Honestly, I think I picked up this book because of the pretty cover and because I loved the idea of a samurai story with a female main character, but in practicality I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I was going to.
Like most historical fiction stories with women as the main characters, ours is betrothed to a man she's never met and does not really want to marry, but she is on her way to do her duty to elevate her family's status by marrying above her station when her caravan is attacked. She narrowly escapes her assassination and disguises herself as a boy and sets off on a journey to discover the truth behind the attack and to bring honor back to her family and to herself. She infiltrates herself with the group that was sent to murder her and struggles to find her place as a boy who is weak and inexperienced as an obvious noble. For the first time she is valued for her intellect, a door previously closed to her when she presented as a female. Our main character slowly finds out the truth and on that journey she ends up falling in love too. The reason I didn't like it was because the writing was a bit disappointing and the dialogue was also a bit weird sometimes. It's a series but I'm not sure if I want to continue it. I probably will because it did leave off on a cliffhanger, and I hate leaving series unfinished, even if it takes a few years for me to get to it. I gave this story a 2/5 rating, but if you want a little ancient Japanese culture and an angsty gender-bending undercover noblewoman then go for it I guess. It just didn't meet my expectations and it definitely disappointed me, so maybe don't go into it expecting too much. Goodreads link.
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So this book was an ARC (advanced readers copy) that Shadow Mountain Publishing sent me. I really enjoyed the book in general but there were some aspects to it that I didn't enjoy as much.
So Shadow Mountain Publishing has a genre category called Proper Romance, you might have heard me talk about it before with a different book from the same genre that I reviewed for them before, which means that it's romance but there's no sex scenes or smut, it's all proper and decent. It is a part of a series but it functions well as a stand alone book, so reading the first two books isn't necessary. The book is a historical fiction romance, with all the misogyny inherent in the time period, which is important to the plot because it directly impacts how our main character moves through her world. I loved Lady Sabrina, she has a great backstory that tugs at your heartstrings and was just generally the silent reality of many woman at that time. A slight trigger warning because Lady Sabrina comes from an abusive marriage that she is stuck in at first, until she becomes a widow and is set free. Sabrina decides to do good with her wealth and freedom and to secretly use the identity of a man to be the last chance for young men from good families who have fallen into immense debt and have no other hope in paying it off (which would be life-threatening). She'll offer to pay off their debt in cash if they'll sign a contract and agree to her rules (the whole time the men think that their savior is a man keep that in mind). Her rules are designed to help the young men get sober, find a job/learn responsibility, and get back on their feet. She takes them out of the situations that cause them to gamble and borrow money and sets them on a path to redemption and success if they'll put in the work. Then comes our love interest, Harry Stillman. Lady Sabrina owes him a favor from a long time ago, so when she sees him beaten up in an alley after her alter ego has offered him a chance and he signed it, she has him taken to her home to recover and rest so that he can fulfill his end of their bargain. Harry poses a unique threat to her heart so she keeps him at a distance, but he eventually begins to tear down the walls around her heart. It's a good, slow romance, I just didn't like Harry's actions or personality, and therein lies my problem with the book. Overall it was good, I just wish Harry was a more likeable character. I give this book a 3/5 stars. I definitely think it's worth reading if you like romance, especially if you want romance without the smut. The plot was good and clean, perfect for Christian readers (it has Christian undertones/themes) and is a good story of redemption. Goodreads link Date Started:June 09, 2020
Date Finished: June 13, 2020 This is kind of a throwback because I forgot I had my sister take these pictures for me as I was reading A Curse So Dark and Lonely in the park by my house. My hair no longer looks like this and I have a whole new vibe so.... This book review is going to be short because I read it a long time ago and I'm trying to recall it to the best of my ability. Okay, so I do remember liking this book. It's the first of a trilogy of fairytale retellings. I thought that the twist on the classic Beauty and the Beast tale was fun and brought new life to a story that you've heard and seen over and over again. Harper (the Beauty) isn't the first girl that's been brought to possibly break Prince Rhen's (the Beast's) curse, but she will be his last chance. Harper is a survivor, a disabled survivor who hasn't had an easy life and now she's been brought to a strange place by a strange man named Commander Grey who is only the servant of Prince Rhen, the man she is being brought to. Harper remains brave, though sometimes reckless in her bravery, and as she discovers the true reason for her being there, she decides to do her best to help no matter what. The storytelling is captivating and the characters vibrantly written. Harper has a physical limitation but she doesn't view it as a weakness. Prince Rhen periodically turns into a monster and terrorizes his villages, unable to die, desperate to break his curse both for himself and to save his people from himself. When Harper and Rhen finally come together, magical things happen, but not in the way you might imagine. All in all I love the spin/twist of this retelling and I'm excited to read the rest of the series (eventually). I give it a 4/5 stars and I definitely recommend it if you love fantasy, fairy tale retellings, or would like to try either for the first time or for the first time in a long time. It's definitely worth the read and I highly recommend it! Goodreads Link Hello lovelies, as you can see, I haven't posted a book review in over a year. Lots has happened in that time and I sincerely apologize. It's my goal to get back to posting regularly, as I have a huge backlog of books that I need to write reviews for. If you follow my goodreads then you know that I have still been reading, just not posting reviews.
I feel a life update is necessary before I start writing reviews because these life events will influence how I write my book reviews from here on. Yesterday was National Coming Out Day as well as Indigenous Peoples Day and earlier this year I came out as a non-binary lesbian (she/they). You might have noticed that most of my prior book reviews have had a homophobic undertone or that I was reviewing as a Christian with warnings about content that other Christians might deem inappropriate. Yeah...so....that was me repressing my sexuality and internalized homophobia and now that I'm out of the closet and have embraced my identity I will no longer be reviewing in that way. I turned 20 this past July and I am now a Junior in college, and recently my mom was in a bad car accident where she totaled her car and fractured two vertebrae as well as broke her tailbone. I very suddenly became a caretaker for her so now I'm balancing taking care of my mom, school, and work. Which has recently culminated into me failing my Chemistry test this morning due to not having enough time to study. Am I partially using this book review blog as a way to pretend that my life hasn't fallen apart a bit? Maybe...don't judge me for it. Anyways, I'm excited to start sharing book reviews as I want them and without a religious filter, just me and my honest opinion. I hope you guys enjoy the onslaught of book reviews coming for you, and if you do, don't forget to like, comment, and share with your friends as well as follow me on social media for more book content or just Rachel content. Thanks! P.S. I started writing short stories on TikTok (@rachel.moffett) which has turned into longer, more detailed short stories on Wattpad (All The Lonely People by aLittleBirdyToldMe12) and ao3 (All The Lonely People by aLittleBirdy01), check them out if you're interested! |
About the AuthorHi, I'm Rachel, and I'm here to share reviews of books with you so you can know what to read next! Archives
October 2021
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