Wishing For Wednesday #53

Merry Wednesday guys! 
First up this week, the sequel to the start of a new series that I absolutely loved when I reviewed it! I've been so excited to see what's going to happen to the characters next! 
Second is a book I stumbled upon on GoodReads and I couldn't resist it, I mean...the setting, the premise...it all sounds fantastic! 

The Copper Gauntlet

Callum Hunt’s summer break isn’t like other kids’. His closest companion is a Chaos-ridden wolf, Havoc. His father suspects him of being secretly evil. And, of course, most kids aren’t heading back to school in the magical world of the Magisterium . . .

It’s not easy for Call . . . and it gets even harder after he checks out his basement and discovers that his dad might be trying to destroy both him and Havoc.

Call escapes to the Magisterium but things only intensify there. The Alkahest - a copper gauntlet capable of separating certain magicians from their magic - has been stolen. And in their search to discover the culprit, Call and his friends awaken the attention of some very dangerous foes - and get closer to an even more dangerous truth.

As the mysteries of the Magisterium deepen and widen, bestselling authors Holly Black and Cassandra Clare take readers on an extraordinary journey through one boy’s conflict -and a whole world’s fate.

The Copper Gauntlet is out September 3rd, pre-order your copy...here!

Add it to your TBR....here!

Silver In The Blood

Society girls from New York City circa 1890, Dacia and Lou never desired to know more about their lineage, instead preferring to gossip about the mysterious Romanian family that they barely knew. But upon turning seventeen, the girls must return to their homeland to meet their relatives, find proper husbands, and—most terrifyingly—learn the deep family secrets of The Claw, The Wing, and The Smoke. The Florescus, after all, are shape-shifters, and it is time for Dacia and Lou to fulfill the prophecy that demands their acceptance of this fate... or fight against this cruel inheritance with all their might.

With a gorgeous Romanian setting, stunning Parisian gowns, and dark brooding young men, readers will be swept up by this epic adventure of two girls in a battle for their lives. 

Silver In The Blood is out September 10th, pre-order your copy...here!

Add it to your TBR...here!

Reawakened

Reawakened
Rating: 5/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of Bookbridgr

When seventeen-year-old Lilliana Young enters the Metropolitan Museum of Art one morning during spring break, the last thing she expects to find is a live Egyptian prince with godlike powers, who has been reawakened after a thousand years of mummification.

And she really can't imagine being chosen to aid him in an epic quest that will lead them across the globe to find his brothers and complete a grand ceremony that will save mankind.

But fate has taken hold of Lily, and she, along with her sun prince, Amon, must travel to the Valley of the Kings, raise his brothers, and stop an evil, shape-shifting god named Seth from taking over the world.

"Please don't let hot foreign-model guy turn in to Hannibal Lecter."

Like I'm sure I've mentioned many, many times....I'm completely history obsessed, but mostly with Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece. Did you ever doubt that I would request this as soon as I spotted it on Bookbridgr? I honestly don't think I've ever moved so fast. I haven't actually read any of Houcks other books but after reading this one I think I'm going to have to! I couldn't have loved this book any more, it was perfect and was everything I was expecting. 

Right from the very first page it draws you in to the world and you're completely engrossed from that first page. It jumps straight in with the action and grabs you with the setting and the intrigue and you're in the books grasp until the end. I found the book to be incredibly cinematic. As soon as I started reading I was struck by how cinematic it was, how vivid. I could picture it like a movie playing in my head, and it also helped that the world and the settings where so well created and described. I got completely lost in the world of the book and it's one of those books that allows you to completely escape. 

Like I was saying, the first few pages really transport you in to the world of the book. I was instantly in Ancient Egypt, with a clear image of what the setting looked like. The atmosphere seeped off the page the entire book, but when you start reading it really hits you at how consuming it is, it made me shiver a bit as I started reading. Then you're jolted to busy, bustling New York, again, a vivid setting with an entirely different atmosphere to it. It was such an intense contrast and I could see it all playing out in my head, like camera low on the street, panning up as a Taxi zooms past, then on to show the museum, kinda picturing. The switch in settings and atmospheres was done so well and created the kind of jolt that I'm sure that Amon felt when he found himself in New York. Then of course modern Egypt and the pyramids and so on, the other setting, is another change in setting and atmosphere that's different to the others. I was just revelling in the different settings and atmospheres and insanely jealous because I want to go to Egypt! I've never been to Egypt or New York but I feel like I got a taste of both places thanks to the book, and what Ancient Egypt may have been like.

I instantly liked Lily, she has money, but she's not entirely happy. She's being pushed in certain directions by her parents, and I found her to be easy to connect to and incredibly realistic. I connected to her because she had a lot of depth to her, with how she was dealing with life and her parents and how they treated her and so on. Her reactions to things where believable and I loved her snark. A lot of her comments made me chuckle. She was such an enjoyable and lively character and she ended up changing over the course of the book and it was such a great change and fun to watch, I don't want to give too much away but it really was a great change to watch take place with her character. 

"Yes, museum. As in, collection house of antiquities, displayer of old documents and art of great value" 

Amon was interesting. He was another source of humour, because he was like a little martian who just landed on Earth. His comments and observations where hilarious "golden chariots" and so on. He too changed over the course of the book and it was an interesting journey for him. He seemed to be quite serious in the beginning but over the course of the book he kind of loosens up a bit as his feelings for Lily start to grow. Like Lily, he was very fleshed out, he had a lot of depth. Amon had an interesting crisis at one point after watching some Mummy films and is distressed about how Mummy's are seen. They're seen as something to be scared of, as villains and it was an interesting scene with Amon dealing with that. He had a lot of emotion and depth to him that really brought him to life. 

There where some other characters, I liked Dr Hassan, I really didn't think he was going to be who he turned out to be, I was pleasantly surprised and he was another intriguing character but I'd be giving too much away if I went in to it all! 

Amon has two brothers, and we get to see them in the book, but I'm really sad that we actually didn't get to see more of them! I really, really want to see more of them! I loved them! Asten cracked me up when we first met him, you can't help but chuckle at his antics. He was a great addition, he was more light hearted and jokey and flirty the majority of the time but there was more going on. Ahmose was kind of quieter, he was more calm and open and a contrast to the other two. The dynamic between the three brothers was fascinating, each was different to the other, but it was fascinating watching all three of them interact together. 

I particularly enjoyed reading about the brothers powers, each has a different "patron" God as it where, Sun, Stars and Moon, and each brother thus has different powers to the other and all of them work well together alongside the others so they can complete their task. 

As I said, I connected to Lily, but I also connected with the other characters as well, some more deeply than others. Each character is really brought to life from the page and you can picture them clearly. I actually loved how whenever one of the brothers chanted, they each had a different font to identify them with. Anyway, I really felt what the characters where feeling. I was right there with Lily, completely in the moment with her and feeling what she felt every time I picked up the book and started to read. 

Being that it's a book with Mummies in, I just want to put it straight out there that it's not cheesy or generic. They can change in to a bird, a different one for each brother. Amon can kind of do the sand travel thing that Imhotep can do in The Mummy, but he can also do other cool things with the sand. It was a really original take on Mummies and breathed fresh life in to a topic? Can't think what word I'm looking for! Anyway, a topic/subject/creature that I personally, haven't come across in YA before. I've seen movies and stuff but I've never actually read a book with a Mummy in it until now. But this book takes Mummies and adds original spins to them from what we're used to from pop culture. I loved it. In the world of the book they also have a really cool mythology/legend behind them and it was so fascinating to read about. 

However, there was a The Mummy reference and I squealed and fangirled way too much. The Mummy is like one of if not my complete favourite film and I always rewatch it loads and I can practically quote the movie like it's my job, as well as the sequel. So for there to be a The Mummy reference I literally freaked and was like "OH MY GOD SHE SAID IT."

"Oh, I don't know. The ten plagues of Egypt, raising an undead army, resurrecting your long-lost love, something like that."

Seeing as the book has an Egyptian Mummy in it, well three actually, and is partially set in Egypt, you would of course expect some Egyptian history of some sort. I didn't expect as much as there was in the book, some serious research has gone in to this. I'm not an actual expert on Ancient Egypt so I know some of it's correct but there's other bits mentioned in the book that I haven't heard of before so I might have to have a cheeky Google to check! 

The book is completely steeped in the rich history and mythology of Ancient Egypt and it was done just right. You where fascinated and wanted to learn more, rather than bored because of reams of information being spouted at you. The history/mythology was sprinkled through the book perfectly. There was a particular chapter that was incredibly fascinating all about the Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Egypt. Now some of it I knew...but not all and I was fascinated. It was all written in to the dialogue and it was like a story within a story. There was so much in the book and I loved all of it, not gonna lie! 

I already mentioned Amon's feelings about mummy movies, but I also wanted to mention a point that was raised at one point in the book. When Lily is explaining Mummys and people visiting the tombs and everything, Amon kind of doesn't really say much but he clearly has an opinion on it, and Lily actually realises something and it's something that I don't think many people have thought too deeply about. It is quite disrespectful that we essentially dig bodies up and display them to look at and I'd not really given it too much thought before. It's just an example of how rich and meaty the book is it, it's not some fluffy read, there's some serious parts to it that where all very interesting. 

There's some flashbacks to Ancient Egypt at the beginning of each part of the book, and each was more intriguing than the last, you're latching on to clues that Amon gives about what happened all those years ago, and each time you get a flashback you have another piece until you have the whole picture. It was another mini story within a story and I loved the bits set in Ancient Egypt even though they where only small, because the author has created them as fantastically as the rest of the world of the book. 

Finally, the part some of you have probably been waiting for. The romance. I found it to be incredibly well done. I mean for the most part it's subtle, there's these little moments, and then eventually it's obvious there's feelings there and it's really, really cute. It's also really complex because it's not that simple. There's this bond issue and the fact he's a Mummy who's not supposed to hang about and all of this and Amon trying to fight it and so on, so while it's cute it's also quite angsty and not a simple romance, it has it's twists which were surprising, for the most part. Y'all aren't gonna like how it ends either! 

The book is quite an emotional book, but the ending was downright heart breaking. I couldn't believe it ended like that, and at the time of finishing the book I wasn't entirely sure whether it was a one off or the first in the series. I can confirm there is a sequel slated for next year, but you still won't like the ending because it's going to make the wait so awful. I mean. I can't even. I desperately need the next book right now, how am I supposed to wait?! 

Reawakened is a fun, colourful, vivid and emotional read. It will transport you to every setting so completely that you feel like you're really there, the atmosphere will blanket you and you'll be completely engrossed in the book and unable to put it down. Leaving the book at the end is gutting because you just want to keep reading about the characters forever. The cast of characters are lively and full of depth and so easy to connect to that you feel everything they feel. Reawakened has a snappy pace, and a real quest vibe. There's action, history, romance and humour and characters you'll never forget. Reawakened is a very rich and meaty read and will hook you with it's plot, characters and settings, and the rich mythology and history is just the cherry on top! 

Detectives and Dodo's

Hey guys! 
So I've been pretty quiet on the blogging front this week, I only really had a post for Wednesday, which is my bad. I'm all caught up on reviews, the only review books I have left are upcoming books which I'm working my way through! So that's one reason it's been pretty quiet this week, I think in the coming weeks I'll crack out some of the memes! To be fair I was supposed to do a TT Tuesday on Tuesday but I was a bit worse for wear. Why? 2 words....Dodo Con.

Dodo Con

I was lucky enough to be invited to Dodo Con by lovely people at Hodder, and Monday found me standing on a rooftop drinking far too much wine! 

Wine wasn't the only thing happening at Dodo Con (there where gummy worms too omg) there was.....books, obviously, quite a few books. A lovely view of London. Plenty of people to chat to, although our chatter wasn't all that literary. It was more like...fangirling over Buffy, Supernatural and various other shows haha. We also had the opportunity to colour a Pickwick. I can't draw all that well so I just settled for watching people more talented than me do it! 

All in all, I think a good evening was had by all. However, the drinks AFTER Dodo Con where what left me feeling like I'd been hit by a truck the next morning! 

But that's only a reason for not posting Monday and Tuesday! I hear you cry. Yes it is. I tripped and fell in to a website called Ancestry. There are many reasons I've embarked on this job that's been taking up my time, but the main one was that we have a WW1 tin and we wanted to know who it belongs to. Thus I fell in to Ancestry and have been glued to that website trying to work out who's related to who. I'm currently stuck and need to acquire some birth certificates, particularly my Grandmother's grandmother! Not to mention my Grandad's as he's adopted, but there's an entirely huge family story about that, that doesn't need to be got in to! Not going to lie, I feel like Sherlock Holmes half the time when I make a connection or find someone haha! 

So yes. That's why I've been quiet on the blogging this week! I plan to be back to normal next week, or at least have some meme's to keep you entertained when I don't have a review! 

Wishing For Wednesday #52

This week I have a couple of interesting reads for you. 
First up is a book that's quite unusual, I mean I haven't read a Wild West Book, don't know about you lot! It sounds like it's going to be original and that intrigues me. I can't however, find a UK release date beyond September so keep an eye out! 
Second is a book that sounds delightfully intriguing, historical, an apothecary and some murders...what's not to like? 

Vengeance Road

When Kate Thompson’s father is killed by the notorious Rose Riders for a mysterious journal that reveals the secret location of a gold mine, the eighteen-year-old disguises herself as a boy and takes to the gritty plains looking for answers and justice. What she finds are devious strangers, dust storms, and a pair of brothers who refuse to quit riding in her shadow. But as Kate gets closer to the secrets about her family, she gets closer to the truth about herself and must decide if there's room for love in a heart so full of hate.

Vengeance Road is out September, pre-order your copy...here! 
Add it to your TBR....here! 

The Blackthorn Key

London, 1665. Fourteen-year-old Christopher Rowe is apprenticed to master apothecary Benedict Blackthorn. In Blackthorn's shop, Christopher learns the delicate secrets of transforming simple ingredients into powerful medicines, potions and weapons. His beloved master guides him with a firm, steady hand - instilling him with confidence and independence that prove increasingly vital as Christopher learns of a mysterious cult preying on the most learned men in London. The murders are growing closer and closer to home and soon Christopher is torn from the shop with only a page of cryptic clues from his master and the unambiguous warning: 'Tell no one'. 

Helped by his best friend, Tom, Christopher must decipher his master's clues, following a trail of deceit towards an unearthly secret with the power to tear the world apart.

The Blackthorn Key is out September 3rd, pre-order your copy...here! 

Add it to your TBR....here!

Skin

Skin
Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy 
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher! 

Celtic Britain, AD 43. For the Caer Cad, ‘skin’ is their belief, their greeting, their ancestors, their land. Skin name determines lineage and identity.

A young girl, Ailia, grows up an outsider in her village because she has no skin name; despite this, she is a remarkable young woman, intelligent, curious and brave. As a dark threat grows on the horizon – the aggressive expansion of the Roman Empire – Ailia must embark on an unsanctioned journey to attain the knowledge that will protect her people, and their pagan way of life, from the most terrifying invaders they have ever faced.

I got sent an ARC of this and I've been saving the review for the release date, or closer to it rather. I cannot tell you how I excited I was to actually have the map in this, it being an ARC at all, I mean....you know how much we all love a good map in a book. The book was incredibly beautiful inside and out. 

The main thing I loved about the book was the incredibly rich mythology and world that was brought to life through utterly fantastic world building. The author has very clearly done an incredible amount of research and I would love to know the resources she used so I can learn more about Iron Age Britain. It's amazing how the author has done all this research and it's present in the book so you're fascinated and learning but there's no huge info dumps bogging down the pace and slowing it down. Weaving the research in to the plot was so incredibly done. 

The writing is beautiful and makes you get lost in the book and the world and keeps you reading. The book is so well written it's just....amazing. The characters weren't just well written, they where interesting. There's nothing better than an interesting character in an interesting world. The characters where flawed which made them so incredibly interesting, and made them all the more realistic. The fact that they where striving to be better added another layer to them. I found our main character to be easy to connect to, I loved her pluckiness and just loved her in general! She may even be one of my favourites now. 

The dialogue was authentic and helped to suck you in to the world along with everything else. It was also thought provoking, because you where reading and there'd be the occasional gem of wisdom that you'd note down as a favourite quote because it made so much sense and was a quote you wanted to come back to and remember at times.    The book was an interesting blend between history and fantasy, and was pitched just right. Although I'm not entirely sure it should be classed as fantasy because it's more the spirituality of the world and the characters I think. There where, however bits that I found to be more gripping than others, but I was still so fascinated by the world and the characters that it didn't really bother me all that much. 

Overall Skin is an enjoyable and fascinating read, full of rich mythology and history that draws you in and really sparks your intrigue. It makes you want to read more about the time period and the elements the book is based on. The book draws you in and is a beautiful read. 

I, Coriander 10th Anniversary Edition

I, Coriander

Rating: 5/5

Buy or Borrow: Buy 

Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher

I am Coriander Hobie. I was born in the year of Our Lord 1643, the only child of Thomas and Eleanor Hobie, in our great house on the River Thames in London. Of my early years I remember only happiness. That was before I knew this world had such evil in it, and that my fate was to be locked up in a chest and left to die. This is my story. This is my life. 

Coriander has a happy childhood living with her silk merchant father and mother who has a way with healing. But that all changes when a pair of silver shoes are mysteriously delivered. But it's years later that the finding and wearing of the silver shoes shows it's consequences. When Coriander's mother dies, her father must remarry if he wishes to keep his business and home after supporting the King. Unfortunately for Coriander her new stepmother is the of the evil variety. A stepmother who is working with a Puritan preacher and both are up to no good. 

I was so incredibly excited to get sent a review copy of the anniversary edition of the book! I have very vague memories of being in like year 7 or 8, and grabbing this from the school's library to read during form time because I'd finished the book I had brought with me. I vaguely remembered the book but as it is...it's literally been 10 years since I read this so I couldn't really remember what happened and so on, I just remembered Coriander and her silver shoes. 

To me this book has such Cinderella vibes with the evil step mother and the father leaving and everything, but it's the fairy world that adds a layer of enchanting, fairytale quality to this book, and an original one at that. The book was magical and really sprang to life, I so loved reading about the world Coriander's mother came from and I was eagerly waiting for the rest of the story to unfold. 

I've read a couple of books set in this time period, but they where adult books and they where set during the Civil War, I haven't come across one that spans across the entire period after the Civil War up to the King returning and it was fascinating. The book must have had plenty of research go in to it as it's very authentic and you get a feel for the time period, as unfair as it was. London in this particular era comes to vivid life, it's kinda like you're Doctor Who but the book is your Tardis. I got utterly lost in the world the time and the events and the story. I could rather have done without the vivid smells, but then again it wouldn't have been as authentic without. 

The story was engrossing and enchanting, you're rooting for Coriander, hating Maud and Arise and hoping they'll get their comeuppance. Those two really are characters you love to hate and they're utterly vile and the kind that you can imagine actually existing in that time, I mean there's always stories of people disappearing and being found to be murdered in that time period so it's incredibly believable. They where a right piece of work. 

I was glued to the page waiting to see what would happen, would Coriander succeed? What would happen to the bad guys? Would her father come back? What's the deal with the shoes? Who was her mother really? And so on. I couldn't stop reading and devoured the book in one sitting. Coriander was such a great character, and her narrative was engaging and spot on. She had you right there with her, feeling what she felt and it was an emotional read, as some parts where quite heartbreaking, or at least they where to me. Then other parts had me feeling quite angry to be honest. 

I loved the fairies in this book, I loved the echos of her mother's life and story in Coriander's own life. I loved reading about the world and how things worked and found it to be an original take to other stories involving fairies that I've read before. It added a unique touch and made the book truly magical. 

It must also be said that the Authors Note is incredibly helpful and for such a concise note, has a fair bit of information in it. 

I, Coriander is a fantastically written, enchanting tale with a fairytale quality and echoes of Cinderella. It will have you engrossed up until the last page, experiencing life in the times of the book, and then being taken completely out of the world to another entirely, that is written in such a way that it doesn't seem unbelievable or out of this world. I found it to be quite natural, which is strange because you know....fairies don't exist, that I know of anyway, and yet they're in this book and they seem like they belong, like they're real. It has an utterly perfect ending, and it's such a brilliant book that has a timeless quality to me. Possibly because it's not set in a modern time but ya know.