Monthly Archives: June 2017

Review: Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Series #4) – Iain Reading


Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Series #4) – Iain Reading

Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency #4)

Title: Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Series #4)

Author: Iain Reading

Release Date: February 26, 2014

Publisher: Createspace

Format: Paperback

Page Number: 234

Source: Author

Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic is the thrillingly cryptic fourth installment of the exciting Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency Series featuring the intrepid teenage seaplane pilot Kitty Hawk and her various adventures of mystery and intrigue as she follows in the footsteps of Amelia Earhart on an epic flight around the world. This fourth book in the series brings Kitty to the emerald hills of Ireland where she meets a handsome stranger and is quickly swept up in a perplexing hundred-year-old family treasure hunt involving secret codes and puzzling clues that lead her on a fast-paced adventure that carries her from Dublin to London – from the decks of the ill-fated ocean liner Titanic to the temples of ancient Egypt and the streets of Jack the Ripper – until she finally unlocks the mystery and discovers the long-hidden treasure. Much like the earlier books in this series, Kitty Hawk and the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic is a perfect book to fire the imaginations of armchair detectives of all ages. Filled with fascinating and highly Google-able locations and history the reader will find themselves immersed in brand new worlds that are brought to life before their very eyes as Kitty Hawk experiences the stories and history of a doomed ocean liner and unravels the Tragedy of the RMS Titanic.

4 out of 5 stars


Huge thank you to Iain Reading for sending me a copy of this book!

This is by far the best in the whole series, and I’m so glad that I got to read it! I loved this one because of the different elements to the story.

I loved that this was set in London. I loved that it talked about the Titanic and Sherlock Holmes. I love that there was a plot point about Jack the Ripper. I think this was the best crafted novel in this series so far, and definitely recommend reading it!

Kitty Hawk decides to help out a boy named Andrew who she gets introduced to during a grand opening for a restaurant. Andrew comes up to her and asks her for her help in discovering the truth of what happened to a crew member on the Titanic. Hijinks ensue, and the mystery gets solved.

I think that this was a well written book, and the plot developed quite nicely. I really enjoyed that there were many different adventures that Kitty got to go on, and I like that she was such a central part of this story.

If you haven’t read this series, I highly recommend it. I have been really enjoying it, and I think anyone from middle grade up would get enjoyment from it. I loved Andrew as a character because he just sounded so cute. I loved the scene right after they figured out the most important part of the clue. So cute.

Again, huge thanks to Iain Reading for sending me this book to review! I can’t wait to finish the series :)

Series:

Kitty Hawk and the Curse of the Yukon Gold (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency #1)

Kitty Hawk and the Hunt for Hemingway’s Ghost (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency #2)

Kitty Hawk and the Icelandic Intrigue (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency #3)

Kitty Hawk and the Mystery of the Masterpieces (Kitty Hawk Flying Detective Agency #5)

Review: July Lightning (Bad Bloods #4) – Shannon A. Thompson


July Lightning (Bad Bloods #4) – Shannon A. Thompson

Bad Bloods: July Lightning

Title: July Lightning (Bad Bloods #4)

Author: Shannon A. Thompson

Release Date: May 1, 2017

Publisher: Clean Teen Publishing

Format: ebook

Page Number: 267

Source: Author

From best-selling author Shannon A. Thompson comes an exciting new duology in the Bad Bloods universe.   Sixteen-year-old Caleb has been called many things: a patient, a musician, even a prostitute…now he has a new name–son. After his identity is uncovered, Caleb bands together with the family he once rejected in order to save the city of Vendona. But it won’t be easy. Enemies wait around every corner–and so do harsh realities. With Violet and Kuthun by his side though, nothing seems impossible. As Vendona sits on the verge of an economic collapse and a massive hurricane threatens the city, Violet and Caleb must show its citizens how to overcome decades of hostility and division to save themselves.Standing or not, a sea will rage, a wall may fall, and all will depend on immortal pain and sacrifice.

3 out of 5 stars


HUGE THANK YOU TO SHANNON FOR SENDING ME AN ECOPY OF THIS BOOK!

The conclusion of the Bad Bloods series. Violet and Caleb take on a brand new set of challenges, mainly dealing with the weather, and a situation with Vendona. As this is the fourth book in this series, I will not go into too much detail because spoilers, but I believe this was a nice conclusion to the series as a whole.

Personally, I liked the first two books the best. I loved Serena and Daniel. I loved that they were my age, and they were just figuring out their powers and they had to do a lot of trial and error, but it wasn’t overly depressing. The last two books were quite sad because they dealt with some heavy topics.

One thing I found interesting was that Caleb had a crippling disease called Stilts. It’s an STD that causes him to age or die faster. The way to combat this is to have a young bad blood girl sing to him to keep him healthy. I thought that was an interesting touch to the story. I liked that Caleb was represented as a bisexual character. I liked that it was handled that he liked people for who they were, not based on their gender. I feel like a lot of writing a bisexual character doesn’t take that into consideration super super well, but I like how he was portrayed.

I enjoyed Violet as a character because she was interesting and mysterious. You never really knew what she was planning to do, and I found it refreshing. Paranormal/sci-fi make up some of my favorite books, so I loved that this was taking some magical/paranormal elements and putting it in a dystopian world.

Also, ALWAYS READ THE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS OF A BOOK! I cannot recommend reading the acknowledgments enough because you learn so much about the book as a whole! I learned that this was based off the falling of the Berlin Wall. Super cool. I knew there was some historical background, but I didn’t know what it was based on. Looking back at it, it was quite obviously tied to the Berlin Wall, but I didn’t realize it at the time.

I would recommend this series to any paranormal lovers, but read them close together! Don’t take long breaks in between the stories *@me* because I think they would be so much more enjoyable that way!

Thanks again to Shannon for working with me :)

Series:

November Rain (Bad Bloods #1)

November Snow (Bad Bloods #2)

July Thunder (Bad Bloods #3)

Review: Amulet Volume 7: Firelight (Amulet #7) – Kazu Kibuishi


Amulet Volume 7: Firelight (Amulet #7) – Kazu Kibuishi

Firelight (Amulet, #7)

Title: Amulet Volume 7: Firelight (Amulet #7)

Author: Kazu Kibuishi

Release Date: February 23, 2016

Publisher: Turtleback Books

Format: Hardcover

Page Number: 200

Source: Public Library

Emily, Trellis, and Vigo visit Algos Island, where they can access and enter lost memories. They’re hoping to uncover the events of Trellis’s mysterious childhood — knowledge they can use against the Elf King. What they discover is a dark secret that changes everything. Meanwhile, the Voice of Emily’s Amulet is getting stronger, and threatens to overtake her completely.

3 out of 5 stars


The main part of this story was the Trellis and Emily travel under the sea to where an elf man has been hiding stolen memories. They travel there in a high powered submarine, and when they get there Emily and Trellis go into one of Trellis’ memories. They then find themselves in one of Emily’s memories, and then it goes down.

This had quite an intense ending. I was not expecting that to happen.

So, in the end Emily goes kind of crazy with different emotions, and can’t get out of the memories as herself. Trellis has to leave in order to save himself, and he abandons Emily. I don’t know how I feel about this. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll be picking up the next books because they don’t even have publication dates or covers yet… I don’t want to be reading these halfway through college, so I will be DNFing this series from this point on.

I do think that it was interesting, and I liked the concept, but some of the execution was lacking. I really enjoyed the first volume of this graphic novel series, and wish it would have stayed more like that one rather than becoming what it did. I don’t regret reading these, but I do not believe I will be picking up the rest, unfortunately. Just due to time restraints.

Series:

The Stonekeeper (Amulet #1)

The Stonekeeper’s Curse (Amulet #2)

The Cloud Searchers (Amulet #3)

The Last Council (Amulet #4)

Prince of the Elves (Amulet #5)

Escape from Lucien (Amulet #6)

Review: Amulet Volume 6: Escape from Lucien (Amulet #6) – Kazu Kibuishi


Amulet Volume 6: Escape from Lucien (Amulet #6) – Kazu Kibuishi

Escape from Lucien (Amulet, #6)

Title: Amulet Volume 6: Escape from Lucien (Amulet #6)

Author: Kazu Kibuishi

Release Date: August 26, 2014

Publisher: Turtleback Books

Format: Hardcover

Page Number: 224

Source: Public Library

A worthy mission…or a trap?

Navin and his classmates journey to Lucien, a city ravaged by war and plagued by mysterious creatures, where they search for a beacon essential to their fight against the Elf King. Meanwhile, Emily heads back into the Void with Max, one of the Elf King’s loyal followers, where she learns his darkest secrets. The stakes, for both Emily and Navin, are higher than ever.

3 out of 5 stars


Emily goes into the Void with Trellis in order to try and save Max from destroying himself and his different memories. They enter the Void with Max, and end up leaving him there. Meanwhile, Navin is fighting against the dark shadows that are consuming the minds of the people in Lucien, the underground city. He has to escape with the aid of his friends and his robots.

Again, because this is a children’s graphic novel there isn’t much to the story. I remember reading the first one when I was a kid and loving it because it was the first graphic novel I had ever read. My younger brother and I read it together and we thought it was the coolest thing. I definitely think that a younger audience would appreciate this much more.

I love the friendships in this book. Because it was written for children there is no romance which is quite refreshing. I love that you get strong friendships because they’re always so nice to read. I am excited to see where Trellis ends up being the new Elf King, and how the new girl of the story ties into the next one.

I know it’s just because my favorite color is blue, but the art that is all in different shades of blue makes me so happy. I love the simplistic art style, and I love that the artist and author weren’t afraid to leave strips of just art without having a narration. I think it added to the story quite nicely.

Series:

The Stonekeeper (Amulet #1)

The Stonekeeper’s Curse (Amulet #2)

The Cloud Searchers (Amulet #3)

The Last Council (Amulet #4)

Prince of the Elves (Amulet #5)

Firelight (Amulet #7)

Review: Amulet Volume 5: Prince of the Elves (Amulet #5) – Kazu Kibuishi


Amulet Volume 5: Prince of the Elves (Amulet #5) – Kazu Kibuishi

Prince of the Elves (Amulet, #5)

Title: Amulet Volume 5: Prince of the Elves (Amulet #5)

Author: Kazu Kibuishi

Release Date: September 1, 2012

Publisher: Turtleback Books

Format: Hardcover

Page Number: 208

Source: Public Library

THE ENEMY GROWS STRONGER…

Emily survived the chaos of the Guardian Academy, but Max Griffin has stolen the Mother Stone. With it, the Elf King forges new Amulets that will give him the power to invade and destroy the nation of Windsor. Emily and her friends lead the soldiers of the Cielis Guard in a fight to stop him, but Max stands in their way. And when she seeks information from the Voice of her Amulet, she discovers that the Voice is much more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

3 out of 5 stars


I’m so excited to be continuing on with this series! I completely forgot about it until I saw a Youtube video about them, then saw the next three at my library. It’s been a hot minute since I read the first four volumes, but I am so happy to be reading these!

This volume follows Emily and Trellis while they fight against Max who has taken the Mother Stone. The lives of many hang in the middle of all of this fighting, and Emily and Trellis are trying to figure out how to stop the deaths from happening.

This was a really good light-hearted read after Lord of Shadows. I needed something to not put me in a slump, and I always find that graphic novels are great for that. Not going to lie, this took me awhile to get back into the story, but I think I remember quite a bit from when I read them at the end of 2015.

The art style is beautiful; I love that there is so much color everywhere, and I love the different shades of blue in this book. The art is definitely a redeeming quality for this book.

There honestly isn’t much to say about this. It was okay, not my favorite of the series. I like that it is so fast paced, and I am so excited to read the rest of the series!

Series:

The Stonekeeper (Amulet #1)

The Stonekeeper’s Curse (Amulet #2)

The Cloud Searchers (Amulet #3)

The Last Council (Amulet #4)

Escape from Lucien (Amulet #6)

Firelight (Amulet #7)

Review: Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices #2) – Cassandra Clare


Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices #2) – Cassandra Clare

Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices, #2)

Title: Lord of Shadows (The Dark Artifices #2)

Author: Cassandra Clare

Release Date: May 23, 2017

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Format: Hardcover

Page Number: 699

Source: TBR Shelf

Would you trade your soul mate for your soul?

A Shadowhunter’s life is bound by duty. Constrained by honor. The word of a Shadowhunter is a solemn pledge, and no vow is more sacred than the vow that binds parabatai, warrior partners—sworn to fight together, die together, but never to fall in love.

Emma Carstairs has learned that the love she shares with her parabatai, Julian Blackthorn, isn’t just forbidden—it could destroy them both. She knows she should run from Julian. But how can she when the Blackthorns are threatened by enemies on all sides?

Their only hope is the Black Volume of the Dead, a spell book of terrible power. Everyone wants it. Only the Blackthorns can find it. Spurred on by a dark bargain with the Seelie Queen, Emma; her best friend, Cristina; and Mark and Julian Blackthorn journey into the Courts of Faerie, where glittering revels hide bloody danger and no promise can be trusted. Meanwhile, rising tension between Shadowhunters and Downworlders has produced the Cohort, an extremist group of Shadowhunters dedicated to registering Downworlders and “unsuitable” Nephilim. They’ll do anything in their power to expose Julian’s secrets and take the Los Angeles Institute for their own.

When Downworlders turn against the Clave, a new threat rises in the form of the Lord of Shadows—the Unseelie King, who sends his greatest warriors to slaughter those with Blackthorn blood and seize the Black Volume. As dangers close in, Julian devises a risky scheme that depends on the cooperation of an unpredictable enemy. But success may come with a price he and Emma cannot even imagine, one that will bring with it a reckoning of blood that could have repercussions for everyone and everything they hold dear.

5 out of 5 stars


I have so many feelings and so many thoughts and I know none of them will be portrayed correctly without giving away spoilers. If you haven’t read this book, DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW.

This book was literally everything I had hoped for. I cannot believe I’m done with it because I had been anticipating it for so long, and I LOVED IT. I loved everything about this book. Even if it made me sad or angry, I loved it.

So we start this book with Kit and Jace having a Herondale conversation. I was skeptical about Kit the whole end of Lady Midnight and through the beginning of Lord of Shadows because I knew he wanted to run away. He had already become friends with Ty and Livvy, and if he ran away it would make them so sad. So I was skeptical. I didn’t know how to feel, and he quickly became one of my favorite characters from this book. He was so interesting, and such a nice complement to Ty and Livvy. Ty and Livvy, because they are twins, are similar in many ways. They’ve always been with one another, and they’ve never really gotten the chance to be with kids their own age, so when Kit comes along and starts being their friend and loving them I just couldn’t help but love him.

Mark deciding to go and save Kieran was such a loyal and impressive moment. Kieran was the one that made it so Emma and Julian were whipped in Lady Midnight. Mark can’t just forgive that, but he knows that he can’t let Kieran die no matter how angry he is at him. He loved him while they were in the Hunt, and he needed him so much when they were both isolated in the Hunt. I was very proud of Mark for using his outstanding courage in order to save him from faerie.

So the crew goes into faerie to save Kieran, and then it comes out that Mark and Emma weren’t actually dating *more about this in like two seconds* and then before they find Kieran, Cristina and Mark just go and dance at a faerie revel. Ummmm. Cristina, use better judgement. You know that these things never end well, but it’s fine. Go ahead and dance until you die. It’s all good, no worries.

Mark and Emma. This situation. Okay, not gonna lie, at the end of Lady Midnight I wasn’t hating the idea of it. Lady Midnight ends with Mark asking Emma why they needed to lie about their feelings. The first time I read it I was SO mad because I didn’t think Emma should be with anyone but Julian, but then the second time reading it I realized it was for their own good that they shouldn’t be together. Then at the beginning of this book you find out that Emma and Mark are just faking. Emma lies to Mark and says its to get over Cameron… Yes because you’ve cared about him so much in the past, okay Em. Whatever you say. So Mark didn’t know he was actually the one to hurt Julian. Ugh.

Then Julian and Emma in the cottage. Everyone knew they were going to have sex and they were just going to try and worry about the whole parabatai thing later, but then Emma finally told Jules that the reason she was being so distant was the fact that Jem told her about the parabatai curse. She should have just told him right away so they could just suffer together, but no. But I’m proud of her because she told him. Way to go, Em. But she only told him because they both had near death experiences with the faeries in the group of seven. Mannan (?). Idk but they still fessed up about it anyway.

We got Alec and Magnus throughout it. We got Jace. I thought everything was great until I had like ten pages left and the fricking battle at the Council was still going on. Then Annabel goes crazy and kills Robert. Alec is devastated and he rushes to his father’s side and holds him after he’s dead. The tears almost started. Then Annabel goes even crazier and kills Livvy. She stabs her in the heart, and the way Julian reacts. My heart literally broke. He was whispering to her, and he loves her so much. He raised the Blackthorn children. They are his kids, and he couldn’t protect them. So now he’s going to be so broken in the next book. I’m not going to be able to deal with all of the Blackthorns being so broken because it will hurt my heart more than anything. But Ty and Kit are now destined to be parabatai, but they can’t because Kit loves him. Oh my gosh there is so much angst and I love it.

There was so much more to talk about, but this is already hideously long as it is, so I bid you good day. Thanks for reading the whole thing if you did, I’m impressed.

Series:

Lady Midnight (The Dark Artifices #1)

Review: Three Dark Crowns (Three Dark Crowns #1) – Kendare Blake


Three Dark Crowns (Three Dark Crowns #1) – Kendare Blake

Three Dark Crowns (Three Dark Crowns, #1)

Title: Three Dark Crowns (Three Dark Crowns #1)

Author: Kendare Blake

Release Date: September 20, 2016

Publisher: Harper Teen

Format: Hardcover

Page Number: 398

Source: TBR Shelf

When kingdom come, there will be one.

In every generation on the island of Fennbirn, a set of triplets is born—three queens, all equal heirs to the crown and each possessor of a coveted magic. Mirabella is a fierce elemental, able to spark hungry flames or vicious storms at the snap of her fingers. Katharine is a poisoner, one who can ingest the deadliest poisons without so much as a stomachache. Arsinoe, a naturalist, is said to have the ability to bloom the reddest rose and control the fiercest of lions.

But becoming the Queen Crowned isn’t solely a matter of royal birth. Each sister has to fight for it. And it’s not just a game of win or lose…it’s life or death. The night the sisters turn sixteen, the battle begins.

The last queen standing gets the crown.

4 out of 5 stars


I went into this book knowing nothing but being intrigued by the synopsis, and WOW. I really enjoyed this book. The idea behind it was so interesting and the ending made me want to have the next book RIGHT NOW!

This story is about three triplet queens who have to fight each other with their powers in order to become the full queen of Fennbirn. There is Mirabella, the elemental. Everyone has always thought Mirabella was going to be their next queen because her powers were easily recognizable from a young age. Katharine is a poisoner and can eat or drink deadly poisons. And finally there is Arsinoe, the naturalist who can make plants grow and control animals.

Going into it I thought Arsinoe would be my favorite, and I was right. I loved reading about her and her companions because she was so sarcastic and funny. I loved her as a character, and loved the interactions she had with everyone. Her friends were my favorite characters. I love Jules and Joseph together, and the amount of angst that happens because of a magical problem are so frustratingly fun.

I was also drawn to Katharine because she is the biggest underdog in the whole situation. Her family has been poisoning her in order to make her poisoning abilities finally shine through.

Mirabella is the only one of the sisters to have her full powers by their sixteenth birthday. She is the strong one who is destined to become the new queen.

Guys, this book was really good. There were some fairly cringey parts, not going to lie, and the writing style was a little choppy, but the whole idea was so cool. I loved that they are triplets with different powers and the plot twist at the end was crazy. I was totally not expecting it at all. I loved the whole plot, and loved that it went back and forth between all the queens and their lives.

I recommend this book for people who like fantasy and paranormal. I loved that there were some magical elements sprinkled into the story. It was very interesting because it was set in somewhat medieval times and there were castles. I really enjoyed it.

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