Cakes, breads, cheesecakes, cookies, scones, pizzas and many other decadent eats from around the world fill this book beginning to end. A must-have cookbook, especially if you’ve enjoyed watching The Great British Baking Show! Clear, concise instructions pair with beautiful photographs to tempt bakers everywhere, 5 stars!
SPOILER ALERT…
Nesta is falling off the edge so the Night Court members stage an intervention and give her an ultimatum, live at the House of Wind, train with Cassian two hours each morning then help the priestesses in the library every afternoon or be taken to and left in the human world. She grumbles and gripes but goes to the House of Wind. Eventually her walls begin to break down and Cassian is there to catch her if she falls or falters. Nesta makes friends with Emerie, an Illyrian shop owner, and Gwyn, a priestess in the library. Together they train and more priestesses join them, so Cassian enlists Azriel to help with the training. Nesta confides in Cassian about all the things that are breaking her spirit and making her feel as though she doesn’t deserve to live. She feels guilty about how she treated her father and Feyre, and all the hurt she’s caused by being snippy to Cassian and others. The Night Court members have discussed the Dread Trove, three items of great magical value.With the help of Azriel and Cassian, and an unlucky kelpie, Nesta retrieves the Mask and wakes the dead in the black lake when the kelpie threatens her life. She attends priestess services and listens to Gwyn’s beautiful voice amongst the congregation. While being swept away in the music, Nesta is transported to a chamber under the prison to where the Harp is hidden. She and Cassian go to the prison to retrieve the Harp and accidentally release Lanthys. The Harp and the sword Nesta accidentally magicked help her and Cassian slay Lanthys and escape the prison. The Harp transports them to Feyre’s front yard. Cassian is healed and takes Nesta in a hike to help her heal from her inner struggles. They become more than acquaintances with benefits and vow to be with each other forever. During the ball, Nesta dances with Eris to bring him to their side as a solid ally. She’s an amazing dancer and he’s taken with her and later sends a proposal offer to her through Rhysand.Nesta, Emerie and Gwyn are kidnapped and dropped off at the Blood Rite.
Nesta fights off the last of the competition during the Blood Rite while Emerie carries Gwyn to the top of Ramiel to touch the stone as the winners. The two are transported to Feyre’s home and their injuries immediately healed after touching the stone. Meanwhile, Cassian drops down by Nesta but he’s under the human crone queen’s control. She orders him to kill Nesta. Nesta calls to her powers and unmakes the queen so she ages backwards into nothing but ash. Cassian wakes up and is back to himself and flies them to Feyre’s home. They see that Feyre is dying from loss of blood as she’s trying to deliver her baby. Nesta makes a bargain with the Cauldron to give back what she took when she was made Fae if Feyre, the baby and Rhys could live. It works and most of Nesta’s power is taken but a small amount is left for her. Cassian and Nesta have an ornate mating ceremony, given to them by a very grateful Rhys. 5 stars! Wonderful writing, strong characters, amazing character development, suspenseful but a bit more vulgar than the previous books in the series.
Maddie is on her way to Havenfall to work under her Uncle Marcus. Havenfall is the place where the doorways to other worlds are connected and protected. On her way, Maddie meets Taya, who wants a landscaper job at Havenfall. Maddie’s family has been torn apart and she mourns her brother and mother. Havenfall is her sanctuary or has been until one of the realm walls cracks and evil escapes, harming her Uncle Marcus. This leaves Maddie in charge of Havenfall with enormous responsibilities of having to solve the problem and helping save Marcus and keep the peace among the realms. Everything is much more complicated than Maddie ever expected. She discovers treason, mistreatment and a history of kidnapping. She’s overwhelmed and as things keep being revealed, Maddie feels like her world is falling out from beneath her feet. Intrigue and surprises, 5 stars!
The new series, by Sarah J. Maas, opens with House of Earth and Blood which involves Bryce, half-fae/half-human and her world. The cover is beautifully complex!
In the beginning of the book, Bryce is trying to calm her wolf friend because of an injustice occurring, which let a criminal receive freedom. Bryce goes on a date with her human boyfriend and he ignores her the entire time, so she dumps him and leaves to party at a club with her friends. As Bryce returns home, she can tell something is off, even though she’s wasted. Once she reaches her apartment she finds her best friend and roommate, Danika, slaughtered, as well as the rest of Danika’s wolf pack. Briggs, the criminal that had been set free, is arrested for the murders because of evidence and motive. Two years later, the same type of murder takes place while Briggs is still in prison. Bryce is assigned to work with the police to help find the murderer. She reluctantly and grudgingly let’s them follow her around for her protection and she spends more time and energy being annoying, rude and wasting the police’s time when all she needs to do is give them a list of Danika’s whereabouts and who she spent the last week of her life around. This makes Bryce seem like a completely selfish brat. While she seemed to be wasting time, she was actually gathering information to share with the Angel protecting her. Eventually Bryce and Hunt, the Angel guard, work together and try to find answers to several mysteries, not just Danika’s death. They also become friends and more to each other. Things take a turn for the worst and Hunt feels like he will be a slave forever. Twists and surprises abound and make this first book in the Crescent City a great start to a promising new series, 5 stars!
Impressive sequel!
A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer
Rumors abound about and rewards are offered for the lost heir of Emberfall. Grey is working as a stable boy and goes by the name of Hawk. He mostly keeps to himself except for his stable companion and coworker, a young boy named Tycho. One night Grey tests out the silver bracelet Lilith gave him for transport into Harper’s world. He didn’t know if it worked anymore but when he touched the bracelet, he left the stables and when he returned, Tycho was staring at him. The ruthless leader that threatened Emberfall before has returned with her daughters to force Rhen into an alliance. The daughter named heir is like her mother while the other cares for people and their well being. Rhen brutalizes Grey and Tycho and the group escapes Emberfall because Grey unintentionally uses his magic. Grey doesn’t trust either kingdom or their rulers but the kind, wise daughter convinces the group to go to her kingdom despite worrying about her mother. A tremendous amount of character development bonded me with this story. I thought A Curse so Dark and Lonely was a wonderful read but this sequel is just as good! 5 stars for this impressive sequel that introduces even more great characters!
Surprise ending!
A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer is one of the best fairy tale retellings that I have read.
The writing demanded my attention from the first chapter and each chapter ends in a bit of a cliffhanger! I had to force myself to stop reading to go to bed. Harper is kidnapped but for reasons that are different from what she ever expected. She’s been kidnapped from Washington D.C. to help break a prince’s curse. Prince Rhen and his top guard, Grey, are the only two that know about the curse and the secret that Rhen is horrified about. Lilith cursed Rhen years ago and he’s turned into a violent monster every season since. Once he changes, he has no memory or control, and because of that he’s ending up killing the royal family, his family. Harper doesn’t like Rhen at first but she understands him better the more she gets to know him. Grey is an intimidating guard but a kind and caring soul. Each season, Rhen becomes a different creature but he’s always violent and ruthless. Harper helps Rhen and his kingdom by pretending to be a princess. A cruel ruler threatens to take over the kingdom and Harper and Rhen tell her that the princess’s father is sending reinforcements to stop her. Rhen, Harper and Grey continue to work together and become closer. This story is full of action, loyalty and bravery and ends in an intense surprise, 5 stars!
Fascinating information about our country’s past presidents!
Thanks to NetGalley And Bloomsbury Publishing for the opportunity to read and review Close Calls by Michael P. Spradlin.
A collection of short stories describes how eleven of past United States presidents escaped “from the brink of death”. The book begins with the threats to George Washington and continues throughout the centuries to the first President Bush. It seems that we learn about the assassinations only but never the attempts that aren’t successful or the other dangers presidents have been in. I never realized that JFK almost died in a boat crash while serving during World War II just as I hadn’t realized how many death threats President Lincoln received. Fascinating information and snippets of facts sprinkled throughout the book make it an interesting nonfiction read. 5 stars!
A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J. Maas is a book full of celebration and healing. Fun and lighthearted sums up the majority of this book, with the Solstice celebration and its traditions and the jovial manner of the way the Night Court members treat one another. I laughed at the snowball fight scene because I thought it was adorable and funny! Backstories are shared, which helps us understand the characters at a deeper level, with a sneak peek of the next book included at the end. 5 stars for this fun addition to A Court of Thorns and Roses series!
A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas, an exquisite addition to A Court of Thorns and Roses series! Feyre is residing in the Spring Court once again, for the sake of gathering helpful information for the Night Court. She’s hiding her true memories and feelings and has created false stories to help Spring Court residents think that Rhysand treated her horribly. This way, the Spring Court won’t suspect anything. Feyre plays her part extremely well, causing contention between Tamlin, Lucien, Ianthe and the sentries who began to lose respect for Tamlin and Ianthe. Feyre manages to get back to the Night Court and to Rhysand, with Lucien. The two of them helping each other’s survival against the Autumn Court heirs who are trying to kill Lucien and Feyre. Feyre is once again home with her Mate and friends. Now, together they must conquer Hybern and its king, who wants to control everything for his own benefit. Feyre and the rest of the Night Court finally figure out what happened to Nesta and Elain when Hybern used the Cauldron to turn the two of them into Fae. Nesta is connected to the Cauldron and can sense when it’s being used and Elain has become a seer. A menagerie of wonderfully interesting characters ally with the Night Court and together they take on Hybern and it’s king and all his evil. This third book in The Court of Thorns and Roses thrills just as much as the first two with action, romance and the beautifully created world that Feyre resides in. 5 stars!
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas opens as Feyre is trying to come to terms with the violence she endured and the choices she made Under the Mountain in helping rid the Faerie world of Amarantha. Tamlin proposed to Feyre, so planning their wedding has become a daily activity and she’s grateful for the help of Ianthe, a visiting High Priestess. On Tamlin and Feyre’s wedding day, Rhys bursts in and breaks up the celebration before vows are given. Rhys is there to claim the deal of Feyre spending one week out of every month with him in the Night Court. His first mission is for Feyre to learn how to read. Rhysand is priceless, with his lackadaisical attitude, cleverness and charm. He’s also showing tremendous patience, especially when he seems so alone. Tamlin has kept secrets from Feyre and has trapped her inside his manor, making her feel like a prisoner. Because of this, Feyre had an extremely dark, strong panic attack and Rhys’ cousin Mor saved her and brought her to Rhys. She’s now a resident of the Night Court. Rhysand made Feyre the Emissary to the Human Realm because she is a human that died and was given life by the seven High Fae Lords and will hopefully help bridge and build human-faerie relations. Rhys has given Feyre a specific mission to find and retrieve a special, hidden book that can give extreme power to the wielder. Rhys and Feyre become closer as they adjust to each other and try to overcome the evil threat to the Fae and Human Realms. A sequel full of action and suspense, A Court of Mist and Fury adds tremendous depth to this series and I cannot wait to start reading the next book; a well-earned 5 stars!
The Thought Spot 