The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Female empowerment in this tale of magic.

16yo Deka is worried that her blood is impure in a society that shuns those that are different. The village holds a ritual to know if a person is impure or not and it’s time for Deka’s participation. She lives alone with her weakened father who had an illness a few months ago; the illness that killed her mother at the same time. When her true nature shows itself while she’s protecting her village, everyone turns on her thinking she’s a demon. An emperor’s helper saves her and takes her to the capital to receive training to fight off death shrieks who wreak havoc on villages. Deka will discover more than her fate and the truth of who she is.

Likes/dislikes: I love the cover of this book. Deka’s strength is inspiring. Deka and Keita have a cute romance.
Mature Content: PG-13 for implied sexual assault.
Language: PG-13 for 23 swears, no f-words.
Violence: R for bloody deaths.
Ethnicity: Deka has dark skin and her father is pale with blonde hair. The Emperor has bluish black skin. People with dark brown skin, golden skin, pink skin, and every shade from deep brown to eggshell are mentioned.

A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Norse mythology based fiction!

Abused by her husband Vragi, 20yo Freya yearns to be free but she stays because her husband provides for her family members. But when Vragi receives an offer for her, Freya’s husband takes it and she becomes the property of Skaland and Snorri, their leader. Little by little, Freya learns about her heritage and her god given powers. When she grows so powerful that she sees fear in others’ eyes when they look at her, she wants to be somewhere where she’s not used as a weapon. Snorri’s son Bjorn vows to help her escape.

Likes/dislikes: I get frustrated with Freya’s stubbornness but understand that it keeps the story moving on. Bjorn is an interesting character with a background that’s a bit of a mystery. I enjoy the mythology entwined with the story.
Mature content: R for sexual content.
Language: R for 78 swears and 39 f-words.
Violence: R for bloody deaths and violence.
Ethnicity: mostly white with a dark skin man mentioned.

Ruthless Vows by Rebecca Ross

Posted on by lynndellwatson

A perfect ending to this historical fantasy duology!
Two weeks after 18yo Iris was forced to watch her husband struggle against a gas bomb in the attack on Avalon Bluff, she’s back in Oath living with her brother Forest. 19yo Roman is trapped in Avalon Bluff under Dacre’s watchful care with no memory of who he is or his past. Iris manages to get her hands on the Alouette typewriter in the museum and uses it to search for Roman or anyone who may be using one of the other two Alouettes. Roman unknowingly writes back and forth with Iris as he gets his memory back a little at a time. He also sends a warning that Dacre will be invading the area that Iris is staying at while writing war correspondence. Roman is terrified that Dacre will learn of his secret messages and Iris is terrified of an invasion.

Likes/dislikes: Beautiful story telling. I love the brave and loyal characters. A riveting story and I didn’t want to put the book down.
Mature content: PG-13 for nondescript implied sex
Language: PG for 7 swears and no f-words
Violence: PG-13 for bloody fights and bloody wounds
Ethnicity: The ethnicity falls to white.

Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross

Posted on by lynndellwatson

A perfectly enjoyable read!
18yo Iris works at a newspaper to help support her mother after her brother Forest was sent to war. She dropped out of college to work and she’s hoping for a promotion to columnist. 19yo Roman, Iris’ competitor for the columnist promotion, is rich and discovers that he’s been betrothed to a daughter of his father’s business acquaintance completely against Roman’s will. Iris and Roman have an unusual connection that he soon discovers but Iris is oblivious to. The mythological war soon takes over their lives and they have to fight to stay alive and get closer to the battle than they ever expected.

Likes/dislikes: I adore the slow burn romance. The fact that this book has very few swears is refreshing. I love Roman and Iris and enjoyed getting to know them and I also enjoyed the mystery of the letters.
Mature content: PG for kissing and implied sex, on page.
Language: PG for 5 swears and no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for grenade explosion in battle; bleeding from chemical weapons.
Ethnicity: Falls to white and the Bed and Breakfast owner has light brown skin.

Her Dark Wings by Melinda Salisbury

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Persephone and Hades retelling!

17yo Corey discovers that her boyfriend is cheating on her with her best friend Bree. This devastates her and she feels like they’ve been laughing at her behind her back the whole time. Corey is so hurt and angry that she wishes Bree would die and soon after, Bree drowns. Now Corey regrets her wish and wants Bree and their friendship back. When Corey thinks she sees Bree and chases after her, she falls into the Underworld and her life is turned inside out.

Likes/dislikes: I didn’t like Ali, the boyfriend, because of his selfishness. The character development is well done. Fantastic world building.
Mature Content: PG-13 for implied sex and underage drinking.
Language: R for 25 swears and 21 f-words.
Violence: PG for hitting.
Ethnicity: falls to white.

Find Him Where You Left Him Dead by Kristen Simmons

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Japanese mythology in a YA horror tale!

17yo Madeline is swimming laps in the empty pool when she sees a boy that shouldn’t be there. The boy looks like an emaciated Ian, her friend who died four years ago. Emerson lives for video gaming and when she sees a sickly Ian trying to get to her, she panics. Dax takes a break from playing his guitar at the coffee shop and while he’s in the bathroom, a ghost creeps out of the toilet and beckons him to gather The Foxtail Five. As Owen acts on stage, he sees Ian, so he runs after him and realizes that it’s not Ian. It’s actually a demon. The four friends meet up and learn they have to defeat seven challenges presented by Japanese Shinigami and receive a stone for each one before they can reach Ian and save him from the demonic spirits.

Likes/dislikes: I like the concept of the characters going on a quest to save their friend from the Japanese underworld. The book didn’t keep my interest like I thought it would. The creepiness made the story more fun.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Language: R for 32 swears and 5 f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody death.
Ethnicity: Madeline is Black. Ian and Emerson are white. Dax has brown skin. Owen is Japanese American.

Silver in the Bone by Alexandra Bracken

Posted on by lynndellwatson

I love this unusual King Arthur retelling!

Tamsin,17, and her brother Cabell are Hollowers. Their guardian Nash left them behind after taking them on hunting trips for artifacts and now they have to make it on their own. The two of them have been trying to decipher Nash’s journal and break the cipher so they can solve the mystery of what happened to him and rescue him. Tamsin realizes the artifact they’re looking for is the Servant’s ring and believes that they need to travel to Avalon, King Arthur’s resting place, to find the ring and Nash. They find their way to Avalon in the company of prestigious Hollowers who have their own agendas falling headfirst into danger beyond anything they expected and into the unknown that will change everything.

Road of Bones by Christopher Golden

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Cold, spooky and dangerous!

A documentary producer, Teig, takes his partner, Prentiss, to the area in Russia known as the Road of Bones and the prisoner gulags of Stalin’s time. One of the coldest places on earth. The two travel and meet the guide then continue on traveling the road of bones. They reach the community where the guide is from and find abandoned homes and bare footprints leading out of doors into the snow. The guide’s niece is catatonic from what she’s seen. The group sees movement in the trees and are soon attacked. Large wolves kill the guide, injure Prentiss and chase the truck the men are escaping in with the niece and a woman whose SUV broke down on the road. They reach the small community where they’d eaten earlier and enter the same building as the wolves come closer. More injuries and more people either die or slowly transform into antler people. The few survivors bargain with the supernatural leader, the parnee, to save the rest. Cold, spooky and dangerous.

Russian history mixed with the supernatural!

Daughters of Nri by Reni K. Amayo

Posted on by lynndellwatson

Twins, stolen and separated!

Naala gets reprimanded for getting dirt all over her wedding gown that Gini designed and sewed. Sinai is trying to avoid a bully. These two young women are twins separated soon after they were born and they have no idea that the other one exists. Twins are forbidden and usually killed because the leader has heard a prophecy that twins will be his undoing. The girls’ parents were royalty, also unknown to them. Their mother died after giving birth to them and their father planned on keeping them safe afterwards but the girls were stolen and their father died of a broken heart. Now Naala and Sinai are living separate lives and know nothing about each other, their parents or the prophecy. Naala has just escaped the slaying of her village and is living on the run with other survivors of Eze’s army. Sinai has made a pact with a magical older lady and now she’s supposed to be spying on Eze. The mythology was all new to me since I didn’t have much background knowledge of the specific culture and I enjoyed learning about that. I would have liked more action and development of the characters but still a good read, 4 stars!

Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye

Posted on by lynndellwatson
Jam-packed with action!

A young woman is searching for evidence of her mother in unmarked graves. Sloane knows that the Nightwalkers are responsible for her mother’s disappearance and she wants the proof. She’s caught by a Nightwalker and attacked. She unleashes her Scion power to save herself and burns him to ash in the process. Her identity as a Scion has to be kept secret or the rulers will kill her. She runs home to her grandfather, Baba. He has news that one of her friends ran from the draft and was killed because of it. Now three more people will be sent draft letters. She’s one of them, along with her best friend Teo. Teo has saved money and planned for the two of them to run if they are drafted. He shows Sloane his plan but she knows he’ll get killed if they run. To get him to drop his plans, Sloane threatens to turn him in. He walks off. Sloane is drafted, along with her bully Malachi. Malachi hates Sloane and wants revenge on her because she accidentally killed his family in a fire that she started. As the story continues, Sloane discovers secrets about her mother, finds possible allies and learns that not everyone is as they seem or appear to be. She also has to lose some of her humanity and empathy to sacrifice and do her part in becoming a hardened soldier. So many surprises and twists pop up in this book, making it a fast-paced read that’s also jam-packed with action and acts of violence. Sloane’s world is brutal and she makes some horrible choices to stay alive. 4 stars!