Lore

Title: Lore
Author: Alexandra Bracken

Publisher: Hyperion
Year: January 2021
Pages: 466
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Reading Time: 11 - 31 Mar
Binding: Owlcrate Hardback
Goodreads

Stars:
★★★★☆

Blurb:

 Every seven years, the Agon begins.

 As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals. They are hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.

 Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world, turning her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory after her family was murdered by a rival line. For year she's pushed away any thought of revenge against the man - now a god - responsible for their deaths.

 Yet as the hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek her out: Castor, a childhood friend Lore believed to be dead, and Athena, one of the last of the original gods, now gravely wounded.

 The goddess offers Lore an alliance against their mutual enemy and a way to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore's decision to rejoin the hunt, binding her fate to Athena's, will come at a deadly cost - and it may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.

Review:

 If I needed anything to remind me of my love for Greek mythology, it was this. Greek mythology entwining with the modern day world is not a new concept (I still really need to finish those various Percy Jackson series) but this is a very different way I'm seeing it integrated. Violence is a given and in an event that only occurs every seven years giving Hunters the opportunity to obtain the power of the gods? Bloodshed, references to the myths and allegiances we can't be sure to trust, it's all good for me. 

 There are some mixed responses and I can see where they're coming from. Pacing was a little slow in some places and I could put it down without the burning desire to start reading again. We got a lot of information and history, my top tip would be to use the character listing provided at the back. I got mixed up in the similar names a bit. I found the revelations of old and recent history unravelled in good timing along with the plot.

 We've got a little bit of diversity in our characters, though if I'm remembering correctly it was rather put on the back of two characters to show a lot of the representations. I really liked those particular characters and the rest of our characters presented a good range of personalities. Lore is all rage and violence, Castor is gentle and unsure whilst Athena is strong in many senses of the word. I wish there was a tad more romance but that would probably have resulted in another hundred pages or so.

 I enjoyed the fact that real work issues like misogyny were part of the book and addressed differently as the story was told from different points in time and recalled by different characters. In a current day setting it feels appropriate that a female main character would have issues with old mythology and growing up with those beliefs still ingrained in her world's beliefs despite the rest of the world moving on from this. Let's also face it, there are some bad-ass female characters in this book.

 Our plot is not as simple as it seems from the beginning and I'm glad to say that I didn't really predict any of the twists and revelations in this book, or any suspicions I had were not for the correct reasons. I have to say there was a lot of lying and manipulation to the point I'm not entirely sure what the truth actually was. . .

 Regardless, it's a strong book and it's been a while since I read anything that was so clearly a standalone from a book box. It's both sad I won't get more and excellent that it's not being overstretched. Seems like I still haven't gotten round to The Darkes Minds despite it having been on my TBR for a very long time. Maybe now I've read one of Bracken's books I'll be more likely to dip in to that series!

Red Tigress

Title: Red Tigress
Author: Amélie Wen Zhao
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Year: March 2021
Pages: 425
Series: Blood Heir Trilogy #2
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Reading Time: 15 - 29 Mar
Binding: Illumicrate Hardback
Goodreads

Stars:
★★★★☆

Blurb:

 Ana Mikhailov is the only surviving of the member of the royal family of Cyrilia.

 She has no army, no title, and no allies, and now she must find a way to take back the throne or risk the brutal retribution of Empress Morganya.

 After years of ruthless oppression of the Affinites - those with the power and magic to control the world around them - under the old empire, the empress is determined to establish a new world order, no matter what the cost. Ana is certain that Morganya won't stop until she has murdered every single non-Affinite in the land.

 Ana's only chance of navigating the dangerous world of her homeland is to partner with Ramson Quicktongue once again. But the cunning crime lord has schemes of his own. For Ana to find an army and make a new future for her kingdom, one without bloodshed and oppression, they must cross the Whitewaves to the impenetrable stone forts of Bregon. Only, no one ban be certain what they will find there.

 A dark power has risen. Will revolution bring peace - or will it only paint the streets in more blood...

Review:

 I was excited to come back to the Blood Heir world after the read-a-long last month, we're left on a nice little cliff hanger after the last book so I expected to come in to some mad rushing as they flee from the scene. I daresay I found the beginning a little slow despite there actually being a lot going on and a fair bit of action. maybe I was just busy and ending up putting it down too often.

 Ana has had her eyes opened to a lot of what was wrong with her kingdom in the past but there is still a fair bit of naivety in her character. She sees hope very quickly and it does not take a lot to manipulate her, she needs to spend a little more time with Ramson to wipe that away. She continues to improve her understanding of things in her world, you'll see what I mean about half way through. Ana's power as a blood Affinite is not to be underestimated and we'll get a little more than her just throwing people backwards Merlin-style.

 Ramson, sweet Ramson. I feel for him in this book. Forced to head back to his home with enemies at every turn and friends he's reluctant to stick around for. His family is. . . very interesting. A fantastic new character introduction but I'm officially sick of the verb 'shrieked', no one shrieks and cries and laughs at every sentence. If they did they would have been killed already. It's a wrestle of Ramson's conscience and his family is even more brutal than was let on in the previous book.

 Linn is a bigger character than I really think was shown in the prior book, she was introduced far too late out of nowhere and feels like a bit of an afterthought now given a much larger role. It's bringing another layer to the world building which is wonderful and just mere hints of romance but this series so far is a bit lacking in that area. Her new accomplice is one you can easily work out from the previous book but that can certainly cause a few problems in the trust of our characters all together.

 So. . . we're expanding in this world. We got a really good picture of Ana's kingdom and the issues experienced by the people in Blood Heir and we're finally escaping to Bregon which we only saw through Ramson's memories. Here we're not just adding another country and set of characters to join the fight. There's more plot, more action and scheming and death. Oh, glorious!

 There is going to be a lot to cover in the final book of the Blood Heir trilogy. It's gonna be a big build up to those final chapters and I. Am. Excited.

The Vain

Title: The Vain
Author: Eliot Rahal

Publisher: Oni Press

Year: April 2021

Pages: 126

Genre: Graphic Novel

Reading Time: 25 March

Binding: PDF courtesy of Oni Press via NetGalley

Goodreads

Stars:
★★★★☆

Blurb:

Chicago, 1941. A blood bank is held up in a robbery, but no cash is taken—only blood. It's the latest in a string of similar robberies and as the United States prepares to enter World War II, FBI Agent Felix Franklin is certain it's part of a wider plot to weaken the United States by depriving it of its blood supply. But the truth is much more sinister.
The four robbers are vampires: immortal, physically powerful, and after decades of honing their skills, practically untraceable. But time goes on and the vampires—who call themselves The Vain—stay the same in a world that is rapidly changing around them. As security measures evolve, stealing blood is harder every day. And with every decade that passes, Agent Franklin gets closer to finding them. Capturing them. Ending them.
The Vain is a story about wild, eternal youth, reckless rebellion, endless love, and how in the end...maybe it is better to burn out than fade away.

Review:

It's been a while since I was attracted to a graphic novel by the cover but this one was just gorgeous, look at all that lovely red! The artists have done a beautiful job in this graphic novel. The colours and tone changes depending on our setting, time and narrator and I felt especially immersed, as though I were watching it play out on a screen and hearing it rather than reading. A good mix of gore and humour in the details.
This was not the typical setting I've seen for vampires (and I grew up with Twilight at it's peak and vampire books around every corner). I genuinely had to think about the logistics of being a vampire in a modern world. Blood bank heists, making most of the opportunity of war and being hunted for what you are. There's tension between the characters as they try to work out how to survive and I love the LGBTQ+ representation, it's shown and written very naturally.
Our main vampires have some . . . strange names but I can get past that. They're all different and I'd be very interested to find out more about their backgrounds and how they came to be as there's only hints of it shown. I really enjoyed the few human characters we also followed, you see their lives unravel over the years whilst the vampires are unchanged. I love the idea of the FBI investigating paranormal activity and the havoc it could create. Both to the lives it could ruin in the search for the truth and the violence committed in chasing and using such formidable predators.
We take a range of settings throughout the few chapters in this novel and I simply wish that each were a little bit longer. It would have given a chance to really explain and relax in to the new settings rather than having a narrator give a bit of an information dump. I would not have been opposed to a much longer story really building up the tension for the equivalent of each of these chapters, it would have been worth it!

A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire

Title: A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire
Author: Jennifer L Armentrout
Publisher: Blue Box Press
Year: September 2020
Pages: 484
Series: Blood and Ash #2
Genre: Fantasy (New adult)
Reading Time: 2 - 6 Mar
Binding: Kindle
Goodreads

Stars:
★★★★★

Blurb:
A Betrayal…
Everything Poppy has ever believed in is a lie, including the man she was falling in love with. Thrust among those who see her as a symbol of a monstrous kingdom, she barely knows who she is without the veil of the Maiden. But what she does know is that nothing is as dangerous to her as him. The Dark One. The Prince of Atlantia. He wants her to fight him, and that’s one order she’s more than happy to obey. He may have taken her, but he will never have her.
A Choice….
Casteel Da’Neer is known by many names and many faces. His lies are as seductive as his touch. His truths as sensual as his bite. Poppy knows better than to trust him. He needs her alive, healthy, and whole to achieve his goals. But he’s the only way for her to get what she wants—to find her brother Ian and see for herself if he has become a soulless Ascended. Working with Casteel instead of against him presents its own risks. He still tempts her with every breath, offering up all she’s ever wanted. Casteel has plans for her. Ones that could expose her to unimaginable pleasure and unfathomable pain. Plans that will force her to look beyond everything she thought she knew about herself—about him. Plans that could bind their lives together in unexpected ways that neither kingdom is prepared for. And she’s far too reckless, too hungry, to resist the temptation.
A Secret…
But unrest has grown in Atlantia as they await the return of their Prince. Whispers of war have become stronger, and Poppy is at the very heart of it all. The King wants to use her to send a message. The Descenters want her dead. The wolven are growing more unpredictable. And as her abilities to feel pain and emotion begin to grow and strengthen, the Atlantians start to fear her. Dark secrets are at play, ones steeped in the blood-drenched sins of two kingdoms that would do anything to keep the truth hidden. But when the earth begins to shake, and the skies start to bleed, it may already be too late.

Review:

 I enjoyed this one more than the first, probably for a few reasons. Firstly, there wasn't a big reveal that I guessed within the opening chapters which I then spent the next few hundred pages waiting for. That made the first book feel very slow for me and this was so much better. I appreciate a lot of reviews say nothing happens. It's a lot of world building but there certainly is some action.

 I said in my review of the previous book that Poppy was naive. What I enjoy about this book is that she is slightly humbled by the fact that everything he thought she knew turns out to be lies. It made her slightly more relatable than she had been in the first book. Her insecurities felt more tangible and realistic. Her general hot-heatedness continues and whilst it annoyed in the previous book it is more justified in this one. It does, however, result it very, very repetitive interactions with several of the characters. I'm genuinely sick of a few of the phrases in this book at this point. This comes in hand with the fact that I just don't feel this writing is amazing. It's clear this is not a fantasy author, use of modern words screams wrong and some general strange descriptions. I also noted (amid current comments after Illumicrate have updated their exclusive cover to make Poppy larger) that there are wild inconsistencies in the writing about height. In a certain water scene the water level is above Poppy's breast but only just above the navel of another character, but they are still able to stand chest to chest and the character is able to lean their forehead against theirs? Erm, as a short person . . . No. It seems to switch from being able to brush lips at ease to having to crane her neck to be able to look them in the eye. I'm not one that takes massive notice of character descriptions however when people are arguing online about body shapes and you see these inconsistencies in the writing you can really only shake your head in wonder.

 Let's talk about other characters because we get a lot of new ones and they're all relatively exciting. Cas is good fun, overprotective and incredibly stressed out but he's still (repetitively) flirtatious and a source of general humour in the book. Kieran is a grounding character that I'm glad has presence and the increasing Wolven characters is great because there are a clear range of personalities within that group. As are the few introduced Atlantians. As I've mentioned, this is a lot of world building so these are all brand new people for Poppy and they also need to learn to trust her.

 In terms of action, we pick up from a pretty wicked little cliffhanger and I can understand why people feel little happened. I thought the pacing was a good balance of action, arguments and travel during the worldbuilding. After all, everything we knew from the first book was shattered in those last few chapters so we have to shift our understanding. There is some action, I'd daresay a similar level to the first book. The stakes have heightened, we know it and Poppy knows it. There's a real element of uncertainty in the opening chapters and we develop past that point with good progress and hiccups along the way. Part and parcel of the action and our characters is the sexual tension. I was hoping for more as I was left a little disappointed by how long we waited in the first book for the release of that tension. I was hoping there wouldn't be another build up in this book but there was. There's a little more spice than previously but I'm clearly smut addicted because it wasn't nearly enough for me given how much the characters talk with innuendos and flirtation. It's really annoying because I can't understand why so many people are convinced there's loads of it. Hey, my standards are clearly skewed. 

 I'm not going to lie, if you had problems with the previous book then they weren't really solved. The writing is the same, problematic issues are the same. I really enjoyed the book but I can certainly see why people aren't necessarily satisfied but I'm not always looking for a masterpiece. Sometimes I just want a bit of smut and fun.

 That ending though, damn. I'm so glad the next book isn't that far away.

From Blood and Ash

Title: From Blood and Ash
Author: Jennifer L Armentrout
Publisher: Blue Box Press
Year: March 2020
Pages: 452
Series: Blood and Ash #1
Genre: Fantasy (New adult)
Reading Time: 23 Feb - 1 Mar
Binding: Kindle
Goodreads

Stars:
★★★★☆

Blurb:

A Maiden…

Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.
A Duty…
The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.
A Kingdom…
Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel.

Review:

I knew I had to read this book when my Sarah J Maas fan group on Facebook was absolutely filled with posts and comments on this book. This is always a good and a bad thing. You know the genre is likely to be right as these are people with similar tastes to your own however it tells you little about the writing style. I was also promised a lot of steamy and spicy scenes and the amount that was talked about led me to a bit of disappointment. That disappointment combined with the pacing and big reveal being something I guessed in the opening chapters, I had to knock a star off. It's definitely still an addition to my list of favourites though.
I have mixed opinions on Poppy, I like that she's fierce and strong but she's also led a very sheltered life. Her feistiness just comes out a bit too much, not everything needs to be met with a snide remark or biting retort. But I can also understand why she'd be constantly angry having been so sheltered. It also comes out that she's extremely naive, there are ways she handles situations which shows she doesn't really know how to handle people. If she were just a little more intuitive she'd get herself out of so many situations but she's too quick to anger for that.
I enjoy the range of characters we have, Hawke is certainly fun though his tendency to flirt or tease in every sentence can get a bit annoying (also opened up to some just plain weird writing), a very steamy opening with him but 80% of the rest of the book is just mindless teasing. This is exactly the thing I was promised by readers and just left me feeling so frustrated, I got bored of the sexual tension because it went on too long. The release of the tension was great but that build up was just painful. Our other range of characters all kind of fall to the sides, Vikter is protective but powerless to truly protect Poppy, Tawny is that kind of useless character that's Poppy's only friend and then those in power. They're certainly interesting but we don't really see much of them and the really interesting ones are only mentioned as they're based elsewhere.
So then, world building. I like this world. The names of places aren't particularly difficult as they're mostly different spellings of real or already imagined places which is a bit weird to me. I like the fantasy element and I enjoyed that it was a while before things were really explained on that level and that comes with Poppy coming out of her sheltered state. We're going to see much more in the future books and I'm excited for it as I feel we definitely need to travel and meet others as this overall plot moves along.
In terms of pacing, as I've said above, long. A really steamy opening few chapters sets you up for a really steamy, action packed book. When that doesn't really fulfil itself until the last few hundred pages, there's going to be some disappointment. There was so much build up I was pleading for us to move on. Once we did it was fantastic, but I felt like a good 100 pages of Poppy as the Maiden could have been massively reduced and made for a more action packed story.
Don't get me wrong though, that ending is marvellous. So much is revealed we can't really talk about it as it's all such a spoiler. I'm very excited for the series to progress as I've read lots of people enjoying the second book more. Here's hoping I do too!