km_allan's reviews
227 reviews

Unnatural by Ruth Miranda

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4.0

Unnatural starts with Sasha, a young woman looking for her family after the loss of her uncle. This leads her to genealogist, Ruth, who recognizes that Sasha is a blood witch and introduces her to a world of supernatural beings such as vampires and werewolves. Once in this world, Sasha learns the dark secrets of her family and discovers a forbidden love. Full of interesting ideas, Unnatural is a great start to what is sure to be an intriguing series. Whilst not a lot of 'events' happen in the first book, it does put you in the world where you get to know all about the creatures that inhabit it and how they are all linked together. I loved that it hinted at what the supernatural powers were without outright saying them until the right point in the story, and I enjoyed the explanations as I'm not an avid reader of this type of creature genre. There's a great twist at the end of the book which automatically pushes you into wanting to read the next. It's not a perfect read, the author tends to take time describing exactly what everyone is wearing, which slows down the pace, and a run through by a more thorough editor would help to tidy up some of the weaker spots, the odd typo, and the misuse of some common phrases, but it is full of interesting ideas and characters and well worth a read if you like stories involving supernatural creatures and lore.
The Door Keeper by Steen Jones

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4.0

The beautiful cover of this book drew me to it, and the story kept me there. When Eden begins to dream of the death of her birth mother, it sets her on a path where she discovers that she is a Door Keeper, a person capable of traveling to other words. It's through this journey that she discovers new love, her own strength as a mother, the family she never knew, and the world that should have been hers. While the first half of the book is spent getting to know Eden, her life, earth family, and exploring two other worlds, it's in the last half of the book where the story really takes off. That is when Eden finally visits the world where she should have been raised, discovers the events that led to her mother's death, and the repercussions of Eden's arrival and what her presence in the world means for its inhabitants. This is the first book in a trilogy, so naturally, it ends with an event to kick of the second story, one that starts with a time jump and genius switch in the protagonist. It's not hard to believe in the worlds created by Steen Jones through her artful prose or to root for the characters who have survived the highs and lows of life. I'm looking forward to the next installment, and recommend this book for anyone who is a fan of stories featuring fanciful worlds, strong characters, and truth-revealing dreams.
Eclairs for Tea: And Other Stories by Julia Blake

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5.0

An eclectic mix of short stories, poetry, flash fiction, and a novella means that Eclairs for Tea: and Other Stories has something for everyone. Personal favorites were Eclairs for Tea (great twist), The Fat Club (sad and relatable), What Are The Chances (delightful), and Lifesong (which is a unique tale with a timely message that will have you gripped to the end). Vicious Circle is another story that will stay with you. All of the pieces were well written, and while some bordered on being an obvious personal memory for the author (Nan, Morning Madness), the others contained something relatable/enjoyable for everyone. I found myself gravitating to the stories that favored dark little twists (Eclairs for Tea, Family Matters, Relative Endings), which Julia pulled off so well. This is a collection I can see myself reading again, and I'm sure I'll find more to enjoy each time.
The Appointment: Lost and Found by Luke P. Narlee, Luke P. Narlee

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4.0

Like the main character in this book, for the majority of it, I had no idea what was going on. That wasn't a bad thing, though, considering it's set in a dystopian world where humans have forgotten how to feel and everyone is part of a mysterious lockdown. During this lockdown, Jacob Johansen is sent an invitation to attend an appointment. It's at this appointment that he becomes part of an experiment that sees him question everything, meet past and future loves, and sets him on a mission to save the people he has unwittingly put in danger. Luke P. Narlee's writing style flows effortlessly and makes it very easy to be absorbed into the world of The Appointment. Luke doesn't weigh the book down with detail but does give you enough to form the unique world and characters as you read. Jacob spends time being other people during the experiments and the chapters where he is a clerk at a haunted hotel is a real highlight. While some of these 'alternative life/dreamer' sequences are confusing, the way they connect together towards the end of the book makes them worthwhile, and hints at what I'm hoping will be some very interesting reveals to come in the next two books. I didn't know the book was part of a trilogy when I started reading it and found that the story was just getting into the swing of things when it ended, leaving me wanting more and achieving the ultimate goal for the first book in an exciting new series. I'm looking forward to more of the 'Lost and Found' series, and to seeing how Jacob's story ends.
Sway by Michelle Ham

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4.0

Sway, written by Michelle Ham, isn't the genre of YA I normally read as I prefer to see my protagonists surrounded by mystery, magic or horror, so I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying this story about a teen coming of age and finding her first love. In Sway, Saskia wants to cling to the comfort and safety of her after school church group, even as it becomes obvious that her best friend, Eliza, has outgrown it. There's trouble at home, too. Saskia's brother has run away and her little sister begins hanging out with the wrong crowd. Then Jesse, a boy Saskia has gone to school with for years, starts to talk to her on the bus ride home, ending one of the trips with a sudden kiss. Now Saskia is spending all of her time with him, skipping school and listening to the songs that he has written based on his own troubled upbringing and family secrets. When one of Saskia's own family secrets comes to light, it turns her life upside down and forces changes that will take her away from Jesse, and ask her to question everything that she holds dear. Sway is full of relatable characters and situations, some mystery regarding Saskia's brother, and all of the nostalgic fun of growing up in the '90s in Australia. Michelle’s writing style is clear and the tone of the book perfectly captures the naivety of youth and that time in your teen years when you begin to grow into a young adult.
The Tree Of Rebels by Chantelle Atkins

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5.0

First time reading a novel by Chantelle Atkins and I was not disappointed. The Tree of Rebels is set in a dystopian future where descendants of the survivors of the war to end all wars live the kind of life that heralds back to a simpler time. There is no violence, electricity or guns and everyone has a job, food, and shelter. Why anyone would want something different is at the core of the story when Lissie Turner finds an apple tree growing outside of the fence that surrounds her perfect little world. Food is not supposed to grow outside of the domes run by the government that provides food to the people, and the appearance of the tree sets Lissie on a path that has her questioning everything. Chantelle weaves an intriguing story that has you questioning, like Lissie, if you're safer living with the status quo, or rebelling against it. My only gripe with the book is that it takes a long time to get to the most interesting parts of the story, which is when Lissie finally breaks free from her confined world and finds out what is on the other side of the fence. I didn't know this was the start of a series when I read it, so when I saw that I only had twenty minutes left in the ebook and the story was nowhere near resolved, I knew there must be more. I will be looking forward to reading the sequel when it's released, and to reading other books by Chantelle Atkins.
The Bottle Stopper by Angeline Trevena

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5.0

A well-written book full of morally gray characters set in a dystopian world that could easily be our future. The protagonist of The Bottle Stopper is Maeve, a 17-year-old girl living with and working for her corrupt uncle who sells 'medicine' that is little more than dirty water. When a bottle of this medicine takes something precious from Maeve, she sets in motion events to bring down her uncle and free herself from his abuse. As Maeve finds the courage to fight back against her uncle, she also learns about her past, including the truth about who her father is and what he did with her uncle that saw Maeve's mother taken away by the authorities. There's a lot going on in this book, plenty of characters and events that all move at a quick pace. It's a hard book to put down once the story kicks off, and the hints about Maeve's mother and where she is, and an underground group who piece together cryptic clues that eventually help Maeve, keep you turning the pages until you've reached the last one. As the first in the series, it sets up the characters and the world and ties up enough plot threads to satisfy, whilst still leaving you with enough curiosity to read the rest of the series.