voice and state your truth. Any way you see fit. I will add, whether you decide to share it or not. Shout it from the mountain tops or lock it up and throw away the key. It can be a valuable path to healing. That is what these women share in this volume, it might help you.

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Review: Beginner's Guide to Colorwork Knitting: 16 Projects and Techniques to Learn to Knit with Color

Beginner's Guide to Colorwork Knitting: 16 Projects and Techniques to Learn to Knit with Color by Ella Austin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley, Ella Austin and Sewandso Publications for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

At first glance there didn’t seem to be too much to this book. I have read quite a few books on colour knitting as of late and most have been disappointing. The patterns in this book were okay, some were things I liked and would want to knit, but there didn’t seem to be enough ones I liked to warrant buying the whole book. But as I started to read through I realized that Austin has done an incredible job as far as giving thorough explanations and explicit diagrams. Every detail including finishing techniques, combining different colours, creating beautiful colour patterns and intricate colour techniques are explained in such an easy and clear manner even things I already knew how to do seemed clearer and made more sense to me. The diagrams are also unique in that they show exactly what she is talking about. I’m not sure if it is just more steps or a different way of showing them, but again, even things I have been doing seemed easier to understand.

Even though there are some patterns I might not be interested in, I think I would make every pattern in the book because Austin has a step by step plan of increasing your colour work skills. Each pattern adds one more skill and I think it is worth the practice. There is an opening section describing colour, how they work together, which ones are warm or cool, different hues, etc. and to be honest, I only understood some of it. The easier concepts I understood but it got too technical or complicated for me. If I were planning my own colour work project from scratch, I would have to go back and use it as a reference to see if they worked together properly. I don’t really feel confident on that part. However, because Austin has explained how the colours work in each project, I would be more comfortable starting with colour substitutions for the patterns. She does an excellent job of combining theory with practice with lots of tutorials. There is also the prerequisite chapters on needles, stitches, reading charts and anything else that you would need in order to make any of her patterns.

I have always shied away from colour projects but I think with this book I would feel comfortable adding this technique to my knitting.

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Review: Chocolate Cream Pie Murder

Chocolate Cream Pie Murder by Joanne Fluke
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley, Joanna Fluke, and Kensington Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. My opinions are 100% my own and independent of receiving an advance copy.

I am not sure what happened with this book. I have read many others in this series and have had various degrees of enjoyment. I know what to expect so I am not comparing this to some highbrow literature and expecting the get the same experience. Sometimes you just want what you want and the ease of reading, the expectation of how it is going to go, the familiarity of the characters are all I wanted when I opened up this book. And I knew I would get at least a chocolate cream pie recipe out it!

But this stunk! I really didn’t enjoy it at all. I’m so sorry to say this but it was a big disappointment. It opens up with Hannah having to apologize to her community announcing that her marriage was over. Not just over but Norman, the man she married had fooled her and was already married to someone else, nullifying her marriage. Eventually Norman gets murdered and it has to be solved. But this book went nowhere. There really wasn’t a story. Halfway through there wasn’t even a murder to solve. It was mostly Hannah with her neighbours making recipes. It was beyond fluff. Everyone was sickly sweet to each other. How can everyone be in such a good mood and so nice to each other all of the time. They were constantly coming up with new recipes. It sort of went like Oh there’s pineapple and mint and Brussel sprouts in your fridge so I’m going to make a new kind of muffin for the store to sell and aren’t they so delicious! Everyone gets to “test” out the new creation and it is always amazing. Also these people would be 300 pounds if they ate the way they did in this book. They are always drinking coffee and eating plates full of cookies, muffins and cakes. They hardly eat a real meal with vegetables! It was so out of the realm of believable and the characters so cardboard I couldn’t stand it! As I said, I understand the premise of these books but somehow this time, it just didn’t work for me.

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