Literary Ligase: April 2016

Waiting on Wednesday: Of Fire and Stars by Audrey Coulthurst

Here is where I share with you my anticipation for upcoming books! Breaking the Spine has introduced me to this and I am super excited to get to participate. Please feel free to comment what books you are looking forward to as well!!

Synopsis: Betrothed since childhood to the prince of Mynaria, Princess Dennaleia has always known what her future holds. Her marriage will seal the alliance between Mynaria and her homeland, protecting her people from other hostile lands. But Denna has a secret. She possesses an Affinity for fire—a dangerous gift for the future queen of a kingdom where magic is forbidden.

Now, Denna must learn the ways of her new home while trying to hide her growing magic. To make matters worse, she must learn to ride Mynaria’s formidable warhorses before her coronation—and her teacher is the person who intimidates her most, the prickly and unconventional Princess Amaranthine (called Mare), sister of her betrothed.

When a shocking assassination leaves the kingdom reeling, Mare and Denna reluctantly join forces to search for the culprit. As the two work together, each discovers there’s more to the other than she thought. Mare is surprised by Denna’s intelligence and bravery, while Denna is drawn to Mare’s independent streak. Soon their friendship is threatening to blossom into something more.

But with dangerous conflict brewing that makes the alliance more important than ever, acting on their feelings could be deadly. Forced to choose between their duty and their hearts, Mare and Denna must find a way to save their kingdoms—and each other.

Now, the synopsis for this story has updated itself a couple of times since the first time I read it. However, I remember reading the most iconic line, which latched itself onto my mind, as well as others: "A princess with a forbidden magical gift is shipped off to a neighboring kingdom to marry a prince . . . . she falls in love with his rogueish horse-training sister instead." As soon as I read this, I was like "yes, sign me the heck up fam how do I get this book now." The synopsis was so generic - in which a princess with a harboring magical power is married off to a prince of another country to seal an alliance. I wasn't the slightest bit impressed at first, but then it started screaming LGBT and diversity in YA fantasy and I was hooked. I am so ready to see how this story unfolds, as I have very high hopes for this book.

Of Fire and Stars is due to release November 22nd, 2016!

Top Ten Bookworm Delights

I've been watching this meme float around a lot, so I've finally decided to join in the fun! This meme was created by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday there is a new list that involves all things books!

top ten bookworm delights

The new book sound: that crackling sound the spine and cover make when a new book is opened for the first time. sounds like heaven.
Picking up a new book: the excitement, the anticipation, the "oh my gosh I can't believe I finally got it" feeling - all of it is so worth it when you have that new beauty in your hands.
Discovering a new favorite author: the feeling you get when you finish a book and realize that you are prepared to empty your wallet at that particular author's feet.
Realizing that the book you're reading is part of a series: I don't know about you, but I love series more than standalones, so when I find a great first installment in a series, I can't wait to invest all of my time in the rest of the books.
Reading out loud: I don't usually read out loud, but when my parents leave the house, believe me, I read out the book like I'm in a play. I feel like I have a much more fun time reading out loud, than in my head.
When you recommend a book to someone and they read it (and love it): it makes me immensely proud when I recommend a book to someone and they go crazy over it. it's even more fun when they constantly update me on their progress and we just talk for hours over the book.
Finally getting to sit down and read: after a long day at school, then dance rehearsals, then softball practice, all I really wanna do is come home and read. so when I get to lay in bed with a cup of hot chocolate, a good book, and the time to read, I treasure it.
End pages, maps, spines, etc: if the overall construction of the book is one of pure beauty, I will be delighted. when the color of the book naked is any color but black, I am in love. when the end pages have designs, or when the cover has something carved into it, I am so in love.
Epilogues: some books don't have epilogues and that's ok, but for the ones that do ... thank you. sometimes when I finish book and I realize there is literally nothing else, I get immensely sad and my mind continues to reel. however when there is an epilogue, I have a bit of a better closure. plus, the epilogue gives you a peek at what's to come later in the series!
Staying up late to finish a book: when I stay up past midnight to read, you know the book is getting good. I love when a book keeps me up and gets my heart racing at two in the morning, because then you know that book is something special.

A Study in Charlotte (Charlotte Holmes #1) by Brittany Cavallaro

5/5 Stars ★★★★★

Published by Katherine Tegan Books

Published March 1st, 2016

Synopsis: Sherringford, a Connecticut prep school just an hour away from his estranged father. But that’s not the only complication: Sherringford is also home to Charlotte Holmes, the famous detective’s great-great-great-granddaughter, who has inherited not only Sherlock’s genius but also his volatile temperament. From everything Jamie has heard about Charlotte, it seems safer to admire her from afar.

From the moment they meet, there’s a tense energy between them, and they seem more destined to be rivals than anything else. But when a Sherringford student dies under suspicious circumstances, ripped straight from the most terrifying of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Jamie can no longer afford to keep his distance. Jamie and Charlotte are being framed for murder, and only Charlotte can clear their names. But danger is mounting and nowhere is safe—and the only people they can trust are each other.

*flails* this book was so flippin' awesome. It was everything I needed to get out of this tiny reading slump I didn't even realize I had. From the moment I picked up A Study in Charlotte, I knew I was in for a thrilling adventure and an intriguing murder-mystery. Brittany Cavallaro's writing will capture you with her witty, comedic prose and her fluency with words. The words seemed so effortlessly written, that it attracted your attention with how smooth it was to read over the sentences. I was so impressed by the level of description and imagery used to really depict the landscape and the situations as they unfolded. I love the premise for this story and knew from the first time I heard about this book that it would become one of my favorites. Thank goodness I wasn't let down. It met all of my expectations and surprised me even more than I imagined it would. Alas, I am not a sherlockian, so I don't know how accurate this story was in terms of an adaptation to the original story, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Synopsis: All Etta Spencer wanted was to make her violin debut when she was thrust into a treacherous world where the struggle for power could alter history. After losing the one thing that would have allowed her to protect the Timeline, and the one person worth fighting for, Etta awakens alone in an unknown place and time, exposed to the threat of the two groups who would rather see her dead than succeed. When help arrives, it comes from the last person Etta ever expected—Julian Ironwood, the Grand Master’s heir who has long been presumed dead, and whose dangerous alliance with a man from Etta’s past could put them both at risk.

Meanwhile, Nicholas and Sophia are racing through time in order to locate Etta and the missing astrolabe with Ironwood travelers hot on their trail. They cross paths with a mercenary-for-hire, a cheeky girl named Li Min who quickly develops a flirtation with Sophia. But as the three of them attempt to evade their pursuers, Nicholas soon realizes that one of his companions may have ulterior motives.

As Etta and Nicholas fight to make their way back to one another, from Imperial Russia to the Vatican catacombs, time is rapidly shifting and changing into something unrecognizable… and might just run out on both of them.

Look at this cover!! My goodness, it is beautiful! There have been so many beautiful cover releases recently, my heart is exploding. The ending of Passenger has been gnawing away at me since I finished it back in December, so of course I'm in a serious need of Wayfarer. I never realized there was a synopsis up on Goodreads, so either it just appeared in the past few days, or I've been long behind, but look at the importance. I cannot believe my eyes, but I knew in the first book something was fishy about this. Look closely now ... closer ... yes that's the name you were searching for. Julian Ironwood. Now I'm seriously fighting the urge to slam my head against the keyboard because I am so dang excited for Julian Ironwood, and this new character named Li Min who flirts with Sophia?! I'm so ready.

Wayfarer's expected release is January 3rd, 2017!

ARC Review: The Crown's Game by Evelyn Skye

4/5 Stars ★★★★

Published by Balzer + Bray

Published May 17th, 2016

Synopsis: Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.

And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has?

For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her.

And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love... or be killed himself.

As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear... the Crown’s Game is not one to lose.

This was one heck of a story, lemme tell you. In her debut novel, Evelyn Skye brings us on a magical journey through Russian culture, which was perfected down to the tiniest detail. I love stories that are set in Russia or are influenced by Russian culture, so to have an entire book that was just Russia was so awesome. The way magic was weaved into this story was actually really beautiful. Her writing made seemingly natural/ordinary objects appear as magical and enchanted as what was actually supposed to be spawned from magic. Meaning, in simpler terms, that Evelyn Skye's writing style was basically conjured up by magic - it was flawless, man, the detail in everything was impeccable.

5/5 Stars ★★★★★★★★

Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books

Published March 8th, 2016

Synopsis: It's been five years since the events of City of Heavenly Fire that brought the Shadowhunters to the brink of oblivion. Emma Carstairs is no longer a child in mourning, but a young woman bent on discovering what killed her parents and avenging her losses.

Together with her parabatai Julian Blackthorn, Emma must learn to trust her head and her heart as she investigates a demonic plot that stretches across Los Angeles, from the Sunset Strip to the enchanted sea that pounds the beaches of Santa Monica. If only her heart didn't lead her in treacherous directions ...

Making things even more complicated, Julian's brother Mark - who was captured by the faeries five years ago - has been returned as a bargaining chip. The faeries are desperate to find out who is murdering their kind - and they need the Shadowhunters' help to do it. But time works differently in faerie, so Mark has barely aged and doesn't recognize his family. Can he ever truly return to them? Will the faeries really allow it?

Glitz, glamours, and Shadowhunters abound in this heartrending opening to Cassandra Clare's Dark Artifices series.

This book was literally magic. Everything was so effortlessly put together and arranged to make your heart bend, break, and snap. Lady Midnight has to be the best starter to a series Cassandra Clare has ever put out. The writing was sophisticated, eloquent, and mature in a way that was so unexpected. Of course, I expected nothing but greatness from Cassie, but this was beyond anything I had ever hoped for. From the beginning of the prologue, Cassie has you hooked with new characters, intriguing adventure, and dialogue that is seamlessly flawless. Everything about this book was absolutely beautiful - from it's characters, to it's writing, to it's plot line. The Mortal Instruments is one of my favorite book series and I certainly wasn't expecting The Dark Artifices to already top TMI within the first book.

I am so excited that THE CROWN’S GAME by Evelyn Skye is releasing in May 2016 that I wanted to help spread the love!

If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Author Evelyn Skye, be sure to check out all the details below.

The Tsar’s Guard Parade also includes a giveaway for an ARC of the book. So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

Title: THE CROWN’S GAME

Author: Evelyn Skye

Release Date: May 17^th, 2016

Pages: 416

Publisher: Balzer+Bray

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Find it: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks

Synopsis: Vika Andreyeva can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters—the only two in Russia—and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakhs threatening, the Tsar needs a powerful enchanter by his side.

And so he initiates the Crown’s Game, an ancient duel of magical skill—the greatest test an enchanter will ever know. The victor becomes the Imperial Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected adviser. The defeated is sentenced to death.

Raised on tiny Ovchinin Island her whole life, Vika is eager for the chance to show off her talent in the grand capital of Saint Petersburg. But can she kill another enchanter—even when his magic calls to her like nothing else ever has?

For Nikolai, an orphan, the Crown’s Game is the chance of a lifetime. But his deadly opponent is a force to be reckoned with—beautiful, whip smart, imaginative—and he can’t stop thinking about her.

And when Pasha, Nikolai’s best friend and heir to the throne, also starts to fall for the mysterious enchantress, Nikolai must defeat the girl they both love . . . or be killed himself.

As long-buried secrets emerge, threatening the future of the empire, it becomes dangerously clear . . . the Crown’s Game is not one to lose.

For today's post, I'll be sharing with all of you a little playlist I put together for this beautiful book. Each and every song in this playlist has to do with the relationships between the characters in this book, the magic and the power that comes with being an enchanter, and the difficult choices they must face. The overall mood of this playlist, I think, evokes the general aura of the book.

3.5/5 Stars

Published by Sourebooks Fire

Published April 5th, 2016

Synopsis: Despite the best of intentions, seventeen-year old, wisecracking Hank Kirby can’t quite seem to catch a break. It’s not that he means to screw things up all the time, it just happens. A lot. Case in point: his attempt to ask out the girl he likes literally goes up in flames when he spells “Prom” in sparklers on her lawn…and nearly burns down her house.

As if that wasn’t bad enough, Peyton Breedlove, a brooding loner and budding pyromaniac, witnesses the whole thing. Much to Hank’s dismay, Peyton takes an interest in him—and his “work.” The two are thrust into an unusual friendship, but their boundaries are tested when Hank learns that Peyton is hiding some dark secrets, secrets that may change everything he thought he knew about Peyton.

From just the description, I was already incredibly intrigued by the concept of this book. With prom season coming up, a whole boatload of promposal's have been surfacing up on the internet - it seems only fitting that I get to read this book now, when promposal's are at their peak. I'll be honest, this was not my favorite book in the whole wide world, and I wanna say it's because I read it right after Lady Midnight, which was freaking fantastic beyond words. However, I will say that it was entertaining and did kind of pull me out of my reading slump. The story was a whole lot of fun and a good representation of the high school experience - emotional breakdowns, public humiliation, fun late night adventures, and bonding with your friends. Plus, it put a great emphasis on the importance of friendship and how to overcome battles that come with the ride.