Thunderhead

Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman

Thunderhead is the sequel to Scythe, which I reviewed HERE.

If you do not want anything spoiled for Scythe, DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW.

I'll give you the length of the amazon summary to ponder your choices, "Rowan and Citra take opposite stances on the morality of the Scythedom, putting them at odds, in the chilling sequel to the Printz Honor Book Scythe from New York Times bestseller Neal Shusterman, author of the Unwind dystology.

The Thunderhead cannot interfere in the affairs of the Scythedom. All it can do is observe—it does not like what it sees.
A year has passed since Rowan had gone off grid. Since then, he has become an urban legend, a vigilante snuffing out corrupt scythes in a trial by fire. His story is told in whispers across the continent.
As Scythe Anastasia, Citra gleans with compassion and openly challenges the ideals of the “new order.” But when her life is threatened and her methods questioned, it becomes clear that not everyone is open to the change.
Will the Thunderhead intervene?
Or will it simply watch as this perfect world begins to unravel?" AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

To recap, at the end of Scythe, Scythe Faraday is alive, Citra has joined the Scythedom, and Rowan is off grid. Corruption is running rampant in the scythedom, some of the more corrupt in the MidMerica sector have been killed, but there are still more. And so the chaos unfolds.... dun dun dunnnn 

SO. Thunderhead picks up with Rowan as Scythe Lucifer who researches and kills corrupted scythes, under the Thunderhead's watchful eyes. The Thunderhead cannot intervene with the scythes.

Citra has decided on her method of gleaning. She injects a tracker with poison inside of her victims. They have one month to get their affairs in order, and then she will kill them in whatever way they wish. If they try to flee MidMerica or do not contact her to let her know how they wish to be gleaned before the month is off, the tracker goes off and kills them anyways.

Then there's Greyson. A civilian who has essentially been raised by the Thunderhead and wants to join the Authority Interface; the humans who work with the Thunderhead to carry out tasks for a variety of reasons.

In the very beginning of the book, the Thunderhead kind of orchestrates Greyson to save the lives of Scythe Curie and Citra (Scythe Anastasia), and slowly begins to unravel more of the intricate plots and puzzle pieces.

Scythe Faraday is also actively looking for the land of Nod; a land heard only in a child's rhyme.

DUN DUN DUNNNNN

That's enough summary.

I LOVED this book on the same level as Scythe, and kind of for the same reasons. The world building is still on point, there are nefarious tasks at play disguised as small insignificant events that lead into much larger grand scheme things, and the character development is so on point.

Originally, I thought Scythe was a stand alone novel for some reason (I'm really not sure why, honestly), but I'm thrilled this is a series. HUZZAH!

I just cannot wait to find out more about the land of Nod... hehehe

Happy reading!

Scythe

Scythe by Neal Shusterman

I have a tendency to gravitate towards dystopian novels (if you've read any of my blog posts in the past, this is no surprise to you. If you're new here, SURPRISE!). I also kind of gravitate towards the idea of human beings acting as the grim reaper (most notably the Croak Series (First blog about the series)). Which means, that I pretty much immediately fell in love with Scythe. 

An amazon summary lead in, "Two teens must learn the “art of killing” in this Printz Honor–winning book, the first in a chilling new series from Neal Shusterman, author of the New York Times bestselling Unwind dystology.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.
Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.
Scythe is the first novel of a thrilling new series by National Book Award–winning author Neal Shusterman in which Citra and Rowan learn that a perfect world comes only with a heavy price." 
AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE  

First, we HAVE to talk about the world. It's the future. THE FUTUREEEE. Humans are immortal, if they 'die', they become deadish, and their bodies are taken to the revival centers, some science happens, and they're back to running around again. They have nanites that can heal them, ease pain, and prevent/cure diseases before they begin to happen. They can also reset their age. You're 62 years old and want to be 20 again? Science noises, and now you're back to 20. There's hardly anything that can eliminate a human....

Except for the Scythes.

So the world also reached a point where a powerful AI has become self aware and maintains the world essentially. This AI is called the Thunderhead, and it effectively oversees the planet.

However, there is a law of separation between the Scythes and the Thunderhead. The Thunderhead cannot interfere or interact with any Scythes.

Scythes kill people (they call it gleaning in the book), to control the population. Now that no one can really die (outside of fire or acid), the population increases at a haphazard rate.

Enter Scythe Faraday, Citra, and Rowan. Scythe Faraday takes on Citra and Rowan as apprentices to train to be a scythe, but only one may enter the scythedom.

Anddddddd, I'm going to cut off all further explanations there. With how intricate Neal Shusterman writes, it can be very easy to give away a spoiler or a piece of the grand puzzle too soon.

Which REALLY means, I loved this book. The world building is so fantastic, the character development and plot play together very well, and I love love love how well each character is their own unique person. Each character that enters the stage has a purpose, and every chapter reveals more of the story, which turns out to be kind of a puzzle. Dun dun dunnnn

I'll say, or should I say write, no more! (hehe)

Happy reading!

Poison's Cage

Poison's Cage by Breeana Shields

This is the second book in a duology. I reviewed the first book HERE, POISON'S KISS.

Do not read this review if you do not want spoilers for  Poison's Kiss. YE HAVE BEEN WARNED.

SPOILERS FOR Poison's Kiss BEYOND THIS POINT.

An amazon summary, "An assassin becomes a spy in this heart-pounding sequel to Poison's Kiss. Readers who love the assassin angle in Throne of Glass, the lethal touch in Shatter Me, or the high stakes of The Wrath and the Dawn will want to follow this story to the end.

A single kiss could kill. A single secret could save the kingdom.
Iyla and Marinda have killed many men together: Iyla as the seductress, Marinda as the final, poisonous kiss. Now they understand who the real enemy is--the Snake King--and together they can take him down. Both girls have felt as though they were living a lie in the past, so moving into the king's palace and pretending to serve him isn't as difficult as it sounds. But when you're a spy, even secrets between friends are dangerous. And each girl has something--or someone--to lose. Does every secret, every lie, bring them closer to the truth . . . or to a trap?
In Poison's Kiss, Marinda pulled a dangerous thread. In this sequel, it unravels to a heart-pounding conclusion." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

ALRIGHT.

Let's clear the air.

That was a pretty INTENSE ending to Poison's Kiss. Mani was almost eaten by the Snake King who is apparently real, Kadru is a terrifying person, poor Iyla but at the same time WTH IYLA, REALLY? Oh, by the way, surprise cults for one of the four guardians. HUH-WHAT?!

Okay, I had to spit all that out so we can actually talk about Poison's Cage. 

So Marinda goes to the den of the Naga to be a spy to take them down from the inside hopefully. Iyla wants her life back (see how Kadru stole her lives to ensure Marinda lived through the poison administrations). Marinda's loyalty to the Naga is constantly tested by their leader, Balavan, who has plans for her (of course). One of the first things he has her do is a kiss a man in the dungeons who refuses to talk. Interestingly enough the dungeon man reveals that the other three original guardians do exist, and one of them is dead.

So sparks the race for Iyla to find the crocodile king (did I mention this book has two narrators? Iyla and Marinda? I know it always makes me hella suspicious too), and Iyla and Marinda are trying to find a way to trust each other.

The same whirlwind of magic, political intrigue, and even more cult stuff whirls through Poison's Cage.

HOWEVER. I am a bit peeved.

SPOILERS FOR Poison's Cage ahead. DON'T READ FURTHER UNLESS YOU WANT A PLOT ELEMENT TO BE RUINED.

Anyways, so one of the things the young adult genre keeps beating to death, is that everyone falls in love. EVERYONE. Salty Iyla is no exception. Which is just SO OBNOXIOUS because she's always been such a survivalist, will do anything to achieve her goal, but still loves Marinda so she definitely has compassion, etc. She's a complicated character, that honestly, felt really diminished by a love interest. It was also super obnoxious how she went about falling in love. Like the whole, "I saw a man, and suddenly I had a different kind of warmth in my belly" kind of deal. Like she has no idea what a crush feels like, at all, when she's been a seductress for how many years? I just refuse to believe that she's never had a crush or romantic interest in any of her targets before this point. It just doesn't line up with the rest of her characterization. It's vexing.

But other than that, despite the sudden first book having one narrator, to the second book having two narrators, I still liked the book a lot. It definitely enthralled me in the magic and moment once more.

Happy reading!

Poison's Kiss

Poison's Kiss by Breeana Shields

There have been myths about deadly, poisonous women that have cropped up over time. They tend to be beautiful and often used as assassins because who expects to be killed by a kiss? This story dabbles within that mythos, but brings more elements to the story.

An amazon summary, "A teenage assassin kills with a single kiss until she is ordered to kill the one boy she loves. This commercial YA fantasy is romantic and addictive—like a poison kiss—and will thrill fans of Sarah J. Maas and Victoria Aveyard. Marinda has kissed dozens of boys. They all die afterward. It’s a miserable life, but being a visha kanya—a poison maiden—is what she was created to do. Marinda serves the Raja by dispatching his enemies with only her lips as a weapon. Until now, the men she was ordered to kiss have been strangers, enemies of the kingdom. Then she receives orders to kiss Deven, a boy she knows too well to be convinced he needs to die. She begins to question who she’s really working for. And that is a thread that, once pulled, will unravel more than she can afford to lose. This rich, surprising, and accessible debut is based in Indian folklore and delivers a story that will keep readers on the edge of their seats." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

Marinda is a visha kanya, someone whose poisonous kiss kills whoever the Raja decides. Marinda works with Gopal as well as Iyla. Iyla usually finds the targets, gets close to them, learns as much as she can from them, before the Raja decides it's time to kill them. Marinda delivers the kiss, a killing blow. The poison usually kills them within an hour.

Marinda also has a younger brother, Mani, and in exchange for her continued service to the Raja, Mani receives medicine to make him well. Her handlers look after Mani while she's away. Marinda also helps out in a bookstore, where she and Mani love to be. Japa owns the bookstore and looks out for them in his own way.

BUT THAT'S ENOUGH SUMMARY.

PEOPLE. This book has such a slow way of luring you into the magical madness of culture, cults, and political intrigue. It's such a fascinating plunge into beautiful turmoil.

If it's not enough to be a visha kanya, Marinda also finds herself in the ever evolving mystery of her work for the Raja. Is she actually working for the Raja, or someone else? Is Iyla working for someone else?

DUN DUN DUNNNN. 

There's also tons of magic throughout the book that comes into play, but not in the plot device way, but more in the explain character motivations sense. It's good.

I'm not going to say anymore, because I don't want spoil anything. If you read this, BUCKLE UP and pay lots of attention.

Happy reading!

A Crown of Wishes

A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi

This is a sequel....well maybe a companion book, kind of, which I reviewed here: THE STAR-TOUCHED QUEEN

While the first book was mesmerizing with some bits of confusion over character development, I absolutely LOVED the second book.

Before I get into it, an amazon summary, "From the author of The Star-Touched Queen comes a beautiful lush fantasy, Roshani Chokshi's A Crown of Wishes.

Gauri, the princess of Bharata, has been taken as a prisoner of war by her kingdom’s enemies. Faced with a future of exile and scorn, Gauri has nothing left to lose. Hope unexpectedly comes in the form of Vikram, the cunning prince of a neighboring land and her sworn enemy kingdom. Unsatisfied with becoming a mere puppet king, Vikram offers Gauri a chance to win back her kingdom in exchange for her battle prowess. Together, they’ll have to set aside their differences and team up to win the Tournament of Wishes – a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor.

Reaching the tournament is just the beginning. Once they arrive, danger takes on new shapes: poisonous courtesans and mischievous story birds, a feast of fears and twisted fairy revels.

Every which way they turn new trials will test their wit and strength. But what Gauri and Vikram will soon discover is that there’s nothing more dangerous than what they most desire." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

THIS CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR The Star-Touched Queen; don't read any farther if you don't want anything spoiled.

SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT FOR The Star-Touched Queen. YE HAVE BEEN WARNED!

So, what I failed to mention in the blog review about The Star-Touched Queen, is Maya's half sister Gauri. Arguably, Maya's relationship with Gauri probably was integral to the story because it truly showcased Maya's humanity, but I significantly glossed over it because I had other priorities in that review. In summary, Maya loves Gauri, told her lots of stories as a child, while Maya was away in Akaran, a lot of time passed in the mortal realm, and Gauri grew up to be one amazing adult. So, A Crown of Wishes starts with Gauri as an adult.

...anywho.

So Gauri is Maya's sister. The story begins with her living in the dungeons of another kingdom after her unsuccessful attempt at overthrowing her brother for the throne of Bharata. 

Enter Vikram, the fox prince, aka the soon to be puppet king. Gauri is trapped in his kingdom's dungeon. He is very passionate about his country, but he is the adopted son of the king, not a blood heir. The king does not seem to have other children of any sort, adopted, birthed, or through mythical creation. ...I don't know, I just have to cover all the bases with fantasy stories. YOU'RE WELCOME.

Enter, the Lord of Wealth, who entices Vikram with the tournament of wishes. There's a few catches (which are revealed later), but the first catch is he has to find his partner.

Enter Gauri, an escape from the dungeon, and suddenly a manic adventure through the countryside, myths, and magic.

If the purpose of the first book was to only build the world for the second book, I'm suddenly mostly fine with it, because I loved the second book.

Gauri is a great heroine as she is very balanced between flaws/strengths and is very human.

Vikram is great because he's kind of got the clever, devil-may-care attitude with lots of humor sprinkled in.

There's also a THIRD narrator (did I mention the story switches between three different narrators perspectives? Because it does. SURPRISE) who is unique. I was fascinated with the third narrator, but I loved Vikram's narrations the most, even though we had the most chapters from Gauri's point of view. I also love Gauri, but there's just something special about Vikram.

It was just a great story. The only slight drawback, was when the magic and splendor of the other realm was playing out, sometimes it was a little difficult not to get lost in the details. BUT, that will not deter me from making this a recommended book. Even though the first one isn't. It knows what it did.

Happy reading!

The Star-Touched Queen

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

This story reminded me a lot of A Thousand Nights by E.K. Johnston and also Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher. The plot and characters have nothing to do with those books, or anything with that myth, but there's a certain cadence to those books. Something that's particularly mesmerizing about them that makes them unforgettable.

I think this book all captured that.

An amazon summary, "Fate and fortune. Power and passion. What does it take to be the queen of a kingdom when you're only seventeen?

Maya is cursed. With a horoscope that promises a marriage of Death and Destruction, she has earned only the scorn and fear of her father's kingdom. Content to follow more scholarly pursuits, her whole world is torn apart when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience to quell outside rebellions. Soon Maya becomes the queen of Akaran and wife of Amar. Neither roles are what she expected: As Akaran's queen, she finds her voice and power. As Amar's wife, she finds something else entirely: Compassion. Protection. Desire...

But Akaran has its own secrets -- thousands of locked doors, gardens of glass, and a tree that bears memories instead of fruit. Soon, Maya suspects her life is in danger. Yet who, besides her husband, can she trust? With the fate of the human and Otherworldly realms hanging in the balance, Maya must unravel an ancient mystery that spans reincarnated lives to save those she loves the most. . .including herself.

A lush and vivid story that is steeped in Indian folklore and mythology. The Star-touched Queen is a novel that no reader will soon forget." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

Maya lives in Bherta, where she is under constant ridicule by all of the women in the harem. Her father, the king, has a tutor come see her once a week, but for the most part, she loves to become lost in the scrolls of the library. Something I can easily relate to.

She's gotten to the age of 17 without being married off to due the horoscope of her birth. Every child in the kingdom has their horoscope foretold at birth, and hers is particularly cursed.

The kingdom is also at war. As a way to make peace, her father decides to hide her horoscope and marry her off to one of the warring forces. However, since she can only choose one, and she has 15 suitors, the war will continue with the remaining 14. Something her father cannot have.

So he asks her to sacrifice herself for the kingdom, by killing herself with poison. Not a great Father, but perhaps a wise ruler that truly puts the people of the country first? I'm still undecided.

In the moment she decides to drink the poison for the good of the country she loves, Amar appears and takes the poison away. He offers to take her to another land where she'll have the power of a thousand kings.

So begins the journey through the Night Bazaar, and ultimately to Akaran. Into a palace where there are no subjects, but plenty of magic, and whispers to drive you mad.

....that's enough of a summary.

So I kind of loved aspects of this book. I love Maya and how simultaneously wise and flawed she is. I love all of the rich descriptions of the land, the culture, and the world building. I loved how the magic of the book seemed to be it's own character, and that was wonderful in of itself. There were also a lot of elements of reincarnation, threads of fate, but ultimately, I didn't like how it kind of squashed the question of do we decide our own fates or are our fates predetermined?

I found Amar interesting at first, but also very odd. Like that one kid in the back of the class who really wants to raise their hand, but is way too shy to, and he doesn't have a teacher willing to draw him out of his shell. He seemed to be playing a constant cat and mouse game with his own personality. Instead of endearing, it was really just annoying.

I do love how the mystery of the book revealed itself, but I would have loved to see more of the mythical creatures throughout the book. They were present for certain scenes, but based on who Amar is, who Maya becomes, it just seems like we should have seen more of them. There was a lot of concentration on the humans, which kind of makes sense because Maya's love for her country and people. But, but but but, because who Amar is, I was expecting much more interaction with the otherworldly. 

It is a good story, a mesmerizing story.

Happy reading!

The Cruel Prince

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Holly Black, is one of my favorite authors ever. I love the way she builds world, grows characters, and really shapes stories. I've previously reviewed other books by her, including (but I've read all of them, just before I was blogging time), THE DARKEST PART OF THE FOREST, THE COLDEST GIRL IN COLD TOWN, THE IRON TRIAL, and DOLL BONES. But again, I've read like everything Holly Black has ever written because I adore her writing so much. SHAMELESS FAN GIRL. HELLO.

So, imagine my shrieking delight when she wrote this, another adventure into fey stories. :D

An amazon summary, "Of course I want to be like them. They're beautiful as blades forged in some divine fire. They will live forever.

And Cardan is even more beautiful than the rest. I hate him more than all the others. I hate him so much that sometimes when I look at him, I can hardly breathe.
Jude was seven years old when her parents were murdered and she and her two sisters were stolen away to live in the treacherous High Court of Faerie. Ten years later, Jude wants nothing more than to belong there, despite her mortality. But many of the fey despise humans. Especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and wickedest son of the High King.
To win a place at the Court, she must defy him--and face the consequences.
In doing so, she becomes embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, discovering her own capacity for bloodshed. But as civil war threatens to drown the Courts of Faerie in violence, Jude will need to risk her life in a dangerous alliance to save her sisters, and Faerie itself." AMAZON LINK OF JUSTICE

Jude and her twin sister, Taryn, along with their older sister, Vivi, were taken away by Madoc. Madoc is the general to the High King, and their mortal mother birthed their older sister Vivi before eventually escaping to the mortal world. Madoc had gone to retrieve his heir, Vivi, and claimed the twin sisters at the same time. Jude and Taryn grew up in the fey lands alongside their sister Vivi, who is half fey and half mortal.

Jude aspires to be a knight in the High Court of Faerie. She wants to be strong, become someone who is respected, and she aspires to be something more than what her 'father', Madoc, thinks she will be. Jude and her sister Taryn, being mortals, are often teased and tricked by the fey. Their classmates are tremendously awful; the one distinct advantage they have is the power to lie. The fey cannot lie, but they are clever enough to speak around or avoid the truth as well. Madoc, Madoc also has his own ambitions.

Dain, one of the princes of the kingdom, sees something in Jude that may be mutually beneficial to them both. He aspires for the throne, and Jude aspires to be a knight, and he begins to weave her into his web. Dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnnn

That's enough summary.

I freaking LOVE this book! There's clearly going to be a sequel, I loved Jude and felt her frustrations or ways that she can overcome her weaknesses, and really admired her resilience, her persistence to overcome the odds. I loved all of the politics, how the fey world society was portrayed, and all the intricacies that came together in such a big way at the end.

Definitely. Waiting. For. The. SEQUEL.

Happy reading!