ARC Review: A Curse of Ash and Iron

Benjamin Grimm knows the theater is much like real life. In 1876 Philadelphia, people play their parts, hiding behind the illusion of their lives, and never revealing their secrets.

When he reunites with his childhood friend Eleanor Banneker, he is delighted. His delight turns to dismay when he discovers she has been under a spell for the past 7 years, being forced to live as a servant in her own home, and he realizes how sinister some secrets can be. She asks for his help, and he can’t refuse. Even if he doesn’t believe in ‘real’ magic, he can’t abandon her.

Ellie has spent the long years since her mother’s death under the watchful eye and unforgiving eye of her stepmother. Bewitched and hidden in plain sight, it seems no one can help Ellie escape. Not even her own father, who is under a spell of his own. When she sees Ben one evening, it seems he is immune to the magic that binds her, and her hope is rekindled along with her friendship.

But time is running short. If they do not find a way to break the spell before midnight on New Year’s Eve, then both Ellie and her father will be bound forever.

I received a free copy of this book via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I like the creativity of this book. I found it very interesting and a really good read. It was an interesting take on Cinderella that I thought was unique and I loved the steam punk theme.

The characters were fun and the stortyline was exciting with good twists and turns. The ending could have been a little more polished for my liking but it was expected.

I liked the little bits of magic that were scattered about. The action was good and exciting it. There was points that made me smile, which is a sign of a good book.

Overall this was a great retelling with some great idea and I recommend this to anyone who likes fairytale retellings and or steampunk.

4 out of 5 stars

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ARC Review: Balancing Act

16-year-old Chloe Montgomery beat out the competition to win Teen Design Diva, but she already has another challenge to face — tackling her internship. After winning the first season of the fashion reality show, Chloe is ready to start her job with a famous designer, Stefan Meyers, in New York City. But with an old crush and new challenges to contend with, Chloe discovers that fast-paced fashion industry isn’t for the faint of heart. Will she be able to make it work, or will the balancing act prove to be too much for this budding designer?

I received a free copy of this book via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love the cover and the designs throughout the book. It was a cute book, but not really my thing.

The characters were well defined and I liked their little quirks. The story had it’s ups and downs, it was full of life and a good enjoyable read. Great for younger readers. Especially young girls who like fashion.

Chloe is 16, but at times she acted younger and the way the book was written made her seem much younger, when I was reading I felt like I was reading about a 12 year old. Which was jarring at times since there was some stuff she was doing that no parent would let a 12 year old do.

I would recommend this for younger readers.

3 stars out 5

ARC Review: Alice Takes Back Wonderland

After ten years of being told she can’t tell the difference between real life and a fairy tale, Alice finally stops believing in Wonderland. So when the White Rabbit shows up at her house, Alice thinks she’s going crazy.

Only when the White Rabbit kicks her down the rabbit hole does Alice realize that the magical land she visited as a child is real.

But all is not well in Wonderland.

The Ace of Spades has taken over Wonderland and is systematically dismantling all that makes it wonderful. Plain is replacing wondrous, logical is replacing magical, and reason is destroying madness. Alice decides she must help the Mad Hatter and all those fighting to keep Wonderland wonderful.

But how can she face such danger when she is just a girl?

Alice must journey across the stars to unite an army. She discovers that fairy tales are real in the magical world beyond the rabbit hole. But they are not the fairy tales she knows.

Fairy tales have dangers and adventures of their own, and Alice must overcome the trials of these old stories if she wants to unite the lands against Ace.

With the help of Peter Pan, Pinocchio, Snow White and heroes old and new, Alice may have the strength to take back Wonderland.

I received a free copy of this book via netgalley in exchange of an honest review.

I love Alice in Wonderland and all the other characters that was jammed packed into this book, did feel a little overwhelming. The characters were fun and exciting.

I loved being back in this take on wonderland. It was magical and full of wonder, just like in the original Alice in Wonderland. Although I was never a fan of the Chesire Cat, not sure why and this book didn’t change that.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of the writing style, it didn’t flow as well as I would have liked. It was stilted at points, and sometimes I was confused at what was happening but I soon caught up.

Overall this was an exciting return to Wonderland.

3 out of 5 stars

ARC Review: Black Magic Academy

Mildred doesn’t like black magic. But her mother was once valedictorian of Black Magic Academy, so her aunts insist she needs to follow in her footsteps and become one too.

Mildred doesn’t want to be part of the popular crowd. Nor does she care about her “death-enemy.” And she certainly has no interest in murderous spells. But if the teachers catch on that she’s actually a good witch . . . well, they don’t react well to that kind of ignominy.

What’s the only good witch in a school of wicked witches to do?

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book started out strong, but then soon fell a little short for me. It didn’t feel polished, had a lot of grammatical errors and felt rushed, more like the first draft of a book. With some work this book could be amazing. But as it is, it was really rushed and could do with some more explanations at points.

The characters were good but at times I was getting confused between some of them, especially Mildred’s Aunts.

The story switched to what felt like an entirely different story with a few of the same characters, and it happened really quickly.

I possibly would read the second book in this series if I came across it but I won’t go seeking it out.

2.5 stars out of 5.