The Last Graduate - Naomi Novik

 

Book: The Last Graduate (Scholomance #2)

Author: Naomi Novik

Releasedate: 28th of September, 2021

Oh man, I loved the first book and I really do love the second. In the first book a whole plan arises and it comes to bloom in the second and it is awesome to behold what happens. I am really trying to be as spoilerless as possible, but if you’ve already read the first one, you really were waiting for the second one. 

I hated the ending, because when I read this, the third book wasn’t out yet, by far. I bought this one in the pre-order and read it asap. And maaaan, the wait was long. It ends with a huge cliffhanger and it has this epic feel throughout the story. I mean, El and Orion are such a cool match to see. And I just love that the Scholomance itself is ‘alive” and so willing to participate in whatever scheme Galadriel is throwing herself in. I am really fascinated by the magic system and I really feel for El that she doesn’t want to go to the dark side, despite the fact that her skills would definitely suit her. The universe is technically screaming at her to become a maleficer, but no, she won’t succumb and I admire her for that. 

And by the way, have you noticed the freaking creepy monsters that lurk there? I mean, a mawmouth just sounds horrendous! Brrr. I definitely understand why the parents send their kids to the Scholomance if they can. But man, that’s just nasty stuff.  

A Deadly Education - Naomi Novik

 

Book: A Deadly Education (Scholomance #1)

Author: Naomi Novik

Releasedate: September 29, 2020

A friend of mine recommended this book and once I read the teaser I was intrigued, so when I came across it in our local bookstore, I brought it along.

Well, first and foremost. Naomi’s writing is so easy and vivid to read. I actually read this one in just a few days. And with my current energylevels and time to read, that says a lot. If I had a whole day where I could read a book, it would definitely be this one.

The magic system is as far as I can tell pretty unique. The way the world works with malia and mana is really cool and the fact that you are born with an affinity for certain magic skills is very neat. 

I do love the main character. Most heroines are very insecure and most likely a sort of damsel in distress. Well, Galadriel isn’t. She’s not your regular loner, but I can really feel why she is alone and it’s really cool to see how she develops throughout the story. I really, really like this book and will most definitely read it again! 

House of Sky and Breath - Sarah J. Maas

 

Book: House of Sky and Breath (Crescent City #2)

Author: Sarah J. Maas 

Releasedate: 15th of February, 2022

OH… MY … SOCKS… 

I wrote that I wasn’t very enthusiastic about the first book in this series, but second one has blown me away!

I mean, I even coerced my husband to start reading the books so I can squeal with him over the ending of this book. 

I was much more invested in this story then I was in the first one. It felt like it finally fell into place and it was much easier for me to read instead of getting lost in the infodump. None of that was really needed now. 

It was sligthly daunting for me to start this book, because I was so underwhelmed by the start of the first book, but it was totally worth it getting into it. The books are one of the thickest on my bookshelves, but you really need all the pages for the story. It was quite a heavy book to take with me on the subway, lol, And I even have the hardcover so that’s extra weight and mass. But I didn’t regret it and I read it pretty quickly. Sarah’s writing style is so easy to read. I was surprised in the first book and the second with all the profanity, but given that this isn’t YA anymore, I guess that suits the purpose for the story.

If you are planning on reading this series, I highly recommend that you read the Actorar series first and possibly even the Throne of Glass series as well, because there is a big plan afoot in Sarah’s worlds and you want to be there to see it unfold! 

House of Earth and Blood - Sarah J. Maas

 

Book: House of Earth and Blood

Author: Sarah J. Maas

Releasedate: 3rd of March, 2020

Oh boy. I really love the books Sarah writes but this one really took me way to long to get into. I even made a post in our facebook group looking for support on how to get into this book. 

And people kept telling me “Read on, it will get better!” 

And it did, fortunately.

When you start this book, prepared to get infodumped. I really was lost at the start at so many new locations and people that it almost was to much for me. Heck, I still haven’t properly read the Game of Thrones series because of all the POI switching. 

But okay, I kept reading on and I quite liked the book. I still love the Acotar series more then this book, but it was okay for me. Maybe if I read it a second time, it will be better now I know the personas and what happens next. 

I do like the modern day worldbuilding in a world filled with Fae though. I mean, they have cellphones and watch Sunball games on big screen tv’s. That’s really cool. The magic in the story doesn’t feel obsolete, but it enhances each other and I think that’s a really cool job that Sarah did there. 

So, on to number 2! 

Crooked Kingdom - Leigh Bardugo

 

Book: Crooked Kingdom (#2 Six of Crows)

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Releasedate: September 27, 2016

If you liked the first book, you are definitely going to love the second book. For me, this story had so much more depth then the first one and it was a real joy to see how everything unfolds in the story. We also get to see more of Kaz’s mind and why he is like he is and you almost get the shivers for him for what happened to him.

The ending is really satisfying, but throughout the story you are constantly wondering if everything is going to be allright. Because sometimes things won’t be allright and that’s allright in itself. 

You really feel anxious for what happens in the story and it all seems to be a big mindfuck until you understand it all. And that really had an Ocean’s Eleven feel to it for me. 

This book was a nominee for best YA Fantasy back in 2016 and I can totally understand that. It still has it’s darkness and it’s plots and twist and I really do like that! 

Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo

 

Book: Six of Crows

Author: Leigh Bardugo

Releasedate: September 29, 2015

Well, the recommendation to read this book came from quite a weird place. I really love playing Guild Wars 2 and I saw someone there with a name that resembled one of the characters in the Throne of Glass series of Sarah J. Maas. (I’ve read those too also in the past, all of them are in my bookcase!)

We started talking and she recommended me this book with it’s successor as well. So, I still had some birthday money left and ordered them. They have a pretty spot in my bookcase now.

Okay, remember Ocean’s Eleven? It’s like that and nothing like that at all. It’s fantasy, dark and brutal. You get to know several characters in the story and whereas I was afraid it was going to be a multi person story with several storylines, it wasn’t that bad at all. The story flows with the different characters and just shows you different point of views. 

I really like the way the Grisha work in this world and I find it fascinating how Leigh made it so human still. Kaz is a really intriguing person to follow and you never quite know what’s going on in that dark head of his. The story is daring, exciting and thrilling. And I really like the scenery because it’s mostly Dutch inspired (however some of the names elude me why those were chosen as “Dutch”), but hey, it was pretty well executed. It’s really weird for me to read Dutch names in an English story, so my head was switching back and forth to Dutch and English, but that didn’t bother me. 

Leigh’s storytelling is a hard to put down kinda style and it reads very easily. So, if you like dark, brooding and a criminal mastermind, I’d definitely recommend reading this one! 

When Women Were Dragons - Kelly Barnhill

 

Book: When Women Were Dragons

Author: Kelly Barnhill

Releasedate: 3rd of May 2022

Well, let me say. I saw this book in my local bookstore and was instantly intrigued. I mean, women and dragons? I’ve read several books containing dragons, but this looked like a whole new take on the subject and I was absolutely right.

You really feel the time it is set in. So many ambiguous people and definitely something people would do when they encounter something they don’t understand. Just hide it and don’t talk about it.

Well, I do need to talk about this book. I really like it! I find it fascinating and you can almost believe it has happened in the past, weren’t it for the fact that there are no dragons in real life. 

For the better part of the book I did wonder how it was going to end. But as soon as it was nearing it’s ending, it totally made sense. Kelly’s writing style is easygoing with an academic touch to the story and I really admire her for that view she put in her story. So, if you’re into a fantasy filled historic story with a feelgood ending, this is your go to. And apparently several people agree with me since this book was nominated for the Best Fantasy in 2022!