Books I'm Thankful For

Happy Thanksgiving guys! 
I'm not American, and therefore don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but I do have American relatives and around this time of year I always end up contemplating what I'm thankful for! I recently did a photo challenge day for "thankful" and I thought it would be a nice idea to do a post of books that I am thankful for this Thanksgiving, and there are quite a few for various reasons, so I've tried to narrow it down a bit! 

1. Harry Potter
I really do try not to use this for EVERY post I do, but it's so hard because it's such a huge part of my life! You've probably all heard the story from me, you know, I always read a lot as a kid, but Harry Potter stepped it up a notch for me really, I really got in to reading through it. It was the first time I experienced eagerly awaiting the next book in a series, and the first time I went to a midnight release. I remember going at midnight to get Deathly Hallows and starting to read it immediately, having a nap basically and then getting up and finishing it. 

2. The Mortal Instruments & The Infernal Devices
Again, I'm fairly certain I've mentioned this before in one guise or another but it's also been a huge part of my life. I actually stumbled across Clockwork Angel at the library and ended up immediately going and buying my own copy, and then the first three Mortal Instruments books. I stumbled across these at a rather....blah time of life. I was in a reading slump, I wasn't as in to it as I used to be. I was still reading but I didn't have that "OMG have to read, the feels" kind of thing. There was no passion and this brought it all back. Not to mention rocking up to a festival and meeting friends of a friend and immediately bonding over these books, and fingerling about it and basically meeting one of my best friends. We all read Clockwork Princess together in one night and it was glorious. 

3. The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings
I came to this sooooo late, like the films had been out for a while, I hadn't even seen them and then one day I just had the urge to watch them....and I loved them. Being the bookish person I am, I then immediately went and bought the books and started to read them, except for The Hobbit which I'd had on my shelf and hadn't really started it. These books basically got me in to fantasy which got me in to a lot of other books that I love that I probably wouldn't have picked up without reading LOTR! 

4. The Hunger Games
I have a confession to make...I had the books...but I didn't read them until I had seen the first film. Sorry guys! I ended up reading all three in pretty much three days. These books, I can't even. So perfect, so many feels and I'm kind of including this because I just saw the final film the other day and it gave me feels and I was just kind of so amazed to be involved with the wait for films and the excitement, it was like Harry Potter almost hahaa. No but this was the first Dystopian book I had read and I ended up reading SO MANY good books because of it! 

5. The Princess Diaries & The Mediator
Okay so these two are my favourites, but pretty much every Meg Cabot book got me through my teenage years. Either with pure escapism, or the humour or in some cases with some sort of advice or something that I could take from the book and use in my own life to sort a problem. Made those years a bit more enjoyable! You have no idea how excited I am about a new Mediator book coming out! Not to mention the Princess Diaries one that I STILL haven't read! 

6. The Covenant 
So, I stumbled across Half-Blood on Amazon, and of course, it was only published in the US so I have the original covers, and the books are a bit unwieldy if I'm honest, but I LOVED them! You all know I love mythology and Ancient Greece and Ancient Egypt, and this one was right up my street. I re-read this series, or the Lux whenever I need a pick me up. I actually didn't read the Lux until last year. LAST YEAR! I really do suck! Half-Blood was a gateway drug, I swear, I was hooked. Eagerly waiting for each new book in the series. I've read every single book of hers except for the ones she's written under J. Lynn and the Lux spin off book which I haven't bought yet...shhhh! I'm currently reading Oblivion and I'm just like....you know. I freaking love these books. They really do instantly lift my mood. I probably should have had this as number one but I didn't really do a ranking order just random!

7. Throne of Glass
These are just...I can't even. I got sent the third one to review, and I already had the other two on my TBR, so I finally got around to reading them all and I just fell in love straight away and they have such a place in my heart. The fandom, admittedly did have a falling out over Queen of Shadows but still. The story, the richness of it. It's like eating a really nice, rich slice of chocolate. You never want it to end, and you're savouring every bite, and then you're gutted because you scoffed it too fast. Perfection. 

8. Shadow Falls 
This is a series I always rave about, but no-one else seems to have really read. It's kinda creepy, what with all the ghosts, but it's got everything good you love in a book. It's one I really am due a re-read of to be honest, it's been a while! I've got the last two books of the spin off trilogy to read, everyone was going mad about the ending of the second book so I decided to show some self control for once, and wait until the final one was out to read it! I read these at a really crappy time in my life, and just got completely lost in them. 

9. Jane Eyre
I read this at school for my English GCSE. Never before had I ever read a classic. Well. I'd kind of read Dracula and The Secret Garden but it was more of a "it's free with the paper, and I have nothing else to read" kinda thing and I don't think I actually finished Dracula. So, this one was the first classic I read all the way through and actually liked. I read ahead of the class and everything and got way too in to the essay for the coursework. If I hadn't read this at school, I probably would have no classics on my shelf and wouldn't have read any others! 

10. The Diviners
THIS SERIES. There's only two and the sequel was out this year and I re-read Diviners and oh my god. I get SO pulled in when reading Diviners that I end up swaying towards a Diviners style when doing makeup and getting dressed and everything. I go full 1920's it's insane. I even went crazy for the Lair of Dreams review and made a playlist with all the songs and a few other finds, to go with it. These genuinely suck me in the entire time I'm reading and they're so decadent and kind of creepy and just completely glorious and I was really falling out of love with Historical kind of books and then BHAM. Historical setting AND kids with powers AND  a ship that I ship so hard I'll probably be emotionally compromised if they don't work out. 

What books are you thankful for?! 

A Court Of Thorns And Roses

A Court Of Thorns And Roses
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher!

The world was once ruled by Fae, but after a great war between the Fae and the humans, there was a treaty agreed upon by both sides. Ever since the humans have lived on one side of the wall, hating the Fae, and the Fae have lived on the other hating the humans, but 100 years ago a blight settled upon the lands of the Fae....

Feyre is 19 years old, the sole provider for her family ever since they fill from grace to live in a cottage, she does everything her father can't for them to survive. It's when she's out hunting that she stumbles across a wolf, one who's skin would give them enough money to survive a little longer, so she does what any hunter does....she kills it....and it lets her.

That's when everything goes wrong in her life. Not long after a beast shows up, demanding retribution, she has two options according to the treaty....die or go and live across the wall with him, a life for a life. Feyre chooses to be dragged across in to the magical lands she's heard stories about, not good stories either, for her entire life. Except it turns out that the beast is actually Tamlin, and the beast is just a form he can take...he's actually a High Fae, and his emissary Lucien...well he's a pain in the ass.

Turns out everything she thought she knew was wrong. Fae can't lie? Hell no, they lie all the time. Iron can harm them? Aaaactuuuaaalllyy....no. They'd probably just laugh if you tried to use it against them. The only thing that works is Ash Wood, and we all know there's none of that on Tamlins estate. So she's stuck there. For now.

As she lives on his estate, Feyre starts to fall for the Fae with the clumsy attempts at flattery, who is nonetheless quite charming. She even manages to stomach Lucien, as they snap at each other. Just as she starts to call the estate home.....the blight comes back for round two. But what is the blight? Who is this she, the others are all fearful of? There is far more going on than Feyre is aware of, an ancient evil....a curse.....will she be able to figure it out, and survive, long enough to save Tamlin and his people?

Dammit I knew I was going to love this before I even started reading because I love Throne Of Glass, and I was so excited to start reading this I couldn't wait any longer and so read it now (February). I loved it. I can't even right now, with how to properly explain it. It was too awesome. I mean, it had a map at the beginning how could it not be awesome?!

So I felt like this take on the Fae was original, I loved the different courts, usually there's only been two in other Fae books I've read, but I loved all the different ones, the different looks, and the politics of the Fae world in this book. ACOTAR has a rich history to it's world, and you get to discover a lot of it, but still want to know more about the world and the war that happened, the history of the Fae is so rich and so intriguing!

 I'm curious about this King, and there was one point when I thought "Wait maybe this is actually a standalone" because towards the end of the book things where wrapping up quite nicely, but there's been a couple of threads of the plot, subtly left open for the second book involving a certain Night High Lord and a King and disappearing human.......what is the word I'm looking for.....uuh....appendages? Belonging to a certain b word that rhymes with witch.

ACOTAR much like Throne Of Glass throws you in to a unique and rich world, painted vividly for you to get utterly lost in when reading, I was fully engrossed and this is the first time I managed to read a book in one sitting in months. Months I tell you! As soon as I started reading, I fell in to the pages, and was following Feyre through her world, watching everything unfold, the atmosphere was a tangible thing, and the vivid and beautiful descriptions, not to mention previously mentioned rich and intriguing history to the world, helped to suck you in to the story, not to mention keep you engaged.

Don't worry, all of said rich history/background/politics, is slotted in to the narrative smoothly at the correct moment to give you maximum knowledge to keep up with the story and what's going down, without having to read pages of it all in one go. The book was complex and intricate with it's plot but never confusing, everything was laid out so you understood what was going on in the world of the book when you joined it, and you could understand why things where happening, or atleast the things you know about! There's the odd bit of intrigue, subtly hinted at, that keeps you guessing.

The plot was fast paced, there was a lot going on the book, and you go on a real journey in terms of character development on Feyre's part as well as with the story, if that makes sense. I loved seeing the two contrasting parts of the world, then seeing that third part, and the world is clearly extensive, and i'm intrigued to see more of it and more of the other courts.

There was always something going on, the book was hard to put down because it's one of those where you say to yourself, one more chapter, and then it's like 4am and you have no idea what happened or where the time went because it was actually daylight when you started reading and you realise you've nearly eaten an inedible type of thing because you can't even raise your eyes from the book to eat. (You don't want to know)

There's so much to the story and the plot, like I said it's intricate, getting all the details of the world in to build it, adding in the background and history to the world, the politics of the Fae, the characters and their own backgrounds, the action, the intrigue, the curse. The book is almost in two parts, we have Feyre getting to know Tamlin and trying to figure out what's going on and falling in love, and then we have the second part where she tries to get the freedom of everyone. One is no less action packed than the other, I can assure you. The book has it's own plot, and own goal, that is subtly setting up an overarching plot for the rest of the series, like for example, the King who is mentioned a few times, but you know is going to be a bigger player overall. I love when books set up the series without sacrificing the plot of the first book.

I'm rambling, I know, but this book is full of awesome, so we've done world building and plot, lets get cracking on the characters!

Feyre, I loved her, I love how Maas's characters are always badass and are in no means females in distress. Feyre bucked up and did what was necessary for her family to survive, and carried on doing it even though they treated her like dirt. We saw her go on a real journey as she goes from hating Fae, to falling in love with one. She's strong, she's determined and she's brave, she can stand up for herself and she can give as good as she gets. I seriously loved her, and I loved how she didn't lose her edge even when she was in love. I'm excited to see more of her. She's one of those characters you instantly connect with, and feel for, and you're totally on their side throughout the book.

Tamlin was interesting, and he really reminded me, more than once, of the Beast from Beauty and the Beast with his compliments in the beginning and Lucien prodding him along! Serious Beauty and the Beast vibes! I enjoyed him as a character, as you saw him change too, he was so gruff in the beginning but gradually over the book you see him soften a bit and you see more of the real him, and I'm so interested in his background and knowing more about him and his past!

I feel Lucien deserves a mention, because while I wanted to smack him one a couple of times, I did actually like him and he made me chuckle, and when you find out his story and at the end of the book when he helps Feyre, you can't help but love him a little for risking so much to help his BFF's girl out. I dare say he's a bit of a softy deep down, I think he should go up against Nesta, not gonna lie. I'd really love to see more of Lucien and the dynamics between him and his family!

I'm gonna mention two more characters I liked, which might not be a popular opinion either! I liked Rhys, he was dodgy and really shady (har de har har, geddit, shady) but at the same time, he did become kind of a guardian for Feyre and he helped her, and I'm curious to see what his game is with the whole deal they made, I really want to know what he's up to and it's driving me mad that I don't! Especially his reaction at the end! I want to get to know him more  because there's clearly more going on. Despite thinking she was a witch, I did actually end up quite liking Nesta, the sister who appeared to hate Feyre, yet hired a mercenary to take her to the wall to try and get her back. I was near on cheering when she and Feyre had their little moments and I'm desperate to see the pair reunited!

Each of the characters, main or secondary, where incredibly well written. They had depth, they all had a personality different from the other characters, and they all added intrigue to the story. The characters where a colourful bunch, and there where so many as there where so many Fae and different types! The characters where another aspect that kept you glued to the book, and helped draw you in to the world, as they came alive in your minds eye.

The romance, the important part to a few people, was subtle. It didn't take away from the story and the action going on and the mystery of what was going on, when it started it was subtle, and it built up naturally and I could appreciate it going the natural route, because I detest insta love! While it was subtle, it didn't stop me "Aw"ing and it's the squirmy, mushy insides kind of romance that we all love reading. Then ya know....the whole evil cow thing happens, and it's full of feels and pain, but then it's awww again and it's all good. So yes, the romance is enjoyable and believable you could say!

I'm as yet unsure if Rhys is going to be a problem or not, and I can't decide how i'd feel about it if he was to, say, create a triangle, or something. I don't know enough about him and what his goal is, but as of this book, there's no triangle or anything, but even if, in the next book or something, there was a triangle with Rhys, we all know it's going to be well written either way, Throne Of Glass is proof enough!

A Court Of Thorns And Roses is the beginning of what's set to be yet another utterly fantastic, mesmerising, spellbinding, enchanting, heart racing, emotional, badass, original, incredible series from Maas. This a fantastic first instalment, laying the groundwork and subtly setting up the series, without taking away from the story the first book is telling, and drawing you in to the world, and making you love the characters.

A Court Of Thorns And Roses is another original and unique offering from Maas, throwing you in to a world glimmering with magic, but with a hint of darkness as well, and another incredible romance. ACOTAR has some Beauty and the Beast vibes, and is going to be a must for Game of Thrones fans, (not just because of the Wall okay guys?!), and has an extensive world you're itching to learn more about, and see more of. I can't even begin to put in to words how I feel about this book, I have tried and I have rambled, but all I can say is just read it and I promise you won't be disappointed, especially if you're a Throne Of Glass fan!

I'm so excited to see where this series go, this book kept me on my toes and I never knew what was going to happen next, I just had to sit back and enjoy the ride, so I'm having trouble predicting what's going to happen in the next book, which is why I need it now! I want to get back to the world and the characters already, even after 400 pages I wasn't ready to leave them, and I'm sure the wait for the next book is going to be agonising. I'm fairly certain there is no book Maas will write that I will not be utterly obsessed with. (FYI this book is just as cinematic as Throne Of Glass should someone feel the urge to....I don't know.....make a movie of it)

So yes....well done Sarah, I am a hopeless fangirl of yours, and my book hangover is just....worse than any actual hangover I've ever had, and that's saying a lot, your storytelling and world building always draws me in, and I can't wait for the next book in this series, and in the Throne Of Glass series AND any other books you have up your sleeve! 100% obsessed.

(EDIT: It would appear i'm the only idiot that didn't know this was actually a fairytale retelling, so yeah....like I said...I got the vibes loud and clear, but it had it's own unique twist....obviously!) 

Top Ten Tuesday: Book Series With More Than 3 Books

Specifically this said "Books for readers who like series that have more than 3 books in" but I shortened it for the title because I'm lazy!
So yeah, this week it looks like we're acknowledging our love for series that have multiple books in, not that trilogies and duologies aren't cool, they are, love me some Hunger Games ya know? But series with more than 3 books give us something to really dig in to, especially if you're like me and have recently developed a habit/been really busy and end up with 4 or more books from a series to read in one go.
Now I'm rambling so let's get on with it shall we?

So, this has made me realise, I have actually read quite a few series with tonnes of books in, even if it didn't seem that way at the time because I was waiting for months for the next book and it was quite broken up. It's also made me realise, like I said, that I have 4 books in one series to read in one go whenever I eventually pull my finger out and get to it! I'm beginning to feel like I say much the same books each week, so sorry for repeats!

1. Harry Potter- J.K Rowling
Perhaps a bit obvious but this was honestly the first series I ever read, and I remember waiting avidly for each next book, and when the final book was out going to a bookshop at midnight, sleeping for a couple of hours and then reading it all in one day! I re-read this frequently as well, often when I'm supposed to be reading a chunk of my TBR! 

2. Maximum Ride- James Patterson
I believe this was recommended to me by a friend back in Secondary School, and I was sucked in from the first page. I thought this was finished actually,  but turns out there's ANOTHER book coming out that I now need to wait for with baited breath! It's an original one that's for sure! 

3. Game Of Thrones- George R R Martin
Perhaps another obvious one for me, but this one is one where you can truly savour the world building and the character development with each instalment. I have 2 more books (technically 3 seeing as one is split in to two) to read in the series, I had to take a break to read a load of review books and then I kept being too busy to carry on, but I'm determined to finish it within the next couple of months! 

4. Throne of Glass- Sarah J Maas
I know I've mentioned this multiple times already when doing Top Ten Tuesday, but I really do love this series, and I'm getting really impatient for the next book, and there's promising to be a few more after that! It's one I can really get my teeth in to, with a rich world and fantastic characters, and it's definitely one of my favourites! Which is why I keep mentioning it! 

5. Grave Witch- Kalyna Price
This one is one for all the supernatural fans, and it's one I stumbled across at the library, and it quickly made this list because it's an original book, and one that gets better with each book. I'm currently waiting impatiently for the fourth book, which has been put back again, and after the ending of the third book I'm desperate for the next book! 

6. Drake Chronicles- Alyxandra Harvey
I know I've mentioned this one before as well, but it's another favourite of mine, and I'm a strong campaigner for Lucy getting a spin off series! Harvey is a favourite author of mine and I've ready all but one book that she's written, and even then, that book is in my TBR, this one is a nice original take on a well used theme!

7. Shadow Falls- C C Hunter
Again, another I've mentioned but it's a great series, it's fun, it's got a cute romance, and it's original. It's another I re-read whenever I have a chance, and it's even got a spin off series on one of the characters that I've determined to wait until the third and final book is out, before I read the second, judging from people's comments! There's one too many cliffhangers in my life right now! 

8. Mortal Instruments- Cassandra Clare
Yet another I've mentioned before, possibly multiple times, but it's one of my very favourites, and I really really do love it, even though I have reservations about the TV series. It's another one to re-read and it's got everything you need in a good series! Not to mention it's prequel trilogy that ties in seamlessly, and the spin off series that's upcoming and set after the events of this series! All these different series set in the same world are seamlessly woven together, it's incredible! 

9. The Covenant- Jennifer L Armentrout
I've also mentioned this series before, because it's awesome, and Alex is one of those characters that I love more than most, mostly because of her snark and how badass she is! I re-read this one regularly as well, and it's so original and a series you can get lost in. It also has a spin off series based on events after and following one of the other main characters. 

10. Bloodlines- Richelle Mead
This is actually a spin off series of a series that I've read and loved, I just happen to love the spin off series even more than the original series, which makes no sense, but yeah. Blame the characters! Serious love for this series! 

Top Ten Tuesday: All Time Fave Books From The Past 3 Years

Dammit this one's hard, I suck at picking favourites, atleast I get to pick ten though right?! You can guarantee the picks from me are going to be the most original and unique because I'm obsessed with both haha And yes I know I'm late, but there was breakfast, and then I attempted to do some Yoga and discovered I'm not as flexible as I used to be, and then I got distracted by a book and typing up a review, but hey at least I finally posted!

Okaaaayy so let's get started!

1. A Darker Shade Of Magic-V E Schwab
Okaaay so I just finished this today but still. It's that good it's already made a fave list from me! It's one of the best fantasy books that I've read recently and it's so original and unique and just awesome and the world is so rich. 

2. Throne Of Glass- S J Maas
Serious favourite, I read all three in one go in a matter of days, I couldn't put them down, the main character is badass, and the book, is again, unique and original with an incredibly created world and each  book always leaves you wanting more. 

3. A Breath Of Frost- Alyxandra Harvey
Magic...romance...historical...what more could you want? A totally original take on magic and witches, a nice dose of history seeing as it's set in the Victorian times, and a trio of main female characters that are totally fantastic. It's such a cute romance as well! 

4. Touch Of Frost- Jennifer Estep
I read ALL of the books in this series in a week, and I loved each of them, I seriously loved them. Fun, original, full of action and adventure and drama, this is one of my favourite series, I just gave you guys the first one in the series! 

5. Reborn- C C Hunter
Right, this is a spin off from Shadow Falls, I would have said Shadow Falls as well as this but I mentioned it last week! You do kind of have to have read Shadow Falls to read this one, but it's all about Della this time, and takes an entirely different direction, with Della and her work for a certain group she's always wanted to join. Della is far too easy to connect to! 

6. The Naturals- Jennifer Lynn Barnes
This is the first in a series, and it's totally awesome. It's a teen version of Criminal Minds pretty much, and a group of teens are solving murders....obviously. Each has their own skill, and I love trying to work out who it is, who the killer is, it's perfectly creepy but also funny and with a smidgen of romance. 

7. Alice In Zombieland- Gena Showalter
I stumbled across this book at the library, and ended up reading it from there and then buying it to have my own copy, and I then had to wait with baited breath for the other two books! I pretty much re-read them each time as well! It's one of my favourite trilogies, and it's totally different and awesome, and there's cute romance and zombies and humour. 

8. The Bone Season- Samantha Shannon
I know I mentioned this one last week, but it's so good guys, and so unique and I always bang on about unique books, but I love books that stand out from the crowd and this one certainly does, it's going to be a hell of a long wait for the third book and I'm already impatient! 

9. Unspoken- Sarah Rees Brennan
So, I can't remember how I stumbled upon this book, I think I read the Demon's Lexicon books from the library, and decided to check out Sarah's other books and then I saw this was coming out and bought it and then yeah. So I love this series, it makes me laugh, the romance is all warm and fuzzies inducing and there's magic and mystery, and the wait for the other books has been agony! 

10. City of Bones- Cassandra Clare
So, I read the first in the prequel trilogy book from the library, and thought it was only logical to buy all the Mortal Instruments books that where currently out and read them all in a matter of days, then wait in agony for the next books. I love this series. So much. I even got to meet the author when the film was coming out and the final book. It was the best thing ever. Just don't get me started on the TV series and the supposed rumours! Anyways, this is another of the unique ones, and I love it, and I'm excited for the next spin off series! 

Top Ten Tuesday: Heroines

Okay, so this is my first time doing Top Ten Tuesday, and I probably picked the hardest week to join, I mean...10....how can I narrow it down!? You're probably about to see a certain pattern in genre now haha! This is hosted by The Broke And The Bookish! I'd have linked them in the little title picture below, but I'm technologically challenged and couldn't work it out....sorry!

(In no particular order by the way, I'd be here all week if I did that!)

1. Celaena Sardothien- Throne Of Glass
Okay, so the Throne Of Glass books are one of my favourite series, and I love them so much, and Celaena was just too awesome, and I loved her from the first page. I can't wait to see what happens to her next and where she goes. I pretty much want to be her to be honest, she has mad fighting skills. 

2. Lucy Hamilton- The Drake Chronicles
Lucy, oh Lucy, how I love you, she's badass, she has hilarious aim, and she makes me laugh out loud in public places, and refuses to be a damsel in distress. I'm waiting for the day she gets her own spin off with baited breath! 

3. Alexandria Andros- The Covenant
So I'm not quite sure how to word this, but I think this is one of the first YA's I read, I stumbled on it on Amazon along with Drake Chronicles, and I instantly loved not only the books, but Alex as well. I loved Alex instantly because she's a badass, but she's not perfect and it made her more real, not to mention the fact that she is the snark Queen. And the way she can just take all the shit that's thrown at her and ultimately carry on. 

4. Daenerys Targaryen- Game Of Thrones
I love Dany, not just cos you know....dragons, but because when we first meet her she's a young girl, pushed around by everyone else, and through the course of the books so far you see her grow and change, and become this ultimate badass who's freeing people, and she has her dragons and she's gonna burn her way to the throne. 

5. Gwen Frost- Mythos Academy
So the last book in the series was on NetGalley and I got to review it so I pretty much read all the books in one go. I love the books and I love Gwen, she doesn't take shit from anyone, and she's witty and funny, and just awesome. I'm sure there's a pattern emerging here....snarky badasses. 

6. Isabelle Lightwood- The Mortal Instruments
Ah Isabelle, not the main character of the story, but my favourite nonetheless. This could be slightly because my friends have told me that I look like her, but she was my Queen throughout all the  books. She kills demons wearing high heels, like hello....awesome. She's badass through and through, but also has a vulnerable side, and she's perfect omg. 

7. Sydney Sage- Bloodlines
I love Sydney, quite possibly more than I love Rose from the series this book series is a spin off from. Yes I said it. She's smart, witty, and she cracks me up, and I have like the last three books left to read that I haven't got round to yet, and I can't wait to see her stick it to the Alchemists. 

8. Kylie Galen- Shadow Falls
This was a hard one because I had to choose between Kylie and Della, and I love both, but Kylie I did read first so here we are. In the beginning I thought she was kind of useless and was a bit like ugh can we not, but then I grew to love her as she changed and became stronger and stood up for herself and dealt with all the crap in her life while being kinda badass with the ghost sensing skills. 

9. Megan Chase- The Iron Fey
Megan is another one of those characters that you loved from the beginning, and watched develop in to a totally awesome character who takes no shit and does what needs to be done. I loved how strong she was and how she ended up being the one rescuing Ash at one point, and what she did to save everyone. 

10. Paige Mahoney- The Bone Season
Paaiiiiggeeee....I instantly loved her and connected to her, she's everything I love, strong, badass and willing to do what's necessary. She doesn't take shit, and she keeps on going and trying no matter what happens. She also makes me chuckle! 

Heir Of Fire

Heir Of Fire
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy!
Source: Copy courtesy of Bloomsbury


Picking up two weeks after the end of Crown of Midnight, we join Celaena in Wendlyn, broken, grieving, but determined to avenge the death of her friend and keep her promise to her. Wendlyn has the answers she needs to destroy the King, sent there by Chaol to keep her safe, she's under orders from the King to assassinate the King and Prince of Wendlyn...who are in actual fact related to her. Celaena's heart won't let her do it, and once warnings have been sent out, she focuses on her own personal mission. Find her Aunt Maeve, Queen of the Fae, and get answers about the Wyrdkeys, Wyrdgate and so on. Although spending her time lying on a roof drinking wine isn't getting her very far, so it's just as well one of Maeve's warriors, Rowan, comes to bring her to the Queen. Except it's not that easy. Celaena will have to stay at Mistward, training with Rowan and learning to use her magic, before she can earn entrance to Doranelle and the answers she seeks. As Celaena finally embraces what she is and who she is, she faces memories long locked away, memories that would break her, but in the end...they make her stronger. Fully in control of her magic and able to shift, when she's put to the test by the King of Adarlans attack on Mistward...will she become who she was meant to be? The Queen she was meant to be? Will she embrace her destiny and resume her old name? A name she tried to forget? Will she be Aelin, or Celaena?

Meanwhile Dorian is struggling to control his magic as his father takes drastic action against the slave uprising, but when he meets a healer named Sorscha, they work to find a way for him to control it. But is Sorscha just the healer she seems? Or is she something more? When Dorian finds out the truth about Celaena, will he become her enemy or still remain her friend? Can Chaol accept Dorian and his magic?

When Celaena's cousin Aedion comes to the court, Chaol is determined to find out what he's up to, but it would seem Aedion isn't as in the thrall of the King as he's leading people to believe, Chaol finds himself immersed in the rebel group, helping them, in order to help Dorian and Celaena, but still unable to accept who his two friends really are.

But the excitement doesn't end there, there's something dark lurking in the Ferian Gap, the Kings new soldiers, after making a bargain with the Ironteeth Witches, they will be the riders of his Wyverns, as they train for the War Games that shall determine which is in charge of them all, something isn't quite right.

When the King of Adarlan goes one step too far, he sets in motion a chain of events no-one will be the same after. Loyalties will change, destinies will be accepted, stakes will be raised, and things will never be the same again.

"She was not becoming anything different from what she always was and always had the capacity to be"

Heir Of Fire is a fantastic new addition to the series and it's expertly changing the direction of the overall story and slowly leading us to the big finale. Things are starting to heat up now, shall we say! (har-de-har-har)

I picked up Throne of Glass last year because everyone was going on about it, and I will admit, I wasn't sure what to expect, and I wasn't sure I'd actually like it, I was expecting some fantasy that was just action? I suppose? I wasn't sure, but as soon as I started reading, I fell in love with the world and the characters and here we are. The fantastic world, the badass and snarky protag, the romance, the humour, the action...it all blends to create a unique blend that is sure to become a favourite!

We've come so far since Throne Of Glass, and things have changed! What started as the story of a mysterious Assassin fighting for her chance to be free, changed to the story of the Kings Champion, trying to keep her friends safe at all costs, while trying to find out what the King us up to. In Heir Of Fire, the story changes to one of magic, Fae, and our hero finally accepting who she is, becoming her true self, and fully ready to kick ass and get this rebellion started....after a little detour in her plans of course!

I love the world, and every time I read a new book in the series, it's like coming home. The world is fantastically built and beautifully written, it's extensive, and we see a little bit more of it in this installment. A more....magical area of the world! I love how the world building is so detailed, but so concise at the same time. This continues in this installment as we explore Wendlyn and Mistward, and eventually Doranelle. All written so vividly you can picture yourself there as you read! It's a world you end up wishing you could visit, and certainly don't want to leave! The world 100% engages you and consumes you, the imagination of the author makes your imagination come alive because the world is so colourful and vivid and mind blowingly extensive.

Thanks for the forest of spiders, with the giant spiders that live there by the way Sarah....I twitched and got all itchy while reading that bit  more than once!

The prose is tight, the flow smooth, the pacing just right. Background information is either concisely mentioned to you, or woven in to the story in an interesting way, such as in a flashback, that doesn't upset the narrative and flow and keeps you interested instead of pages of infodump, the same can be said for the concise and beautifully described detail.

There's lots of action, I mean....I feel like a badass reading it all! But it's expertly woven with romance, mystery, magic, history of the world and even some nefarious villainous/creepyness? If that works? All blended together to make sure the book is impossible to put down, there is never a boring section. Whenever I genuinely do have to tear myself away and put the book down, I end up staring at the book forcing myself to not skip read further to see what happens...I couldn't resist the urge when I was reading Crown of Midnight and it made it even more impossible to put down!

Every single character we love so much continues to be written with depth, complexity and multiple dimensions. It's like being surrounded by old friends again, and each of the characters jumps off the page with how vividly and coulourfully they are written.

Celaena is a badass. She's the type of character where I'm like "If they ever make a movie I need to play her" but in reality I'm too lazy, let's be honest. I kinda wish I was her! I love her snark, she makes me laugh one minute, and want to cry another when a shred of her background is given up. She's stronger than I think she thinks she is. Celaena is really easy to connect to, she is complex, but each side of her that's revealed you can empathize with and understand why she's doing whatever she's doing, even if it's killing someone.

Dorian. Well. I love Dorian. It's no secret I ship him with Celaena....what are they? Doraena? Corian? I don't know but I ship it. I love how Dorian has turned out to be more than he appears to be with the whole magic thing. He was never the typical spoiled Prince, with his reading and how kind he is, I just love him and how he's changed  in this book, but more on that later. I love how when he finds out who Celaena really is he doesn't really care and still wants to be her friend, because when she found out about his magic she pretty much didn't care, and she understood. I can't wait to see the two of them together in the next book hopefully to see how he reacts to this new Celaena and if she can help him with his magic. The reason I love Dorian with her so much is that he knows what she is and is capable of, but he's never wished for her to be anything else than she is and she hasn't for him, whereas Chaol does. While he may have had a brief flicker of doubt I think he knows she's coming back for him to help him not kill him or whatever.

"The only thing you have the right to do is decide whether you are her enemy or her friend"

Chaol, I like Chaol. He's interesting, with the whole Lord thing and his father, I just don't understand how he can love Celaena but still be more loyal to the King and so on, and while that does change at the end of the book, I still think he's a bit of a prat sometimes! I mean I can't begin to describe to you how much it irritates me that Chaol is all "Celaena claimed" when he's thinking about something bad that she said the King did. To me the whole "she claimed" thing means he doesn't believe her, that's why I can't find it in me to ship them because until the end of HOF admittedly, he's more loyal to the King and he's always disgusted with her killing and so on, even though he loves her he wants her to be something else. I mean he was all whiny and "she was becoming something blah blah blah" no Chaol. No.

"You cannot pick and choose which parts of her to love"

Our three favourite characters have developed so much since Throne of Glass, and they develop even more in this book and I love watching them change and grow. As we find out more about what makes Celaena the way she is, we see the growth she has made that isn't written about in the book, and we see her become stronger as she faces the past, and her scars, and instead of releasing her rage and turning her in to a monster like she thought, it actually helps her become stronger and ready to do what needs to be done. Your perception of her changes with each book and each new shred of information about her background.

Dorians character growth...well....he said "festering shithole you call a court" to his dads face. I may have cheered. He stands up to his father more, he's still everything we loved in the first book, but he's stronger, tougher I think and he's accepted his magic and no longer afraid it, at least at the end.

The plot continues to be complex, it's a chunk of the overall arc of the story, but the individual plots are so complex it's fantastic! I never know where it's going to be honest! Nor do I know what's going to happen next, which is mildly terrifying when you love characters as much as you love these ones! The thing is, that when you actually finish reading, and you think back on the book as you process it....you realize there where little clues scattered throughout about what was going to happen or about big reveals and so on! I however, am too engrossed in reading the book to actually notice them!
I've gotten chills more than once reading these books, I'm not gonna lie to you!

There's still things we don't know, like what happened with Sam fully, who really betrayed her, if it was really Arobynn, and if so why? and so on. But I actually enjoy how we don't know everything, and certain background information is eked out in scraps, it keeps the intrigue, and you sit there trying to work it out with what you do know and the clues provided! It genuinely keeps it interesting and fresh, although I do fail at predicting and working any of it out!

The story isn't just told from Celaena's point of view, and in HOF, the POV's of Chaol and Dorian are even more important as instead of just providing their insight about Celaena, or different reactions to events etc, their POV's keep us informed of what's happening back in Rifthold. While there's the POV of Rowan, which lets us know he's not a total douche in the beginning and lets us see behind is exterior, there's also the POV of Manon, one of the Blackbeak Ironteeth witches, which is ridiculously intriguing because we're getting a glimpse of what the King is up to.

The POV switching continues to be flawless, smoothly continuing the story and the narrative. Often they add intrigue, or they add some information that adds to the story or explains something. I love the different POVs, they just add another dimension to the story, seeing characters inner thoughts sometimes so different to how they act towards a character and so on. Each character has different information so they all react differently to different situations and people. There's also the right amount of each characters POV to keep it interesting, so you don't get bored, or are left with a cliffhanger from one POV that doesn't get resolved until halfway through the book or whatever. The timing of the POV changes is perfect.

We get new characters in this book, which probably isn't a surprise. One of my favourites being Aedion, he was mentioned in the last book, he's Aelins cousin, and he's a source of more background and a better glimpse of Celaena's childhood. I really like him! Initially he seems a bit shady and suspect, because you think he's on the Kings side, but eventually your opinion changes when you find out more about him! He's clearly Fae, he sensed the ring was dodgy, and then you start to realize he's playing a game with the King. Like his "Bane" aren't actually soldiers, they're rebels, and when I read he staged all the battles I was like "that's it....you're one of my favourites now".

Aedion is a lot softer than he looks, which I loved, from his POV it was mildly heartbreaking reading how much he loved being called Cousin, how much he loves Aelin, and he blames himself for what happened, your opinion really changes of him in a short space of time. I actually really feel for him.

Then there's Sorscha.....no. Sarah, no. She's Dorians love interest of the book, and for me, who ships him with Celaena, you can imagine the amount of No I felt! I can't deny she was interesting! She was a part of the story I didn't see coming! Especially as she was the unnamed healer who's been patching the three of them! My poor Dorian/Celaena shipper heart. I genuinely just went "No" out loud a couple of times! Although, I know I was all "nooo go away Sorscha noooo nooo noooo", that didn't mean I wanted her killed off though!

Rowan....man I love Rowan. I kind of thought he was a bit of a prick in the beginning, but his POV changed that, and eventually you end up loving him, there's more than meets the eye with him. He's a rival for my love for Dorian to be honest, I can't quite work out whether to ship Rowan and Celaena or not because I'm not too sure if they're heading in that direction? I wasn't quite sure if it was romance or what. I liked Rowan because Celaena can tell him things like killing Grave and instead of being disgusted like Chaol, he understands and just says good. Rowan's suffered loss like her and he understands her and her reactions to it, and she can tell him things she's never told anyone else, he doesn't judge her and they work well together i think. I loved fussy Rowan, I need more of Rowan fussing, it's adorably hilarious regardless of if there's romance brewing or not!

"Oh he was definitely fussing, and though it warmed her miserable heart, it was becoming rather irritating"

As previously mentioned, we meet Manon and get her POV, this was a genius way to give us loads of info about the Ironteeth witches without boring us, and as I said, we see what the Kings up to. This also leads us to meeting Wyverns, who are incredibly intriguing because Manon's at least can understand what she's saying. It's also kind of weird, because Manon is the enemy really, she's going to be fighting for the King but I ended up becoming oddly attached to her? And actually empathizing with her and I actually really like her, she's badass, and she's not as heartless as she seems! I love watching her with Abraxos and I'm intrigued by how he understands her and excited to see where their story is going. Manon changes over the course of the book a fair bit.

While learning more about Baba Yellowlegs's people, we also learn a lot more about the Fae and magic in general, how magic works, some of the different types, Maeve's warriors, the Fae Hierarchy, culture, customs, legends and so on, all of which is incredibly rich and detailed and well....magical. Although I stand by the fact Maeve is a bitch and refuse to feel sorry for her, I'm seeing a death in her future. I enjoyed the unique spin on the Fae, how they weren't all Etheral and Legolas like, they where predators and there's lots of snarling and growling and sharp pointy teeth.

We also meet Ren, who I have a feeling is going to become very important. Like Rowan and Aedion, Ren and his Grandfather are the first members of Aelins new court. Ren being double sword dude from COM who was guarding Chaol and I didn't like, but now I do because I feel kind of bad for him, and I can't wait to see his face when he realizes Celaena is his Queen muahahaa. Someone's in for a rude awakening!

Another character I think worth a mention is Emrys, and actually Luca, Emrys was a friend of Aelin's mother, and I'm sure he's going to be making a reappearance and is going to be important? A member of her court? I don't know but he was a character I like because he was just what Celaena needed!

Each of these new characters has just as much detail, depth and complexity put in to them as the main characters, and I loved how they weren't just shoved there to further the story with no adequate detail to them.

I loved watching Celaena start to control the shift and use the power she thought she'd lost, it makes her even more badass, but it also helps her change again, and bring her back to almost who she should have been maybe? It was heartwarming to watch her stop fearing her power and losing control of it like she did as a child and actually become adept at using it.

I'm loving how each book adds another layer to Celaena. In TOG we knew the bare minimum about her background, it was expanded on more in COM and in HOF we finally learn a hell of a lot about what happened the night her parents died, what led her to becoming an assassin, and I love how we get more backstory layered on each book. Each book we get another layer, or a deeper explanation to something we already knew, this time for instance, we learned why she'd climbed in to their bed, the feeling she had etc.

We get more hints about her life at the Assassins Keep, and more glimpses of her childhood, meeting baby Dorian, her relationship with Aedion, we actually meet her parents and a character called Lady Marion who's daughter's whereabouts are unknown after what happened. Then, in an interesting format, we get the entirety of what happened when her parents died. The Kings visit, why they left the castle, the deaths, what happened after and how she ended up in the river.

We had a mystery in the form of the weird creature Celaena encounters near the beginning and then the bodies showing up, which of course is connected to something much deeper, but I didn't work out until I was told in the book! There's also the whole thing where Manon thinks the humans and meat taste wrong, so I'm wondering if the King is drugging the humans the meat to drug the witches to keep them compliant or weak or whether the proximity to one of the keys is messing with things?

Ooohh before I forget, we see Celaena's apartment! The one she left to Chaol! Man was it sad seeing it through Aedions eyes as he tries to get a feel for her! But she clearly retained her memories as much as she tried to shove her past down! It's interesting to watch Aedions impression of her form through what he learns from Chaol or her living area. He and Celaena had a bond of some sort, which I'm excited to see explored more. I genuinely ridiculously excited for Aedion and Celaena (Still not sure what to call her now!) meet for the first time!

Aedion thinks he failed her, Celaena thinks he hates her and she failed him and you just want to bang their heads together, she's worried of him seeing what's become and what she's done, and Aedions worried about her finding out his deeds as well, when in reality they'll both understand and UGH I JUST NEED THEM TO MEET NOOOOW! Although when I said that I didn't mean "oh let's have Aedion capture by the King and set to be executed so she has to risk her neck to save him which she will and it probably won't end well and there will be pain and suffering". Not sure how I feel about the whole "oh Aedion could be King" thing though.

Thanks to Aedion, like I said, we see what young Celaena was like, but we also see what happened the day magic left, or more accurately was frozen, and we learn what probably happened with the three towers forming a triangle, and the spell freezing magic, which brings us to how to unfreeze it, which I'm excited to see tackled in the next book.

There's plenty of intrigue to keep you interested, some of which is answered, some of which is not. I'd love to see more of Rowan's Cadre as Celaena calls them, more of Rowan interacting with them, i'm intrigued by them and how they all came to be! The interesting question raised about if Chaol is her mate seeing as she shouldn't have been able to attempt to kill him if he was. I'm thinking he's not but then I'm biased!

I love how while I ship Dorian and Celaena, you can pretty much ship whoever together, there's potential with Rowan, there's Chaol, and the pairings change each book, you see them with other people, except for Chaol, and nothing is set in stone until the last book when the series is done, one pairing isn't shut off just because they're not together anymore, there's still possibility and I'm finding it hard to predict who the end pair will be! But I love how the relationships flow and change with each book and plot.

There's things mentioned from TOG as well as COM so you need to keep your wits about you because something you thought had no meaning or importance in one of those two, could come back and bite you in the ass when you're reading HOF and you're like "ooooooooohhhh wait I get it!". I'm sure the same will be said for the next book!

I love how HOF starts the ball rolling towards the inevitable ending and show down with the King, but shows you there's still much to be done before we reach that stage. The story keeps changing each book while following an overarching storyline, each book becomes and is something different, changing direction each time, if that makes sense? The story started as one thing and now in book 3 it's something else, and will be something else in the next book.

The slaves....so much no! That was heartbreaking and ugh. Feels. As you read things start to click in to place for this book, but from the others as well and it's such a great feeling when you finally put the pieces together, although in this case it caused an intense rage at Dorians father. Yes, I'm referring to what I already mentioned, the day Dorian and his father came to Orynth, and before, during and after her parents death. It was really heartbreaking to read and I very nearly cried, I'm not going to lie. I just felt so much for her in those pages. Not just for the deaths and what she witnessed but the King doing whatever to her mind and making her lose control of her magic, something we read about happening before and you feel for how scared that makes her.

I'm intrigued to know more about this bond between her and Rowan, Carranam, and what it means for them, and I'm really sad she left him behind while she pretends to be Celaena in Rifthold again to get the last key. And yes I say pretends because I think she's Aelin again now. But seriously? No Rowan? We just got him!

The romance will be taking a new direction and I'm curious to see where it's going, Celaena would always choose Chaol, but she'll  be coming back as Aelin, masquerading as Celaena. Aelin won't choose him, I can see why she shouldn't choose Dorian because of what his father did, but I don't think he's quite out of the running. Aedion could well be in it for all I know!

There's the whole vision of the future that Narrok gave her as a warning, it's going to be interesting to see her battle the temptation that will have the vision come true. We know what the King is up to in the Ferrian Gap and Dead Islands, e.g. Wyverns and Varg, but I'm curious about what's happening in the third line of power place, Morath, where Roland and Kaltain are? Kaltain is clearly so much more than a bitchy pain in the ass, and I'm beginning to think Roland isn't the evil/villain type person I had him pegged as. Hopefully more of them soon!

We learn of a character I already mentioned called Lady Marion, who was her mothers handmaiden, and her sacrifice Celaena feels like she used it to become a monster which is why she can't and won't go home. But more importantly Lady Marion has a daughter who is the heir to her fathers lands as he was a Lord, she's supposed to still be alive, and clearly is going to be important in one of the upcoming books. That's going to be something to look forward to! She'll hopefully be another court member, if they can find her, but from her age, i'm hoping she'll be a friend for Celaena.

We see Aelin/Celaena's future court forming, there's Emrys and Luca, Malakai, Rowan, Aedion and I'm assuming Dorian and Chaol. I'll be interested to see if Manon ends up joining them in the end. She's not like the others of her kind and I'm curious.

Towards the end of the book things are subtly set in place for the next book, the Amulet of Orynth that Celaena needs to retrieve, which means we'll learn more about Arobynn and her time at the Keep i'm hoping and assuming! Then there's the whole rescuing Aedion thing, who's essentially bait for her, and don't get me started on Dorian. Just don't. I mean one minute he's all "Celaena and I will change the world" then it's all here Dad let me hit you with my magic, oh you want to put that dodgy collar on me that all the Varg demon things have been wearing?" and then it's all "lol books over have a nice year long wait bitches." I shit you not. That's how things are left. Is Dorian possessed by a Varg now? Is he just under his fathers control? I don't know but it needs to be sorted like.....as soon as the next book starts! I'm just very excited for Team Dorian and Celaena to take on the King.

Don't get me wrong, the ending is all so cliffhangery with our heroes in trouble and whatnot, although Chaol has appeared to team up with Ren....that'll be interesting seeing them gather the remaining Lords now the call has essentially gone out, the end few chapters are made of no, and to be honest I thought after that battle it was all good, evidently I was wrong and this ending sprung out of nowhere. Anyways, the last few sentences where so spinetingle-ingly powerful it makes me excited for the next one!


Heir Of Fire is a fantastic addition to an incredible series that is one of my utmost favourites. It's full of humour, emotion both good and bad, romance, action, rich history and lore, magic, mystery and so much more all blended together to create a perfectly unique slice of an overarching storyline that gets more and more epic in scale. You race through the story needing to know what happens next, and then BHAM, a powerful ending that leaves you with an agonizing wait to see what happens to characters so well loved that they're more like friends. You're always sad to leave the world and eager to get back to it and I can't wait for the next installment to see how the characters grow and change, and to see where the story takes us next.

Buy it, read it, love it. You won't regret it. This series is set to become a classic up there with LOTR and GOT in my opinion. I shall patiently await the movie adaption *hinthint*