Abbie Lynn Smith's Blog, page 3

Book Review: The Shattered City by Lisa Maxwell

It's no secret that I've been a big fan of The Last Magician series since I read the first book. Lisa Maxwell has literally had me hooked since the beginning with the 'will they, won't they' between Esta and Harte. In book three, The Serpent's Curse, she gave me what I wanted, but left an air of uncertainty about it.

The Shattered City picks right up where book three ended: Esta and Harte are back in New York, just across the Brink. They have to return to the city because they have to finish what they started.

The beginning of this novel was a little slow. I'll admit it took me a while to get through the first two hundred pages. She's thicc. But, once Esta and Harte returned to the city, the action picked up and it. didn't. stop.

Maxwell did a fantastic job of weaving several plots together to bring this fantastic series to its ending.

Between action packed scenes and tender romance, I I could not have been more pleased with this book. Also, there's a pretty amazing plot twist toward the end that literally had me messaging Lisa on Instagram because I was SO shocked.

I've tried to write time travel. Time travel is hard, but Lisa did such an amazing job of literally bringing the story full circle and giving everyone the happily ever after that they all worked so hard for. I loved it. I can't wait to see what she writes next!

Abbie

From Page to Screen: Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

This post is the first in a new feature of mine: From Page to Screen! One thing I have always loved doing is reading books and watching their subsequent film versions.

First Up: Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

DISCLAIMER

I must be brutally honest to begin with. I did not know going into this novel that it is a Christian Romance. I have nothing against the genre, but it isn't particularly to my taste. Please take my opinions on the novel with a grain of salt, especially if you enjoy the genre.

The BOOK

Since publishing my own work and studying the work of others, I have found that long, drawn out prologues are not for me. This one starts with a fifty-page prologue giving the backstory of the main character. While the information is necessary to the plot, I wasn't too crazy about the author's execution in utilizing the prologue as they did.

The story opens years later, when the main character, going by the name Angel, is working in a brothel in a town called Pair-a-Dice (a play on words that I didn't get until I watched the movie!) The love interest, Michael, spots her on one of her supervised walks through town and determines that it is God's will that he marry that woman.

Michael spends what little gold dust he has in order to meet Angel over the course of three days. Each time, he's the highest bidder for Angel's night, and, each time, he wants to talk. Just talk. I thought this was a really sweet gesture, and it endeared me to him from the start. By the third night, Angel continues to rebuff his proposals to marry him.

Then, something happens that forces her to accept. He spirits her away to his farm in the middle of nowhere. Angel has known nothing but cruelty and being used since she was a small girl, so Michael's tenderness and patience is completely alien to her.

Over time, Angel begins to open up. She and Michael build a friendship that eventually turns into love. I won't spoil any of the details there.

I wasn't the biggest fan of the author's writing style. A lot of it was telling instead of showing. One thing she did was have the characters peer back to conversations that happened in the past. While they happened on the page, they didn't always happen chronologically.

The main character was lacking. To me, she read as though she were stuck in a catatonic state for years. I rarely felt emotion for her, and I really wanted to.

By the end of the novel, I was just ready to put it down.

The MOVIE

Admittedly, given that I didn't really enjoy the novel, I wasn't looking forward to watching the movie.

I was wrong.

I don't know that I've ever been so glad to be wrong about a movie.

The film follows the same basic bones of story that the novel did. However, the writers of the film actually gave Angel a personality. She was witty and sarcastic. She was unapologetic and empowered. There was very little, if any, of that in the novel. It was refreshing to see.

The film sprinkled in bits and pieces of Angel's history that were spelled out in the prologue, and they did it in such an artful way.

I enjoyed getting to see the friendship and romance play out between Michael and Angel. It more than made up for what the novel was lacking in the romance department.

There were a few key changes that I really liked. In the novel, Michael renames Angel like twice. I think he meant for it to be sweet, a way of breaking her ties to her past. However, in the movie, he completely accepts her for who she is. He doesn't try to change her, and that, to me, is so incredibly beautiful.

The movie condensed a 500 page novel into an hour and a half movie. They did a really great job with it.

Of course, I love anything to do with the Old West, so seeing the costumes and settings set in the mid-1800s was a treat.

Final THOUGHTS

If you enjoy Christian Romance, you may enjoy the novel. However, expect to find plenty of prose and not very much romance on the actual page.

If you enjoy any kind of romance (similar to Bridgerton really in the historical aspect), definitely check out the movie. It is well worth the watch!

Also, Tom Lewis, I have a devilishly handsome villain that I'd like you to play. :)

Book Review: Sea of Storms by Lindsey Pogue

Look at this absolutely beautiful cover! After reading City of Ruin, I was excited to learn more about Killian, the elusive twin brother who showed up at the very end.

Firstly, this story has so much Norse mythology in it. I've always been interested in the topic, but haven't spent much time researching it.

Brynn and her sister are basically indentured servants in the cold north. They fight each day just to survive. When word comes that the Reaper is set to come to the workhouse they live in, Brynn and her sister flee in fear.

After tragedy strikes, Brynn wakes up in the one place she was trying to avoid: the Reaper's ship.

Brynn soon learns that legends aren't always what they seem. When she begins to fall for the dashing, mysterious captain--Killian--her entire world is turned upside down. Through tragedy, Brynn learns more about herself than she ever thought she would. Killian, too, finds that his once frozen heart can thaw in the most unexpected way.

Overall, I really enjoyed this novel. I don't want to give too much away because I think you should definitely read it, but I really enjoyed this new adventure by Pogue. I brought these books to my grandfather as well and he absolutely LOVED them!

There is another novel in this series set to release and I really can't wait to see what Pogue thinks up next!

Abbie

Book Review: City of Ruin by Lindsey Pogue

I read Lindsey's Forgotten Lands series earlier this year and really loved it. When I read that she was writing a Jane Eyre/Beauty and the Beast dystopian retelling, I knew I'd have to pick it up!

First off, let's talk about this cover! Lindsey does such a great job with her covers being appropriate to market but also so dang beautiful!

One thing I love about Lindsey's writing is she doesn't do huge info-dumps. She gives you just enough to understand the world and the stakes and moves into the story. I've started a handful of books lately where I almost immediately stopped reading them because of the info-dumping, so it was refreshing not to have that here.

We are immediately thrown into the story, learning that Selene is in trouble and her brother is trying to save her life after their mother's death. Upon their hasty retreat in which her brother was to deliver her to safety, a massive earthquake shakes New London.

Fast forward almost a decade, we find Selene working in an orphanage for a seedy couple in New London, overseeing children as they do their work. That is until the Collector comes along and buys her up.

In this world, good breeding is everything. Selene's brother was trying to save her from a deal their father made by helping her escape. The Collector purchases Selene and the children she's so fond of from the orphanage. Rumors swirl about the type of man the Collector is, and Selene is unsure about her fate.

What follows is a sweet love story about redeeming love and protecting the innocent. I really enjoyed this story. I'll be reviewing the second novel, Sea of Storms, next week, and a third novel is slated to come out in 2023!

Abbie

Book Review: A Light in the Flame by Jennifer L Armentrout

Y'all. I've been dying to read this book since the first one, A Shadow in the Ember. It's not that I don't like the FBAA series, but I much prefer Sera's story to Poppy's. I haven't had a ton of time for stuff like this, but I did reread A Shadow in the Ember just before diving into this beauty!

Book one left off on a lot of uncertainty. Everyone's secrets were bared: Sera had been training to kill Nyktos in the hopes it would save her people; Nyktos had his ability to love removed. But, they both had an undeniable pull toward the other.

Book two picks up right where book one left off.

JLA has a habit of dropping bombs and ending books. I don't always like it, but it was really well done here, especially for folks who don't have to worry about waiting for the next book.

In ALITF, we dive deeper into fate, love, and redemption.

Sera learns that her mentor is actually a Fate who was just shy of intervening, but he did it with a purpose: to train Sera. While she was raised believing everything she did was to destroy Nyktos, in fact, she was being trained to kill Kolis (the big bad wolf!). Pair that with the embers of life hidden in Sera's bloodline and we've got a whole host of things going on.

I also have to say: this is the kind of romance I look for in almost every book I read. I want sizzling chemistry, consent, and lots of inappropriate behavior between the love interests. That even though they are technically enemies, they can't help but be drawn to one another.

This book was a rollercoaster from start to finish, but I truly loved every second of it. There were times where I just wanted to shake Sera and Nyktos and make them see sense, but I was engaged completely, and I think that is the mark of a good story.

This one left on an even bigger cliffhanger than the first and left me wishing for more. Unfortunately, JLA won't be publishing it until late 2023, so I'll be waiting with baited breath until then!

Abbie

Book Review: Girls of Storm & Shadow by Natasha Ngan

This is the sequel to a book I read earlier this year called Girls of Paper & Fire, which was a fantastic young adult fantasy novel that I read earlier this year.

At the end of book one there's not really a happily ever after, but a happily for now. The main character, Lei, and her love, Wren, escape the wrathful king and ride off into the sunset, with uncertainty hanging heavy over them.

The first book was done so well that I immediately ordered the second. It took me a while to read it unfortunately, but when I started it, I devoured it!

This novel starts out with a surprise--the king's perspective. And he isn't dead. He survived Lei's assassination attempt at the end of the first novel.

It shocked me that that was how this one started. I wasn't expecting it at all. I don't believe the first book had multiple perspectives, but, book two does. Every few chapters, we see a different character from book one and where they're currently at. I wasn't sure if I'd like it, but I actually did.

The sequel novel is just as fantastic. We see the characters traveling as they try to bring others to their side. Wren and Lei are working to change the world, and they need allies.

One of my favorite things about this novel was the rag tag band that help Wren and Lei on their journey. Found family is one of my absolute favorite tropes, and it was done so well here. You have the badass, supportive female warrior, her smartass brother, a wise flying friend, and unlikely support from a man in power.

Toss in some shades of grey with our love interest--Wren--and you have a well written novel with lots of laughter, drama, and the exploration of self and who one wants to be.

This novel was so good I went ahead and ordered the third book. I can't wait to dive in!

Abbie

Book Review: Good Luck Girls by Charlotte Nicole Davis

When doing market research for Guns & Smoke, I came across this novel. From the blurb and the cover, it felt like a western-inspired story that could be a great comp title for G&S.

The Good Luck Girls, as they're known, don't really have good luck.

Poverty is very present in the land of Arketta. In order to make shine--the currency of this world--some families sell their daughters to the welcome houses (in other words, brothels). They're compensated and told the girls will have the best care--food, medical treatment, safety.

These girls work in the welcome houses until they come of age. Then they're auctioned off to the highest bidder and become staples in the welcome houses.

The first chapter is from the perspective of Clementine--one such girl who has just been auctioned off. Spoiler alert: it doesn't go well.

The next chapter changes to the perspective of Aster, Clem's sister, and it goes back to before the events of the first chapter. We see how Aster, who is older than Clem, has already gone through this and been a full servicing member of the welcome house. We see her try to shield her sister and prepare her as best she can.

Then, she discovers her sister has murdered the man who bought her for the night.

Clementine will be killed. It doesn't matter who the brag was, she is property of the welcome house and her services were bought and paid for.

Aster, of course, wants to save her younger sister. Though she's often thought about escaping, there are things in play that make that hard--namely the raveners, who can manipulate and place fear in the minds of others as a means of control, and their favors, tattoos that were inked into their skin as soon as they joined the welcome house that have bloomed and grown as the girls age. These mark the women as property, and if they try to cover it, it causes such blinding pain.

In order to save her sister, Aster coordinates a getaway from the welcome house, along with three of the other girls on the promise that Lady Ghost--a myth--could remove their favors.

This novel was really good. I read it over a couple of days. I wasn't completely able to get grounded in the world from the start, and there were some confusing elements--dustbloods versus fairbloods, but I really enjoyed it. I would like to see more written in this world. It didn't really have any romance, but I actually thought that was fitting, since the story was told from Aster's perspective and I don't know that that's something Aster wanted, especially not where she was when the story started.

Abbie

Book Review: Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon

Considering how long we had to wait for this book, the title is rather appropriate.

When I saw how thick this volume was, I immediately stuck it on my shelf. Well, first I let my grandfather read it because he's read the entire series and I wanted him to be able to get through it without having to wait on me. Then I let it sit on my shelf for nine months.

But since I've read over 60 books this year, I wanted to see if I could tackle it before the end of the year.

So here are my thoughts.

Firstly, I read the last book at least four years ago, so do I remember what happened in the last book? NO. Only the very end. So I really needed Gabaldon to ground me in what the heck was going on because there are so many little details that I'd forgotten. I can say that she did a pretty good job of it in the first 100 pages, with the exception of the Willie plotline. I can't remember much of anything about him finding out the truth about Jamie being his dad and Fanny... who is Fanny?

Secondly... are we trying to make this like a high fantasy historical fiction novel? Look, I get it, Gabaldon doesn't believe this story is a romance (*eye roll*), but there's actual magic? At least part of the stones and time traveling could be tied a little more to science, but physical healing with blue light? Wtf?

In all honesty, it took me about three weeks to get through this book. While there were some great moments, I found myself constantly questioning what the point was to all of the ridiculous detail. This novel was good, not great. It coudld have easily been about half the length and still been able to get the story's point across.

Don't get me wrong, I love getting to see Jamie and Claire again, Bree and Roger have my heart, and we really got to see more of William, but it felt like... a waste of my time. I hate that I feel like this. I wanted to be completely enmeshed in the story but I just wasn't.

Spoiler alert, click away now.

There's a scene toward the end where we think Jamie dies. I got choked up for half a second before Gabaldon brought back this "blue light" magic stuff that Claire has. I had to roll my eyes.

The novel ended on a happy note, with a bit of a cliffhanger. Not a bad one, but still.

My understanding is that there are ten novels planned in this series, so I fully anticipate Claire and Jamie dying in the next (and last) one. I'll read it cimply because I've invested so much time in the series, but can't say I'm dying to get my hands on it.

Abbie

Book Review: Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young

Spells for Forgetting was recommended by a friend. I pre-ordered my copy, not knowing that I'd be receiving a copy through my Fairyloot subscription box! This special edition is beautiful!

That said, stick around to the end. I'm giving away my regular edition to one of my followers!

I have discovered that I am a total wh*re for second chance romances.

That's it. That's the review.

Nah, but really, this book had just about everything that I wanted. Witches. Autumn. Long lost lovers reuniting. Murder mystery. Small town.

I've read Adrienne Young's Fable and absolutely loved it, even though I'd wished it was Adult and not YA. I'm finding I have this problem a lot with YA these days.

When we first meet August, he's returning to Saoirse Island, his hometown, and a place he never thought he'd return to. On his mother's last wishes, August returns to the island to bury his her ashes. But what happened on the island 14 years ago haunts him to this day: the murder of his close friend Lily, and the burning of his family's orchard, the island's lifeblood.

Emery had big plans. Plans to leave the island and avoid becoming her parents. But when her best friend was murdered and August, the love of her life, disappeared without a trace, all her plans went up in smoke.

The moment August returns, small town gossip ensues, and everyone knows he's returned.

What follows is a beautiful story of reconnecting with the past, rediscovering a love so deep not even magic can sever it, and the truth of what happened to Lily and the orchard that fateful night fourteen years ago.

I loved this book so much that when I got to the end, I needed more. I can only hope that Adrienne Young will write more stories in this vein, because this was fantastic!

GIVEAWAY!

To win a copy of Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young, enter my rafflecopter giveaway! US only!

Abbie ;)

Book Review: Eidolon by Grace Draven

Last year, I read Radiance by Grace Draven and absolutely LOVED it! I knew there was a sequel, but I wanted to wait a while before I read it.

There is an epilogue at the end of Radiance, where Brishen's mother unleashes a darkness. I didn't realize immediately that there was a sequel, because I felt like Radiance was wrapped up so well that it didn't need one.

However, there was one, and I am so glad that I read it.

Eidolon picks up pretty much where Radiance left off: Brishen and Ildiko are living in their castle which is quite a bit away from the capital, so they haven't learned just yet what Brishen's mother has done.

When they do, however, all hell breaks loose. Brishen, the only remaining member of the royal family, is tasked with not only taking the crown, but saving the realm from a darkness that will devour everyone in its path.

One thing I really liked in this one was that we got perspectives other than Ildiko and Brishen. One of Ildiko's maids from the first book was charged as the nursemaid for the youngest of the crown prince's children. We get to see the fallout from what the queen has done from the perspective of someone in the capital. We get to see their flight from the castle as they have to keep the baby's identity secret until she can be reunited with her only living family member.

Conversely, we get so much romance and love between Ildiko and Brishen that my heart was fit to bursting by the end. I truly love the unexpected romance between them. It is so well done and I highly recommend this series to anyone looking for a romance that makes their heart squeeze in happiness.

Abbie