Tag Archives: YA

Review: I, Medusa by Ayanna Gray

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The myth of Medusa has been having a moment lately. I have seen a lot of discourse about how Medusa wasn’t the monster that she is portrayed as in the original stories but a victim. Even reframing her as a feminist heroine. This book takes on her myth from Medusa’s point of view. From her childhood as the only mortal child of minor Gods to priestess to monster. It was a tough read to be sure. Medusa is a very sheltered young woman. Her family is trapped on their island, and they cannot leave. What she knows of the outside world is what washes up on the shores. Things start to change when she accidentally kills the fiancé of her sister. This interaction introduces her to the Goddess, Athena, who is impressed with her honesty and gives her an opportunity to train as one of her priestesses in Athens. She moves to Athens and falls in love with the city but is also overwhelmed by so much of the injustice. In her time, she learns to navigate the politics of the temple and, in her naivety, makes some pretty terrible mistakes. During a festival, she leaves her friend to go to the restroom. She falls asleep and is rescued by a young man who escorts her home, but she left her friend behind. I’m sure you can guess as to what happens, and in the first moment of how cruel Athena can be, her friend is dismissed because she is no longer “pure,” even though she is the victim. Medusa will find herself in the same situation when Poseidon becomes interested in her. You know the story. Poseidon rapes her; Athena, who can’t punish Poseidon, punishes Medusa. Giving her hair of snakes and can turn anyone into stone. Her sisters stand up to Athena, and they are also turned into the same monsters. They soon take their revenge on any man that comes to their island, but Medusa is never really much into it. When her friend from Athens comes ashore, she realizes she wants more. They leave the island and start a new life, but Medusa realizes she cannot give up her rage and how it will get her friend and lover in trouble, so she leaves and goes back to the island, where she will live until she is murdered by a male “hero.” This really is a good illustration of how rape culture continues to endure over millennials. As an adult reading, I can see all the mistakes she makes and know instantly what terrible thing is going to happen because of it, because I have grown up being taught how to avoid these exact situations. This is a really harrowing book to read but I do feel it necessary.

Review: Fate Breaker by Victoria Aveyard

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I do love an unabashedly good fantasy novel. Multiple POV’s, magic, mythical creatures, an obvious bad guy, and an obvious good guy. Coryane and crew are in retreat and spread across the ward after the attack against Taristan goes very wrong. All is not lost, though. Coryane survived and has Taristan’s sword. Andrey has made allies with Valtik’s people. Charlie finds a spin, and Dom, Sigil, and Sorasa, have wreaked havoc on Erida’s castle. In the first half of the novel, our heroes are separated from each other and have to work to get back together. This gives each character a chance to grow and come into their own. For Corayne it was finding the strength in herself. She discovered that not only can she take care of herself, but she can also inspire others to help. This found family is strong, and they show that throughout the story. They may despair at times, but they never question each other. As for Erida and Taristan. We start to see a role reversal in them. Erida, becomes more obsessed with power and will do anything to get it. Taristan, was once like that, but discovered that Erida was the one thing he would give up power for. Twists and turns throughout the book kept me invested and had a satisfying ending to an entertaining trilogy. I look forward to what Victoria Aveyard does next.

Review: The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco

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I understand why this was such a talked-about book when it came out years ago. It’s very intriguing. In her grief of losing her brother, Fox, she finds out she is a Bone Witch by accidentally raising her brother back to life. She tells her story to a Bard while in exile. We do not know what she did to be exiled, but we know that she is someone with extraordinary powers. Tea tells her story from when she raises Fox, through her training as a Bone Witch. She is a little bit of an unreliable narrator because the events are all coming from her perspective. What we do learn is that she is someone who definitely chafes a little bit at authority and often questions her mentors. She also has a good sense of what is right and wrong and is a bit inflexible at times. She also has a lot of power and likes the power. A recipe for going rogue. I do like the world-building of this story. The witches are kind of like geishas in a way. They are trained in the arts and entertain in the tea houses. They are also trained in martial arts. Bone witches are revered but also feared. Makes sense because they can raise and control the dead, but they also have an important role in combating the Daeva, dragon-like creatures that, left unchecked, can destroy cities. I am intrigued to see where this series goes because we do not learn why she was exiled, but we get a little bit of a clue with one cliffhanger of an ending.

Review: The Ruined by Renee Ahdieh

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***Contains Spoilers from this book and possibly from the series as a whole.***

I want to say first that as a whole, I enjoyed this series. I found it to be very entertaining with some interesting characters. That being said, I didn’t like the final book. The Ruined is fine but to me, definitely the weakest of the books. In picks up, right after the end of the Righteous and our main characters are all separated. Celine is with her mother, who was just shot. Bastien is with the dark Fey, Arjun, is in mourning because Poppy is thought to be dead because she was last seen being bitten by a werewolf and carried away. That’s the problem. They all spent the entirety of the novel away from each other. In particularly, Celine and Bastien, they have only one chapter in the book that they have an actual conversation with each other. The rest of the book, they are either in different places or just happened to be in the same room. What made these books work for me, was their chemistry. Their witty banter back and forth. Even in the second book when Celine had lost her memories, they still had that chemistry and it was very much was lacking in this book. As for Arjun and Poppy, we get a couple of chapters from their POV’s, they get reunited and then not seen again until the end and even then, they barely had anything to do with the final battle. That’s a shame, because with Poppy beating the odds and not surviving a werewolf bite but turn into one. So much could have been explored in her transition and we got none of that. Not to mention, the Court of Lions are completely missing for the final battle for the most part, even though it takes place in New Orleans. In fact they are pretty sidelined for the whole book. We never really got a sense of what Odette is feeling after what she had been through. It’s just disappointing, that a good series ended like this. I do appreciate that after all that Celine and Bastien did to each other and to others, that they didn’t just get the stereotypical happy ending. The deserved to face the consequences of their actions but also leaves things open should the story want to continue.

Review: A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw

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I didn’t know much about this book when I started it. I got it as a part of a mystery bag I bought last year at NYCC. That’s what I love about getting books like this because they can surprise you. I am not sure I would have picked it up on my own. Vega is the Astronomer. Like her mother before her and her mother before her, she is the only one who can read the stars. The world has been consumed with sickness and it is said that the Astronomer will read the stars and save them. The action begins when Vega sees two stars in the sky that were not there before. This is the sign. She must find the Architect to take her to the see. A couple of issues. She doesn’t know how the Architect is and she has also never left her home in the valley. She runs into Cricket and then Noah, who help her out but there is a group of men, who will do anything to find her. The Theorist, basically a gang but run by a man who obsessive in finding the Astronomer because he more then anything wants to save himself. Vega, who has been sheltered her own life, is very brave. She doesn’t hesitate when she sees the stars even though her mother just died because she knows what’s at stake. Despite all the advisory she faces, she never wavers from her mission and keeps going. The twist at the end, I’ll admit, I did not see coming and the ending does leave it open for a sequel. The part of me that wants a happy ending hopes there will be but I also do like an open-ended ending. Life keeps going no matter what happens. Even in fiction.

Review: The Righteous by Renee Ahdieh

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Poppy is on the case. Everyone should have a friend like her. When Celine goes missing, she will literally go through a looking glass to find her. Arjun just wants to save a friend. Picking up after the end of The Damned. The Court of Lions are reeling from the fight with the werewolves. Odette is barely hanging on to life and Celine and Bastien are in the among the Fae to escape the the French detective who came to take her back to Paris. Poppy knows something strange is going on. She witnesses Michael wolfing out but what she really cares about is Celine and finding her before she gets married. Following Arjun, she crosses over to another world and to save her, Arjun pretends they are engaged. I do love a fake engagement trope. I got the vibes these two had chemistry and were stoked to read their adventures. I was not disappointed. I enjoyed their witty banter back and forth. Poppy may seem like your typically British aristocrat but she has real grit. Just like everyone, she has a secret and will do anything to save her family. Which makes sense since she will do almost anything to save her friend. It shouldn’t surprise you that they fall in love. Things don’t turn out the way they hoped and now peace between the fae courts is broken. Celine is about to enter in her villain era and I’m here for it. I can’t wait to pick up the final book in the series because it’s going to be a wild ride.