Here's a recap of what I read in August with no-spoiler reviews.
Fairy Tale by Stephen King
What I Liked: It was a smorgasbord of classic fairy tales and Stephen King storylines all wrapped up in one epic fantasy adventure.
What I Didn't Like: If I had to pick any one thing, maybe the pacing. It is a very long book, which is fine, but despite the length and story progression, I almost felt like the ending was rushed compared to the tempo of the rest of the book.
Overall: This was by far my favorite read of the month, probably one of my top three of the year so far. It was fun and full of magic. It brought me to tears at least once which is always a strong indicator of a five-star read. There were so many classic tie-ins that were done really well but at the same time, it was all wrapped up in a story that was special and unique enough to keep you guessing and entranced.
LOVE IT!
A Ship of Bones and Teeth by Karina Halle
What I Liked: A nice level of spicy romance and it was at sea which is always fun!
What I Didn't Like: It lacked cohesiveness in places, and the ending was weak and deflated.
Overall: I read this as part of a book club which was fun. It's a spicy retelling of Little Mermaid if she was a little crazy and ended up in the hands of pirates. There were some really strong elements (like the idea of embracing your inner monster and messiness and standing up/not putting up with abuse). But overall, this was mostly a spicy romance at sea. The storyline felt like a secondary aspect to the romance, which is fine for what it's worth. Just don't read this book for a strong pirate fairy tale. The ending was also disappointing since everything just conveniently wrapped up for the main characters. But I enjoyed it for what it was worth and if spicy romance is your thing, I highly recommend it.
The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman
What I Liked: The celebration of love (especially the love of a mother!)
What I Didn't Like: Not much, if I had to pick, I'd say it was a bit short and could've had a bit more storybuilding or romance.
Overall: This was my biggest surprise of the month. I loved it! I'll be honest I picked it up because it was short and I was running behind in my reading goal of the year. (Which is why it's funny that maybe it could've been a bit longer is my only complaint. Haha). I had no idea what to expect going in, especially since the description doesn't give a whole lot away. But this is a beautiful combination of a dash of tragedy, romance, fantasy, thriller and everything you can get in a book all swirled into a well-crafted story of a girl raised in a cult who finds refuge in BOOKS! This book celebrates the love of books and the love of mothers. How perfect is that!
This would really be four and a half stars. It is seriously borderline five stars (it did make me cry after all.)
Throne of Glass and Crown of Midnight (part 2 in T.O.G. series) by Sarah J. Maas
What I Liked: Great storyline and strong characters.
What I Didn't Like: I'm not sure I've found the highlight of the series yet. Where's the umph?
Overall: So, this month I read both books 1 and 2 in the Throne of Glass series and they were really good. I love the female main character, Celaena. She might be my all time favorite FMC! Dorian and Chaol are great too. SJM is a master at creating characters and tension.
My only issue is I'm waiting for whatever makes this series special. I loved the ACOTAR series because I feel like SJM does such a great job at creating characters and tension which makes her a perfect romantasy author. But this isn't romantasy. So what is it? Some might technically classify it as "epic fantasy" but I haven't seen anything epic yet. Don't get me wrong, it's good. Really good. But not epic. I'm not sure it's even great which makes me wonder: Do I want to read this storyline for eight books? I don't, I'm going to give it a couple more and let you know! :)
War by Laura Thalassa
What I Liked: Interesting book in this series that focuses on war in a particularly war-ravaged part of the world.
What I Didn't Like: This is a romance book with action but I kind of felt like both were a bit lacking.
Overall: I'm reading The Four Horsemen series for what it is: a romance series. It's not spectacular but I like them because they have the right level of spice for me and they really concentrate on the slow burn and enemies to lovers tropes which are my FAVORITE! They also have interesting storylines that connect in the apocolapyse which is always fun. Haha.
I was kind of surprised to not get into this one as much. Maybe because of the trope. It was more of a forced marriage trope which didn't make as much a sense to me and I just don't know if I felt the same level of tension between the two characters as I did in Pestilence (and in book three that I'm reading now).
But, again, I like this series for what it is. Nothing to write home about but if you like a good low-level spicy romance with some action thrown in, I highly recommend the Four Horsemen series! <3
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