Review: Exquisite Captive

Title: Exquisite Captive

Series: The Dark Caravan Cycle

Author: Heather Demetrios

Rating: ★★★★

This was actually a really good read. I have never read a book about jinni before so this was definitely something new for me and I loved it. The beginning can be confusing because of all the different types of jinni and the different names that we learn about. However, I thought the author did an amazing job of slowly explaining the jinni world so that it wasn't too much information too fast, because it definitely is a lot of information to take in. The story is told in third person and follows a jinni named Nalia who has been sold as a slave by the Dark Caravan. Her "master" is a man named Malek who treats her like any master would, property. Nalia however isn't any old jinni she is Ghan Aisouri, the last of her kind. The Ghan Aisouri were looked at as the superior race in Arjinni (the jinni world) because they can wield every element. the other castes of jinni can only wield one type of element. Because of the amount of power the Ghan Aisouri had they used that to their advantage and eventually there was a coup that overthrew their reign in Arjinna. All of the Ghan Aisouri were killed, except Nalia who pretended she was dead and escaped Arjinna by trusting a man who happened to be a slave trader. Now she is forced to make wishes on Malek's behalf and watch as her master climbs to power. However, a boy named Raif enters the story who is the leader of the revolution in Arjinna  but is on Earth to find Nalia. He promises to free her from Malek's control in exchange for helping him gain access to an item that will help the revolution. 


Now I'll stop there with the non-spoilers. There will only be minor spoilers from here on. Overall, I really liked this book. I loved the characters, the narration, and just the whole story. Ok I'm just going to come out and say it, I really like Malek. I'M SORRY. I just get this Aaron Warner vibe from him that made me really like him and I want to know more about him. But the thing is I should hate him, Nalia hates him and for good reason, SHE'S HIS SLAVE. Still, Malek has made A LOT of mistakes with Nalia so I don't think a relationship will be able to form between the two of them. It seems Nalia's heart is set on Raif. Which is great, cool, whatever. BUT THAT IS TOTALLY INSTA-LOVE. And after we find out that Nalia actually killed Raif's best friend, I'm not sure a strong relationship can persevere through this. I have to root for Malek, I know it makes me a horrible person. But reminds so much of Warner from Shatter Me and even a little bit of the Darkling from Shadow and Bone. 


I probably gave this book for 4 stars because of Raif and Nalia. Raif just annoyed me. He was very back and forth. The parts where it was just him I couldn't stand because it was always about the revolution, and what he feels for Nalia is wrong and blah blah blah Also by the end of the book I was ready for it to be over. I liked the parts where the we see the Haran's perspective but soon they just became too much and I was ready for him and Nalia to meet. And then there was some stuff that was left unresolved, which I hope is picked up on in the next book. Like the all the stuff with Jordif and Sergei. 


I definitely would recommend this to anyone who likes fantasy and all that. I really enjoyed it and can't wait for the next book. I loved Heather Demetrios' writing and now I'm going to see if I can pick up anything else she's written. Usually, third person makes it hard for me to connect to a book and the characters in but I really connected with this book. 

Review: Illusions of Fate

Title: Illusions of Fate
Author: Kiersten White
Rating: ★★★

So I just finished this book a couple of moments ago and usually I would wait to write my review so I could process the book. However, I feel like if I wait I'm just going to forget all of my thoughts. I'll begin by talking about the non-spoilery parts of the book. This is a stand- alone young adult fantasy novel. Let me repeat that, STAND ALONE. I unfortunately did not know that when I bought the book and thought it was going to be a series. I WAS WRONG. I'll talk about my thoughts about this later on. Anyway, the story takes place in the country of Albion where our narrator, Jessamin, is so that she can further her education. She is originally from another country called Melei. Although this is a fantasy world, the whole setting and time period remind me of Victorian England, which is my FAVORITE time period. I'm not sure if this was the time period that we were supposed to think of but I did. Anyway, Jessamin is quite homesick in Albion and is mainly focusing on her studies, until she meets Finn. Jessamin's soon swept up into this world of magic and plotting that soon gets her into trouble.


That's all I'm going to say for the non-spoiler section because now I really want to talk about the book. I really wanted to fall in love with this book and I thought I was going to! It just didn't click for me. I loved the writing style and the language that author used to put us in this time period but there was something missing. I really liked Jessamin and Finn but I feel like I couldn't connect with them. In my opinion, there was a lack of background information. Yes, we know that Jessamin is from Melei and that her father is an Albion man and she is blackmailing him to attend so school. And we know that Finn has these magical powers just like all the gentry in Albion society and that both of his parents died. AND WE KNOW Lord Downpike is after Finn's book of Hallion magic. We know all of these things but they just didn't connect with me. And if I didn't connect with the main characters, I certainly did not connect with the secondary characters like Eleanor, Ernest, or Ma'ati. OH and Kelen. Let's not forget about Kelen who all of a sudden happens to be Lord Downpike? Sure, that would have been a great plot twist if Kelen had been seen more than three very small instances that we see him in the book.

I think the reason why I didn't enjoy this book as much as others have is because it was so short and because it is a stand alone. The only stand alone books that I read fall into the category of contemporary. I have always avoided stand-alone fantasy novels. Why? Well this book is a great example of why. SO MUCH MORE COULD HAVE HAPPENED. There could have been more descriptions of the gentry class and their special powers, there could have been more backstory with the characters, and there could overall just be more excitement and adventure. I'm not going to lie, as I was reading the book was starting to remind me of The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare (which is an amazing trilogy, GO READ IT). I mean the type of magic was different as well as many aspects but the book was set up in a way where I thought something big was going to happen. In my opinion, nothing really big ever happened. There was no moment where I was like wow! or I can't believe that just happened! And I wanted one of those moments so badly as I was reading.

What really made this three stars for me was again the last pages of the books. Everything seemed just quickly tied together so that the book could just end. I will admit that I actually thought Finn was dead and was about to throw the book across the room when I realized he was still alive. That made me a bit happier. Anyway, the whole thing with Kelen being Downpike did not work for me at all. I mean it was really interesting but I wish we could have gotten a longer and more in depth explanation as to why Kelen did what he did. I know it was because the Albions tortured his mother but I wanted to go deeper into that whole situation. 

I feel like I'm being really picky with books lately. I think I'm going to Barnes and Noble tomorrow so hopefully I'll pick something up that will get me out of this reading funk! Thanks for reading my review!  

Update!

Hello friends! I know I haven't been posting on here as much as I was last week but this week has been kind of crazy! Midterms are upon us at my college and I've also been getting ready to go home this weekend! I don't think I'll be able to write up a Throwback Thursday book talk tonight but I definitely will write one up tomorrow once I'm home! Also my review of Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White will hopefully be up this weekend as well because I'm almost done with the book! It's actually really good so far. I didn't realize it was going to be a stand- alone book until after I started reading it, which made me a little upset. What can I say? I have an addiction to series!

Anyway, I hope your week is going well. Less stressful than mine I hope! My Modern Africa midterm is tomorrow morning and my mind can not handle any more information. I think it's at capacity. Well, there's my update! I'll be posting in this weekend, so stay tuned!

p.s. I will be making a trip to my Barnes and Noble when i get back home. The one up here at my school stinks so I'm really excited to go my home one!! :) I'll probably be picking up some of the books on my most anticipated books of October list!

~Whitney

Enemy Number One: Books.

I hated reading when I was a kid. Specifically, kindergarten through second grade books were my enemy. I hated reading so much that I refused to read out loud in class. When it was "Library Trip Day" I would immediately go sit in one of the special bean bag chairs in the back of the library so that I could avoid picking out my free reading book. And when the librarian found me (because she ALWAYS found me) I'd pick out a random book and pretend to read on the special "reading carpet" with the rest of my class. It's kind of sad now that I actually think about it.

It's not that I didn't know how to read, I just didn't know how to read well. When I was in first grade my teacher realized I wasn't reading and that I was having a tough time with it. And this led to me being put in the special reading group. Twice a week a woman who was retired teacher, whose name I cannot remember, would come into my first grade class during free time and gather all the kids who were having a tough time reading. They would always sit in the back of the classroom at a round table and practice reading. I was able to avoid being put in this group for some time but soon my fake reading caught up with me and I was placed in the reading group. I was so upset when I found out, I remember actually crying and being really sad about it. But being put into that group was probably the best thing that happened to me.

In the beginning, my goal was to be a difficult. In my mind, I didn't need to be put in this special group and I thought it was totally unfair that everyone else got to have free time while I had to sit through what I thought was torture. I can still remember the kids who were in this group with me, maybe there's some sort of bond there. Anyway, when the woman in charge of our group would pick on me to read, I refused. I would not read. Perhaps, this was me trying to rebel but looking back I was just being a brat. And soon the the teacher picked up on this and talked to me about it. She basically told me that I didn't have to enjoy reading but that I did need to know how to read because reading is everywhere in life. There was no way to escape it. I was also terribly shy and timid as a child so when she talked to me about this I couldn't help but cry because I thought I was in trouble. So after that I really tried in the reading group and would read and participate.

Then one day the teacher told me I had "graduated" from the reading group and I no longer had to join the group at free time. I was given a bookmark with cats on it for my achievement (even though I hated cats) and sent on my way. At first I was happy about this! I was able to have free time like all the other kids! But then I really missed the reading group and the kids in it. All I had was that generic cat bookmark to remind me of my group.

Once I finished first grade I still wasn't into reading. It was ok and I would read in class just fine but it just wasn't something that interested me. And then I found Harry Potter. And it all changed. I was in second grade when I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone and it was the best thing that I had ever read. Forget  Arthur or the Berenstain Bears (although those are wonderful children books) Harry Potter is what made me love reading. So after I read the first book, I read the second, and then the third, and on and on. I even remember getting in trouble in class for reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix while my teacher was teaching. I was addicted and it was a problem. Soon I was reading all sorts of books, another of my favorite series was the Nancy Drew books. I also loved comic books, mainly Archie comics.

I became addicted to reading all because of that special reading group. Because let's face it, if I was never put in that group I would have never picked up the first Harry Potter book. Before that group I HATED reading. And while I still didn't like it after the group, I wasn't totally against it.

So my friends this is my little story for you about how I got into reading. I hope you enjoyed it, I certainly enjoyed writing it and the memories that it brought to my mind. How'd you get into reading? Let me know and here's a little throwback picture of me when I was in one my reading moods....I really don't think anything's changed....

Review: The Queen of Zombie Hearts

Rating: ★★★★

So I finished this book last night (ok actually early morning), and I have a few thoughts about it. This the third and I think final book in The White Rabbit Chronicles by Gena Showalter. The first book is called Alice in Zombieland and the second is Through the Zombie Glass. The basic premise of this series is that it's a play off of Alice in Wonderland but set in the present and deals with zombies. I've never read Alice in Wonderland but I know what it's about and I can say that these are completely different stories. Anyway, throughout the series Ali comes to know of the zombie slayer world, which she had previously had no knowledge of. She learns to fight from the slayers she meets, including Cole Holland. I would say this book has equal amounts of action and romance. It's a really great blend throughout the series. Now that's all I'm going  to say for the non-spoiler section! Now let's talk about the third book!

Ok so I'm going to assume that whoever's reading this review has already read The Queen of Zombie Hearts. So if you haven't stop reading this now! Or keep reading, just remember I warned you! Anyway, like I said before this is the last book in The White Rabbit Chronicles. I'm not entirely sure if this true because the ending did not satisfy me at all but I'll talk about that later on. The beginning of the book picks up where book two left off, Ali, Cole and the rest of their zombie slayer team are going about life, killing zombies, and basically waiting for the next attack from Anima Industries. The attack comes in the very beginning of the book, killing two of Ali's slayer friends and kidnapping two more. One of the friends that is kidnapped is Justin. The slayer's main goal throughout the book is to get Justin back and destroy Anima, however, some issues come up.

First of all, we find out that Ali isn't who we thought she was. Her real mother was a woman named, Helen, who worked for Anima Industries and was responsible for the death of Cole's mother. This whole situation just was really confusing to me because we learned all about it in this one book. Helen appears to Ali and gives her some of her powers. One of these powers is the power to make a person forget all of their memories. These "powers" just seemed really weird to me. I have no idea how that relates to zombies at all. Anyway, obviously the knowledge that Ali is the daughter of Cole's mother's killer put a bit of a strain on their relationship. However, it was quickly resolved, which kind of bothered me but I can deal with it. 

The one thing I really need to talk about is the last 100 pages of this book. Those pages are what made this book only 4 stars for me. One of the things that has been constant throughout this series are the visions that Cole and Ali have. In the second book, Through the Zombie Glass, they have a vision where Cole is carrying Ali and she is yelling at him asking him who he is and what's going on and stuff like that. Obviously, we can see that Ali is going to lose her memories. However, this vision did not come true in the second book. And then when we get into the this book Cole and Ali keep having this same vision over and over again. The vision gets more detailed but it's constant repetition that soon really started to bug me. When I was around page 350 I was getting really antsy about how this whole thing was going to play out because 100 pages was not enough to end this book. 

Ankh's house gets bombed. Of course. Ankh dies. And Kat dies. LET ME REPEAT THAT. KAT DIES. And now that I've had time to process it it does make sense. I really should have seen it coming because there was a little foreshadowing in the middle of the book that got me thinking. The whole thing with Frosty though is heartbreaking. While the book ends with Ali and Cole together, that can't be said for Kat and Frosty, leaving me with a really sad and unsatisfying feeling. I hope the author does some sort of spin off or at least a novella where we can see how Frosty is doing. 

Ok now let me back up a bit. So after the bombs and Kat dies, Ali decides to hand herself in to Anima because they are who she wants because of her "special" abilities." They do some tests on Ali and she of course fights back. But Rebecca Smith, the director of Anima, is able to wipe away Ali's memories and for 18 days she stays at Anima. The book skips for those 18 days to when Cole and the whole team show up to save Ali, woohoo right? Sure, but that seems just way too easy to me. How did they find the lab so easily? Throughout the ENTIRE book they were trying to find the lab where Justin was kept. Yes, I know that Ali released Justin when she got to the lab but HOW THE HECK WAS HE ABLE TO ESCAPE THE BUILDING? If there's supposed to be so much security and guards how on earth can one person, who is supposed to be really weak and all that, escape? It was too easy.

And then when Cole shows and up and finds Ali, he realizes that her memories have been wiped. And she apparently was told by Rebecca that slayers like him are evil but she just accepts it. There's really no hesitation at all until he grabs her and brings her back to their new safe house. And then rather quickly, her memories come back! NO NO NO ! Ali's memories were first wiped when she was six-years-old and those memories never really came back. So how on earth do these memories come back so quickly? 

I know what the author was trying to do. She was trying to give us a semi-happy ending. This is great but I felt like it was way too rushed. The first half the the book I would give 5 stars, the second half 3 stars. So I am going to settle and give this book a rating of 4 stars. Despite the problems I had with the ending, I really did love this series. 

Throwback Thursday!

So while I was in class today I got a great idea for my blog! Having throwback thursday! But instead of posting an old picture like we do on instagram, I thought it would be interesting to discuss a book that I read a long time ago aka "a throwback" of some sort! I'll try to do this every Thursday, hopefully you guys enjoy it!

So for my first Throwback Thursday I'll be discussing The Cay by Theodore Taylor.

Way back when I was in fifth grade my favorite part of the day was when my teacher would read to the class. If we ever went a day where my teacher didn't have time to read, it would be a horrible day. She always chose the best books to read but The Cay was the absolute best.

The story takes place when World War II breaks out. One of the main characters is a boy named Phillip who is living on a ship with his mother to avoid the war. However, in the very beginning of the novel the ship is attacked and Phillip and his mother must flee. Unfortunately, Phillip and his mother are split up and Phillip suffers from a blow to the head and is knocked unconscious. He wakes to find that 1) he is blind because of his head injury and 2) he is stranded in a boat in the middle of the ocean with an old man named Timothy. Timothy is not white but West Indian and Phillip was raised to believe that black people were "different" because of what his mother would tell him. However, throughout the novel Phillip overcomes his racism and realizes there's nothing different about Timothy or any other person with dark skin. Phillip and Timothy reach an island and live there for about two months. Timothy teaches Phillip how to be independent because there's the possibility of the two being split up. I'll stop there with the plot because I don't want to give too much away.

What really interested me about this story when my teacher first read it to me was the survival aspect. I had never read a book about survival before this and I was instantly interested in it. The adventure, the dialogue, the relationship between Timothy and Phillip; all these things made me love the story. I absolutely loved Timothy and I still do. The cliffhanger at the end especially amazed me. Before this book, all stories I read ended on a happy note with everything resolved. This one did not and I couldn't believe it when my teacher shut the book and told us that that was the end. I could not accept that ending but luckily there is a second book. The second book is just as wonderful as the first and we get to know Timothy more in it.

I would definitely recommend this book to everyone, children or adults. In a way it kind of reminds me of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (that's a throwback for another day). You can find The Cay on Goodreads here!

Well, I hoped you enjoyed my first Throwback Thursday! It was fun to think about this book after so many years!

October Releases!

Since it's the first day of October, I thought it would be great to talk about some of the upcoming book releases this month that I am most excited for! Clicking on the title will bring you to each book's Goodreads page! Let me know what books your excited for this month! :)

In the Afterlight by Alexandra Bracken
Release date: October 28th
This is the final book in The Darkest Minds Trilogy! I read the first two books way back in December/January and they are amazing! Seriously, this series leaves you speechless at times. The genre is mostly science fiction/dystopia with some hints of the paranormal. I definitely recommend reading it. It's a survivor story which I love and the characters really grow as the story progresses. Alexandra Bracken's writing is beautiful and you should definitely check this series out if you haven't yet! I am sad that it's coming to an end though! :(

Exquisite Captive by Heather Demetrios
Release date: October 7th
This book finally comes out next Tuesday!! I first found this book on Goodreads in May and I was instantly interested in the story. It sounds so different from everything else out there, which always makes me happy! From what I can gather from the blurb on Goodreads, it's about a girl named Nalia who has been enslaved and forced to stay in a bottle and grant wishes. Nalia wants to gain control of her freedom and escape the bottle and her master. But the only way to do that is to convince her master that she is in love with him. Yeah, yeah it might sound like a sappy romance with fantasy mixed in but I have a good feeling about this one. It was also based of Arabian Nights so if that doesn't get you excited, I don't know what will!

Chaos by Sarah Fine
Release date: October 7th
This is is the final book (I think) in The Guards of the Shadowland series. Not a lot of people know about this series, which is hard to believe. I really want people to read it! The whole series deals with the afterworld and where a person is sent after they die. The story is told in the perspective of Lela who's best friend killed herself in the first book Sanctum. Lela has some sort of connection with the afterworld and can see and experience the afterworld through her dreams. In one dream, Lela realizes Nadia is in trouble and because of this Lela decides to save her. I won't give anything else away but it really is a great series. And then there's Malachi.....you'll fall in love with him!

Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick
Release date: October 7th
Did you read the Hush, Hush series? Well, if you didn't go check it out! But just to warn you, it's not everyone's cup of tea! Anyway, this is Becca Fitzpatrick's new book, the same author who wrote Hush, Hush! I'm not sure if this is going to be a series or a stand alone. I want to say it's going to be a series because from the blurb it seems like there could more to this story. Anyway, I don't really know the real premise of the book. Yes, I read the blurb and all that but I feel like a lot was left unsaid which really interests me. I think it's supposed to be a mix of a mystery with survivor aspects as well. I can't wait for this one! Oh and there's a giveaway on Goodreads for a copy of this book! You can find the giveaway here, it ends on October 6th!

Snow Like Ashes by Sarah Raasch
Release date: October 14th
I'm pretty sure everyone on Goodreads is pumped for this book. It sounds a bit like the Throne of Glass series but unique in it's own way. Definitely, sounds like a book with a strong female character so I can't wait for that! I really hope it lives up to all our expectations! I have a feeling it will!

Well, I think that's it! These are the book releases I'm looking forward to the most this month! I hope at least one of them sparked your interest! Let me know what you can't wait to read this month!