• About Me

A World of Books

~ Books ~ What else is there?

A World of Books

Monthly Archives: December 2015

ARC Review: A Curse of Ash and Iron

31 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by bookgeeking in 4 stars, ARC and R4Rs

≈ Leave a comment

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

ARC Review: Balancing Act

30 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by bookgeeking in ARC and R4Rs, young adult

≈ Leave a comment

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

17 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by bookgeeking in ARC and R4Rs

≈ Leave a comment

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

14 Monday Dec 2015

Posted by bookgeeking in ARC and R4Rs, children's

≈ Leave a comment

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.

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 734 other followers

Challenge Participant

100 reviews

100 Book Reviews
Professional Reader
Reviews Published

Featured Book Reviewer

2016 NetGalley Challenge

Recent Posts

  • Master of One
  • Arc review: Sea of Kings
  • Newcomer
  • Cinderella is Dead
  • The Reluctant Cannibals

Recent Comments

bookgeeking on Cinderella is Dead
AhanaRao on Cinderella is Dead
bookgeeking on Recommendations Please: YA Fan…
stepsinbetween on Recommendations Please: YA Fan…
Kaya @ afictionalboo… on ARC Review: A Curse of Ash and…

Archives

  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • October 2018
  • June 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • May 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013

Categories

  • 20 books of summer
  • 20 day reading challenge
  • 2014 TBR pile reading challenge
  • 2014 witches and witchcraft
  • 4 stars
  • 5 stars
  • ARC and R4Rs
  • Author and Book facts you did not know
  • Author Interviews
  • Book a day
  • Book Tags
  • Book Tours
  • Bookish Bingo
  • Books on France
  • Books on my TBR
  • Celebrating Authors
  • children's
  • Classics and twists on classics
  • Crime
  • deja revu
  • Did you know it was based on a book?
  • DNF
  • dragon
  • Dystopian
  • erotica
  • Fairyloot books
  • Fairyloot Yearlong Challenge
  • Fairytale retellings
  • Fantasy
  • Fiction
  • First Lines
  • friday faceoff
  • ghosts
  • Giveaways
  • goodreads Monday
  • gothic
  • Harry Potter
  • Harry Potter's Crimes
  • Historical fiction
  • horrible histories
  • horror
  • HP Covers around the world
  • key word challenge
  • Kindle Deals
  • Love your Cover
  • Magic
  • mermaids
  • Might on Monday
  • Motif challenge
  • My short stories
  • mystery
  • Myths and Legends
  • NaNoWriMo
  • Netgalley 2014 challenge
  • netgalley backlog
  • Netgalley November
  • new adult
  • Novellas
  • Paranormal
  • Picture it and Write
  • Reading around the world
  • reading lists
  • same book different name
  • schools
  • sequels
  • short stories
  • Showcase Sunday
  • TBR Thursday
  • The Nine Princesses Novellas
  • The Worst Witch
  • Thriller
  • Treasure Hunt 2016
  • Tuesday's Top Ten
  • Uncategorized
  • Under 1000 reviews
  • Vampires
  • werewolves
  • What percentage/rating?
  • What's in a name challenge
  • who would you pick?
  • Why did it take me so long to read?
  • Write what you see
  • young adult

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Blog Stats

  • 25,034 bookworms

Goodreads: Books I’m Reading

Books I’ve Read

Blogs I Follow

Blog at WordPress.com.

Akshay Iyer

Live Life An Extra Mile!

Unclearer

Enjoyable Information. Focused or Not.

Don Jimmy Reviews

COLORFUL SISTERS

Traveling Fashion Designers 🌼

Kari's Book Reviews and Revelations

Millennial Book Review

The Unconditional Guru

exact answers only

That Vegan Nephew

Good Food in Good Company

A J Thornton

gracethoroughgoodbeauty

Beauty and lifestyle Blog

Steps In Between

Celaine Charles ~ My journey as a writer ~ Author site: celainecharlesauthor.com

A bookworm in the library

Writer • reader • traveller

Sunny Day Reads

book reviews and photography

When Reality Meets Destiny

Where Fiction Comes to Life

theindianreadingduo

Infite Love and Immense Respect for books! *Asmita & Siyona* We are happy to post book reviews of different genres to increase your reading horizons! 🤗 To give the optimised description and pertinent view is our motto! Procrastination may happen since reading is intensely time consuming process and besides we two are on Moms duties too! 😉

Sincerely Reads

"Life is a book and there are thousand pages I have not yet read."

Being Alive..

It felt so amazing to be alive I could never think of anything else.

Sifa's Notebook

An adventure with God (and stories)

The Thinking Pen

Literary Pasta, made with aromatic earnestness , served by an overthinking mind.

V's Reads...

Reviews, Rants and Rambles from a mom and pre-published author

Rabeeah Reads

a book blog

katiepaul680311227.wordpress.com/

bookspirationbysarah.wordpress.com/

For the Love of Audiobooks

The things I do for love.

Hawthorn Book Reviews

Ignore the Things You Have to Do and Just Enjoy a Book or Two.

Legends of the Stars

Welcome to the world of legends

Be Innovative

Portable Magic

Books. Book Reviews. Weirdness. Whatever

Book Club Mom

Read this, not that!

thecoycaterpillarreads.blog/

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • A World of Books
    • Join 734 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • A World of Books
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...