This is an adorable cute graphic novel about coming of age and coming out.
Morgan is going through a lot at home. She has a close-knit group of friends she tends to hang out with.
Then she meets Keltie. Keltie isn’t any ordinary girl, she’s a Selkie. After sharing a kiss with Morgan, she can now walk on land.
Morgan isn’t ready to come out to her friends and family about having a girlfriend. Morgan tries to keep Keltie separate from them.
Keltie becomes Morgan’s secret, but we soon discover she’s not the only one with a secret. Katie needs her help and it involves her best friend.
This story had tons of ups and downs. There’s a great twist at the end I didn’t see coming. The story has a feel good vibe and will leave you feeling happy.
Read it for the beauty of a graphic novel, the sweet story of first love, and Selkie magic.
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About the book
My thoughts
This story is told from two POVs. One is Ivy. Most of her story is in the present. The other is Dana. Her story flicks back and forth between the now (where she is mum to Ivy) and the past (when she was a teen discovering magic with her sister Fee, and a friend).
She is a teen that doesn’t get on with her mum. She sees strange things like a weird girl, a dead rabbit left in-front of their house, and her mum burying a box. Ivy uncovers secrets and is angry when she remembers that her mum and aunty used magic on her. Not only that, but a terrible dark secret from their (mum & aunty) past.
I didn’t connect as much to Dana’s story. It might have been the jumping back and forth or that I didn’t like her as much. Dana in the now seems over protective of Ivy, and they clash. Dana and Fee are keeping secrets from Ivy about their past. Teenage Dana was more fun to read. She, Fee, and friend Marion get into magic. Things go wrong and they banish Marion away for safety. Of course she’s trying to get back.
I listened to this as an audio book. There were parts I raced through as I was excited, and other parts where I took long breaks because I got frustrated by all the secrets and how long it was taking. Most of the magic is in flashbacks. As I didn’t like one of the POVs as much it meant I struggled through half the chapters. There was some great descriptions and I wonder if I’d enjoyed this more if I’d physically read it instead of listened.
Read it for the secrets and dark twisted witchcraft.
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About the book
My thoughts
Oh my, the steam! This book is a lot more spicy than book one. Although they are closed door scenes, there’s enough detail to fill in the blanks. Aurora’s complicated love life causes her a rollercoaster of turmoil.
Sillah gets matched, which I loved. Aurora introduces Sillah and Sillah’s match to Puracordis magic. The teens start practicing and mastering their powers. This was so much fun to read & learn with them about the different types and spells.
There’s more fun with the competitive tournament. The corruption and cheating makes it more dangerous for Aurora, and her friends. They figure out others are using magic too. The arena and the bounties were so vivid, and their physical training at the Khakidemy is brilliant.
I really like Aurora. The love triangle between bad boy Tayo, and her perfect match Pax, made sense. I like how she stands up for those being mistreated or bullied, and the way she challenges the Boudfell family whenever she can.
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About the book
My thoughts
This was an incredible read. I’d no idea what to expect but it was better than anything I could imagine. It is violent and bloody, but the story explores our morals.
Set in the future, death is no longer a problem. If you were to become deadish, you can be revived. To restore the balance a group called Scythes take on the sacred duty of gleaming (killing) life. They have quotas and rules to follow.
Teenagers Roman and Citra both (on seperate occasions) meet Scythe Faraday on a gleaming job. Their interactions with him stand out and he makes them his apprentice. Never before has a Scythe taken on two apprentices and there’s no rule against it. Still, it causes uproar and an edict is agreed that when one of them passes their apprenticeship, their first task will be to kill the other.
Scythe Faraday blames himself for putting Citra & Rowan in this position. He gleams himself to free them from the apprenticeship, but instead two other Scythes step forward to train them.
Rowan is taken on by Scythe Goddard who has a reputation for his blood lust, enjoying massacres to hit his quotas.
Citra is taken on by the famous Grande Madam of Death, Scythe Curie. She shows compassion to the family members of those gleamed.
Now the pair have very different apprenticeship experiences. Citra doesn’t believe Scythe Faraday’s death was an accident, and her inquisitive mind gets her in trouble.
Meanwhile, Rowan’s training involves parties and mass killings as Scythe Goddard tries to encourage him to find joy in kill craft. Goddard’s cruel methods push Rowan too far and he is no longer the boy he started out as.
The story continues to move toward the final conclave where they’ll both have to pass their last test. Passing the test will means one of them gets ordained and must kill the other. Despite all that has happened since Faraday, they still care deeply about each other. Both are plotting for a loop hole in the edict.
This was a brilliant story. There is a lot of death as they are Scythes, but the twists and surprises in the story is what makes you gasp and need to read another chapter!
Read it for a story full of twists and surprises, and to explore ideas of mortality and morals. Don’t read it if you don’t like blood, gore, or sensitive about death.
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About the book
My thoughts
I tried another audio book & this one was better as I have watched the Netflix show. If I zoned out with my imagination, I was able to catch back up with the narrator.
It is a great story with well developed characters and strong world building.
The MC, Alina starts off from humble beginnings. As an orphan from the war, she has grown up in the orphanage where she befriended Mal. Her and Mal have been inseparable ever since until his life’s in danger & Alina saves him… revealing her powers.
This is when Alina’s life takes a sudden change. Believed to be the Sun Summoner and the one that can bring down the terrible Dark Fold, she’s whisked off to train by the alluring Darkling and finds herself amongst the Grishas and part of a society she could only have dreamt of before. It doesn’t take long to realise the grass isn’t always greener and she is being used.
Alina & Mal come together towards the end of the book to figure out the truth and break free. Their bond was one of my favourite parts of the novel, although the Darkling parts and magic was lots of fun too.
Read it for found family, rags to riches, and magic.
Below is my affiliate link where you can buy the Folk of Air series by Holly Black from Bookshop.org and support local high street bookshops. There is also a collection of more High/Epic Fantasy books you might like to check out.
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
The Wicked King by Holly Black
The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black
How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Storiesby Holly Black
This post contains affiliate links. Please check out my affiliate disclosure page for more information.
About the book
My thoughts
For anyone that has read The Folk of Air series and needed more, this is it.
This book follows Cardan and starts off with him as a young Prince. The background is brilliant at explaining how he came to be the cruel prince. We learn about his childhood, his romance with Nicasia, and why he was drawn to Jude.
Early on Cardan is told a story. At the time I wondered why it was important and Holly didn’t disappoint by taking the story full circle.
I didn’t love this as much as the series. I didn’t connect with Cardan as well as I did Jude. It could be his character or that this was an audio book. Despite that, I still thoroughly enjoyed it.
Read it for more Folk of Air, backstory, and a satisfying ending.
This post contains affiliate links. Please check out my affiliate disclosure page for more information.
About the book
My thoughts
Jude is living with her Fae sister, with her fiery spirit in tact despite being exiled. This book starts out by showing how the Fae live in our world.
She is still angry with those that betrayed her, but when her twin sister comes begging for help Jude can provide, she can’t help but forgive her and accept the challenge.
Jude then has to continue to pretend to be her sister as she finds herself deep in enemy territory. If she is discovered, she knows she will be killed.
To get her out of danger is a rescue party of unexpected allies. Jude gets back to the kingdom and is recognised as the first human queen of Fae.
This progression is not welcomed by many, and different groups come to challenge them and put the prophecy to the test.
The King is cursed and the Queen must figure out how to save them all. Jude doesn’t disappoint and I got my HEA.
Read it for enemies to lovers, kingdoms and curses, and if you love a smart strong spirited female lead.
