chippyreads's reviews
589 reviews

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

3.5

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

4.0

The Z Word by Lindsay King-Miller

1.0

Bioluminescence by Toni Duarte

4.0

Metal from Heaven by August Clarke

5.0

 

If August Clarke has no fans, I’m dead. I’m just sad that tracking down a hardcover of this book in Australia is so difficult and expensive :(

Revenge, queer af, gritty, raw emotions, addictive writing, with engaging side characters.

Messy ‘what even is gender’ main character lesbian Marney, who is obsessed with a dead childhood friend tries to win the hand of her enemy's daughter to get her revenge.

Marney has illusions and the writing goes off the rails when it happens, which could be difficult to follow but I couldn't get enough.

Listen, if you want a more in depth review, there are heaps out there already that do a fantastic job at breaking down this book. Just know that I fucking loved it and will have a trophy copy for my shelf asap.

eBook supplied by Kensington Publishing/Erewhon Books. All opinions are my own.

 

Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake

4.0

 

2nd chance holiday romance

Exes end up stuck in a house together and have to attend group dates while pretending they didn’t previously date because their story is awkward af. Oh, and one left the other at the altar years ago. It's messy.

You can't go into this one ready to take sides with these characters. They both clearly need to work on themselves and once you get the backstory their actions start to make sense. Their story broke my heart more than it warmed it, as both characters are in PAIN every time they see each other. They’re emotionally immature, which makes their 2nd chance romance difficult to root for.

If you’re looking for an easy to digest lesbian holiday romance, this book isn't for you. If you want to feel pain? Sure, go for it. The author does a fantastic job at hurting everyone in the process of writing this book. Not even the side characters are let off the hook. This IS a HEA, but at what cost? 😛

eBook copy supplied by the publisher Hachette AU/NZ, all opinions are my own. 

Heir by Sabaa Tahir

4.0

 

Please note I read the second half of this book while literally suffering from fever dreams….. So it took me a while to catch on to some pretty obvious plot points. I read the first half, caught a nasty bug that almost hospitalised me and then read the second half while on a very interesting combination of painkillers and antibiotics. 

Romance

Just like in the Ember series, I wasn't a fan of the romance in this one. I love the characters individually but I never feel anything for the romance between anyone. I’m not against any of them getting together, I just don’t care? 

Also spoiler for late in book happenings

not a fan of when we get a Sufiyan chapter he suddenly has eyes or Ariella….. Can main characters just NOT want to be in a relationship for once? I’m not mad that this might mean the bi character is in a ‘het’ relationship eventually, I’m just mildly mad all of these characters just need to shack up with someone. 

 

I was a fan of the ‘fake dating’ scenario though! That was a bit fun and unexpected in a fantasy novel. 

Is it queer?

We got more casual mentions of a more queer society, which was lovely. One of the side characters is bi and it's just casually mentioned in regards to who she's dated previously. The main relationships seem extremely straight. The Ember series alluded to a gay character not being able to be themselves so it was nice to learn that the Empire seems to be less homophobic. During Aiz’s POV she scoffs that the Empire doesn't recognise non binary people where in her society they do. 

Plot

Can’t say if it was predictable or not as I was incapacitated at the time of reading. All I can say is at the end I was predictably miffed with the author, which is what we all expect from Sabaa Tahir so, yay?

Compared to the og series

I read this book right after finishing the og series, so everything was fresh in my mind. I’m not sure how new readers will go in this world without any of the prior books as it does add a lot of context and now we have even more to learn. 

Very happy with the new generation of characters and how often we got to see og characters, they didn’t take over the plot at all and let the new characters shine.

Characters

3 main POVs 

Quil

Was fun, probably because if you’ve read the Ember series you know him as a baby and are fond of his aunt. Also his friends/family (Sufiyan and Arellia) are great. I love it when a main character has great friends along for the ride. 

Aiz

Eh. I wanted to root for her but she kept giving me reasons to just not like her. 

Sirsha

Fav main character. Clear motivations and great development. I desperately want her origin story as a standalone. Her relationship with her sister!? Hello! I need more of that thanks. 

Will I be continuing the duology?

100% yes. Can’t wait for book 2

Add to my physical collection?

Definitely. This book needs to sit next to my Ember collection. 

I was provided an eBook from the publisher: Hachette AU/NZ via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 

 

A Captured Cauldron by R.K. Ashwick

4.0

 

I was thrilled to be diving back into the ‘Side Quest Row’ world, as I loved A Rival Most Vial and this little strip of shops on Rosemond street. Returning was such a treat. The first book was definitely a romcom/light fantasy, this one is more of a light fantasy with a side of romance. 

A Captured Cauldron follows 3 POVs.  

Ambrose: as he’s captured and forced to brew an impossible potion. 

Eli: working with the rest of the characters to desperately save his boyfriend.

Dawn: also working with everyone to save her bestie while also crushing on a new character

We’re introduced to a few new characters, one of my fav being Xavian. 

Xavian: Ambrose’s rival at potioncon who is brought in to cover Ambrose’s shop while he’s gone. They’re amazingly flamboyant and snooty at the same time. I’m hoping to see more of them in future books. 

Nat: a slave that Ambrose befriends while he works away at the impossible potion, she's the youngest character in this series. 

Rory: A reporter who is working at potion con, is quickly crushing on Dawn and helps Rosemond street rescue Ambrose. 

This book was quite short which I loved but was disappointed we didn’t get a lot between Dawn and Rory. They had some cute moments but because the attention is mainly on rescuing Ambrose and Eli fucking shit up they don’t get their moment to shine together. That's the only reason this book isn’t a perfect 5 stars for me.

Just a side note about other reviews. Not a fan of how so many people are assuming Xavian is amab and assigning them ‘he/him’ pronouns when they’re only ever referred to as ‘they/them’ in the text. I don’t like to question whether people actually pay attention when they read but it's pretty obvious some people just don't care enough about queer people….

I received a copy of this book from the author, all opinions are my own.

 

Pumpkin Spice and Poltergeist by Ali K. Mulford, K. Elle Morrison

4.5

Read an arc. Full review to come 

The Maid and the Crocodile by Jordan Ifueko

5.0

 

I went into this book ONLY having read Raybearer, not Redemptor. I was missing some context but had quite a lot from the first book to help me understand the world better. It IS a standalone but it's in the same world.

5 stars. The romance fell a bit flat but it was so good I don’t even care.

Audiobook was amazing, I highly recommend it as the singing adds to this book's charm.

I promise to prioritise Redemptor now :P

Audiobook copy provided by BRmedia/Recorded books via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.