The Vanishing Throne by Elizabeth May [ARC REVIEW]

TITLE: The Vanishing Throne
(The Falconer #2)
AUTHOR: Elizabeth May
PUBLISHER: Chronicle Books
PUB DATE: Jun 7 2016

The second book in the Falconer Trilogy is packed with surprises and suspense.

Aileana Kameron, the Falconer, disappeared through the portal that she was trying to close forever. Now she wakes up in the fae world, trapped and tortured by the evil Lonnrach. With the help of an unexpected ally, Aileana re-enters the human world, only to find everything irrevocably changed. Edinburgh has been destroyed, and the few human survivors are living in an uneasy truce with the fae, while both worlds are in danger of disappearing altogether. Aileana holds the key to saving both worlds, but in order to do so she must awaken her latent Falconer powers. And the price of doing that might be her life.

Rich with imaginative detail, action, fae lore, and romance, The Vanishing Throne is a thrilling sequel to The Falconer.

Source: NetGalley

Rating:

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"But after everything I've been through, I'm proud to have a body that's strong, that bears the marks of how much I endured. No matter how painful those memories might be."

Elizabeth May's The Falconer was one of many faery stories I've read. While most of them were told in modern times, or in a dark and brooding historical era, I seldom got to see one mixed with Steampunk. It was a definite factor that made me curious. I finished The Falconer with thoughts that, while I was engrossed with the action scenes, I didn't see much of what it could be other than a faery action romance sort. Moving on to The Vanishing Throne... Well let's just say I'll never look at The Falconer Trilogy the same way again! That was freakin' fantastic!

The Vanishing Throne takes up its predecessor's story to whole other level!

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross [REVIEW]

TITLE: The Girl in the Steel Corset
(Steampunk Chronicles #1)
AUTHOR: Kady Cross
PUBLISHER: Harlequin Teen
PUB DATE: May 24 2011

Summary from Goodreads:

"In 1897 England, sixteen-year-old Finley Jayne has no one...except the "thing" inside her.When a young lord tries to take advantage of Finley, she fights back. And wins. But no "normal" Victorian girl has a darker side that makes her capable of knocking out a full-grown man with one punch....

Only Griffin King sees the magical darkness inside her that says she's special, says she's one of "them." The orphaned duke takes her in from the gaslit streets against the wishes of his band of misfits: Emily, who has her own special abilities and an unrequited love for Sam, who is part robot; and Jasper, an American cowboy with a shadowy secret.

Griffin's investigating a criminal called The Machinist, the mastermind behind several recent crimes by automatons. Finley thinks she can help--and finally be a part of something, finally fit in.

But The Machinist wants to tear Griff's little company of strays apart, and it isn't long before trust is tested on all sides. At least Finley knows whose side she's on--even if it seems no one believes her."

Rating:

"I like a little fight in my girls."

She grinned at him, causing blood to dribble down her chin.

"Then you're going to love me."

Finley Jayne is like no other girl. She may look like a normal girl but when danger lurks and there seems to be threats about, Finley’s “other self” becomes unleashed. That sort of alter-ego persona reminds me of Jessica from the TV series Heroes. It’s very entertaining to watch Finley’s switch between personalities, although it does cost her much whenever she tries to live a normal life. This part of herself has made her self-conscious and scared, making her feel that distancing herself would be much safer for her and for the people around her.

My copy of The Girl in the Steel Corset includes the short story The Strange Case of Finley Jayne. Reading through the latter was great considering I got to see Finley’s life before she met Griffin and his company. Although it did leave me puzzled once I started The Girl in the Steel Corset. Why didn’t the events of The Strange Case of Finley Jayne have a reflection to The Girl in the Steel Corset? Surely the good deeds she has done before would have given her more confidence in her “gift”, right? It’s like it never really happened. But since I was curious about Finley’s other story, I had to let that go and think of The Girl in the Steel Corset apart.

My experience with reading this book was very pleasant. I truly embraced the Steampunk genre in a way I never had with the other books I have read from the same category. The characters were also a splendid surprise since I was only inquisitive over Finley’s story, and yet I was introduced to an even more interesting set of people who are not only as peculiar as Finley, but have intriguing stories to tell of themselves as well. I just had to drink it all up!

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer [REVIEW]

   

TITLE: Scarlet
            (The Lunar Chronicles #2)
AUTHOR: Marissa Meyer
PUBLISHER: Feiwel and Friends
PUB DATE: Feb 5 2013

Summary from Goodreads:

"The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth...

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner."

Rating:

*Gasps* Wolf! *dreamy-eyed*

Wolf... *giggles*

Oh, dear Wolf... *sighs heavily*

Oh. What? Review? *wide eyed* Whoops! Sorry. I... I’m just... you see... *sigh* Wolf!

Okay... I’m snapping out of this trance – for now. Ha! Ha! Ha!

Wow! This was such spectacular book! What an adventure! I can’t stop admiring it. I can’t stop myself from smiling every time it crosses my mind or whenever I see it on my shelf. I can’t stop thinking about how much fun it was to read. I can’t stop fan-girling over Wolf! (I’m sorry. I know I said I’d snap out of my trance but it’s. Just. So. Hard! LOL).

I had loads of fun reading Cinder, the first book from the Lunar Chronicles, but Scarlet just put all that awesomeness to a whole new level! The characters are even more striking than before. Of course, I’m really glad to see Cinder and Kai again. But the addition of Thorne, – I’m sorry, that’s Captain Thorne – Scarlet and Wolf just made the story more exciting.

Meeting Thorne made Cinder’s journey, although strenuous and filled with danger, amusing and worth looking forward to. Thorne is one of those characters that would be loved by many despite being a wanted criminal. As for Scarlet and Wolf, they are just oh-so lovable. I say “Scarlet and Wolf” because it doesn’t feel right describing one without the other. If there’s one couple I’d strongly “ship”, it would be Scarlet and Wolf. They’re just perfect for each other.

Ironskin by Tina Connolly [ARC REVIEW]

Ironskin 
(Ironskin #1)
by Tina Connolly

Summary from Goodreads:

"Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again."

Rating:

Five years have passed and the Great War between human and fey has long gone. But the tragedy brought upon the world still lurks within the victims of the war. They are called, the ironskin, and Jane is one of them.

Seeming to want nothing more than to live as normal as possible, Jane takes on the job of a governess for the mysterious Mr. Rochart’s fey-cursed daughter, Dorie.

As Jane struggles to teach Dorie to learn how to suppress her curse, she begins to develop feelings for Mr. Rochart… but does he have the same feelings for her in return?

Later then, curious Jane suddenly uncovers mysteries surrounding Mr. Rochart’s residence… and although the fey seem to have disappeared and let the humans live their lives after the war; it doesn’t mean they have yet left them alone and live in peace…

Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff [ARC REVIEW]

Stormdancer
(The Lotus War #1)
by Jay Kristoff

 Summary from Goodreads:

"A DYING LAND
The Shima Imperium verges on the brink of environmental collapse; an island nation once rich in tradition and myth, now decimated by clockwork industrialization and the machine-worshipers of the Lotus Guild. The skies are red as blood, the land is choked with toxic pollution, and the great spirit animals that once roamed its wilds have departed forever.

AN IMPOSSIBLE QUEST
The hunters of Shima’s imperial court are charged by their Shōgun to capture a thunder tiger—a legendary creature, half-eagle, half-tiger. But any fool knows the beasts have been extinct for more than a century, and the price of failing the Shōgun is death.

A SIXTEEN YEAR OLD GIRL
Yukiko is a child of the Fox clan, possessed of a talent that if discovered, would see her executed by the Lotus Guild. Accompanying her father on the Shōgun’s hunt, she finds herself stranded: a young woman alone in Shima’s last wilderness, with only a furious, crippled thunder tiger for company. Even though she can hear his thoughts, even though she saved his life, all she knows for certain is he’d rather see her dead than help her.

But together, the pair will form an indomitable friendship, and rise to challenge the might of an empire."

Rating:

Readers, step into the world of Stormdancer, and feast your eyes into a fantastical realm like no other!

Yukiko, proud descendant of the Fox clan, and daughter of the great hunter, Masaru, stands witness to the environmental destruction brought by humans to the land of Shima. While the once rich and beautiful land achingly dies from the treacherous, toxic Lotus plant; as the sky bleeds red from all the pollution; while men continue to create diabolical machines, and as the rich and powerful thrive and the poor starve and die, the empire’s Shogun, driven by greed and ambitiousness, sends Masaru and his company, along with Yukiko, to capture a thunder tiger. Thunder tigers have long been known to be extinct, along with all the other great spirit animals that once roamed the lands. Although knowing that the task at hand is impossible, defiance and failure of the Shogun’s orders only mean death, and so the hunters go forth.

Goodness, have they been blessed to seize one, in spite of all the odds! But Yukiko has just about run out of luck. She finds herself stranded in the wilderness with the crippled thunder tiger. And here is where Yukiko uncovers something within her, something she has kept secret for fear of her own life. Now she must use it to save herself, to save her loved ones, to save a friendship she has just earned, and most of all to save an empire…

The Peculiars by Maureen Doyle McQuerry [ARC REVIEW]

        

The Peculiars
by Maureen Doyle McQuerry

Summary from Goodreads:

"This dark and thrilling adventure, with an unforgettable heroine, will captivate fans of steampunk, fantasy, and romance. On her 18th birthday, Lena Mattacascar decides to search for her father, who disappeared into the northern wilderness of Scree when Lena was young. Scree is inhabited by Peculiars, people whose unusual characteristics make them unacceptable to modern society. Lena wonders if her father is the source of her own extraordinary characteristics and if she, too, is Peculiar. On the train she meets a young librarian, Jimson Quiggley, who is traveling to a town on the edge of Scree to work in the home and library of the inventor Mr. Beasley. The train is stopped by men being chased by the handsome young marshal Thomas Saltre. When Saltre learns who Lena’s father is, he convinces her to spy on Mr. Beasley and the strange folk who disappear into his home, Zephyr House. A daring escape in an aerocopter leads Lena into the wilds of Scree to confront her deepest fears."

Rating:

When I requested this over at NetGalley, I found the plot interesting but I didn’t give it that much thought. And yet, as soon as I started reading it, I couldn’t help but admire Maureen Doyle McQuerry for writing this book.

McQuerry introduces readers to the life of Lena, a girl who was born with abnormally sized hands and feet, not to mention an extra joint in each finger, searching for her father and probing for answers about a part of herself that’s been burning inside her for so long. Is she a Peculiar or not? Peculiars are people with unusual characteristics that are deemed unacceptable to the society. On her decision to search for her father, she embarks on a journey like nothing she’s ever seen before.

I’m not particularly a fan of Lena. She’s too impulsive on my account, because just when I thought she’s done something good, she goes about doing something else stupid the next. Doesn’t she ever learn?

Anyway, I am absolutely blown away by the adventure the characters partook. I can imagine the journey Lena boards in with Mr. Beasley, Jimson and Merilee was really exciting. It feels like watching one of those movies where the characters are up in the air riding some flying vehicle and it’s all windy and they’re overlooking a beautiful scenery down below, far and wide [and with the usual matching theme music]. Sweet!

You know the little trivia some people say that a person should learn at least one new word each day? Well, you’ll discover more than one with this book.  I appreciated the education I got over reading the Peculiars. Even though I had to do research while reading it, add the frustrating fact that all the words I was looking for were written at the back. Really, Maureen? You could’ve said it was there and spared me the hassle! LOL. Kidding.

I really liked how unique this book turned out to be. At first when I read the words “unusual characteristics,” I thought I was in for some sort of X-Men-like story, and I am so glad that it was so different from what I thought it would turn out to be.

I still have a lot of questions unanswered in the end but overall, the Peculiars is a book definitely worth reading. I’m already looking forward to book II, oh yeah, the journey just barely begun!