‘The Passage, a Dance, & a Little White Dress’ by Kristin D. Van Risseghem

3 stars

With the first book in the series, ‘The Guardian, a Sword, and Stilettos,’ author Van Risseghem created a rich, supernatural world with angels, nephilim, fairies, werewolves, and various demons.

‘The Passage, a Dance, & a Little White Dress’ continues Zoe’s story right where the first book left off.  She meets a new neighbor and is the only one who can see that he resembles her boyfriend, Shay, almost exactly.  Typical teenage drama ensues, combined with supernatural features such as werewolf instalove and mating for life and various degrees of ephemeral beings.

Zoe began this series as a typical 17-year-old high school girl, as she was introduced to the hidden world of supernatural beings, she learns that the people closest to her have been assigned to protect her from birth.  Zoe is destined to fulfill a prophecy on her 18^th birthday.  She is the prophesied ‘Redeemer’ and her abilities will be critical in the upcoming war to keep the devil from ruling Earth.

Recommended for fans of YA fantasy and supernatural beings.  ‘The Passage’ is available for pre-order on Amazon, it releases April 13, 2016.

Thanks to author Kristin D. Van Risseghem for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

'Mechanica' by Betsy Cornwell

5 stars!

Steampunk inventions cleverly interwoven into one of the more self-reliant versions of Cinderella I've read. Cornwell's elegant writing flowed perfectly.

Get 'Mechanica' on Amazon, or from your local library!

Sneak Peek: The Glittering Court (The Glittering Court #1) by Richelle Mead

4.5 stars

‘The Glittering Court’ is a YA contemporary fantasy by ‘Vampire Academy’ author Richelle Mead.  We follow a young, marriageable high-society heiress on an adventure to impersonate her servant and flee the restrictive and stuffy life she was born to.  She takes the place of her servant when recruited by the handsome and clever Cedric to the Glittering Court; equal parts business venture for the owners and opportunities to make slightly less restrictive marriages by ladies who were born poor.

After months of lady lessons, and a final ranking, this season’s graduating class is shipped overseas to the New World, where they will compete for ‘eligible bachelors’.

The sneak peek ended on a cliffhanger, and I’m very interested to see how the story progresses.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

‘The Glittering Court’ will be available on April 5, 2016.

‘Strings’ by David Estes

5 stars!

Captivating and impeccably well-written, ‘Strings’ follows the story of Pia, a 16-year old girl with strings attached to her body in 15 places, as she works with her father, Gio, in his isolated workshop inside a massive and mysterious facility, designing and building miniature technology.  This is the only life Pia has ever known.  She does not remember a time before she and her father had these strings; these strings that can control their every movement.

When the facility unexpectedly removes special memory-blocking chemicals from her nightly dose of drugs (via the strings) Pia starts to remember her past; her mother and childhood friends.  As management introduces other changes, Pia’s whole world changes and she becomes unsure of who to trust. 

There is never a dull moment, between rich world-building, descriptions of every-day living with strings, and a clever heroine who questions everything.  With ‘Strings,’ Estes has flawlessly executed a brilliant futuristic sci-fi re-telling of ‘Pinocchio.’

Thanks to author David Estes for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

‘Into the Dim’ by Janet B Taylor

5 stars!

‘Into the Dim’ is the first in a new YA historical fiction time-travel series.  While we begin with our main character, Hope, grieving her mother in 2016, we are soon introduced to Taylor’s brand of time travel mechanics and the era of Eleanor of Aquitaine.

Hope travels to her mother’s sister’s home in Scotland and does what every 16-year-old girl would do when left all alone in a huge new home; explores.  She discovers the time travel chamber just in time to meet her mysterious Aunt and learn the family’s secrets.  Motivated by the idea that her mother is alive but stuck in the twelfth century, Hope undergoes a brief training period and prepares to go into the Dim and save her mother.

Taylor’s novel reminds me several fantastic time-travel YA series, ‘Timebound’ by Rysa Walker, the ‘Immortal Descendants’ series by April White, and the ‘All Souls Trilogy’ by Deborah Harkness.

Adventure, romance, and plot twists abound!  ‘Into the Dim’ is an exciting read!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ‘Into the Dim’ will be available on March 1, 2016.

‘Tell the Wind and Fire’ by Sarah Rees Brennan

4 stars!

In ‘Tell the Wind and Fire,’ author Brennan has crafted a rich, imaginative, easy-to-visualize world full of magic and mystery.  In a decidedly different world, New York has been divided into two cities; one with Dark magicians and doppelgangers, and the other with Light magic, wealth, luxury, and surplus.  Our heroine, Lucie, is a child of two Light Magicians born in Dark New York.  Her experiences and her losses give her strength and courage.  Two years ‘unburied,’ and into the Light city, she discovers the boy she loves is part of her family’s sworn enemy, and his secret doppelganger is capable of more than anyone expected.

‘Tell the Wind and Fire’ is an excellent YA sci-fi read!  Available on Amazon April 2016.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.