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Showing posts with label Susan Dennard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Susan Dennard. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Mini Reviews: Sampler Edition!

Hi friends! Today, I'm sharing mini reviews of three samplers of books I can't wait to read. Many of you know how I dislike samplers; in this case, I requested Long Way Home without realizing it was a sampler. I decided to include two other samplers in this review post. I have the full novel of Wayfarer, and I actually already read the full Windwitch. All three samplers were good. Enjoy!


Wayfarer by Alexandra Bracken
Book Two of the Passenger series
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Publication Date: January 3, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

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.

Review:

Samplers really aren't my thing, especially samplers for novels that I am dying to read - like Wayfarer. I decided to go through with downloading and reading this sampler because I now have a copy of Wayfarer and will be reading it soon. This is a way for me to support the author, via NetGalley. I'm pleased to say that I liked this sampler a lot.

I recalled very little from Passenger, sadly! I read the book in November 2015, so it's been a while, plus that book was massive. I think Bracken did an excellent job of bringing the reader back into the world of Passenger, without confusing the reader. I had no issue slipping right back into the story.

So far, in this sampler (which is a little over one hundred pages long), we get Etta's POV and Nicholas's POV. If you remember the ending of Passenger, then you'll know why they are currently separated. These first few chapters take off pretty quickly, for both characters. Etta finds herself trapped among Ironwoods, and Nicholas is determined to find Etta and find the astrolabe, with a very prickly Sophia Ironwood. I love how Etta never stops fighting, Nicholas never stops being so determined to find Etta, and Sophia never stops being so brutally honest and a pain in the butt (in a good way. I like Sophia). 

The sampler ends on a point in the story that is rather cliffhanger-y! Very strategic place to end the sampler. If I didn't already have Wayfarer, I'd be screaming. As samplers go, this one is a good one, and it definitely made me want to read (the rest of) Wayfarer even more than I already wanted.


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Windwitch by Susan Dennard
Book Two of The Witchlands series
Publisher: Tor Teen
Publication Date: January 10, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sometimes our enemies are also our only allies…

After an explosion destroys his ship, the world believes Prince Merik, Windwitch, is dead. Scarred yet alive, Merik is determined to prove his sister’s treachery. Upon reaching the royal capital, crowded with refugees, he haunts the streets, fighting for the weak—which leads to whispers of a disfigured demigod, the Fury, who brings justice to the oppressed.

When the Bloodwitch Aeduan discovers a bounty on Iseult, he makes sure to be the first to find her—yet in a surprise twist, Iseult offers him a deal. She will return money stolen from him, if he locates Safi. Now they must work together to cross the Witchlands, while constantly wondering, who will betray whom first?

After a surprise attack and shipwreck, Safi and the Empress of Marstok barely escape with their lives. Alone in a land of pirates, every moment balances on a knife’s edge—especially when the pirates’ next move could unleash war upon the Witchlands.

Review:

I'm cheating a little because I've already read the full-length novel, so I really didn't need to read/review the sampler. Like with Wayfarer, I downloaded the sampler of Windwitch to support the author via NetGalley. More sampler downloads means more interest expressed, which is good.

You can read my review of Windwitch (the full novel) on my blog. I enjoyed the book, though not as much as I'd enjoyed Truthwitch. This sequel was a lot more heartbreaking and gritty to read, with more despair and sadness than its predecessor. All of this "sad stuff" was very necessary to the series, and I trust that Dennard knows what she is doing. Windwitch picks up after some time has passed between Truthwitch and Windwitch, but it's not at all difficult to get back into the story and recall the key events that happened in Truthwitch. 

Merik's story hit me the hardest, because he suffers the most, even in just this short sampler. We also get Iseult's POV, Safiya's POV, Aeduan's POV - and, surprise! Vivia's POV. Vivia is definitely one of my new favorite characters of the series. In this sampler alone, we learn more about her. She's not nearly as crazy and as villainous as I thought she was. 

There is no romance in this sampler, nor is there any interaction among the four witches (Merik, Safiya, Iseult, Aeduan), with the exception of Aeduan and Iseult. That pair clash and begin to work together in an unexpected way. I can't wait to see more from them in future novels. 

This sampler ends on a cliffhanger-y note, as did the sampler of Wayfarer. Again, very strategic on Tor's part, in choosing to end the sampler at that point. I already read Windwitch in its entirety, otherwise I would be screaming and throwing things (Merik! Quit picking on Merik!). Thankfully, all the screaming and throwing things that I'll be doing is because I am desperate needs of Bloodwitch (book three)!


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Long Way Home by Katie McGarry
Book Three of the Thunder Road series
Publisher: Harlequin TEEN
Publication Date: January 31, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from NetGalley

Summary (from Goodreads):

Seventeen-year-old Violet has always been expected to sit back and let the boys do all the saving.

It’s the code her father, a member of the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, raised her to live by. Yet when her dad is killed carrying out Terror business, Violet knows it’s up to her to do the saving. To protect herself, and her vulnerable younger brother, she needs to cut all ties with the club—including Chevy, the boy she’s known and loved her whole life.

But when a rival club comes after Violet, exposing old secrets and making new threats, she’s forced to question what she thought she knew about her father, the Reign of Terror, and what she thinks she wants. Which means re-evaluating everything: love, family, friends . . . and forgiveness.

Caught in the crosshairs between loyalty and freedom, Violet must decide whether old friends can be trusted—and if she’s strong enough to be the one person to save them all. 


Review:

I don't do samplers, but I didn't realize that the posting on NetGalley of this book was for a sampler, and not the full-length galley. Still, I am very excited to read this book, and I'll take the sampler. I thought Nowhere But Here was pretty good but I LOVED Walk the Edge. Long Way Home features Chevy and Violet, two characters that I adore and whose second-chance romance I could not wait to read and enjoy. 

This sampler is incredibly short! Of the three I'm reviewing today (Wayfarer, Windwitch, Long Way Home), it is the shortest, at approximately sixty pages. But I really enjoyed the preview. It was easy to get back into the story, and there was no introductory lag or boredom. The story starts with Chevy's POV and ends with Violet's POV, a symmetry that I appreciated.

I remember liking Chevy in previous books but not really focusing on him a lot. So far, I absolutely adore him, just from what I've gathered from this sampler. He is such a sweetheart and a gentleman, despite the "bad boy" aura surrounding him. He is so kind and patient to Violet's brother, and he's a good guy. There is too much weight on his shoulders.

Violet is a tough girl, though like Chevy, there is too much weight on her shoulders. She feels responsible for her brother, whose brain works a little differently. She broke up with Chevy because he wouldn't run away with her, and she hates the Club because they are always trying to interfere with her and her family's life. In this short sampler, readers clearly see how Violet feels about the Club, about her brother, and about Chevy.

I am SO excited to see how this romance progresses! It's so obvious that both of them are not over the other. Violet broke up with Chevy and it destroyed him, but Violet felt betrayed by Chevy, which is why she broke up with him. (Context: he wouldn't run away with her.) I don't usually like second-chance romances, but I have a feeling this one will be swoony and tender and steamy.

Like all samplers, this one ends at the most cliffhanger-y point possible (trust me - holy guacamole, that last chapter). I assume that's why the sampler is so short - it needed to end at a strategically hooking point, and it did just that. I have no idea when I'll get a chance to read Long Way Home, but reading this sampler ensured that I would definitely be reading it as soon as possible. 


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Sunday, December 11, 2016

Review: Windwitch by Susan Dennard


Windwitch by Susan Dennard
Book Two of The Witchlands series
Publisher: Tor Teen
Publication Date: January 10, 2017
Rating: 4 stars
Source: ARC sent by the publisher

Summary (from Goodreads):

Sometimes our enemies are also our only allies…

After an explosion destroys his ship, the world believes Prince Merik, Windwitch, is dead. Scarred yet alive, Merik is determined to prove his sister’s treachery. Upon reaching the royal capital, crowded with refugees, he haunts the streets, fighting for the weak―which leads to whispers of a disfigured demigod, the Fury, who brings justice to the oppressed.

When the Bloodwitch Aeduan discovers a bounty on Iseult, he makes sure to be the first to find her―yet in a surprise twist, Iseult offers him a deal. She will return money stolen from him, if he locates Safi. Now they must work together to cross the Witchlands, while constantly wondering, who will betray whom first?

After a surprise attack and shipwreck, Safi and the Empress of Marstok barely escape with their lives. Alone in a land of pirates, every moment balances on a knife’s edge―especially when the pirates’ next move could unleash war upon the Witchlands.

What I Liked:

One-line summary of my review: Windwitch is a good, non-sequel-slump novel, but not as strong as its predecessor Truthwitch, and seriously lacking in the romance department. 

This sequel novel picks up some time after the insane ending of Truthwitch (how much time passes is not specified). Merik is burned and badly injured beyond recognition, and haunts Nubrevna as The Fury, fighting for the weak and trying to help the city. Safi and Vaness barely escape the explosion of the ship they were on, and are captured by legendary Hell-Bards. Aeduan seeks his silver talers, but he is also tasked with finding the Threadwitch, Iseult. And Iseult... Iseult is desperate to find Safi, so much so that when she comes across a badly injured Aeduan, she strikes a deal with him: help her track Safi, and she'll return his silver talers to him (which she found and hide). All four of the protagonists are so close yet so far away from each other. Meanwhile, a fifth protagonist emerges, and proves to be an extremely important player in the political game. All the while the Puppeteer's power is growing, and something strange is happening to dead men, and a war that will sweep across the Witchlands is about to unfold.

 This book is told in third-person, limited to five protagonists. It's a lot, but so many narrators actually really works for this series. We know four of them - Merik, Safi, Aeduan, and Iseult. The fifth is Vivia, Merik's sister. Of the five, I liked Aeduan and Iseult's narratives the best, and probably Safi's the least. Her part of the story was the most boring. But I'll get to that.

This book is titled Windwitch and so you expect it to be mostly about Merik - and you'd mostly be correct. It starts with him and ends with him. He is badly burned and his facial features are utterly disfigured. He has adopted the title of The Fury, which is actually a figure in legend. Merik is somewhat aimless, though he doesn't realize it. When he learns that the ship that Safi was on exploded, he loses it (he thinks she's dead). Merik's narrative is the most heartbreaking, and the most cruel. My heart broke every time he came across someone that should know him, but didn't recognize him. However this series turns out, I hope Merik gets a satisfying ending. 

Safi's part of the story is the most boring, in my opinion, though I was interested in it. She and Vaness are captured by Hell-Bards after they survive the ship's explosions. From there, the Hell-Bards take them to Saldonica, the Pirate Lands. Like I said, her part of the story is the most boring, because she and Vaness are just prisoners the entire time. 

Iseult's narrative is very interesting, especially towards the end. She is running for her life initially, and then she stumbles upon Aeduan. She doesn't know that Aeduan is charged with finding her and bringing her to Corlant, alive. But she needs him to track Safi, and he agrees. Iseult and Aeduan don't necessarily get along at first, but they work well together and save each other many times.

Finally we get a really good look inside Aeduan's head! Besides Merik, he's probably my favorite. He has quite the past, and an intriguing lineage. I'm curious to see how that will come into play in future novels. Aeduan is an interesting guy.

Vivia is the final protagonist; her narrative is interesting but not the most interesting of the story. I love that we get to know her better, because I hate her a looooot less. In fact, I really understand her and started cheering for her as the book went on. She isn't heartless and cruel, nor is she malicious towards Merik.

I like that Dennard takes each of the different parts of the story to different places. Vivia and Merik are in Nubrevna (unbeknownst to each other - well, Merik knows that Vivia is there), Safi is traipsed all over the place, and ends up in Saldonica, Iseult and Aeduan are tracking Safi and travel everywhere. There is a lot of ground covered, in this book.

On that note, hats off to Dennard for the intricate and fascinating fantasy world that she has created. Things get a lot bigger and crazier in this book. Dennard is taking the story in the direction of chaos, ruin, and war, and she's weaving all of the magic, politics, and legend together extremely well.

On the romance front, this book doesn't seem to have any. Iseult and Aeduan get to know each other more and definitely trust each other more than in the previous novel. Unfortunately, on the Merik/Safi front, there is nothing. There is a tiny inkling of a Vivia romance with someone. 

The ending isn't wrapped up (obviously; there are two, maybe three more novels to go), but it ends on a somewhat positive note. There were a lot of bombshells dropped in the last one hundred pages or so, and the stakes are definitely a lot higher than they were in the beginning of the book. But the end is not bad. It's not really a cliffhanger. I'll be looking out for book three, in 2018!

What I Did Not Like:

Unfortunately there were some things that I didn't quite like, in this book. The first one hundred pages or so really dragged, for me. Part of it could have been me dreading certain things I anticipated (and I was right). Part of it could have been that the first hundred pages just weren't that interesting.

I am so frustrated with the romance. There is none, in this book. That works for Iseult and Aeduan because perhaps that relationship will develop over the next two books (if at all)? But it doesn't work for Merik and Safi because Truthwitch established that they have a powerful connection.

It's frustrating because Merik and Safi do no interact a single time during this entire book. What's more, they both believe that the other is dead. They barely even think of each other (granted, they had other things to worry about, like staying alive). I was so sure that they would be endgame, in terms of romance. Now I'm not. I could see the author taking them into two diverging paths, possibly developing other romances for each of them. Which is frustrating. I'm not saying I'm sensing a love triangle for each character, but I AM saying that I could see them never interacting romantically again and possibly developing feelings for other people (people we may meet in future books, people we already have meet, I don't know). I guess I'm just annoyed because they interacted not one time during this book. Not once! It didn't even have to be romantic! Catching a glimpse of each other as one sails in the opposite direction, or something, that would have been nice.

In Truthwitch, Merik/Safi seemed obvious. But in Windwitch, not so much, especially since both Merik and Safi believe that the other is dead. Maybe I shouldn't be so worried about this? Maybe I should trust Merik and Safi's powerful Threads connection that Iseult witnessed in Truthwitch, or Kullen's note about Merik and Safi's witchery reacting to each other meant something powerful (again, in Truthwitch). I don't know, and not knowing frustrates me. 

There are also no Safi/Iseult interactions, which was frustrating too because the powerful female friendship was a huge selling point, in Truthwitch. Honestly I hope the rest of the series really makes up for the scarcity of interactions there are, among certain characters.

Would I Recommend It:

Tricky tricky. I did like this book (though not as much as I LOVED Truthwitch). I'd definitely recommend this sequel if you read and liked Truthwitch. HOWEVER. I would seriously consider waiting to possibly binge-read this one and the next one, or the entire rest of the series, if I were you. I read Dennard's debut trilogy and I'm sorry to say that I don't 100% trust her to dish out a "fair" ending. With this being a four-, possibly five-book series, a lot can happen that we don't see right now (like love triangles, or ridiculous protagonist deaths).

Rating:

3.5 stars -> rounded up to 4 stars. But seriously, it's 3.5 stars. I liked Truthwitch a lot more, despite both books getting the same final rating. Truthwitch was a 4.5, Windwitch a 3.5. This one isn't a new favorite, but it was worth the read and I enjoyed it. I am very much looking forward to reading Bloodwitch and am excited to receive my preorder of Windwitch. Huge thanks to Tor for allowing me to read this book early!

Author Website | Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes and Noble

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Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Waiting on Wednesday (#182): Windwitch by Susan Dennard


"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.


This week, I'm featuring:


Windwitch by Susan Dennard 
Book Two of the Witchlands series
Publisher: Tor Teen
Publication Date: January 3, 2017

Summary (from Goodreads):

The follow-up to New York Times bestselling Truthwitch, next in a breathtaking YA fantasy series hailed by Alexandra Bracken as "a world you will want to inhabit forever."

On a continent ruled by three empires, some are born with a "witchery," a magical skill that sets them apart from others.

In this follow-up to New York Times bestselling Truthwitch, a shadow man haunts the Nubrevnan streets, leaving corpses in his wake—and then raising those corpses from the dead. Windwitch continues the tale of Merik—cunning privateer, prince, and windwitch.




One word - MERIK! I can't wait for this book. Since like, November 2015. I was part of the Water Clan, during Susan's promo!
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