Ash Princess by Laura Sebastian

One person gets an idea that takes off, a lot of other people admire the idea and either want to jump on the bandwagon and cash in on the idea, or take the idea and remake it in their own way that they think is better. This is the difference between a rip off and an homage, at least in my book. Heart and passion are what makes an old concept still entertaining and not just playing the formula for your shot at fame. I've expressed my irritation with the "girl starts revolution" genre a couple of times now, but because there's not a lot of heart in a lot of those stories I've come across. Still, I keep turning to these books for a reason, so let's see how this latest piece holds up, shall we?

Theodosia witnessed her country overthrown, her people enslaved, and her mother murdered all before her eyes. Kept as her country's hostage, she's raised in the court of her enemies lead by the ruthless Kaiser, to be punished and humiliated for all to see as the trophy of her people's defeat. Theo must do everything she can to stay alive for her people's sake, but their moral is crumbling after the leader of the rebellion is defeated. But the rebellion soon finds her and Theo knows that it is time to bring life back to the remnants of her people and light the fires of war.

So, off the bat, while this story is familiar with today's dystopian, fantasy, rebellion type stories...I didn't hate this book. At all. In fact, I actually liked it pretty well. Now, here's why...while the story is familiar and we've heard a lot of stories like this in recent years, there's heart here. I can feel this being a passion project and the author trying to tell a good version of a story and not just the same story over and over again. While some of it was predictable, I didn't know where it was going every time. Each character brought something interesting to the story, the plot was full of intrigue, and world-building was well done too.

Theo is a character in an interesting predicament. She knows she's in a prison and her life is made up with defense mechanisms in order to survive this horrible world she's stuck in. As horrible as her prison is, it's what she's known ever since she was a little girl. That's her big struggle, to break out of her painful prison even after it's become comfortable for her. She's forbidden to know what the state of her people is and her captors are cleverly putting a wedge between her and them, making her no longer seem like one of them and, therefore, not a rallying point. However, when presented with the option to flee to anywhere that would have her, she refuses to just give up her title as her people's queen, making it her choice to stand and fight when others would just be happy to get her out of there.  It's not a bad idea. Little clever touches like that make this story work. There's a lot of thought put into this set up and that's what sets it apart.

Now, I'm not going to pretend it's flawless or just try to defend it too much. There are flaws in this story and I have every intention of addressing them. For instance, I have trouble believing that the Kaiser's son, the Prinz, would grow up in this conqueror's society and come out as the perfectly friendly, helpful, peace-loving person he's portrayed to be. That's a little forced. There's also the familiar "plan" set up that I've talked about before. Talking at length about the plan, going over the plan, figuring out the plan and then me checking my watch wondering when this perfect "plan" is just going to fall apart while the plan that actually works is kept a mystery. That's something I'm never going to excuse. There is also, of course, a romance subplot that's...kinda sorta a love triangle but isn't really. It isn't even a love angle, as most of them really are. It's not a lone girl pining over which perfect and handsome boy she should choose. Each have their own stories and flaws and reasons why she shouldn't consider either of them. It's handled better than I've seen before but, I still kinda wish we could have just scrapped it altogether.

Unlike books like The Hundredth Queen  or Reign of the Fallen or Red Queen, all of which were starting points of a new series that I had no interest in after reading the first, I actually kinda do want to see where things will go in the next book. I want to know what Theo's next move is, I want to see their enemies destroyed, I wanna see what the Prinz and Cress end up doing. Maybe it'll disappoint, maybe it'll be friggin' amazing, I have no idea. For whatever reason, this one got me and so you'll get my money for a least one more book.

Final Verdict
Despite a familiar set up and "girl starts revolution" burn out, I find myself actually enjoying this one. It's well written, the characters are interesting, the build up and pay off were well done. If you're still all for these types of books, I'd say check it out...but maybe 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

If you would like to read my book, Powerless, you can find it at:

Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Powerless-Shelley-Miller/dp/1543482546/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519062043&sr=8-1&keywords=powerless+by+shelley+miller

Xlibris: https://www.xlibris.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-001175242

Next Time: Monsters, danger, madness...it must be Halloween...in Holtur

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

I've been sorely tempted by Ms. Black's works in the past, but never actually managed to get to one of them considering my staggering To-Read list (and the one on goodreads is just the tip of the iceberg). But I was seeing this book everywhere since it came out. Everyone was talking about it. Everyone was promoting it. So I decided to see for myself. Let's see if this is worth all the hype. Let's see if it really is as good as people have been going on and on that it is.....and it is. Let's dive right in.

Jude, the twin sister Taryn, and their older half sister Vivienne were snatched from their home at a young age by Vivi's faerie father, the Red Cap Madoc. Madoc adopts Jude and Taryn and takes them into his home, raising them and caring for them, and giving them some semblance of a family. But Jude and Taryn are humans in a faerie world, where everything is riddles and tricks and the two of them are deeply unwelcome. Most especially by Prince Cardon, youngest son of the High King, whose seems to make it his goal in life to punish Jude for existing. But Jude soon gets hopelessly wrapped up in faerie politics and it's going to be up to her to secure the future of her home.

This book was a wonderful roller coaster full of witty characters, a good protagonist, twists and turns, beauty and brutality. Now more than ever I'm kicking myself for not looking into the works of Holly Black earlier then I might not have doubted so much. I mean dang, I had a great time with this. It's no surprise that Black knows her stuff about Celtic lore and stories of the fae, and the way she captures the magnificence and the danger is just expertly done. The faerie world lives and breathes with its own rules and dangers. It just feels so alive and so perfectly at ends with out own world (which we do occasionally see).

Jude, as the main character, could have gone into Mary Sue territory, but cleverly avoids it by being vulnerable and not always winning. That's Jude's frustration. She both wants to be a part of Faerie but also wants to beat it. She's not looking to blend in and survive, she wants to thrive and succeed. She wants to impress her foster father, she wants to stick it to Carden, she wants to be acknowledged...and the fact that she's mortal and easily bested by their powers is frustrating beyond belief. But she has an edge...she can lie. Faeries cannot. And boy does she use it to her advantage. You can look at a lot of things that Jude does in this book and see her as a terrible person, but she's relatable and sympathetic and has good intentions enough that you don't hold the things she does against her. She's marvelously complex.

The creatures and other characters make for an exquisite cast that is just a ton of fun and interesting to boot. Madoc who loves bloodshed but makes for a truly kind father figure, Locke who loves to see things in motion, Prince Dain who takes an interest in Jude and runs the mysterious Court of Shadows, Vivi who loves the human world and wants only to escape back and take her sisters with her, they're all really cool. The only one I had any problem with was the cruel prince himself, Carden, and that's mostly because...I saw through him. Before I even picked up the book, I saw it. Now, that's not a bad thing, exactly. It just wasn't the big reveal it probably wanted to be.

That being said, there are plenty of big reveals in this book that I didn't see coming at all. I had to pick my jaw up off the floor twice from this little baby. Good plot twists are getting harder to find and the fact that this book did it twice speaks to the level of talent this woman has. Kudos.

Final Verdict
This book was totally worth the hype. Great characters, a fast and intriguing plot, tension, drama, just a fantastical and wonderful time that I'd say is totally 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

If you would like to read my book, Powerless, you can find it at:

Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Powerless-Shelley-Miller/dp/1543482546/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519062043&sr=8-1&keywords=powerless+by+shelley+miller

Xlibris: https://www.xlibris.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-001175242

Next Time: Out of the ashes, she will rise....

Royal Replicas by Micheal Pierce

I need to apologize to The Selection. I called it out as being too familiar to the TV reality show The Bachelor and not original enough and...well, it still is but this book here could probably give it a run for its money in how much we're relying on the dynamic of reality television to sell an idea. Let's just get this started.

Victoria Sandelwood was raised in the 24th ward with a spineless stepmother and an abusive stepfather who beats her. She's also stalked by a mysterious boy who says they have a history together but she doesn't remember it at all. One day a message arrives for her with revealing new information, that she's the surrogate daughter of the Queen and she is to travel to the 1st ward to become the new Princess Amelia and marry a prince...along with six other girls who look exactly like her. Victoria must compete with the other clones to win the affections of Prince Byron and also the crown of Westeria, but the competition is more than it seems and secrets are around every corner, threatening Victoria and the other girls with more than just a return trip home.

Okay, so when a book honestly tries to relate itself with Twilight, I'm going to have issues with it. (Seriously, there's a scene in here where she freaking reads Breaking Dawn and wishes her relationship could be like Bella and Edward's...I'm not kidding!) This book just lacked so much in originality. Color-coding the girls so we could tell them apart, having the catty mean one who is super possessive with the prince, the love triangle where the two guys involved have to be stupid for liking this devoid-of-personality-girl (OMGosh, it IS just like Twilight!). Even some little details of the book just so generic. Her favorite book is Pride and Prejudice...because of course it is. Her stepfather beats her with a switch, leaving marks, and being super creepy and possessive...despite the fact she knows he could one day be royalty and have his sorry behind executed because she freaking felt like it...naturally. There was nothing that said "original" or "new" about it and it just made me sad...and irritated.

Now, it's not like this book was devoid of hope from the very beginning, it wasn't. There was potential here, but I think the issue lies in the execution. It plays it's cards way too soon (I'll come back to this little tidbit) and the pacing was just...strange. Victoria has a terrible encounter with her stepfather...and in the next second we're admiring out pretty dresses and reading Pride and Freaking Prejudice for the billionth time. We find out the queen isn't what she seems and then we've discovered a horrible secret...then it's date night with our super handsome prince man! It just doesn't seem realistic. If I learned half the things that Victoria does, going on dates and having slumber parties with my new "sisters" would be the last thing on my mind!

Yeah, we need to talk about The Bachelor references in this book. Now, I'm not the biggest fan of the show (if I watch it then it's background noise while I do something else and still end up hating the final choice anyway). That being said, I've seen enough of it to know that what you find in this book is borderline copyright infringement. I'm serious, all the cheesy lines from the show are here. "I'm certain my future wife is in this room." "Can I steal him from you for a second?" "I'm looking for my one true love." Even the tacky date cards with the stupid puns are in here!

Now, the major stuff I want to talk about is going into some serious spoiler territory, so I'm putting up the alert and, if you wanna skip it, go down to the Final Verdict.

*SPOILER ALERT* So, there's a twist in the book that I kind of figured out right away. Each of these girls is a clone of the original princess, yes? So what happens to the ones who are not going to be picked to be the new princess? Well, they die of course. Now, one of the girls figures it out at about halfway into the book and rats out the Queen in front of everyone. Now, here's my problem...this is a horrible way to announce this kind of plot twist. If all the broads on the tv show were told they'd either win this guy's heart or die they would NOT be sitting around swimming and sowing and reading and whatever generic crap hobby they give each girl. They'd run for the freaking hills! They'd try to off themselves before the Queen can do it first. They'd...do something! These girls don't try anything. They just sit around and turn down escape attempts...nothing! It's implied that one of the girls tries something, but she freaking survives. What is the point of that!? You've set up all these dark implications and you're not using them! Plus, we sit around for four weeks with all of these pointless girls just sitting around and doing nothing. Hey! Here's an idea. If you want to be The Bachelor so much...why not have Rose Ceremonies!? It's the only thing they don't have. Have a girl eliminated every week only to find out that, instead of being sent home, she's actually eliminated! How much more impactful would that have been!? What a better way to discover this plot twist! Have your stupid date cards and your fantasy dates and find out the dark truth in such a horrible way! Missed opportunities all around in this thing and it just annoyed the crap out of me.*END OF SPOILERS*

Final Verdict
As much as I complained about this book, the truth is it's just not for me. I don't like reality dating shows, I'm sick of "girl-starts-revolution" plot lines, and I'm just tired of it all. If you're the type of person who does like those things, you might end up liking this book just fine...just 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

If you would like to read my book, Powerless, you can find it at:

Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Powerless-Shelley-Miller/dp/1543482546/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519062043&sr=8-1&keywords=powerless+by+shelley+miller

Xlibris: https://www.xlibris.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-001175242

Next Time: Man, Faerie folk can be real jerks....

Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman

Seeing as this book's predecessor was my favorite book of last year, this one had a lot to live up to if it wanted to impress me. Unlike movie sequels, I have a bit more faith in book sequels and went into this one with optimism. Well, not only did I find this book as good as the first one...it might actually be better! Let's dive in.

A year has passed and Scythe Anastasia, formerly known as Citra Terranova, has made a name for herself with her unique way of gleaning. At the same time, the allusive Scythe Lucifer, who punishes unlawful scythes, evades capture. But there are plans laid out throughout the Scythdom with the intent to see the two junior scythes put in their place. A wicked scheme that threatens the lives of Citra's mentor, Honorable Scythe Curie, and all the while the all-powerful Thunderhead observes, forbidden to interfere, but finds a way regardless.

Boy, this book was a rush! It was jam packed with action and twists and surprises and I just loved it! The intelligence of these books never ceases to amaze me, not to mention Shusterman's brilliant writing. Not only is the plot creative and the characters well developed, but there's a wonderful cheekiness to his writing as well. An almost dry sense of humor that keeps even the exposition and descriptions fun to read. The world building is some of the most well done that I've seen in a long while, covering just about every aspect of this world that it is possible to explore and keeping it engaging.

While we get the much welcomed returns of Citra and Rowan, we also get a couple of new characters that we get to meet and follow in this story. Firstly is Greyson Tolliver, a very ordinary young man who was practically raised by the Thunderhead and finds himself at its whims. Greyson is a humble guy who only wants to do what's right and show his appreciation to the Thunderhead, but often finds himself in very strange and often dangerous circumstances. He's probably the most human of all the characters, at the whims of an uncontrollable force and just trying to find some clarity. The other big character introduced (kinda) in this book is the Thunderhead itself. We hear what it has to say about situations, how it deals with the humans it has sworn to protect, and find that it has a personality of its own. We get to know the Thunderhead and why and how it works. It is fascinating to see and I actually really enjoyed the bits with it.

The plot of this book is a massive roller coaster, throwing "unsavory" people, a revenge plot, a political take over, and many more. Each one finds our characters, mostly Rowan, Citra, and Greyson, using all the wits and determination they possess to protect the scythodom and mankind from an upcoming catastrophe. This book also includes the return of "new age" scythe idealists and perhaps one of the most heinous, jaw-dropping, horrific acts preformed by a villain I've seen in a Young Adult book in a long while. It is a really ballsy move and absolute kudos to the author for that. I won't give anything away, in fact, I can't go much further without giving anything away, including an ending that will make the wait for the third installment that much more painful.

Final Verdict
I love it, I love it, I love these books so much! Brilliant writing, amazing characters, a thrilling plot, just...just everything was awesome! Book three can't come any sooner but, in the mean time, this little baby is going right on the Shelf or 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

If you would like to read my book, Powerless, you can find it at:

Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Powerless-Shelley-Miller/dp/1543482546/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1519062043&sr=8-1&keywords=powerless+by+shelley+miller

Xlibris: https://www.xlibris.com/Bookstore/BookDetail.aspx?BookId=SKU-001175242

Next Time: Will you accept this crown?