Review: Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields

Poison’s Kiss
by Breeana Shields
Poison’s Kiss series #1
January 10th 2017
Random House Books for Young Readers
Paperback
304 pages
Fantasy / Young Adult / Mythology / High Fantasy

Synopsis
Marinda has kissed dozens of boys. They all die afterward. It’s a miserable life, but being a visha kanya—a poison maiden—is what she was created to do. Marinda serves the Raja by dispatching his enemies with only her lips as a weapon.
Until now, the men she was ordered to kiss have been strangers, enemies of the kingdom. Then she receives orders to kiss Deven, a boy she knows too well to be convinced he needs to die. She begins to question who she’s really working for. And that is a thread that, once pulled, will unravel more than she can afford to lose.

Rating: B+ – Loved

I don’t really know a lot of things about India or its culture except for the basic stuff taught in my world geography class back in high school. What I do know though is that I really enjoyed reading this book.

What I Liked

Page-turner. You will not be able to put this book down. You’ll enjoy this book so much that you’ll read it in one sitting – or maybe two like I did.

The plot twists. Emphasis on the second ‘s’ on that word. This book is really an engaging read particularly halfway through the book, it’s suddenly a surge of plot twist after plot twist after plot twist.

The romantic interest. I love Deven. He’s giving me the nice guy vibe and you can’t just hate guys like him. He’s seriously the kind of guy that you would bring home to your parents to meet. He’s that nice.

Predictable but not quite. That’s what I like about this whole book. It’s like you can make absurd predictions but end up getting them right anyways. Well, that was what I did and ha! I was correct on the most parts and boy, I don’t feel pissed at all.

Good writing. I really think the writing is good. Especially when the author started describing these mouthwatering food. She left me craving and hungry. I’m not just sure about the world- building, though. It felt like just modern-day India to me – not that I’ve been to India anyways.

What I Didn’t Like

The not a total badass character. The main character, Marinda, who is a visha kanya aka a poison maiden is basically a female assassin. Poison is her main weapon. That’s what makes her lethal but still, my impression of her is that she’s not really that deadly. In fact, it weirded me out when she kept on mentioning that she’s an assassin. But that’s probably because I see an assassin as the full-package killer deal: someone with kickass fighting skills, tricky mind and a real strong personality, someone who makes cautious decisions and actions. Highlight on that last part btw.

A little slow. The beginning is a snore. I wasn’t really hooked in the beginning. That’s why it took me a couple of nights to finish this because I almost lost interest reading it on the first night. But exactly midway, things started happening and got more exciting.

Not a stand-alone. If this was a stand-alone, I would’ve given this a higher rating like an A- or even an A+. That is only if everything was summed up in just one novel.

Now, I’ll have to wait for the sequel.

Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

Throne of Glass
Sarah J. Maas
Throne of Glass series #1
May 7th 2013
Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Paperback
404 pages
Fantasy / Young Adult / Romance

Synopsis
In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king’s champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien.
The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass–and it’s there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

Rating: B+ – Loved

Throne Of Glass is just one of those recently infamous books. I’ve seen this book everywhere. And when I mean everywhere, I mean every book blog. It may be in reviews or book tags.

What I Liked

Lived up to the hype. Personally, I wasn’t expecting a lot from this book but I am honestly glad to say that it deserves all the hype it is getting lately.

The kickass heroine. She’s an assassin which makes her way cooler than any girl I’ve ever read. I like heroines that are somewhat related to criminal activities. It may be a heist or a killing squad or whatever. It just adds character to the whole story.

The romance. I believe a little bit of love in a fantasy book is a plus. It’s obviously not a must but it is good to have something to look forward to.

The action. I believe it tests a writer’s skill. It shows his or her prowess in using powerful and accurate words. I like action scenes that are so beautifully written, it makes me feel like I’m right there when it’s all happening.

Fast-paced. The suspense and mystery never stopped until it was the right time to do so and the plot will surely test your skill in guessing who’s doing what or which.

What I Didn’t Like

The love triangle. I don’t need a love triangle in an action-packed fantasy book. A little hint of romance – yes sure, why not? But a conflict arising from it – hell, no. It unnecessarily complicates things. Personally, if the author tried making the villain the other love interest – then now, maybe we’re talking. But that’s not the case here. The love interest, Dorian, the crown prince and Chaol, the captain of the guards are friends… good friends in fact (although I didn’t really see that in the book).

More action. In relation to what I like in this book (that I like action). I want more of it – more twists and turns to the story. I just want a little more to really prove that Celeana, the Adarlan’s assassin, the Queen of the Underworld, lives up to her infamous name.

Unrealistically beautiful. This is going to be personal. I am not at ease with the portrayal of Celeana’s beauty in this book. I know she has to look great. Pretty is enough, but does she really have to be that beautiful? It’s kind of annoying to some point but at least, she’s not pretending that she had the least idea of her good looks. Also, I approve of her girly actions. I mean. She’s a girl so it’s great that she acts like one (not that I’m saying every girl acts the way we are usually portrayed). On the side note, I believe that maybe her beauty must be one of her greatest weapons.

The secondary characters. This is just one of my observations but I feel like I’m missing w whole lot of things on the secondary characters. They lack some personality. Be on top of that is Chaol. Chaol is just bland to my liking. Even Dorian is also lacking some character.

Skin deep. The whole story is almost too focused on Celeana. Her two other co-protagonist is missing the limelight. I need them to stand out more. Hopefully, in the next installment of the series because it sure felt like they were just there to add spice in the romance.

Throne Of Glass is an impressive read. It has its numerous faults and plot holes like any other written literature out there. But as readers, we either just learn to love, hate or forget. If you want to read a thrilling and exciting non-dystopian fantasy book, Throne Of Glass is the way to go.

Review: Confessions Of A Virgin Sex Columnist! by Kay Marie

Confessions Of A Virgin Sex Columnist!
Kaitlyn Davis (writing as) Kay Marie
May 18th 2015
Paperback
222 pages
Romance / Chick Lit / New Adult

Synopsis
My name is Skylar Quinn. I just moved to New York with my best friend Bridget, and I have a confession. Well, more than one. Okay, quite a few really. Fine, here goes!
Confession #1: I’m a sex columnist. Hold on, that’s not really the confession. You see, I’m sort of a virgin…sex columnist.
Confession #2: I’m kind of in love with Bridget’s older brother, Oliver. No, I was. No, I am. Wait, was? Am? Crap.
Confession #3: I’ve been avoiding Oliver for four years. Or I was until today, because he just moved in. Yes, you read that correctly. He’s my new roommate. So that night we’ve both been pretending never happened, well, we might not be able to keep it a secret any longer.
And trust me, this is only the beginning.

Rating: B+ – Loved

I have a confession to make: I truly adore the Confessions Of A Virgin Sex Columnist!.

What I Liked

Not a smut. First thing I’ve got to say is don’t be misled by the title. Although, it is very catchy and it successfully grabs potential readers right away, keep in mind that this is not a sexy read. There’s just no explicit sex scenes and it’s a good thing that there’s none of it in this book.

Light. This book is a light read with a hint and twist of romance.

A fun read. But there’s more to the Confessions Of A Virgin Sex Columnist! than the eye-grabbing title itself. The story was slightly predictable but very fun and jolly and the characters and plot were realistic (well most of the characters are).

The characters. They weren’t silly. I didn’t have the urge to dislike them (and slap them, I’m kidding) at all. They are mature and they simply act like their age.

Skye. The book was written in her POV and I like the way she narrated the story. I was able to follow the story through her eyes pretty easily. And because of it, I enjoyed reading the book.

What I Didn’t Like

Ollie. He’s not really ‘my man’ – you know. He’s a great guy, great brother but great romantic interest for Skye – probably not. I’m not super thrilled about him. I mean, I slightly am because he’s just the ideal boy-next-door but being the older brother of the best friend, is not the ideal guy for me. I’m not saying Patrick, the potential suitor turned boyfriend, is the better man for Skye but he was really nice (his sister – not so much). He was too good to be true which is exactly why Skye chose to let him go.

The ending. The end of the story went pretty fast. I was like, “Wait what? That’s it? Where’s the epilogue. I need a freaking epilogue!” but then, hey, I found out a second book is on its way. I’ll be sure to pick up the sequel the second it’s out.

Confessions Of A Virgin Sex Columnist! is something that I will surely recommend. The title might weird some people out but I will say, just give it a try and be ready to enjoy this sweet romcom story.