chippyreads's reviews
583 reviews

Heir by Sabaa Tahir

4.0

 

Please note I read the second half of this book while literally suffering from fever dreams….. So it took me a while to catch on to some pretty obvious plot points. I read the first half, caught a nasty bug that almost hospitalised me and then read the second half while on a very interesting combination of painkillers and antibiotics. 

Romance

Just like in the Ember series, I wasn't a fan of the romance in this one. I love the characters individually but I never feel anything for the romance between anyone. I’m not against any of them getting together, I just don’t care? 

Also spoiler for late in book happenings

not a fan of when we get a Sufiyan chapter he suddenly has eyes or Ariella….. Can main characters just NOT want to be in a relationship for once? I’m not mad that this might mean the bi character is in a ‘het’ relationship eventually, I’m just mildly mad all of these characters just need to shack up with someone. 

 

I was a fan of the ‘fake dating’ scenario though! That was a bit fun and unexpected in a fantasy novel. 

Is it queer?

We got more casual mentions of a more queer society, which was lovely. One of the side characters is bi and it's just casually mentioned in regards to who she's dated previously. The main relationships seem extremely straight. The Ember series alluded to a gay character not being able to be themselves so it was nice to learn that the Empire seems to be less homophobic. During Aiz’s POV she scoffs that the Empire doesn't recognise non binary people where in her society they do. 

Plot

Can’t say if it was predictable or not as I was incapacitated at the time of reading. All I can say is at the end I was predictably miffed with the author, which is what we all expect from Sabaa Tahir so, yay?

Compared to the og series

I read this book right after finishing the og series, so everything was fresh in my mind. I’m not sure how new readers will go in this world without any of the prior books as it does add a lot of context and now we have even more to learn. 

Very happy with the new generation of characters and how often we got to see og characters, they didn’t take over the plot at all and let the new characters shine.

Characters

3 main POVs 

Quil

Was fun, probably because if you’ve read the Ember series you know him as a baby and are fond of his aunt. Also his friends/family (Sufiyan and Arellia) are great. I love it when a main character has great friends along for the ride. 

Aiz

Eh. I wanted to root for her but she kept giving me reasons to just not like her. 

Sirsha

Fav main character. Clear motivations and great development. I desperately want her origin story as a standalone. Her relationship with her sister!? Hello! I need more of that thanks. 

Will I be continuing the duology?

100% yes. Can’t wait for book 2

Add to my physical collection?

Definitely. This book needs to sit next to my Ember collection. 

I was provided an eBook from the publisher: Hachette AU/NZ via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 

 

A Captured Cauldron by R.K. Ashwick

4.0

 

I was thrilled to be diving back into the ‘Side Quest Row’ world, as I loved A Rival Most Vial and this little strip of shops on Rosemond street. Returning was such a treat. The first book was definitely a romcom/light fantasy, this one is more of a light fantasy with a side of romance. 

A Captured Cauldron follows 3 POVs.  

Ambrose: as he’s captured and forced to brew an impossible potion. 

Eli: working with the rest of the characters to desperately save his boyfriend.

Dawn: also working with everyone to save her bestie while also crushing on a new character

We’re introduced to a few new characters, one of my fav being Xavian. 

Xavian: Ambrose’s rival at potioncon who is brought in to cover Ambrose’s shop while he’s gone. They’re amazingly flamboyant and snooty at the same time. I’m hoping to see more of them in future books. 

Nat: a slave that Ambrose befriends while he works away at the impossible potion, she's the youngest character in this series. 

Rory: A reporter who is working at potion con, is quickly crushing on Dawn and helps Rosemond street rescue Ambrose. 

This book was quite short which I loved but was disappointed we didn’t get a lot between Dawn and Rory. They had some cute moments but because the attention is mainly on rescuing Ambrose and Eli fucking shit up they don’t get their moment to shine together. That's the only reason this book isn’t a perfect 5 stars for me.

Just a side note about other reviews. Not a fan of how so many people are assuming Xavian is amab and assigning them ‘he/him’ pronouns when they’re only ever referred to as ‘they/them’ in the text. I don’t like to question whether people actually pay attention when they read but it's pretty obvious some people just don't care enough about queer people….

I received a copy of this book from the author, all opinions are my own.

 

Pumpkin Spice and Poltergeist by Ali K. Mulford, K. Elle Morrison

4.5

Read an arc. Full review to come 

The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko

5.0

 

I went into this book ONLY having read Raybearer, not Redemptor. I was missing some context but had quite a lot from the first book to help me understand the world better. It IS a standalone but it's in the same world.

5 stars. The romance fell a bit flat but it was so good I don’t even care.

Audiobook was amazing, I highly recommend it as the singing adds to this book's charm.

I promise to prioritise Redemptor now :P

Audiobook copy provided by BRmedia/Recorded books via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 

 

Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma

3.0

 

Enemies to lovers is such a messy trope and this book pulled it off nicely. 

As usual with a 3 star rating from me it means I liked the book. I had a great time and I’d still recommend it. 

I enjoyed most of the book but some parts left me wanting more. I needed more about the school, do the people living in these ‘houses’ have jobs? Do they leave the grounds for work? Did I miss part of the book that explained that? What else does this school teach? Are they all teens? Is the school just teaching them how to be blood bags? Why am I so obsessed with the school? Because it seems so cool and could honestly be cooler.

Most importantly. Where are the queer vampires? We can’t have a vampire book with all straight assuming characters. I WANT to imagine that some of the characters are queer but this book didn't give me anyone to root for. 

LOVED that the Kidan (the mc) was just a trash human trying to save her sister. She even destroys historic artefacts to prove that she's a monster, leaving the vampire looking like the actual good guy, which he definitely is not. There is no actual good person in sight. Everyone is dodgy as fuck. 

Will I continue the series? Fucking yes. As this is a debut novel, I can’t wait to see what this author gets up to next. 

The audiobook narrator was top notch and deserves so much praise. There's so many characters in this book the narrator made it really easy to distinguish between them all. Not sure if I could have done that with a non audio copy. 

eBook/Audiobook supplied by Hachette via NetGalley All opinions are my own.

 

Sabriel by Garth Nix

3.0

Audiobook was fantastic. Can't wait to reread as a physical as I've had this book on my tbr shelf for about 5 years. 

A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir

4.0

Solid 2nd book. Didn't grab me as much as book one.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2.0

I've never been so bored by a book in my life 😴

The writing is beautiful and the world is so vivid. But the 'fierce competition' was bland and the love story was weak. I couldn't care less about the love between the rivals. Most boring rivals to lovers ever.

The Stardust Grail by Yume Kitasei

4.0

*No romantic themes*

Fun SciFi heist book tackling big themes. Loved it. 

No need to read previous book as they are not related

Compound Fracture by Andrew Joseph White

5.0

 

Wtf did I just read? It was almost impossible to put this book down. I'd make it to the end of a chapter to only end up at some kind of fucked up cliff-hanger. Don't get me wrong, I loved every minute of it. Hurt me more, please, thank you. 

Compared to Andrew’s previous books this one is definitely a thriller but with just as much body horror and blood. 

Asking me to pick a favourite is like asking me to choose between my cats. I can’t wait to read his adult book if this is what he intends for a younger audience. 

eARC provided by Peachtree Teen via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.