Hearts the Cut

By Kika Hatzopoulou

YA Fantasy 

326 pages

Owlcrate Special Edition 

The second in a duology. The first is Threads that Bind.

I really enjoyed these books. The reincarnation of gods and their powers was handled in an interesting way. The story started a little slow, but was well crafted. The characters were varied and detailed. The ending wasn't quite what I expected. 

first page 

author letter

a beautiful little snippet that ties in both titles 

I really liked it.

Bamboo People

By Mitali Perkins

YA fiction

Paperback

264 pages

A coworker asked if I'd be willing to read a book he was thinking of teaching next school year (for the book approval process). Of the pile he had, I selected Bamboo People because of the setting. 

I lived in Burma decades ago. 

It was a quick and easy read - the two main (boy) protagonists set in the backdrop of warfare and military oppression. They are on opposing sides of the conflict, but events bring them together. 

It was a good book. Not one I would have picked up simply for the joy of reading, but I am glad to have read it. 

first page

resources

The Power

By Naomi Alderman

Paperback

382 pages

Fiction / Dystopia

This was a little harder for me to get into. It had many disturbing and uncomfortable scenes. But they were purposeful, not gratuitous. 

It was a really good read. The characters were complex and interesting, the switch of mindsets and power dynamics was believability portrayed, and the ending was satisfying. The frame story with the publisher letters was brilliant. 

first page of the story

Masquerade of the Heart

By Katy Rose Pool 

356+ pages

Hardback

YA Fantasy 

Owlcrate Special Edition 

A really great sequel. Nice, tidy duology. 

I didn't do the full re-read of the first one, I just went back and read my blog post, the summary, and the last couple pages. Then I jumped right in to this one. Since it's YA, it wasn’t too hard to pick it right up.

back cover

It had a satisfying ending. I wasn't sure at one point how it was going to wrap up. 

It's also gorgeous. 

inside dust jacket 

front lid

front endsheet 

back endsheet

back lid

The Owlcrate is edition had an author letter bound in, a signature, and a bonus chapter. 

It also gloriously matched the first book.

Something Dark and Holy trilogy

By Emily A Duncan

YA fantasy

Finished all 3 of these. 

When I ordered books 2&3 I was unaware of how problematic the author was. 

They are beautiful books. 

They are full if horrific things. Blood magic inherently has aspects of gore and self-harm. 

The Shadow and Bones books do the sort of Slavic style world in a more fun and interesting way. 

For such long books, there are still questions I'm left with. 

And then ending. We like, "fade to black" and then the fighting is over? 

I won't read them again.

The Girl With All The Gifts

Paperback 

Sci-fi

Loan from a friend.

I had no idea what to expect. It's zombies. Fungus. A little bit Last of Us. Apparentky fungus zombies had quite a moment.

It was good. I read the whole thing in a day. 

The Voice Upstairs

By Laura E. Weymouth 

YA Fantasy 

310 pages

Hardback

Impulsively checked this one put from the library when I went to pick up my holds. 

It's a stand-alone novel. 

Some unexpected twists. Interesting plot and characters.