Tag: Young Adult Fantasy

BBNYA Tour Review: Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani

Dini @ dinipandareads9 Comments

Happy Saturday, friends! Today I’m excited to share my review for Sunbolt by Intisar Khanani, the third finalist of the 2022 BBNYA! I read this book as part of the BBNYA Finalist Blog Tour hosted by The Write Reads.

Special thanks to the tour organisers for having me on tour and to the author for providing a digital copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!

About BBNYA

BBNYA is a yearly competition where book bloggers from all over the world read and score books written by indie authors, ending with 15 finalists and one overall winner.  If you are an author and wish to learn more about the BBNYA competition, you can visit the official website or Twitter. BBNYA is brought to you in association with the @Foliosociety (if you love beautiful books, you NEED to check out their website!) and the book blogger support group @The_WriteReads.

Subolt (Sunbolt Chronicles #1)
Publisher: Purple Monkey Press
Publication Date: 17 June 2013
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

The winding streets and narrow alleys of Karolene hide many secrets, and Hitomi is one of them. Orphaned at a young age, Hitomi has learned to hide her magical aptitude and who her parents really were. Most of all, she must conceal her role in the Shadow League, an underground movement working to undermine the powerful and corrupt Arch Mage Wilhelm Blackflame.

When the League gets word that Blackflame intends to detain—and execute—a leading political family, Hitomi volunteers to help the family escape. But there are more secrets at play than Hitomi’s, and much worse fates than execution. When Hitomi finds herself captured along with her charges, it will take everything she can summon to escape with her life.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Death of parent, mild xenophobia, violence, blood, imprisonment, torture

📚 BUY A COPY

TL;DR: This is my first book by Khanani and I can see why so many of my blogger friends love her writing and her books. There was so much to enjoy about this novella and the author does a good job of teasing elements of a world that I’m hoping will be further expanded in the next book. The characters are a rich mix of different cultures and I also enjoyed the paranormal fantasy setting. We’ve got the typical vampires, werewolves and shapeshifters, but also other supernaturals that I’ve not read about before, combined with an interesting magic system that I’m looking forward to understanding more of. Overall, I thought this was an intense, action-packed novella that excited me for the next book in this series and I want to read it ASAP!

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#FirstLinesFriday: 5 May 2023

Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

First lines:

“It is said that the stars shine brighter on the princesses’ birthday, but the princesses themselves think that is balderdash. The stars look the same as they always do, and this year, on the night before the three of them leave their home and one another for the first time in their lives, everything—the stars included—seems far darker.”

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ARC Review: Royal Rebel by Heather Frost

Dini @ dinipandareads11 Comments

Special thanks to Heather Frost for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Check out my reviews for the previous books in the series:

Royal Decoy, Royal Spy, Royal Captive – Fate of Eyrinthia Books 1-3 by Heather Frost

Royal Rebel (Fate of Eyrinthia #4)
Pub Date: 21 April 2023
Genre: Young Adult Romantasy

Panda Rating:

(4.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

A PRINCE fighting to save a princess
A SERJAH torn between duty and desire
A PRINCESS willing to sacrifice everything
A DECOY with nothing to lose
A WORLD about to be torn apart

After his father’s latest punishment, Grayson isn’t at his full strength. Trapped in Ryden and surrounded by enemies, he knows escaping with Mia will be more complicated than anticipated. Tyrell is determined to claim Mia for himself, and Henri’s plans for the rest of Eyrinthia are more horrific than Grayson ever imagined. Despite the increased danger, he and Mia must return to Mortise and warn Desfan of what’s coming—even though it may already be too late.

In Mortise, the palace is still reeling from the brutal attack that left many dead and even more wounded. Regardless of the chaos, Desfan is determined to continue with his coronation. As serjan, he hopes to bring stability to his country and solidify the peace with Devendra. But things in Eyrinthia are always complicated. When Prince Liam reveals they may be facing dangers from old enemies, Desfan will have to decide what kind of ruler he will be.

Devastating news from home has left Clare broken. Despite her heartache, she must once again be Serene’s decoy when a terrifying report sends the princess on an unexpected mission to Zennor. Left at the palace, Clare helps Desfan build trust with the elite in Mortise while guarding a treasonous secret. Because as her grief transforms into a burning desire for vengeance, she is finally ready to embrace a new role—rebel.

Eyrinthia is consumed by uncertainty. Duty. Desire. Sacrifice. Every rebellion has its cost.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Graphic: Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Violence
Moderate: Torture, Murder, Physical abuse, and War
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, and Drug use

**Note: as this is the fourth in a series where you must read the previous books to understand what’s going on, this review may contain mild spoilers for certain parts of the previous books, but I’ll try to keep it as vague and contained as possible!**

TL;DR: Royal Rebel was a great addition to the Fate of Erynthia series. The story continues to be action-packed, politically charged, and in this book, a new mystery full of sinister undertones is introduced and I absolutely cannot wait to know what happens next. It was a treat to reunite with the huge cast of characters and I loved how their relationships evolved—there are so many ships to ship! One thing is for sure: I’m ready for more!

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Book Review: Saint by Adrienne Young

Dini @ dinipandareads21 Comments

Saint (Fable #0.5)
Publisher: Titan Books
Pub Date: 16 December 2022
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Jump into the world of Fable with this exciting new prequel to the New York Times-bestselling novel by Adrienne Young. Join Saint and Isolde, Fable’s star-crossed parents, on this adventure with romance, treasure, and heartbreak.

As a boy, Elias learned the hard way what happens when you don’t heed the old tales. Nine years after his lack of superstition got his father killed, he’s grown into a young man of piety, with a deep reverence for the hallowed sea and her fickle favor. As stories of the fisherman’s son who has managed to escape the most deadly of storms spreads from port to port, his devotion to the myths and creeds has given him the reputation of the luckiest bastard to sail the Narrows. Now, he’s mere days away from getting everything his father ever dreamed for a ship of his own, a crew, and a license that names him as one of the first Narrows-born traders.

But when a young dredger from the Unnamed Sea with more than one secret crosses his path, Elias’ faith will be tested like never before. The greater the pull he feels toward her, the farther he drifts from the things he’s spent the last three years working for. He is dangerously close to repeating his mistakes and he’s seen first hand how vicious the jealous sea can be.

If he’s going to survive her retribution, he will have to decide which he wants more, the love of the girl who could change their shifting world, or the sacred beliefs that earned him the name that he’s known for—Saint.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Death of parent (recounted), mild violence, murder (recounted, not detailed)

TL;DR: Was this particularly new in any way? No. Did I have a fun time reading it anyway? Absolutely, yes. I haven’t read a marriage-of-convenience book in a while and while this billionaire romance isn’t normally one that I gravitate to often, I’ve been enjoying my fair share of them in the last few months! I enjoyed the dynamic between Vivian and Dante and found their romance pretty entertaining. This was also not as petty and drama-filled as I thought it would be but it had just the right amount of angst to keep me interested.

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ARC Review: Last Sunrise in Eterna by Amparo Ortiz

Dini @ dinipandareads6 Comments

Special thanks to Page Street Kids for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Last Sunrise in Eterna
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Publication Date: 28 March 2023
Genre: YA Fantasy
Rep: Puerto Rican

Panda Rating:

(2.75 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

Three teenagers are invited to spend seven days on the secluded island floating off the coast of Puerto Rico to learn the magic of the elves.

All they have to do is give up their dreams.

Seventeen-year-old goth Sevim Burgos hates elves. Everyone else on earth loves the elves (especially their handsome princes) and would give anything to participate in Eterna’s annual Exchange, where three teens can trade their dreams for a week of elven magic.

But Sevim knows things most people don’t. She can see through the illusions the elves use to conceal their crimes. Ever since elves killed her father, Sevim has longed for revenge. So to help support her single mother, she has been selling abandoned elf corpses on the black market.

But it turns out that the elf prince Aro has noticed Sevim bodysnatching, so he kidnaps her mother in retaliation. To get her mother back, Sevim must participate in the Exchange.

In the home of the elves, Sevim will have to surrender her dreams and put her trust in the charming prince who took the last family member she has in order to master the art of elf magic. And in working with him, she will discover how the royal elves might be more tied to her own history than she ever suspected.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Trauma, handling corpses, death of parent (recounted), murder, mutilated corpses (elven children), dead bodies (elven children), cannibalism (brief mention)

TL;DR: I’m quite conflicted with my feelings about this book. It’s not terrible and I did enjoy the author’s writing but I found myself wanting more throughout the whole read. Ultimately, I realised that this probably wouldn’t make it on my list of recommendations for readers that want a YA fantasy, no matter how wonderfully diverse it is! I was really hoping to enjoy this more than I did but it just wasn’t the right fit for me as I found the plot and characters to be too surface-level to really engage with.

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Blog Tour Spotlight: Last Sunrise in Eterna by Amparo Ortiz

Dini @ dinipandareads3 Comments

Hi friends, as part of the blog tour hosted by TBR & Beyond Tours I’m shining a spotlight on Last Sunrise in Eterna by Amapro Ortiz. This is the first day of the tour and there are plenty of awesome posts to come so don’t forget to check out the other blogger posts too!

Click the banner above or here to check out the other incredible bloggers on the blog tour!

Last Sunrise in Eterna
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Publication Date: 28 March 2023
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rep: Puerto Rican

📖 SYNOPSIS

Three teenagers are invited to spend seven days on the secluded island floating off the coast of Puerto Rico to learn the magic of the elves.

All they have to do is give up their dreams.

Seventeen-year-old goth Sevim Burgos hates elves. Everyone else on earth loves the elves (especially their handsome princes) and would give anything to participate in Eterna’s annual Exchange, where three teens can trade their dreams for a week of elven magic.

But Sevim knows things most people don’t. She can see through the illusions the elves use to conceal their crimes. Ever since elves killed her father, Sevim has longed for revenge. So to help support her single mother, she has been selling abandoned elf corpses on the black market.

But it turns out that the elf prince Aro has noticed Sevim bodysnatching, so he kidnaps her mother in retaliation. To get her mother back, Sevim must participate in the Exchange.

In the home of the elves, Sevim will have to surrender her dreams and put her trust in the charming prince who took the last family member she has in order to master the art of elf magic. And in working with him, she will discover how the royal elves might be more tied to her own history than she ever suspected.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Trauma, handling corpses, death of parent (recounted), murder, mutilated corpses (elven children), dead bodies (elven children), cannibalism (brief mention)

📚 BUY A COPY

Amparo Ortiz is the author of BLAZEWRATH GAMES and
DRAGONBLOOD RING. She was born in San Juan, Puerto
Rico, and currently lives on the island’s northeastern coast.
She’s published short story comics in MARVEL’S VOICES:
COMUNIDADES #1 and in the Eisner-award winning
PUERTO RICO STRONG. She’s also co-editor of the
upcoming OUR SHADOWS HAVE CLAWS, a young adult
horror anthology featuring myths and monsters from Latin
America. When she’s not writing, she teaches ESL as a
college professor and watches a lot of K-pop videos.

Author’s Socials
Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads

Is Last Sunrise in Eterna on your TBR or does it sound like a book you want to read?

#FirstLinesFriday: 24 March 2023

Dini @ dinipandareads10 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!
Read More »

#FirstLinesFriday: 17 March 2023

Dini @ dinipandareads21 Comments

Happy Friday book lovers! We’re back with another First Lines Friday, a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines? Here are the rules:

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!
Read More »

ARC Review: Silver in the Bone by Alexandra Bracken

Dini @ dinipandareads14 Comments

Special thanks to Knopf Books for Young Readers for providing an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Silver in the Bone (Silver in the Bone #1)
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Pub Date: 4 April 2023
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Panda Rating:

(3.5 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

#1 New York Times bestselling author Alexandra Bracken cements her status as one of the top fantasy authors writing today in this stunning series opener inspired by Arthurian legend and fueled by love, revenge, and pure adrenaline!

Tamsin Lark didn’t ask to be a Hollower. As a mortal with no magical talent, she was never meant to break into ancient crypts, or compete with sorceresses and Cunningfolk for the treasures inside. But after her thieving foster father disappeared without so much as a goodbye, it was the only way to keep herself—and her brother, Cabell—alive.

Ten years later, rumors are swirling that her guardian vanished with a powerful ring from Arthurian legend. A run-in with her rival Emrys ignites Tamsin’s hope that the ring could free Cabell from a curse that threatens both of them. But they aren’t the only ones who covet the ring.

As word spreads, greedy Hollowers start circling, and many would kill to have it for themselves. While Emrys is the last person Tamsin would choose to partner with, she needs all the help she can get to edge out her competitors in the race for the ring. Together, they dive headfirst into a vipers’ nest of dark magic, exposing a deadly secret with the power to awaken ghosts of the past and shatter her last hope of saving her brother….

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Brutal violence, blood and gore, a massacre including child death, parental abandonment, physical abuse (off-page, discussed by characters), death of a guardian

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced/unfinished copy and are subject to change in the final version.

TL;DR: I buddy-read this with Leslie & Julie and found that it was a great book to read with them as there were lots of theories to share and other elements to discuss, and we all ended up feeling the same way about it. This book got off to a rocky start and despite wishing that the world-building was stronger and the pacing was less erratic, it’s still a story that I think is worth sticking with because I really enjoyed the characters and their relationships. Plus, with all the tense action and surprising twists that come at the end, I’m excited to see where the story goes next.

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Blog Tour Review: Spice Road by Maiya Ibrahim

Dini @ dinipandareads14 Comments

Hello, friends! I’m back with a blog tour review for Spice Road by Maiya Ibrahim. Special thanks to the TBR & Beyond Tours team for organising the tour and including me in it!

Thanks to Delacorte Press for providing a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Click here or on the banner above to check out the rest of the fantastic bloggers on tour!

Spice Road (The Spice Road Trilogy #1)
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Publication Date: 24 January 2023
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
Rep: Middle Eastern, Arabian, Lebanese

Panda Rating:

(4 pandas)

📖 SYNOPSIS

The first book in an epic fantasy series for fans of Sabaa Tahir, Hafsah Faizal and Elizabeth Lim, set in an Arabian-inspired land. Raised to protect her nation from the monsters lurking in the sands, seventeen-year-old Imani must fight to find her brother whose betrayal is now their greatest threat.

In the hidden desert city of Qalia, secret spice magic awakens affinities in those who drink the misra tea. With an affinity for iron, seventeen-year-old Imani wields a dagger like no other warrior, garnering her the reputation as the next greatest Shield for battling the dangerous djinn, ghouls, and other monsters that lurk in the sands beyond city limits.

Her reputation has been overshadowed, however, by her brother who tarnished the family name after he was discovered stealing their nation’s coveted spice – a tell-tale sign of magical obsession. He disappeared soon after, believed to have died beyond the Forbidden Wastes, and leaving Imani reeling with both betrayal and grief.

But when Imani uncovers evidence her brother may be alive and spreading their nation’s magic beyond the desert, she strikes a deal with the Council to find him and bring him back to Qalia before he can reveal the city’s location. Accompanied by Qayn, a roguish but handsome djinni, and Taha, a powerful beastseer whose magical talents are matched only by his arrogance, they set out on their mission.

Imani will soon discover there are many secrets that lie beyond the Forbidden Wastes – and in her own heart – but will she find her brother before his betrayals endanger the fate of all of Qalia?

In this epic and action-packed fantasy, one young heroine navigates the treacherous road between protecting the ones you love and staying loyal to the place you call home.

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Colonialism, slave labour, brutality/cruelty, gladiator/ring fighting, prison labour, death, public hangings, sexual assault/attempted r*pe (not to main character), bullying

📚 BUY A COPY!

Note: The quotes below are taken from an advanced copy and are subject to change in the final version.

TL;DR: Spice Road is a book that I’m glad I was patient with because, despite a bit of a rough start, it really pulled through for me in the end! The world-building was descriptive and vivid, the atmosphere was tense, and the story unfolded at a fast pace. I loved the development of our main character, Imani, the most though. What had the potential to ruin a great read with an unsympathetic main character, was saved by realistic gradual growth and it made the second half of this book so much more enjoyable to read! There were a few twists and turns at the end that only served to increase the intensity of the story and now that I’m invested, I can’t wait to get my hands on book two to see what happens next! 😍

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