Hello! It’s the final day of May and I thought I’d do a little reading wrap up. I usually don’t write reviews for every book I read, and thought that it would be fun to share my thoughts on a couple others as well!
So I read six books this month, and they were all fantasy, with a mix of both adult and YA. Here are some of my summarized opinions and ratings!
1. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare – 4/5 Stars, full review here
I finished this one up early in May, and it was actually a re-read! I really enjoyed it the first time around, but I forgot a ton, and wanted to reread it to understand Chain of Gold a bit more. I really enjoyed the characters in this one, and especially loved the developing relationships between Tessa, Will, and Jem. The world-building was good and the plot with the clockwork creatures attacking suited the story nicely. The parallels between this book and real life London were nice as well, and I thought it added a really nice element to this story! Overall, a great start to the month.
2. Crescent City by Sarah J. Maas – 4/5 Stars, full review here
This one took me a super long time to get through, and I was pretty intimidated by how long it was! I actually left it on my Kindle for nearly two weeks before finally picking it up when my library hold was about to expire haha. However, I’m glad I got to it and while it had a pretty slow start, the ending was absolutely amazing. Everything climaxes at the end of the book and when combined with the action, it left me stunned and wanting more. The characters were nice, but Ruhn truly connected with me. His relationships were interesting to explore, specifically with Bryce and the Autumn King, and I really felt for him. And while the complex politics confused me, I do think it added another layer to the story, and I might benefit from a re-read (to fully comprehend it).
3. Nevernight by Jay Kristoff – 3.5/5 Stars, full review here
I read this one, along with the final three books at the very end of the month, and it was a huge reading spree that I did not expect myself to go through. I had heard so many good things about this book, and thought that it was time to stop waiting and really check it out! While this book wasn’t bad, it certainly wasn’t one of my favorites, and I think that my expectations were higher than reality. His writing style is filled with metaphors and “flowery” writing, similar to that of Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. I personally found this confusing and too elaborate for my taste, but I do understand that others can consider it really unique and beautifully written. I enjoyed the fact that Mia was more “morally-grey” and thought that it added more to the story, instead of the typical hero that “does no wrong”. I did find it hard to connect to some of the side characters such as Tric, but thought that the plot was interesting and carried the story along well.
4. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo – 4/5 Stars
This one was yet another reread, but it was still pretty enjoyable! Like Clockwork Angel, I had forgotten many of the things that happened in the series, and wanted to reread it so that I could finally get to King of Scars. I really enjoyed Mal and Alina’s relationship in this, and found the entire Grisha concept to be rather interesting. I loved the world-building in this, and found the magic-system to be strong and fleshed-out. I also really enjoyed the Darkling’s character in this, and I’m super interested in seeing what happens with him. He’s definitely one of my favorite villains of all time, and it was exciting to be able to read about him again. His obsession with Alina is interesting to explore, and I think that it can offer another plot-point in the sequels.
5. Imagine Me by Tahereh Mafi – 2/5 Stars
Okay, this one was a bit disappointment for me, but it wasn’t really any worse than what I expected. I thought that the series derailed with the installation of the final three books, and I don’t think that it did the first three justice (they were sooo good!). The book doesn’t have enough of a plot to make it worthwhile, and a lot of it felt predictable. There wasn’t anything that kept me hooked, and the characters became even more duller (I did still like Kenji though). Warner spends a third of the book sulking about Juliette/Ella and it removed the opportunity for his character to be further exposed and developed. Additionally, the meshing of Juliette/Ella’s thoughts with Emmaline was confusing to read, and slightly out of place. One of the only things I did like though was how the book concluded the story once and for all, and the one plot carrying this story through the last three books was finally sealed.
6. Bone Crier’s Moon by Kathryn Purdie – 2/5 Stars
Okay, this one was the biggest disappointment for me, after cover-buying it later in the month. There are definitely a ton of mixed opinions on this, and unfortunately, I was on the side that really didn’t like it. I just felt like I couldn’t connect with any of the characters, which typically makes a book good in my opinion. The relationship felt out of place and I didn’t like any of the characters enough to care about the plot of the story. The only thing I did like was the overall concept of the book, but I was so bored of everything else that it just didn’t reel me in.
That’s everything I read for this month, so thanks for sticking by and checking out my thoughts! I’d definitely recommend these books, and even if I didn’t like it, I would recommend going for it and giving it a try. There are mixed reviews on all the books I disliked, and there are a ton of people who did like them. Anyways, thanks for reading!
-Allison