Supernova by Marissa Meyer
Rating: ★★★☆☆
All’s fair in love and anarchy…
The epic conclusion to Marissa Meyer’s thrilling Renegades Trilogy finds Nova and Adrian fighting to keep their identities secret. While the battle rages on between their alter egos and their allies, there is a darker threat shrouding Gatlon City.
The Renegades’ worst enemy is back among them, threatening to reclaim Gatlon City. Nova and Adrian must brave lies and betrayal to protect those they love. Their greatest fears are about to come to life, and unless they can bridge the divide between heroes and villains, they stand to lose everything. Including each other.
Intrigue and action will leave readers on edge until the final, shocking secrets are revealed.
Overall, I really enjoyed the Renegades series, but I have to admit that Supernova was a little underwhelming. I didn’t hate it, or even really dislike it, but I feel that compared with the rest of the series, it’s the weakest book.
It felt a little bit like the resolution of all the different plot points was just thrown in there and I was left feeling more confused than surprised. Everything that happened felt so convenient, without the suspense or high stakes feeling the previous two books had.
I will say that the epilogue floored me, though. I hope there’s a spin-off, or at least a novella, coming.
Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
Rating: ★★★☆☆
Links:
Amazon •
TBD •
GoodreadsPublication Date: June 13, 2017
Source: Borrowed
Twin sisters Jack and Jill were seventeen when they found their way home and were packed off to Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children.
This is the story of what happened first…
Jacqueline was her mother’s perfect daughter—polite and quiet, always dressed as a princess. If her mother was sometimes a little strict, it’s because crafting the perfect daughter takes discipline.
Jillian was her father’s perfect daughter—adventurous, thrill-seeking, and a bit of a tom-boy. He really would have preferred a son, but you work with what you’ve got.
They were five when they learned that grown-ups can’t be trusted.
They were twelve when they walked down the impossible staircase and discovered that the pretense of love can never be enough to prepare you a life filled with magic in a land filled with mad scientists and death and choices.
The second book in the Wayward Children series follows Jack and Jill, twins who have absolutely awful parents. They fall into a portal world called The Moors, where they’re finally able to step outside of the very narrow boxes their parents have tried to shove them into and live happily. The world of The Moors is dark, and often scary, but it’s a place where Jack and Jill finally find love and acceptance.
I liked the commentary on gender roles and parenting, but the world of The Moors wasn’t my favorite and Jack and Jill aren’t my favorite characters in this series. Final verdict? This one was good, but I liked the first one better.
The Last Hope by Krista & Becca Ritchie
Rating: DNF
Links:
Amazon •
TBD •
GoodreadsPublication Date: August 13, 2019
Source: ARC via Netgalley
A stunning conclusion to the sci-fi romance duology by writing duo Krista & Becca Ritchie, The Last Hope is filled with twists and turns you’ll never see coming.
Sacrifice all you have to survive.
Imprisoned for weeks on an enemy starcraft, Franny, Court, and Mykal have sat with an unfathomable revelation. But as they fight to stay alive, escaping prison means trusting a young mysterious stranger. He knows everything about their lost histories, and when answers aren’t given freely, the bonded trio are forced to join a mission. One that will determine the fate of humanity.
Legend says, a baby—the first of her species—has the power to cloak and teleport planets. Tasked with retrieving the infant, Court fears the baby is just a myth, and if they fail, they’ll never find the truth about their origins.
As Court and Mykal grow closer, their linked bond becomes harder to hide, and dynamics change when Franny begins to fall for someone new. Vulnerable and with no choice, the hunt for the baby sends the trio on a dangerous path to Saltare-1: a water world where their enemies can’t die and survival comes at a high cost.
Here’s the thing about Krista & Becca Ritchie — I used to be a really big fan of theirs. If you go back in my reviews archive, you’ll find reviews of every single book they’d written up until maybe two years ago. I’m not sure if my reading tastes changed or their writing changed, but this is the second book of theirs in a row that I’ve disliked.
They have a very distinctive, introspective writing style that I think lends itself pretty well to contemporary romance and not very well to fantasy. It was a little weird in The Raging Ones, but I was able to get past it. I couldn’t get past it here. The whole “I’m going to analyze everybody’s every move and what it means” thing was so tiresome. The plot barely moves. After five weeks, I was only halfway done and nothing had happened.
I saw another review that mentioned that it felt like the authors had spent all their time writing book one and then just before book two’s deadline, realized they had to write something. I agree. This is not the level of quality I expect from them, and I’m so disappointed that I had to DNF a book by authors who used to be my favorites.
Have you read any of these books? Are any of them on your TBR?
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