Spindle Fire by Lexa Hillyer

It's been some time since I've gotten to enjoy a good fairy tale retelling. Now, most people jump at the chance to retell stories like Red Riding Hood and Snow White, but one of the stories that's often neglected is Sleeping Beauty. I imagine this is because, of all the Grimm fairy tales, this one is the one that most people use as an example of cliche stories where nothing happens and out-of-nowhere love saves the day. To take this story and make it exciting is definitely a challenge. How did this one pan out? Let's see.

Isabelle and Aurora are as close as half-sisters can be. Isabelle, the king's illegitimate older daughter, is wild and stubborn and blind. Aurora, the younger heiress to the throne, is sweet-tempered and kind and can neither feel or speak. When it comes time for Aurora to be married to a foreign prince, the kingdom decides to send Isabelle off to a convent. Isabelle instead runs away with her best friend, Gilbert, but Aurora pursues and accidentally stumbles upon a golden spinning wheel that plunges her into a deep sleep. A sleeping curse soon spreads over the kingdom and Aurora must navigate through a world of dreams built by the mysterious Night Faerie and Isabelle must travel across the sea to find Aurora's betrothed and get him to lift her sister's curse.

This has a lot of really good ideas...and other ideas that kind of ruin the good ones. For instance, making both these princess's handicapped via a faerie's curse can make for some pretty good storytelling. However, Isabelle's blindness is so rarely an obstacle that we kind of forget that it's there. She's able to doing things that kind of defy logic and reasoning. A blind person traveling completely unknown territory, can climb a building she's never been to before, sneaks into exactly the right window and finds who she's looking for in a matter of seconds. Either she's the luckiest person in the world or I call bull. Also, making Aurora unable to speak is a great concept...except when she falls asleep her handicaps are gone and she can talk and feel for the rest of the book. Hm, feels like a wasted opportunity.

For a story based on a pretty simple (some might say even too simple) fairy tale, this thing is incredibly complex. It follows the point of views of multiple characters and no two chapters are with the same person. There are even some chapters from the point of view of characters we barely know, just kind of show up for their two seconds of fame, then disappear and never come back. They contribute almost nothing and left me a bit perplexed, I've got to admit, as to why the author saw fit to include them at all. Also, the world building was fairly well done, but something just kept bugging me. This is clearly it's own world, with its own set up so...why do they keep talking about Greek and Roman history/mythology? They keep comparing this one faerie's home to a Roman bath house, they bring up the legend of Icarus and mention other things pertaining to the culture but...how can they know these things if Greece and Rome don't exist in this universe, as far as I can tell. And if they do exist, does this mean this takes place in our world? Do they have their own versions of Greece and Rome that just so happen to be called the same things and have the same culture and legends? They mythos of this world fluxes between real world and made-up world when it really should have stuck to one or the other.

Now, I'm making this book sound worse than it actually is. There is some good stuff in here, honestly. While the princesses have a little too much luck and their handicaps really don't serve as handicaps, there is a lot more to them. Isabelle has to deal with her feelings of inferiority and, throughout the book, tries to come to terms with her own self worth. Aurora has been unbelievably sheltered her whole life and never knowing pain in any way or form. So, when she's thrown into a world vastly different from what she's always known and her ability to feel is returned, she too learns what it is to make sacrifices and fight for something she wants, instead of waiting for someone to do it for her. These little tidbits of character development are really good and shows how these two girls, despite being so very different, actually have a lot in common.

Unfortunately, while it's not the longest book I've ever read or the hardest, this one felt like it took a good long while to get through. Towards the end of the book, things start getting pretty complicated and there's a "twist" that anyone who's read a book ever will see coming in regards to the prince finally finding Aurora. The motivations of our villains, the Faerie Queen and the Night Faerie, get even more confusing instead of getting clearer. It's just a huge build up of sequel bait that didn't actually lead up to anything and didn't really get me hyped like it wanted to.

Final Verdict
It was a bold move to try and make Sleeping Beauty into a complex story, and while the author succeeded, I think she did her job too well. Still, there was a lot of effort in this thing as well as good character development, but jumbled up characters, inconsistent world building, and confusing motivations lead me to say that it is worth checking out...but wait for it on paperback.

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next time: It's tough being a dark grisha...I mean Geisha...I mean asha!

Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs

The journey of Miss Peregrine's kids comes to a conclusion in this third installment of the Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. I've really enjoyed this series so far and seeing it all come together got me hyped, not gonna lie. So, let's dive right in and see what's up.

Jacob and his friends and royally screwed. Kidnapped by wights, cornered by hollows, and the whole world against them, Jacob and Emma must flee with a peculiar dog named Addison MacHenry to find their friends and save their matron, while pursued by villains who seek out the legendary library of souls, which could grant them infinite power. The peculiar children are called to battle and, with Jacob's discovery of a useful new power, they must make a stand against those who would destroy them.

The peculiar universe is never boring. From punishment loops to clever characters to villains who never seem to quit, this book is bursting with activity. There's a lot to do and, once again, the characters are each given time to shine and get the development they require. New characters are allowed to shine through as well, like Sharon the ferryman and Miss Peregrine's brothers and a grimbear named PT. The overall cast of this book is just great. Their personalities and voices shine and it pulls you in wonderfully. You want to see them to succeed, or fail, and you easily become engrossed in the story.

The environment of the punishment loop, the Devil's Acre, is just the kind of gross and forbidding place that you'd expect it to be. Set in Victorian England at its worst possible time, that of plague and poverty, the whole atmosphere gives you a feeling of filth and dread. Being stuck in a place like this is enough to make anyone ill. It's all really well described. Once again, Riggs shows that he understands atmosphere and build up, as this book builds up to several really intense battles against the wights. The Devil's Acre makes a great background for such a grim battle and the conclusion that is to come.

Speaking of what's to come, let's go over the ending, shall we? Now, no spoilers, but I found the ending of this book pretty great! The villains showed some actual intelligence during the final showdown, things got intense and the conclusion was handled brilliantly. Then, however, it goes all Return of the King on us and shows us a little too much ending. Not to mention an enormous deus ex machina that comes right out of nowhere so that the happiest possible ending can be had. But, after all these characters had been through I'm actually kind of glad it took the extra minute to give us the conclusion we'd all hoped for. Plus, we do finally get some closure with Jacob's parents which leads to one of the funniest scenes I've read for some time.

Final Verdict
Just what fans of the series could possibly want. I really liked this series and this book brings everything to a truly satisfying end. This overall series gets a thumbs up for me, making this book definitely worth your money at your local bookstore!

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next Time: Here's a challenge, make a story about a girl who sleeps the whole time interesting...

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

This one goes way back to one of my earliest reviews when I took a look at Six of Crows. I absolutely loved that book so, as its sequel, this one had a lot to live up to. I'm pleased to announce, however, that this book is not only as good as the first it is even better! Let's dive right in.

Kaz Brekker, the most notorious thug in the Barrel, has quite the battle laid out before him. He and his crew of criminals and swindlers have just undergone the job of a lifetime only to be betrayed and nearly killed. Kaz is now plotting his ultimate revenge, not only to get his crew the reward they deserve, but to settle the score with his old nemesis, Pekka Rollins, once and for all. But as Kaz's enemies unite and the whole of Katterdam turns against them, it's going to take every ounce of cunning Kaz possesses to not only get them their money, but get them out with their lives.

This is just what I wanted when I finished the first book. Not only do we get an awesome heist story, but an awesome revenge heist story to top what the last book gave us. Kaz and his crew and just as splendidly written as I remember. Everyone gets their time to shine, everyone has a part to play, and everyone gets time for development and growth. Each of these characters is excellent, beautifully written and you find yourself rooting for each one of them. You care about these people. You want to see them all come out of it okay. While Kaz is the heart that powers the team, nobody feels unneeded or overused. The team works as a well oiled machine and it was just excellent.

The stakes in this book are remarkably higher than before due to the fact that their very home is crashing down around them. In the last book, the team (most of them anyway) were in foreign territory in and icy climate and breaking into an unbreakable prison. This time, they're home on their own turf and it's turning against them. There's nowhere safe and they are dealing with enemies who are just as cunning as they are and even more ruthless. Kaz, for all his faults, values human life and cares about his team. His enemies, however, do not. The threats they go up against are very real, forcing them to come up with the impossible in order to survive. It's a very good thing that these people are awesome and they work very well together as a team.

The suspense and drama in this story are great elements in any story and here, in particular, it works amazingly. When a plan comes together, everything falls into place. When it seems like things are going too well, they probably are and you're about to fall into a trap. It leaves you on the edge of your seat and anxious to see how things pan out. Also, as the concluding installment of this particular story, everything came together...almost. It's not the perfect ending that you hope for, but just the right mix of bitter along with the sweet. It also leaves things open for more story, but we're also satisfied with the conclusions we get as well. I was happy, then I was sad, then I was terrified, then I was sad again and then very happy...it was all the mixes of emotions that one could possibly hope for in an epic conclusion to an epic story.

Final Verdict
I loved this book to pieces! These two books came together in a mind-blowing adventure of tragedy, love, risk, danger and high-stakes. I couldn't recommend it any higher, that's why this book is going onto the Shelf of Recommendation!

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next Time: While we're concluding things, let's see how things pan out for our peculiar friends....

The Holtur Curse by Cameron Wayne Smith

Daily monster attacks, brutal killings, rough slayers eager to slice through any challenge...yup, we must be in Holtur! It was great returning to this place, the harsh winter coming forth and the fabulous monsters on the prowl, and this time we encounter whole new challenges that Holtur has never faced before. I know I'm excited so let's dive right in!

Sonja Bluwahlt, Captain of the Holtur slayers, has a lot on her plate. Her brother's illness is getting worse, new never-before-faced creatures are starting to attack the village, and one of her slayers (whom she was particularly fond of) has gone missing. On top of all this, an army of men known as the Brothers of Eternity threaten to invade Holtur seeking something they call the Eternity Grail. Threats the likes of which she'd never dealt with and new challenges leave Sonja genuinely wondering: could Holtur truly be cursed? If it is, how can she and her band of slayers hope to defend its people in the face of these new horrors?

This book is just the kind of thing a sequel should be. Instead of repeating the first story, it carries on the story and expands the world surrounding it. Sonja, who was a supporting character in the last book, is a great choice for a new lead. She is, without a doubt, one of the best strong female characters I've found in a long time. She knows when to be tough and when to be kind. She can slaughter monsters, brandishing a claymore and coating herself in monster blood, but she can also sympathize with others and get along well with her men and the villagers. When she needs help, she'll accept it, none of the I-can-do-everything-myself crap that we can often find with women trying to be strong. She's a great leader, just the same person she was in the last book, and she makes the perfect lead for this story.

What this book has that sets it apart from the first book is the very interesting theme of "who is the monster?" In this book, Holtur deals with a threat that they've never encountered before: other men. Now, the slayers of Holtur have killed some of the most complex and deadly monsters this world has ever known and yet they've never had to fight against people before. These men are clearly a threat. The Brothers of Eternity have openly admitted that they're going to destroy their village and hurt whomever gets in their way if they don't get what they want. Still, the slayers have a real dilemma on their hands. The idea of killing other people and what it will do to their souls is a really good question. Not to mention that, this time, Holtur has some monsters actually helping them. It makes the characters actually wonder if what they're doing is right and are they really doing the right thing and, if they resort to killing people, would that make them monsters themselves. These are some really complex ideas and it's really well thought out.

The hostile environment of this book is exactly what we'd expect from the previous installment and it comes with lots of fighting and violence. The action is pretty intense, leading to some brutal kills and some genuinely sad moments. That's what this book is good at, it makes you care about these people, these slayers and even the flame wyverns who are helping them out. Every loss makes an impact and you feel each one. It's also one of those few times my mouth actually dropped open once or twice, the kills coming as a genuine shock. While you know some of these slayers are going to be cannon fodder, you're still concerned for them and their personalities are still likable enough that you want them to get out okay, even if you know they're not. Also, some of the tactics used in this book are just great. Holtur uses its curses as blessings and uses them to their advantage. That's a great idea and I was glad to see it used.

If I had to nitpick, I'd say that the villains of the story were a smidge on the shallow side. While they did pose a genuine threat and they were certainly scary, their personalities weren't much to rave about. I also wasn't too sure about the direction they were taking with the Moongate community and what was going on there, but there is a third book coming up so I suppose we'll get the answers we're looking for there.

Final Verdict
This book, like the first, is just a great horror/action adventure with lots of death, gore, an awesome lead, and great creatures and ideas. I enjoyed this one a lot and, if it sounds like your thing, it's definitely worth your money at your local bookstore.

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next Time: Dirtyhands returns....

Solaris Seethes by Janet McNulty

Nothing warms the heart like a good, campy sci-fi story, am I right? While it's not my absolute favorite genre in the world, once in a blue moon I'll find a science fiction story that I find I can just relax and enjoy. Mind you, this story is one you really have to shut your mind off to appreciate fully and, as a critic, I can't really do that. That being said, there's still enjoyment to be found in this story of adventure, revenge and recycled plot details...I mean, cliches...I mean...let's just get right to it.

Rynah's home has been destroyed. The man she'd come to love, Klanor, has betrayed her and all of her people by stealing the powerful crystal that controlled the planet's magnetic fields. As Rynah escapes the destruction, she comes across a gift from her departed grandfather, an old-fashioned spaceship named Solaris. Armed with a unique artificial intelligence, Solaris has been prepared for this event and explains to Rynah that the crystal is one of six that are said to have the power to destroy whole planets, even whole solar systems, and that Klanor plans to unite them and rule the galaxy. In accordance to an ancient prophecy concerning the crystals, Rynah summons help aboard her ship from a planet so underdeveloped it had gone unnoticed before, Earth. From this planet she calls forth four heroes,  the philosopher Solon from 751 B.C, the warrior Alfric from 1163, the inventor Tom from 2099, and the Mary Sue...I mean, lover Brie from 2014 to stop Klanor and save the galaxy.

Yeah...it might seem like I'm being kind of harsh about this one, but hear me out. This book is silly. And it knows it's silly (or at least I think it does). There are a lot of things that this book is trying to be. Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate, Battlestar Galactica, basically, if it has the word "star" in the title, this book is trying to be it. Whoever, if you can get past that...it's actually kind of likable. It reads more like a fan fiction might but...a good fan fiction. It doesn't read like a quick cash grab, it reads like a labor of love. What it wants to be is an homage to the great sci-fi stories and capture what they had instead of trying to cash in on what they think will sell the most. The problem is... it is still pretty silly.

The characters in this book are just what you'd expect them to be. You have your no-nonsense captain, Rynah, with an impossibly bad attitude who acts tough but really she's just scared. You have the philosopher who spouts out fortune-cookie comments whenever it's relevant and the massive hulking warrior who is all about pride and honor and fight-to-the-death and MAN! things. Possibly the only one who actually has some depth and I actually believe to behave like a real person would is Tom, the inventor. He really seems to pull his weight, takes everything in stride, is excited to learn and explore but is also terrified when he needs to be. He can pull of being excited and frantic at the same time. And then...*sigh*...you have Brie. There's no doubt about it, she's a Mary-Sue. A teenage girl from about the right time who can't do anything but has so much love in her that she's essential in saving the galaxy. She contributes very little and but everyone babies her and tells her how strong she really is, with the exception of Rynah who rightly calls her out at times. However, because Rynah is such a jerk to Brie that we can't get too mad at Brie for this. It's rare that a Mary Sue is called out for what she is and that is a little refreshing, but it's marred when Rynah's criticisms make her out to be a terrible person we don't want to listen to. By making Rynah look bad, it makes Brie look good by comparison and that's just manipulative. I didn't care for that detail too much.

Now, with sci-fi stories you are allowed a fair amount of creative license when it comes to planets. Here, however, we just have your basic serving of Zelda planets. What do I mean by that? I mean your typical environments that you'd encounter in almost every Legend of Zelda game. We're talking a jungle world, a water world, and ice world, a desert world...stuff we've seen a million times. At least make the water red or the ice green or...or something! It's the same basic planet set ups that we've seen in tons of different science fiction stories. You should branch out with your planets, have fun with them. Do a little research and find out what plants or animals could live in these places. Along with the planets, the plot is pretty typical too. It's a quest story. Find the things, save the world, stop the mustache-twirling villain...all of that. The villain is super boring in this thing too. He has no motivation, no reason for what he's doing beyond "I want power!" and he's extremely forgettable.

Now, that being said, there is heart in this book. It's supposed to be an homage, as I said before. A story where you can just turn your brain off and not have to think about it too hard. It's fun for the sake of fun. And I did have fun with this book. It wasn't a chore to get through at all, I actually found myself enjoying it. Solaris has a great personality to make up for Rynah's terrible one, Alfric is a riot, Tom's a pretty well developed character...there is stuff to like in this book. It's just too bad that some of it is only enjoyable ironically. Like the ending. I'm not going to spoil anything but...once you see the direction they go with the end...oh my gosh. So hilarious when it's not supposed to be. Enough out of me. Look it up for yourself.

Final Verdict
If you're a sci-fi fan, or someone looking into sci-fi for the first time, this book is fine. You'll like it okay. But this is definitely a book for the heart and not for the mind. It does have some serious flaws, some generic plot details, and not quite enough new material. If you want to check it out, feel free to do so just maybe check it out at your local library.

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next Time: Man, this town can NOT catch a break....

The Night Bird by Brian Freeman

For one last scary, post-Halloween hurrah, we have a murder mystery where being afraid kills you. Nice. The concept of phobias is always an interesting one and getting to the bottom of what drives peoples biggest fears is a fascinating idea. Mix that in with some typical yet fun mystery characters and you've got this book. Let's dive right in.

Dr. Francesca Stein's made it her goal to help those with life-crippling phobias. Her special treatments and use of hypnosis to make people's bad memories go away have worked wonders on hundreds of patients. However, her patients start dying in horrific suicides and Frankie is being stalked by someone called the Night Bird. Now homicide detective Frost Easton is on the case, and together he and Dr. Stein must catch the killer before he strikes again.

As far as mysteries go, this one is handled really well. It never gets overly complicated and readers can follow along just fine, picking up clues and figuring things out as they go. I admit, I didn't know where this was going most of the time. I was genuinely interested and didn't figure it out too soon, which is how mystery stories are meant to go. Admittedly I did figure it out a bit earlier than I was probably supposed to, but for the most part, I was intrigued. The story has just the right amount of elements in it to keep the reader's inner detective curious. It drops just the right hints at just the right time, it has red herrings to fool the readers onto the wrong track, and there's just the right amount of threat and urgency in the plot to keep the reader invested. In this department, it was quite a success.

I also got to really like the character of Frost Easton...despite his rather silly name. Most of these detective-types in mystery novel tend to fall into Gary-Stu territory, what with being overly perfect, knowing things they couldn't possibly know, and being able to knock out opponents twice their size. Frost, however, is very human. While he does have the traditional tragic backstory and he does brood about it from time to time, he's still comes off as likable. He's not the "don't get in the way of my investigation" kind of guy, he wants to help and doesn't judge. He has useful friends he relies on, he has a brother that he gets along with and loves, he doesn't jump into bed with any woman he meets, he's just...human. Also, he rents his home from his cat. You read that right.

Now, admittedly, the rest of the characters in this book are...a bit cookie-cutter. You know all these stereotypes from other mystery novels: the self-absorbed sister, the criminal that got away, the flamboyant gay guy, the husband who doesn't get enough attention, yada yada. Then again, this is mystery fiction, so it's kind of hard to blame them for this. You know who these characters are within five minutes of knowing them and can pretty easily picture what their role is and what place they have in the story. They're mostly just there to get the plot moving. The stuff involving Dr. Stein's personal story is probably the worst part, that tidbit I actually could guess and it's resolution left me a bit peeved, but the kind of peeved you get when you're invested so...there's that.

With this being a fictional story, you do have to allow for some creative license. For example, I'm not sure how sound some of the science is in this book, as in I don't know if this is something someone can actually do. There are times when both Frost and Dr. Stein make decisions that probably wouldn't work in real life...such as entering places without a warrant (yeah, that happens). However, it doesn't happen very often and, in one instance at least, there could be an argument for probable cause so it does check out.  Frost stays mostly by the book, but it's Dr. Stein who ends up making some of the dumb moves. But, again, it's to move the plot along so most of it is pretty forgivable, it didn't really bother me. The only thing that really did bother me, aside from the thing about Stein's forgotten past, is that the author really likes to wax poetic about the surrounding area during tense moments. When people are about to die and things are getting really intense, the last thing I wanna hear about is what the trees look like! There's a time and place for such things.

Final Verdict
A creepy baddie, a cool cop, and an interesting mystery are all pros this book has to offer, while stereotypes and poor decision making are its cons. Still, I was pretty entertained and nicely intrigued by this book and it did its job by bringing me along for the ride and letting me figure things out on my own. Overall, I'd say that this creepy tale is worth your money at your local bookstore.

Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Please make sure to Follow Midnight Readings for instant updates. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer

Next Time: Sassiest...spaceship...ever.