Jordyn

WOO that was fun! Not my favorite book of MacLean's, but Penelope was a firecracker at the end. Michael was an idiot for most of the book but once he got some sense knocked into him, he ended up a perfect compliment to Penny. Very steamy sex scenes too, which is always a plus.

For more of my reviews, check out my blog.

How do I review Gideon the Ninth without spoiling what Gideon the Ninth is? I'm sure almost all people involved in the world of books have heard of this one by now, but I've found that not a lot of people have any idea what the book is actually about. And it is...God, this is really hard to do, isn't it? Well, Gideon the Ninth is an experience. Yes, it's a book. A book about lesbian necromancers in space. (That always makes me giggle. It's an over-simplification, but it's a fantastic description.) Gideon the Ninth is — no, no, The Locked Tomb series, at it's core, a phenomenal feat of plot. Of the two books that are currently published and available for reading, Gideon the Ninth is the more simple and easy to understand.

We'll get to that in my review of Harrow the Ninth. I'm scaring you, I can sense it.

So what's Gideon the Ninth about? Well, in this world there are Nine Houses ruled over by the Emperor. The Emperor has a problem — all his special soldiers — his lyctors — are dying. He needs to re-up his numbers, so he's asked the Nine Houses to send their best to the mostly-made-of-ruins-and-abandoned First House for a competition to see who is worthy to join his ranks. (This plot is vaguely Hunger Games-y. There's a competition between houses but there aren't really any rules.) Each House is supposed to send one necromancer, and one cavalier.

But the Ninth House has a problem — they have a necromancer, Harrowhark, but no worthy cavalier. Instead, they have to settle for Gideon. Gideon is a foul-mouthed, trash goblin of a person and I love her with my whole entire heart. She spends the entire novel spewing sarcasm and memes and taking almost no situation seriously. Despite being 99% sarcasm, Gideon is fantastic with a sword and she knows it. The biggest problem though, is that Gideon and Harrowhark hate each other. It is so much fun watching them circle each other like sharks, and eventually figuring out one another.

There is a huge big question mark in the middle of this book — a huge something that the entire plot revolves around. The mystery is left until the very end and when you finally, finally get answers it's like getting hit by a high-speed train. Muir writes the reveal phenomenally well, and you won't be left feeling like you're missing something.

This is a review of Gideon the Ninth after me reading it for the second time, and I can honestly say it's still a five star read for me. But I will say that with this caveat — this is not a book for everyone. Gideon is a little obnoxious. There are actual literal internet memes referenced in the text. If you aren't into these things, you'll probably not like Gideon the Ninth, and that's okay. But if you're at all interested, give Gideon the Ninth a shot!

Oh that was THOROUGHLY enjoyable. Probably my favorite of the Rules of Scoundrels series, with Temple's book close behind. Steamy, spicy, and you definitely got the feeling that Georgiana and Duncan actually cared about one another. Loved it.

For more of my reviews, check out my blog.

Thoroughly enjoyable! I won't lie – I wanted to read these books purely because I love the author's ACOTAR series with all my heart. Throne of Glass, however, is a true YA book. It feels like one, it reads like one, and it definitely has the love triangle just like one. ACOTAR, on the other hand, is classified as a New Adult novel, and those books definitely earn the title.

BUT WE'RE NOT HERE TO TALK ABOUT ACTOAR, ARE WE?

The main character of Throne of Glass is a 17/18 year old sassy assassin named Celaena. She's dragged out of a death camp to compete for the title of King's Champion. It's all a bit convoluted, but it's enjoyable to read. There's forbidden magic, murders, puppies, and all sorts of fun things. It took me a bit to really enjoy the main character for who she is – she's a bit much, right off the bat – but she does calm down a bit as the novel progresses.

I was invested in the mystery of the Wyrdmarks, and of the monster haunting the halls of the castle. Both have satisfying answers by the end of the book, I'm happy to say.

At the moment, Chaol is my favorite character of the bunch, closely followed by Dorian.

Four out of five stars – one star docked because you can tell this is one of the author's earlier works, and because of the extreme YA love-triangle of it all. Really enjoyed reading this one – on to the next!

I did not enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. It has all the markers of being something that should interest me, but I strongly considered DNF at around 50%. I powered through bc I wanted to know if it got any better.

My complaints:
1. Everything being was given a title in the book's language, and all the names being “elvish” with the same 3 letters starting their names was VERY confusing. I had a very hard time keeping track of who was who, and what their motives were.
2. SO POLITICAL oh my god what a draaaaaaaaag

I wanted more action, maybe more time with the main character actually relating to someone, talking to someone they liked, etc.

But hey, not every book is for me.