bookstaash's reviews
88 reviews

Jade City by Fonda Lee

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5.0

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

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hopeful lighthearted medium-paced
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

Adorable and comforting like your favorite blend of tea…. 
 
Reyna and Kianthe, an elite queensguard and the powerful Mage of Ages, leave their lives behind to follow their dreams of becoming bookstore owners in a small mountain town. Shop ownership isn’t without its problems though - new issues arise as soon as they arrive in town and their old responsibilities catch up soon enough. Together, Reyna and Kianthe must fight to save their new friends and the new life they’re trying to build together. 
 
This book was very cute and fun to read! Fans of Legends and Lattes and similar cozy titles will enjoy this one. I feel like 1 world have enjoyed this a bit more if I were in the mood for something less high stakes, but I don’t have any complaints. 
The Weavers of Alamaxa by Hadeer Elsbai

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Overall, a really strong conclusion to the duology - I enjoyed reading it and will continue to recommend to others. The writing was great and I loved the elemental magic system. 

I feel like the series would have been stronger as trilogy: the latter half of the book was a bit rushed and I wish we had had more time to explore the repercussions of everything that happens in Alamaxa - the government changes, the societal shifts, life without some main characters, etc. I also spent a large portion of the book hoping for a little more character development from both Nehal and Giorgina -  by the end of the book there was a bit of growth from each of them but, this could have been further developed in more pages.

Fans of The Legend of Korea and Paris Paloma songs will definitely enjoy parts of this duology. It’s a refreshing fantasy story that’s focused on politics, magic and how women are viewed in society and features multiple, diverse FMCs (no romantasy here).

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for providing an eARC of this in exchange for my honest feedback.
In the Shadow of the Fall by Tobi Ogundiran

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Thank you to NetGalley and TorDotCom for providing an eARC of this in exchange for my honest feedback!

In In the Shadow of the Fall, Ashâke is an untrained acolyte waiting for the orisha to call her into service as a full-fledged priest. When she grows tired of waiting, she attempts to summon the gods and finds herself thrust in the middle of an epic power struggle that will decide the fate of the world.

This novella was so well-done - there was enough explanation of the world and backstory but, I still felt like I was in the middle of the current situation. The story was fast-paced, descriptive and engrossing, such that I felt like I was missing out every time I had to set the book down. 

I’d put this in my top reads of 2024, and would recommend this to anyone interested in Yoruba mythology and epic high-stakes fantasy. 

Can’t wait for the next one!
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House of Bane and Blood by Alexis L. Menard

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I’m speechless (in the best way). This book was a bit of an impulse purchase - I saw it come across my FYP a handful of times, found the author’s profile and bought it based on the beautiful cover. While reading, I didn’t want the story to end… but I couldn’t put the book down whenever I found a free minute. Since finishing, I can’t stop think about Camilla and Nico and can’t wait for book 2 in 2024!

The writing, the characters, the action - all perfect. Undoubtedly one of my top reads for 2023 and I’ve been recommending to everyone I know. :) Just read it!

Perfect for anyone looking for:

💛Rivals to Lovers
✒️Marriage of Convenience
🗡️ Family Rivalry
The Daughters of Izdihar by Hadeer Elsbai

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adventurous tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
To Cage a God by Elizabeth May

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dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Sera and Galina, raised to overthrow a brutal empire, must carry on their deceased mother’s plans for rebellion and liberate the common people from their cruel alurean rulers. Galina attempts to infiltrate the empress’ inner circle - but her attraction to the princess threatens the sisters’ plans. While Sera works behind the scenes, she must ignore her attraction to her estranged husband and stop his violent attempts to destroy the empire (lest he also destroy her plans).

I enjoyed reading this and will probably consider picking up the second book. The story moves along quickly enough and the chapters are short (for those who like that). Vitally and Sera’s relationship was one of my favorite things about To Cage A God - fans of second-chance romances might appreciate their story. Throughout, I found myself caring more about Vitaly and Sera than the actual outcome of the empire.

The romance between Vasilisa and Galina fell flat for me, especially towards the end. It became very rushed (and felt like insta-love) but, I’m hoping that’s resolved or further explored in the next book. I also feel like the overall ending wrapped up too quickly and left me wanting more after the initial build-up. 

Furthermore, the diversity amongst the characters was somewhat lacking - many of their descriptions were so similar that it felt like they could’ve been the same people. Some of the character descriptions and writing choices were… strange to me, to say the least. The author called out characters’ eye colors throughout the book multiple times, but not a single character was described as having brown eyes. (I did search for “brown eyes” after the endless descriptions of silver eyes, blue eyes and blonde hair). At a point, it became incredibly distracting and a bit frustrating that these were the only character descriptors that were included. 

Romantasy readers who are fans of the movie Anastasia and those with an interest in Russian history/culture will likely enjoy this. Aside from my earlier diversity comment, there’s other non-POC rep here that’s done pretty well - disability, chronic illness, LGBT. 

Thank you to DAW & NetGalley for providing an eARC of this! All feedback and opinions are my own. 
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Faebound by Saara El-Arifi

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

In Faebound, two Elven sisters, Yeeran and Lettle, become imprisoned in the world of the fae after being exiled from the Elven Lands. The fae haven’t been seen for a thousand years, and Lettle and Yeeran must lean on each other as they try to navigate this unfamiliar world and work to find their way home. 

This was such a fun read - I really enjoyed the overall story and the writing of the book. There is an incredibly diverse cast of characters, including race, disability rep, and LGBTQ+ representation. El-Arifi’s world building is descriptive, immersive and a good starting point for future books in the series. The lore is compelling, well-thought out, and woven throughout the story - I look forward to learning more as the rest of the trilogy unfolds.

Unfortunately, the romance aspects of this book do feel a little rushed and shallow - I would have appreciated more buildup in the relationships before being told that the characters love each other.
It felt like Furi went from hating Yeeran to being in love with her too quickly, and there wasn’t an opportunity for me to see or understand how/why they fell in love with each other. Further, Yeeran gave up on Salawa somewhat quickly after obsessing about returning to her for half the book. Rayan and Lettle’s relationship had a little bit more substance to it but, it still felt like it was missing something.

Additionally, some plot points were way too predictable - I would have liked for some of the clues to be less obvious, so that those parts of the story would have been a little more compelling for me. I often found myself reading because I enjoyed the ride and not because I needed to know what happened next.
How did none of the characters realize that Komi was A(Komi)do until the last 50 pages of this book? And how did Lettle not realize that her prophecy was referring to the two queens?

Despite my criticisms above, I really enjoyed Faebound and look forward to Book 2! The rich world-building and the glimpses we got of some of the relationships really made reading this worthwhile for me.

I’d recommend Faebound to any romantasy and fantasy readers looking for

🧝🏽‍♀️Sapphic Romance
⚔️Epic Fantasy
💛Sibling Bonds
🗺️ Diverse Cast
The Phoenix King by Aparna Verma

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adventurous tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Many thanks to Orbit and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback!

I’ve got a lot of (conflicting) feelings about this book. 😅 Let me start by saying that this debut was NOT a bad at all; it was actually an interesting concept and the Indian mythology/setting were fun. I like that this book explored what it’s like to belong to two different cultures, and how that affected Yassen’s experiences. Leo was the best written character in this novel for me and, his chapters were highlights. 

My biggest gripe with this book was how heavily the romantic subplot was marketed. This was originally described as an epic fantasy with a slow-burn, tender, enemies-to-lovers aspect. The romance in this book definitely takes a backseat to the political maneuvering and internal struggles of the characters (which I think is perfect for readers trying to romantasy or “spicy” books). I just wish I had had a better idea of what the novel was about going in, so that I could have set my expectations properly. The love story between Elena and the love interest(s) also felt forced, and I struggled to believe that they had a genuine connection throughout much of the book. The reason for their being “enemies” also felt a bit arbitrary to me and, I wish it had been further built on early in the story. 

Additionally, most marketing described this as more of a fantasy novel when there are some pretty significant sci-fi aspects. The glossary was very helpful but, I wish some of the gadgets and creatures had been better explained within the story itself. 

The FMC, Elena, was also quite difficult for me to connect to… I realized about halfway through that I just did not care about her as a MC and, that I was more interested in seeing the rest of Yassen’s story. We saw a lot of Elena’s emotions through the eyes of those around her but, when she was narrating it felt as though we only got to experience her anger or sadness from her own perspective. 

Honestly, I was originally so excited to get approved for this ARC after following the author and seeing how they hyped up some parts of the story - but I felt a little let down when the hype didn’t fully match what I was reading. I’ll definitely pick up the next book in the trilogy to see what happens next though.
Forged by Blood by Ehigbor Okosun

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adventurous hopeful inspiring medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This epic fantasy debut follows Dèmi, a magic wielding Oluso, who is trying to survive a brutal regime that murdered her mother and invaded her homeland. She and other Oluso must hide their powers, as capture would mean death or enslavement. When a regional lord offers Dèmi the chance to secure the safety of her people by kidnapping a prince, she embarks on an adventure that will challenge everything she knows about her heritage, her magic and herself.

This debut from Okosun was a really fun and unique read! The Nigerian mythology and cultural setting were new but, very well-explained and illustrated throughout the novel. I liked the author’s writing style and enjoyed the overall story. The love triangle/romance was adorable, and one of my favorite aspects. 

My biggest criticism is that I didn’t understand the motives or histories of the “villains” throughout the story.
Alastair Sorenson and Mari seemed to have started a war based on Dèmi’s mother rejecting them - ?. It’s possible I just didn’t understand but, their reasoning seemed kind of lame. I also don’t feel like I really understood how Yétunde fit in to their lives before the war.
I think some of this is due to the fact that the story is told from Dèmi’s perspective, and I’m sure their will be more details in the next book (as she learns more).

Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for my honest feedback!
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