Book Title: The Darkest Magic
Author: Morgan Rhodes
Series: Spirit and Thieves #2
Release Date: June 28th, 2016
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy Romance

In the second installment of New York Times bestselling author Morgan Rhodes's highly acclaimed Falling Kingdoms spin-off series, danger looms and the mystery deepens as two warring evils vie for possession of one elusive, powerful book.

Modern-day Toronto: Sisters Crystal and Becca Hatcher are reunited after reclaiming the Bronze Codex and narrowly escaping death. They have no one to trust but each other, and the only thing keeping them safe is the book that sent Becca's spirit to Ancient Mytica--the same book that their enemies would kill them for.

Ancient Mytica: Maddox grapples to keep his newly discovered powers under control, while the ruthless goddess Valoria hunts him down.

Modern-day Toronto: Farrell embraces his dark side as he unwittingly falls further under the spell of Markus, the mastermind leader of the nefarious Hawkspear Society, who will stop at nothing to find Crys and Becca--and the remarkable book in their possession.

ARC Review: Nothing Tastes as Good by Claire Hennessy

Book Title: Nothing Tastes as Good
Author: Claire Hennessy
Series: Standalone
Release Date: July 14th, 2016
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance

What happens when you give in to the voices in your head?

Annabel is dead. And she’s not happy about it. Despite having strived to be ‘lighter than air’ back when she was alive, the consequences of that yearning haven’t quite sunk in yet.

Julia Jacobs is fat. Which Annabel immediately notices when she’s assigned as Julia’s ghostly helper (don’t even think about calling her a guardian angel). And as her helper, Julia’s problem seems pretty obvious to Annabel. Fat = problem = unhappy. Sorted.

The only trouble is that whatever is causing Julia to overeat is hidden deep within her. Annabel will have to get to know Julia to uncover this secret and ‘fix’ her. Annabel can become the voice of reason, Julia’s source of strength.

Except. . . all this time spent in someone’s head has got Annabel thinking. Not just about food, but about her family too. And that maybe happiness can mean more than eradicating all the flesh from your bones.

Book Review: A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas

Book Title: A Court of Mist and Fury

Author: Sarah J Maas
Series: A Court of Thorn & Roses #2
Release Date: May 3rd, 2016
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy Romance

Feyre survived Amarantha's clutches to return to the Spring Court--but at a steep cost. Though she now has the powers of the High Fae, her heart remains human, and it can't forget the terrible deeds she performed to save Tamlin's people.

Nor has Feyre forgotten her bargain with Rhysand, High Lord of the feared Night Court. As Feyre navigates its dark web of politics, passion, and dazzling power, a greater evil looms--and she might be key to stopping it. But only if she can harness her harrowing gifts, heal her fractured soul, and decide how she wishes to shape her future--and the future of a world cleaved in two.

With more than a million copies sold of her beloved Throne of Glass series, Sarah J. Maas's masterful storytelling brings this second book in her seductive and action-packed series to new heights.

Paperback Review: The Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

Book Title: The Conspiracy of Us
Author: Maggie Hall
Series: The Conspiracy of Us #1
Release Date: January 13th, 2015
Genres: Young Adult, Mystery/Thriller, Action 

A fast-paced international escapade, laced with adrenaline, glamour, and romance--perfect for fans of Ally Carter.

Avery West's newfound family can shut down Prada when they want to shop in peace, and can just as easily order a bombing when they want to start a war. Part of a powerful and dangerous secret society called the Circle, they believe Avery is the key to an ancient prophecy. Some want to use her as a pawn. Some want her dead.

To unravel the mystery putting her life in danger, Avery must follow a trail of clues from the monuments of Paris to the back alleys of Istanbul with two boys who work for the Circle—beautiful, volatile Stellan and mysterious, magnetic Jack. But as the clues expose a stunning conspiracy that might plunge the world into World War 3, she discovers that both boys are hiding secrets of their own. Now she will have to choose not only between freedom and family--but between the boy who might help her save the world, and the one she's falling in love with.

Paperback of the Month: Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton

 Book Title: Rebel of the Sands
Author: Alwyn Hamilton
Series: Rebel of the Sands #1
Release Date: March 18th, 2016
Genres: YA Fantasy, Romance, Adventure

She’s more gunpowder than girl—and the fate of the desert lies in her hands.

Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mystical beasts still roam the wild and barren wastes, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinni still practice their magic. But there's nothing mystical or magical about Dustwalk, the dead-end town that Amani can't wait to escape from.

Destined to wind up "wed or dead," Amani’s counting on her sharpshooting skills to get her out of Dustwalk. When she meets Jin, a mysterious and devastatingly handsome foreigner, in a shooting contest, she figures he’s the perfect escape route. But in all her years spent dreaming of leaving home, she never imagined she'd gallop away on a mythical horse, fleeing the murderous Sultan's army, with a fugitive who's wanted for treason. And she'd never have predicted she'd fall in love with him...or that he'd help her unlock the powerful truth of who she really is.

Cassandra Clare Week! Book Review - City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments #1)

4 STARS! ★★★★

 

 Today marks the start of my CC week where I'll be reading her Mortal Instruments series, woohoo! I've been having most of her books on paperbacks and in an attempt to tackle my paperbacks TBR, this series has been on top of my list. I'm gonna change up my review style a little bit; keeping it short and simple so that I can tackle as many books in this series as I can in my CC-dedicated week. 

 

Loved the world of Shadowhunters that CC is trying to draw us in by having the current setting blend in with the modern city background. I liked the idea of a whole new world hidden in our real world. Was sucked in from the first chapter itself as it starts off with a thrilling scene and later catapulted to a whole new world where we start to meet more than just the Shadowhunters: namely vampires, warlocks, demons, werewolves to name a few.

 

 However there were some minor moments that I thought the infodumping was a little extreme to my liking in where I had to retrace my steps back sometimes (I'm a little slow in absorbing all the new terminologies lol). Once I got the hang of it, I was completely enthralled by this new world and found the entire read to be entertaining and addicting! CC really managed to weave this intricate universe that poses so many secrets that have yet to be unlocked. 

    

I loved the dynamic between Clary and the Shadowhunters gang; Jace, Alec and Isabelle. Everytime they kicked butt, I feel like doing fistpumps! And admittedly at first, I wasn't a huge fan of Simon but he slowly grew on me during the second half of the book. Secondary characters like Magnus and Luke were also characters that I've come to like and drew me in as I'm certain there's a whole lot more to their backstory. 

Valentine had me drawing some parallels to Harry Potter's Voldermort where the bad guys aren't necessarily born evil but they're driven by a stronger cause in what they believed would save their own kind. And the plot twist at the end there from Valentine? It kinda makes you wanna weep and wish you could erase that part! 

 

What I enjoyed most: Jace/Clary witty banters. And almost everything that Jace says :D I like how he cracks me up in even the most dire situation but it was nice to see a glimpse of a different side of him every now and then ♥ 

   

Since I've watched the movie (& loved it!) before reading this one, I didn't really get the oomph factor since it felt a like a refresher read for me especially with the movie being rather spot-on with most of the key events played here. 

  It was action-packed that kept me on my toes and I'm eager to explore this whole new world that has yet to come. Super excited to see how the relationship between Jace & Clary will play out in the upcoming books. 

 Off to the next one!