"Two Hearts. One Hope.
Rose has been appointed as a healer's apprentice at Hagenheim Castle, a rare opportunity for a woodcutter's daughter like her. While she often feels uneasy at the sight of blood, Rose is determined to prove herself capable. Failure will mean returning home to marry the aging bachelor her mother has chosen for her—a bloated, disgusting merchant who makes Rose feel ill.
When Lord Hamlin, the future duke, is injured, it is Rose who must tend to him. As she works to heal his wound, she begins to understand emotions she's never felt before and wonders if he feels the same. But falling in love is forbidden, as Lord Hamlin is betrothed to a mysterious young woman in hiding. As Rose's life spins toward confusion, she must take the first steps on a journey to discover her own destiny."
This is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty/Briar Rose. Oh, yes. I'm just reading fairy tale retellings like crazy, but I miss my childhood. Oh, those days of reading those sweet stories about true love, Prince Charming, and Happily Ever After. You have to admit that as a child, most people had been compelled to those stories and not just to Disney movies. In my opinion, Disney movies screwed every tale they touched. The stepmother from Snow Queen falling off the cliff? Bah! I like the bloody shoes better. More entertaining, and it shows a lot of character from other characters. Revenge is always a fascinating road, especially for heroes and heroines.
Healer's Apprentice is a bit obvious from the beginning. You probably all know who Rose is from the beginning. I mean, Briar Rose. Rose? That is a lot of empathizing already. It is not even foreshadowing. Anyway, it is a good fairy tale with a lot of twists and turns. Rose apparently likes the wrong guy, but has feelings for the right guy. Oh, my goodness. I'm already talking about the drama in this book. Needless to say, it is going to be very dramatic. It is all crazy and bawls and wailing. Well, if the characters could wail, they will wail.
Rose is a religious girl. I mean religious. But it should be obvious, right? It is a Christian novel. Honestly, that doesn't bother me very much. I guess I have more religious tolerance? I don't know exactly, but that is not the point of this review. Rose is a healer, who is obedient until she meets Lord Hamlin's little brother, who is also a creepy rapist. Ooops. Was that a surprise? Well, there was a lot of hints. Spoilers. Sorry. Anyway, Rose is a girl who annoyingly doesn't put two to two together. I mean, doesn't one plus one equals to ten? Oh, wait. That must be what she thinks. Even Lord... Oh, too early.
Lord Hamlin is also an idiot. They are smart or dumb, because plot demands it. Honestly, it doesn't matter very much to me, because I always enjoy retellings. I have a soft spot for them. Great, now I'm monologuing. Oh, wait. I even fail that sentence. I'm monologuing the entire review. Technically. Well, I'll think about it later. Lord Hamlin is like Disney's Prince from Snow White. I don't even know his name, and apparently neither does Snow White. They are only there for two reasons. 1) Move the plot forward/make heroine fall in love, and 2) Eye candy. And now, I'm done with Hamlin.
Overall, I think the Healer's Apprentice is a good read. It is interesting, with a good synopsis and plot. The writing is good too. I just insult the characters. That is all.
Rating: Three out of Five
"Princess Rinda of Balinore knows of only one way to get her cold father’s attention – to be an obnoxious, spoiled princess. When she finds out that the king plan to marrying her off to a far-flung nobleman, she puts on her best bratty show in front of the entire court. But Rinda’s plan backfires, and she soon finds herself married to the most ineligible man ever. Her new husband is monastery raised, poor as dirt, and a traveling minstrel.
A very, very bad traveling minstrel.
But Alek isn’t what he seems like on the surface, and neither is Rinda. She won’t take this marriage lying down, and schemes to find herself a new husband – a king. But as she and Alek travel together, they learn that not only are appearances deceiving, but goals can change in the blink of an eye, and love can get in the way of the strongest plans…
The Scarecrow King is a romantic retelling of the King Thrushbeard fairy tale."
King Thrushbeard is one of those tales that you probably never heard of. That is okay. I'm the one who is reading the book and I heard of it and read it. Still, if you consider to read this book, I recommend you read the fairy tale first. The original version. It is a bit amusing and short in the first one, but it will make you see the differences between King Thrushbeard and The Scarecrow King. And yes, of course, there are differences and similarities. I'm pleased to say that I'm happy with those differences.
The Scarecrow King is humorous. Rinda is really funny, even though she lacks her father's attentions. She has her sister's love, and that is pretty much all she needs. You don't always need a father to survive the world. She is intelligent, but she has a really low self-esteem. I swear, there is no other character like her that is moody and low. Actually, I think there are, but I can't name a few. At least not off the top of my head.
Alek, on the other hand, is Rinda's love interest. If you read the tale, then you would know what he really is. Unfortunately, he has to lie to his brand new wife all the time. And I do mean lie as in lie. Lie right to her face. That is a bit of a setback, but at least, Rinda learns to not be so rude and learns to be confident. That is one part of the book I really like. It is not so demeaning to women, unlike the original tale.
The Scarecrow King may be a short read (not that short), but it is so delightful. I wish there are more books like it. Alek and Rinda are a cute couple. And no, they don't really go into the nasty (sex, duh). Like what the author, Jill Myles, said (or maybe another author, since I usually get acknowledgements confused) it is all "closed doors."
Oh, yeah. I do read acknowledgments. I read from cover to cover. With the exception of copyright page. That part is always boring. Something about the year the book was published and how none of the characters' personality or traits resemble any living person. Yawn. Copyright pages are always boring to my eyes.
And yes, this is a Happily Ever After book.
Rating: Four out of Five
"Bjorn needs to find a very special woman . . .
The fate of his people, and his own life, depends on it. But when he does find her, she is nothing like he imagined, and may just harbor more secrets than he does himself.
Astrid has never taken well to commands. No matter who issues them . . .
She's clashed her whole life with her father, and now her lover, the mysterious man who comes to her bedroom in darkness and disappears to guard his mountain by day as a bear, is finding it out the hard way. And when he's taken by his enemies, no one is prepared for Astrid's response.
It is never wise to anger the mistress of the wind . . .
A captivating and magical adult retelling of the fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon."
I should tell you that I have a soft spot for retellings. East of the Sun, West of the Moon is one of my favorites. Cupid and Psyche is also my favorite. Beauty and the Beast, however, is not. They may all contain the same plots, but I favor only two out of three. Yes, they contain the same plots. Girl gets taken away from her family. Boy demands her company. They fall in love after mutual dislike. Then girl does something terrible that the boy cast the girl out. Girl finds her way back to boy. See? Just read Wikipedia, if you have further questions. And yes, this is pretty much the basics of the plot of Mistress of the Wind. However, there are a few changes, but none of them are worth mentioning.
Mistress of the Wind is similar to East by Edith Pattou and Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George. It is such a shame there are few retellings of this fairy tale. Thanks to Disney, Beauty and the Beast is the most famous of all. Mistress of the Wind may claim to be the adult retelling of this fairy tale, but it is passable as a Young Adult book. It is a wonderful book, a wonder reinvention of the tale. Of course, I might be slightly biased because I do hold a soft spot for this tale. Right?
Astrid is the Mistress of the Wind. It is a long story of how she became the Mistress of the Wind (short story, actually, but spoilers). That isn't the point of all of this. I find it a bit annoying how the author made Astrid look like an angel while the rest of her family is mostly trash. I mean, gold diggers. Or weak. Her mother had a chance along with her little brother to speak up against Bjorn's request to take Astrid as his "companion."
Bjorn is an interesting character. He seems to be a coward, but ultimately he makes the right choices. Then again, he was just a young boy when he saw a bunch of people dying. So dark, isn't it? I totally agree, for one.
Favorite part: I really enjoyed the part when Astrid finally manages to outwit the Troll Princess. Oh, yes. There is an ugly Troll Princess. However, the moments when Astrid finally finds out about her powers is comparable. I would rate that second.
And yes, this is a Happily Ever After story.
Rating: Four out of Five
"In book three of the Testing series, the United Commonwealth wants to eliminate the rebel alliance fighting to destroy The Testing for good. Cia is ready to lead the charge, but will her lethal classmates follow her into battle?
She wants to put an end to the Testing
In a scarred and brutal future, The United Commonwealth teeters on the brink of all-out civil war. The rebel resistance plots against a government that rules with cruelty and cunning. Gifted student and Testing survivor, Cia Vale, vows to fight.
But she can't do it alone.
This is the chance to lead that Cia has trained for - but who will follow? Plunging through layers of danger and deception, Cia must risk the lives of those she loves--and gamble on the loyalty of her lethal classmates.
Who can Cia trust?
The stakes are higher than ever-lives of promise cut short or fulfilled; a future ruled by fear or hope--in the electrifying conclusion to Joelle Charbonneau's epic Testing trilogy. Ready or not…it's Graduation Day.
The Final Test is the Deadliest!"
Welcome to the book series that makes you feel dumb. Graduation Day will make you feel smart, so you better listen up and read my review. Or if you don't feel dumb, don't bother even reading this series. Trilogy. It is a trilogy.
Graduation Day is the last installment in the Testing series. I actually like the first book, The Testing, very much, because it has challenges and fascinating things. Needless to say, I have a heart in dystopian reads. And I finished this book, because I might as well finish up the series before I start on another series. You know how much I read, right? A book per day? That rate? Oh, well. I finished, I finish.
Cia is a smart girl. She is able to find problems when even I can't find anything. Of course, that only makes me feel more dumb, but that is not the point of the story. Cia is always one for change. She doesn't want the Testing to continue, but as the plot moves forward, her belief is tested and determined. I will tell you myself that the changes in her character are quite fascinating. She is always secondguessing, always making sure she won't be killed or murdered before her plans would finally make their due.
The best part? I think the best part is when Cia finally breaks away from the University and makes her own choices instead of listening to the rebellion, the President, and other factors. Yes, that is indeed the best moment.
Graduation Day goes by quickly. I didn't notice the ending or the time when I finished the book. It isn't a bad ending, but I will admit that I was left a bit disappointed. The ending leaves a bunch of questions to be answered. I really hate how some authors would leave more questions to be answered, as if expecting to write another series. Needless to say, I don't have much time to read, but I burn time by reading books anyway. Graduation Day ends with many questions thanks to one crucial character's death. Oh. I should add that the character is only secondary. He isn't part of the main cast yet he left so many questions to be answered! It is so frustrating! (Ruin and Rising left too many questions, too).
Overall, this series/trilogy started off well and ended with many questions. At least Cia got what she wanted, but there is still not enough answers given. This Testing series is best for readers who want to have discussions and debates after finishing their books.
Rating: Three out of Five
"When Psyche receives a prophecy gone horribly wrong, she learns that even the most beautiful girl in Greece can have a hideous future. Her fate? Fall in love with the one creature even the gods fear.
As she feels herself slipping closer into the arms of the prophecy, Psyche must choose between the terrifyingly tender touch she feels almost powerless to resist and the one constant she's come to expect out of life: you cannot escape what is destined."
What is this book? Destined is a retelling of Cupid and Psyche (Love and Psyche, Eros and Psyche, or the God-Who-Revealed-Nico-Is-Gay-In-The-Percy-Jackson-series and Psyche). And this time, it explains things from both Psyche and Eros' point of view. I admit it is indeed a bit interesting. The myth itself mostly stars Psyche and her perspective. Eros' POV is rarely seen, if at all.
Destined is a bit unforgettable in a bad way. I didn't really like it, but the romantic parts of Destined isn't too bad. In fact, it is bearable, but that isn't the worst part of the book. The worst part is the dialect and the setting. The dialect is modern while the setting is set in the past. It took me awhile to figure that this story isn't modern. It is a long time ago. All that modern dialect only annoys me. After all, I'm pretty sure Greeks don't use those weird words when they talk about love or other kinds of stuff. I would give a few examples, but I can't seem to remember any good ones. And the setting isn't obvious either. I thought it was in modern day before I realized it was far, far, far into the past. My mistake.
Aphrodite is an interesting character. I enjoy her use of reverse psychology on those kids. Kids meaning Psyche and Eros. She seems as clever as Athena, though only in love. At least, Aphrodite learns from her mistakes. Psyche, on the other hand, doesn't learn from other people's mistakes very well. I mean, Helen's mistakes. Yes! Helen of Troy, the lady who caused a crazy war between everyone. I can't remember the details anymore.
Psyche finds too many loopholes in wording. Unfortunately, she seems to be very stubborn and a bit annoying thanks to her stunning ability to always disobey people. The only person she seems to obey is 1) Herself, and 2) the Plot. Oh, drat! The plot isn't a person. I forgot about that. However, I can change plot into author, Jessie Harrell.
Eros seems to be a jerk. I totally agree with Psyche. He is a bit too whiny and annoying. Even his POV is a bit annoying. He seems to be this kid who can't get what he wants. Plus, his logic is a bit annoying though understandable. He knows Psyche probably hates him, so he goes invisible. Only problem? Wouldn't Psyche recognize his voice? Drat! I should mention that Psyche is a bit dumb for a girl like her. She may be able to find loopholes, but she can't see what is in front of her very nose.
Overall, Destined is a book that is awful. Stay far, far, far away.
Rating: One out of Five
