The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart by Leanna Renee Hieber

A really good sequel to Darker Still.

The Twisted Tragedy of Miss Natalie Stewart picks up right where Darker Still left off. And due to possible spoilers, I will refrain from saying exactly what that is. I was wondering how the series would continue after Darker Still; I couldn't see what could possibly happen next.

I will say that the beginning of the book was slow going and I was a bit fearful that the whole book would be like this. Thankfully, once the story settled, it took off and I was engrossed. There was just the right amount of supernatural for me, and I was able to follow all of it. And the spooky moments even went up a notch from the last book. Reading this at night was not a good idea.

This installment of the series introduced some new enjoyable characters that I hope to see more of. And based on how the book ended, there will definitely be a third book, and I can't wait.

The Lady of Secrets by Susan Carroll

I received a galley of this novel from Edelweiss for review. This in no way affected my opinions.


The Lady of Secrets is the sixth installment of the Dark Queen Saga, a series I had no idea was ongoing. So, I was pleasantly surprised when I saw this pop up.

The heroine of this was is Margaret Wolfe, who readers of this series will be familiar with. Now The Lady of Faire Isle, she is sought out by people who need her expertise in healing. She's sought out by one man in particular, who needs her to help lift a curse from the King of England. Once in England, she soon realizes that no one is telling the truth, and everyone is hiding something.

While I don't think this book was up to par with the rest of the series, I still liked it. I think what fell flat for me was I didn't care much for the hero, or the romance. And Meg, while a good heroine, fell short of the previous heroines. She was still a great heroine in her own right.

The first half of the book was great. Even though not a whole lot happened, I was still engrossed due to the writing. The characters were fantastic, I thought: the good, the bad, and the ones that hovered in the middle. Although, in the second half of the story, it lost something, and I'm not sure what. The climax of the story, while interesting, was disappointing in its effectiveness as the 'big event'.

Still, a good story. It was nice to see what happened to Meg.

The Oracle Glass by Judith Merkle Riley

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

The Oracle Glass was a fabulously told historical fantasy tale that took place around The Affair of the Poisons, a real series of events that happened during the reign of Louis XIV.

After the death of her beloved father, Genevieve Pasquier escapes her abusive family and becomes Madame Morville, a 150 year old  fortune teller with the help of La Voisin. La Voison, who really existed, was the ruler of a secret society of witches, and is the prime source in dealing out poison to high-end clients.

Genevieve keeps up this masquerade, and eventually weaves herself an infamous reputation upon the French aristocracy. This is a dangerous game, and Genevieve uses her wits to stay afloat, but her heart might put her at risk. In 1677, Genevieve is in real fear while the authorities were rounding up fortune-tellers and the like who were suspected of selling poisons.

Everything is very tense towards the end, and I loved it. However before that was interesting, as well. I loved all the secrecy, and the fact that there was a community of witches, alchemists, fortune-tellers, magicians, etc. It's just too bad that they weren't all good people. Anyway, the intrigue was great, and it fortunately never let up. Even though it wasn't a fast-paced story, it still held my interest.

Historical fantasy is one of my favorite sub-genres, and it's so hard to find good books that fit, but this one was great! I have some of the author's other books, which all look to be historical fantasy, as well, so I'm definitely going to keep going with this author's work.

Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber

A very unique historical fantasy book surrounding a mute girl and a haunted portrait of a young English Lord.

Set in 1880 New York, Natalie is a young woman who comes across a stunning portrait of a young Lord and seems drawn to it. The book is written as if it's Natalie journal, so we're privy to her deepest darkest thoughts and the workings of her mind. She is obviously driven to record everything that comes to her, for it's the only way she can express it.

Natalie was, of course, a very unique heroine. She could only communicate with most people by writing on her notepad. She felt left out often, and when she interacted with people, she was usually met with a pitying look. Through the course of her journey that is chronicled through her journal, Natalie discovers strengths and talents she didn't even know she had.

Darker Still has hints of The Picture Dorian Gray, and I loved it. The story was obviously inspired by the classic novel.

I went into this book not really knowing the details, so I'm hesitant to give anything away. It was so much more than I expected. I definitely wasn't expecting it to be so creepy in some places. While reading during the night, I found some parts completely spooked me – walking beheaded corpses and all that. Argh, but it was good.

Ironskin by Tina Connolly

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

I can't even begin to tell you what this books is about, so I'm going to let the official synopsis do the talking:

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.  

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.  

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.  

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.  

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again. 

If you haven't yet guessed, this is a sort of Jane Eyre retelling. I didn't realize it was when I requested it, so I was stuck with it, hoping that it was a decent story.

And it was. I was surprised. I usually don't read these kinds of fantasy stories, but I think the 'Eyreish' qualities of the story is what kept me focused. And somehow, the book managed to pay homage to Jane Eyre, while still being its own story. Also, the story seems to take place in an alternate past setting. Although never specified, it definitely doesn't take place in current times.

The book was slow going at first, but a little more than halfway through, it started to pickup, and then the action didn't stop. There were a lot of 'holy crap, did that just happen?' moments.

There will be a sequel, and I'm interested in how that's going to go. Perhaps that will be even more of its own story, and less Jane Eyreish.

The White Forest by Adam McOmber

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

I love historical fantasy (that doesn't have vampires, zombies, and werewolves) and The White Forest was a perfect example of historical fantasy done right. We get the feel of the time period, but with an added mystical atmosphere.

The specific date the story takes place in is never  mentioned, but it takes place after the Crimean War. The story revolves around Jane Silverlake, who has a gift, a gift I don't want to even begin to explain because I'll just ruin it. Jane is friends with Maddy and Nathan, forming a sort of trio. When Nathan comes back from the war, he's a different man, and soon joins a cult which causes him to fall farther and farther away from his old life. One day, Nathan goes missing, and Jane must learn everything there is about her gift if she wants to help bring him back.

The descriptions of a dark and gritty Victorian London are told with such flowing prose. I got lost in the words and the pages just flew by. The characters were just great – well written and deep, even the side characters. The villain of the story, Ariston Day, the leader of the cult, was such a perfect villain. He was a villain who used his words to brainwash people, and brilliantly enough, we only see him for about two scenes, but by the time we meet him, we've already formed a determined opinion of him. His reputation proceeded him, so to speak.

A fantastically told story, and at some points it reminded me of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell. Very unusual, but in a good way.

Splendors and Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

I was sort of sad when I finished this. I just loved the world, and the characters, and the magic, that I really was caught up in it.

Young Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are the assistants of the master puppeteer Gaspare Grisini. When a little girl goes missing the night after they've entertained for her birthday party, everything is thrown into turmoil, and decades old secrets are revealed.

The story is set in early 1860s England, and is a fabulously weaved story of historical fantasy. People of all ages should love this. Honestly, it was very creepy in some places, and the plot was intricate. It really has something for everyone, so don't judge when you see it's a story for juveniles. It really, really does not read that way.

In the book, you're swept up in a dark, Victorian setting, almost Dickensian, with two orphans, an almost sadistic puppeteer, and an old witch who is obsessed with vanquishing herself of something before she dies. First, we're walking around the creepy, dirty London streets, and then we're up to an almost fairy-tale castle-like home, with a crumbling tower. The story can go from gothic to enchanting in a paragraph. I truly didn't realize that until just now, because it was done so masterfully.

Highly recommended to fantasy or historical fantasy fans.

Sorcery & Cecelia or the Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede & Caroline Stevermer

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

A delightful historical fantasy tale that I expect to come back to in the future.

Told in letter form, Sorcery & Cecelia is the correspondence between cousins Kate and Cecy. Kate is off enjoying a London season while Cecy is stuck at home in the country. However, there is no lack of things for her to do, as she soon finds out. Both cousins find themselves thrust into some sort of magical feud.

It's no fun and games. Both cousins have found themselves in the devil of scraps, that they were lucky to get out of with all their limbs.

The writing was witty and fresh. I love historical fantasy done right, with just enough fantasy not to overwhelm you. And my favorite kinds of historical fantasy are the ones involving magic. Kate and Cecy are very amusing. This book was originally a letter game between the two authors, but they soon realized that they had something here. How fun, a letter game! I'd like to try that with someone.

This had been on my wishlist for ages, and was so happy to see Open Road reissuing it, and I scooped up a galley as soon as I saw it. It was all I was hoping for and more. I wasn't expecting a book written in entirely letter form to be so engaging, but I soon realized I had trouble putting my nook down to stop reading. After just a few letters, I was thrust into this magical and exciting world. I loved how the magical bits just crept in when you weren't expecting them. For example, Kate was at the Royal College of Wizards, and opened a door and found herself in a mysterious garden... with a odd woman who tried to poison her with a chocolate pot. That came out of nowhere, and I found it clever.

Enchanting, whimsical... I'm running out of adjectives. I don't know how else to describe it. If you like magic in your historical fiction, and don't mind epistolary novels, then I highly recommend this.

The Bewitching Tale of Stormy Gale by Christine Bell

I received a galley of this novel from NetGalley for review. This in no way affected my opinions.


So, last year I downloaded this really short ebook The Twisted Tale of Stormy Gale when it was available for free on the publisher's website. It sounded interesting, and well, it was free. It was the tale of a time pirate named Stormy and her brother Bacon. Stormy was born in 1810, but was brought to the 21st century (along with Bacon) by a man named Gilly.

I won't say anymore, in case you want to check it out, which I do recommend, as you'll have some background for The Bewitching Tale of Stormy Gale. Now, the main problem I had with Twisted Tale was that it was way too short. I liked the concept, though, and was surprised to see there was a sequel, which was longer!

In The Bewitching Tale of Stormy Gale, it's 1840 and Stormy is retired from time traveling, but comes across a mysterious man who is up to something funny, so she decides to have him tailed. This leads to Bacon being pulled back to 1698 Salem, Massachusetts, where he is accused of being a witch.

Because Stormy and Bacon grew up in the 21st century, there is a lot of modern talk, which I love. It's a weird combination: a sorta-historical book with modern characters, but in this case, it's ok. Stormy is quite sarcastic and a very kick butt kind of woman which makes for a great heroine. She had me laughing out loud several times.

A satisfying read, and I can't wait to read the next book!

The Janus Affair by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

I received a galley of this novel from Edelweiss for review. This in no way affected my opinions.



Books & Braun are back in another harrowing (and unauthorized) adventure!

Eliza has dragged Wellington into another case that is personal for her. An adamant suffragist, Eliza notices a pattern that several of her sisters have been disappearing into thin air; literally! Fearful for her friends and for the future of the movement, nothing is going to stop her from finding out what's up, not even the Ministry.

Even more thrilling than its predecessor, The Janus Affair is filled with even more sketchy characters, hilarious dialogue, drop-down drag-out fights, and more scenes with my favorite Italian lady assassin: Sophia del Morte. Hell yes, she had a lot more scenes in this book than the first, so I got my wish! She stole every scene she was in, without a doubt. I don't know what it says about me that my favorite character in the series is an assassin, but I can't help it: she's fabulous and smart and lethal. Oh, yes, and this book also had a lot more strong, interesting female characters. I love this series for that.

The action and fight scenes were very easy to follow, usually, I get lost during them. The whole mystery with who exactly was causing all these women to disappear was well done. It literally was a mystery to who it was, and I was surprised when Wellington discovered who it was. Because, I mean, who else would have figured it out?

I can't wait to follow Eliza and Wellington (and hopefully Sophia) in the next book. Hopefully, I don't have to wait too long!

Phoenix Rising by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris

When I started this book, it seems as though I was ready for something fun and witty and action-packed, because I completely loved this.

I like steampunk, but I haven't read a lot of the genre, mostly because there's so much now, and I can't separate what looks good from what doesn't. Thank goodness for goodreads, or I never would have stumbled onto this gem. Just from reading the summary, I decided to give it a go. Right from the first page we are hit with action and witty dialog.

The interactions between the action hungry and crass Eliza Braun and the bookish Wellington Books are amusing and intriguing. Both are agents at the Ministry of Peculiar Occurences, but while Eliza is an experience field agent, Wellington prefers his job as Archivist. The two are thrown together as punishment for Eliza when she goes off on her own against the Ministry's orders. And they find themselves in a rather interesting case that Eliza's former partner was investigating on his own, before he went mad and was thrown into Bedlam.

This book had it all: undercover work, concealed weapons, fancy gadgets, explosions, secret societies, you name it! There was also a rather fabulous Italian lady assassin running about, causing trouble, and I just loved her. I'm not sure if that's a common reaction to her character, but she was so interesting. I hope to see more of her in the next book. Really, this book had some strong female characters, and that's always a plus for me. In the partnership of Books & Braun, it was refreshing to see the woman be the muscle for a change.

The only qualm I had was that sometimes I had to go back and reread things to catch something. Sometimes, something wasn't properly explained until later, and I would become confused, because I'd almost forgotten about it. Other than that, I really had no other problems with it.

Set in an alternate 1890s London, this was a rather refreshing change from what I usually read, and I'm glad I took the chance.

Oh, and a note about the cover: Eliza wears nothing like this. The cover of the next book The Janus Affair is much more accurate to what Eliza looks like and wears.

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

Oye, I wrote this back in October, but never posted it. Well, here it is...

What the heck did I just read? Well, whatever it was, I feel accomplished for finishing it.

Seriously, though, what an imagination this author has. I felt that at any minute I was going to fall into the book and never come out. It felt so real. The footnotes were a nice touch.

Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell was a fabulous alternate Regency world filled with magic, mostly about two particular magicians, who are the book's namesakes. This kind of book one loves or hates. I don't believe there to be any middle ground. I can see why someone would be disenchanted with this, there were times when I thought I would never finish. I mean, it just went on and on. However, at the end, I realized I enjoyed the ride. It took a while to get there, but it was worth it.

Also, there are some fabulous illustrations inside by Portia Rosenberg that totally fit the tone of the story. If you like, you can see them on the illustrator's website here.

I was on a historical fantasy kick when I started this book, but I can now say that that kick has been fulfilled. Oh, and I hear there's a sequel? I'm all for it, I think. Clarke can take her time, though. Maybe when I stop thinking that Strange is going to walk out of my mirror, I'll be ready for it.

Perchance to Dream (Théâtre Illuminata, #2) by Lisa Mantchev

I received a copy of the novel from the publisher for review. This in no way affected my opinions.

Read my review of Théâtre Illuminata book #1 Eyes Like Stars here.

Perchance to Dream is the follow-up to the incredibly unique fantasy book Eyes Like Stars.

In this second installment, we find Bertie, Ariel and the fairies in a caravan on their way to save Nate from the Sea Goddess. In their travels they come across some interesting characters including a sneak, thief who joins them on their journey.

At one point the band of merry travelers end up on  the Immamorati train, which, to the best I can describe, is a traveling circus train. This was my favorite part, the part where I just wanted to jump through the pages of the book. I have this thing with trains, and this train just sounded amazing, I would not have wanted to get off. Here is Bertie's first impression as she stepped inside:

Stepping inside, she was reminded of an old-fashioned soda parlor or, at least, the Théâtre's version of one: all ribboned-striped cushions, silver paint, etched mirrors, and white wrought-iron benches.

...pausing occasionally in their gleeful capering to sniff the air, which smelled faintly of caramelized sugar and vanilla, as though some unseen person was baking waffle cones.

Where can I find this train?

I found the creativity in Perchance to Dream had been kicked up a notch from the previous book. I had to reread a few sections, especially in the action sequences, but I felt that that was just because of my lack of fantasy reading. I don't seem to catch on to fantasy as much as other genres. Nonetheless, I loved this book and devoured it in two days.

I loved how Bertie is starting to find herself. She looks as herself as not just a daughter or a love interest by the end of the book. And the book ends with Bertie wanting to continue on, to fulfill a promise, rather than head back to the Théâtre.

I can't wait to read the next book and hope that the whole love triangle thing gets worked out; I'm not a big fan of those.

Eyes Like Stars (The Théâtre Illuminata: Act 1) by Lisa Mantchev

All Her World's A Stage

I decided to take a break from my usual genres and venture in to a new territory. I loved the premise of Eyes Like Stars when I first saw it mentioned months ago. I thought, "Hmm, sounds intriguing. Perhaps I'll read it one day."

Eyes Like Stars is one of the most creative stories I've read in a long time. It was a very refreshing tale of a young girl named Beatrice Shakespeare Smith who has no idea where she comes from, but who finds herself living in a theatre, a theatre that contains every character from every play ever written. Ever. Characters who can not leave the theatre. And her bedroom is the stage. Her best friends are four mischievous fairies from A Midsummer Night's Dream, which, by the way, were absolutely hilarious. They had me literally laughing out loud.

Bertie has been a bit of a nuisance and has been asked to leave the theatre by the Theatre Manager unless she can find a way to contribute. She decides to be a director, but her plans of remaining in the theatre are thrown in to chaos when a certain character tries to escape. Now Bertie must not only try to save her job, but the entire theatre.

Mantchev has creative a dazzling, unique world that you find yourself lost in once you open its pages. One of my favorite elements in the book was that flashbacks were written as a script, with both dialogue and action.

Highly recommended to lovers not only of fantasy, but of theatre, as well. This is just act one, and I can not wait to read act two, which is entitled Perchance To Dream and comes out this May!

Visit the website to read the first chapter of Eyes Like Stars!