Review | I Need More Kingmaker Chronicles ASAP

The Kingmaker Chronicles

By: Amanda Bouchet

Overall Rating: ★★★★

Cat and Griffin meet at a traveling circus when he kidnaps her for her “special” powers. She’s the Kingmaker, he’s an ambitious warlord and together along with is Beta Team they travel the world looking for a way to unseat all the corrupt rulers (including Cat’s mom). The gods get involved, people fall in love, others die, battles ensure, and you will be taken on a rollercoaster ride of prophecies, epic quests, and to-die-for love stories.

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TL;DR:

I don’t normally do romance books, but The Kingmaker Chronicles are full of wit, sass, and overall fun. If you enjoy Greek mythology, feisty main ladies, and magic – you’ll love this series!

The Good

The Characters

Cat is a SASS QUEEN, who also happens to be a baddass fighter full of awesome magic. Griffin is a main man you will love. He’s strong, witty, loyal and also pretty good looking. Beta Team – Kato, Flynn, and Carver – are the warrior buddies you didn’t know you needed in your life. And if the main crew isn’t enough, Griffin’s entire family will make you feel warm and fuzzy inside. They’re loving, intelligent and always try to do the right thing. The entire cast of this series will make you swoon.

The Magic and Mythology

GUYS I LOVE MYTHOLOGY SO MUCH. This entire series is centered around the gods and Ares, Persephone, Hades, Zeus (and probably some I’m forgetting) make an appearance. We even get to see a version of the underworld and purgatory and I was LIVING FOR IT. The personalities Bouchet gave to the mythical characters and creates in her series are to die for. Not to mention we get special Demi-god powers and oracular prophecies and visions. I was getting adult Percy Jackson vibes and I’m not complaining.

The Bad

The Macho Man Vibes

Guys, I love Griffin, but he can sometimes take his overbearing, jealous macho man vibes to an extreme. I’m all for strong leading ladies BUT they should be backed by level-headed partners who aren’t going to “growl” or think about hurting their friends just for joking with their love interest. I could have done with more feminist vibes and less “you belong to me”.

The Ending of Book 3

Heart of Fire’s ending was disappointing, it was just very underwhelming. I was hoping for more battles, more epic character arcs/reveals, and just a lot more of something in general. There was so much epicness, and I hoped the ending would have been just as amazing. HOWEVER, I’ve got confirmation that there will be more stories set in the same world, so I’m hoping the story arcs that weren’t wrapped up and the end of book 3 come into play in Book 4. Knowing there will be more of Beta team is keeping me going. I need more Carver, Flynn and Kato in my life!!

The Ugly Truth

While the ending of book 3 was a bit disappointing, I still really enjoyed the series as a whole. I’ve had confirmation from Amanda herself that there are going to be more books, and I CANNOT wait to get my hands on more stories with Beta Team!

Talk To Me

Have you read this series? If so, what did you think of it? Will you be adding this to your TBR?

Review | Legendary Lives Up To Its Name

Legendary

By: Stephanie Garber

Overall Rating: ★★★★

Tella just survived her first Caraval but she made some dumb deals and now has to play the game AGAIN if she wants to survive. Panic, paranoia, and plenty of magic happen. Meanwhile, Scarlett is off keeping secrets from literally everyone. Julian is being dumb somewhere, and we see a whole lotta Dante, which I am NOT complaining about. Legend is still a mystery, but throw in some magical tarot cards, a sassy Queen that I love and some new characters and you’ll forget that Legend even exists.

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TL;DR:

Legendary was an epic sequel to Caraval and I was again taken on a rollercoaster of WTFs and OMGs – but it did come with a few underwhelming elements. I’m hoping Finale can solve some of my saltiness, but until the day comes – I’ll settle for an okay book 2.

The Good

The Setting

I thought the vibes from book one were great, but a magical castle town filled with flying carriages, starry magical night shows and vengeful gods definitely outdid Carval. I was so obsessed.

The Male Characters

The male characters are LIFE. Jacks is amazing, Dante is amazing. You’ll love them. Jacks takes pure and simple to a new level. It’s probably why I love him so much. In a world where you are constantly wondering what people are up to, it was refreshing to have one person as the constant (at least when you find out who he really is -mwahaha). For some reason the guys in this series just seems so much more sensible and relatable than the main ladies.

The Magic and Mythology

If you know me, you know that I’m a sucker for magic, mythical creatures, mythology that involves gods and goddess or all of the above. SO, when Legendary introduced some vicious, bitter gods I was hyped. It adds an unexpected element to the story beyond just winning Caraval and I’m excited to see where this goes in the final book.

The Bad

The Female Characters

…Well they’re kind of annoying AF. Tella and Scarlett need to get their priorities straight and also learn to be as smart as they think they are. Tella all of book 2 is like: “I’m more clever than people think. I’m always underestimated” BUT SHE SPENDS THE ENTIRE THING BEING DUPED. And Scarlett is all about protecting everyone and wanting love – but then keeps tons of secrets and almost gets people killed. I just can’t with them.

The “Big” Reveal

OOOOKAY. Without going into too much of a rage BUT ARE YOU SERIOUS WITH THAT LEGEND REVEAL?!?!? I spent two books waiting for the plot twist, and it definitely wasn’t what I expected…and not in a good way. I’m HOPING that this is the “almost-ending” and I’m being duped just like I was during book 2, but if this said person is, in fact, Legend, I am seriously going to die from all my exasperated gasps.

The Ugly Truth

I was definitely underwhelmed with a very particular plot twist and if Finale doesn’t fix this I will be dead, but other than that, Legendary is a good sequel! I really just can’t wait for Finale.

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Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it?

Review | The Daughter of the Pirate King Duology Sets My Sails

The Daughter of The Pirate King / The Daughter of The Siren Queen

By: Tricia Levenseller

Overall Rating: ★★★★

Alosa, a seventeen-year-old pirate captain gets sent on a mission by her father to find a hidden map. Along the way she meet Riden (pirate hottie) and has to navigate the waters (pun intended) of espionage, loyalty, and love.

She also hasn’t fully decided who her true enemies really are, but at least she has her feisty girl crew, pirate-hottie Riden, and her powers to help her along the way to find hidden treasure & power.

Theme Song

TL;DR:

If you love pirates, treasure hunts and snappy lady Captains you will love this book. There’s sword-fighting, battle of the wits, and swoon-fests to die for.

The Good

PIRATES!

There needs to be more pirate stories in general. I live for Pirates of the Caribbean everything. Alosa and her crew are the female equivalent of Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and the crew of the Black Pearl. If you’re into sailing the seven seas, hidden treasure, and magical mermaid abilities then you will love this story.

Girl Power

Literally every single female character in this series is a badass. Alosa and her crew are all capable fighters and have wits to match. Even the male crew members are feminist, never underestimating their captain or their female peers (not to mention one of them is a single dad and has the most adorable pirate daughter of all time!)

Now let’s move on to the sirens, with their beauty and voices that kill, yet their caring and love for each other is just as fierce as their fight.

If you’re into strong female characters, this series has it.

Riden

HOTTIE PIRATE. THAT IS ALL I HAVE TO SAY. He’s cunning, loyal, caring and I will swoon for days over him if you let me. You will be adding him to your book boyfriend list the second you meet him.

The Bad

Details

I’m one of those readers that wants to know every single detail about every single character for every single second of their life. If I’m invested, the more pages the better. I wish some of the larger plot lines had a bit more explanation – but take this with a grain of salt because not every read appreciates the little things!

The Ugly Truth

This was a fun, quick pirate story and I wish there was more. If you’re looking to satisfy the need for anything that has to do with sailing, sword fights, or sirens, I’d recommend this series.

Talk To Me

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think of it? If not, will you be adding it to your TBR?