[Review] Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet by Darynda Jones

Title: Fourth Grave Beneath My Feet

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #4

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: October 30th, 2012

Publisher: Piatkus

Format: Paperback, 308 pages

Welcome to the world of grim reaper extraordinaire Charley Davidson. Try as she might, there’s no avoiding her destiny.Sometimes being the grim reaper really is, well, grim. And since Charley’s last case went so awry, she has taken a couple of months off to wallow in the wonders of self-pity. But when a woman shows up on her doorstep convinced someone is trying to kill her, Charley has to force herself to rise above...or at least get dressed. It becomes clear something is amiss when everyone the woman knows swears she’s insane. But the more they refute the woman’s story, the more Charley believes it.
In the meantime, the sexy, sultry son of Satan, Reyes Farrow, is out of prison and out of Charley’s life, as per her wishes and several perfectly timed death threats. But his absence has put a serious crimp in her sex life. While there are other things to consider, like the fact that the city of Albuquerque has been taken hostage by an arsonist, Charley is having a difficult time staying away. Especially when it looks like Reyes may be involved.
Just when life was returning to normal, Charley is thrust back into the world of crime, punishment, and the devil in blue jeans in this hilarious fourth installment in the New York Times bestselling series.

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Review

My thoughts:

I can’t even with this series… Darynda Jones freaking read my mind, I could swear it! Just when I finished the third book, I was saying: “It’s kind of suspicious that after going through so much, Charley’s mind is still in one piece. If I were her I wouldn’t step out of my house again, not even for a million dollars”. And it would be kind of annoying and unrealistic of her to just get back on her feet and keep going as if nothing had happened… So, she doesn’t.

In this installment, Charley is kind of depressed, suffering from PTS after Earl’s attack. She won’t go out of her house and has been hoarding boxes of mostly useless things she’s been impulsively buying. She’s almost broke and hasn’t taken on a case for two months.

Her family and friends planned an intervention and try to get her out of the house, but she’s not making much progress until she meets Harper, a young woman who’s been terrorized her whole life and whom everyone thinks is just trying to get her parents attention. When Charley decides to take on her case, we get some of the old Charley back, this badass heroine ready to save the day and cause some trouble, but there’s still some part of her that will never be the same.

Of course, Charley finds herself in several tricky situations throughout the book and she’ll have to learn and learn fast about the power within her because there’s something wicked coming her way.

I loved this book even more than the others. It just felt so real to me. Charley has so many layers as a character that I’m always amazed at every new glimpse of her that I get.

Then we have Reyes who is hotter than ever –if that’s even possible- in this installment and I just don’t know if I can handle him anymore. 

This one, I think is my favorite book from the whole series. It’s just right on point. I went straight for the next book as I've done with the other ones in this series. I don't know what I'm going to do when I'm fully caught up or when the series is over.

Again, if you -for some reason; any reason- haven’t read this series yet, please give it a try. It’s so good I wouldn’t want you to miss it.

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Review] Third Grave Dead Ahead by Darynda Jones

Title: Third Grave Dead Ahead

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #3

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: January 31st, 2012

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Paperback, UK edition, 310 pages

Paranormal private eye. Grim reaper extraordinaire. Whatever. Charley Davidson is back! And she's drinking copious amounts of caffeine to stay awake because every time she closes her eyes she sees him: Reyes Farrow, the part-human, part-supermodel son of Satan.
Granted she did imprison Reyes for all eternity, but how is she supposed to solve a missing-persons case, deal with an ego-driven doctor, calm her curmudgeonly dad, and take on a motorcycle gang hell-bent on murder when the devil's son just won't give up on his plan of seduction..... and revenge?

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Review

My thoughts:

Gosh! I think Charley’s life has hit a new low point. Jesus! You can’t help but admire her determination, though. If half the things she had happened to her would have happened to me, there would be no way in hell you could talk me into taking a case ever again. Seriously.

In this installment, Charley is trying to find a missing wife and helping Reyes with his current situation. She hasn’t had any sleep for two weeks; she’s carjacked and kidnapped; she gets beaten up at least three times; betrayed by someone she loves at least two times; someone slashes her tires; someone breaks into her apartment; and the list goes on and on. And somehow those haven’t been the worst couple of weeks of her life… You gotta love her spirit.

Reyes is being a complete asshole during this whole book and I don’t care how hot he is, right now he's not making it to anyone's favorite lists. Especially not Charley's and certainly not mine. 

I have to admit, I’m always a little afraid of what’s coming next, afraid for Charley, that is… Everything seems to be aligning for absolute chaos, but that just builds up the excitement for the next book on the series. 

Darynda Jones did not disappoint in the third installment of the Charley Davidson series, her characters are beautifully developed and the plot never lets up. 

I went straight for the next one after finishing this book, and if you haven’t read this series yet, I strongly recommend it to you, you won’t regret picking it up!

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Review] Second Grave on the Left by Darynda Jones

Title: Second Grave on the Left

Author: Darynda Jones

Series: Charley Davidson #2

Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy

Published: August 16th, 2011

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Format: Hardcover, 307 pages

If you hang around with dead people, life can get pretty complicated. Take it from Charley Davidson, part-time private investigator and full-time Grim Reaper. Complicated is her middle name. The deceased find her very sparkly. Demons find her irresistible. And one entity in particular wants to seduce her in every way possible.
When Charley and Cookie (her best friend/receptionist) have to track down a missing woman, the case is not quite as open and shut as they anticipate. Cookie's friend Mimi disappeared five days earlier. Mimi then sends Cookie a cryptic message telling Cookie to meet her at a nearby coffee shop. The coffee is brewing, but Mimi's still missing. There is, however, a clue Mimi left on the bathroom wall: a woman's name. Mimi's husband explains to them that his wife had been acting strange since she found out an old high school friend had been murdered. The same woman whose name Mimi had scribbled on the bathroom wall.
Meanwhile, Reyes Alexander Farrow (otherwise known as the Son of Satan. Yes. Literally) has left his corporeal body and is haunting Charley. He's left his body because he's being tortured by demons who want to lure Charley closer. But Reyes can't let that happen. Because if the demons get to Charley, they'll have a portal to heaven...well, let's just say it wouldn't be pretty.
Can Charley handle hot nights with Reyes and even hotter days tracking down a missing woman? Can she keep those she loves out of harm's way? And is there enough coffee and chocolate in the world to fuel her as she does?
Here is your signpost for the most hilarious read of the year: Second Grave on the Left.

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Review

My thoughts:

OMG! I went to pick up the next one as soon as I finished this review. I really liked the first book in this series, but this one just won me over completely.

This was one of the best books I read in 2014. It’s still one of the best I’ve read so far, ever. Yes, I enjoyed it that much!

The writing is a dream… Fast-paced and action-packed, with details where needed and a witty dialogue that had me cracking up at 2 a.m. like a crazy person.

The whole cast of characters is awesome! Charley Davidson is one the best female characters ever. She’s tough, badass, sexy, feisty, funny and just an all-around fantastic heroine.

Reyes could have been taken directly from my wildest dreams if the amount of swooning I did throughout the book is any indicator. He’s just the perfect paranormal love interest: a bad boy, dangerous, seductive and mysterious but who somehow has a soft side. He’s very protective of the ones he cares about and I just fell for him so hard in this sequel.

The rest of the characters are great, colorful and full of life. In this book, for some reason, I got to appreciate them even more than the first time around.

I loved the chaos that was Charley’s world in this book. There were a hundred things going on, but the author somehow finds a way to give each storyline its place. There was never a dull moment, there was always something just waiting around the corner and it was really exciting. I even loved how the new case Charley was working on surprise me at the end.

This one is a must-read for all paranormal lovers! If you’ve read the first book and you’re still on the fence about continuing the series, I encourage you to do so, because this one is definitely better.

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About the author

NYTimes and USA Today Bestselling Author Darynda Jones has won numerous awards for her work, including a prestigious RITA, a Golden Heart, and a Daphne du Maurier. As a born storyteller, she grew up spinning tales of dashing damsels and heroes in distress for any unfortunate soul who happened by, annoying man and beast alike. She currently has two series with St. Martin's Press, the Charley Davidson Series and the Darklight Trilogy. Darynda lives in the Land of Enchantment, also known as New Mexico, with her husband of more than 25 years and two beautiful sons, the Mighty, Mighty Jones Boys. She can be found at www.daryndajones.com.

[Review] The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas
Throne of Glass #0.1-0.5
Published March 4th, 2014
Bloomsbury Childrens
Young Adult Fantasy

Premise:

Contains all five novellas.

Celaena Sardothien is Adarlan's most feared assassin. As part of the Assassin's Guild, her allegiance is to her master, Arobynn Hamel, yet Celaena listens to no one and trusts only her fellow killer-for-hire, Sam. In these action-packed novellas - together in one edition for the first time - Celaena embarks on five daring missions. They take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, where she fights to liberate slaves and seeks to avenge the tyrannous. But she is acting against Arobynn's orders and could suffer an unimaginable punishment for such treachery. Will Celaena ever be truly free? Explore the dark underworld of this kick-ass heroine to find out.

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Review

My thoughts:

If you ever want to know more about Sam and the way his relationship with Celaena started, this is the book you'll want to pick up. There's five stories in chronological order, so it's seems like a whole prequel book and not just bits and pieces. In these stories we follow Celaena's adventures before she got captured and shipped to Endovier, we get to see her falling in love with Sam and making her first attempts at friendship while still being a bad-ass assassin. 

If you are following the Throne of Glass series but haven't read this book, I strongly recommend for you to do so before getting into Queen of Shadows, because there are a lot of references and characters that pop-up in both books and it'll give you a better understanding of Celaena's feelings and action in the fourth book of this series.

Now, I'll be getting into a brief account of my feelings and impressions of each of the five stories:

The Assassin and the Pirate Lord

In this story we get to see the beginning of the relationship between Celaena and Sam. They had met long before this adventure took place, but they start to see each other in a different light during the events in this story. They are both sent by Arobynn to see the Pirate Lord, thinking they're trying to avenge a fellow assassin, but as always, Arobynn is playing games with them and turns out they're there for completely different reasons. 

I loved the banter between Celaena and Sam. Celaena was pretty bratty at sixteen but still funny and sassy and snarky and Sam didn't know what to do with her. It reminded me a lot of the early days in Celaena's relationship with Chaol, with the whole "I'm going to kill you in your sleep, but not really" thing they got going on. I'll admit it wasn't what I was expecting between those two, because of the way Celaena always talked about Sam... I don't know it's hard to imagine them being even less than friends at some point, but I guess they had to start somewhere. 

The Celaena we get in this stories, especially this one and the next is noticeably younger or at least more immature, but she still has that quality to her which won't let her turn a blind eye on the cruelty and awfulness of others. Still the same bad-ass with a heart of gold. 

The Assassin and the Healer

Here's a bit of the aftermath of what happened in the previous story. Celaena is on her way to the Red Dessert and she's royally pissed off when she stumbles upon a tavern in the middle of nowhere, where she stays while waiting for the ship that will take her to her final destination. You could tell she was just looking for an excuse to cause trouble and she gets it. 

In this story we get Celaena's POV and also Yrene's POV. Yrene is kind of a maid (?) I don't know how to describe her but she works at this tavern and her boss is an asshole. She was supposed to be a healer before the King of Adarlan banished magic from the continent and her mother got caught when they were looking for magic wielders, leaving her an orphan. 

The brief relationship between Yrene and Celaena is unlike any other that I've seen in this whole series. The way Celaena tried to empower Yrene so she could finally do what she always wanted was pretty great to witness. It shows that even if she's cocky and bratty and an assassin she hasn't lost herself as much as she think she has. 

I think maybe Yrene is the healer that was mentioned at the end of Queen of Shadows, it would make sense that her story is mentioned here if she was going to appear later on the series... But we'll see. 

The Assassin and the Desert

This was me when finishing this story: "Shut up, Sarah J. Maas. Just SHUT IT! Why do you have to break my heart in every one of your books, EVERY SINGLE ONE! You manage to toy with my emotions even in short stories. I should hate you... but you're so brilliant..." 

In this story Celaena is finally arriving to the Red Desert to train with the Silent Assassins and it's all really intimidating at first, but after a while it seems like everything was really different than what Celaena was expecting. She even meets a girl, Ansel, who she tries to befriend and it's actually kind of funny seeing Celaena trying to get along for a change. 

While being at the Red Desert, Celaena meets a couple of characters I would like to see again in the next books in this series. Like the master's son and the master himself, and maybe even that guy from the market with the spider silk. 

But then came the heartbreak and the pain and with that I got the answers to many questions I had about Celaena's past. For example, I always wondered how Celaena managed to pay her debt to Arobynn. I guess now I know... 

The Assassin and the Underworld

My first thought: That's where the strange deadly suit is from! 

My second thought: If you thought your heart was broken in the previous story, you're in for a treat. 

Celaena is back in Rifthold and Arobynn is showering her with presents trying to get her to forgive him for some really messed up stuff he did to her before. And those presents include a high profile contract to assassinate two men and get some really important documents. But you know Arobynn... he doesn't do anything if it's not completely calculated and everything is part of his sick twisted game of power. I despise that worthless bastard! If I didn't get it before, I mean how deeply the evilness went with Arobynn, now I have no doubt that he could be the most awful character ever. Because... Holy shit! My heart broke in so many little pieces for Celaena. This story makes it unbelievably hard to understand some of the decisions Celaena made on Queen of Shadows, although not in a bad way. Let me try to explain it: Arobynn is much worse than I'd ever imagined, he deserved far worse than what he got. If I were Celaena I think I wouldn't have been able to help myself. I would have killed him, slowly and in the most painful way possible and then  I would have danced over his grave with unfathomable joy until I couldn't move my legs anymore. I don't know how Celaena managed to be kind of the "better person" after everything this man did to her. 

But... not everything was so terrible. Sam and Celaena are working together again and they're flirting and romance and it's really adorable and heartbreaking between those two, which only made me dread the last story more, because we all know what happens with Sam...

If you haven't read Throne of Glass, get out of here right this second because what's coming will spoil you. 

The Assassin and the Empire

This is the story of how Celaena got thrown into Endovier. Knowing how it all ends doesn't help one bit. I could feel my heart shattering bit by bit through the horrors that Celaena and Sam had to endure. The dread at every step of the way was unreal... I was at odds with myself. Why in the hell am I dreading what I already know it's going to happen? But my heart kept beating harder and harder and I had to force myself to keep reading because clearly I was being irrational, but oh... the betrayal hurt as if I hadn't known about it beforehand and I was screaming: "No, Celaena, don't go! It's a fucking trap!" Even though it makes no sense, because if that hadn't happened there would be no Throne of Glass or any of the others books. But I just couldn't help it. 

I just love this series, I don't know what am I going to do with myself until the next book is out. Specially since this one left me with so much sadness in my heart... 

I think I'm going to re-read the whole series soon. 

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About the author

Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series (Queen of Shadows, Book 4, will be out in September 2015), as well as the A Court of Thorns and Roses series (out 5/5/15).

Sarah lives in Bucks County, PA, and over the years, she has developed an unhealthy appreciation for Disney movies and bad pop music. She adores fairy tales and ballet, drinks too much tea, and watches an ungodly amount of TV. When she's not busy writing, she can be found exploring the historic and beautiful Pennsylvania countryside with her husband and canine companion.

[Review] Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas

Queen of Shadows by Sarah J. Maas
Throne of Glass #4
Published September 1st, 2015
Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Young Adult Fantasy

Premise:Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she's at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen's triumphant return.Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.

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Review

My thoughts:

This review contains spoilers from the previous books in this series, so if you haven't read them yet and don't want to be spoiled, I strongly advice you to stop reading. 

Also: This review is brought to you by Tumblr and its amazing New Girl's gifs.

OMG! I just absolutely loved this book. It was freaking glorious! 

I've been counting the days for Queen of Shadows to come out since I finished Heir of Fire. I know I was really late to the party and I just caught up with the series last month, but I fell so deeply in love with this world and these characters that even those few days were agonizing. I don't know how have you managed to wait so long if you've been following the series since the first book came out. Seriously? What am I going to do now?! I need the next book like YESTERDAY!

I finished the book two days ago and I haven't been able to read anything since. I couldn't even get my thoughts in order to write a decent review right after I finished it, so I had to let it simmer a bit but I think now I'm ready. Here we go!

Queen of Shadows starts off with a heartbreaking scene of Dorian after being enslaved by the collar the King put on him at the end of Heir of Fire. And from this point on, every scene from Dorian's point of view had me tearing up at how awful things were for him. I had been questioning my love for him throughout the series, but it took picturing him like that, in all that darkness to make me realize just how much I love his character and how much I want him to be happy. 

Then we jump straight to Aelin's point of view with her arriving at Rifthold and finding out what happened while she was in Wendlyn and surprise surprise! Everything went to hell while she was away as we all know, so she gets bad news after bad news and then terrible surprise after terrible surprise. We see her planning Arobynn's downfall while trying to get back the third Wyrdkey he took from her ten years ago, while trying to figure out a way to free Aedion and Dorian from the King of Adarlan and fighting with Chaol every step of the way. And she manages to keep on trucking like it's just another day in the life, and looks freaking bad-ass while at it. If she were anyone else, she would have let the pressure scare her into doing nothing, but good God, when she means business (and she most definitely does in this book), she will let no one bring her down. Breaking Aedion out of the castle? Sure, no problem. Slaying a few dozens Valg guards? Fine, she'll get her hands dirty if she has to. Facing the monster who turned her into an assassin and killed the boy she loved? Come at me, bitch!... I'm so unbelievably proud of her, like I've never been of any other character before. Seriously, Aelin might be my favorite female character of all time. 

On the other hand, we have Chaol, who's at his very worst in this book. He drove me insane!! I stopped liking him in Heir of Fire, but in this book I just couldn't stand him, I hated him with all my heart and I truly admired Aelin for putting up with so much of his crap. He was so judgmental of her when he had no right to be! He would go on and on about how bad a person she was and how untrustworthy and selfish she was, when all this time she's been fighting with all she has in her, risking her own life, to keep everyone she cares about safe, including him, for God's sake! He came across as a jealous child... It was completely okay that she was an assassin when she was sleeping with him, so much so that he was willing to run away with her, but now that she's not into him anymore, she's a terrible danger who never should've been let out of her cage, because she will kill them all... As if she wouldn't have been able to kill you before if she really wanted to... REALLY, CHAOL?! REALLY???

In this book I didn't actually struggle that much with Manon's POV as I did in Heir of Fire. Maybe because this time, it was intermingled with Elide's POV and the way their paths crossed made the witch much more relatable and easier to like. I think I just learned to appreciate that side of the story now that the stakes are higher than ever and that I actually understand why that side is so important. Now I'm actually pulling for her and as for the next book, I'm just hoping that she takes a stand and confronts her grandmother about the horrible things that are being inflicted upon some of the covens. Show them who's boss, Manon!

I really loved getting to know Aedion in this book. I admire his loyalty to Aelin and how he's willing to do anything for her. I really liked the fact that this relationship is not romantic, I know they're cousins, but somewhere in the series there was a line that said that they weren't that closely related so they could very well be a couple. I'm glad that is not the case, because I truly think Aelin needs someone like him, who loves her unconditionally and not because he's into her. I also think his character brought a lot of the much needed humor to the table, his lines of dialogue were incredibly funny even in the most dire situations and I loved him for that.

Now... let's talk Rowan for a second... In Heir of Fire, I did not appreciate the way he treated Aelin and I stand by that. I don't care if he lost the one person who meant everything to him, that does not give him the right to be an asshole. But I grew to really care about him in this book. He showed that he is truly committed to Aelin and that he will be there for her no matter what... But more than that, I just realized how much Aelin cares about him, and I've decided that I'm not in any of the boy's teams. I'm team Aelin all the way, and if I were the god in her universe, the only rule I'd make would be: "whatever she wants, she gets, it's fine by me, as long as she's happy". 

There are a few new characters in this book too. And I loved every single one. Lissandra and Nesryn and Elide, bringing up the much needed female population in this book. I really liked them all and I'm hoping we get to see a lot more from them in the next book. 

The thing with this series that just takes my breath away is the world. It just blows me away every time. It's like it keeps expanding and every new bit is as well thought out as the the one before it. Everything clicks right into place and everything has a purpose. It's just fantastic. I'm in awe of the amazing talent that is Sarah J. Maas. 

Overall, this is my favorite book of the series so far. It gave me a lot of perspective and made me understand the characters a lot better. But even if it was the book that set everything into place, it was the most action-packed book, I think. It had a ridiculous amount of plot twists that made my mind explode, the stakes were so high and everything was always about to to spin out of control. This book was just glorious, it was the only thing I could think about, it had me at the edge of seat the whole time. I couldn't put it down... who needs sleep anyway? 

I haven't been able to read anything since I finished this book because I just keep going back to this world and these characters. Honestly, I think I'm going to go insane waiting for the next one, but I'm happy to do that if I get rewarded with more of this awesomeness.

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About the author

Sarah J. Maas is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series (Queen of Shadows, Book 4, will be out in September 2015), as well as the A Court of Thorns and Roses series (out 5/5/15).

Sarah lives in Bucks County, PA, and over the years, she has developed an unhealthy appreciation for Disney movies and bad pop music. She adores fairy tales and ballet, drinks too much tea, and watches an ungodly amount of TV. When she's not busy writing, she can be found exploring the historic and beautiful Pennsylvania countryside with her husband and canine companion.

[Blog Tour] Gaia by Karen Ann Hopkins (Review + Guest Post + Giveaway)

Hosted by Kismet Book Touring

Welcome to my tour stop for the second book in The Wings of War series, Gaia, by Karen Ann Hopkins. I'm new to this series and I'm really excited to share the love! I will reviewing both Gaia and Embers -which is the first installment in the series. Also, I'm featuring Karen's Guest Post in which she'll be sharing her Dream Cast for some of the amazing characters in this series. And don't forget to check out the giveaway at the end of this post!

Embers by Karen Ann Hopkins

The Wings of War #1

Published October 21st, 2014

Young Adult Paranormal Fantasy

Premise:There are descendants of angels walking among us. Ember is one of them. And she may be the only hope mankind has as the rapture approaches and evil rises.Embers is an epic paranormal adventure about an eighteen year old girl who discovers that she's immune to fire and any other injury when she’s in a horrific car crash that kills her parents. Following a violent episode with her aunt's boyfriend, Ember flees Ohio to live with an old relative in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. Ember's exuberance at escaping a bad home life soon turns to trepidation when she finds out that she's a Watcher, a descendant of angels. While Ember learns about her heritage and the powers that go along with it, she strikes up friendships with two young men who live in a frightening walled compound in the forest. Inexplicitly drawn to one of the men in particular, an impossible romance develops. But it is cut short when Ember discovers that her new friends are fighting on the opposite side of a war—one that’s been raging between two factions of Watchers for thousands of years. When the compound’s inhabitants threaten the townspeople, Ember takes action, sealing her fate in the ancient battle of good versus evil—and the grayness in between. Ember is up to the challenge, until she realizes that she isn’t only fighting for the lives of the locals and the souls of her new friends. She also might be one of the few champions who will make a stand for all of mankind as the rapture approaches and the end of days begin.
Embers is a dark and gritty YA novel that’s the first book in the series, The Wings of War.

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Review

My thoughts:

I'm new to Karen Ann Hopkins book but I've heard amazing things about her books and her writing style and now I can honestly say that they live up to the hype. 

I'm not going to summarize the book because I think the description given is pretty accurate and it's better if you go into it not knowing exactly what you're in for. I'll only say that the end of the world is coming, but it's not quite here yet. First, Ember must fight smaller battles, so don't go in expecting the world to go up in flames right away.

The beginning was kind of slow and a bit confusing to me. At first I had a difficult time establishing a time-line for the events such as the accident, the encounter with the priest and the prologue. But little by little everything begins to fall into place and the action starts building-up and before you know it, you're so deep into the story and its character that you can let go of the book. 

The world building is amazingly well done considering that it's a huge world full with a lot of different supernatural beings with different set of rules and powers. The characters were really multi-dimensional and well developed. I liked the way they toyed with the line that divides what's right and wrong, good and evil, it gave them much more depth. 

Ember is a great protagonist. She's bad-ass but not so much that it takes away from that relatable quality of her character. I really enjoyed seeing the world through her eyes and discovering all of her powers along with her. 

Sawyer is an impossibly gentle soul trapped in an awful life which requires him to do awful things to survive. I won't go much deeper into it's character, because all of his mysteries are better when you discover them yourself. 

I really liked Ivan and Ila too. Ivan was very sweet and shy and my heart went to him for all he'd been through. Ila was a seriously bad-ass character. She's is very cryptic and she has this grandma-like sweetness to her but she still is very active and amazingly strong. The mentor being the one who tell the girl she is different was pretty refreshing. I know it's been done before, but not as many times as the version where the mysterious guy with whom she inevitably falls in love, is the one who tells the girl the truth about who she is.

This first installment ends with a bang, it's like everything explodes and the story rises up to its full potential and there's fighting, deep emotions and suspense. It left me with a sense of closure but still very excited for what's coming next. I don't know how people managed to sit still while the next book was in the making. I'm really glad I get to jump right into it!

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Gaia by Karen Ann Hopkins

The Wings of War #2

Published July 26th, 2015

Young Adult Paranormal Fantasy

Premise:

As the Demons grow bolder and the walls between the planes of existence weaken, Ember is forced to develop her powers as quickly as possible, and she seeks out a powerful earth Watcher to continue her supernatural lessons. Her glimpse of the future demands she fight the dark forces spreading across the earth.

But her new mentor has his own agenda, making her question everyone and everything she ever trusted.

When Ember is thrust into the world of the Watchers, she learns of their plans—ones that defy the scripture and make them enemies of the Celestial Host. Ridding the world of evil gets complicated when it becomes impossible to take sides.

As Ember struggles with morality, she soon discovers that there’s something more frightening than anything she’s faced before.

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Review

My thoughts:

OMG! This series is so freaking fantastic, you guys! I'm having a hard time reviewing this one because I'm so agghh! Why did it have to end there?! I was dreading those last few pages, I didn't want it to end because now the waiting for the next one is going to kill me!

I don't know if this happens to anyone else but me, but I tend to get suspicious when the book covers are too pretty. Like they are too good to be true. And this book covers are freaking gorgeous! But I'm relieved to say that, in this case, the beautiful covers are the perfect complement for the gorgeous story inside...

I know I'm not making much sense, but I'm writing this right after finishing the book and my mind is in pieces... Let me breathe for a while...

Okay, here we go...

Gaia picks up right where Embers left off which is great since I started this book as soon as I finished the first one and the transition was seamless. The big difference between this installment and the one before is the pace. Since the very beginning there's action and honestly just a whole lot of crap going on, which I love. So make sure you're comfortable and don't have to be anywhere else soon, because you won't be able to put this thing down once you pick it up.

I'm not going to go into much detail about the plot, because I stand by what I said in my review of Embers. It's way better if you don't know what you're getting into. The surprises hit you in the face like a brick and it's freaking awesome. 

I should not be amazed at the world-building since it was already pretty well done in Embers. But the depth it shows in Gaia was monumental. I've not read the Bible since I was a kid, but I still got most of the references and the way its text found its place in the backstory of the characters and their purpose was superb. Everything was really well put together and I can't wait to see how all the revelations dropped here and there play out in the next book.

Onto the characters now... I loved Horas addition to the gang. His character makes me really happy for some reason, I loved his relentless teasing and how he could be so sarcastic and snarky even in the most dire moments. I just love him to bits. 

I also really enjoyed spending time with Piper, since she was often mentioned in the first book but we didn't see much of her all in Embers. Also Timmy! I'm glad they both had a place in this book, because I felt like we should know these characters that meant so much to Ember.

Ember keeps growing as a character throughout this book. Her powers are growing and she's also discovering where her loyalties lie. She struggles a lot to find balance between right and wrong in this book, because everything is mostly different shades of grey and I really enjoyed seeing her trying to make the best decisions in the most impossible situations. She's just overall a great main character. 

We finally meet the famous Insepth in this book and he's a handful. He's really powerful and cocky and unbelievably resourceful. But he's also mysterious and has his own agenda. Sawyer also got his mystery back. We know he really cares for Ember, but there's still just something about him though. I think I trust him, but the thing is that every freaking character in this book made me uneasy! I had a really hard time trusting people in this book. When things were nice and quiet I could feel myself just waiting for the other shoe to drop, thinking "I don't trust you Karen! I know you're up to something!". And then bam! Like an nuclear explosion everything went to hell and then there were even more characters and HUGE revelations and my heart could barely take it when it ended. 

I can't wait for the next book. This series is one of my favorite angel-themed series of all time. It's very different than what I've read before on angels and I'm enjoying it immensely. I sincerely recommend it to anyone who likes paranormal fantasy, especially people who are looking for more than just a story, because this world is phenomenal and you won't want to get out of it. 

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