Return to Amar: The Complete Series

Return to Amar #1-2

by Nicki Chapelway

She thinks she made him up.
He knows that she is bonkers.
Together they just might accomplish the impossible.

Alicia Hareton is crazy. But that's nothing new. Her insanity is inherited from her mother, just like her magical abilities and her blood ties to the strange and alluring world of Amar. She's spent her life on Earth, and yet Amar has always called to her - an intoxicating melody that she cannot ignore. Returning to Amar would put her life in danger, but Alicia has never let such technicalities stop her before.

However, when her mother is captured due to her reckless actions, Alicia will do anything to rescue her. That includes trusting her grumpy, sarcastic imaginary friend, who claims he doesn't know her and doesn't seem that imaginary anymore. Or that trustworthy. Together, with the help of her cousin and a band of misfits, they partake in an extremely ill-advised heist on the faerie court in order to find a way to defeat the most powerful mage in all Amar, who also happens to be Alicia's grandfather. But not everything in the faerie court is as it seems, and soon this unlikely group find themselves fighting for their lives as well as the lives of those they love.

In a world of madness and magic, the lines between lies and loyalty are blurred and sometimes the only option you have left is to let the insanity loose.

This portal fantasy adventure is perfect for fans of clean ya who love whimsical stories that have a twist of magic, a tinge of humor, and a touch of romance.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

586 pages, Paperback

Published February 8, 2023

About the author

Nicki is a twenty-something author of swoony romantic fantasy. She has been writing since she was eleven and has since published several works. She enjoys creating stories with twisty-stabby faerie romances, retellings that take a darker turn, and epic fantasies in worlds full of monsters and magic.

Nicki lives in Ohio where she spends far too much time watching TV, playing video games, and sleeping. She listens to music basically all the time, and adores obsessing over mythologies, her shows, and her slew of fictional boyfriends. When not writing, she can usually be found at her desk with either a paintbrush or a pen in her hand.

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Reviews

[Grace Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Update: 2/15/23

Look at the pretty new cover! It's so pretty! <3



Return to Amar: The Complete Series (Nicki Chapelway Bundles Book 2)

First Read: 9/22/18 - 5/3/22



Overall Rating for All Two Books:
5 Stars

Overall Review:

I LOVE THESE BOOKS!!!

I had already previously read all the books, but you can see my reviews for them at the links below:

"A Certain Sort of Madness" (Return to Amar #1)

"A Matter of Curiosity" (Return to Amar #2)

"A Certain Sort of Madness" (Return to Amar #1)

First Read: 9/14/18 - 9/21/18



Rating: 5 Stars

Special thanks to the author for giving me an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. The author did not pay me for a review and all the thoughts here are my own honest opinion.

WOW!!! This book was sooo good!!! Somebody please give me another 5 stars to give to this book!!! It needs it! That ending though.... :,( I don't think I will ever be the same again.... I need the next book now! *cries forever*

There were just so many things I loved about this book! Arggg!!! It was just so good! And there was this dragon, and these killer fairies, and this wonderful banter between characters! And, And, AND!!! I'll try to contain myself from fangirling tooo much, BUT, honestly if you don't have this on your TBR yet, then where have you been!!! This book was so fantastic!!!

Okay, going to professional review mode.

The cover of this book is soooo gorgeous! I mean its BLUE!!! (The whole world should know by now that BLUE is my favorite color and I love to capitalize it, so there!) I LOVE BLUE!!! (The cover is so beautiful!)

*Ahem*.... Back to the review.

So all the characters have this banter between them. Sarcasm. But yet it fits so well with each character. Each has their own unique personality and was able to fit in their roles so wonderfully. Alicia is supposed to be a little insane, so when she finds Dante she claims that he is her imaginary friend, I nearly died with laughter with what Alicia was saying and how Dante responded to her. It fitted so well with their characters and I loved every moment.

Sometimes, I do get annoyed with too much sarcasm at inappropriate times, but this book, THIS BOOK, masters it so well, that I had no problem with it at all.

Characters:

I have never read a book before that has a relationship like an imaginary friend. AND I LOVED IT!!! Since it almost felt like Alicia knew Dante for like, forever, the relationship just seemed to grow better because of that. If what I said even made sense.

And though I can't relate to Olivia, I liked her? She was pretty cool. Down to earth. I could really see why she was terrified of things at first. And those high heels.... Man, she really has to have some strong ankles in order to do that much walking in another land with those on, I mean, wow. She was a little annoying, maybe, and I couldn't believe some of the stuff she did in her past. (But I liked her, sooo.... *shrugs*)

Eugene!!! Chandler!!! I mean, Eugene couldn't be Eugene without his monkey. He was a thief who was maybe a coward at times??? He flirted with Olivia a lot. He was probably one of my most favorite characters!!! He was an illusionist, with a pretty grand introduction, if you ask me.

Actually, if you ask me, all the characters have a grand opening.

Hector.... I wasn't sure what to think about him at first. Especially at the scene So he is shooting flaming arrows in a library burning books, to do what? Kill Dante??? Really??? If burning the library isn't bad, killing Dante??? I was actually liking Dante at this point, so yeah. However, Hector trying to kill Dante made the stakes rise in the story, and believe it or not, I also love this part, so.... It must have been because of the books. *Shrugs* He grew on me though, and I ended up loving him, like a lot. ;)

Jane.... I liked her. Though I always felt that I didn't really know enough about her.

Description:

Trust me when I say: "You believe you are right there with them." The description had me in the forest, a library, and the fairies court. It was beautiful, and fitted with either Alicia's or Olivia's POV.

Content in Book:

1. Magic. (Putting enchantments on people, being able to control different elements, making portals to go to different worlds, mind control, etc. It sounded like you had to be born with these magical abilities.)

2. Violence. (Shooting flaming arrows in a library, shooting arrows intending to kill, creepy fairy like creatures trying to kill, a dragon and it trying to eat his dinner, stabbing someone with a knife, trying to bury someone alive, hand-to-hand combat, threatening to kill, etc.)

3. Mentions of werewolves.

4. Some creepy fairies. (Supposedly based off of Scottish fairies.)

5. Mentions of Dante swearing in Italian. The words were never used; the book just said he swore.

6. Mention of a child being born out of wedlock.

7. Some implied cases of drinking alcohol.

8. Stealing stuff.

9. Some characters who were a little crazy. (But, hey, insanity is catching.)

Who I Would Recommend This Book to:

Those who like urban fantasy. Those who like fantasy. Those who like sarcastic characters who will make you laugh, cry, and will probably break your heart at the end.

Review first seen on Goodreads here.

"A Matter of Curiosity" (Return to Amar #2)

First Read: 4/27/22 - 5/3/22



Rating: 5 Stars

Spoiler Warning:

Spoiler warning! I try to keep all my reviews spoiler-free as much as possible, however, this book continues both series (“My Time in Amar” and “Return to Amar”), so consider yourself warned if you haven’t read the first three books in “My Time in Amar” and the first book in “Return to Amar”. I would recommend all those books btw, I mean, who wouldn’t want to read about werewolves and pirates? Yeah, take that as your cue to pick them up. 😉

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher for promotional purposes. I was not required to write a positive review. These are my honest thoughts and opinions.

The “Return to Amar” series is an “Alice in Wonderland” retelling, but between the two books, “A Matter of Curiosity” has the most elements poured into the story. Though I am only familiar with the movies and not the books, I could point to several things and go: “Hey, I know this reference!” The elements were carefully crafted to fit in a world that was already built, and it all worked wonderfully. I thought that making the Cheshire Cat a mad and devious faerie with purple lips and a cool looking-top hat was really clever, as he seemed to fit the character well. But we also had some wonderful settings, such as the strangeness of the Unrealm, the tea party turned into something like a horror story, and the chasing of the white rabbit.

While “Alice in Wonderland” is a classic, it has always been a little on the strange side for me. While it does have some charm, I had a hard time getting into it as a child. However, this book really pulled off the look and feel of madness while being both scary and endearing. The characters were all captivating, insane, and most importantly, heartfelt. “A Matter of Curiosity” made me really appreciate the tale it was retelling because without it this book wouldn’t have existed. And this book needed to exist. The characters and plot were so rich and delightful, and I fell in love with it all.

I was a little surprised that this one was so much shorter than the last book. Though, while I could always spend more time with the side characters, I didn’t think that the story was rushed. It did a good job of wrapping everything up.

While I can name a million things that I love about this book. One of the things that had me jumping up and down for the entire time was the select few characters from “My Time in Amar” meeting the cast from this series. And it did not disappoint! Though, I probably had a mini heart attack from them competing against each other, especially whenever Alexis decided that he wanted to be the sole competitor in some of the games. Since I loved each one of the characters on both sides, I neither wanted anyone to win nor lose. But also, like, I wanted Marius to lose, but I didn’t want the people on his team to get hurt either. So let’s just say that the stakes were high, like super high.

Now when we talk about scenes though, I really, really love the man-eating unicorn part of the game. There was something thrilling, exciting, and terrifying that had me on the edge of my seat wanting more. It was also very humorous in some parts. Like making Olivia the bait and her using her phone to light the way when no one in their company has ever seen technology like that before. It was great. But the unicorns themselves were also very well done. I loved how they weren’t made into the sweet beasts that today’s media makes them out to be, but the story really made them out to be both magnificent and downright scary. It was extremely well done and well researched.

The Characters

I love how Alicia was the character who was said to be insane, but she was mostly just quirky. There were times that she desensitize her emotions in certain circumstances, mainly when she was in danger, but I think that was mainly because of how powerful her mage powers were. Though, she cared deeply for the other characters. In fact, she was extremely empathic to others, even those she just met. I just love how bubbly and friendly she was with pretty much everyone.

Dante became the insane one this time. The Mad Hatter, to be exact. The little details of him getting obsessed over hats because of his time in the Unrealm was just genius. I just love this guy though, he always gave everyone his signature scowl but deep down he cares for the friends he made, which is shown heavily in situations where they are in trouble.

Eugene had one of the best character arcs in the story. In the last story, he was a little self-caring. But in this one, he really tried to put a certain character first. And his efforts really showed. I loved him so much.

Olivia was still wearing her high heels, I think they’re probably signature at this point. I really like that she wanted to help Alicia so much. I also understood her hurt for what Eugene did to her. But I thought she also grew a little. And that wasn’t a bad thing.

Hector was just as impulsive as he was in the first book. But at least he wasn’t burning down libraries this time. He’ll never live that down. XD And I think Hector rubbed on Jane a little. She just seemed a little bolder than she was before. Which wasn’t a bad thing, at least some of the time.

My Only Critique

WhErE iS mY JaBbErWoCkY??? XD

Content in Book:

1. Violence. (A game that involved hunting and killing a unicorn and bringing back its heart. A unicorn with blood on its horn. A unicorn trying to eat people. A werewolf ripping a unicorn apart. Taking the unicorn’s heart out of its chest (some blood). Shooting arrows. Stabbing someone with a dagger (happens multiple times). Threatening to chop off someone’s head/fingers. Threatening torture. Torturing someone. With plants. Etc.)

2. Kidnapping.

3. Magic.

4. Drinking alcohol.

5. Turning into stone.

6. Werewolves. Man-eating unicorns.

7. Torture. (cutting into someone with a knife).

8. Faeries that are violent or taking humans as slaves.

9. Insane characters.

Who I Would Recommend This Book Too:

Those who have first read:

"A Week of Werewolves, Faeries, and Fancy Dresses"
"A Time of Trepidation, Pirates, and Lost Princesses"
"A Certain Sort of Madness"
"A Season of Subterfuge, Courtiers, and War Councils"

I would also recommend this book to those who love “Alice in Wonderland” retellings. Those who like faeries, man-eating unicorns, werewolves, and portal fantasy.

Review first seen on Goodreads here.

Review also posted on my website here (with fan art of Dante!): https://gracemmorris.wordpress.com/20...

[Nicki Chapelway · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Oh how I long to run away from normal days! I want to run wild with my imagination."

- Alice in Wonderland
Lewis Carroll

My Review of A Certain Sort of Madness

All my life my mother has told me about the impossible. She told me that I had magical abilities, that Earth was not my home. That I could fly if I tried. But when it came to my imaginary friend she was always adamant. He. Did. Not. Exist.

When I first got the idea for this story, it was after watching Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass. I heard the credit song for the end of Alice Through the Looking Glass and I just knew that I needed to write a story about a slightly insane girl traveling to another world and the people she would meet along the way. But I already had a story about characters traveling to another world...

It didn't take long for my twisted mind to come up with the idea to make this a companion to My Time in Amar. I plotted and brainstormed and then I grew bored. I set the story idea aside for a couple years then suddenly I got inspiration for the titles and started working on it again around my birthday last February. I always considered this book a birthday present for me because I started it around my birthday. Unfortunately I'd forgotten all the ideas I had previously and all the plot points I had already come up with ("I don't need to write this down, I'll remember it" is the biggest lie I've ever told myself) so I had to figure out a way to tie everything into the world of My Time in Amar not once, but twice. I still to this day do not remember what the previous plot was, but I can assure you, it did not involve a faerie court. Which would have been a shame because that is my favorite part.

“Welcome to the faerie court. I hope you enjoy your stay because there’s always the possibility that you will never leave.”

My Review of A Matter of Curiosity

“What happened between us was a trick of the light. An illusion. I should know. My only friend is an illusionist.”

It's an interesting matter, writing a sequel. There is a delicate balance between writing something original and keeping to the tone of the first book. It's even more interesting writing a sequel that is the final book in a series. A Matter of Curiosity had to be so many things. A continuation, a finale, a wrap-up, and a tie-in with the other series set in this world. I'm honestly surprised that this book didn't end up being 600 pages long with everything that had to happen, and yet always following its own pace, telling its own story it managed to accomplish all of the above.

Don't ask me how that happened. I'm convinced there was magic involved.

Sometimes I like to imagine six impossible things and make them real.
Impossible thing one: I freed Dante
Impossible thing two: I will defeat Marius
Impossible thing three: I will prove to Dante that he loves me
Impossible thing four: I will prove to Olivia that she loves Eugene
Impossible thing five: I will find a way to help my mother
Impossible thing six: I can do all of these things at no personal cost to myself

There's even more Alice in Wonderland themed elements in this book than were in the first. The classical roles of the Red Queen, the Mad Hatter, and the Chesire Cat are all filled (and probably by who you least expect). This book mainly draws inspiration from Through the Looking-Glass only with the additional element of a faerie circus.

There have been so many masks that he has worn. Or maybe they aren’t actually masks. Maybe they are just facets of himself.
The childhood friend I lost.
Marius’s huntsman who betrayed me.
Eugene’s friend with a soft spot for outcasts.
The grumpy, sarcastic Italian who helped me regardless.
The puppet of the faerie queen who stabbed me.
Or the caring young man whom I kissed.


I eye him up and down as he stands in front of me, swaying on his feet, his eyes just too bright and his hair just too sloppy. A too cute, and too rich, too drunk, and too dishonest boy.

I am the author and my views are 100% biased