Icons by Margaret Stohl

Title: Icons  
Author: Margaret Stohl
Genre:  Sci-fi/Fantasy
Pages: 428
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Format: paperback

Synopsis:Your heart beats only with their permission.
Everything changed on The Day. The day the windows shattered. The day the power stopped. The day Dol's family dropped dead. The day Earth lost a war it didn't know it was fighting.

Since then, Dol has lived a simple life in the countryside -- safe from the shadow of the Icon and its terrifying power. Hiding from the one truth she can't avoid.
She's different. She survived. Why?

When Dol and her best friend, Ro, are captured and taken to the Embassy, off the coast of the sprawling metropolis once known as the City of Angels, they find only more questions. While Ro and fellow hostage Tima rage against their captors, Dol finds herself drawn to Lucas, the Ambassador's privileged son. But the four teens are more alike than they might think, and the timing of their meeting isn't a coincidence. It's a conspiracy.

Within the Icon's reach, Dol, Ro, Tima, and Lucas discover that their uncontrollable emotions -- which they've always thought to be their greatest weaknesses -- may actually be their greatest strengths.(Goodreads Synopsis)

Review:
Going into this book the synopsis really intrigued me but I had read the first two books in her beautiful creatures series which she co-wrote with Kami Garcia and to be honest I got a bit bored of them. I put aside my dislike for that series and decided to give her a chance, and I was pleasantly surprised. I wouldn't say this was amazing because I felt as though there were some parts of the story that were rushed and then other parts where I felt myself saying "just get on with it" haha.

The first maybe 100 pages gave it a solid start but after that it kind of fell through and I found myself get disinterested but I pushed through. I feel as though there needed to be a bit more character development, there was not much substance to them and I found it hard to find anything I could relate to them with. I didn't really like the main character Dol as she got on my nerves. Also enough with the love triangles in YA I am so over it.

Over all I think that the concept of the book was awesome but I think it needed to be hashed out a bit more, especially with the characters. For the most part it was enjoyable but not something I would rave about. If you like young adult sci-fi then this one is for you. Let me know if you have read this and what your thoughts are on it.

Happy Reading :)

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Title: The Cruel Prince
Series: The Folk Of The Air #01Author: Holly Black
Genre:  Fantasy, YA

Pages: 370

Publisher: Little Brown Books

Format: Paperback

SynopsisOf 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 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.

As Jude becomes more deeply embroiled in palace intrigues and deceptions, she discovers her own capacity for trickery and bloodshed. But as betrayal 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. (Goodreads Synopsis)

Review: 
I  feel like I should mention that there are a few Trigger Warnings, there are some harsh themes that follow in the story which include suicide, sexual abuse, physical abuse and murder.

I Love the cover for this and the title fits the book perfectly. 
Writing a story on fae is something that is hard to master but Miss Holly Black does it effortlessly. The start was super intriguing, I mean her parents are murdered by one of the Fae in front of her and her sisters. I really liked the Heroine Jude as she was headstrong and didn't let the bullies get to her, she held her head up and didn't let them know how much their comments affected her. There were some parts of the book where it felt a little slow and I started to get a bit bored but it never lasted long and picked up the pace pretty quickly. I feel the reason I felt it to be slow was the politics as there was a quite a bit of info for me to wrap my head around.

The world building is fantastic and I love the fact that the book had a touch of romance but it didn't overshadow everything else, it was sporadic. I am exited to see where the rest of the story goes as we were left on a bit of a cliff hanger.

If you love fantasy and Faeries then this one is for you. 

A Court Of Frost And Starlight by Sarah J Maas

Title: A Court Of Frost And Starlight

Author: Sarah J Maas

Genre:  Fantasy, Romance

Pages: 272

Publisher: Bloomsbury YA

Format: Hardback

Synopsis:Feyre, Rhys, and their close-knit circle of friends are still busy rebuilding the Night Court and the vastly-changed world beyond. But Winter Solstice is finally near, and with it, a hard-earned reprieve. 

Yet even the festive atmosphere can't keep the shadows of the past from looming. As Feyre navigates her first Winter Solstice as High Lady, she finds that those dearest to her have more wounds than she anticipated--scars that will have far-reaching impact on the future of their Court. (Goodreads synopsis)


Review:
Sarah has done it again. I thought that Feyre's story had ended in A Court Of Wings And Ruin but then I found out that this book was coming out and I was super excited to get to read more Feyre and Rhysand scenes. This book takes off where we got left in the last one. Both Feyre and Rhys have been busy trying to put things back together again and barely have any time for one another. I loved the banter between all the characters and I thought it was an awesome send off to Feyre's chapter. I thought it was cool to see a bit more of Mor's point of view, I am very interested to see where her journey leads. Especially with her awful father. I also loved the chapters with Nesta and Cassian, I am really looking forward to the next book in this world and I hope that it is their story! This book tied everything up nicely and it was just cool to see how everyone adapted to the changes after the war. Highly Reccomend and I will be counting down the days till the next installment!

Happy Reading Everyone! :D

Year One by Nora Roberts

Title: Year One

Author: Nora Roberts
Genre: Post-apocolyptic, Fantasy, Dystiopian

Pages: 430

Publisher: Hachette

Format: Paperback

Synopsis: 

With one drop of blood, the old world is gone for ever. And in its place, something extraordinary begins...

They call it The Doom - a deadly pandemic that starts on a cold New Year's Eve in the Scottish countryside. There's something mysterious about the virus and the way it spreads. As billions fall sick and die, some survivors find themselves invested with strange, unexpected abilities.
Lana, a New York chef, has the power to move things and people with her will. Fred can summon light in the darkness. Jonah, a paramedic, sees snatches of the future in those he touches. Katie gives birth to twins, and suspects that she has brought fresh magic into the world, along with new life.
But The Doom affects people differently. Along with the light, a dark and terrifying magic will also rise. As the remaining authorities round up the immune and the 'Uncannies' for testing, Lana, Katie and others flee New York in search of a safe haven. The old world is over, and Year One has begun. (Goodreads Synopsis)Review: 
Nora Roberts is not an author I ever thought I would read... her books just aren't my cup of tea. I work in a bookstore so I get to go to these publisher events and I got an advanced copy of year one. The first thing that caught my attention was that part of the book was set in the "Scottish countryside" and Scotland is in my top 3 of places I want to visit. Also fantasy is my favourite genre so I decided to give it a go and boy was I surprised. This novel read so well, I couldn't put it down. The world building is phenomenal, I could see the world so vividly and I honestly think this would make a great tv show! Basically the premise of the book is that there has been a virus outbreak which has killed billions of people and those that have survived are either normal or have developed these supernatural abilities. I love the multiple p.o.v's and how their stories intertwined. The next installment can't get here soon enough, if you like fantasy then this one is for you. 

Wonder by R. J. Palacio

Title: Wonder

Author: RJ Palacio

Genre: Childrens lit, coming of age

Pages: 316

Publisher: Penguin Random House

Format: Paperback

Synopsis: 
"I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse."

August (Auggie) Pullman was born with a facial deformity that prevented him from going to a mainstream school—until now. He's about to start 5th grade at Beecher Prep, and if you've ever been the new kid then you know how hard that can be. The thing is Auggie's just an ordinary kid, with an extraordinary face. But can he convince his new classmates that he's just like them, despite appearances?

R. J. Palacio has written a spare, warm, uplifting story that will have readers laughing one minute and wiping away tears the next. With wonderfully realistic family interactions (flawed, but loving), lively school scenes, and short chapters, Wonder is accessible to readers of all levels.  (Goodreads Synopsis)

Review: The first thing that I want to say about this book is that if you haven't read this yet, where have you been? This book is absolutely phenominal and words cannot describe how much I enjoyed it. I love that we got to see the different points of views of the characters and I found Auggie was such a unique character that I absolutely adore, he is strong and courages and loving.  I loved seeing him grow as a person and really come out of his shell. I also enjoyed see the changes in the other characters when they chose to be kind. I also really like seeing Via's point of view, having a brother with treacher collins syndrome who always had his parents attention was something that she really struggled with but overcame with time. 

This book that I believe everyone should read, it spreads the message of kindness, to treat those how you would like to be treated. It also teaches us readers to really think about the things that we say and how we say them because you never know how it may affect someone. This is definitely my favourite read of the year and I think it's actually now in my top 5 favourite books of all time. Wonder will pull you through a roller coaster of emotions and really teach you to #choosekind. If you haven't read Wonder yet I highly recommend that you pick it up, you will not be disappointed, I promise.