Review: The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever

The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This novel starts when Miranda Cheever is ten years old and meets Viscount Turner for the first time. He is kind to her where others have not be and she falls in love. Instead of growing out of the childhood love she remains in love with him. Turner does not realize this until after his wife dies and he finds himself drawn to her.

While I enjoyed the novel, I felt like Turner was a bit slow.

I liked the story for the most part, I just didn't find it as fun as I would have liked from a Julia Quinn novel.

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Review: Silk Is for Seduction

Silk Is for Seduction by Loretta Chase
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book had me smiling to myself as I read the funny interplay between a determined dressmaker and a Duke who wants nothing more than to seduce her and send her on her way. Little do they know that won't happen. I however, did know that they would not walk away from each other the way they thought they would. Historical Romance is predictable in the on the way to the alter plot. This one had plenty to keep me smiling and laughing as it made its way to the ending.

Marcelline Noirot is determined she will be the dressmaker for the Duchess of Clevedon, so she sets on to convince the Duke of Clevedon to have his future fiance come to her shop. She does not count on the Duke being handsome and clever. They both get more than they realized when they come to a clash of wills. Really a fun read.

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Review: The Luckiest Lady in London

The Luckiest Lady in London by Sherry Thomas
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the first historical romance I've read by Sherry Thomas. I've read her young adult series, The Elemental Trilogy and I liked the characters, setting, and plot for that a lot. I did not care for this novel nearly as much as I did the young adult fantasy.

I wasn't sure about the attraction between the characters. Sure, there is something but it didn't seem to be enough to have them tripping over themselves to the alter.

What I did like about this book was the use of dreams and imagined touches. The dialogue between the characters could be tantalizing. However, I didn't feel it enough to make the story come to life. I liked the book but I didn't find myself smiling as I was reading it.

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Review: The Queen of Blood

The Queen of Blood by Sarah Beth Durst
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book. It felt a little like a mix between young adult and adult fantasy. After a horrific attack on her village, Daleina, who has an affinity with the spirits, decides to become a queen of Renthia. She wants to protect the people and make sure no one has to live through what she did in her village.

The world created in this book reminds me a little of the spirits in some of Miyazaki's films. However, the spirits are not kind in this world. They are bound not to hurt the humans, but they desire to hurt them and sometimes they do.

Ven is a disgraced Champion of the realm and he is in Daleina's village after the attack happens. Later he picks her as his candidate for Queen. Ven also recruits Hamon, a healer, to travel with them. There was a little romance, but it didn't take over the story the way it does in some novels. This was a story about the conflict between spirits and humans, and the romance helped develop the characters but it did not become the story. I appreciated that. I'm looking forward to reading the next in this series.

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Review: Golden Son

Golden Son by Pierce Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was happy with the ending of the first novel Red Rising, and appreciated not feeling the need to read the second one immediately. I get burned out on stories if I read them back to back. That isn't always the case, but it happens often. This book has a little more of a cliff hanger ending, but I'm not in a rush to get the next novel. I think I'll enjoy mulling this one for a while. It added to the story in a way I wasn't expecting.

Darrow is one badass character. He is willing to get dirty, and he is human. He makes mistakes in this novel. He made mistakes in the first novel, but they didn't seem the same as the ones he makes in this one. Here I saw him more as someone lost and looking for a way to find who he is, and why he should continue. I'm not sure he figured it out by the end. He does have a mission/purpose, but is that going to be enough to get him through. Darrow had friends in the previous novel, but here he feels more alone. I'm hoping he finds those friends and relationships again.

I'm invested in the story and looking forward to the next novel. I absolutely love the world.

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Review: The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I found the writing style of this the book to be a bit difficult. At times I had a hard time guessing if it was a memory, something happening currently, or if it was a reflection on something past or something recent. The novel jumps around quite a bit. Also, quotation marks... What happened to them? Sometimes they were there, sometimes they weren't. This was a style choice, and one I understand. However, it did add to some confusion for me.

The Handmaid's Tale is part dystopian and part historical (at least in feel). I liked the mix. As with any political novel, I saw echos of past events as well as current events. I've very glad I don't live in this world. I am glad I read the novel. I was surprised by the calm way the story was told. Offred has a short moment of upset that bleeds through into the narration, but for the most part the emotion is removed from the story, and you feel separated from the actions. I liked that aspect of the story, and I know I related to the story more as a result.

Offred was an engaging narrator. Sometimes I wanted more details, but she likely didn't have much. The Handmaids were isolated and segregated on purpose. The Republic of Gilead is not a kind place for women, even though it tries to brainwash the women into thinking they are empowered through reproduction. Offred knows this is not true, and as a Handmaid she struggles with the mix of old she remembers and the new constraints and expectations placed on her.

This is a novel I will consider and think about for a while. It may be taken as a cautionary story by many, but I didn't see it that way. The Republic of Gilead feels close to our reality, but I don't see it as a reflection of things to come.

I recommend this novel. It will encourage you to think.

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Review: Night Study

Night Study by Maria V. Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

After the big reveal that came at the end of Shadow Study, it wasn't surprising that this novel continues to play off of that. Previous novels in the Study series had an end, however; the last novel and this novel did not have endings. Night Study picks up a few seconds after Shadow Study ends. I have a feeling that Dawn Study will pick up seconds after Night Study ends.

I devoured this novel. It was a fun read and the action was nonstop. Yelena, even without her magic, is a fun character. I thought this was the first novel were we really get to spend some time getting to know Valek. Shadow Study started us on the path of getting to know him, but this novel really gave us incite into his character. I liked what I learned. I almost wish the author would have split the point of view sooner so we could get to know the other characters. This time we have the addition of Leif as a narrator. I really enjoyed his narration. I didn't think I would as he sometimes came off as aloof and whiny. Janco continues as a narrator and his humor adds a light side to the novel.

I'm really looking forward to the next, and am hopeful maybe the author will keep writing in this world.

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