Tag: All Time Favorites

{Review} The Sword of Summer – A Hilarious Protagonist and Norse Mythology

Posted January 7, 2016 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments

{Review} The Sword of Summer – A Hilarious Protagonist and Norse MythologyThe Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan
Series: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #1
Publisher: Disney Hyperion (2015)
Hardcover (491 pages)
Rating:
Also by this author: The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan's Curse
Reading Challenges: 2015 Mythology, Read 2015

Synopsis

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother’s mysterious death, he’s lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, keeping one step ahead of the police and the truant officers.
One day, he’s tracked down by a man he’s never met—a man his mother claimed was dangerous. The man tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god.
The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war. Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years.
When an attack by fire giants forces him to choose between his own safety and the lives of hundreds of innocents, Magnus makes a fatal decision.
Sometimes, the only way to start a new life is to die . . .

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{Review} Crown of Midnight – Celaena’s Back!

Posted January 4, 2016 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments

{Review} Crown of Midnight – Celaena’s Back!Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas
Series: Throne of Glass #2
Publisher: Bloomsbury (2013)
Paperback (418 pages)
Rating:
Also by this author: Throne of Glass, A Court of Thorns and Roses, Heir of Fire
Also in this series: Throne of Glass, Heir of Fire, Queen of Shadows
Reading Challenges: Read 2015

Synopsis

An assassin's loyalties are always in doubt but her heart never wavers.
Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become the King's Champion. But she is far from loyal to the crown. Though she hides her secret vigilantly, her deadly charade becomes difficult when she realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. No one is above questioning her allegiance—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.
Then, one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena's world shatters, she will be forced to decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie ... and whom she is willing to fight for.

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{Review} City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II’s Kraków

Posted December 23, 2015 in Faith, Reading, Review / 0 Comments

{Review} City of Saints: A Pilgrimage to John Paul II’s KrakówCity of Saints by George Weigel
Publisher: Image (2015)
Paperback (336 pages)
Via: Blogging for Books
Rating:

Synopsis

“Karol Wojtyła, Pope John Paul II, was a man whose life was the expression of a richly textured and multidimensional soul. The many layers of that soul took on their first, mature form in Kraków.” – George Weigel
In this beautifully illustrated spiritual travelogue,
New York Times bestselling author George Weigel leads readers through the historic streets of Kraków, Poland, introducing one of the world’s great cities through the life of one of the most influential Catholic leaders of all time.
“To follow Karol Wojtyła through Kraków is to follow an itinerary of sanctity while learning the story of a city.” Weigel writes. “Thus, in what follows, the story of Karol Wojtyła, St. John Paul II, and the story of Kraków are interwoven in a chronological pilgrimage through the life of a saint that reveals, at the same time, the dramatic history and majestic culture of a city where a boy grew into a man, priest, a bishop—and an apostle to the world.”
With stunning photographs by Stephen Weigel and notes on the city’s remarkable fabric by Carrie Gress, City of Saints offers an in-depth look at a man and a city that made an indelible impression on the life and thought of the Catholic Church and the 21st century world.

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{Review} Winter – Will Cinder Really be able to Start a Revolution?

Posted December 21, 2015 in Reading, Review / 0 Comments

{Review} Winter – Will Cinder Really be able to Start a Revolution?Winter by Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #4
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends (2015)
Hardcover (824 pages)
Rating:
Also by this author: Cinder, Scarlet, Cress
Also in this series: Cinder, Scarlet, Cress
Reading Challenges: 2015 Fairytale Retelling, 2015 Finishing the Series, Read 2015

Synopsis

Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.
Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend—the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.
Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters?

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{Review} The Heart of Betrayal – Will Lia and Rafe Survive Venda?

Posted December 14, 2015 in Reading, Review / 8 Comments

{Review} The Heart of Betrayal – Will Lia and Rafe Survive Venda?The Heart of Betrayal by Mary E Pearson
Series: The Remnant Chronicles #2
Publisher: Henry Holt and Company (2015)
Hardcover (470 pages)
Via: Library
Rating:
Also by this author: The Kiss of Deception
Also in this series: The Kiss of Deception
Reading Challenges: Read 2015

Synopsis

Held captive in the barbarian kingdom of Venda, Lia and Rafe have little chance of escape. Desperate to save Lia’s life, her erstwhile assassin, Kaden, has told the Vendan Komizar that she has the gift, and the Komizar’s interest in Lia is greater than anyone could have foreseen.
Meanwhile, nothing is straightforward: There’s Rafe, who lied to Lia but has sacrificed his freedom to protect her; Kaden, who meant to assassinate her but has now saved her life; and the Vendans, whom Lia always believed to be savages. Now that she lives among them, however, she realizes that may be far from the truth. Wrestling with her upbringing, her gift, and her sense of self, Lia must make powerful choices that will affect her country… and her own destiny.

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