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The Beasts We Bury

By D. L. Taylor

Coming February 4, 2025

(4 / 5)

The Beasts We Bury is a young adult fantasy story that follows Mancella, an heir to the throne who has the magical ability to summon animals, but only after she has killed them. We also follow Silver, a thief who has been tasked with infiltrating the castle and deceiving Mancella. Things become complicated as the two get to know each other better.

I really enjoyed this book and thought both of the main characters were likable. They each had distinct personalities that were relatable. There were some interesting side characters, and Mancella’s father was a special kind of evil that made him quite a villain. I thought the magic in this world felt different and unique from other books I’ve read. Mancella’s magic could definitely be hard to read about at times since it involves killing animals, but I could also feel her despair about it all. I liked the relationship between Mancella and Silver, feeling it was believable and enough to create tension without being the focus of the story. I’m not sure if this book is the beginning of a series, but I’d definitely like to dive back into this world if it were.

I was able to listen to the audiobook version, which I thought was done very well. There were two narrators to represent the two main characters. I thought both narrators did a great job at representing the emotions and personalities of both characters.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Macmillan Young Listeners, and NetGalley for the free audiobook copy of The Beasts We Bury! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

This Will Be Fun

By E. B. Asher

Coming September 10, 2024

(3.5 / 5)

Ten years ago, four heroes saved the realm, an event that is joyously celebrated by the Queendom… except for the heroes themselves. After losing their leader in the battle, the remaining three heroes split on bad terms. Now the queen is getting married, and the heroes must face each other again for the event.

I had a hard time getting into this book. It’s more character driven than plot driven, which wasn’t quite what I was expecting. For the first half, it felt like not a lot was happening, and there was a lot of eluding to past events without completely revealing what exactly happened (until around the 40% mark). Things did pick up a bit maybe around the halfway mark, but I wasn’t really feeling either of the romances. The magic in this world led to a lot of modern-world parallels – chain coffee shops, riding sharing, tabloids, social media, video streaming, etc. It made the story a bit quirky, though for me this magic almost felt a little too convenient at times. In the end, this book didn’t capture my interest as well as I thought it would, but I could see how others might really enjoy it.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for the free review copy of This Will Be Fun! All opinions in my review are completely my own.

July 26, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Romance 0

The Blood Traitor

The Prison Healer #3

By Lynette Noni

(4.5 / 5)

The Blood Traitor is the third book of the trilogy, The Prison Healer, and it didn’t disappoint. I really liked the sense of adventure this book had, exploring so much more of this fictional world than we did in the previous books. The different kinds of relationships that developed between characters were interesting and sometimes surprising. There was a good amount of action and drama, keeping me engaged and wanting to read to the end. After the previous books, I’d come to expect some interesting twists along the way, so there were some things I suspected before they were actually revealed, but I still managed to get surprised too. This was a worthy ending to a series that I really enjoyed reading and hope to read again in the future.

June 26, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Hardcover Young Adult 0

The Gilded Cage

The Prison Healer #2

By Lynette Noni

(4 / 5)

After how The Prison Healer ended, I went into the 2nd book of the series with the thought “I have a feeling this won’t end well.” Once again, we are following Kiva, joined by some familiar characters from the last book and some new ones as well. I definitely had some strong feelings and intuitions about some of the characters that turned out to be validated along the way. Kiva faces some tough decisions in this book, and honestly, I sometimes was cringing at her choices, even though it’s also what I was expecting. Over the course of the book, I made a lot of theories about reveals that might happen later in the story – some of those turned out to be right, some not quite, and a couple complete surprises along the way. The Gilded Cage was a book that thoroughly kept my interest, and I can’t wait to see where the story goes next in the 3rd book!

June 23, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Hardcover Young Adult 0

The Prison Healer

By Lynette Noni

(4.5 / 5)

This one was a reread for me, and I think I may have liked it even more the second time around. Knowing how it ends, it was interesting to see all the clues that lead up to it from a new perspective. Here’s my original review from when I first read The Prison Healer a few years ago…

The Prison Healer is a young adult fantasy that follows the story of a teen, Kiva, who has been locked in a prison for 10 years. Written in the 3rd person, the book follows Kiva’s point of view, giving us a deep insight of her thoughts and memories while she serves as the prison’s healer. Through Kiva’s eyes, we meet an interesting cast of characters inside of the prison setting.

I overall enjoyed the book and the story it had to offer, with its immersive setting and characters that felt real. While it did feel a little slow at times, there was also plenty of excitement along the way. Kiva’s thoughts could be a little redundant at times, but overall, she is a likable and relatable character. And while some things don’t seem to quite make sense along the way, it comes together by the end (sometimes in an unexpected way). I’m glad I had the chance to read this book and am looking forward to the sequel to see what happens next!

I received a free review copy of the book. All opinions are completely my own.

June 21, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Paperback Young Adult 0

When You Fall for a Prince

By Lia Huni

Released today!

(5 / 5)

Eva is a college student studying abroad in the tiny country of Freiburg, which happens to be the home country of her longtime friend from home, Teo. What she doesn’t know is that he’s had a crush on her for years AND is a prince of Freiburg. If you have KindleUnlimited, you can even check out this book for free!

When You Fall for a Prince is the 5th book in a series of books, but I had no issues reading this one without reading the other books first. That said, I devoured this book, so I’d love to read the other books as well. The story flowed beautifully and pulled me in easily. I really enjoyed both of the main characters as well as the interesting side characters. There’s some scenes that are quite comical and give the story a lighthearted feel. The romance is a bit of a slow-burn, but I enjoyed both main characters growing and finding themselves along the way. I’m really impressed that this is an indie book, since it felt just as polished as books I’ve read from large publishers and well-known authors.

Thank you to the author for the free review copy of When You Fall for a Prince! All opinions in my review are completely my own and voluntary.

January 24, 2024 by danimae1981 Fiction Kindle Romance 0

The Encanto’s Daughter

By Melissa de la Cruz

Coming soon on March 5, 2024!

(4 / 5)

The Encanto’s Daughter is a young adult fantasy story that follows MJ, a teenage girl who has been living in our world but is actually half-encanto. After the death of her father, MJ must return to the fairy world of Biringan to take her place on the throne as Queen.

This story jumped right into action in the first chapter, with MJ trying to escape capture by insurgents from the fairy realm. Since she has been living in the human world, we are able to experience the wonder of Biringan through MJ’s eyes. She only has a matter of weeks to prepare for her coronation, so I enjoyed watching MJ transition from being a normal high school student to the leader of an island nation. This book has a sense of mystery to it, as MJ suspects that her father was actually murdered. It kept me wondering who MJ could and couldn’t trust. There’s also a bit of romance weaved in, although it’s less than I thought there might be. The Encanto’s Daughter is the first book in a duology, so I thought it did a good job resolving the issues presented in this book, while leaving a bit of a cliffhanger in the Epilogue to build anticipation for the next book. I enjoyed reading this book and look forward to the story continuing.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and BookishFirst for the free ARC copy of The Encanto’s Daughter! All opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.

January 16, 2024 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Paperback Young Adult 0

A Fragile Enchantment

By Allison Saft

Coming soon on January 2, 2024!

(4.5 / 5)

A Fragile Enchantment is a young adult fantasy romance with a historical feel to it. We follow Niamh, a common girl from Machland who has the ability to stitch emotions into fabric. A talented dressmaker, her creations have received enough attention that she is asked to design the wardrobe for a royal wedding in Avaland. The groom is Prince Christopher, more commonly known as Kit, who has a questionable past, abrasive personality, and is obviously not marrying by choice. As Niamh and Kit begin to bond, it creates a complicated situation while political unrest builds in Avaland.

I really enjoyed reading this book… it was so immersive and hard to put down, that I found myself reading well into the night. Niamh was a likeable character who cared deeply about the well-being of her family and those around her. Though life at the palace was a very foreign world for her, she was dedicated to her work and made friends along the way. Her relationship with Kit was quite complicated, but I liked how much they challenged each other and brought out the best qualities in each other. Both of these characters showed a lot of growth over the course of the story. The political undertones made the story even more complex, and it had me guessing as to what secrets lurked beneath the surface. It was one of those books where I was sad when it came to an end because I had enjoyed it so much.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the free review copy of A Fragile Enchantment! Opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.

December 25, 2023 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Kindle Romance Young Adult 0

Sneak Peek: The Encanto’s Daughter

By Melissa de la Cruz

Releasing on March 5, 2024

First Impression: (5 / 5)

I had the opportunity to read the first 37 pages of The Encanto’s Daughter, which is scheduled to be released next March. I was initially drawn in by the beautiful cover and interesting description, but I’m even more interested in this book now that I’ve had the chance to read the first chapters. The action begins quickly, and then we are swept away into the fantasy world of Biringan. While MJ, the main character, is royalty from this world, she has been living as a normal person for as long as she can remember. This makes her very relatable, and readers can experience the newness of this world through her eyes. I would love to continue reading this book!

October 23, 2023 by danimae1981 eBook Fantasy Fiction First Impression Young Adult 0

A Multitude of Dreams

By Mara Rutherford

Coming soon on August 29, 2023

(4 / 5)

A Multitude of Dreams was an interesting blend of genres. It’s a young adult book with a post-apocalyptic dystopia feel mixed with fantasy, action and a dash of romance along the way.

The story follows the points-of-view of 2 characters, Seraphina and Nico. In the aftermath of a terrible disease, both characters are living very different lives from what they were before. Seraphina is Jewish, and lived in an area where Jewish people were separated from the rest of the population – this book actually dives into the persecution of Jews, much like what happened in real history. When the king’s favorite daughter, Imogen, dies from the disease, the other princesses take Seraphina to live as the princess since she looks remarkably similar. For 4 years she has been stuck in the castle as the king will not allow anyone to leave. Meanwhile, Nico lived a life with some status though his mother. But with his entire family dead from the sickness, he now works as a servant for a nobleman named Crane. On the surface Crane seems like a good enough man, but soon Nico starts to suspect that things are not quite what they seem.

Several chapters in, the book takes a turn into a more paranormal/fantasy feel, which I didn’t necessarily see coming, but it adds an interesting twist to the story that gives it a sinister feel. It also leads to a lot of thrills and action.

Overall, this book was an enjoyable read that kept me engaged and wanting to read more. I liked both of the main characters and felt they were well-developed and learn a lot about themselves over the course of the story. The world created in the book was interesting and immersive.

Thank you to Inkyard Press for the free copy of this book, which I won through a BookishFirst raffle. All opinions expressed in my review are completely my own.

August 16, 2023 by danimae1981 Fantasy Fiction Hardcover Young Adult 0