Review on Bentwhistle the Dragon #1 A Threat from the Past

Peter Bentwhistle seems like an ordinary man. He works as head of security for a company called Cropptech, he plays for a hockey team at the weekend, and enjoys spending time with his friends. However, Peter is hiding a huge secret. He is a dragon! Disguising himself in human form, Peter spends the majority of his time living on the Earth's surface with the humans, helping to guide them through life and influencing them to do the right thing. Everything is going to plan, that is until Manson arrives at Cropptech. Peter can't quite put his finger on it, but he knows that there is something not quite right about Manson. As things go from bad to worse, with the boss becoming mysteriously ill, and unneeded armed security being installed at the Cropptech facility under Manson's command, Peter, along with his two dragon friends, Richie and Tank, must find a way to overthrow Manson and restore Cropptech to it's former glory.

As soon as I was sent a request to review this book, I was immediately excited to read it. Dragons! Who doesn't get excited over dragons? I had high expectations for this book, and I was not disappointed. This story was both exciting and original, showing dragons in a completely unique perspective, with them protecting humankind rather than trying to destroy it. I found it interesting that Peter was living a double life, one on the Earths surface among the humans, and one underground with his fellow dragons. The story features a number of different sports, and although I was not too keen on reading about the hockey matches, I was hooked on the dragon sport of Laminium Ball. I do not enjoy watching or playing sports, so I was not able to fully understand Peter's love for playing hockey, but I found myself wanting to attend a Laminium Ball match. This sport is definitely up there with my favourite magical sports, just behind Quidditch.

 The only thing I was able to criticize about this book is that I was able to guess one of the big reveals near the end of the book quite early on, and therefore was not surprised when it happened. I thought that it was too obvious, although other readers may not have made the connection as early on as I did. I loved the climax of the novel, and when it came down to around the last one hundred pages, I could not put it down and read on well into the night. The character development for the main three characters was well written, and I loved that we got to know about Tank and Richie's thoughts and feelings, not just Peter's. The writing style is simple and easy to understand, so children will have no problem reading this book. If you are a fan of Harry Potter or The Hobbit, then this book is definitely for you.


Get your free 'Bentwhistle the Dragon in a Threat from the Past' e-book HERE

(For American readers click here)

Review on The Infernal Devices #3 Clockwork Princess

In the final installment of the Infernal Devices series, Tessa Gray and the Shadowhunters of the London Institute must prepare for their final battle to defeat Mortmain once and for all. However, it will be no easy task, as the Consul, the head of the Clave, is refusing to corporate, causing the Shadowhunters to be heavily outnumbered against Mortmains army of clockwork creatures, the Infernal Devices. Meanwhile, Jem is steadily becoming more and more ill, and with Mortmain in obsession of the drugs keeping Jem alive, Will is in a race against time to find a cure for his Parabatai before it is too late.

Firstly, I apologize for how long it took to write this review. This was for two reasons. Firstly, I love this series and I was unwilling to say goodbye to the characters I had grown to love, so I was taking my time with it. Secondly, I had to wait for the tears to stop pouring before I was able to physically write. I adored this book, and although I was crying towards the end, I thought the ending was the perfect way to end the series. I have often been disappointed by the ending to a series that I have loved, but it was not the case with The Infernal Devices, which I was grateful for. Although this was a long book, there were few fillers, and the majority of the book contributed to the main plot of the story. I usually dislike the romance elements to adventure or dystopian novels, as I feel that they are not needed, but I enjoyed the love triangle between Tessa, Will and Jem, and it made a change that Will and Jem were friends, rather than fighting over the girl, which is the norm for Young Adult novels. For me, there was no “Team Will” or “Team Jem,” as I loved both boys equally, and understood perfectly how it would be difficult for Tessa to make a decision. 

 Although I loved this element in the romantic side to the story, I felt that it was a bit much to give every main character a romantic interest. Not everyone needs to find love at such a young age, as the majority of the Shadowhunters are still teenagers. I felt that Cecily talking about marriage was too soon, as she is still only fifteen. Although people got married earlier in the 1800s, I felt that Cecily should still have had some time before her before she started thinking about marriage. Romantic aspects aside, I loved the adventure part to the story, and there were often times when I was unable to put the book down, and read into the early hours of the morning. The battle at Cadair Idris was brilliant, and I was not expecting the battle to end as it did. I also loved the addition of a family tree at the back of the book, as I spent at least half an hour looking at how the characters from The Infernal Devices were related to those from The Mortal Instruments. Although this series is over, I can't wait to read the final instalment in The Mortal Instruments series, and any further writing that Clare creates about the Shadowhunter world. But for now

Ave Atque Vale

Review on 'Otherworldly'

Otherworldly is a collection of short stories by Nicua Shamira. They are all based around the fantasy genre, and are told in a first person narrative from individual characters, from a strange, unearthly creature, to a human who lives in a world where everyone can live up to six hundred years, but with terrible consequences.

As this is a collection of short stories rather than a novel, I am going to rate them as a whole rather than individually. This means that although I may have liked some of the stories more than others, I am going to give my overall opinion on them.

I thought that the imagery in all of the stories was beautiful. The surroundings were described perfectly, and it gives a good idea of where the stories are taking place. I feel as if the plot in a large amount of short stories is lacking, which is why overall I prefer to read a novel, where you can understand the characters motives better. However, as a short story collection, I enjoyed it. It was a fun, quick read, and as I love the fantasy genre I loved reading about these other worldly creatures and their coming into contact with the human race. I particularly enjoyed the third story, “Footsteps,” as this had a well thought out plot as well as the imagery. I feel as if this story could be developed into a full novel, as I found myself wanting to know more about this dystopian world, how everything had started and how the character would go on with her life. Overall it was a great read, and perfect for anyone who likes the fantasy genre but does not have much free time to read full novels.

Review on the Broken Line Series #1 The Copper Witch

Adela Tilden has always been more ambitious than her station in life might allow. A minor nobleman’s daughter on a failing barony, Adela’s prospects seem dire outside of marrying well-off. When Adela catches the eye of the crown prince, Edward, however, well-off doesn't seem to be a problem. Thrown into a world of politics and intrigue, Adela might have found all the excitement she ever wanted—if she can manage to leave her past behind.

I love Historical novels, and this book was no exemption. Adela Tilden is very ambitious, and will do anything necessary to climb up the hierarchy. Although Adela is the protagonist of the story, I had mixed feelings about her. I usually love female characters with ambition, but as Adela was seemingly dating men of high social ranking to climb the ladder herself, I felt myself feeling sorry for the men who fell in love with her. There are a few cases where it is clear that she does not love them, although they love her, and consequently she ends up breaking their heart. I did however enjoy the ending, as she seems to come back down to earth slightly, even though she is still ambitious and not altogether a likable character. Men are drawn to her beauty, and she uses this to her advantage to get what she wants.

Sadly Adela is not a character who I cared for, although I loved some of the male characters, particularly Antony. At the start of the novel, I thought that Adela and Antony would make a good couple, but as the novel progressed and Adela's ambitions became more clear, I felt that Antony deserved someone who did not sleep around to get what she wants. Jessica Dall is a good writer, and I overall enjoyed the book, but for a novel to really grip me, I have to fall in love with the characters. Unfortunately, this was not the case with Adela, as I disliked her lack of sympathy for the other characters, and particularly that she was comparing her beauty to other women, and silently mocking them for not being as beautiful as her. Adela is vain and egotistic, and I feel that if she wasn't so beautiful, men would not so easily fall in love with her. I loved the setting and the overall plot of the book, but the characters let it down slightly as a whole.

Copper Witch will be available from March 13th

For more information please visit http://jessicadall.com/about/the-copper-witch/

Review on Dawn of Steam #1 First Light

In 1815, in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, two of England's wealthiest lords place a high-stakes wager on whether a popular set of books, which claim that the author has travelled to many unknown corners of the globe, are truth or, more likely, wild fiction. Former aide-de-camp, Gregory Conan Watts tells the story through a series of letters and journal entries, describing his adventures travelling aboard an airship with his crew, which include a wide variety of characters, including the airship's owner, war hero, genius, and literal knight in steam-powered armour Sir James Coltrane. The crew are in a race against time, as the crew hired by the other side of the wager seem willing to win by any means necessary.

I have not had much experience with Steam Punk novels, so when I was asked to review this book I was unsure of what to expect. Although it started off slow, it picked up it's pace once the crew had been assembled together and the main part of the adventure had started. Being an epistolary novel, the story is told from the protagonists point of view through the writing of letters to his fiancée and boss, and his own personal journal. The writing style varies slightly depending on who Gregory's intended reader is, which gives the story some variety. There is little dialogue between Gregory and other characters, which makes it difficult to understand what the crews thoughts and feelings are. However, the lack of dialogue is compromised slightly by some of the other characters writing their own letters home. I adored the character of Sam Bowe from the start, and although soon after joining the crew there was a plot twist involving this character that I was not expecting, Sam has remained my favourite character throughout the novel. As the novel is set in 1815, it is interesting that the gender roles of the characters are not set in stone, e.g , Harriet is a good mechanic, while another female member of the crew is a true heroine, and is just as good at fighting, if not better, than some of the male crew members. Most strong female characters in both books and movies are sexualised, but with this book, it was not the case, which I loved. I feel as if their adventure could have been more widespread, as it was limited to England and America, but as it is the first book in the series, I am sure the sequels will cover a larger area of the world.



First Light will be available to purchase from February 28^th

For more information on this series please visit http://www.dawnofsteam.net/

Cover Reveal

The cover for the third and final book in Chris Colfer's The Land of Stories series has been revealed! I've loved reading this series, and even though I’m excited for the final book in the trilogy, I will be sad to say goodbye to these wonderful fairy tale characters. But for now, let's talk about the cover. I always have high hopes for the covers in this series, and this one does not disappoint. It is just as bright and beautiful as the previous two books, and has it's own unique colour scheme. The cover is just as action packed, with new and exciting characters, plus old favourites including the twins, Mother Goose and Lester. Oh and that's right, there's a dragon! In my opinion, you can never go wrong with dragons. If the story is exciting as the cover, which I'm sure it will be, this book looks set to be yet another huge success.