Book Tour - Allerleirauh by Chantal Gadoury

Title: Allerleirauh

Author: Chantal Gadoury

Genre: Fantasy Romance / Fairytale Retelling / Young Adult

Once upon a time...

A king makes a promise to his dying wife to marry only someone with her golden hair. The king finds his eyes are turned by his maturing daughter. Ralizing her Father's intentions, Princess Aurelia tries to trick her Father by requesting impossible gifts: Dresses created by the Sun, Moon and Stars and a Coat made of a Thousand furs. When she discovers his success, Aurelia decides to sacrifice her privileged life and escapes the Kingdom disguised in a cloak, and under a new name, "Allerleirauh". Aurelia enters the Kingdom of Saarland der Licht where she is taken under the wing of the handsome Prince Klaus. Aurelia must face herself, her past and her fears in her journey of self discovery. Allerleirauh is a Retelling of the Grimm Brothers' Fairy Tale classic.

My thoughts:

I have never heard about the story of Allerleirauh before, but since I’m not a huge fairy tale fan, it is not surprising at all. ’I’m not a huge fan’ means I’m not consciously looking for such tales to read, not that I avoid or hate them.

I was intrigued by the summary of the story, especially the creepy ’king wants to marry his daughter’ part that caught my attention; let’s face it, it is a shocking premise (and why would we expect less of a German fairy tale?). Because of the above mentioned element in the plot some pages in the beginning of the book sent shivers down my spine. I sympathized with Allerleirauh and wished her a happy ending.

The rest of the novel(ette?) was sweet and hugely satisfying after such a gloomy beginning. The story was fast paced (it had to be as the book is very short) and Allerleirauh’s character developed very nicely – she turned from a naïve girl into a strong heroine by the end of the novel. The prince was sensitive and caring, a bit too perfect, but hey… this is a fairy tale retelling after all. The side-characters were well crafted, although not very detailed – which problem could have been solved by making the book just a tad bit longer. I think I don’t even have other negative things to say of Allerleirauh but this: it was too short. Although on the whole it is a perfect light and fast read for fantasy and fairy tale lovers.

 

Author Bio

Chantal Gadoury is a young author who currently lives in Dover, Delaware with her two cats, Theo and Harper and her fiance, Robert. Originally from Muncy, PA, Chantal appreciates the beautiful mountains and enjoys visits back to her family. She also loves anything Disney and has a reputation of beating anyone at a mean game of Disney trivia. When Chantal is not writing, she enjoys painting, watching British History Documentaries, drinking iced-coffee and spending time with loved ones. Chantal first started writing stories at the age of seven and continues on with that love of writing today. Graduating from Susquehanna University with a creative writing BA, writing novels has become a dream come true.

Links

Excerpts available on Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/myworks/59554977-allerleirauh

Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/cgadoury16
Author Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/chantalgadouryfans

Tumblr: http://chantalgadouryauthor.tumblr.com/
Blog : http://chantalgadoury.blogspot.com/
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8059023.Chantal_Gadoury

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Tour - New York Night by Stephen Leather

Title: New York Night (Jack Nightingale #6)

Author: Stephen Leather

Rating: 3/5 stars
 
Synopsis:

Teenagers are being possessed and turning into sadistic murderers. Priests can’t help, nor can psychiatrists. So who is behind the demonic possessions? Jack Nightingale is called in to investigate, and finds his own soul is on the line.

My thoughts:

Detective stories mostly bore me these days; I have read quite a lot of Agatha Christie and Conan Doyle when I was a teen and there was a point when I felt the crime genre cannot show me anything that would grip my attention anymore. With New York Night I was in luck, because this book is not simply a detective novel, but also a paranormal piece of writing.

I liked the relationship between our protagonist, Nightingale, and Perez, the policewoman who was helping him. I was very glad they didn’t get entangled with each other, I think the book was better for the lack of romance.

The story would make a good episode of a paranormal show on American TV, it had the structure and feel of a Supernatural episode. The investigation process the reader is led through in the book was mostly built up with care, although there were some connections that must have been obvious to Nightingale and Perez way before they discovered them. All in all however, those who enjoy novels that revolve around an investigation would like New York Night.

The book is part of a series, therefore there were some conversations that suggested continuity,

but it absolutely works as a standalone too.

(Beware, reader, New York Night is extremely violent in places due to certain paranormal creatures going on a rampage in the city. If you are squeamish, avoid this book, because I’m certainly not, and even I was shocked at times.)

On the whole, New York Night deserves three stars from me.

Goodreads

 Amazon 

Author: