A Flaw in the Blood by Stephanie Barron

Caution, spoilers.

This is an older book, and I had gotten it at a secondhand bookshop a while ago, but I just got to reading it, as I was looking for a light, standalone novel to read during finals week at school! This is my first book by this author.

Things I Liked:

• The creepy atmosphere. I'm not sure how to define it, but this book had a really Gothic feel (and I mean that in the traditional sense, not the sense of angry, overly-eyeliner'ed teenagers), and it was just very lush. This was a really enjoyable book to read in dim lighting, curled up with some tea. 
• The pacing/development of the mystery. I'm sure that some people found that once they inferred the mystery, the book lost its appeal. For me, that DIDN'T happen. Obviously, from the title and the fact that Queen Victoria is a principal character, I figured from before I even started the book that this was about hemophilia. For me, hemophilia was NOT the mystery, it was how Albert died, how Victoria came to have the disease, etc. That was the mystery for me, and I thought it developed really well. I hate to be teased in mystery books, but this did a good job of keeping me guessing while keeping me interested. 
• The history. I LOVE the Victorian era, I cannot tell you how badly I would love to live in the Victorian era, I love everything about it. I also have a particular interest in royalty, so I was over the moon to see a book concerned with both. I could see how someone might be offended with the implications of this book, but I, for one, was not. I wouldn't want to read the same sort of archetypal versions of these notable figures every time, and I really liked seeing Barron interpret them in new and interesting ways. 
• Georgie and Patrick! I really, really loved this little romance! Who doesn't love a (very well-written) Irish accent? And a slightly haunted, jealous, brooding, dashing man? Fair point, many people won't, but I really do, and such I enjoyed this book, and, if you do as well, this book is worth checking out for Patrick Fitzgerald alone. Georgie, I really liked Georgie as a heroine! She's an incredibly intelligent, accomplished woman (especially considering the obstacles living in her time would have put before her), but she did NOT lord it over the less educated (like Patrick) or shun women less educated (Lizzy, who she tried to save), so I really appreciate that in a character, and I also thought she was super sweet with Patrick, throughout. 

Things I Disliked: 

• One might say that the scene with von Stuhlen and Maude, or Patrick's rescue of Georgie at the last second were quite convenient and even a bit sensational, but I don't really think that is a drawback, per se, just something to be aware of, if you like a more gritty realism. 

Final Thoughts: 

I enjoyed reading this book! The mystery did keep my attention and did surprise me, as I think it will you, so long as you don't expect the entire mystery to be the hemophilia thing. The style, pacing, and development were all spot on for an engaging, enjoyable read (I finished in two days). I was rooting for the romance, and was glad to see it come to fruition, and I thought Patrick was yummy! All in all, I think you should give this book a try if you are remotely interesting in the Victorian era, a quick, fun read, or mysteries! 

The Once and Future King by T.H. White

So, this book is about King Arthur, and I saw it on sale at Barnes and Noble and I picked it up. I didn't get what I expected, but I wouldn't say I wasted the time I spent reading it.

My Thoughts:

1. This is divided into several books, and the first one is basically the plot of Disney's Sword and the Stone, which, all things considered, was most definitely not a bad thing. 
2. I was very upset as the book was drawing to a close. It had gone from this successful, glorious Camelot to these sad, worn-down, old people. I don't know why I thought it would be a happy ending. Then again, my previous knowledge of the topic would be the movie Arthur (the one with Kiera Knightley as Guinevere), which had an amazingly happy ending, the Showtime miniseries Camelot, which had too much sex and death to ever get truly tragic, and  the book Avalon High by Meg Cabot, which was about some teenagers in Maryland who were the reincarnations of important characters from Arthurian legend, and that was an amazing book, with a wonderful ending. I highly recommend it!
3.  I mean, the good guys prevailed, but I'd expected more of a ride off into the sunset type of ending. The ending of this reminded me of the ending of BBC's 2006 Robin Hood (which I'd been thinking about since I read that Lucy Griffiths (Marian from that show) will be in Season 5 of True Blood): tragic, but not wrong.
4. The writing style is like nothing I've ever read before, and I do read a fair amount. 
5. This book is very hard to describe. I'm not sure if I even liked it. I don't dislike it and I don't regret buying it and reading it. I enjoyed reading it, I suppose, and I'm glad I did...but I'm not sure if I liked it per se. I don't know how I feel about it, and I'm the type that I feel most truly my impression of a book right after I've read it, so if I don't know now, I'm not going to know.

Who Should Read It:

• I honestly can't say; this book really stumped me. 

Final Score: -/10 I'll leave this one open. 

Next, I'll either be reading Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell or Middlemarch by George Eliot. 

The Gathering Storm by Robin Bridges

This book centers around Katerina, Duchess of Oldenburg in 1888 Russia and necromancer. Different supernatural groups are vying for the throne/choosing one side or another (including revenants, witches, vampires, fairies and werewolves). Katerina's power is sought after my member's of all sides and she is forced into a relationship with the evil Prince Danilo...but wait! Will she be rescued by the utterly amazing Grand Duke George Alexandrovich?

My Thoughts

1. First and foremost: the relationship between Katiya and the George was just amazing! He starts out hostile towards our heroine, but he gradually warms to her and it's just so charming. And, of course, he's dashing and sexy but cute and sweet too (especially when he's jealous...aw!) This is one of those romances that I'm not even going to describe because I can't find the words! And Princess Alix and the tsar's eldest son were just adorable!
2. You know I love historical fiction, and the portrayal of the Russian Imperial Court was just great - it was like Anastasia, only without the songs!
3. In that vein, most historical fiction books are either centered in England or France or America, and I'd never really read one centering on Russia before. I was a little wary (you know me and change), but I absolutely loved it! The author provided a little info on some stuff at the beginning and it was definitely a nice change. 
4. Also, I'm not familiar with Russian folklore, so all the aspects of it the author included were completely new to me - which I loved, since I am such a nerd about stuff like that. 
5. I feel like I'm not explaining this book well, but it was a really amazing and engaging read. I probably spent a total of five hours on it over two days, since it was so good.
6. The overall plot was also really amazing. It was very complex and kept you guessing, but never to the point where you couldn't make a guess about what might happen. I loved the elements of mystery and intrigue that flowed seamlessly with the supernatural elements and the personal drama of Katiya and her relationships. 

Who Should Read I

• Romance fans who want to read about a really awesome romance with a really wonderful love interest!
• Fans of historical fiction!
• Fans of paranormal or supernatural or folkloric literature!

Final Score 10/10 A very enjoyable read!

I really recommend you check this book out, since it was something I really liked and I feel like you might like it too! For more info (it's part of a trilogy! YAY!), check out the author's website here. 

The stuff I ordered from Barnes and Noble came in the mail today, so I'm starting Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi!

The Faerie Ring by Kiki Hamilton

This book is about Tiki, a young woman from a well-to-do family forced by circumstances to pick pockets on the streets of 1871 London. When she steals the Queen's ring, which binds the fairies to a truce with the English, she then embarks on a quest to recapture it and save her "family" of fellow pickpockets. Also, this really hot guy, Rieker, turns out to be more than he seems. *wink*

My Thoughts:

1. First off, Tiki is so cool! I was originally wary of this book, since I like to identify with the hero or heroine of any story I read, and I've never had to be a pickpocket, but Kiki Hamilton is amazing with Tiki's characterization. She was relatable, but not in a bland, every-girl kind of way. She was stubborn and confrontational when she needed to be, but also very caring and compassionate. 
2. The faerie element of this book was absolutely amazing! It is absolutely seamless in terms of integration into the real world and just a very engaging universe. Some of the phrases/terms/names inspired me to Google around and read up on faeries and such and it is absolutely fascinating. I also really like how much actual faerie lore Kiki Hamilton put into this story; that makes it all the better!
3. Rieker. Oh, wow, was he great! It's like Kiki Hamilton took every desirable trait from every fictional crush I've ever had and lumped them into one amazing man. He has EVERYTHING! Long, dark hair - a strong profile - brooding eyes - a tragic past - a compassionate side - fashion sense - a soft spot for children - a bit of vulnerability - an all-consuming love for the heroine ... he was just impeccable! Sometimes, I get upset that I'll never have a functional relationship because no man will ever be as amazing as the fictional heroes of the novels I've read...but fictional Rieker versus real-world Mr. Average? He makes me look forward to being an old cat lady with nothing but a cottage and my books. 
4. This was a really solid, great book. The writing, the plot, the universe, the characters, the ending, just everything. 

Who Should Read It:

• Fans of romance! This is a good one!
• Fans of supernatural/faerie stuff. 

Final Score: 9.5/10 (for not being longer!)

I really recommend this book, even if it doesn't sound like something you're interested in. For more info, check out the author's website here. Next, I'm not sure what I'll be reading, but I have about five books coming from Barnes and Noble as soon as UPS gets here. 

The King's Daughter by Christie Dickason

This book is about Elizabeth, daughter of King James I of England and her slave (and later friend) Tallie. The book follows Elizabeth being implicated in a treasonous plot through various suitors to her eventual marriage.

My Thoughts:

1. Just a warning, this book is ... I don't want to say explicit ... but I recommend it for like 13 and up. 
2. Elizabeth is a very relatable character and so is Tallie - if you can't identify with something in the one, you'll probably find something in the other. 
3. There were some genuinely tragic moments - tears welled in my eyes (though I wasn't overcome enough to actually shed any).
4. The relationship between Elizabeth and Frederick is endearing and enticing at the same time.

Who Should Read It:

• Fans of Christie Dickason
• Fans of historical fiction/romance

Final Score: 6.5/10

This wasn't a bad book, I just don't think it was for me. 

I am currently reading the second book in Carrie Jones' Need series and OH MY GOD it is absolutely amazing! I'm going to wait 'til I finish the series to do a review, but I highly recommend you check it out!

Fateful by Claudia Gray

This book is about Tess, a maid for the wealthy Lisle family, who wants to start a new life after their transatlantic voyage on, wait for it, The Titanic! While on board, she meets handsome first-class passenger Alec Marlowe, who has a dark secret.

My Thoughts:

1. This book was fantastic! It was extremely well-written and very engaging! I was really able to get lost in this book!
2. Tess is a wonderful heroine! She's strong, but not to the point of being arrogant or stubborn. 
3. Alec is the perfect love interest! Handsome, with attractive hair, tortured with guilt he doesn't deserve, sweet, caring - oh, he's just perfect! 
4. The supernatural element was amazingly well done! You might think werewolves on the Titanic would come across as campy or silly, but it certainly did not!
5. The Titanic aspect was really amazing as well. There was a perfect balance of happy/sad endings for people, you know? It wasn't like all of the characters we know survived (which, statistically, they could've), but they didn't all drown either. But, even the minor characters' deaths made me cry. Irene, Ned, even Layton and Lady Regina - there were tears. And, of course, the historically accurate characters like John Jacob Astor (I think I'm just attached to him because of his role in James Cameron's  Titanic, but still.)
6. The romance was fabulous! There were so many tender, sweet moments and so many moments when I felt like the author was trying to rip my heart out, but, at the last second, didn't. Tess & Alec forever!

Who Should Read It:

• Romance fans, this is the book for you!
• Fans of James Cameron's Titanic, you should read this book. (Translation: everyone should read this book!)
• Titanic lovers in general, this is a great book! This is also a great era, in my opinion, very lush and romantic. 
• I haven't read any of Claudia Gray's other works (though I'm inspired to buy all of them now), but, if you like those, I recommend you read this! 

Final Score: infinity/10

This book is going on The Shelf. (The Shelf houses such greats as Anna and the French Kiss  by Stephanie Perkins, The Mortal Instruments and The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, and, of course, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.)

For more info, and a list of Claudia Gray's other works (which I will shortly be purchasing), check out her website here. 

I have a stack of new books four feet high, so stay tuned for more reviews! 

The Mark of the Golden Dragon by L.A. Meyer

The full title is actually The Mark of the Golden Dragon, Being an Account of the Further Adventures of Jacky Faber, Jewel of the East, Vexation of the West, and Pearl of the South China Sea. It is the ninth book in the Jacky Faber series (see the full list here), which centers on Jacky Faber, an orphan from a poor area of England who ran away to sea in the first book (when she was like 10 or 12) and has been having exciting adventures one the high seas  and trying to live happily ever after with Jaimy Fletcher, love of her life, ever since (she's now 17 or 18). Before I jump into my review of the most recent one, I'll do a quick review of what we've had so far.

1. Bloody Jack
2. The Curse of the Blue Tattoo
3. Under the Jolly Roger
4. In the Belly of the Bloodhound
5. Mississippi Jack
6. My Bonny Light Horseman
7. Rapture of the Deep
8. In the Wake of the Lorelei Lee

So, Jacky pretended to be a boy, ran away to sea, became a pirate, escaped from a slave ship, came to America, fought in the Napoleonic War, searched for treasure and escaped from a convict ship (her own ship) bound for New South Wales, Australia. Currently, she is marooned on Burma with a small boy (Ravi) she picked up in India and everyone she knows thinks she's dead! 

On to the actual review!

My Thoughts:

1. This is a good installment, in my opinion. Adventure, romance, intrigue - it's all there. 
2. Some might think a series gets a little ridiculous by the 9th installment, and, in this case, they'd be partially right. This series isn't classic literature nor is it going for a realistic depiction of early nineteenth-century life. However, it is a fun, interesting, and entertaining read. 
3. Jacky is fun and likable, and her ongoing romance with Jaimy (and Randall and Jared and Arthur and Richard) is equal parts adorable, angsty, and amusing. 

Who Should Read It:

• People who have read the rest of the series. If you liked that, you'll like this.
• If you like historical fiction, you'll probably enjoy this one. 

Final Score:

• Entire series: 10/10
• Mark of the Golden Dragon: 9/10

For more information, check out the author's website here. 

Next, I'll probably reviewing Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, so stay tuned!

The Devil's Queen by Jeanne Kalogridis

I read this book a while ago, but I really loved it, so I thought I'd share. It's about Catherine de Medici, who was Queen of France and married to Henri II (King of France). It chronicles her life since childhood to the aftermath of  a very pivotal event.

My Thoughts:

1. She was very interested in astrology and magic and such, and this book takes a wonderful approach to that. They perform rituals and have horoscopes done and everything, and I'm super interested in stuff like that, so I loved this book all the more for Jeanne Kalogridis' approach to the magic of Catherine. 
2. The relationship between Catherine and Henri II was really well executed, in my opinion. I loved them together - just the right amount of adorable with a dash of angst and betrayal. There was this one great moment where Henri comes to Catherine's room after telling her he's over Diane de Poitiers and the Scottish maid of Mary, Queen of Scots that is just so great!
3. Also, Catherine is pretty bad ass, which made me love her. In dealing with the intrigue of the French monarchy, holding her own with Diane de Poitiers, handling the whole Catholic/Protestant thing - she may not always have been right, but she was definitely hard core.
4. There is a lot of history in this book, which I thought was totally awesome. I love France (and Italy), so this was very interesting for me.

Who Should Read It:

• People looking for interesting side of history. Does this ever deliver!
• If you love the whole intrigue/love/betrayal in a 16th century royal court thing (think Showtime's The Borgias) then you'll probably love this book.
• I wouldn't say this is an adult novel, but it certainly doesn't fit the common tropes of a young adult novel. So, if you're looking for something a little more "WOW!", then this is for you!

So, that The Devil's Queen by Jeanne Kalogridis, a totally awesome book which I recommend you all check out! For a list of her other works (which I hope to read eventually), check out her website here.

Soon, I'll be reviewing Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.

Juliet by Anne Fortier (Part Two)

I finished this book yesterday, but, as I was preoccupied with writing essays for my european history class, I didn't get to blog about it! So, I'll finish up now!

This book was AMAZING! The love story of the past resolved in epic tragedy (as well it should, being R & J, after all) and the modern day love story was so heartrending and sweet! Not to mention the whole thing takes place in Italy (read: sexy Italian love interest! ...if you're interested in my opinion of the various nationalities of guys, see here and here.)

Who Should Read It:

• Romance fans! Particularly romance fans with little romantic experience who like to live vicariously through novel characters - our heroine is completely new to romance when she gets swept off her feet by Alessandro :)
• Shakespeare fans! The premise that this book is based on the story of the families that Shakespeare based the Capulets and Montagues on is so freaking cool!
• Any who wants a little adventure in their literary lives!

And because we're talking R & J, I've compiled a list of the top 4 best movie adaptations of Romeo and Juliet, in my opinion. These are listed in no particular order.

1. Romeo and Juliet (1968 - Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting): This one is a classic! It's sweet and sad and beautifully rendered and everything it should be. Plus, the main love theme, composed by Nino Rota, is SO wonderful!
2. William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet (1996 - Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio): This one is awesome too! It's got the original dialogue BUT it's set modern day...it is without a doubt the most original film I've ever seen - you have to see it to get it. But, while it has its funny moments, I cry more here than I did during the '68 version....also, I love Leo!
3. West Side Story (1961 - Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer): It's a musical! What more do you want!
4. Gnomeo & Juliet (2011 - Emily Blunt and James McAvoy): Okay, this is anthropomorphic lawn ornaments doing Shakespeare, now what more do you want? The cutest, sweetest, funniest animated film I have ever seen. AND *spoiler alert* it had a happy ending. I was even inspired to vow that, should I ever own a home, I will so put a bronze statue of the Bard in my yard, unashamedly at that. I don't care how old you are or whether you've ever read the play: watch this movie!

And that concludes me tangentially pontificating on my favorite adaptations of Shakespeare. In that vein, stay tuned for a review of Falling for Hamlet, a novel by Michelle Ray. And yes, it is what you think it is. Don't judge me - I know I'm a nerd, you know I'm a nerd, but you don't know me, thus I am not really "out" as a nerd (look at me, breaking the fourth wall!). 'Til then!

Juliet by Anne Fortier (Part One)

I haven't yet finished this book, but I really wanted to share it with you, so I'll review on the ending of it later.

It's about this woman (Julie/Guilietta) who travels to Italy after discovering that she is the descendant of the actual historical family upon which Shakespeare based the Capulets, there, she meets this man (Alessandro)who seems to hate her, but we shall see if that changes (read: I think he's the love interest), and tries to uncover the truth of the family legends.

Why I Love This Book:

1. It has an epigraph to each chapter from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet at the beginning of each chapter. If you've been reading my original blog (here), you'll know how much I love R & J! So, that, and the fact that the whole story is basically a discussion of the facts behind that, makes me just love this book!
2. It's sort of like two books (and romances) in one: our main character is travelling about Italy, trying to figure out Alessandro etc. AND she is reading these ancient manuscripts that depict the tale that R & J is based on. So, whole chapters are about the romance of Romeo and Guilietta in the Middle Ages, which is awesome!
3. The style is just great. The diction is very elevated and the way in which things are phrased is very interesting. It's almost like Fortier is trying the give her contemporary novel a Shakespearean feel (which, considering the subject matter, is so cool). One of my friends thought that it sounded pompous, but this was the same friend who pronounced Guilietta as "Gwill-e-etta" and "Ghoul-e-etta". I really apprectiate the style, but I tend to genuinely love classic novels like those of Jane Austen, so I may be biased.

In short, so far, it's an awesome book and I highly recommend it if you love romance, Shakespeare, history, and wonderful diction!