Review: Magic Bitter Magic Sweet by Charlie N. Holmberg

So this is a lovely book that I got on a daily deal, and although I read this a while ago, I decided to re-read it because it was so intriguing!

Its such a sweet book, that mixes tiny little bits of fairy tales in as well, which made it all the better.

Here it is:

Maire is a baker with an extraordinary gift: she can infuse her treats with emotions and abilities, which are then passed on to those who eat them. She doesn’t know why she can do this and remembers nothing of who she is or where she came from.

When marauders raid her town, Maire is captured and sold to the eccentric Allemas, who enslaves her and demands that she produce sinister confections, including a witch’s gingerbread cottage, a living cookie boy, and size-altering cakes.

During her captivity, Maire is visited by Fyel, a ghostly being who is reluctant to reveal his connection to her. The more often they meet, the more her memories return, and she begins to piece together who and what she really is—as well as past mistakes that yield cosmic consequences.

From the author of The Paper Magician series comes a haunting and otherworldly tale of folly and consequence, forgiveness and redemption.

This is actually the first book that I'd read from Charlie Holmberg, but after this I went out and bought some of her others - and now her Paper Magician series is one of my favourites. After re-reading it made me adore the book even more than I did before! I picked up a lot more things than I did the first time round, and some of the things I picked up had me wondering how I didn't notice them.

One of my favourite parts of this book was the fairy tale references dotted throughout - I didn't catch that on the first read until part-way through but the second time round I really picked up on it and it was so much better because of that. In case you were wondering, some of the ones included were Hansel and Gretel and the Gingerbread Man tales.

I admit, the plot did frustrate me a bit the first time I read this - but only because you couldn't guess where it was going, and it did leave you a while before explaining what exactly happened to Maire, but it was actually a well written book - I just get frustrated when I can't guess what will happen.... but I guess that's actually a good thing for most people! I think I preferred the re-read because I knew what was happening and it gave me time to really pick up on things I may not have the first time around.

Most of all though, I loved how it all wrapped up in the end and I adored the epilogue the most of all. It really let you guess what had happened to Maire and fill in the gaps the way you wanted to, which is my favourite way of ending books.

Overall, 4.5 cats to this book!

Have you read this? Do you agree with me about it/did you guess what would happen? Comment below!

April Wrap-Up!

So, because April was such a busy reading month for me, I thought I would jump onto the wrap-up bandwagon and show you some of the books I've read, and give them each a mini review.

These aren't all my books I've read in April of course, I've written a few full reviews too, but these are just some of the other books that I thought you'd like to see my thoughts on! (and you can click the link in the name to find the Goodreads page if you're interested in the blurbs)

The Sin Eater's Daughter by Melinda Salisbury:

This was a re-read of mine, that I finished at the beginning of April. I've read the first 2 books in this series before but I decided to re-read this because I went to the launch of Mel's new book Sorrow last month. This was my train read, and I forgot just how great the book was.

Reading this a second time just made me love it more, although I admit because I knew what happened it did make me dislike Leif this time round, and I had a lot more sympathy for Merek than I did the first time round.

I love the world building in this series and I loved the idea of different sins and what would be eaten - I'd love a longer list! Overall though this book gets 4.5 cats!

                  

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas:

So, the third in this series I decided to read it after having it a little while because of there is another book being released soon, and I wanted to be ready for it.

As with the other two books I adored it, as I think that Rhysand is one of my favourite characters out there, and I love the way he interacts with his court and Feyre. I was especially interested to see how Nesta and Elain's plots played out in this book after how it ended, and I really wanted to see if the Hybern situation would be resolved or not.


Definitely an action packed book, and I definitely loved it like the rest, but my favourite in the series is still the second book. However, I did like meeting all the new people in this one, and I can't wait to see where it goes. This book gets 5 cats!

I am Thunder by Muhammad Khan

I won this book in a competition, and I decided to read it because I was meeting the author at YAShot this month. Definitely glad I won it, it was such a good book! (But it did leave me feeling old because when reading it did take a while to get used to the teenager speak!).

It did take me a while to get into it, but when I did I was definitely sucked in, it was so different to see the POV of someone that was a Muslim, I've only ever read one book like that - and this one trumped that by miles.

I think my favourite bit about the book was the name - and the quote used - I am thunder and I won't keep quiet. It definitely resonated with me and I think it's one of my new favourite quotes - and something I need to live by I think. Overall, I give this 4 cats. It's definitely a thought provoking book.

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

I decided to re-read this book because I got sent the second in the duology for a review, and I wanted to refresh my mind. My original read of this book was reviewed on goodreads before I started blogging, and I laughed a bit when I read my review. 

My opinion has changed from the first time - I loved it more than I did then. I think the re-read helped me to understand things a bit better and really helped me to get into the plot more and connect with the characters more too. It's definitely going to be one of the books I'll re-read again in the future, and my review of the second book will come soon in a separate post.

Also I've had a lot of people comment on the beauty of the cover, and yes that was the main reason I bought it from Costco's, the deep blue with slashes really caught my eye, and then the description intrigued me too. I give this book 5 cats (one more than last years review)

A Shiver of Snow and Sky by Lisa Lueddecke

Although I have so many other books on my TBR pile I started on this as soon as I got it in the DrinkYA goodybag as I've wated to read it so much. It did take me a little while to get into it, maybe I was going in with too many expectations and it put me off? But when I did get into it I can see why it's such a popular book, some of the descriptions in this book definitely caught my eye throughout - they were so beautiful.

I adored Osa as a character - she was so strong throughout the book despite how she was brought up being blamed for her mothers death. I think her character development was amazing, especially at the end, and I think it was so great how her development was like a big circle - she learnt that it wasn't her fault and also really came into herself.

I also think the world building in this was great - I can't wait to see what the author will do in any future books if its as great as this one, it will definitely be a surprise as I can't guess where it may go at all. 4 cats for this book!

Review: The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Okay, so, I admit, I used to be a Twihard (obsessed with Twilight) and so, when looking at Stephenie's website I found out about this book: The Host.

The blurb drew me in, it just sounded so interesting, and I bought it. And, guys, this book has had so many uses. Like, the copy I have is very loved and very battered from so much use. So, without further comments, here's the book:

Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away.

Our world has been invaded by an unseen enemy. Humans become hosts for these invaders, their minds taken over while their bodies remain intact and continue their lives apparently unchanged. Most of humanity has succumbed.

When Melanie, one of the few remaining “wild” humans is captured, she is certain it is her end. Wanderer, the invading “soul” who has been given Melanie’s body, was warned about the challenges of living inside a human: the overwhelming emotions, the glut of senses, the too vivid memories. But there was one difficulty Wanderer didn’t expect: the former tenant of her body refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.

Wanderer probes Melanie’s thoughts, hoping to discover the whereabouts of the remaining human resistance. Instead, Melanie fills Wanderer’s mind with visions of the man Melanie loves—Jared, a human who still lives in hiding. Unable to separate herself from her body’s desires, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she has been tasked with exposing. When outside forces make Wanderer and Melanie unwilling allies, they set off on a dangerous and uncertain search for the man they both love.

One of the things I love about this book is the journey that both Melanie, the human who has been taken over, and Wanderer (later dubbed Wanda), the 'host' that has taken over Melanie's body, take to becoming friends. It's a slow go, but it was great to see the friendship and understanding between the two girls grow throughout the book.

I'll warn you now, the romance situation in this book is certainly weird, but it is also interesting as Wanda learns just what love is, and then later has to decide if it is just Melanie's feelings that she is feeling, or if they are her own. In fact, in this book there is kind of a love triangle (or a love square if you count the fact that Melanie is still her own person in Wanda's mind), so if you like interesting romance plots mixed into YA fantasy/SciFi, this book is definitely for you.

However, the romance side isn't everything in this book, in fact the main plotline of this book that I see is Human's that hate these invaders slowly learning about and understanding them because of the experience of living with one of the other species (Wanda).

All I can say without spoiling anything nearer to the end is that I love this book, and it always seems to make me cry as there are so many different emotions throughout it. I feel like I'm on an emotional rollercoaster when reading this (a good one).

I just love it. And I'd highly recommend it to anyone that like SciFi or Fantasy books.

Have any of you read The Host? And do you agree with my love of the book?

Review: Sabriel by Garth Nix

Okay, time to fess up, I haven't read this book this week (or fully for a little while) but I constantly have it on my Kindle for when I finish a book and have nothing else on me to read, so I think I'm about 50 pages in on my kindle version at the moment.

Yes, I do have both a kindle version and a book version, this is how much I love this book.

So much that the series is on my top 5 re-reads (see these here) and that I have actually read it an unknown amount of times (that means a lot). So, here it is:

Dark Secrets, Deep Love, and Dangerous Magic

Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him. She soon finds companions in Mogget, a cat whose aloof manner barely conceals its malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, now free in body but still trapped by painful memories.

As the three travel deep into the Old Kingdom, threats mount on all sides. And every step brings them closer to a battle that will pit them against the true forces of life and death—and bring Sabriel face-to-face with her own destiny.

Okay, so, one thing I love about this book, and which makes me read it more, is that technically it could be read as a stand-alone. So, if you're short on time and just want a travel read, or just don't want to commit to a series just yet, this book is great. Plus, then, if you love it like I did, you can just choose to read the other books too!

Why do I love this book so much? I hear you ask. Well, there's just too many reasons to explain! But one reason is the world that it is based in. One half of the land seems like a normal, if dated, version of where we all live now (Ancelstierre), while the other half of the land is just magical (The Old Kingdom). The only thing that separates these two halves of the land is a Wall. Yet, the seasons differ, and no technology can survive past the Wall into the Old Kingdom. It just makes it so much easier to connect to this book when you can see that Ancelstierre is just like a normal dated country.

One thing I love about this book is that while it shows the difficult journey that Sabriel has to take from the place where she has grown up (Ancelstierre) to the place where she was born (the Old Kingdom) it also shows her more personal journey from just a schoolgirl to a woman and more importantly, her journey to becoming Abhorsen. Which is a pretty big jump. And I don't know why, but big personal journeys like that always interest me in books!

But, come on, if any of you have ever read this book, I bet you're all asking why I have yet to mention the character that is the best and most mysterious, the cat Mogget. Well, technically he isn't just a cat, but the cat is my favourite Mogget shape. He's just my favourite fiction cat ever. His personality in the book is just amazing, and I think if you read this you can't help but love him, and his mysterious origin is tackled in later books (if you choose to read them).

So, that's only like, 3 reasons why I love this book, and there are so many more but if I wrote them all I would just end up with a giant post that no-one would ever get through. Which wouldn't be good.

All I can say now then, is that I highly recommend this book, and even this series, and it is highly likely that I'll eventually get round to reviewing the whole series at some point. 

Garth Nix's world he imagined in this book is just amazing and if you don't read this book, I think you'll really be missing out on a stunning adventure.

Feel free to leave your comments on the book!

My Favourite Re-Reads

So, first blog post for me!

I thought I had best start with those books that I just love, and can't help but to re-read.

So, be aware, if I don't post for a while, it's probably because yet again, I am re-reading one of my favourite books (though I will tell you that on Twitter so you don't think I've just given up on reading!).

Granted, the next time I re-read something, you will all get to see my lovely review of whatever book it is, as I'll just HAVE to review them, but I doubt you'd all want to hear my raving reviews of the same books over and over.

So, just to get it out of the way, I'll give you a list of my top re-reads!



1) Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling

Okay guys, time to get it out there now: I am a Potterhead. I love everything to do with the Harry Potter world! (even joined a HP society at uni, but that's info for another time). I have read these books multiple times (unfortunately not recently), and I will probably re-read them forever. So, be prepared for multiple Potter posts.

2) The Old Kingdom series by Garth Nix

I have read these books so many times, and have them in both paperback as well as on kindle, that is a sign of how much I love them. Obviously, there are a few more books added to these three now, but I've not had a chance to re-read the others yet.

3) The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

So, these are some of my favourite childhood books, and occasionally I like to re-read them and remember my childhood and the lovely magical world that C. S. Lewis created.

4) The Study Series by Maria V. Snyder

So, these books, I have read at the least 10 times each, I just keep going back to them. There is more to the series, but I haven't been able to get around to them yet. However, the first three are some of my favourite books and ones that I can just re-read whenever.

5) His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman

I love these books, I mean, who doesn't?! And I was super excited to hear about the new books that are coming out to do with this series too. My excitement to read them can't be contained! Hence, these make my list as I can re-read them many times before the new book comes out, to add to the other times I've read this series too.

Of Course these aren't my only books that I re-read, you'll find I like to re-read books a lot, it helps me to get to know different points of the stories each time. But, these are some of the books that I always go to when I feel like just reading something I know.

But, I thought I'd tell you about them, and maybe encourage you to read them yourselves before I get around to reviewing them myself, as they are all amazing books.