Review: YOU ASKED FOR PERFECT by Laura Silverman

March 8, 2019/26 Comments/by Suzanne

You Asked for Perfect by Laura Silverman
Also by this author: Girl Out of Water

Published by Sourcebooks Fire on March 5, 2019
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 288
Source: Netgalley
Amazon
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

YOU ASKED FOR PERFECT review

Wow, what a book! I thought Laura Silverman’s debut Girl out of Water was a great read, but with You Asked for Perfect, she really knocks it out of the park with a book that resonated with me both as someone who has been through and remembers all too well the stressful days of trying to get into a good college, and as the parent of a pre-teen who is already taking advanced classes and will soon be potentially heading down a path similar to that of Silverman’s protagonist, high school senior Ariel Stone.

On paper, Ariel is the ideal college applicant. He’s a straight A student who is well on his way to becoming class valedictorian, first chair violin in the school orchestra, and an active volunteer in his community. He should easily be able to get into any college he applies to. However, Ariel is dreaming big – Ivy League big — and Harvard is where he wants to go. Ariel knows he has to push for perfection in all areas if he wants to be the ideal Harvard applicant on paper, so when he unexpectedly fails a Calculus quiz, he knows he needs to step up his game if he’s going to keep his dream alive.

Ariel starts skipping out on time with his friends and family, putting together a rigorous schedule for studying and for meeting other assorted college-related deadlines. He has his days mapped out by the hour to squeeze every moment of study time in that he can, leaving himself only about 5 hours of sleep a night. Even with this nearly impossible schedule, however, Ariel continues to struggle with Calculus and knows his dream is in danger of slipping out of reach.

Torn between trying to hide the fact that he’s struggling and knowing that he needs help, Ariel reluctantly approaches Amir, who is acing Calculus and asks him for assistance. Even though they’ve never been especially close, Amir agrees to be Ariel’s tutor. The more time Ariel and Amir spend together, the more Ariel realizes that he likes Amir more than he thought he did, a lot more. But Ariel is already pushing himself to the limit. Can he handle adding a relationship into his already overbooked life?

What I loved most about this book is how much the story resonated with me. Even though it has been many years since I graduated, Silverman paints such an authentic portrait of what it’s like to be a high school senior preparing for the future, that I felt like I was transported right back to my own senior year. It brought back so many memories: the pressure of taking multiple AP courses, finding the time for countless extracurricular activities, all in an effort to put together the best possible transcript for applying to colleges. You Asked for Perfect also resonated with me as the parent of a pre-teen who is already taking advanced math courses and stressing about homework, etc., and who, in the not too distant future, could potentially be heading down a path similar to Ariel’s. This book brings to life all of the worries I have for my own child and how he will react if he faces the kind of pressure Ariel is facing.

Speaking of Ariel, he was another favorite element in the book. He’s such a likeable kid — he’s a wonderful brother to his little sister and he volunteers at the local animal shelter where he bathes and exercises the dogs – so it just pained me to watch him struggling so much. Because his story is so relatable, I found it very easy to empathize with him and want him to either succeed or to realize that nothing in life is worth that kind of stress.

I also thought Amir was just precious. Even though he could have easily spilled the beans and let all of their classmates know Ariel was failing Calculus, he instead chose to keep it to himself and to help him. Watching their relationship evolve was really sweet and I was really rooting for Ariel to try to find a way to fit Amir into his life.

I also loved the focus on Ariel’s Jewish faith. Sometimes books will mention that a character is of a certain faith but then not really explore it further, but in this book, Silverman does a wonderful job of really giving an inside look at Jewish traditions such as Shabbat dinners and the high holidays. There are also some very moving scenes where Ariel seeks counsel from his Rabbi.

Nothing that I can think of.

Laura Silverman’s You Asked for Perfect is a beautifully written and moving story that is sure to resonate with many readers, both students and parents alike. I also think it’s an incredibly important read because it highlights just how much stress our students are putting on themselves and what can happen when that stress gets to be too much.

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:

Senior Ariel Stone is the perfect college applicant: first chair violin, dedicated community volunteer, and expected valedictorian. He works hard – really hard – to make his life look effortless. A failed Calculus quiz is not part of that plan. Not when he’s number one. Not when his peers can smell weakness like a freshman’s body spray.

Figuring a few all-nighters will preserve his class rank, Ariel throws himself into studying. His friends will understand if he skips a few plans, and he can sleep when he graduates. Except Ariel’s grade continues to slide. Reluctantly, he gets a tutor. Amir and Ariel have never gotten along, but Amir excels in Calculus, and Ariel is out of options.

Ariel may not like Calc, but he might like Amir. Except adding a new relationship to his long list of commitments may just push him past his limit.

About Laura Silverman

Laura Silverman currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a writer and freelance editor, and spends way too much time hugging dogs instead of working.

Silverman’s debut novel, GIRL OUT OF WATER, is a summery coming-of-age story about a California surfer girl sent to landlocked Nebraska for the entire summer. It debuted in May 2017. Her second novel, YOU ASKED FOR PERFECT, is about the effects of intense academic pressure on a teenage Valedictorian-to-be. It comes out March 2019.

Silverman has degrees in English and Advertising from the University of Georgia, and an MFA in Writing for Children from the New School. While she lived in NYC, she interned at Penguin and two different literary agencies. In addition to writing, Silverman also freelance edits manuscripts and query letters.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram

Backlist Briefs: Mini Reviews for BONE GAP & GIRL OUT OF WATER

October 15, 2018/26 Comments/by Suzanne

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

Published by Balzer + Bray on March 3, 2015
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 345
Source: Purchased
Amazon
Goodreads

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:

Everyone knows Bone Gap is full of gaps—gaps to trip you up, gaps to slide through so you can disappear forever. So when young, beautiful Roza went missing, the people of Bone Gap weren’t surprised. After all, it wasn’t the first time that someone had slipped away and left Finn and Sean O’Sullivan on their own. Just a few years before, their mother had high-tailed it to Oregon for a brand new guy, a brand new life. That’s just how things go, the people said. Who are you going to blame?

Finn knows that’s not what happened with Roza. He knows she was kidnapped, ripped from the cornfields by a dangerous man whose face he cannot remember. But the searches turned up nothing, and no one believes him anymore. Not even Sean, who has more reason to find Roza than anyone, and every reason to blame Finn for letting her go.

As we follow the stories of Finn, Roza, and the people of Bone Gap—their melancholy pasts, their terrifying presents, their uncertain futures—acclaimed author Laura Ruby weaves a heartbreaking tale of love and loss, magic and mystery, regret and forgiveness—a story about how the face the world sees is never the sum of who we are.

Review:

I purchased Laura Ruby’s Bone Gap on a whim last year at a local bookfair. I had no idea what it was about but the cover with its bee and honeycomb just really drew me in. I finally sat down and read it recently and, wow, what a gem of a book it turned out to be! It’s also one of those books that it’s hard to say much about without giving away its secrets, and because those secrets are really the heart and soul of Bone Gap, I’m going to keep my remarks brief and vague. I’ll just say that what starts out as a straightforward mystery about a young woman who goes missing in a rural town takes a major turn for the unexpected.

Because I grew up in a similar environment, I had tremendous sympathy for the characters in this story. It’s hard to have secrets when you live in a tiny town where everyone makes it their business to know your business, and where the gossip/rumor mill always runs rampant. Clearly the underdog of the story, Finn O’Sullivan captured my heart immediately. He and his brother Sean were abandoned by their mother and are trying to live on their own. Both brothers are beloved by those in their town, but everyone thinks Finn is an odd duck so when he comes forward one day to say that he saw a young woman named Roza kidnapped, no one believes him. Finn knows Roza’s life is on the line and my heart just broke for him as he tried and tried to get people to believe him with no luck. And it’s when Finn takes matters into his own hands that the story takes a walk on the wild and unexpected side. I don’t want to say anything more, so I’ll just say think Neil Gaiman, or maybe even Maggie Stiefvater or Alice Hoffman and you’ll have a feel for the truly magical direction this small town tale takes.

I loved Finn’s brother Sean too, who has had to put his dreams of working in the medical field on hold to be the head of the household since their mom left them. Sean is a great big brother and a good friend to all. Petey, one of Finn’s female friends, is a hilarious addition to the cast. She’s tough and sassy and gives every guy in town a run for their money, and I just loved every scene she was in. Lastly, there’s Roza, the young woman who has gone missing. Roza has a very painful past that she is running away from, but her arrival on the scene just after Finn and Sean’s mom left them, fills a void in both boys’ hearts. When she then goes missing, both boys are heartbroken all over again, which is another reason why Finn so desperately wants to find her.

My only real complaint about the story is that the ending felt a little rushed, but I still wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Bone Gap to anyone who is looking for an unpredictable tale filled with endearing characters and also to anyone who is a fan of magical realism. 4 STARS

Girl Out of Water by Laura Silverman
Also by this author: You Asked for Perfect

Published by Sourcebooks Fire on May 2, 2017
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction
Pages: 350
Source: Purchased
Amazon
Goodreads

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:

Anise Sawyer plans to spend every minute of summer with her friends: surfing, chowing down on fish tacos drizzled with wasabi balsamic vinegar, and throwing bonfires that blaze until dawn. But when a serious car wreck leaves her aunt, a single mother of three, with two broken legs, it forces Anise to say goodbye for the first time to Santa Cruz, the waves, her friends, and even a kindling romance, and fly with her dad to Nebraska for the entire summer. Living in Nebraska isn’t easy. Anise spends her days caring for her three younger cousins in the childhood home of her runaway mom, a wild figure who’s been flickering in and out of her life since birth, appearing for weeks at a time and then disappearing again for months, or even years, without a word.

Complicating matters is Lincoln, a one-armed, charismatic skater who pushes Anise to trade her surfboard for a skateboard. As Anise draws closer to Lincoln and takes on the full burden and joy of her cousins, she loses touch with her friends back home – leading her to one terrifying question: will she turn out just like her mom and spend her life leaving behind the ones she loves?

Review:

Laura Silverman’s Girl out of Water is an engaging coming of age story about family, friendship, love, and sacrifice. It follows teen Anise Sawyer, the quintessential California girl who loves the ocean and spends every free moment surfing with her friends. When the novel opens, Anise is busy planning her last summer with most of her friends who are going off to college soon. All of her plans come crashing down around her, however, when her aunt is nearly killed in a car accident, and Anise and her dad have to travel to Nebraska to care for Anise’s young cousins until her aunt is well enough to do so herself. Anise is torn: California and the ocean are her happy place and she can’t think of anything worse than being separated from her friends and stuck in Nebraska all summer. At the same time, however, having lost her own mother, who abandoned her years ago, Anise knows how important family is and knows that going to Nebraska is the right thing to do. But, boy is it going to be the longest summer ever…

This book worked well for me on a lot of levels. I loved the focus on family and seeing Anise bond with and take care of her cousins. In many ways, Anise needed them just as much as they needed her and it was nice to watch them all interact. Anise is terrified that she’s going to somehow end up just like her mother and leave all her loved ones behind one day. Having Anise work through those fears about her mother and abandonment really gave what could have been just a light summer read some added depth that I very much enjoyed. The friendship dynamic also really kept me turning the pages. Anise’s friends are all so fantastic and I loved that they were constantly trying to maintain contact with her even though she was halfway across the country. She also makes a great friend/maybe more than friend named Lincoln while she’s in Nebraska and he was just too precious for words. Lastly, I loved Silverman’s vivid descriptions of the ocean. She makes it such a full sensory experience that I felt like I was on the beach watching the waves crash and smelling the salty air.

If you’re looking for a beautiful story about the importance of family and friendship and a young woman’s journey to find herself, I’d definitely recommend Girl out of Water. 4 STARS

About Laura Ruby

Raised in the wilds of suburban New Jersey, Laura Ruby now lives in Chicago with her family. Her short fiction for adults has appeared in various literary magazines, including Other Voices, The Florida Review, Sycamore Review and Nimrod. A collection of these stories, I’M NOT JULIA ROBERTS, was published by Warner Books in January 2007. Called “hilarious and heart-wrenching” by People and “a knowing look at the costs and rewards of remaking a family,” by the Hartford-Courant, the book was also featured in Redbook, Working Mother , and USA Today among others.

Ruby is also the author of the Edgar-nominated children’s mystery LILY’S GHOSTS (8/03), the children’s fantasy THE WALL AND THE WING (3/06) and a sequel, THE CHAOS KING (5/07) all from Harpercollins. She writes for older teens as well, and her debut young adult novel, GOOD GIRLS (9/06), also from Harpercollins, was a Book Sense Pick for fall 2006 and an ALA Quick Pick for 2007. A new young adult novel, PLAY ME, is slated for publication in fall of 2008. Her books have sold in England, Australia, Italy, France, Germany, Denmark, Serbia and Montenegro. THE WALL AND THE WING is currently in development with Laika Studios for release as an animated feature.

Ms. Ruby has been a featured speaker at BookExpo, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) annual convention, the Miami Book Festival, the Florida Association of Media Educators (FAME) convention, the Midwest Literary Festival, the International Reading Association’s annual convention, and Illinois Reading Council annual conference, among other venues, and she has presented programs and workshops for both adults and children at numerous schools and libraries.

Currently, she is working on several thousand projects, drinking way too much coffee, and searching for new tunes for her iPod.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

About Laura Silverman

Laura Silverman currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a writer and freelance editor, and spends way too much time hugging dogs instead of working.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram

Review: FURYBORN

June 15, 2018/22 Comments/by Suzanne

Furyborn by Claire Legrand

Series: Empirium #1
Published by Sourcebooks Fire on May 22, 2018
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 512
Source: Netgalley
Amazon
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

MY REVIEW:

Novels that feature strong, independent female characters and dual timelines are nearly always guaranteed to grab my attention and such was the case with Claire Legrand’s YA fantasy novel, Furyborn. Furyborn follows two incredibly independent women, Rielle Dardenne and Eliana Ferracora, who lived centuries apart but who both play a role in an ancient prophecy known to all in their lands. The prophecy states that two magic-wielding Queens will rise to power, a Sun Queen and a Blood Queen, and one will have the power to save their kingdom, while the other will have the power to destroy them all.

Furyborn is an exciting adventure from start to finish as we follow these two fiercely independent women as they rush forward to meet their destinies.

One of the things that I really enjoyed about Furyborn was the way the dual timeline was used to allow each woman’s journey to unfold. With Rielle, we are presented with not only her role in the prophecy, but also the way she meets her end, in the novel’s prologue. Rielle’s journey in the book, therefore, is more of a rewind back to show how she got to the point where we find her as the book begins. Eliana’s narrative, on the other hand, moves more straightforward in that we simply follow her to find out where she fits into the prophecy and to where her story ultimately intersects with Rielle’s.

Out of the two main characters, I’d have to say that Eliana was probably my favorite. As I’ve already mentioned she’s incredibly independent and strong. What I found most interesting about her, however, is that she also falls into the morally gray category. When the Empire came in and conquered her kingdom, Eliana began working for them as a bounty hunter. She’ll slit a Rebel’s throat in a heartbeat if there’s money involved, thus earning herself the nickname “The Dread of Orline.” Although many of her actions are morally questionable, her heart, however, is in the right place because she’s desperate to have enough money to take care of her mother and brother. Eliana could be arrogant and obnoxious at times, but I still ultimately liked her because of that big heart of hers.

Even though I didn’t like her quite as much as I liked Eliana, Rielle was also a pretty likable character. What I liked about Rielle was that she fit so well into that underdog category that I’m always such a big fan of. Rielle lives in a time where most individuals possess some magic and wield control over one of the natural elements. During a horse race, Rielle’s best friend finds himself in mortal danger and when Rielle jumps in to try to save him, she accidentally reveals that not only does she too possess magic, but she wields control over more than the usual one element. In trying to save her friend, she has used her magic recklessly and wreaked so much havoc that everyone in the kingdom is terrified of her. Whispers about the prophecy and that she might be one of the Queens immediately begin. Rielle is brought before the King where he informs her that she must face seven potentially deadly elemental trials. She will either successfully complete each of these trials, thus proving that she is one of the two prophesied Queens or else she will not succeed and she will die. No pressure there, right? I just really admired the way she faced each challenge head-on, almost defiant, at times.

I was also quite intrigued by the world building in Furyborn. This fantasy world and its magical system were quite fascinating, especially the Empirum and how Rielle was able to manipulate it, but I still would have liked a little more detail about pretty much everything. Some parts of it were a little confusing, especially the angels, who were apparently bad and banished. I’m hoping a second book will shed more light on some of the fantasy elements in the series.

The main reason I didn’t rate this higher even though I quite enjoyed the story overall was that it honestly felt like two separate books where I was reading a chapter from one and then a chapter from the other. I would have liked to see more connective threads between them throughout to remind me that the two stories would eventually interconnect.

A second issue I had, and this is probably one of those ‘It’s me, not the book’ scenarios, but Rielle’s storyline started to wear thin on me after a while. Those trials, while initially exciting, started to feel somewhat tedious. I can, admittedly, have the attention span of a gnat, but after the first couple of trials, I kept hoping that something would happen so that we didn’t have to go through all seven of them or that the author would simply gloss over the details rather than give us a play-by-play of everything that happened. I also thought too much emphasis was placed on her costumes, each of which were custom made to match the element of the trial she was about to engage in. It reminded me of the scenes from The Hunger Games when Katniss was dressed up as the Girl on Fire. Since I didn’t particularly care for those scenes in The Hunger Games, it was a little ugh going through similar scenes in Furyborn.

One other area that didn’t set well with me was a scene early on where Rielle, clearly not in control of her magic, cruelly kills an animal. I understood what the author was trying to show in this scene, but it was just very graphic and upsetting.

While it’s not a perfect read, it’s still highly entertaining overall and I do think that Furyborn is a solid beginning to what is sure to be a great new fantasy series.

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS:

Follows two fiercely independent young women, centuries apart, who hold the power to save their world…or doom it.

When assassins ambush her best friend, the crown prince, Rielle Dardenne risks everything to save him, exposing her ability to perform all seven kinds of elemental magic. The only people who should possess this extraordinary power are a pair of prophesied queens: a queen of light and salvation and a queen of blood and destruction. To prove she is the Sun Queen, Rielle must endure seven trials to test her magic. If she fails, she will be executed…unless the trials kill her first.

A thousand years later, the legend of Queen Rielle is a mere fairy tale to bounty hunter Eliana Ferracora. When the Undying Empire conquered her kingdom, she embraced violence to keep her family alive. Now, she believes herself untouchable–until her mother vanishes without a trace, along with countless other women in their city. To find her, Eliana joins a rebel captain on a dangerous mission and discovers that the evil at the heart of the empire is more terrible than she ever imagined.

As Rielle and Eliana fight in a cosmic war that spans millennia, their stories intersect, and the shocking connections between them ultimately determine the fate of their world–and of each other.

About Claire Legrand

Claire Legrand used to be a musician until she realized she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories in her head. Now she is a librarian and New York Times bestselling author living in central New Jersey (although her heart will always live in her home state of Texas).

Her first novel is The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls, one of the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2012. She is also the author of The Year of Shadows, a ghost story for middle grade readers; and Winterspell, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker. Some Kind of Happiness, her middle grade novel about mental illness, family secrets, and the power of storytelling, is a 2017 Edgar Award Nominee. Claire’s latest novel, Foxheart, is a classic fantasy-adventure and a 2016 Junior Library Guild selection. She is one of the four authors behind The Cabinet of Curiosities, an anthology of dark middle grade short fiction that was a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Book, and among the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2014.

Her latest novel, Furyborn, debuted at #4 on the New York Times bestseller list, and is the first book in the Empirium Trilogy, a young adult epic fantasy series. Her next book, Sawkill Girls, is a queer young adult horror novel and will release on October 2nd, 2018.

Her work is represented by Victoria Marini of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

ARC Review – Mask of Shadows

August 28, 2017/14 Comments/by Suzanne

Mask of Shadows by Linsey Miller

Series: Untitled #1
Published by Sourcebooks Fire on August 29th 2017
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 352
Source: Netgalley
Amazon
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

MY REVIEW:

Sallot Leon, the protagonist in Linsey Miller’s Mask of Shadows, is out for revenge. Sal is the sole survivor of the territory of Nacea. Nacea and all of its people were destroyed when the land of Erlend started a Civil War with the land of Alona. Erlend was supposed to protect Nacea but when mysterious and deadly shadows were unleashed during the war, the Erlend lords chose to abandon Nacea and retreat to safety. Completely alone and forced to live as a thief in order to survive, Sal is determined to make those Erlend lords pay for what they did to Nacea.

When Sal steals a poster advertising a contest to become Opal, one of the Queen’s group of elite assassins, it sounds like the perfect way to gain access to the lords and thus begin seeking revenge. There’s just one catch – the competition to become Opal is basically a fight to the death, the last one alive wins. So Sal’s plan is ultimately to get revenge or die trying.

LIKES

I’d have to say that Sal is definitely my favorite part of the novel. They are charming, witty, and extremely resourceful. Sal is also the classic underdog in this competition because the majority of the competitors are heavily trained in combat and other lethal skills, whereas Sal is used to getting by on their street smarts.

You’ll also notice my use of ‘they’ as I’m referring to Sal. Sal is a gender fluid protagonist, and in most cases is referred to as they, although Sal indicates that what gender pronouns are used should be dictated by what type of clothing is being worn. If Sal is wearing a dress, for example, using ‘she’ is perfectly acceptable. I had never read a book with a gender fluid character in it before so this made for a unique read. I don’t know much at all about gender fluidity but I thought Miller did a very nice job portraying it here. I also liked that it was incorporated smoothly into the overall story and didn’t overshadow other plot points. A few characters inquired about it in terms of how to address Sal, but otherwise they accepted it without question and moved on. It wasn’t treated as an oddity.

Another aspect of Mask of Shadows I enjoyed was the competition itself. Yes, it was reminiscent of The Hunger Games, but it was still an exciting, action-packed part of the book regardless. The rules were basically to kill as many of your fellow competitors as possible, but do so without being caught. Since the competition is to become one of the Queen’s assassins, stealth is one of the most important qualities needed. Miller does a fantastic job of building plenty of tension and suspense as the reader follows Sal through the competition, playing this ultra-intense kill-or-be-killed game, never knowing when a potential assassin might be hiding around any corner, or up in any tree, looking for the perfect opportunity to take them out. One distinct difference between this competition and The Hunger Games was that all of the competitors were referred to by numbers and wore numbered masks over their faces at all times. They were only referred to by their numbers, which added an almost-dehumanizing element to the competition. I had mixed feelings about the masks because there were a few competitors I would have liked to know more about, but it was hard to connect with any of them since they were just faceless numbers.

Also somewhat reminiscent of The Hunger Games, but in a good way (for me anyway) is that each competitor is assigned a servant to help them dress, bathe, ensure they have safe, non-poisoned food to eat each day. Sal’s servant, Maud, was one of my favorite characters in the book. She’s not allowed to give Sal any kind of advantage during the competition, but behind the scenes, she is hard core in Sal’s corner. Why? Because if Sal wins, Maud gets a reward and a huge promotion. So she’s very excited each day that Sal doesn’t die. She’s sassy too, so she adds a much-welcomed element of lightheartedness in the middle of what is otherwise just scene after scene of murders and attempted murders.

DISLIKES/ISSUES

My biggest issues with Mask of Shadows had to do with pacing, which was slow at times, especially when the author was detailing Sal’s backstory and the reasons why they wanted to become one of the Queen’s assassins. I lost interest a few times along the way and only came away with a vague notion of what the world of Mask of Shadows entailed so I would have loved more world building, but without it being in the form of info dumps.

I also had issues with the romance, which I found to be out of place and unfortunately distracting from the main storyline. Although I thought Sal and Elise had a lot of chemistry when they first met (while Sal was robbing Elise), as the story went on and they are reunited as part of the competition, I preferred them as teacher and student rather than romantic partners.

Overall, I think more action-packed competition scenes and little or no romance would have better served Mask of Shadows.

FINAL THOUGHTS

While I did have some issues with it, overall I still enjoyed reading Mask of Shadows. While parts of the storyline are in some ways reminiscent of The Hunger Games, the similarities did not bother me because there are still enough differences to make it a unique and entertaining read.

RATING: 3.5 STARS

Thanks so much to Netgalley, Linsey Miller, and Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me to preview this book. This in no way shapes my opinion of the book being reviewed.

GOODREADS SYNOPSIS

Sallot Leon is a thief, and a good one at that. But gender fluid Sal wants nothing more than to escape the drudgery of life as a highway robber and get closer to the upper-class and the nobles who destroyed their home.

When Sal Leon steals a poster announcing open auditions for the Left Hand, a powerful collection of the Queen’s personal assassins named for the rings she wears — Ruby, Emerald, Amethyst, and Opal — their world changes. They know it’s a chance for a new life.

Except the audition is a fight to the death filled with clever circus acrobats, lethal apothecaries, and vicious ex-soldiers. A childhood as a common criminal hardly prepared Sal for the trials. But Sal must survive to put their real reason for auditioning into play: revenge.

About Linsey Miller

A wayward biology student from Arkansas, Linsey has previously worked as a crime lab intern, neuroscience lab assistant, and pharmacy technician. She is currently an MFA candidate represented by Rachel Brooks of Bookends Literary. Her debut novel MASK OF SHADOWS is the first in a fantasy duology coming in August 2017 from Sourcebooks Fire. She can be found writing about science and magic anywhere there is coffee.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram

Book Review: Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Cordova

April 27, 2017/12 Comments/by Suzanne

Labyrinth Lost (Brooklyn Brujas, #1) by Zoraida Córdova

Published by Sourcebooks Fire on September 6th 2016
Pages: 324
Source: Purchased
Amazon
Goodreads

Goodreads Synopsis: Nothing says Happy Birthday like summoning the spirits of your dead relatives.

Alex is a bruja, the most powerful witch in a generation…and she hates magic. At her Deathday celebration, Alex performs a spell to rid herself of her power. But it backfires. Her whole family vanishes into thin air, leaving her alone with Nova, a brujo boy she can’t trust. A boy whose intentions are as dark as the strange marks on his skin.

The only way to get her family back is to travel with Nova to Los Lagos, a land in-between, as dark as Limbo and as strange as Wonderland…

MY REVIEW

Zoraida Córdova’s Labyrinth Lost is the first book in the Brooklyn Brujas series and it follows sixteen year old Alex, who is just trying to live her life as an average teen in Brooklyn, New York. Alex, however, is anything but average. She comes from a long line of magical brujas and brujos, which are witches, so everyone in her family is eagerly anticipating the moment when her magical powers finally awaken. The problem is that Alex doesn’t want her powers. Her family doesn’t realize it, but Alex’s magic has long since awoken and she thinks she accidentally caused something bad to happen with it since she couldn’t control it. Because of that, she wants to parts of this magic and so has hidden her magic from others for as long as she could.

Eventually, however, her family finds out and they throw her the traditional Deathday celebration. This celebration is a family blessing of sorts, including both living family members as well as the spirits of those who have died, which ensures every bruja and brujo’s magic works as it should. As they are preparing for the Deathday celebration, Alex meets a new friend, Nova. She is immediately drawn to Nova, although she’s not sure she trusts him because he acts so mysterious. She confides in him that she doesn’t want her powers and he suggests a spell she can use to eradicate them during the Deathday ceremony. Alex attempts the spell during the ceremony and, much to her horror, it backfires and banishes her entire family to another realm, an in-between world of sorts, called Los Lagos. The rest of the book focuses on Alex’s quest to travel to this other world and to right her wrong and save her family.

LIKES

There were so many things I loved about this story that it would take me all day to list them, but here are some standouts for me.

Unique Worldbuilding – Labyrinth Lost feels like a cross between Alice in Wonderland and Orpheus’ journey to the underworld to save Eurydice, and then on top of that, it is also filled with a rich history of Spanish and Latin American legends. Córdova uses this unique combination of ingredients to create one of the most incredibly original worlds I’ve encountered since I started reading fantasy novels. It’s equal parts creepy and magical and you can’t even begin to guess from one moment to the next what Alex will face on her journey across Los Lagos. There’s a portal to the other world that must be traveled through, then there’s a ferry that must be taken across a river of souls where souls actually try to grab at the ferry’s passengers, not to mention fierce monsters that are prowling around just waiting to attack, and there’s even a random a tea party, complete with little toad stool chairs, in progress. I really flew through these pages because I just couldn’t wait to see what Alex would encounter next.

Diversity – Labyrinth Lost scores high marks in diversity. In addition to use of Latin folklore, the main character is a person of color and she is also bisexual. (For those who are fans of love triangles, there’s one in this book and it’s f/f/m).

Family Relationships – I loved how Labyrinth Lost had such a huge focus on family and how important one’s family is. Even though their relationships tend to be complicated, as most families are, Alex is so close to both her mom and her two sisters and it kills her to think they are suffering because of what she did. She is willing to risk everything, including her own life, to do whatever she needs to do to free them from Los Lagos.

Coming of Age Story – I love reading journeys of self-discovery and Alex’s journey definitely fits the bill. When the novel first opened, I honestly didn’t even really like Alex that much. She came across as very selfish and spoiled, and so in many ways, she was my least favorite character. That said, however, she shows such tremendous growth as she devotes herself to saving her family and learns to embrace her magic and all it entails along the way. By the end of the novel, I ended up loving Alex.

DISLIKES

I won’t really call this a dislike because it’s more “Man, I really wish there was more of this” and that involves Alex’s friend and eventual love interest, Rishi. Rishi is so devoted to Alex that when she sees this random open portal in Alex’s backyard and can’t find Alex anywhere, she dives into the portal without hesitation because she wants to make sure Alex is okay. Beyond the fact that she’s totally devoted to Alex, however, we don’t really learn that much about her. I loved the little glimpses of her personality that we did get and really wanted more. I’m glad this is just the first in the series so there’s hope for more about Rishi.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Labyrinth Lost is such a unique and memorable read. I loved learning about the Latin folklore and look forward to exploring it further when the next book in the Brooklyn Brujas series is released.

RATING: 4 STARS

About Zoraida Córdova

Zoraida Córdova is the author of The Vicious Deep trilogy, the On the Verge series, and Labyrinth Lost. She loves black coffee, snark, and still believes in magic. She is a New Yorker at heart and is currently working on her next novel. Send her a tweet @Zlikeinzorro.

Website | Twitter | Goodreads

ARC Review of The Bone Witch

March 6, 2017/14 Comments/by Suzanne

The Bone Witch (The Bone Witch, #1) by Rin Chupeco

Published by Sourcebooks Fire on March 7th 2017
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Fantasy
Pages: 400
Source: Netgalley
Amazon
Goodreads

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

Goodreads Synopsis: The beast raged; it punctured the air with its spite. But the girl was fiercer.

Tea is different from the other witches in her family. Her gift for necromancy makes her a bone witch, who are feared and ostracized in the kingdom. For theirs is a powerful, elemental magic that can reach beyond the boundaries of the living—and of the human.

Great power comes at a price, forcing Tea to leave her homeland to train under the guidance of an older, wiser bone witch. There, Tea puts all of her energy into becoming an asha, learning to control her elemental magic and those beasts who will submit by no other force. And Tea must be strong—stronger than she even believes possible. Because war is brewing in the eight kingdoms, war that will threaten the sovereignty of her homeland…and threaten the very survival of those she loves.

My Review:

The Bone Witch follows the story of a young witch named Tea (pronounced Tay Uh). Tea wants to train to become an asha. There are several different kinds of asha, all of whom can weave spells to a certain degree using elemental magic, with the rarest of all ashas being the Dark Asha, or Bone Witches, who have the power to raise the dead. When Tea accidentally raises her brother from the dead at his funeral, she realizes that she is one of those rare dark asha. She is then removed from her home and sent to train with an older, more experienced dark asha because she must be trained how to wield the dark asha magic.

What I Enjoyed:

What I enjoyed the most about The Bone Witch was Chupeco’s writing and her world building. – the way Chupeco describes these ashas with their elaborate costumes, their gorgeous jeweled hairpins, their graceful movements, and their painted faces had me envisioning magic-wielding geishas. The descriptions were just so vivid and beautiful.

I was also really into the story early on because it had such a unique premise. I loved the idea that there were so many different kinds of ashas, each with their own unique abilities, and I was also intrigued by the idea that the dark asha’s magic was often feared in the various kingdoms, which we witnessed throughout Tea’s training. I loved the air of mystery it lent to the dark asha.

I was also especially into the story because Tea’s newly resurrected zombie brother now basically follows her around everywhere she goes and is considered her familiar. It’s totally cute (in a creepy sort of way).

I think my favorite part about the story was how it was structured. In between the chapters that take us with Tea through her early days of training to be a dark asha, we are given small teasers of Tea in the future. In these teasers, what we see is that Tea has been exiled to a deserted island and is plotting revenge against those who sent her there. As part of her revenge, she is also using her dark magic and skeletal remains that are on the island to build herself an army of undead beasts. These teasers really help to build up the suspense as we’re left to wonder 1) what in the world Tea could have done that was bad enough to yield such a punishment for her and 2) wow, how powerful is her magic that she can build such a monstrous army to unleash on her enemies? You just know as your reading those teasers that we’re in store for something huge as we continue reading about younger Tea’s training.

What I Didn’t Like:

My biggest issue with The Bone Witch is that even though I loved the descriptive writing, overall there was just too much description and not enough action. Once Tea found out she was a bone witch and left to begin her training, it just didn’t feel like much else happened. Tea spends what feels like forever working as some kind of indentured servant before she actually even starts training. Then once it is determined she can finally start training, more time is spent describing a shopping spree to buy her the proper robes (referred to as hua) and jeweled hairpins than is spent describing what she’s learning.

Then once the story does start to focus more on the training, we have long descriptions of dance moves she is learning and instruments she is learning to play and we just breeze through other elements of the training, like fighting, that probably would be more interesting. As much as I loved the descriptive passages early on, I really started to get bored with the lengthy descriptions of the patterns on asha’s hua. This continued to be an issue for me throughout the book. Every outfit that each asha wore was described in such great detail, but in comparison, a terrifying attack that kills 20 soldiers is just a blip on the radar. It seemed like, in so many cases, the main action of the story really took a backseat to descriptions of items that didn’t seem nearly as important.

Who Would I Recommend The Bone Witch to?

I think I would recommend The Bone Witch to readers who don’t mind a very slow build to what could perhaps end up being a truly phenomenal series. Those teasers that we get of Tea on the deserted island hint that big things are going to happen and those big things are going to be pretty darn exciting. Even though I was disappointed with the lack of action in this first book, I definitely see myself continuing with the series because I feel like the second book has the potential to be a great read.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and Rin Chupeco for providing me with an e-galley of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 2.5 stars

About Rin Chupeco

Despite an unsettling resemblance to Japanese revenants, Rin always maintains her sense of hummus. Born and raised in Manila, Philippines, she keeps four pets: a dog, two birds, and a husband. Dances like the neighbors are watching. She is represented by Rebecca Podos of the Helen Rees Agency.

Website | Twitter

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Rating: 2.5 stars

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