Review: A Darker Shade of Magic

A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I found this to be an engaging and fun read with some interesting ideas and fun characters. Basically there are 4 versions of London which exist in different dimensions (for the lack of a better word) on the same location - Red London where magic is strong, Grey London where magic has more or less died out and London is more industrialised, White London which is controlled by evil twins who have taken the throne by force and Black London which became too unstable and greedy with its magic and fell, which resulted in the other 3 Londons sealing themselves off from the Black to protect themselves. Within these very different cities however there are certain key structures that remain constant, which is an idea that I loved. Character-wise we have the spunky street urchin and wannabe pirate Lila who I adored, Rhy the prince to the Throne of Red London and Kell, who lives in Red London but is one of the rare few who can use blood magic to travel between the different Londons and so is used by the various royal families as a messenger. Kell was also an intriguing character and I am sure that there is more than meets the eye with him too.

Whilst this was a good stand alone story, the second in the series has just come out but I have heard rumours that this ends on a cliffhanger so I might just have to wait until the third comes out so I can binge read!

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Review: Post Office

Post Office by Charles Bukowski
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was my first time reading Bukowski and I'm glad that I finally gave it a go as I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I was going to! It read very much like someone was just sitting you down and telling you a selection of stories from their life and their experiences of falling in and out of work at the Post Office and the characters that they meet both in the offices and on their mail routes, plus his experiences at the race track. The main character Henry wasn't really a likeable chap, but you still find yourself routing for him as everyone around him seems to be unreasonable. Will read more.

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Review: Ten Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord

Ten Ways to Be Adored When Landing a Lord by Sarah MacLean
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Well, I'm giving this one 4 stars because I thoroughly enjoyed this fun, witty and charming story. Yes, I always do baulk at the idea of reading out and out romance stories, but then realise that there is also so much more to it than a bit of bodice-ripping and flexing of muscles! There is a completely valid and engaging storyline (our heroine runs a "safe house" for women who need help/somewhere safe to stay and is running out of money to keep it going), strong characters (again a heroine who isn't a vapid, sappy, weak-willed sop, she is strong minded and independent plus a swoon-worthy hero who isn't full of alpha male bullsh*t) as well as wit and humour - in fact Book Riot have published a great article here today about romance novels which explains things a lot better then I can.

This is the second Sarah MacLean novel that I have read, and fully intend to read more!

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Review: Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened

Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened by Allie Brosh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Allie Brosh's Hyperbole and a Half blog is one of my 'go-to' favourite reads if I am ever in need of a chuckle or pick me up, so I can't believe that I have left it so long before reading her book. Depending on my mood at the time, various stories literally have me laughing and crying to myself, making me look like a loon to those around me. From her retelling of her childhood love of cake, to her dog to her battle with depression, Allie is very insightful with a dark humour that is always right on par. Love this so much.

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Review: The Last Kingdom

The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Whilst finding myself on a bit of a Viking binge recently thanks to discovering the TV series on Amazon Prime (how did I miss that series before?!) I have been searching and searching for recommended books on that period of history and was happy to see that not only had Bernard Cornwell written about the Saxons, that there was a while blooming series too! I was delighted to see that it featured my beloved Ragnar Lothbrook, although this time as a supporting character to Uhtred, son of Uhtred, the son of an English noble adopted by the Danes following his father's death.

I found this to be a fascinating look into a period of time that I admit that I know very little about. and was very interested in Cornwell's medieval spellings of the English place names and had great fun in trying to match the towns and rivers mentioned to the modern day equivalents, being from that part of the country that I think would have been just outside the kingdom of Wessex in Dumonia in the South West Peninsula. Will definitely be reading more in this saga.

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Song of the Day: Ghost - Cirice

Review: Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic

Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic by Meghan Ciana Doidge
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Not exactly a ground-breaking novel in this particular genre as this is your standard urban fantasy with the usual mix of witches, vampires and werewolves. The main difference is that our heroine owns and runs a cupcake shop and I do admit to suddenly developing a craving for them now as they sounded so yummy. I found this to be very reminiscent of series such as the Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong but not quite as well written, I don't mean that is a spiteful way as this is the first in this series, and as I have said in reviews before, first novels are often a little shaky due to having to introduce the characters, settings and relationships. Its not a bad novel, just not the best I've read.

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