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This is the dark, twisted tale of three sisters fair destined to destroy each other. Or rather, only two need die. One will emerge victorious. On the island of Fennbirn, when the queen gives birth it is always to triplet girls. Each new queen is either a poisoner, a naturalist, or an elementalist. The queen identifies which queen is which and then abdicates. The new queens are raised together until the age of 6, when they are claimed by their different factions and trained in their powers. In the year of their 16th birthday, the Ascension year, the queens will each put their powers on public display and then proceed to attempt to murder each other. They have one year to accomplish their tasks. The last queen standing wins. Of the three sisters, we spend the most time with Arsinoe, the naturalist. The naturalists live in a seaside town that evokes a humble,... Read more »

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This is such a frustrating review to write. The story doesn’t have bad bones. The writing and plot are fine, and might well have been very enjoyable. There’s considerable action and adventure. But there were two major obstacles that prevented me from enjoying this (and they’re big ones). I couldn’t stand the main character, and I I did not at all care for the romance. Not liking the romance is going to be an instant downer in a book that is explicitly a fantasy romance. Cat is a young circus performer on the run from her abusive past. Cat makes her way in the world as a soothsayer, but her real “gift” is the ability to tell truth from lies. Anytime someone tells a lie in her presence Cat feels a searing pain. Considering the prevalence of lies in daily human interactions she spends the book in much less pain... Read more »

The post A Promise of Fire: Review appeared first on The Midnight Garden.

Here we have three entries that show just how varied fantasy novels can be. There’s a historical, paranormal fantasy, a fantasy romantic comedy, and a graphic novel that is part steampunk, part epic fantasy. Let’s take a look!              Title: These Vicious Masks Author: Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars Release Date: February 9, 2016 Publisher: Swoon Reads Age Group: YA Source: Borrowed I’m so glad I read this absorbing paranormal historical story set in Victorian London. If you typically enjoy books placed in this setting, These Vicious Masks will not disappoint. There are all the usual trappings: young heroine who defies Society and its restrictive gender roles, a dashing gentleman (or two), and a paranormal mystery/quest driving its heart. Evelyn is our sassy, independent MC on a quest to save her gentle, kind-hearted sister from the hands of a devious mad scientist bent... Read more »

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. This week, the theme is “Ten Books Set Outside the US” and we’re happy to be participating! Well, this one was a little bit difficult! How exactly do you define “outside of the US?” Certainly I read many, many books that don’t even take place in this universe, let alone this country! But I decided that, for the most part, I would leave off any sort of fantasy/science fiction that clearly takes place off-world or in any sort of other realm entirely. I’ve also left off any works that take place only partially in this world but primarily in others (sorry, His Dark Materials).   The Carnival at Bray by Jessie Ann Foley This is the second TTT I’ve done in a row that this book has earned a spot on! This book is the tale of 16 year old... Read more »

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Once again I find myself in the position with a book that is practically perfect in its premise, yet I ultimately fail to forge much of a connection with it. This is not a bad book, and I think it has its readers! I mean, it is a book about a great Library that has access to infinite alternate dimensions and universes. It also has werewolves, vampires, Fae, and dragons all romping around and creating magic, mystery, and mayhem in a sort of alternate steampunk “Victorian” London. Sign me way up for that. However, I get this sense of “fuzziness” for lack of better word to describe it with fantasies and other genre works where the world building is not at all clear to me. The Library is a very advanced institution that seems to exist out of time. It has its own Language that allows Librarians to alter their... Read more »

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Top Ten Tuesday is a meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. This week, the theme is “Ten Books We Enjoyed That Have Under 2000 Ratings On Goodreads” and we’re happy to be participating!     Wonders of the Invisible World by Christopher Barzak This one is a beautiful mashup of contemporary and paranormal, with a dash of fairy tale thrown in for good measure. Aidan can’t remember swaths of his life. And he didn’t even realize it until an old friend reappears and lost memories begin to resurface. What happened to Aidan’s memories? Magic is woven into every line in the story. Its contemporary yet fairy tale feel reminded me a lot of the stunning Bone Gap. Bonus: this is an LGBT read. It’s also a 2016 Stonewall Honor Book! Taming the Forest King by Claudia J. Edwards I’m not at all surprised to see that this one has very few... Read more »

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It’s interesting that the blurb for this book compares it to Me and Earl and the Dying Girl. While I can see some common threads of interest (namely the contemplation of mortality), this is a very different book. First, no one in this story is actually dying. Next, the dynamics of relationships between the characters, the nature of their revelations, and the overall tone of the story is wholly different. Lucky Few is a funny contemporary that examines relationships, growing up, and the very nature of change through a sweetly morbid lens. The story is eminently readable. From the first page it flows with self deprecating humor and charm. The chemistry and interaction between the three main characters feels natural and adds a rhythm to the story that is noticeable for its absence when the characters are apart. Stevie is wry and judgmental, but with a good nature and easy... Read more »

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It’s interesting to ponder what qualifies as a fantasy and what exactly makes that so. You can have fantasy that takes place in whole other realms replete with magic and magical creatures. You can have fantasy that places in our very own world, but with elements of the wondrous. Then you have works like Steeplejack, in which there is no magic (or none yet presented) but the world it takes place in is not our own, and so it is a fantasy work. It just occurred to me while reading how interesting the many varietals of fantasy works are.  This is a book that reads very much like a historical crime novel that takes place in 19th century South Africa. But it is not 19th century South Africa, only a land in an unknown world that has many echoes and similarities to it. Does this seem like a complaint? Not... Read more »

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Don’t you love that feeling when you’re totally immersed into a story from page one? Future Shock grabbed my attention from the get go with heroine Elena’s sharp wit, tough exterior, and good heart. The fast pace of the plot and the time travel element made this one a futuristic sci-fi mystery I really enjoyed reading! Nearly 18, and about to be kicked out of the foster care system in which she has found little refuge, Elena is nearly out of options. When approached by a mega-corporation to sign on for a 24 hour that all but guarantees her way into a well-off future, Elena doesn’t hesitate too long. The mission, it turns out, involves sending a motley crew of 5 teens (all but one also from the foster system) ten years into the future to report back on advancements in technology and any other pertinent info that might benefit... Read more »

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I think this book is actually, objectively awesome. How it could not be? It’s a book about bad ass lady pirates menacing the high seas with genetically engineered monsters at their call. It’s also rife with moral ambiguity, making tough choices, and the search for one’s true self–however ugly or unwanted that truth may be. So, Kim, why “only” three stars? Well, I actually find I don’t enjoy pirate stories all that much. At this point you’re wondering why I even read this book, then, and also why you are continuing to read this review. I really, really wanted to love this book and one of the key reasons I wanted that to happen is because this book features an f/f romance. Oh yes, and it’s pretty delicious, too. But we’ll get to that later. I was also very intrigued by the dystopian setting, and the monsters weren’t a hard... Read more »

The post The Abyss Surrounds Us: Review appeared first on The Midnight Garden.

If you’ve been itching to curl up with an absorbing historical mystery that will make you laugh and swoon, then A Curious Beginning is right up your alley! I am not usually much one for mystery novels, but the combination of features here, Victorian London, an intrepid and super sassy heroine (also a lady scientist, yay!), and a developing romance hit all the right checkmarks for me. I’m glad I gave this one a try as it really is a super enjoyable set up to what could, finger crossed, be a long and rewarding series! The story begins with our heroine, Veronica Speedwell, burying  her last “relative” and remaining connection to her childhood. A foundling, Veronica had been raised by two spinster sisters, often moving at a whim around the country, causing constant upheaval in her life. Veronica soon discovers, though, that her very life is under attack, with mysterious... Read more »

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  Hello, friends, and welcome to another installment of the Library School Diaries! I am so sad that library school keeps me basically incapable of keeping up with you all on blog posts, Twitter, Instagram, and all other places of social fun. I have been diligently plugging away at my second semester of studies for Master of Library and Information Science with a specialization in the School Library Certification Program at the University of Pittsburgh. Just like last semester, I’m taking five classes again. It’s a huge course load, and I also have two part-time jobs, so things have been super busy for me! But without further ado, let’s take a look at what I’ve been learning in my second semester.     I’m in the school library program (I hope to be a high school librarian one day!), and as someone without a previous education background, this means I am also working... Read more »

The post The Library School Diaries: Part II appeared first on The Midnight Garden.

With its contemporary setting, religious themes, serious subject matter, and known tearjerker elements, The Serpent King isn’t the sort of book I would typically love. But I went into it with an open heart and a strong desire to like it. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite agree. I felt that the weighty material the book wants to cover ultimately couldn’t be carried by the comparatively weak character portraits. Let’s delve into it. The story centers on three main characters, Dill, Lydia, and Travis. Dill is living under the shadow of his snake-handling preacher father who has been in jail for several years now after a conviction on possession of sexual images of minors. In his small, Tennessee town apparently the sins of the father are visited on the son, as Dill must deal with an angry, judgmental community. He also struggles with the weight of his own conflicted feelings on faith... Read more »

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This review is going to be frustrating to write. So far, all of my GoodReads friends have adored Rebel of the Sands, and it comes on the strong recommendation of Wendy. But I was never swept up by the story, or as wholly captivated by the world and the romance as I quite wanted to be. I’ll address some of the things that I think prevented from being fully invested at the start of this review. Amani is a gunslinger (awesome!) and a girl struggling to get by in Dustwalk, her unfriendly desert community. For as long as she’s known anything, Amani has been desperate to escape. This is historical fantasy that blends a Middle Eastern-based setting with the tone and feel of an American Western. And it just didn’t work for me. I found the language (It’s folksy and Western. Like, “I reckon” and a town named “Dustwalk” when... Read more »

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A scorched desert planet, politics, rebellion, and star crossed love. What could go wrong? Plenty, as it turns out. Beyond the Red is a love story disguised as political science fiction, but not a particularly effective one. To make matters worse, there is a love triangle. Let’s take a look at the many ways in which this novel does not work. The story is told in dual POV. We have Eros (seriously, that’s his name. Why?), the half human, half Sepharon outcast who is captured and enslaved to the Sepharon elite. We also have Kora, the Sepharon queen fighting to hold onto her throne. When Kora and Eros meet, he is taking a beating for being an insubordinate and unruly slave. For reasons that are completely indeterminate, Kora decides this insubordinate stranger would be the ideal personal guard. She knows him barely several minutes, and barely tests his combat skills,... Read more »

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Well, this is frustrating. There are times when you read a book and you feel like it’s not the book, it’s you. This is one of those times. There is so much contained in this story that I should love. We have time travel, pirates, romance (well, ha, we’ll get to that shortly), and diversity! But The Girl from Everywhere was a book I struggled to connect with from the beginning, and unfortunately, failed to connect with overall. The premise is very interesting. We have a girl born in Hawaii in 1868, but who has grown up on a tall ship literally throughout time and place on this Earth. Her father is from modern NYC, so Nix is equally at home on her smartphone in 2016 as she is traversing to 19th century India. Nix finds herself on this ship thanks to her father, the captain. Her mother having died... Read more »

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I seem to have an affinity for those books which are magical and strange and not entirely definable. Sitting down to the write this review, it occurs to me how difficult it is to describe this book. I can tell you what it’s about, but to describe the experience of reading it almost makes me feel like I’ve had a spell cast on me myself. There is a palpable sense of unreality throughout as Aidan journeys to unravel the mysteries of himself and his family. Aidan can’t remember entire swaths of his life and he doesn’t even realize it. He drifts along as in a fog, feeling barely there at all. Until the day an old friend comes back into his life and lost memories begin to shake themselves loose from their bindings. But who bound Aidan’s memories, and why? You have to tell your story true, and not everyone... Read more »

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In many ways, this book was such a perfect Christmas-time read. It is a Regency-era British historical fantasy that delights in the magic employed within its pages, and the utter charm of its characters and its world. The writing is also a treat; completely in the style of a book that had been written in the Regency era, it more than does its job in conveying the reader so completely to the world on its pages. When you want a book that’s going to wholly transport you, this is the sort you reach for. In the world of Sorcerer to the Crown, Britain’s supply of magic has been on the decline for years. The flow of magic from Fairyland into the mortal realm has all but stopped, as have the presence of familiars, the spirits/vessels of magic needed to make a mere magician into a sorcerer. This being Regency Britain,... Read more »

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This is the sort of book where it would have received a higher rating if this was my sort of book. It’s a quality book. It’s very well written and well paced, the characters are fully fleshed out, believable, and flawed, and there are lessons to be learned and hearts to be broken and mended. It’s just not really a Kim book, and I didn’t really know that going into it. I can like contemporaries when they’re romantic and mostly cutesy (with some gravity thrown in for balance). I am saying this so you know to take my rating with a grain of salt. I think usual fans of contemporaries will really like this one! In actuality, this is a lot different than I thought it would be. I thought this was going to be a book about broken hearts and second chances and slowly learning to come back together.... Read more »

The post Not If I See You First: Review appeared first on The Midnight Garden.

  Hello friends! You might have noticed that I’ve been basically non-existent on Twitter and Instagram for the past couple of months–and I am so sorry! I really miss everyone, and getting to chat about books and have fun! But if I’ve been absent, at least it’s for good reason: I started library school at the very end of August. I am currently finishing up my first semester in The University of Pittsburgh’s online Master of Library and Information Science program. It’s been very, very stressful, but also fun in how challenging it is! I thought it’d be neat to give you some insight into what gets covered in library school and what I’ve been learning.     I’m in the school library program (I hope to be a high school librarian one day!), and as someone without a previous education background, this means I am also working toward my teaching certificate in... Read more »

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It finally happened. A book was special enough, funny enough, heartfelt enough, and just downright good enough to break the spell. My awful slump might be officially over; and it’s all thanks to Patrick Ness’ sly, hilarious, wry, and absolutely on point observations on growing up and what it means to move on. What is this book even about? It’s hard to pigeonhole this one into a genre! It’s sort of fantasy, sort of paranormal, sort of sci-fi…but it’s not really any of those things. There are definite supernatural happenings going on in the background. But this is very purposefully a book that is not about those happenings. The point is that there are regular, ordinary (well,for the most part) citizens who are just trying to continue going about their lives, even in the midst of very obvious supernatural turmoil. This book is about the ordinary people who just keep... Read more »

The post The Rest of Us Just Live Here: Review appeared first on The Midnight Garden.

It’s comforting to know that there are certain authors out there that you can come to rely on for a satisfying, gripping story that is not only beautifully written, but also fraught with tension of both the actual danger and of the romantic varieties. In Every Word, the second installment in her Every series, Ellie Marney establishes herself as exactly that type of author for me. Everything that I loved in Every Breath, the action, the mystery, and the undeniable sexual tension, are not only present in Every Word, they’re amplified. We begin the story several weeks after the events of Every Breath. Rachel and Mycroft are processing their emotions after the events of Every Word and are trying to navigate the new world of their relationship. Complicating events are Rachel’s parents, who have taken appropriate and realistic measures (involved YA parents, my god, it’s a unicorn!) to try and... Read more »

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When I saw Kirkus describe this book as “Gothic, gadget-y, gay” I knew I needed it in my hands as soon as humanly possible. I am happy to say it is all of those wonderful things. And while I didn’t quite love it, I did really, really enjoy this book. There’s so much to like! Yes, there  are wonderfully complex characters, killer robots, and the sweetest M/M romance. The writing beautifully evokes the brooding boarding school setting. This is a near-future sci-fi thriller with a touch of the dystopian. 16 year-old Lee is the closeted son of an ultra-conservative president who is both fiercely anti-gay and anti-robot. It’s unfortunate then, that Lee has a penchant for tinkering with mechanicals, too. The Human Values platform was created in response to an attack by Charlotte, an AI gone rogue, in which  Lee’s mother was murdered. Ever since, Charlotte has been using her... Read more »

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A lone figure ambles its way up the twisted ruins of road to find itself unbidden on the steps of a solitary farmhouse. Is the stranger friend or foe? God or man? For 16 year old Hallie, the questions, and the threat, are all too real. In the desolate ruins of civilization, Hallie and her much older sister Marthe have been clinging to their farm, their world, and trying to hold on to each other, but are failing at both. I really enjoyed this book; more, actually, than I have any book in almost two months (I’ve been in a really terrible slump). It has the isolated, post-apocalyptic farm vibe of The Hallowed Ones, with a touch of The Stand, and more than a touch of The Subtle Knife. Leah Bobet crafts this book out of simply gorgeous prose that is never overwrought. This is a sparse, ruined world and... Read more »

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While I, sadly, didn’t fully connect with this novel as I would have liked to, I do have to admire it for the sheer ambition of its scope. This story set itself after the incredibly complex task of telling a political mystery, set in a fantasy world, where dreams themselves figure so heavily they are practically characters. You know how difficult it is to describe your dream to someone? You can see it so clearly, but when you go to actually tell it it’s impossible? This story features a lot of dreams, and I have to applaud Lindsay Smith for the attempt to capture and convey the weirdness and irreality of them in the context of a story. Dreamstrider takes place in a fantasy world that is reminiscent of a sort of 17th-18th century Europe. The Barstadt Empire is a nation with a very strict class system. There are the... Read more »

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