Tag Archives: samantha shannon

Kinda Review: The Mask Falling by Samantha Shannon

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I’m not going to say too much about The Mask Falling because I know that Kate hasn’t read it yet. I do try not spoil things for her (whether she likes it or not) but I will say it was very satisfying installment into the series. We get to see more of Scion outside of the UK and how far it’s reach is growing but also the cracks from within. Paige and Warden are now hiding out in Paris and it allows her to interact with new groups of voyants and non-voyants and discovers more about the Rephaim and tests her own relationship. So good.

What I did like the most is that in the back of the book was a review of the cast of characters and glossary. Before I started reading this book, I searched out recaps online because it’s been a couple of years since the last book came out and it’s so dense and has so many characters and needed a reminder of what has happened. I could have reread the previous books but I wanted to dive right in. Even with reading all the recaps it was still super helpful to have those resources right in the back of the book. I really do hope that more series follow suit because it was super helpful. I’m sure authors and publishers hope that readers will go back and reread the previous books in between releases but let’s be honest that is just not realistic. So why not devote a few pages in the back to character descriptions to help to jog readers memories. Especially series like this one that have so many characters and subplots. (looking at you Game of Thrones) In conclusion this was really good. It ended on quite a cliffhanger and who knows, I might go back to the beginning and read them all again since it’s probably going to be another three or four years before book five comes out.

Books We Can’t Wait to Read in 2020

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A new decade brings new books. From a YA fan the 2010’s left the dystopian sagas behind and really went in on Fantasy novels. There was so many great ones. So what does the next decade bring. Well, here are a few books I can’t wait to read in 2020.

  1. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins – A return to Panem but this time for the 25th Hunger Games or the games that Mags won. How does her story fit in with Katniss’? and How much am I going to cry knowing how it all ends for our girl Mags?
  2. Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland – The sequel to the fantastic Dread Nation. How will Jane and Katherine navigate the west after how everything ended and there are still zombies.
  3. The Tower of Nero by Rick Riordan – The final book in the Trials of Apollo and if the previous four to go by, it’s going to be an emotional roller coaster.
  4. The King of Crows by Libba Bray – Talk about a decade in the making, we finally get the last book the Diviner’s Series and I couldn’t be more excited.
  5. Untitled Book Four of The Bone Season Series by Samantha Shannon – It hasn’t been confirmed for 2020 but I’m putting it on the list and into the universe that it will come out.

What books are you waiting to read in 2020? Comment below with books we should check out next year.

Review: The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon

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song-rising**Spoilers.  I was lucky enough to get an Advance Copy of this book back in December.  Spoilers will happen in the review so be prepared.**

Well this is a game changer for the series.  We are getting to the Prisoner of Azakaban territory as we begin to expand the world and up the stakes.  Paige is now the Underqueen of the Unnatural Assembly but when Jaxon jumps over to the Rephaim side, she’s blindsided.  Not only does she have doubts about her abilities, her mentor is working with the enemies, giving them all of their secrets.  The Mime-Order’s partnership with the Ranthen is tenous at best.  She must first prove to the voyants that she is worthy to follow and to the Ranthen’s that she worthy to be funded.  After a disastrous mission to take down senshield, a device that can detect the auras of Voyants, Paige takes off to investigate leads in Manchester.  Trying to stay ahead of the evil military mastermind, Vance.  Nothing has been easy for Paige and that is definitely true but she really comes into her own.  Paige very much wants to what’s best for the voyant community and end Scion but she has to combat so many things.  She has to prove her worthiness to her people and to Ranthens.  Making things complicated is Jaxon, who many people still support and don’t believe that went over to the Scion.  Others see Paige’s youth as another drawback.  When Paige makes the mistake of acting on unproven intel and that makes sensheild even stronger, she has to move everyone underground.  Paige may not see it at the point but I think this was a pivotal point for her.  It proved her willingness to make the hard decisions but also it outsmarted her enemies.   Jaxon admits that even he couldn’t figure out where they disappeared too.  As the story plays out, we see more and more of cruelty of the Scion and how it’s not just the Rephaim who are committing it.  The introduction of Vance is an example of a human doing unspeakable things on other humans for advancement or for their own enjoyment.  It almost seemed like Vance sees her role as more of a game then anything else.  To me that makes her scarier then the Rephaim.  Samantha Shannon is getting better and better with each book.  It’s almost as a writer she is learning more about herself, as Paige is doing the same thing on the page.  The ending leaves as many answers as it does questions but also opens us to even more possibilities.  I will do my best wait patiently for book 4.

Top 10 Books I’m Looking forwarded to reading in 2017

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So 2016 is almost over.  Thank God or Oh No.  Who knows what 2017 will bring but we do know it will bring plenty of good books.  Here are 10 I’m really looking forward too.

pyromantic

  1. Pyromantic by Lish McBride. – I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of this one and it was everything I hoped it would. I can’t wait for it to come out in March so I can read again.
  2. A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas – The second book was one of my favorite books of this year and the way it ended makes me even more excited for it.  Feyre is back in the Spring Court with Tamlin but this time she knows who she is and who he really is.
  3. Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han – I didn’t even know this was even in the works when I read To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before and it’s sequel P.S. I Still Love You earlier this year.  I found the two books to be very charming and sweet.  I loved Lara Jean and Peter and I thought their story was over but I guess not.  I’m still holding out for Kitty novel. song-rising
  4. The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon – This is another book I got an early look at and for all of you still waiting, it’ll be worth it.  I’m going to re-read The Bone Season and The Mime-Order again before this one comes out.
  5. King’s Cage by Victoria Aveyard – Mare gave herself up to Maven and who knows what that sadistic bastard has planned for her.  Will Cal save her or will she save herself? Will Farley forgive her?  The rebellion continues
  6. The Untitled 3rd book of the Ember in the Ashes series by Sabaa Tahir- This is such an awesome series I can’t say enough great things about it.  Who knows what will happen next as Laia, Elias and Helene take on the Martials.
  7. Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth – This Veronica’s first book since the Divergent series ended.  No matter how you felt about Allegiant you have to admit that Roth is one brave storyteller.
  8. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor – If her last series, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, is anything to go by this one is going to be a real crowd pleaser!
  9. The Ship of the Dead and The Dark Prophecy by Rick Riordan – Rick Riordan has been on a winning streak lately with both his Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard and The Trials of Apollo series’.  Not only are they imaginative they are truly fun.  Riordan hasn’t been afraid to take on tough subjects and bring a diverse cast of characters to his books and make them both relatable and accessible.  It’s going to be a busy year for Percy Jackson.
  10. Silver Stars by Michael Grant – In this revisionist history story we met three brave women who are fighting in World War 2.  The end of the last book saw our three heroines have all survived their first battle but the war is still a few years from ending.  There are more battles to be fought before our heroines get to go home.

What books are you looking forward to reading in 2017?

The Novellas of The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

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on-the-merits I didn’t realize that Samantha Shannon published two novella’s in connection to her Bone Season series.  I was delighted that one of was Jaxon Hall’s infamous pamphlet. On the Merits of Unnaturalness.  Fans of the series will be familiar with the title as it is bases of the clairvoyant community and what made Jaxon a major player in the syndicate.  Under the pseudonym of the Obscure Writer, Jaxon goes through all the different types of Clairvoyance there is and grouped them in seven different orders.  This also created a hierarchy among the community by ranking orders by difficult and by rare each gift is.  I feel like this is a must read for fans of the books because it really clears up a lot of the different gifts that the characters have and how they relate to each other. It also explains why some are treated with more reverence then others.  We understand that Paige’s gift of dreamwalking is rare but not only that, it’s part of the seventh order so it makes her even more powerful among the community and having her in his gang, it makes Jaxon more powerful too.  It also cleared up more as to why the “vile augurs” were so despised and exiled to Jacob’s island.  I feel like I have a better understanding on the syndicate and Paige’s life after reading this.

pale-dreamer Speaking of understanding more about Paige’s life, the second novella is the The Pale Dreamer. It chronicles the early days of Paige in the Seven Seals.  She has only been in the gang for three months and so far on desk duty.  Aching to prove her worth, Paige gets a chance when a Poltergeist is set loose in London. We see that even three years before the action of the Bone Season, Paige was already brave, a little brash but a quick thinker.  Her powers are still raw but you can see the glimpse of her strong she will become.  This is also shows us why she goes by The Pale Dreamer. It was the name given to her by Jaxon himself.  It was the events depicted in the novella that lead her to becoming his Mollisher.  At the time the Seven Seals is only Jaxon, Nick, Eliza and Paige so we get the glimpse of their early relationship between these characters.  Also it lays the groundwork to the future conflict between Paige and Jaxon but also not that surprising as to why Nick and Eliza chose Paige over Jaxon at the end of The Mime Order.  It’s definitely worth a read for any fan but not necessary to enjoy the series as a whole as it doesn’t really add to the narrative.  It just fills out the world and Paige’s backstory a little more.  With a little less then a month before the release of The Song Rising, it’s a good read while you wait.

What I Can’t Wait to Read in 2016

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It’s 2016!  Happy New Years!!  A new year means new books!  And we love new books even if they just add to our TBR pile.  So here a 10 books that I’m super excited to read in 2016!

  1. The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater- The final book in the Raven Cycle and I couldn’t be more excited and dreading at the same time.  It is well documented about how much I love the series and Maggie as an author.  I can’t wait to see what will happen to Blue and the Boys but at the same time not ready to say goodbye.
  2. The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan – The first book in Rick’s new series The Trials of Apollo is going to be good.  I just know it.  For one thing Percy is back!  That’s really all I need to know.  I also hope it means that Leo is also back and happy and in love with Calypso.  That would be the best.
  3. Untitled by Sarah J. Maas – So the next book in the Throne of Glass series doesn’t have a title but hasn’t dampened my excitement for it.  Aelin has all but declared her intentions and now heading for home.  The real fight for Erilea is abou to get real.
  4. A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir –  An Ember in the Ashes was one of the books that I loved the most last year.  A mixture of historical fiction, dystopian and fantasy it was truly something refreshing.  I can’t wait to see what happens next.
  5. The Last Star by Rick Yancey – The final book in the 5th Wave series should be interesting.  The 5th Wave was full and real but the The Infinite Sea was a intriguing but not as entertaining.  Now that we know that who the aliens are and not things are really going to go down.  Not to mention the movie for the first book comes out soon and I’m quite interested to see how it transitions from page to screen.
  6. Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard – The Red Queen was the other book by a new author in 2015 that I really loved.  The other was Ember in the Ashes.  It was quite a debut.  I can’t wait to see what Mare will do now.
  7. Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare – It’s been over a year since Cassandra’s last series ended. She has filled the void with her novella series Tales from Shadowhunter Academy it hasn’t been the same.  Now we are moving from New York City to LA with Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorne five years after the end of The Mortal Instruments so of course the world is once again in peril and it’s mostly the Clave’s fault.  I do hope it’s better then the last 3.
  8. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas – I’ll admit that I was only so so on the first book but I think this series has real potential and I’m willing to give it a go.
  9. The Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan – Magnus and friends stopped Ragarnok from happening at least for now and now he’s going to have help from his cousin Annabeth.  (Annabeth is going to be very busy this year) We know from the last book that Thor lost his hammer and judging by the title that is going to be a major part of this book but he won’t be the only God as we also know that Loki has been pulling strings for a long time. Things should get interesting.
  10. The Song Rising by Samantha Shannon – Now I’m not sure if this book is really going to come out this year or not but according to Goodreads, it’s scheduled for 11/3 so *crosses fingers* Paige has taken over the syndicate only to be betrayed by her former boss.  It’s time to start a revolution against Scion but I have a feeling they won’t go down without a fight.

And so many more books I want to read and not to mention try to complete our reading challenges. It’s going to be a busy reading year.  How about you? What books are you looking forward to reading this year?

Update: Mime Order

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The Mime Order

So, I have finished The Mime Order. And, everything, everything, everything in this post is going to be full of spoilers for both The Mime Order and the first book in the series The Bone Season.

If you have read the books, please join us for discussion and wild speculation in the comments! Some of my thoughts about the book after the cut.

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