Review: Onyx and Ivory by Mindee Arnett

Onyx and Ivory

Author: Mindee Arnett

Release Date: May 15, 2018

Publisher: Balzer + Bray

ISBN:  0062652664

ISBN13: 9780062652669

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Review Copy Source: Edelweiss

They call her Traitor Kate. It’s a title Kate Brighton inherited from her father after he tried to assassinate the high king years ago. Now Kate lives as an outcast, clinging to the fringes of society as a member of the Relay, the imperial courier service. Only those most skilled in riding and bow hunting ride for the Relay; and only the fastest survive, for when dark falls, the nightdrakes—deadly flightless dragons—come out to hunt. Fortunately, Kate has a secret edge: she is a wilder, born with magic that allows her to influence the minds of animals. But it’s this magic that she needs to keep hidden, as being a wilder is forbidden, punishable by death or exile. And it’s this magic that leads her to a caravan massacred by nightdrakes in broad daylight—the only survivor her childhood friend, her first love, the boy she swore to forget, the boy who broke her heart.

The high king’s second son, Corwin Tormane, never asked to lead. Even as he waits for the uror—the once-in-a-generation ritual to decide which of the king’s children will succeed him—he knows it’s always been his brother who will assume the throne. And that’s fine by him. He’d rather spend his days away from the palace, away from the sight of his father, broken with sickness from the attempt on his life. But the peacekeeping tour Corwin is on has given him too much time to reflect upon the night he saved his father’s life—the night he condemned the would-be killer to death and lost the girl he loved. Which is why he takes it on himself to investigate rumors of unrest in one of the remote city-states, only for his caravan to be attacked—and for him to be saved by Kate.

With their paths once more entangled, Kate and Corwin have to put the past behind them. The threat of drakes who attack in the daylight is only the beginning of a darker menace stirring in the kingdom—one whose origins have dire implications for Kate’s father’s attack upon the king and will thrust them into the middle of a brewing civil war in the kingdom of Rime.

ONYX AND IVORY started out strong, but slowed down and lost some of my excitement thereafter.

I honestly liked the characters in ONYX AND IVORY. Kate's story quickly drew me in and I really wanted her to come out on top after all that she had been through. Corwin had a few annoying moments, but he had some good growth throughout the book. The romance between the two was slow, but I enjoyed learning about their past and friendship.

I found a few things lacking in ONYX AND IVORY. The world building wasn't fantastic. I felt like I would have gotten more into things if I knew a bit more about the world. The plot didn't totally draw me in, there wasn't really anything that made it stand out among other books in its genre and I found the pace too slow at times. Let's talk about the ending, it was very quick and a little confusing. I really wanted it to blow me away, but it didn't.

I am a bit on the fence about if I would read more if this was a series. I feel like things were left open in a few spots and there could be another book, but I wouldn't be disappointed if there wasn't.

I gave it 3/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Joan the Made by Kristen Pham

Joan the Made

Author: Kristen Pham

Release Date: March 27, 2018

Publisher: Self-Published

Throwbacks Book #1

ASIN:   B079B2RF82

Genre: Young Adult SciFi

Review Copy Source: NetGalley

On Joan Fasces' eighteenth birthday, she discovers that she is cloned from the famous Joan of Arc. But being cloned in America comes at a steep price. Segregated and oppressed, clones are forced to act as docile servants to the rest of the Evolved population.

Joan can either run from her fate and spend the rest of her life in hiding, or she can join a Throwback rebellion populated by clones of the greatest leaders in history.

JOAN THE MADE didn't really jump out at me and say READ ME, but I was intrigued enough with the blurb that I thought I should give it a shot. I had no problem getting into the story once I started reading.

I thought the clone concept was super interesting and it was shocking to see how this world treats them. Joan grew up thinking she was evolved but finds out she is a throwback on her 18th birthday. EVERY dream and plan she had was thrown out the window. I liked Joan. She of course goes through a stage of 'why the heck me', but she takes to her new fate and uses it to her advantage.

There is a little bit of romance in JOAN THE MADE. It is nothing to write home about, but it is there. The ending really threw a wrench in a few things. I have a few theories that I can't share due to spoilers, but these theories make me interested to read more and find out if they will come to pass.

I gave it 4/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

New Releases: 5/20-5/26

Tue. May 22nd

84K by Claire North
All the Ever Afters: The Untold Story of Cinderella’s Stepmother by Danielle Teller
Furyborn (Empirium #1) by Claire Legrand
Tiger Striped: Shifters Unbound (Shifters Unbound #11.5) by Jennifer Ashley

Happy Reading!!

Cover Reveal: Relegation by Karri Thompson

Relegation
The Van Winkle Project #3
Release Day: June 4, 2018
Add it on Goodreads

The end is near—and I’m fated to save humanity.

I’m feared, yet revered. The presidents are leery of me, but I’ve read the files. And I know the truth—at least, I think I do. And I’m the one who is going to tell the clones. They deserve to know.

Michael and I have been forced to fight, to kill. We’ll do anything to keep our daughters safe and free. But we can’t do it alone. There’s a rumor about a secret society eager for battle… and we’re going to find them. Help them end the government’s corruption.

It’s my duty, my calling as the first mother of the new world I want to create.

This started with me, and that’s where it’s going to end. 

Haven't started the series yet? Check out the first book, Mirror X!

Purchase on Amazon
Purchase on iBooks
Purchase on B&N

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Growing up in San Diego, California, Karri Thompson spent much of her years at the beach, reading novels, tanning, and listening to music. At SDSU, she earned a BA in English, MA in education, and her teaching credential. As a wife, mother, and high-school English teacher, she began writing novels, giving all of the compelling plots and unique characters in her head a home. Victorian literature rocks her socks, and when she’s not writing, jogging, going to concerts, or watching her son play football, she’s reading Dickens.

Find Karri and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

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Week in Review: 5/13-5/19

Books Received for Review

Stray Magic by Kelly Meding

Books I've Read

Wild Hunger by Chloe Neill
Whisper by Lynette Noni
Prisoner of the Crown by Jeffe Kennedy

Reviews Posted

Shades of Midnight by Debbie Cassidy

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* New Releases for the week. Was there anything you were looking forward to reading?

* Monday- Promo + Giveaway for A Fistful of Frost by Rebecca Chastain

* Wednesday- Promo for Going Down in Flames by Chris Cannon

* Friday- Guest Blog + Giveaway for Everything Under the Sun by Jessica Redmerski

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Guest Blog + Giveaway: Everything Under the Sun by Jessica Redmerski

UFI welcomes Author Jessica Redmerski. Thanks for Joining us!!

Playlist | EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN 

EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN is a long and intense journey through a post-apocalyptic society, where two people who meet under terrible circumstances learn not only to work together and save one another, but to fall in live with each other as well. It’s no doubt that music played an integral role in the crafting of many scenes throughout the novel.

Here is the playlist for EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN, along with a few notes about which scenes were inspired by the music, and vice-versa.

PIERS FICCANI – A STORM IS COMING
JAMIE COMMONS – THE PREACHER
HOZIER – WORK SONG – A piece of the chorus: “Lay me gently in the cold dark earth” inspired one of Atticus’ quotes: “When you die,” I whispered, “you won’t need the soil to hold you, Thais, because I’ll be right there next to you holding you myself.”
MADONNA – LIKE A PRAYER – One of the sings they dance to in the cabin
THE SOUND OF SILENCE – JOY WILLIAMS FEAT. HUDSON TAYLOR
BOB SEGER – NIGHT MOVES – One of the songs they dance to in the cabin
KATE VOEGELE – HALLELUJAH – The main song I listened to while writing the book; also the song Thais is always signing to herself
IMAGINE DRAGONS – BATTLE CRY – The arena scene
MUMFORD & SONS – I WILL WAIT – I imagined this song when they were with the gypsies, dancing around the fire
GIPSY KINGS – TRISTA PENA
LED ZEPPELIN – GOING TO CALIFORNIA – Atticus hears this song in the cabin, while he’s thinking about Thais.
TREVOR MORRIS – VIKINGS 18 FLOKI APPEARS TO KILL ATHELSTAN – I thought of this song a lot during the most dramatic and intense scenes.

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Jessica Redmerski is a New York Times, USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, international bestseller, and award winner, who juggles several different genres. She began self-publishing in 2012, and later with the success of THE EDGE OF NEVER, signed on with Grand Central Publishing/Forever Romance. Her works have been translated into more than twenty languages.

Jessica is a hybrid author who, in addition to working with a traditional publisher, also continues to self-publish. Her popular crime and suspense series, In the Company of Killers, has been optioned for television in the United States by actor and model William Levy, and a film exclusive to the Dominican Republic.
She also writes as J.A. Redmerski.

Find Jessica and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter 

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Everything Under the Sun
Kindle Paperback

Thais Fenwick was eleven-years-old when civilization fell, devastated by a virus that killed off the majority of the world’s population. For seven years, Thais and her family lived in a community of survivors deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains. But when her town is attacked by raiders, she and her blind sister are taken away to the East-Central Territory where she is destined to live the cruel and unjust kind of life her late mother warned her about.

Atticus Hunt is a troubled soldier in Lexington City who has spent the past seven years trying to conform to the vicious nature of men in a post-apocalyptic society. He knows that in order to survive, he must abandon his morals and his conscience and become like those he is surrounded by. But when he meets Thais, morals and conscience win out over conformity, and he risks his rank and his life to help her. They escape the city and set out together on a long and perilous journey to find safety in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Struggling to survive in a world without electricity, food, shelter, and clean water, Atticus and Thais shed their fear of growing too close, and they fall hopelessly in love. But can love survive in such dark times, or is it fated to die with them? 

Excerpt #5

EVERYTHING UNDER THE SUN – JESSICA REDMERSKI – COPYRIGHT 2018 EXCERPT #5: “TAKE IT.”

“Are you still angry?” I asked him.
“About what?”
“Giving the bread away to those people.”
He shook his head against the quilt.
“No, Thais, I’m not still angry.”
After a moment, he said, “Thais?”
“Mmm-hmm?”
“Don’t ask me to kiss you again.”
I paused, tensed. “Why not?” I was afraid of the answer.
We continued to look up at the stars. Behind us the horses whickered and their tails swished about. A light breeze combed through the trees, carrying the bitter and sweet scents of pine and honeysuckle with it.
Finally, Atticus answered, “Because whatever you want from me, Thais, I’d rather you just take it.”
I wanted to cry.
I smiled to myself instead.

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Review: Shades of Midnight by Debbie Cassidy

Shades of Midnight

Author: Debbie Cassidy

Release Date: May 17, 2018

Publisher: Self-Published

Chronicles of Midnight Book #4

ASIN:  B07B4FQMPS

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Review Copy Source: Author

Our choices have consequences, and Harker is about to deal with a bucket load of consequence.

A Kick-ass Urban Fantasy with a slow burn reverse harem romance.

Angels, Fallen, nephilim and Arthurian legend are given a fresh twist in this sexy, thrilling urban Fantasy series. Fans of Lost girl and True blood will surely enjoy it.

There isn't much new that I can say about the series after reading SHADES OF MIDNIGHT. The characters continue to grow, the reverse harem has progressed and the storyline is on path to an epic conclusion in SAVIOR OF MIDNIGHT.

The action was once again bumped up a notch in SHADES OF MIDNIGHT. There isn't a lot of downtime for the characters.

Let's talk about he romance. There was a bit shocker in the beginning of SHADES OF MIDNIGHT, but after the shocker the other romances were able to grow, so although it was hard it was necessary.

I will admit that I don't love all the characters, but the main-main characters definitely have me in their corner. There are still a lot of questions and things that need to happen, thankfully we have another book. I will be finishing out the series with SAVIOR OF MIDNIGHT when it's released.

I gave it 4/5 stars

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.