Review: An Ember in the Ashes

Nobody knows what lies behind a person's mask

Elias might be a candidate for the future Emperor, but deep down, he wants nothing more than to desert the empire. He's tired of seeing how slaves and Scholars are treated, and to be force to kill his own friends as a work task. Heck, he wouldn't even mind getting away from his best friend Helene, who has developed a crush for him over the years. 

Slaves don't have it much easier though. Laia, was sent to work for a commandant as a spy. And must endure daily torture and humiliation. 

Told in dual point-of-views, An Ember in the Ashes, reveals a hidden spy and a hidden freedom fighter who must keep their true personalities a secret in order to survive. Tahir kept the reader waiting for a while before these two characters could meet, adding some strange tension by doing so. Add a countdown, several life's on the line, and a love quadrangle -- and you wind up with crazy cliffhangers.

Looking forward to the sequel.

Feature and Follow Friday:Make it Count

Parajunkee / Alison Can Read

FEATURE & FOLLOW FRIDAY

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Q: If you could have 3 wishes granted, what would they be?

Une photo publiée par natalia (@natyuniverse) le 3 Juil. 2015 à 19h39 PDT

Can I wish for a person?

Just a random thought. Honestly, my number one wish would be to travel more often. I recently came back from a trip to Florida and loved the weather, and sightseeing. I would also ask for immortality (not a vampire kind of thing -- but perfect health) and unlimited funds in the bank account since, after all, I would be living forever.



What would you wish for?

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Review: All the Bright Places

Based on a true story

Violet lost her sister in a car crash, and without giving it much thought, went up a tower to kill herself. But Finch saw her. He saved her. Back at school, he got close to her and helped her get through her fears of entering a car and accepting a loss. The problem is Finch wasn't on that tower to admire the view. He was about to jump too. 

All the Bright Places is told in a dual point-of-view (sometimes repeating Violet's twice, which was a little confusing), and with a count down difficult to understand. Aside from that, we get a bittersweet story about abuse, suicide, bullying and the woes of living with bipolar disorder. Both characters seemed like a perfect match from the start, but sadly, their depression required outside help. 

Offers inspirational insight on valuing the little things in life that makes us feel lovely.

Top Ten Tuesday: A whole new world

 

Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

TOP FAIRYTALES RETELLINGS

I just can't get enough of retellings. It's wonderful to see several possible outcomes to our favorite childhood stories. 

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

The idea of a Cinderella who not only lost her shoe, but her entire leg was -- brilliant. It brought diversity to the story and of course all the other details, such as the prince and evil Queen were included. 

Whatever After: Fairest of All by Sarah Mlynowski

The Whatever After series (6 books so far)  is perfect for a younger audience. Mlynowski not only distorts popular fairy tales but also makes sure to include a valuable lesson in each one. 

The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by A.N. Roquelaure

Now this is pure BDSM. Sleeping beauty wakes up in bed with an extremely naughty prince. 

Beastly by Alex Flinn 

A Beauty and the Beast retelling with a hilarious chatroom where several fairytale characters discuss their problems. 

Anthologies with several fairytales retellings

Grim

Gears of Brass

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Giveaway + Review : The Escape

A whodunit with a bad ass female investigator

Avery lived through a traumatic experience when she lost her mom to a drunk driver. Being the chief of police's daughter, also taught her that many of these crimes go unsolved. But when she finds Fletcher, a classmate, covered in blood and his buddy dead, Avery wants to find the killer no matter what. Even if this means becoming a target. 

Jayne lead the reader on a wild goose chase by planting several possible suspects. Fletcher's blank memory after the attack, allowed us to imagine all these scenarios. Although, there were moments when a love possibility could bloom, Avery kept pressing on the case so much it made Fletcher take a step back. I often wonder why she would do this. Put a crime before love. Until I realized how solving one crime would help her accept the loss of her mom.

Even though, the killer's motives made less sense to me, I must admit, that the author placed a lot of effort at puzzling the entire story together and tying up the loose ends.

Hannah Jayne is possibly the only person living in Silicon Valley who has never worked in high tech. When she’s not writing, she’s obsessively watching HGTV or shopping at Target…also obsessively. Find out more about Hannah’s urban fantasy, young adult thrillers, and latest obsessions at hannah-jayne.com. Feel free to follow her on her Website, Twitter and Facebook.

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