Review: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

Title: City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

Publication Date: May 27th, 2014

Paperback/Hardcover: 725

Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal

Find it at: Goodreads / Bookdepository

Summary:

In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.
Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.
The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?

When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...

Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

Review:

I’m not completely sure why but it took me a long time to decide I should pick this book up. I mean, I was curious to see how the Mortal Instruments would end, of course, but I held back on starting City of Heavenly Fire.

I finally started reading this book when Lady Midnight came out and actually thought it was good. I have to confess I’m one of those people who believes this series could have ended nicely in City of Glass but was not disappointed with City of Heavenly Fire.

I really liked the way the characters grew in this book. Clary, Jace, Simon, Isabelle, Alec and Magnus are great and all of them brought something essential to the story and the relationships between them were always able to keep me entertained and I have to confess I do think Sebastian makes a good villain.

When it comes to the story, I think it developed and ultimately ended nicely. Nothing is overly rushed, on the contrary, and it works here. The story does culminate as it should and I think it was a good end to a good series.

I’m ready to start reading Lady Midnight now!

Rating: Worth Yout Time (4 Stars).

Review - Vicious by V.E. Schwab

Title: Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Publication Date: September 24th, 2013
Paperback/Hardcover: 364
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Find it at: Goodreads / Bookdepository

 Summary:
Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

Review:
I confess I had been meaning to read this book for a long time but only recently got around to doing it.
I thought the premise for Vicious was very interesting and so I had high expectations for the book. Gladly, I was not disappointed.
I quite enjoyed the characters in this book and have to confess that Victor was my favorite. He’s extremely complex, dark and mysterious. He’s methodical and intelligent and will stop at nothing until he gets what he wants.
Eli is as ambitious and as hard to peg as Victor. As I read I knew exactly which one of these characters I wanted things to work out for but I realize both of these characters are complex and it’s not easy to qualify them as either good or bad. Probably because, at times, they can be both.
I also really enjoyed the secondary characters and thought they all brought something important to the story. Mitch and Sydney, especially, give us a different insight into Victor.
Plotwise, Vicious is extremely well-written and develops at just the right pace. I enjoyed the fact the readers get to understand what happened in the past and made our characters who they are in the present.
All in all, Vicious is one of the best books I have read lately. It is extremely well-written and thought-out and the characters are simply flawlessly fleshed out. The plot is imaginative and had me hooked right from the start.
I would definitely recommend Vicious to all fantasy fans.
This is definitely a must read.

Rating: Must Read (5 Stars).

Review - Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Title: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Publication Date: April 22nd, 2014

Paperback/Hardcover: 422

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Mystery

Find it at: Goodreads / Bookdepository

Summary: 
On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

Review: 

I’m probably a little late for the ‘I’m reading Gone Girl party’ but better late than never, right?

I don’t even know what to say about the two main characters: Amy and Nick. At one time they seem to be one thing and then, as the story develops, they turn out to be completely different people.  This is obviously the author’s goal and it works perfectly.

This story is all about two people who don’t and, at the same time, do know each other perfectly well. The things they do, the people they deceive is amazing.  Amy, especially, is probably one of the most complex characters out there.

The way the book is written purposely makes the reader think one thing when the truth is completely different. And once everything is revealed you are left thinking about how some people really do go through life pretending to be someone else and are capable of anything to get what they want.

This book is full of surprises and schemes and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The book is written in a very smart way and I was hooked from the beginning. I don’t want to give anything away to the people who haven’t read the book yet so I’ll just say this book is incredibly well-thought out and definitely left an impression on me.

This is definitely a must read.

Rating: Must Read (5 Stars)

Review - Unstoppable by Lynn Crandall

Title: Unstoppable by Lynn Crandall

Publication Date: February 22nd 2016

Paperback/Hardcover:

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Find it at: Goodreads 

Summary: 
Reeling from the recent Project Powering battle with the evil Nexus Group, were-lynx and veterinarian Lara Monroe struggles with thwarting the group’s plans to eliminate her colony while dealing with her own traumatic past. Still, when her fellow colony cat—and secret crush—Booker Chase needs help, she’s willing to use her special healing touch to help him survive his emotional hell.

A formidable were-lynx and a physician, Booker has his hands full helping patients who were seriously injured in the battle. But nothing can repair his soul, broken from the loss of his wife and the PTSD from his service in Afghanistan … or can it? Now that his good friend Lara is standing by him in his emotional struggles, he’s finding there is more to their connection than he realized. But dare he open his heart?
In the epic conclusion of the Fierce Hearts series, the colony takes its biggest risk of all to shut down the Nexus Group forever—will Lara and Booker survive to take their second chance at love?

Review: 
I have read and enjoyed the other books in this series so I was curious about this one.
Unstoppable is the conclusion to a very imaginative and different series and it did not disappoint me at all.

Lynn Crandall has created a solid and interesting world with well-developed characters that have been able to keep me interested in their story right from the start. 

I was happy with this conclusion to the story, enjoyed the plot and the pace and I really do think that if you enjoy Paranormal romances you should give this series a try.

Rating: Worth your time (4 Stars)