Books Via Ashley

Gone Viking by Helen Russell * I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review * Synopsis (from Goodreads) Frazzled mum Alice Ray likes to think she’s on top everything – she has FOUR bags-for-life in the boot of her car for heaven's sake. But after spectacularly embarrassing herself at work, she finally gives in to her sister’s pleas to take a much needed break. But this is not the luxury spa holiday Alice hoped for – instead, she finds herself in Denmark, in the middle of nowhere, on a ‘How to be a Viking’ getaway. Can the two sisters finally learn to get along or will learning to embrace their inner warrior just make them better at fighting? Review This book had zany characters and hilarious situations, but also some tender, heartfelt moments. It also made me want to craft a sword and build a boat and be a Viking! Alice is a very uptight woman who has a tragic past. Her way of dealing with that--with anything really--is to...

Artemis by Andy Weir * I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review * Synopsis (from Goodreads) Jazz Bashara is a criminal. Well, sort of. Life on Artemis, the first and only city on the moon, is tough if you're not a rich tourist or an eccentric billionaire. So smuggling in the occasional harmless bit of contraband barely counts, right? Not when you've got debts to pay and your job as a porter barely covers the rent. Everything changes when Jazz sees the chance to commit the perfect crime, with a reward too lucrative to turn down. But pulling off the impossible is just the start of her problems, as she learns that she's stepped square into a conspiracy for control of Artemis itself—and that now, her only chance at survival lies in a gambit even riskier than the first. Review I always feel a little sorry for an author when their debut becomes such a runaway hit. The Martian was amazing, and I mean, MATT DAMON starred in th...

The New Dark by Lorraine Thomson *I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review* Synopsis  (from Goodreads) Sorrel lives a quiet life in the tiny settlement of Amat. It’s all she’s ever known... Until a gang of marauding mutants destroys the village, snatching her brother Eli, and David, her boyfriend. Sorrel sets out after them, embarking on a journey fraught with danger. Can she survive? The only thing that keeps her going is Eli and David. They are out there somewhere. They must be alive. And if she has her way, she will find them. Review The premise is very interesting: it's a post-apocalyptic world, only a couple generations after whatever events happened Before to turn it into the Now. Sorrel is a girl whose entire life has been changed and she sets out to save her little brother and her kind of boyfriend. Along the way her worldview expands; she makes enemies and unexpected friends, and she finds that not all humans are good ...

October! What a busy month for me! My sister visited and then I had a couple very busy work weeks, but I still got a LOT of reading done! Though I guess this is actually becoming fairly average for me. All in all, I read 10 books this month! I've now read 90 out of my goal for 100 for the year! Let's take a look: Invictus - Ryan Graudin (4.5 stars) The Tiger's Daughter - K. Rivera Arsenault (2 stars) The Last Namsara - Kristen Ciccarelli (4 stars) Even the Darkest Stars - Heather Fawcett (3.5 stars) House of Shadows - Nicola Cornick (4 stars) Artemis - Andy Weir (4.5 stars) Angelfall - Susan Ee (4 stars) World After - Susan Ee (3 stars) End of Days - Susan Ee (3 stars) Forest of a Thousand Lanterns - Julie C. Dao (3.5 stars) I read a lot of ARCs from NetGalley this month (most of which were October releases), including The Tiger's Daughter , The Last Namsara , House of Shadows , and Artemis .  Angelfall and the subsequent two books were a ...

House of Shadows by Nicola Cornick *I received a free ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review* Synopsis (from Goodreads) London, 1662: There was something the Winter Queen needed to tell him. She fought for the strength to speak. ‘The crystal mirror is a danger. It must be destroyed – ‘ He replied instantly. ‘It will’. Ashdown, Oxfordshire, present day: Ben Ansell is researching his family tree when he disappears. As his sister Holly begins a desperate search, she finds herself inexplicably drawn to an ornate antique mirror and to the diary of Lavinia, a 19th century courtesan who was living at Ashdown House when it burned to the ground over 200 years ago. Intrigued, and determined to find out more about the tragedy at Ashdown, Holly’s only hope is that uncovering the truth about the past will lead her to Ben. Review I really enjoyed this story. It's refreshing to read a well-researched historical fiction that also has an intriguing pl...

The Last Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli * I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review * Synopsis  (from Goodreads) Asha is a dragon-slayer. Reviled by the very people she's sworn to protect, she kills to atone for the wicked deed she committed as a child - one that almost destroyed her city, and left her with a terrible scar. But protecting her father's kingdom is a lonely destiny: no matter how many dragons she kills, her people still think she's wicked. Even worse, to unite the fractured kingdom she must marry Jarek, the cruel commandant. As the wedding day approaches, Asha longs for freedom. Just when it seems her fate is sealed, the king offers her a way out: her freedom in exchange for the head of the most powerful dragon in Firgaard. And the only person standing in her way is a defiant slave boy Review “ Asha lured the dragon with a story. ” Such a great first line! Right there you get the tone for the whole...

The Tiger's Daughter by K. Arsenault Rivera * I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review * Synopsis This is the story of a Qorin warrior, Barsalayaa Shefali, and a divine empress, O-Shizuka, two young women and warriors, raised together across borders since their prophesied birth, who must work together to save the world from the threat of demons. Review Unfortunately, this book just wasn’t really my cup of tea. While the writing was lovely, I found the manner of story-telling a bit jarring and unusual. First it is told in third-person present, then told in letter form, with first-person directing the narrative to a specific person, referred to as “you”. It drove me crazy that basically the entire book was a "letter", and it was about events the person reading it had already lived through. The plot meandered… I guess there was really no “plot”, no specific direction the story was headed. It was mostly an info-dump. The ...