Romance Week: Heart on Fire by Amanda Bouchet

Romance Week

Read for: Recently Added to Shelves & Love this series!!

A Promise of Fire

Breath of Fire

Steam Level:

4 out of 6: Less than the previous books but when Griffin & Cat get together they certainly create a lot of steam!  

Synopsis: "Who is Catalia Fisa?
With the help of pivotal figures from her past, Cat begins to understand the root of her exceptional magic, her fated union with Griffin Sinta, and Griffin's role in shaping her destiny.

Only Cat holds the key to unlocking her own power, and that means finally accepting herself, her past, and her future in order to protect her loved ones, confront her murderous mother, and taking a final, terrifying step--reuniting all three realms and taking her place as the Queen of Thalyria.

What doesn't kill her will only make her stronger...we hope."

My Review: This is going to be a tough book to review, it is the last in this trilogy but it appears that it maybe isn't the last in the world. There is also a lot packed into this book, it is pretty much non stop action with little down time for Cat and Griffin or Beta team. I have said before that I am not a big fan of the Chosen One trope but the previous books in this series really softened the blow of that concept with a big team effort, but this book kind of veers more down that path than I would have liked. It becomes more and more clear throughout the book that Cat has to step up on her own and is the only one who can fight many of the battles, I much preferred the earlier books in this aspect. With that said there are some great lesser known mythological stories woven into this one and it was a great addition. There were also some great twists, epic heartbreaks and highs that kept the pages turning. Be warned that this doesn't wrap everything up in a nice little bow, there are a lot of dangling plot lines and I really hope we don't have to wait too long for more books with the Beta Team!

My Rating: We didn't get much down time and Cat & Griffin spent a good portion of the book separated so I kind of miss those moments. While it wasn't my favorite book in the trilogy, I did really enjoy the development several of the sub-characters went through. I give it a rating of Three Paws and a Stump Wag.

Bedtime Stories: 5 Minute Star Wars Villain Stories

Read for: Children's Books & STAR WARS!

Synopsis: A collection of 5 stories from throughout the Star Wars Saga featuring the villains and dark side. Each story is illustrated with the classic characters and stories, all stories are brief but stick to original scripts of the movies.

My Review: I picked these up for Munchkin from the Kohls Cares for Kids display and am so glad that I did. They are a great introduction to the events of the movies with all the classic characters and events from both the original trilogy and the pre-quel trilogy and even from the more recent releases. The illustrations aren't exactly like the originals but are drawn in a more cartoon style for young readers. The stories were all brief and while this book features the villains, none of them were too scary for a young child. We have really enjoyed this collection of stories and can't wait to start the hero stories next. 

My Rating: We really enjoyed this collection of stories and I like the broad range from the original trilogy to the prequels and even the newer movies. We give it a rating of Four Paws!

Review of Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Read for: TBR & came highly recommended

Synopsis: "In a land where three suns almost never set, a fledgling killer joins a school of assassins, seeking vengeance against the powers who destroyed her family.

Daughter of an executed traitor, Mia Corvere is barely able to escape her father’s failed rebellion with her life. Alone and friendless, she hides in a city built from the bones of a dead god, hunted by the Senate and her father’s former comrades. But her gift for speaking with the shadows leads her to the door of a retired killer, and a future she never imagined.

Now, Mia is apprenticed to the deadliest flock of assassins in the entire Republic—the Red Church. If she bests her fellow students in contests of steel, poison and the subtle arts, she’ll be inducted among the Blades of the Lady of Blessed Murder, and one step closer to the vengeance she desires. But a killer is loose within the Church’s halls, the bloody secrets of Mia’s past return to haunt her, and a plot to bring down the entire congregation is unfolding in the shadows she so loves.

Will she even survive to initiation, let alone have her revenge?"

My Review: I kept hearing about this book over the past year and everyone raved about it, but I put it off in fear of the book not holding up to the hype. I have to say that there was no need to hold off and it held up to all of my expectations! While this book may not be suited to everyone, there is a lot of cursing and brutality and is definitely not for the faint of heart but if you are up for it, do not hesitate to pick this one up. It did start off a little rocky for me since I tried the audio book first, but it wasn't making a whole lot of sense, turns out it has footnotes on nearly each page to build the history of the world, so the narrator didn't really distinguish when it was a foot note was being read (a different tone would have been helpful). Once I picked up the print version and digital from the library, I quickly became absorbed. The other thing that kind of threw me for a loop was the first couple of chapters jump between flash back and current, but other than italics defining the two, we don't really know what is going on. It becomes much more clear as the story continues and the flashbacks are lumped together instead of broken up in a chapter. Regarding the footnotes, I read them at first but I don't think they are really 100% necessary for the enjoyment of the book, it may help with world building and piecing things together in later books, but I only read them for about half the book and then just became to absorbed into what was going on in the main part of the story. The cast of characters in this one is wide and each intriguing in their own way; I have a bit of of a love hate relationship with Mia, is she villain or hero, is she violent and uncaring but at other times she is sentimental and emotionally attached. I did love several of the side characters Lotti, Lord Cassius, Naev and of course Tric but Mister Kindly is the ultimate side kick! The pace of the story builds as we near the conflict of the story and by the end we are being steamrolled and the pages are flying. This is definitely a story that will grab hold of you and take you for a ride. I cannot wait to pick up Godsgrave!

My Rating: I know that was a long review but there are a lot of elements that factor into this book, but when it all comes to an end this is without a doubt a Four Paw and a Stump Wag book for me!

Monday Reading List

Its Monday! What Are You Reading? is a weekly meme hosted by Shelia at Book Journey. Share what books you have finished in the last week, are currently reading and what might be coming up next!

Reviews Posted Last Week:

Links will take you to my review

Marabel and the Book of Fate by Tracy Barrett
Ice Ice Puggy by Disney (Early Reader)
Little Tails on the Farm by Frederic Brremaud & Federico Bertolucci (Graphic Novel)

 Books Finished Last Week:

Reviews will be posted at a later date

Nevernight
Silver Bracelet
Life Changing Manga of Tidying up
Survive the Night

Currently Reading:

It's Only Love by Marie Force - Audio - 82%

Pages Read/ Time Listened
57:57 Hours Listened (none listened this week)
3,884 Pages Read (1,102 this week)

Books Added to Shelves Recently: TBR
Plague of Giants by Kevin Hearne
Moonsilver by Kathleen Duey
Silver Thread by Kathleen Duey
The Silver Bracelet by Kathleen Duey
Mountains of the Moon by Kathleen Duey
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
I Love My Love by Reyna Biddy
The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin
Gods of the North by Lucy Coats
We Have Always Lived in a Castle by Shirley Jackson
Life Changing Manga of Cleaning Up by Marie Kondo



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Gosh the day has gotten away with me, right along with the month of January.  It was a late night last night with the super bowl but sadly not the outcome Hubby wanted. Hard to believe football season is over, but it will open up our weekends to more fun! Even though I was busy getting the house ready for the party on Sunday, I still got a surprising amount of reading done! With that said I have a lot of books to read this month, I really need to put myself on a book buying ban!  Luckily, my house is already cleaned up after the party, I have a bunch of card making to do so I will be either reading books or listening to books all week this week.