{Book Review} The Bird and The Sword by Amy Harmon

Swallow, Daughter, pull them in, those words that sit upon your lips. Lock them deep inside your soul, hide them ‘til they’ve time to grow. Close your mouth upon the power, curse not, cure not, ‘til the hour. You won’t speak and you won’t tell, you won’t call on heav’n or hell. You will learn and you will thrive. Silence, Daughter. Stay alive.

The day my mother was killed, she told my father I wouldn’t speak again, and she told him if I died, he would die too. Then she predicted the king would trade his soul and lose his son to the sky.

My father has a claim to the throne, and he is waiting in the shadows for all of my mother’s words to come to pass. He wants desperately to be king, and I just want to be free.

But freedom will require escape, and I’m a prisoner of my mother’s curse and my father’s greed. I can’t speak or make a sound, and I can’t wield a sword or beguile a king. In a land purged of enchantment, love might be the only magic left, and who could ever love . . . a bird? 

5 Beautiful Stars

I don't like fantasy. Urban fantasy I can do and enjoy with a little pushing and patience, but legitimate fantasy doesn't hold my attention. In fact, it frustrates me. I often find it dry, confusing, and trying-too-hard.

Given that, I'm not sure why I picked up The Bird and The Sword, knowing full well it was fantasy. To be perfectly honest, I was expecting it to be a did not finish.

That wasn't the case. At all.

Instead, it's now on my "Best of 2016" shelf, and has earned a permanent spot as one of my favorite books ever. 

The Bird and The Sword is a stand alone, new adult (I think) romantic fantasy, set to a backdrop of what reminds me of the Middle Ages. In this world, some people are Gifted with strange and intense powers, such as shifting into animals, healing the sick or wounded, and transforming objects.

Our heroine, Lark, is Gifted. After witnessing a horrible tragedy as a young child, she no longer speaks. Not a word, not a whisper. Silence does not mean weak, as Lark finds out on her joinery throughout the story.

Normally, I'd go far more in depth into the storyline than that, but I really feel it's something you have to experience for yourself. I went in nearly blind, and am so glad I did. It's the best way to do it! 

It feels a little Beauty and The Beast to me, which I loved. 

I think part of why it was so good for me was because I didn't view it as a fantasy read. I read it as a romance with a fantasy backdrop, rather than a fantasy with a romantic subplot. That made all the difference. 

The pacing was flawless, and enthralled me from the very first page. The writing is spectacular, as per usual with Amy Harmon's work, and I have pages and pages of highlighted notes on my Kindle!

One thing I enjoyed was the fairly minimal dialogue. Since Lark cannot speak, there isn't much chatter between her and other characters, at least not in the traditional sense. The interactions between her and other characters was all the more enjoyable because it was meaningful.

I was only limited by my ignorance, by my fear, and by my own sense of right and wrong. 

Lark had some wonderful character development throughout the story, and it was fascinating to see her grow and change. The way she got around not being able to speak made her all the more respectable in my eyes, as she does so much with so little.

And then there's Tiras, the King and Lark's love interest. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed a character as much as I enjoyed him! I bounced back and forth between swooning over him and wanting to give him a solid smack on the head. He's undeniably a bit of a jackass, but...there's something about him I couldn't get enough of.

He was sexy and intense, infuriatingly haughty, proud and noble, a fearless warrior and at the same time, a scared little boy. He cared deeply about his people, and watching his love for Lark grow and evolve was lovely to see. 

"I have loved you every moment of every day, and I will love you until I cease to be."

The action was spectacular, gory battle scenes painted with such vivd detail that it felt like I was right there with them.

My one and only issue with the book is that I wish the sex scenes were as vivid as the battle scenes, rather than mostly fade to blacks. That's just my inner hussy, though. ;)

I loved the side characters, even the ones I wasn't suppose to like!

Overall, this was a fantastic story than I cannot recommend enough. 

{Book Review} The Air He Breathes by Brittainy C. Cherry

Goodreads

From Goodreads

I was warned about Tristan Cole.

“Stay away from him,” people said.
“He’s cruel.”
“He’s cold.”
“He’s damaged.”

It’s easy to judge a man because of his past. To look at Tristan and see a monster.

But I couldn’t do that. I had to accept the wreckage that lived inside of him because it also lived inside of me.

We were both empty.
We were both looking for something else. Something more.
We both wanted to put together the shattered pieces of our yesterdays.

Then perhaps we could finally remember how to breathe. 

My Review

4 "I Am So Conflicted" Stars

Elizabeth knows what it's like to struggle to breathe. After losing her husband and soulmate, she fled to her mother's home to escape all the memories. A year passes, and together with her young daughter, she's back in her hometown. Everything is exactly how she remembers, with the exception of a viciously closed off man moving in to the house next to hers. 

The town gossips are quick to warn her about this beautiful, scornful man. 

They all warned me about Tristan, begging me to stay away. 'He's an asshole, he's wild, and she's broken, Liz.', they would say. 'He's nothing but the ugly scars of his yesterdays.', they swore.

Tristan struggles every day to take just one more breath. He lost is wife and best friend, along with his son, in a horrific car accident. With the two most important people in his life ripped away from him, he's beyond damaged. He is hateful, he is bitter, and he is lost.

The two share dozens of interactions, fueled by Tristan's cruelty and Elizabeth's heated confusion. Reluctant sexual tension crackles around the couple, and soon they start using each other.

Using each other to forget.

Using each other to remember.

I saw the broken parts that somehow matched by own. 

This was my second Brittainy Cherry book (the first being Loving Mr. Daniels), and everyone and their mother raved about it when it came out in late September of 2015. Because I am incredibly lazy with new releases, save for a select few authors, I only got around to picking it up a week ago. Oops.

I blew through this book in less than a day, and was left feeling more than a little conflicted, especially when it came time to rate it.

Let's get to it.



The first half of this book was absolutely amazing. It was so, so emotional, so intense, and I connected so strongly with both Elizabeth and Tristan that their emotions felt like my own. I loved the side characters, and I really enjoyed the author's more minimally descriptive writing style.
 It was ugly cry heartbreaking, but with surprising bits of humor woven in that made me laugh out loud. It was a really nice balance, and worked flawlessly for the story and characters.



She undressed me and made love to her past.
(that is just gorgeous <3)



Elizabeth and Tristan's chemistry soon turns into a sexual relationship. They use each other in the most basic, primal way, each envisioning their dead spouse in the place of the person in front of them.  There was absolutely zero love, or even much affection between the two to begin with, and I loved the refreshing lack of insta-love. Their raw yearning and all consuming love and grief they had for their spouses brought tears to my eyes, and painted the most potent picture of tragedy and loss. It was incredibly well crafted, easily enthralling the reader with the characters' heartbreak.


"I'll help. I'll help you hold onto him. I'll help you remember."


I was sure I had a 5 star read on my hands for that first 50%, certain I was going to reread this story, and being confident that it'd wind up on my Top 2016 List.

And then I swiped to the next page on my Kindle, and it all started going downhill.

One of my favorite things about the first half was the straightforward, fairly drama free (well, as drama free as you can get while fucking someone and picturing your dead husband/wife...) story. Boy, did it make up for that in the second half.



"Show me the shadows that keep you up at night. Kiss me with your darkness."



So. Much. Drama. One thing after the other happened in the second half, each one more farfetched than the next. It completely took away from the beautiful slow burn of the first half of the book. Everything in the second half was rushed, forced, improbable, the secondary characters became obvious and juvenile (this is an adult book), and two of the big "revelations" were easy to spot. The book took an overused plot twist, one I saw coming from miles away.

The writing stayed consistently pretty and emotional, and I still read it with feverish fervor. The first half was a solid 5 stars, and the second a 3. I'd recommend it just for the beautiful first half!

I saw the broken parts that somehow matched by own. 

STATS

Rating: ...4 stars??
Genre: Adult, contemporary romance
Series: Elements, #1
POV: 1st person, alternating perspective
Steam/sexual content: Some semi-graphic sex, moderately steamy
Warnings: Tissues needed!
Length: 308 pages
Published: September 25th, 2015

{Book Review} Fighting Silence (On The Ropes, #1) by Aly Martinez

From Goodreads

Sound is an abstract concept for most people. We spend our lives blocking out the static in order to focus on what we believe is important. But what if, when the clarity fades into silence, it's the obscure background noise that you would give anything to hold on to?

I've always been a fighter. With parents who barely managed to stay out of jail and two little brothers who narrowly avoided foster care, I became skilled at dodging the punches life threw at me. Growing up, I didn’t have anything I could call my own, but from the moment I met Eliza Reynolds, she was always mine. I became utterly addicted to her and the escape from reality we provided each other. Throughout the years, she had boyfriends and I had girlfriends, but there wasn't a single night that I didn’t hear her voice.

You see, meeting the love of my life at age thirteen was never part of my plan. However, neither was gradually going deaf at the age of twenty-one.

They both happened anyway.

Now, I'm on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life.
Fighting for my career.
Fighting the impending silence.
Fighting for her.

Every night, just before falling asleep, she sighs as a final conscious breath leaves her.
I think that's the sound I'll miss the most.

My Review

5 "You've Always Been Forever For Me" Stars!

Till Page and Eliza Reynolds stumble upon each other in an abandoned building late one night. Each hiding from grim homes lives, they continue to meet in secret throughout the years, and soon form an incredible bond that is more than friendship. They become vital to each other's sanity in a dirt poor, damn near hopeless life.

"It was more than a friendship, but there wasn't romance or sex. There was definitely love, though. Immeasurable amounts of it. I knew Till had this grand fantasy about me, but what he didn't realize was all that he gave me in return. He was the only thing I'd ever had that I honestly thought I couldn't live without."

With his father in jail and his mother completely unconcerned, the responsibility of his two younger brothers falls to Till, in order to keep them out of the foster care system. Till and Eliza are as close as two people could be; Eliza is Till's fantasy, his escape from their bleak reality. He is terrified of loosing that, so much love for each other and one unforgettable night, their relationship never goes further.

With the stress of being a parent to his brothers at such a young age, struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food in their mouths, and Eliza going away to college, their lives are split apart as they move in different directions.

A twist of fates lands them smack back into each other's lives, and this time will be different. Despite fighting poverty, raising Till's brothers, navigating a new relationship, and dealing with Till's impending silence, these two stay strong. 

This time, it's no longer an escape. This time, it's their reality. 

I read Fighting Silence in one sitting, and fell in love from the very first page. It's high on my best books for 2015, and is one of my favorite books of all time. There honestly wasn't a single thing I didn't enjoy about this.

"There is nothing in this world that was ever more mine than you."

Eliza was a fantastic heroine. It was incredibly refreshing to read a heroine that was strong, capable, intelligent, and a genuinely good person. She wasn't whiny, despite how tough their lives are more often than not, and she gave so much. She loved Till's brothers like they were her own kids, and the way that family was together....that, combined with the level of gentle adoration she has for her lover and best friend, brought tears to my eyes, and inspired all kinds of:

Now Till...good god, he's a man after my own heart. I normally don't like fighter romances. The fighters are usually big, dumb, violent assholes. Till wasn't like that. He was compassionate, dedicated, hard working, smart, and loved his family beyond all reason. Even though he has so much working against him, he never once faltered in his tenacity for what he wanted. I admired him more than pretty much any character I've ever read.

"You always say that you love me, but you have given me so much more. And because of that, I will spend a lifetime fighting to give you the world."

The couple had fantastic chemistry! A truly deep, loving, understand relationship that was beautiful to watch.

Till's struggle with going deaf was fascinating to watch. How he dealt with it, how his family dealt with it, and how it affected every single aspect of his life and career was raw, and intense. It was so interesting to see how it nearly broke him, but he still pushed through and worked past it. It was inspiring and humbling, to be perfectly honest.

She burst out laughing. God, I loved that sound. I knew I'd never be the same when I lost it to the silence. I'd happily give up every noise in the world if I could just keep her laugh.

I loved the pacing and flow of this story. We start off with a bang, then we're in their childhoods. From there you're shown the evolution of the characters and their relationship, their mounting challenges, and every success. It was enthralling and addictive. I laughed, I cried, I swooned, and loved every second of it. 

This is the first book in the On The Ropes trilogy, each focusing on a Page brother. My review of the second book, Fighting Shadows, can be found here. The third and final book, Fighting Solitude, releases February 2nd!

Overall, this is one of the best contemporary romances I've ever read. If you like intense emotion, sexy boxers, strong family ties, amazing character development, and a gorgeous love story, I highly suggest this one! Go with the print of eBook version, though. The audio narrator doesn't do it justice. 

Add to Goodreads

- The Bibliophile Babe

Book Review: Lover Awakened - J. R. Ward

WARNING: This is the third book in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, and it's the only one I've read. There may or may not be some minor spoilers in this review, as I don't know what is and isn't common knowledge for starting the series. 

 

From Goodreads:

In the shadows of the night in Caldwell, New York, there’s a deadly war raging between vampires and their slayers. And there exists a secret band of brothers like no other - six vampire warriors, defenders of their race. Of these, Zsadist is the most terrifying member of the Black Dagger Brotherhood.

A former blood slave, the vampire Zsadist still bears the scars from a past filled with suffering and humiliation. Renowned for his unquenchable fury and sinister deeds, he is a savage feared by humans and vampires alike. Anger is his only companion, and terror is his only passion—until he rescues a beautiful aristocrat from the evil Lessening Society.

Bella is instantly entranced by the seething power Zsadist possesses. But even as their desire for one another begins to overtake them both, Zsadist’s thirst for vengeance against Bella’s tormentors drives him to the brink of madness. Now, Bella must help her lover overcome the wounds of his tortured past, and find a future with her…

Zsadist, or Z, is one of the six bothers in the Black Dagger Brotherhood. He was captured at a young age and used as a blood slave and sex slave for decades, and the scars left on him by the experience run deep, both physically and mentally. A cruel and ruthless vampire, he lives a life of constant anger, pain, humiliation, and a cold detachment from his fellow vampires, even his own Brothers. Getting off on the terror of others and constantly punishing himself because of how he is, he is trapped inside a life of hopeless darkness - until he meets and rescues Bella. Bella is a stunning aristocrat who was held captive by the vampires' sworn enemy, The Lessers. 

Once freed, they struggle to come to terms with their connection; Z, terrified of being near Bella, fights it every step of the way, while Bella is determined to crack down his walls and be let in. With a very rough road ahead of them, and danger and drama at every turn, the two must decide just how much damage can be repaired, and what is worth fighting for.

That is really all I can say about it without spoiling the story, but it has an interesting and engaging plot. Now, on to the review!

This book was...a bit ridiculous, but I truly enjoyed it. Definitely going on my "guiltiest of guilty pleasures" shelf, right next to my Crossfire and Night Huntress series. I devoured it, and will covertly be reading the others. 

I had several issues with this book, some of which were mild, others had me grinding my teeth in annoyance. 

First and foremost being holy fucking multiple points of views! There's at least 6 regular, alternating voices, and it got both confusing and frustrating trying to keep everyone straight. There's Zsadist, Bella, Phury (Z's twin), John, the main Lesser, and occasionally a bit from Butch and Bella's brother. The book is in third person, which made it even more tough to follow. I felt like I kept getting spoiled by bits, or wasting my time with unnecessary information. Don't get me wrong, I can see why Ward put more people in than just Z and Bella. Phury was an excellent addition, and I grew to really like John's view of the world. Everyone else, though? I could've happily done without them. Truth be told, I wound up skimming some of this novel.

All the strange names for people and things! I had to constantly refer to the glossary in the beginning of the book. 

The names of the Brothers. Maybe it's explained in the first two books, but why such odd spellings? Zsadist, Phury, Rhage, Vishous, Thorment.... I don't get it. 

The way the book panned out was a bit weird for me. The ending felt very, very rushed, and we didn't get to see much of Z and Bella actually being together. It was a fairly long book at around 440 pages, but it felt like there should've been more to it. We had all this angst and longing between the couple, and there wasn't much closure for me. 

On that note....while the ending was sweet, I didn't really see it as fitting for the couple. Maybe if we'd gotten to see them being together I would've been more satisfied, but given the way it was, it felt more just like Ward was trying to wrap everything up with a cute moment. 

There's a pretty big thing that happens towards the climax of the book, and while I understand that this story wasn't for that character, it felt totally unresolved. Even in the epilogue we don't get a mention, and I read the scene as being monumental to the Brotherhood. 

This line: "An 18-wheeler orgasm overtook him. As the top of his cock blew off..." I'm sorry, but all I pictured is someone getting smushed by a Mac truck, while dealing with a very bloody and very painful dick. 

Apart from that though, I really enjoyed this book. It says something that I could have so many issues with a novel and still devour it. And third person, no less! 

"You are clean."

"Oh, no, I'm not. I'm really not. I'm filthy.  I am so very dirty. I am dirty, dirty.... Can you see the dirt? I see it everywhere. It coats me. It seals me in. I can feel it on my skin -"

Zsadist. I love him. My heart broke for him at every page. Despite having so, so many issues, he didn't read like the typical self-loathing male. He truly believes that he is beyond repair, and he doesn't enjoy the feeling the way so many book men do. I teared up on more than one occasion reading what he felt, what he experienced, or how he thought about himself. He starves himself, washes himself raw, deprives himself of the most basic forms of comfort, and it broke me to read him. The scars left on him by his physical and sexual abuse run so deep, and he can't hide them. Can't fix them. 

"What are you saying, Zsadist?"

He glanced back down at the pencil in his hand and then turned to the table. Flipping the spiral notebook to a new page, he bent way over and labored on the top of the page for quite a while. Then he ripped the sheet free.

His hand was shaking as he held it out. "It's messy."

Bella took the paper. In a child's even block letters there were three words: 

I love you

"Maybe you can't read it," He said in a small voice. "I can do it over."

(this expert is what made me want to read the book)

Zsadist is illiterate. Of all the things, this one struck especially hard. Just imagine for a minute what it's like to not be able to read. Looking at this post and not comprehending a single thing I've written. It probably is a greater horror for us as passionate readers to imagine, but even if you weren't someone who took such joys in reading and writing, the effects of illiteracy are staggering. Not being able to read street signs, warnings, directions. Not being able to write your own name. It's a horrifying thought that there are people, adults, who can't read. It's not as uncommon as you may think. There's more than likely at least one person in your town who doesn't know the gift of words. It's simply appalling to even think of that.

I couldn't get a good read on Bella. I never really connected with her, so I had a difficult time seeing things through her eyes. 

The sex scenes were interesting between Z and Bella. We delve so deep into Z's issues that their trysts become more about how he is coping and thinking, rather than getting turned on by vampy sexy times, and I loved that. Z's sexual abuse has shaped him so much into what he is and how he processes, and the sex between them really did a good job of illustrating how far he could go and how much he was willing to try and repair himself, even when he wasn't actively acknowledging it. It was a clever way to show that Z was willing to try and heal for Bella, even as he so desperately fought it.

"You've got to understand that I die for you every day. Your pain is mine."

Something I found fascinating was the relationship between Zsadist and his twin brother, Phury. That bond they have...holy hell. It was so intense! Sometimes you read a book and two characters' chemistry just jumps off the page. Whether between lovers, friends, or siblings, it's an amazing thing to see. That's how it was with Z and Phury. The care Phury has for his brother, the torture he goes through at seeing him hurt, the way he will do anything in his power to help Z was so beautiful. And Z, for all his problems, cares just as deeply. The reconciliation scene...I cried. I enjoyed seeing the two of them interact more than anything else in the entire story.

It took me 100 pages or so to really get into the book, but after that I breezed through it. It was fast paced, engaging, and kept me wanting. When I wasn't reading it, I was itching to get back to it. That's the sign of a good book to me, despite the problems I had with it. I would recommend it, with a tissue warning.

STATS:

Rating: 3.75 stars

Genre: Adult, paranormal romance

Length: 334 pages (paperback)

Series: Black Dagger Brotherhood, book 3

POV: 3rd person, multiple

Steam/sexual content: Steamy, explicit sex

Warnings: violence, graphic mental, physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, graphic sex, drug use

Cliffhanger: For this couple, no

HEA: Yes

From my library 

- The Bibliophile Babe