The Pirate's Wish (The Assassin's Curse #2) by Cassandra Rose Clarke

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Less than three months ago I read the first book in this duology: The Assassin's Curse.

But then arcs got in the way, and it took me this long to have a chance to finish reading this story.

Also, since I read as I breathe _aka, my memory sucks_, I decided that I should re-read it before starting this one... because I don't like forgetting the little things that happen in a plot.

So re-read the Assassin's Curse I did, and it was still a fun adventure to read!

And then came this one, The Pirate's Wish...

I gave 4.5 stars to the first book, because I loved it. The characters were interesting, the world building was vividly drawn...

You name it, it had it.

With the sequel I am afraid I started feeling that it was more of the same: Ananna and Naji are still on the Sky Island, and it turns out that going there had barely any effect on the guy's curse. *Too much ado for nothing*

Yes, something happens there *I am going to keep it vague*, but I guess that would have happened anywhere: It was a thing of the moment, and it was not connected to the place...

A thing that bothered me in this story was the amount of angst that exists in it..- there's angst to give and sell.

There were times I just wanted to shake Ananna and tell her to stop being so unhappy on account of a brooding *not really in the mood for talking* assassin.

I kept hoping to feel their relationship evolve,_ which it eventually did _ but through most of the time, they were their same old selves: _one was miserable... the other was... forget that, both of them were miserable, and of course they couldn't talk about it.... *face-palm*

As things were, I have to say that my favourite character in this one, was probably the Manticore.

At least she was straightforward with what she wanted:

To eat men's flesh.

Especially Naji's...unfortunately for the lady Manticore (I am sorry but if I try to copy her long name here, I am bound to miss some letters!) our favourite brooding assassin has the "famous" curse on him, therefore he's not available for proper consume.

o_O

Marjani, who helped both our heroes in the previous book also appears, _ she helps make things more bearable to read by diffusing all that angst_ and soon enough Ananna and Naji are on the cusp of another adventure.

Battles on sea, flesh eating manticores, confronts with old enemies, and reunions with loved ones, it all happens here.

It was nice trying to figure out how those two could get rid of the god-damn curse.

I'll confess that regarding the last one, I was somewhat surprised with how it worked out, because I really thought I had it figured out. *Yes, I am an idiot.*

Something happens during a battle, and Ananna and Naji become even more bonded to one another, and somehow I thought that that would be it. The whole *life from death* paradox...

But no... instead what happens are talking sharks. Which is always something unexpected!

In the end, this was a good story _not a favourite as the first one _, with an adequate ending

I honestly thought that it was well done, and appropriate:

The author respected the characters nature. 

What more is there to ask?

Auhor's Offcial Site

Buy "The Pirate's Wish" (there's two editions:, so check out the available sizes. I normally indicate the one that is cheaper at the moment of writing the post..)

(Don't forget that Strange Chemistry is no more, and copies probably won't be available for much longer)

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The Prince Who Loved Me (The Oxenburg Princes #1) by Karen Hawkins

Arc provided by Pocket Books through Netgalley

Release Date : September 23rd

Reasons why I loved this book:

Bookish main characters who agree on the vital importance of reading!

Bronwyn goes as far as to affirm that she would rather own a library "subscription", than to be a princess... which is a very sensible statement for her to make!

Because how one finds the time to read with all those people looking at you, I have no idea!

A rakish prince of a somewhat modern kingdom who is determined on living his life the way he wants to, without having anyone telling him otherwise. Thankfully for Aleksey he has three brothers, and one of them is the eldest, so... he may continue partying. ;)

I am kidding. He's not as irresponsible as he would like people to think so _ as all reformable rakes do.

He likes small fluffy dogs, so those are some serious bonus points for him...

He's not overly attached to the latest fashion style...

And of course, the most important of all: He likes to read!

He has however an asinine thinking moment _the most flagrant one _ but that ends up being thwarted by our heroine's big ears and correct *GPS* positioning. (lol)

She totally eavesdrops the conversation :)

Bronwyn has a somewhat Cinderella life: She has two stepsisters... but they all love one another.

She has a stepmother _not evil or wicked _ who is determined that her daughters should marry well.

Truth be told, she is more worried about the two younger daughters, but only because Bronwyn has made perfectly clear that she is rather happy with her life. Also, she is twenty four years old, so she is practically on the shelf!

Now imagine what will happen when this Mama bear discovers that there is a prince in the vicinity...

"A prince? Well he must marry your sister!" (not this phrasing, but you know what I mean)

 Unfortunately for the scheming Mother, her beautiful daughter is far from interested in the Prince...

The prince is much more interested in her plainer older daughter... who in turns is also quite infatuated with the prince!

As you can see, this could turn out problematic... fortunately for us, the author didn't choose the melodramatic path so things worked out in a mostly sane way...

Of course there are people climbing castle trellis, and things like that...

Secret Marriages...

Naked princes...

Naked princes with glasses...

o_O

Normally with Cinderella retellings, the Cinderella is the most beautiful girl in the setting.

Not in this one.

 I liked that Bronwyn isn't "the fairest of them all", and that Aleksey couldn't care less about it.

As he mentions repeatedly: beauty isn't enough.

More cookie points for this.

Another great thing about this story, is that it has a pretty good dynamic, and we never get tired of reading about the couple _or couples _ in the book; mainly because there is a vast number of secondary characters, that keep things vastly interesting.

Take Aleksey's grandmother for instance: their interactions are insanely amusing, even when she's vexing him repeatedly!

The woman is a dragon, and she is determined to see him married... whether he wants to, or not.

Bottom line: A pretty good romance that kept me up almost all night long, with an irresistible couple, and quite a number of meddling family members... to keep things interesting enough.

I can't wait to read more about this family!

Apparently one of the other brothers already has his own book, in a different series, so I am looking forward to attacking it...

I also can't wait to see what their grandmother has in store for the rest of her stubborn grandsons! ;)

Author Official Site

Buy "The Prince Who Loved Me"

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The Night Garden by Lisa Van Allen

Release Date: October, 7th

    Arc provided by Ballantine Books through Netgalley

It appears that I have been lucky.

Up until this book I had never considered the fine line in which magical realism authors have to stay in in order for things to work. The phrases used that should be magical, instead of cheesy: 

Part of Olivia's particular allure was how mysterious she seemed, how kind hearted yet distant, how nurturing but withholding, how resistant to summary of any kind.

Up until this story I had never read such a poor attempt at this genre...

I wasn't able to read this as magical realism: for me this is a mishmash of soap opera romance with some silly metaphors, performed by lacklustre characters. 

"Cats had begun taking dust baths like birds, and birds began lazing on  porch stairs like cats (..)"

Well, that, or cats could just open their big mouths to provide a nice cool shade for the birds...

Descriptions should be used to help the story be told. They should not be used to fill pages "per se!"

And that's what I feel happened here.

I don't want to read a book mainly filled with descriptions, in which the characters don't have anything in them... besides some extremely deranged drama!

Long, long, boring descriptions that surpassed the clichéd and went full into cheesy department. 

"The birds in the valley began to sing such intricate and virtuosic songs, that scientists with recorders and binoculars started to come from miles around, enraptured by avian talent."

Two words that probably should never, ever be used together!

Avian + Talent! 

First she knew that she still wanted him in the same old way, on a level that was elemental and animal and chemical and utterly miserable and thrilling and miserable again.

Yes, there is quite a number of adjectives that can be used in a text...

But just because you can use them... doesn't mean you should use them all at once.

For me, this overuse of adjectives doesn't make a sentence stronger, it makes it weaker, because the whole thing is just too verbose!

Why can't you people just save a few trees?!

If you can say something in a single page, why use ten freaking pages? 

(..)he could see that she was wearing a pale cotton dress that made her look as sweet and cool as an ice cream cone.(..)"

Ice cream cone? Really?

I can't even...

Then there's this sense of white book for white people, because of phrases like this: 

"If people shunned them because his family had been white and Jewish, and hers was neither of those things, they were too much in love to notice or care."

"Neither of those things.."

Maybe its just me. But this particular phrasing rubs me the wrong way...

So, what colour was she? Blue, Pink, Black?

What's the problem with using the actual word?

Then it has that slight sermon(ish) thing about God... 

"It was only by the Grace of God that they had managed not to have sex;"

*Snorts*

This was supposed to have that thwarted big romance vibe! But instead what I got was: Two kids that knew each other growing up, and who then decided to experiment (their words)  making out.

They liked it so much, so of course they had to be in love :/

First and only love. For her at least... poor woman :/

The romance between a strong, good woman, and a kind, courageous man...

Then due to the amount of information given, we get things like these:  In one moment Olivia's hair is peach coloured, and in the night it is the colour of wine.

No

I don't care which time of the day it is. Colour pigments aren't rainbows!

As a redhead myself, that doesn't happen, unless you change hair colour multiple times a day (DON'T!).

Less is More! Don't overcomplicate things. 

Then this is not appropriate reading material to scientists because this would probably give them an apoplexy!

We have a character who has to be in constant contact with poisonous plants, because if she doesn't, she will die!

How? Why?

No one knows for sure... it appears to involve some gross parental neglect, but besides that?

Nothing...

Now, this is where the magical realism would enter, if this had been properly developed!

This setting could work! (I am thinking about Alice Hoffman's beautifully done Ice Queen in which the characters have some different health conditions...) But unfortunately this one was so poorly done that I didn't buy this for a instance :/

Oh, and the last part, with the monstrous vines and all that?

That should be in a fantasy book, not a magical realism one:

It was way over the top.

 I am aware that this review borders the angry... and you know what?

 Yes, it does, because people keep comparing this to Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen, and that couldn't be further away from the truth, and that leaves me upset.

Alice Hoffman and Sarah Addison Allen books are about connections: friends, family, lovers.

This one is mainly a convoluted romance... and I didn't even feel all that love between them!

Then  there's the story of Olivia and her father, but the thing is so ridiculous that I am not even going to bother with it...

Here we don't have strong women's relationships. We have our main character, Olivia, that is all that is good and kind, and perfect, and basically the perfect woman... and then we have the other ones: Who aren't.

I don't think I will be reading any more books by this author.

Author's Official Page

Pre-order it:

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The Crystal Slipper by Selena Fulton

 Arc provided by Entangled Publishing through Netgalley

Release Date: September 22 nd

DNF at 35%

It is only very rarely that my inner book snob makes an appearance.

I read almost every literary genre, and if a book has an interesting plot, and if it is well written, I don't care who wrote it, or what the book is all about.

But when I start reading something that is so inane, so devoid of imagination, and so full of clichés, you can bet all you want, that my inner bookish snob, does make an appearance.

Loud and screaming!

First of all, to describe an office as "posh" is not what I consider to put your imagination and your descriptive abilities to use.

That, did give me a warning.

Second of all, this is a contemporary romance with traces of paranormal in it, this means that us readers need to know why is it, that conversations of enchantments, magic and so on, don't bother the rest of the secondary characters that deal with the main "special" characters, such as Preston and his family.

I don't know about you...but if someone were to tell me that he was on the prowl for some magical shoe, I would need some serious explanations...

So what is it, with Preston's family?

Why are they so special? Why did he grow up with a witch? A real magical one?

These were things I needed to know in the first pages of the book, so I wouldn't feel as if I had landed by parachute in the middle of something, I had no idea....what!

Then, the categorization of women according to the level of makeup and jewellery they use?

Really? In our time and age?

The woman clearly had expensive taste, wore gaudy jewelry and too much makeup."

So do you! (except for the makeup... at least I hope  you don't...)

The guy wears a gold pinkie ring, and he wants to talk about people's taste?

Are you kidding me?

What is this?

Some long forgotten novel of the eighties?

Hey, feminism, were are thee???

Because I read a couple of hundreds of harlequin novels in my teens, and those had these type "of plot" going on for them....

And if back then it was bearable to read, now I am afraid I'll just have to call this a lazy work.

Also reading a book that should be a retelling of what... Cinderella?

You're supposed to have a nice guy _ or at least a somewhat redeemable guy_... the so called prince that is. That doesn't have to be rich, or to have a castle, or a Mercedes to be a women's prince charming!!

(there the essence of retellings and all that...)

What you're supposed to have _somewhat _ is a nice guy.

Now, this _piece of crap! _ is not a nice guy!

Sure, he and Raven had talked about marriage. What adolescent didn’t allow a dreamy-eyed girl to talk such things in order to win a kiss? Or more? At that time, all he could think about was having a girl in his arms, and to see how far he could get.
Raven had been more than happy to oblige.

Because its always the woman's fault, right?

And even if I don't finish this, I know where this is going...because this is that basic.

So, the poor guy simply hadn't met the right woman, who will be his one and only, and they'll live happily ever after...

......

......

o_O!!!

Something else about her bothered him. Why couldn’t he get the polite librarian out of his mind? He’d only met her a few times, had dinner with her once. A shy thing, she was intelligent, he could see it in her eyes, but there was something more. She had a vulnerable, almost innocent quality about her, and it made him yearn for more.

You hear that ladies?

Be meek. Be quiet. Be innocent, and you may find your own jackass prince.

And I'm done.

_____________

In the last page I read, the guy was giving her a bracelet and telling her that she could keep all the presents he was going to give her, while he was going to try to make her fall in love with him...not because he loves her...but because due to the curse that afflicts his family, he has to make a poor schmuk fall in love with him.

__________

 The only positive side is that said schmuk is aware of this situation. So, she's not only a schmuk and a doormat. She's also an idiot.

A lonesome idiot, but an idiot nonetheless.

Sorry, but I don't read contemporary stories in which women are waiting for a idiot charming, rich man to come bearing gifts and save them.

Author Official Site

Buy " The Crystal Slipper"

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The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place by Julie Berry

                               

Arc provided by Mcmillan's Children Publishing Group through Netgalley 

Release Date: September 23rd

A very important fact that readers should know before starting to read this book:

The story is told as a complete farce. I mean... literally speaking!

(somehow that little bit, escaped me completely while requesting this story. I blame it on the pretty cover.)

So if, like me, you're more used to only having "bits of it" thrown in once in awhile, you're due for a different reading

Also... a very important question...

Do you like farces?

_______

Conceptually speaking, this deserves a five star rating.

This is a witty, original, intelligent, and well developed story...

So why didn't I enjoy reading it more than I did?

While this has its bright moments, and moments of pure witticism, I couldn't get into its rhythm... or maybe that is the problem: Its lack of rhythm, especially regarding the story's first half.

The fact that the author decided to give us some basic character information of our leading seven main characters by simply associating some traits to them, and then later on, simply vocalize a constant (and boring!) stream of adjectives to their names, was for me the story's weakest point.

I get it. Just like a farce, the author decided to give us stereotyped characters:

The witty one, the kind one, the dull one, and so on and on...

But they're seven girls, and to be given phrases such as this, right at the beginning of the story, is pushing a DNF:

Pocked Louise opened her mouth to correct Dull Martha, but Smooth Kitty shook her head slightly. Pocked Louise, the youngest of the girls, was accustomed to her older schoolmates bossing her. She kept still.
Dear Roberta covered her face with her hands.

To say that I had a really hard time with phrases such as this would be putting it mildly.

 By the second half of story I did however became more accustomed to this peculiar format _or maybe I just started ignoring it _ so I could start appreciating the writing a little more, without having to stop to figure out which character I was now reading about.

The problem with a farce _at least as far as I see this _ is that by giving us these stereotyped nineteenth century characters, all of the girls voices somewhat sounded the same.

Yes, their interests were all very varied, but feeling that if it weren't for the adjectives used to identify them, I wouldn't know how to proper differentiate them was not a good feeling.

For instance, what were the chances that seven girls with apparently so different personalities would act so blasé in the face of not one, but two murders?

Yes, I remember that this is a farce, but I can't help feeling that the only thing it managed to do _in the beginning_, was to portray the girls somewhat as sociopaths.

_______

This was all during the infamous first part of the book.

Second half:

It got better... much better...

Although the situations couldn't be more confabulated, the girls' character started to leak through their simple given adjectives:

Poison is a woman’s weapon,” Pocked Louise told Dour Elinor.(..)
“You sound proud of it,” Elinor observed.
“Why shouldn’t I be?” Louise flipped through the pages of her notebook. “I don’t condone killing, but if killing happens anyway, then I think women go about it much more sensibly.
Leave it to men to be loud and violent and messy about the business.

So we have the smart young woman used to having her opinion discarded at home...

Then the one who is used to having her way about everything resorting to her charms...

Also, the girl who is too good for her own good...

The one that isn't all that smart...

The one who would like to go to university...

The one who rather enjoys different things...

And the one that  always seemed lacking, when compared with thinner family members...

Despite different upbringings, and ages, there's one thing all of these girls have in common:

Neither of them wants to go home... so when their headmistress and her brother drop dead at the dinner's table, there's only one solution for them all:

Bury the corpses, and pretend as if nothing had happened.

Which is easier said that done, since the girls will have their work cut out for them, trying to deal with numerous shady characters that will start flocking to their school as if attracted to something...

Things you may expect reading this story:

People digging graves...

Carts of manure...

Breaking and entering...

Charming young gentleman...

Charming old ex-sailors...

Marriage proposals...

Poisoned people... and animals

(don't worry the animal doesn't die!)

A little bit of flirting...

Making out... nineteenth century making out!! Hand kissing!

Elephants...

Darling nephews...

What happens here to redeem the story for its strange "characters' characterization", is that this is a very complete farce in which apparently joking, the author manages to give us an in depth  look at what it meant to be a girl in the nineteenth century, and how the rest of society perceived her.

So, merit wise, this story is very well accomplished...

Do I intend to re-read it?

Ever?

In the near future I don't think so. Also this was so quirky and different, that unlike what happens with most books, I don't think I will be forgetting this one so soon.

But who knows, maybe in a couple of years I will be more adept to this type of storytelling.

I cannot say that it does not have its merits.

It just wasn't for me.

Author's Official Site

Buy "The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place"

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The Luckiest Lady In London by Sherry Thomas

I basically read this book in one sitting!

This means that today I can barely keep my eyes open, because I couldn't close this book until I had finally finished it, at six o'clock in the morning *cough, cough*.

Sherry Thomas can most definitely write. We all know that.

What she can also do is create one of a kind characters that even while we are hating them _another book, another dude... _ we can't seem to forget them.

I may have been a little befuddled in the beginning _which led me to ask Isa, who had already read it ( Her review Here!), if the guy was a sociopath o_O _ long story, but _and I honestly don't remember the precise moment in which that happened _ after awhile I was enjoying this one so immensely that I just had to keep reading it!

Is there a praise higher than this?

This was as engaging and addictive as a romance, as one can possibly be!

Especially since it was read by a person who lately has found romances lacking, boring, and cheesy:

Me.

Let's start with the characters...

Their depth, their not sugar like likeability, the fact that they feel real enough to be friends with _well with Louisa...Felix would have to lose the Perfect Gentleman façade first... _the fact that you want to do them bodily harm _once again Felix..although not as much as some previous characters! _ this all conjures to make this story an unforgettable one.

The writing style...

That ensnares you, leading you into a story fraught with emotion and yes angst, breaking a little of your heart. (Apparently I still have one!)

Could the characters have been less dense?

Yes.

Could they have benefited from the help of a mental help specialist ?

Felix? Yes.

Could they be any less perfect for one another?

NO.

Louisa needs to get married. And she needs to get married to someone with enough money to help her family.

This situation makes it impossible for her to enjoy her season as a normal simpering débutante: Instead she gets ready for the thing, as if she were a cat on the prowl for some medium sized rats!

Being of logical reasoning as she is, she knows her strong points _not that many _ and her frailties _ not enough time to count them all _, so she decides to lower her expectations as much as she can, in order to achieve her goal.

What she wasn't expecting was that the biggest.. rat of them all _yes, I am still going along with the rat metaphors here  _ dubbed "The Perfect Gentleman", to take an interest in her person!

Which more than being perplexing, it ends up being extremely inconvenient because Louisa takes one look at his magnificent self _ yes, the big rat is that awesome and attractive...and he can't help but noticing that!

 That = The fact that she falls heads over heels in lust with the smug bastard!

What follows is a battle of wits between these two strong characters, that is pure fun and heartbreaking to follow.

I mentioned the characters being one of a kind, right?

Well take Louisa for instance: after the cards have been put on the table between her and Felix, she makes no qualms that she can't wait to get her hands on him!!

Yes! Not your average character, right?

Felix on other hand, can't disguise from Louisa the fact that he is a manipulative bastard, which couldn't be farther away from what society perceives of him. He also can't hide that he is extremely attracted to her...despite his better efforts...

And so the battle begins.

Go read it ;)

Author' Official Site

Buy " The Luckiest Lady In London"

For this edition, prepare your purse!

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Paperback edition:

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Mass market edition:

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