Tuesday, 10 May 2016
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
To play along just do the following:
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas.
It is usually due to one of two reasons why I can’t or won’t talk too much about a book’s content: Either it didn’t click for me or I loved it entirely too much and I don’t want anyone to be spoilt the chance to read and love it for the first time. The latter is completely true for this book, multiplied by the fact that I also don’t want to spoil anything about the first equally amazing book in the trilogy.
Maybe some reading observations: I was suspecting (hoping or praying really) at the end of book one that something might be afoot and even though that became obvious pretty quickly I was still invested in how and when it would happen. And the way there was such a delight to read with wonderful storytelling and perfectly executed plot manoeuvres. I haven’t giggle-snorted at a book for quite a while. And it has been even longer that I threw my book down at some point and started weeping like there was no tomorrow because it really hurt so bad. I know that at the end of book two in a trilogy not all can be well, but that twist completely wrecked me and if that had been a cliffhanger I don’t know what would have happened. I don’t think that I’d have survived the wait with my heart intact.
So if you’re into anything fae or retellings or amazing love tales... or just into honest to goodness epically well-crafted stories and haven’t heard of or read A Court of Thorns and Roses (Book one) or Sarah’s equally magnificent Throne of Glass series, I urge you to drop everything and “get thee to a bookish place of your choice”.
A little Shakespeare allusion hasn’t ever hurt anyone, right? Not like being so enchanted by a book that you more than suffered with the characters. What is the last book that has made you feel like the floor had been ripped out right under your feet? Share them along with your teasers in the comments.
To play along just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas.
 |
| A Court of Mist and Fury – Bloomsbury Children’s Books |
I love my people, and my family. Do not think I wouldn’t become a monster to keep them protected.
— Chapter 17
He thinks he’ll be remembered as the villain in the story. But I forgot to tell him that the villain is usually the person who locks up the maiden and throws away the key.
— Chapter 43
It is usually due to one of two reasons why I can’t or won’t talk too much about a book’s content: Either it didn’t click for me or I loved it entirely too much and I don’t want anyone to be spoilt the chance to read and love it for the first time. The latter is completely true for this book, multiplied by the fact that I also don’t want to spoil anything about the first equally amazing book in the trilogy.
Maybe some reading observations: I was suspecting (hoping or praying really) at the end of book one that something might be afoot and even though that became obvious pretty quickly I was still invested in how and when it would happen. And the way there was such a delight to read with wonderful storytelling and perfectly executed plot manoeuvres. I haven’t giggle-snorted at a book for quite a while. And it has been even longer that I threw my book down at some point and started weeping like there was no tomorrow because it really hurt so bad. I know that at the end of book two in a trilogy not all can be well, but that twist completely wrecked me and if that had been a cliffhanger I don’t know what would have happened. I don’t think that I’d have survived the wait with my heart intact.
So if you’re into anything fae or retellings or amazing love tales... or just into honest to goodness epically well-crafted stories and haven’t heard of or read A Court of Thorns and Roses (Book one) or Sarah’s equally magnificent Throne of Glass series, I urge you to drop everything and “get thee to a bookish place of your choice”.
A little Shakespeare allusion hasn’t ever hurt anyone, right? Not like being so enchanted by a book that you more than suffered with the characters. What is the last book that has made you feel like the floor had been ripped out right under your feet? Share them along with your teasers in the comments.
Tuesday, 3 May 2016
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
To play along just do the following:
The Rose and the Dagger by Renée Ahdieh.
As a person who works with words and stories on a daily basis the art of storytelling reflected in a story itself has a very special appeal to me. Therefore, anything involving the legends of One Thousand and One Nights is an almost certain sale. And after I could hardly get enough of the first one I was very interested if this high level could be maintained. Let’s just say that I wasn’t disappointed. I didn’t go there for roses and soap bubbles and there certainly aren’t any at the moment. The title itself attests to that. But roses and daggers can both be quite beautiful and disguise their sharp thorns and tips. And you probably wouldn’t admire a blunt blade quite as much as a wickedly sharp one. I admire the story for its equally wicked sharp twists and high stakes. The setting is wonderful and feels incredibly real. And while I don’t mind my favourite characters suffering for a bit (for the good cause of a great plot, not unnecessary suffering) there better be a solution in store for the handmaiden and the caliph’s cousin.
This book series has some seriously pretty declarations of love, too. Do you have a favourite quote from that department? Share quote sources and teasers in the comments.
To play along just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
The Rose and the Dagger by Renée Ahdieh.
 |
| The Rose and the Dagger – G.P. Putnam’s Sons |
Here, she was truly boundless.
Fear would never overtake her again.
— Chapter 11
“Do not make me beg you. Because I won’t. I’ll merely lose my temper or cry. And I have always secretly despised those who cry to wheedle their objectives. But if you force me to do it, Khalid Ibn al-Rashid, I will. And I cry beautifully.”
— Chapter 15
As a person who works with words and stories on a daily basis the art of storytelling reflected in a story itself has a very special appeal to me. Therefore, anything involving the legends of One Thousand and One Nights is an almost certain sale. And after I could hardly get enough of the first one I was very interested if this high level could be maintained. Let’s just say that I wasn’t disappointed. I didn’t go there for roses and soap bubbles and there certainly aren’t any at the moment. The title itself attests to that. But roses and daggers can both be quite beautiful and disguise their sharp thorns and tips. And you probably wouldn’t admire a blunt blade quite as much as a wickedly sharp one. I admire the story for its equally wicked sharp twists and high stakes. The setting is wonderful and feels incredibly real. And while I don’t mind my favourite characters suffering for a bit (for the good cause of a great plot, not unnecessary suffering) there better be a solution in store for the handmaiden and the caliph’s cousin.
This book series has some seriously pretty declarations of love, too. Do you have a favourite quote from that department? Share quote sources and teasers in the comments.
Tuesday, 26 April 2016
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
To play along just do the following:
The Vast and Brutal Sea by Zoraida Córdova.
Merpeople and stories about them used to be my go-to fantasy folklore. The little mermaid (the original, not the Disney version) is one of the first stories I remember to ever make me cry when I was a child ... and I realise that in my still going back and wanting more there might be the foundation to why I love so many authors who live on their readers tears. So if you offer me a merpeople story with a halfway decent sounding plot, I’ll bite (sorry, not sorry about the pun, there will be more). I enjoyed the first two books in this series well enough as a quick and entertaining read and then I somehow lost sight of it when it came to the third book. It recently resurfaced on my reader (that thing is a black hole and I’m so very guilty of feeding it) and I was between books and could use a fun and quick comfort story. Squid was I wrong about the comforting part, there is quite a bit of rough seas and whirlpool turmoil in this final instalment, which brings the series to a satisfying and fitting close. I would have loved a little more introspective and maybe a little less action and fighting, but all in all it remains in my mind an enjoyable and fun series that I’ll recommend if you are asking for something with fantastical creatures and are not at all afraid of the deep sea. Water can be lovely and refreshing, but it can and will drown you if given the chance.
As I just confessed to forgetting about a book in a series ... has this happened to you? And did you pick it up at some point and dive right back in? Let’s hear from you in the comments along with your teasers!
To play along just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
The Vast and Brutal Sea by Zoraida Córdova.
 |
| The Vast and Brutal Sea – Sourcebooks Fire |
Except that he doesn’t worry enough, so I have to worry for both of us. Smooth seas means the storm has past, or is only just arriving.
— Chapter 15
By now I should be used to people trying to kill me.
But somehow, it always comes as a bit of a shock.
— Chapter 25
Merpeople and stories about them used to be my go-to fantasy folklore. The little mermaid (the original, not the Disney version) is one of the first stories I remember to ever make me cry when I was a child ... and I realise that in my still going back and wanting more there might be the foundation to why I love so many authors who live on their readers tears. So if you offer me a merpeople story with a halfway decent sounding plot, I’ll bite (sorry, not sorry about the pun, there will be more). I enjoyed the first two books in this series well enough as a quick and entertaining read and then I somehow lost sight of it when it came to the third book. It recently resurfaced on my reader (that thing is a black hole and I’m so very guilty of feeding it) and I was between books and could use a fun and quick comfort story. Squid was I wrong about the comforting part, there is quite a bit of rough seas and whirlpool turmoil in this final instalment, which brings the series to a satisfying and fitting close. I would have loved a little more introspective and maybe a little less action and fighting, but all in all it remains in my mind an enjoyable and fun series that I’ll recommend if you are asking for something with fantastical creatures and are not at all afraid of the deep sea. Water can be lovely and refreshing, but it can and will drown you if given the chance.
As I just confessed to forgetting about a book in a series ... has this happened to you? And did you pick it up at some point and dive right back in? Let’s hear from you in the comments along with your teasers!
Tuesday, 19 April 2016
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
To play along just do the following:
The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski.
The third and final book in a trilogy where I asked myself at the end of the second book how in the world this was ever supposed to end in something else than utter destruction. I’m not asking myself that anymore and I fear that this feeling of hope is also dangerous (I’m completely ruined by books in regards to the concept of hope, congratulations literature). There is a new character, who was introduced in the second book, whom I didn’t think I would like as more than an interesting secondary character, but now I find that I’m quite curious about this person and if there is ever to be a spin-off or extension of the story (given that the world isn’t blown to smithereens during the last 150 pages) the eastern prince would be a great choice ... hint hint.
If the author didn’t completely blow it in the final parts of the story, and I really doubt she did, this will be a worthy conclusion to a great trilogy that had all the political and personal intrigue and power games a reader could ask for, all set in an opulent alternative slightly historical seeming universe with quite a vibrant set of characters and story lines. I feel that this is one of the series I want to read more than once and figure out all the twists and turns and foreshadowing.
As I was reading I found that I maybe should have reread the previous book at least to some extent in order to remember the details, but then I thought that I’d probably reread the series after I finished and I had so many other books calling to me. Which option do you prefer? Rereading before a new book in a series publishes or rereading once all books are out? Share your opinions and teasers in the comments!
To play along just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
The Winner’s Kiss by Marie Rutkoski.
 |
| The Winner’s Kiss – Bloomsbury |
“Do you want me to stay?”
Kestrel wondered if every question is a way of putting yourself at the mercy of someone else. “It would cost you too much.”
— Chapter 17
“Now, it would be nice if information fell out of the sky. Given that it doesn’t, it is still nevertheless comforting that certain people do horrible things so that other people don’t have to. We should be grateful to such people. Or we should at least not ask questions when we don’t want answers.”.
— Chapter 22
The third and final book in a trilogy where I asked myself at the end of the second book how in the world this was ever supposed to end in something else than utter destruction. I’m not asking myself that anymore and I fear that this feeling of hope is also dangerous (I’m completely ruined by books in regards to the concept of hope, congratulations literature). There is a new character, who was introduced in the second book, whom I didn’t think I would like as more than an interesting secondary character, but now I find that I’m quite curious about this person and if there is ever to be a spin-off or extension of the story (given that the world isn’t blown to smithereens during the last 150 pages) the eastern prince would be a great choice ... hint hint.
If the author didn’t completely blow it in the final parts of the story, and I really doubt she did, this will be a worthy conclusion to a great trilogy that had all the political and personal intrigue and power games a reader could ask for, all set in an opulent alternative slightly historical seeming universe with quite a vibrant set of characters and story lines. I feel that this is one of the series I want to read more than once and figure out all the twists and turns and foreshadowing.
As I was reading I found that I maybe should have reread the previous book at least to some extent in order to remember the details, but then I thought that I’d probably reread the series after I finished and I had so many other books calling to me. Which option do you prefer? Rereading before a new book in a series publishes or rereading once all books are out? Share your opinions and teasers in the comments!
Tuesday, 12 April 2016
Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books And A Beat.
To play along just do the following:
When We Collided by Emery Lord.
This book gave me a very special appreciation that not all happy endings need to be a happily ever after. Or actually happy. The story celebrates the joy of the moment and that some moments, even if they are finite, are wonderful. And this is not taken away from them once they are over. In danger of sounding like a Hallmark card, or rather like Faulkner, really: Don’t cry because it’s over, but smile because it happened.
I realise that I’m not saying anything about the plot itself, and I don’t think I have to. Not much apart from: It’s a summer love story about two people meeting, falling in love, and finding themselves in the process of healing (on their own and each other). Simple as that and yet so very precious and complex in it’s language and storytelling.
If the criticism is that there are aspects of this book that aren’t perfect or pretty ... well reality isn’t that way either and no two people handle things the same. And while there are actions portrayed in this book that shoudln’t be emulated there is, in my opinion, nothing in the story that condones those actions, but rather on the contrary shows the consequences. And I’m very confident that readers are mature and intelligent enough that if they appreciate the book they can form their own opinion on those actions and make informed choices accordingly.
Do you have a book with an unhappy happy ending that made you feel sad but still appreciate it for its very existence? Share experiences and your teasers in the comments.
To play along just do the following:
- Grab your current read
- Open to a random page
- Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
- BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
- Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!
When We Collided by Emery Lord.
 |
| When We Collided – Bloomsbury |
But life surprises you. Life tells you to close your eyes and blow out the candles, and sometimes life smashes your face into the cake before you can even make a wish.The main character of this book will drive you mad, you will find her annoying and dislike her at times. And you will fall utterly in love with the other main character and want one like him for yourself. And you would be correct with all those feelings and so very wrong about some of them at the same time. It is all there, the hints are clear in the text, but it will take until almost the end of the book for the science to make sense of some of what’s happening. And other things can’t be explained anyway.
— Chapter 7
Our bodies block the beam from the lighthouse as we wave our arms and, even though we can’t see it, we’re casting shadows onto the sky so that even the constellations will know: we are seventeen and shattered and still dancing. We have messy, throbbing hearts, and we are stronger than anyone could ever know.
— Chapter 13
This book gave me a very special appreciation that not all happy endings need to be a happily ever after. Or actually happy. The story celebrates the joy of the moment and that some moments, even if they are finite, are wonderful. And this is not taken away from them once they are over. In danger of sounding like a Hallmark card, or rather like Faulkner, really: Don’t cry because it’s over, but smile because it happened.
I realise that I’m not saying anything about the plot itself, and I don’t think I have to. Not much apart from: It’s a summer love story about two people meeting, falling in love, and finding themselves in the process of healing (on their own and each other). Simple as that and yet so very precious and complex in it’s language and storytelling.
If the criticism is that there are aspects of this book that aren’t perfect or pretty ... well reality isn’t that way either and no two people handle things the same. And while there are actions portrayed in this book that shoudln’t be emulated there is, in my opinion, nothing in the story that condones those actions, but rather on the contrary shows the consequences. And I’m very confident that readers are mature and intelligent enough that if they appreciate the book they can form their own opinion on those actions and make informed choices accordingly.
Do you have a book with an unhappy happy ending that made you feel sad but still appreciate it for its very existence? Share experiences and your teasers in the comments.
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