Review: Maresi Red Mantle by Maria Turtschaninoff (#Ad)

I was sent this review copy for free by Pushkin Children's Books for the purposes of providing an honest review.

Maresi Red Mantle by Maria Turtschaninoff

Published: 6th June 2019 | Publisher: Pushkin Children's Books | Cover Designer: Helen Crawford-White | Source: Publisher
Maria Turtschaninoff's Website

Maresi returns in the thrilling conclusion to the feminist fantasy epic The Red Abbey Chronicles.

For Maresi, like so many other girls, the Red Abbey was a haven of safety in a world ruled by brutal men. But now she is a young woman and it is time for her to leave. She must take all that she has learned from her sisters and return to her childhood home to share the knowledge she has gained.

But when Maresi returns to her village, she realises all is not well - the people are struggling under the rule of the oppressive Earl, and people are too busy trying to survive to see the value of her teachings. Maresi finds she must use all the terrible force of the Crone's magic to protect her people, but can she find the strength to do so when her heart is weakening with love for the first time? From Goodreads.

My other reviews of The Red Abbey Chronicles:
Maresi (Book 1) | Naondel (Book 2/Prequel) (#Ad)

WARNING! I cannot review this book without spoiling the others in the series. Read no further if you're planning on reading this series and don't want it spoilt for you.

Trigger/Content Warnings: This book features discussion of sex, a stillbirth, a fatal illness, death, a funeral, broken bones, extreme poverty, homeless people (including children), child prostitutes, sexual assault, off the page rape, discussion of rape, discussion of domestic violence, and murder.

Continue reading Review: Maresi Red Mantle by Maria Turtschaninoff (#Ad)

Review: Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus (#Ad)

I was sent this proof for free by Penguin for the purposes of providing an honest review.

Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus

Published: 10th January 2019 | Publisher: Penguin | Cover Designer: | Source: Publisher
Karen M. McManus' Website

Ellery's never been to Echo Ridge, but she's heard all about it. It's where her aunt went missing at age sixteen, never to return. Where a Homecoming Queen's murder five years ago made national news. And where Ellery now has to live with a grandmother she barely knows, after her failed-actress mother lands in rehab. No one knows what happened to either girl, and Ellery's family is still haunted by their loss.

Malcolm grew up in the shadow of the Homecoming Queen's death. His older brother was the prime suspect and left Echo Ridge in disgrace. His mother's remarriage vaulted her and Malcolm into Echo Ridge's upper crust, but their new status grows shaky when mysterious threats around town hint that a killer plans to strike again. No one has forgotten Malcolm's brother-and nobody trusts him when he suddenly returns to town.

Ellery and Malcolm both know it's hard to let go when you don't have closure. Then another girl disappears, and Ellery and Malcolm were the last people to see her alive. As they race to unravel what happened, they realize every secret has layers in Echo Ridge. The truth might be closer to home than either of them want to believe.

And somebody would kill to keep it hidden. From Goodreads

Rep: This book features a biracial (half white, half Latina) protagonist, a gay (though no label), biracial (half white, half Latino) secondary character, and a queer, Korean American secondary character.

Trigger/Content Warnings: This book features violence; anonymous, public threats of murder; a hit and run leading to death; a dead body; gun threats; attempted murder; murder; discussion of human remains; and paedophilia.

Continue reading Review: Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen M. McManus (#Ad)

Review: Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey (#Ad)

I was sent this review copy for free by Tor for the purposes of providing an honest review.

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

Published: 4th June 2019 | Publisher: Tor | Cover Designer: Will Staehle | Source: Publisher
Sarah Gailey's Website

Sharp, mainstream fantasy meets compelling thrills of investigative noir in this fantasy debut by rising star Sarah Gailey.

Ivy Gamble has never wanted to be magic. She is perfectly happy with her life—she has an almost-sustainable career as a private investigator, and an empty apartment, and a slight drinking problem. It's a great life and she doesn't wish she was like her estranged sister, the magically gifted professor Tabitha.

But when Ivy is hired to investigate the gruesome murder of a faculty member at Tabitha’s private academy, the stalwart detective starts to lose herself in the case, the life she could have had, and the answer to the mystery that seems just out of her reach. From Goodreads.

Rep: A lot of side characters are gay, lesbian, or bi/pan, but no labels are given.

Trigger/Content Warnings: This book features death, cancer, abortion, discussion of a teacher/ex-student relationship, possible alcoholism, an attempted mugging, a knife attack, a stab wound, graphic descriptions of a dead body cut in two, and magical surguries, where internal body parts float in mid-air.

Continue reading Review: Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey (#Ad)

My  2019The Broke and The Bookish Secret Santa Gifts

This past Christmas I took part in The Broke and the Bookish's Secret Santa, hosted in 2019 by Jana of That Artsy Reader Girl on her own. It's a Secret Santa where you sign up for a certain tier (1 book and a small gift, 1-2 books and a couple of small gifts/goodies, 2+ books and small gifts/goodies), you're paired up with someone in the same tier, and you send your Santee presents! I signed up for the last year, and received a box full of lovely things from Hannah of Hannah's Bookshelf! I thought I'd share with you all the wonderful gifts she sent me. (All photos can be clicked on to enlarge.)

Continue reading My 2019 The Broke and The Bookish Secret Santa Gifts

Review: Impossible Causes by Julie Mayhew (#Ad)

I was sent this proof for free as a giveaway prize by the Bloomsbury Raven for the purposes of providing an honest review.

Impossible Causes by Julie Mayhew

Published: 17th October 2019 | Publisher: Raven Books | Source: Won in a giveaway.
Julie Mayhew's Website

For readers of All the Missing Girls and You Will Know Me, Impossible Causes is a gripping thriller about isolation, power, and the lies that fester when witnesses stay silent.

For six months every year, Lark Island is fogged in, its occupants cut off completely from the mainland. The community is small, tight-knit, and deeply religious. Lark seems like a good place for 16-year-old Viola Kendrick and her mother to be alone as they mourn Viola’s father and brother, both killed in a tragic accident.

But the islanders are hiding dark secrets. As the winter fog sets in, Viola gets to know the Eldest Girls—the only three teenagers on Lark—and begins to learn about the island’s twisted history, including an old story of a young girl, whose death the islanders insist was accidental. When a man’s body is found at the end of Viola’s first winter on Lark, Viola finds herself at the center of a murder mystery: one that asks whether the man’s death was a righteous act of revenge, or a cold-blooded killing.

Eerie and menacing, timely and moving, Impossible Causes is an unputdownable thriller that examines the consequences of secrets kept at young women’s expense. From Goodreads.

Rep: Two lesbian side characters.

Trigger Warnings: This book features sex, death, a funeral, animal sacrifice, photos of naked people being taken without their consent, murder, and rape.

Continue reading Review: Impossible Causes by Julie Mayhew (#Ad)

Ad: Titles with an asterisk (*) were gifted to me by the publisher for the purposes of providing an honest review.

Links with a circumflex (^) are Ad: Affiliate Links, which means if you make a purchase through them, I'll receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.

My Most Anticipated Retellings From Jan - June 2020

It's now 2020, it's a brand New Year! And you know what that means? A year chock full of brand new books is ahead of us! And as regular readers will know, what I am most looking forward to is all the retellings! I do adore a good retelling! So here are the retellings I'm most anticipating in the first half of this year!

Continue reading My Most Anticipated Retellings From Jan - June 2020