Review: The Kiss of Deception (The Remnant Chronicles #1)

'' The good ones don't run away, Lia.''

★★★★★

 Holy moly, what did I just read?! I was expecting a really good book with a great plot twist, but what I got was something else. Something awesome. Something that is titled greatly.
The Kiss of Deception lives up to its name.

The protagonist, Princess Arabella Celestine Idris Jezelia, the first daughter of the House of Morrighan, is a seventeen-year-old girl from the kingdom of Morrighan. She possesses the gift, which every first daughter possesses, but what is the gift, we know not. The book starts on her wedding day when she is wed to an unknown prince from the land of Dalbreck. Not wanting to be married to a stranger she escapes with her maid Pauline and together they make a journey to Pauline's childhood town. Where they start new lives and work as waitresses in an inn. Little they know what consequences their escape has caused.
After the wedding's been called off, the Prince of Dalbreck packs his saddlebags and tracks Lia down. But he doesn't reveal himself to Lia, and Lia has no idea she has befriended her ex-fiancee.
The same time, from the land of Venda, an assassin has been sent on a mission to kill Lia. To prevent a much-needed alliance between Dalbreck and Morrighan.

When the three collide, Lia unaware of the men and the men knowing Lia's true identity, the race towards the inevitable end starts. Who ends up falling in love with who? And more importantly, is the calling of duty worth of betraying your love?

Personally, I loved this book! I'm so glad to have picked this one up. I've been slumping for a while and before this, I haven't really read anything after September. But this one, oh this one, Wow.

First of all: the base on which Pearson has created the book is just great. All the stories and legends and songs and traditions, they make the book come alive, they make it feel real. I really liked the endings of chapters. Most of them had few verses or short stories that really might not have made sense at the time they are presented them but in the end the realisation strikes, and hard.

The characters were awesome. Not much development happened during the book, Lia might have grown harder and lost the edge of her stubbornness. I can't tell any more of the character's because they are the root of this story and the ingredients to your heart attack.

Seriously. I almost had to call an ambulance when I got to the plot twist. When you read this book, make sure you actually read it and not just thumb through it, because if you're not careful you might miss it. It comes out of nowhere, strikes you hard and leaves you gasping for air and clasping your chest as if your heart would jump out.

So read it! :)

Review: The Raven Boys

            
                                     ★★★☆☆

Couldn't come up with a great catch phrase like they do in the back covers, so straight to the actual review.

Our protagonist Blue is the only child in a family of psychics. With father gone from birth and weird aunts living under the roof her life is far from normal. She also has a curse. When she kisses her true love, he will die. Blue has sworn off boyfriends, and the boys from Aglionby Academy, the Raven Boys, are the absolute no.

Until Blue sees one of the Raven Boy's ghost on a St. Mark's Eve. After that coincidences lead together and the Raven Boys end up solving a mystery of a disappeared Welsh King with the help of Blue.

Starting from the Raven Boys. There is a great group dynamic, it's carefully planned and set and it makes the book a whole lot of better. There are four boys: Gansey, the leader, Ronan, the irresponsible, Noah, the shy creep, and Adam, the poor one. Since coming to Aglionby Academy you need to be filthy rich, Adam has gotten a partial scholarship. Though his brightness and will to study to have his own life made, he has to endure his violent father. So the group has the invincible one, Ronan, and the vulnerable, Adam.

Then there's also the down-shifted Latin teacher and his will to revenge his unfortunates in life.

There were two things that bothered me very much while reading The Raven Boys. The first was the dropping and picking up the subjects too randomly. First you read of one thing and then suddenly the chapter ends and you think it continues in the next one, but no. You need to wait around hundred pages until it's picked up again, if it will be picked.

The second irritating thing was the ending. It didn't feel like an ending to a book. It felt like an ending to a chapter. There was no resolving of ''the puxxle'' or anything. It didn't make me feel that I need to run to the book store to get the next part. For someones this kind of ending might work but I was expecting more.

Bookish person's (Christmas) presents and where to get them

We all have the Christmas present problem. What to buy for a friend, mom, sister, mister, cousin or cat. We don't simply know! But if that person is a book lover or a bookish person here are some recommendations to make your Christmas shopping a bit easier.

1. A book

Really? Yep. A book. If a person happens to like books then you should buy him or her a book. The only problem is that if you buy a book he or she already owns or doesn't like or someone else is going to buy the same book for him or her.

Another way is to reveal that you're buying a book and you need to ask. So if you're not 100% sure of the book and you don't want to reveal your intentions, maybe the book is not the option for you.

2. Bookmarks
If you are a DIY person, this totally is your thing. Bookmarks can be bought nearly anywhere where paper is sold and most people don't even use an ''official'' bookmark, just a slip of paper or something to mark their place.
Making your own bookmark and doing another for your buddy is a great idea for a Christmas present or an extra for your main gift. Just Google 'bookmark' and you get so many awesome ideas for your own personal bookmark. (Or if you're lazy, you can also just print them.)

3. A Candle

Dark and cold nights in the middle of winter beg for light. Book people love candles since they are one of the most dangerous things in the world. One wrong move and poof, all your books have been turned into ashes.
But scented candles are The Thing. With scents like fairy dust, old books or Mr. Darcy's office you can set the perfect mood for reading. And the options are limitless.
Many small companies produce bookish candles and they get so busy during holiday season so if you want to ensure your shipping is going to be delivered before Christmas is over. So, order in November to be sure, to be absolutely sure, order during September of October!

4. Mugs

Tea (or other) + books = Pure perfection.
Mugs can be found anywhere. Bookstores, grocery stores, granny's jam-cellar... Everywhere.
''I didn't choose mug life, mug life chose me.'' -is probably the most commonly heard expression among the mug hoarders. Most bookworm's cabinets are full of mugs, every size and colour, so by adding a mug with a bookish print is going to make the bookworm's Christmas so much better.




5. Other merchandise: clothing, bags, phone and laptop cases etc.

Anything you need in basic, everyday life can be found in some bookish form. Pillows, check, beds, check, rugs, check, clothing, check. Everything, check.
Just buy anything bookish to the book-lover and you have succeeded in the task of Christmas present buying.







Where can we find these things?

Online is probably the best choice.
Many online stores have so much more to offer than a physical store, since they're all in boxes in huge warehouses. And usually they're a bit cheaper. Just remember to order them early enough, so they have time to ship your order and it gets delivered before the Christmas Eve.

Here are few suggestions if you don't know where to start searching from:

https://society6.com/bookwormboutique
https://www.etsy.com/shop/BookishCandles

Then our best friend: Google.


And if you're really late, DIY is your best friend along Google!

November Wrap-Up and December TBR

Shame. That's the only word I can describe what I'm feeling right now. It feels so bad that I haven't accomplished anything during November.

I only read three books and one novella. Three. Books. What I have done if not read? And those books weren't even long ones. The average 350 pages. What I have been doing this whole month?

Here's what I read during November:

I'm planning on finishing all the books I started in November. And that's work already.

Here's my December TBR:

 And this month I WILL read more than these four. Because it's Christmas!

Review: The Carnelian Legacy

My first thoughts were ''Oh, I already know what's going to happen.'' But in the end I was wrong. Not awfully wrong, but wrong nonetheless.

★★★★☆

Our protagonist is Marisa MacCallum. She lives with her uncle and brother. The book starts after Marisa's father has died.

It happens when Marisa is riding with her horse Siena in the woods that are rumoured to be cursed. People go missing there and they are never seen again. And that's what happens to Marisa. She sees three lightning strikes with no thunder and sucked into another dimension.

In this part I was super excited, because time and dimension travel stories are the best!

Marisa wakes up in a world called Carnelian with two strangers by her side: Lord Arrigo Macario and Ambassador Darian Fiore. Arrie and Darian take Marisa with them on their journey. Since the world is not the same as Earth is, Marisa is most of them a damsel in distress.

But Darian is not who he claims to be. He is not an ambassador, but a prince on the line to the throne. Though there's one teenie tiny 'if'. If he doesn't marry a Fiore princess, he can't ascend the throne and his evil cousin Savigno gets it. And with only one Fiore princess left, Savigno's sister Matilda, Darian's options are quite limited.

But Darian notices something that no one else notices and together with Lord Arrigo they plot and mischievous plan. A plan that the reader doesn't know they were plotting before the end of the book.

There are glimpses, that can't be explained, in the book. Glimpses of things that shouldn't be there and don't make sense before the end. And I think that this book should be read until the last letter to understand its magnificence.

The experience of reading The Carnelian Legacy can only be described as re watching a movie and knowing what happens, and still being surprised.

And I must add my favourite quote here!
''Deciding that he seemed more like a Tarzan than a prince.''