Review - The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel

Title: The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel

Author: Alyssa Palombo

Release Date: 2 October, 2018

Synopsis:

When Ichabod Crane arrives in the spooky little village of Sleepy Hollow as the new schoolmaster, Katrina Van Tassel is instantly drawn to him. Through their shared love of books and music, they form a friendship that quickly develops into romance. Ichabod knows that as an itinerant schoolteacher of little social standing, he has nothing to offer the wealthy Katrina – unlike her childhood friend-turned-enemy, Brom Van Brunt, who is the suitor Katrina’s father favors.

But when romance gives way to passion, Ichabod and Katrina embark on a secret love affair, sneaking away into the woods after dark to be together – all while praying they do not catch sight of Sleepy Hollow’s legendary Headless Horseman. That is, until All Hallows’s Eve, when Ichabod suddenly disappears, leaving Katrina alone and in a perilous position.

Enlisting the help of her friend – and rumored witch – Charlotte Jansen, Katrina seeks the truth of Ichabod Crane’s disappearance, investigating the forest around Sleepy Hollow using unconventional – often magical – means. What they find forces Katrina to question everything she once knew, and to wonder if the Headless Horseman is perhaps more than just a story after all. In Alyssa Palombo's The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel nothing is as it seems, and love is a thing even death won't erase.

I received a free ebook copy of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:

When I started to read The Spellbook of Katrina Van Tassel, I thought I was in for a spooky adventure, but unfortunately the novel was a real letdown from many aspects. 

When you engross yourself in a Sleepy Hollow story, you naturally expect a lot of action involving the Headless Horseman – well, in this book he only appears in dreams and as hearsay. Up until the very last pages we don't know if he is a mere legend or more than that. Even the dreams in which he is present are repetitive and therefore they completely failed to excite me.

I understand what the author was aiming for in this book. First of all, she tried to write a feminist retelling of a well-know story – in that she succeded. Second of all, she wanted to show that while old superstition made people afraid of bloodthirsty apparitions, in reality people themselves could be monsters enough, even bigger ones than supernatural villains. But hey, I was here for the Headless Horseman, not a drama-ridden love story... I didn't get what I signed up for and the substitute just wasn't good enough.

The focus is clearly on the romance and it is the cheesy kind, unfortunately. I was eager to get through the first part where Ichabod was courting Katrina, because it was plainly boring, but even after they got separated in the middle of the novel, it just didn't get better. I was thinking about giving it up, but I had put too much energy into reading it already so I pushed on till the end.

Guys, if you are after a Sleepy Hollow retelling with lots of Headless Horseman, this is NOT it. On the one hand I'm so sorry I couldn't like this novel, on the other I feel seriously betrayed.

 Goodreads | Amazon

Review - The Crucible by Arthur Miller

Title: The Crucible


Author: Arthur Miller


Synopsis:

The place is Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, an enclave of rigid piety huddled on the edge of a wilderness. Its inhabitants believe unquestioningly in their own sanctity. But in Arthur Miller's edgy masterpiece, that very belief will have poisonous consequences when a vengeful teenager accuses a rival of witchcraft—and then when those accusations multiply to consume the entire village.

 

My Thoughts:

In Arthur Miller's play a group of teenage girls accuse women of witchcraft in 17th's century Salem, and the famous witch trials take place as the consequences of their words.

The work itself is not written in the traditional drama format, since there are pieces of texts inserted in between the dialogues, that attempt to explain what must have been the reasons behind the mass hysteria that evolved in Salem in those fateful years. Arthur Miller lays out facts for us, and like an investigative journalist tries to dig to the bottom of the case and come up with motives. I found this new form of drama-writing refreshing, this play really worked better with a little realism.

Of course originally the pointing wasn't done by teenage girls, but there is something frightning in that Mr Miller gave such power to children in this piece. In the beginning the girls just want to shift the attention from themselves and their night activities in the forest but eventually their game gorws into something bigger, they lose control over it and their self-defence will cost lives.

I liked that I couldn't exactly figure out how to feel about certain characters. I mean essentially I had a positive intuition about John Proctor and I nurtured negative feelings towards Abigail (Abigail is the leader of the girls and John Proctor is the owner of the house where she worked; their personal relationship is one of the main motivators in the play), but in the end I brought myself to think about both their situations and what happened between them before, and I realized John Proctor wasn't absolutely innocent either (it doesn't mean Abigail should have done what she did but still, I was playing around with perspectives a bit...)

The whole play is very tense, families get torn apart and there are fierce battles of words that eventually land some residents of Salem in prison. The last act is especially tough. Those who won't confess end up on the gallows. The moral questions that the idea of confession to witchcraft brought up were extremely interesting and I was struggling to decide what I would have done in the place of the accused.

I think everyone should read this play once in their life, and there isn't a better time than October to do so.

 Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Time Crawlers by Varun Sayal

Title: Time Crawlers

Author: Varun Sayal

Synopsis:

Alien Invasion, Dark Artificial Intelligence, Time-Travel, High-Tech Mythology, Djinn Folklore, Telekinetics, and life-consuming Cosmic Entities are some major themes in this book which has six tightly-knit, fast-paced Sci-Fi stories.

 

1. Nark-astra, The Hell Weapon
The weapons he possesses make him the destroyer of worlds, and he burns for revenge. A high-tech take on ancient Indian mythology.

 
2. Death by Crowd
The dark desires of the masses; darknet websites fueled by a crypto-currency. What lurks in the background – an advanced artificial intelligence?

3. Genie
He rubbed a lamp alright, but what he got was the shock of his life. An entirely sci-fi take on the djinn myth.

4. Time Crawlers
There are individuals who existing in multiple time periods at once, and there are those who know about them….

5. Eclipse
No attacks, no blood-shed, yet there was an invasion and a conquest. Who are these shapeshifter aliens being hounded by an eclipse?

6. The Cave
The fate of an advanced imperial race hangs in balance as a dark celestial entity meets a legendary protector.

I received an ecopy of this book from its author in exchange of an honest review.

My Thoughts: 

I love sci-fi, you all know that, but I'm not a big fan of short stories. I'm more of a novel person usually. However, reading the Time Crawlers I wondered at the colourfulness that was its collection's own because of the fact it was a short story collection. The format gave the author a chance to introduce many of his fascinating ideas in a separated, yet somewhat interlinked fashion.

If you take a look at the synopsis, you'll see a short summary of each story. They are thought-provoking on their own, but once you read them you cannot help but look for the common points. So there are aliens on Earth, so they look like us. Did they come recently, or were they here before us? Can we be aliens without knowing it? Are they part of the government? Are they part of our mythologies? Are they here with malicious intent or to help? Do they own time?

You don't have to believe in aliens or believe what is stated on these pages to find this book fun to read. These are purely theoretical sci-fi tales that play around with 'what if' questions. How would humanity react in certain situations when their survival is at stake? What would a human wish if they had a chance to meet a djinn?

I loved the theories about time and how this species – time crawlers – can exist at more places and times simultaneously – the title story was one of my favourites. The high-tech gadgets were also interesting despite the fact that most of them were weapons of mass destruction. I wouldn't want them to be invented in real life but it was fascinating to read about them.

Death by Crowd is not a story for the faint-hearted and the saddest thing is, that was the most realistic one out of all the tales. I hope humanity won't come to that; paying to watch other people die live, but it's enough to look back to the Roman gladiator games to realize we've been there before...

I certainly recommend this little collection of absorbing ideas, I enjoyed reading it a lot.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Blackmail, Sex and Lies by Kathryn McMaster

Title: Blackmail, Sex and Lies

Author: Kathryn McMaster

Synopsis:

For 160 years, people have believed Madeleine Smith to have been guilty of murder. But was she? Could she have been innocent after all?

This Victorian murder mystery, based on a true story, takes place in Glasgow, Scotland, 1857. It explores the disastrous romance between the vivacious socialite, Madeleine Hamilton Smith, and her working class lover, Pierre Emile L’Angelier. 

After a two-year torrid, and forbidden relationship with L’Angelier, that takes place against her parents' wishes, the situation changes dramatically when William Minnoch enters the scene. This new man in Madeleine’s life is handsome, rich, and of her social class. He is also a man of whom her family approve.

Sadly, insane jealous rages and threats of blackmail are suddenly silenced by an untimely death. 

My Thoughts:

Blackmail, Sex and Lies is a Victorian true crime story. In the 1850s Madeleine Smith, upper-middle class resident of Glasgow was accused of poisoning her lover Emile L'Angelier to get rid of him so she can marry someone more suitable – richer – of her class. Emile was a working class man and the fact that a young lady of a higher class conducted a secret love affair with someone below her status made for a great scandal.

To be honest, the root of the story fascinated me the most, namely the poisoning. I only ever read about arsenic poisoning before, in We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson and I remember a line from that book stating that arsenic poisoning is a very painful way to die. Well, here in Blackmail, Sex and Lies it is described in a detailed manner why it is so.

Victorians were crazy people. They took arsenic to feel more lively, more energetic. They took it to have a more pleasing complexion as well. They knew it was poision, still they used it and reommended it to each other. Both Emile and Madeleine had arsenic in their possession for one reason or other, that's why it was possible either Madeline to poision Emile, or Emile to commit suicide/overdose.

I will state here that I absolutely hated the two main characters. Emile was a world class j*** and Madeline so naive it hurt to read. Their love letters of which the book includes quite a few are syrupy and repetitive.

BUT each time I got to the parts where speculations were made or the two sides' actions were described, I found myself interested again. The writing style fit the era, the wording and the spinning of the tale kept me involved. 

My opinion is kinda mixed about this book as you can see, but still I'm glad I learned more about this case.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Claire's Last Secret by Marty Ambrose

Title: Claire's Last Secret

Author: Marty Ambrose

Release date: September 1st, 2018

Synopsis:

1873, Florence. Claire Clairmont, the last survivor of the 'haunted summer of 1816' Byron/Shelley circle, is living out her final years in genteel poverty, but the appearance of British tourist, William Michael Rossetti, brings hope that she may be able to sell some of her memorabilia to earn enough cash to support her and her niece/companion, Paula.

But Rossetti's presence in Florence heralds a cycle of events that links the summer of 1816 - when Claire conceived an ill-fated child with George Gordon, Lord Byron, when Mary Shelley wrote Frankenstein, and when four tempestuous lives came together - to a tragic death. As Claire begins to unravel the truth, she must go back to that summer of passion to discover the identity of her old enemy.

I received a free ebook copy of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:

Claire's Last Secret is the first book in a trilogy that unrolls a mystery involving Claire's long lost daughter, Allegra. Claire Clairmont, Mary Shelley's half sister usually doesn't get much recognition when the creative group that spent the 'haunted summer' in Geneva is mentioned. It's little wonder actually, given that she was the only member of the party that didn't turn her experiences of that summer into a literary success.

However, in her novel Marty Ambrose wants to show us that despite the fact that she didn't produce anything lasting from a literary point of view, Claire was still as important part of the circle as any other member. According to the author she deserves to be remembered in a favourable light, as someone who inspired Byron and the Shelleys with her love and friendship.

I'll confess it was hard for me to think with the writer's head in the beginning, because I had my own picture of Claire, which wasn't exactly flattering. I've read several biographies of the Shelleys, and Claire has always come across as a pushy, somewhat annoying individual, who always wanted to be the centre of attention. It is rumoured she had an affair with Shelley as well, and if it's true, it was an awful betrayal towards Mary.

In Claire's Last Secret we meet a very different Claire though. In the book she is an old lady who remembers her youth and sees her youthful foolishness in a very reasonable light. She doesn't regret anything and she wouldn't change anything in her past. She accepts herself as she is; someone who is chiefly driven by her emotions. I think it's a pretty romantic notion that the heart leads a person's actions, not the head and this simple twist on the character of Claire made her foolish decisions a lot more acceptable for me.

The book is written in a lovely manner, it was a joy to read. It's always great to revisit the events in The Villa Diodati during 'the year without summer', but it's even better if the writing is exquisite. To take a boat trip with Byron and Shelley, to be there when Mary Shelley reads from Frankenstein for the first time.... ahh to be there... 

If you like the second generation of romantics, or know nothing of them, either way, this can be a fun read. I'll definitely pick up the second book.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

Title: Ready Player One

Author: Ernest Cline

Synopsis:

In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he's jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade's devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world's digital confines, puzzles that are based on their creator's obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. When Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade's going to survive, he'll have to win—and confront the real world he's always been so desperate to escape.

My Thoughts:

Not being a gamer myself and knowing what Ready Player One is about, going into it I wasn't sure it'd be a book I'd entirely enjoy. I shouldn't have worried.

Most of the novel is set in a virtual reality called the OASIS. It's a world created by James Halliday who recently deceased and now his legacy is up for grabs... whoever finds the easter egg hidden in the game will inherit the OASIS and all the money that fuels it.

Wade Watts is a gunter, he dedicates all his time to his quest for the egg. When he finds the first clue he can't believe his luck... However, soon he realizes the danger that comes with his ambitions. The evil organization's – the IOI's – hand reaches out even to the real world and they'd do anything to beat Wade to the egg. 

The novel is packed with references to movies, tv shows and video games, mainly from the 1980s and 90s. It's fun to find out how many of the mentioned tv shows or movies you know. The video game references were mostly lost on me, but hey, no one is perfect... 

The movie Ladyhawke appeared so many times in the book I had to rewatch it because I remembered I'd loved it as a child. I also smiled at the Indiana Jones references and I especially appreciated when the song Kids wanna rock by Bryan Adams was mentioned. 80s, Baby.

Since I have a thing for popular culture in general, Ready Player One had a lot to offer to me. It's also a great adventure for the admirers of the 80s or the ones who were teenagers in that decade.

(Also it's a lot like Spykids 3D – Game Over for adults I just can't shrug this thought...)

Give yourself a favour and take a trip to the futuristic past. I know I'm glad I did.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - The Women in the Walls by Amy Lukavics

Title: The Women in the Walls

Author: Amy Lukavics

Synopsis:

Lucy Acosta's mother died when she was three. Growing up in a Victorian mansion in the middle of the woods with her cold, distant father, she and her best friend and cousin, Margaret, know the ancient hallways inside out. Or so they think . . .

When her beloved Aunt Penelope disappears while walking in the surrounding woods, Lucy finds herself devastated and alone. Margaret, meanwhile, has been spending a LOT of time in the attic. She claims she can hear her mother's voice whispering from the walls.

Shut out by her father, Lucy watches helplessly as her cousin's sanity slowly and completely unravels. And then she begins hearing voices herself...

My Thoughts:

Welcome to the house in the middle of nowhere, where your dead loved ones speak to you through the walls. There's nothing creepy about it at all; they simply love you so much, they want you to join them. They suggest you could live happily ever after together behind the walls. You don't have much choice in the matter anyway they say, why wait? Not creepy at all...

The basic premise of this book is extremely disturbing. The whole haunted house trope gives me the chills in itself, but when the house and whatever power is hidden in it's structure gets into your head... well, that's even more unnerving. 

The Women in the Walls is a very atmospheric horror book. The claustrophobic feeling that the house as a setting generated in me helped me put myself in Lucy's place, helped me imagine what she was really going through. 

Most events in the book take place inside the house, the characters rarely venture outside and thanks to this seclusion a certain kind of sinister mood is created way before the nasty things start to happen.

While I was more than happy with the terrifying setting, unfortuantely I cannot say I was fully satisfied with this book. The characters were a bit shallow, they could have been designed with more care. They lacked details, they were mostly endowed with one or two characteristics... all in all they were very two dimensional. On the top of that Lucy's cousin Margret was very unlikable – at least to me –, which was a problem because all Lucy's actions in the second half of the novel were driven by the love for her cousin. The few glimpses I'd got of Margaret before she started to go bonkers didn't convince me she was the best of best friends. It was really hard to see what Lucy loved about her, at least that's how I felt.

It was also strange that the girls had lived on the estate for 17 years and they didn't discover their surroundings (at some point they found something in the forest they didn't know was there but obviously had been there since they were born...) 

I loved the pacing on the last 20-30 pages, the plot became very dense there, one horrifying thing happened after the other and I couldn't wait to know how the dark adventure would end. The ending was somewhat surprising but I absolutely liked it!

As you can see I had mixed feelings about The Women in the Walls, but it was still fun. I don't regret that I picked it up.

Goodreads | Amazon

Mini Reviews - Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Hold Your Own

Title: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

Author: Edward Albee

Synopsis:

When middle-aged Martha and her husband George are joined by the younger Nick and Honey for late-night drinks after a party, the stage is set for a night of drunken recriminations and revelations. Battle-lines are drawn as Martha and George drag their guests into their own private hell of a marriage.

My Thoughts:

I wanted to like this play so much but I had an eww feeling about it. The main couple, Martha and George live in a dangerous, abusive relationship (I'm talking about mostly verbal abuse but it is suggested in one of the scenes that George may kill Martha someday). One night after a party they invite a young couple to their home, Nick and Honey, who are basically forced to glimpse into the dark well that is George and Martha's marriage.

All the characters are drunk during the happenings and they keep playing games that reveal personal information about both couples. The games are childish, just like the choice of words often are in this drama, but both the games and the words point towards the secret that is unveiled at the end of the play. It's supposed to be a twist but if you pay attention, you can guess it way before it is brought to the surface.

I'm seeking high and low for 20th century American plays that appeal to me, unfortunately Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? didn't make it to the list.

Goodreads | Amazon

Title: Hold Your Own

Author: Kate Tempest 

Synopsis:

Kate Tempest, winner of the Ted Hughes Prize for Brand New Ancients and widely regarded as the UK's leading spoken word poet, has produced a new poem-sequence of electrifying power. Based on the myth of the blind prophet Tiresias, Hold Your Own is a riveting tale of youth and experience, sex and love, wealth and poverty, community and alienation. Walking in the forest one morning, a young man disturbs two copulating snakes - and is punished by the goddess Hera, who turns him into a woman. This is only the beginning of his journey . . . Weaving elements of classical myth, autobiography and social commentary, Tempest uses the story of the gender-switching, clairvoyant Tiresias to create four sequences of poems: 'childhood', 'manhood', 'womanhood' and 'blind profit'. The result is a rhythmically hypnotic tour de force - and a hugely ambitious leap forward for one of the UK's most talented and compelling young writers. 

My Thoughts:

Wow, just wow. If only you could see how many poems I marked in this collection! Many of the poems were very relatable to me. I liked how ancient and modern voices and settings were mixed, how Teiresias's story was stretched as far as our day.

Kate Tempest pondered upon thoughts and theories like:

• Life is a memory, everything happened before
• There are different stages of us, we change all the time and who we are today is not the same person who we were 10 years ago
• Sometimes there is no point in differentiating between man and/or woman, after all in the end we are all humans

I recommend this little poetry book to those who like gender studies and enjoy good verse.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Mrs. Sherlock Holmes by Brad Ricca

Title: Mrs. Sherlock Holmes

Author: Brad Ricca

Synopsis:

Mrs. Sherlock Holmes tells the incredible true life story of Mrs. Grace Humiston, the New York lawyer and detective who solved the famous cold case of Ruth Cruger, an 18-year-old girl who disappeared in 1917. Grace was an amazing lawyer and traveling detective during a time when no women were practicing these professions. She focused on solving cases no one else wanted and advocating for innocents. Grace became the first female U.S. District Attorney and made ground-breaking investigations into modern slavery.

One of Grace's greatest accomplishments was solving the Cruger case after following a trail of corruption that lead from New York to Italy. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls. But the victory came with a price when she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire NYPD.

In the literary tradition of In Cold Blood and The Devil in the White City, Brad Ricca's Mrs. Sherlock Holmes is a true crime tale told in spine-tingling fashion. This story is about a woman whose work was so impressive that the papers gave her the nickname of fiction’s greatest sleuth. With important repercussions in the present about kidnapping, the role of the media, and the truth of crime stories, the great mystery of the book – and its haunting twist ending – is how one woman can become so famous only to disappear completely.

My Thoughts:

I first heard about Mary Grace Quackenbos aka Grace Humsiton in the tv show Timeless. Since the episode called Mrs. Sherlock Holmes was one of my favourites in season two, after I joined the Timeless inspired book club (Lucy Preston Literary Society) on Goodreads it was no question that Brad Ricca's Mrs Sherlock Holmes would be my first read within the community.

Grace Humiston was the first female U.S. district attorney. He worked as a lawyer and detective in the beginning of the 20th century. She became famous for finding the body of a young woman – Ruth Cruger – who had disappeared one chilly winter morning in mysterious circumstances. In truth there is so much more to the story of Grace than the Ruth Cruger case. Brad Ricca guides the reader through her most important cases in his book, keeping the reader at the edge of their seat with his captivating narrative.

While I think the detailed recount of Mrs Humiston's career was extremely fascinating, Mr. Ricca also managed to capture Grace's personality on the pages; he depicted the woman behind the detective persona. She came across as a kind-hearted individual, who didn't only care for the thrill of the chase; the people behind each story and their right to be judged justly was just as important to her. She was always determined and confident in her abilities, she was a strong woman through and through.

The New York of her time was vibrant and colourful, and I could imagine being there myself as I read this book. Its people were still learning how to accept the idea of their city being a giant melting pot and tensions were running high sometimes. I enjoyed the chapter where cases involving the 'little people' were described; Grace helped the poor by giving legal advice, sometimes completely for free.

She fought for immigrant rights and she stood against white slavery. She took on many cases that involved missing girls. She was also against death penalty and she saved a couple of innocent people from the electric chair. The Charles Stielow case was perhaps my favourite of those stories. The chapter 'The Giant and the Chair' was by far the best in the book, I couldn't put my kindle down until I got to the end of it. It was so gripping, I found myself caring for the outcome as much as Grace and her associates did.

As a Hungarian girl I felt really proud that Grace's right-hand man was also Hungarian. Grace and Julius J. Kron were partners for life when it came to fighting crime. If anyone, Kron was her Watson. It was great to get glimpses at how they operated, they were a dynamic duo. After a while they must have been able to read each other's thoughts, they worked so much together.

Brad Ricca's writing is quality. It flows really well and somehow he's able to make you forget that a lot of information is being dumped on you along the way; I was able to absorb all the info and enjoy the stories while I learned about the work of an fascinating historical figure.

I cannot recommend Mrs Sherlock Holmes highly enough. If you like reading about women pioneers as much as I do, this book will be a treat for you.

Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Bring Me Their Hearts by Sara Wolf

Title: Bring Me Their Hearts

Author: Sara Wolf

Publication Date: June 5th, 2018

Synopsis:

Zera is a Heartless – the immortal, unageing soldier of a witch. Bound to the witch Nightsinger ever since she saved her from the bandits who murdered her family, Zera longs for freedom from the woods they hide in. With her heart in a jar under Nightsinger’s control, she serves the witch unquestioningly.

Until Nightsinger asks Zera for a Prince’s heart in exchange for her own, with one addendum; if she’s discovered infiltrating the court, Nightsinger will destroy her heart rather than see her tortured by the witch-hating nobles.

Crown Prince Lucien d’Malvane hates the royal court as much as it loves him – every tutor too afraid to correct him and every girl jockeying for a place at his darkly handsome side. No one can challenge him – until the arrival of Lady Zera. She’s inelegant, smart-mouthed, carefree, and out for his blood. The Prince’s honor has him quickly aiming for her throat.

So begins a game of cat and mouse between a girl with nothing to lose and a boy who has it all.

Winner takes the loser’s heart.

Literally.

My Thoughts: 

Zera is missing her heart because it holds her humanity, at least that's what she thinks. It's not easy to walk with an empty hole in your chest in a world where a missing heart marks you as a monster. 

She cannot even walk around at her leisure to start with: she is bound to Nightsinger the witch; the very one who took her heart. She doesn't hate her, no. Nightsinger practically saved Zera's life by turning her into the creature she is today. But ohh, how much she yearns to be whole again with the organ that beats in a jar on the mantelpiece... Getting back the heart would mean freedom for her.

However, like everything, the heart has a price. The witches would like to prevent another war between them and the humans, and to do so the Prince Lucien has to become what Zera is: a heartless. No one is better fitting for the job than Zera. Take a heart to own yours again – the only thing she doesn't know is that the bloody and dangerous game will have a pitfall that she may just not be able to avoid.

This YA fantasy novel was fun. I usually enjoy stories that involve witches, that's why I requested this title in the first place (and because of the Snow White vibes of course). The witches here can turn into white ravens and those parts when they appeared in flocks on the sky or on the barks of a tree were very sinister, despite the fact that witches are not bad creatures in this novel. 

Actually there is no evil and good side in the war that is about to break out either. Humans and witches simply cannot live with each other; humans are terrified of witches because a hysteria is created by Gavik, the evil duke and witches still hold grudges against humans for the purifications they do (a consequence of the hysteria).

Even though the plot is a bit predictable the story flows well, it's easy to understand the motivations of the characters and to sympathize with them because of their hardships. Lucien is a headstrong prince, I think they are a good match with Zera, who is determined but, despite her heartlessness, suddenly gets attacked by unwanted feelings that she has yet to understand. 

The newly found family relationships and friendships warmed my heart. I especially liked two side characters: Y'shennria and Malachite, Zera's 'aunt' and the bodyguard of prince Lucien. The letter was utterly adorable and would have been a better love interest in my opinion than the prince (ooops, I'm giving away my preferences...).

Going into this book I didn't know this is only the first instalment in a series, but as it turned out, it is. If you generally like YA fantasies, give this one a try. It's a sweet classic story with a twist.

 Goodreads | Amazon

About the Author:

Sara Wolf is a twenty-something author who adores baking, screaming at her cats, and screaming at herself while she types hilarious things. When she was a kid, she was too busy eating dirt to write her first terrible book. Twenty years later, she picked up a keyboard and started mashing her fists on it and created the monster known as Lovely Vicious. She lives in San Diego with two cats, a crippling-yet-refreshing sense of self-doubt, and not enough fruit tarts ever.

Author Links: 

Website: http://sarawolfbooks.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sara_Wolf1
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ca/authorsaraw/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorsarawolf/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sara-Wolf-476490705731978/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6862831.Sara_Wolf
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Sara-Wolf/e/B00BVOVP08/

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Review - Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

Title: Norse Mythology

Author: Neil Gaiman

Synopsis:

The great Norse myths, which have inspired so much of modern fiction, are dazzlingly retold by Neil Gaiman. Tales of dwarfs and frost giants, of treasure and magic, and of Asgard, home to the gods: Odin the all-father, highest and oldest of the Aesir; his mighty son Thor, whose hammer Mjollnir makes the mountain giants tremble; Loki, wily and handsome, reliably unreliable in his lusts; and Freya, more beautiful than the sun or the moon, who spurns those who seek to control her.

From the dawn of the world to the twilight of the gods, this is a thrilling, vivid retelling of the Norse myths from the award-winning, bestselling Neil Gaiman.

My Thoughts:

Yes, I've read another Gaiman, because the man is a master storyteller. That's a fact. If you haven't read any work of Gaiman yet, do yourself a favour and dive into one of his books. They are magic.

Norse Mythology is not an exception. The book contains 15 short stories about the Norse gods, each usually featuring one god as the 'hero' of the story. Odin, Thor, Loki, Heimdall, Frey, Freya and lots of lesser known gods are spotlighted in these tales.

Giants and dwarves appear too and it actually occured to me while reading this collection that Mr. J.R.R. Tolkien must have taken inspiration for his novels from the mythology of the north. The atmosphere of these stories and the creatures present in them show similarities with what we find in the world of The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings. (it's possible that everyone knows about this connection and I was a bit slow to realize it... If it is so, please forgive my ignorance.)

Mr. Gaiman clearly has a soft spot for Loki (I don't blame him), so be prepared for a lot of Loki if you pick up Norse Mythology.

My favourite story was Freya's Unusual Wedding simply because it was hilarious! So funny, there are no words. But then there are quite dark ones as well, that include murders, mutilation and torture. I guess every mythology has some nasty bits here and there but I think Norse mythology outdoes most. 

It was great to discover all aspects that northern mythology has in common with other countries' mythologies or folk tales. The tree that grows between worlds for example is present in the old Hungarian beliefs as well, only our ancestors called it 'life tree' or 'world tree'.

I recommend this book to all those who'd like to learn more about Norse mythology, Marvel/Thor fans and anyone who feels they need to take a break from novels.

 Goodreads | Amazon

Review - Clowders by Vanessa Morgan

Title: Clowders

Author: Vanessa Morgan

Synopsis:

Clervaux, Luxembourg. This secluded, picturesque town in the middle of Europe is home to more cats than people. For years, tourists have flocked to this place – also known as “cat haven” - to meet the cats and buy cat-related souvenirs.

When Aidan, Jess and their five-year-old daughter, Eleonore, move from America to Clervaux, it seems as if they've arrived in paradise. It soon becomes clear, though, that the inhabitants' adoration of their cats is unhealthy. According to a local legend, each time a cat dies, nine human lives are taken as a punishment. To tourists, these tales are supernatural folklore, created to frighten children on cold winter nights. But for the inhabitants of Clervaux, the danger is darkly, horrifyingly real.

Initially, Aidan and Jess regard this as local superstition, but when Jess runs over a cat after a night out in the town, people start dying, one by one, and each time it happens, a clowder of cats can be seen roaming the premises.

Are they falling victim to the collective paranoia infecting the entire town? Or is something horrible waiting for them? Something unspeakably evil.

Aidan and Jess' move to Europe may just have been the worst decision they ever made.

I received a free ebook copy of this book from the publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

My Thoughts:

I was expecting a thrilling tale going into Clowders but unfortunately I closed the book in the end fairly disappointed. The plain truth is: I was a lot more bored than thrilled while reading it and I kept waiting for a turning point that would have changed my opinion but the real rush of fear never came and I was eventually left with an empty feeling regarding the book.

Clowders tells the story of a family who moves to a small town in Luxemburg that is famous for its high cat population. Aidan and Jess, who take their 5 year old daughter Eleonore with them too, soon realize that people in the town act strangely, especially when a cat's life is in danger. They learn about a legend that keeps the townspeople in fear and that makes sure they treat the cats of the town well. When a cat dies in an accident and a mysterious feral creature starts stalking Jess and Eleonore, the legend turns out to be real. The only question is whether the family can escape from the crazy cat town in time to avoid the gruesome fate they can expect after being involved in the incident.

More than half of the novel is about Aidan and Jess trying to patch up their broken relationship. I confess I didn't like these characters at all. Aidan is the one who wanted to move to Europe, he basically dragged Jess and his little girl with him because he wanted some adventure in his life again. Almost as soon as they arrive to Clervaux he starts an affair with with a horrible woman who likes playing around with (sometimes married) men just for fun. Aidan doesn't give a fig that Jess hates their new home, that she's slowly becoming depressed because she has nothing to do all day.

I didn't like Jess mostly because she was very slow to understand what was going on around her (just like Aidan, actually) and because she complained too much about things rather than doing something to solve them. She didn't like driving Eleonore to and from school for expample, but at the same time she was always going on about how she didn't have anything to do all day. Partly I understand why the situation was tough for her but many times she annoyed me with her utter helplessness. Even when Eleanore was around, she just put the kid in front of the telly rather than playing with her. They hardly ever did anything together, mother and daughter, which was kinda strange to me.

The half-human half-cat creature wasn't scary enough for me because for the longest time it didn't do anything at all other than stalk people by standing in their bedrooms at night. It didn't attack anyone unless a cat had been killed and even then, she made a quick job of getting rid of the guilty party. What made the whole thing creepy (and why I gave it two stars/pineapples in the end instead of one) was the town's reaction; they worked together with this monster/catgirl, they actually helped the creature eliminate the cat killers. Clervaux was a little bit like the village in the movie Hot Fuzz (only that movie is waaay better than this book).

No one tried to stop the creature. Like... what?? I'm not kidding. People tried to escape but they didn't try to fight. They accepted without question that it cannot be defeated and the only thing they tried was to outrun it. 

I didn't feel like I was entertained, I asked the question why??? a million times while reading the book and in the end I didn't understand why this story had to be told. It's a shame, the premise was excellent. It could have been so much more than what it became.

Goodreads | Amazon