Book Review: The Living God (The Living God, #1)

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️

Author: Kaytalin Platt

Format: E-book

Pages: 300

Publication Date: May 21, 2019

Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Magic

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from Edelweiss+ in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Book Blurb:

The Living God is foretold to bring about the destruction of the world in order to rebuild it into a paradise. Some worship and welcome His coming, other’s fear Him and would do anything to stop it. The Living God follows the internal struggle of two mages, Saran and Keleir, as they confront their fears and attempt to find meaning in the hand that life has dealt them. Saran seeks to overthrow her crazed father and salvage what is left of her country before it falls into complete ruin. Keleir is cursed with a Rauke’s soul, an ancient creature who is only able to survive by merging with an unborn child upon entering our world. Saran and Keleir are touched by fate, gifted with the ability to sense each other, and destined for a future that neither care to know. When Saran’s magic is stolen, she must confront a life without the ability to manipulate time, struggle to see the rebellion finished, and keep Keleir from becoming The Living God.

MY REVIEW

Thank you to Inkshares and Edelweiss+ for this free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Let’s start with the good: I love the cover, it’s a beautiful color palette. And I’ve been reading a lot of epic young adult fantasy books lately, so why not one more?

This was not for me. The beginning starts off with Saran D’Mor, who is a princess, and she is in the middle of a battle. She is helping rebels fight against her father the king. I thought a fast start was promising but instead it left me confused, like I missed book one, though this is the first book. Keleir is introduced right away, and he was interesting. He is a mage with an Oruke inside him, which is like a demon and it makes him very dangerous. Right away Saran and Keleir are established as lovers. But for punishment her father binds her magic which is a problem because she is the one that keeps Keleir’s Oruke at bay. Yikes.

This world Saran lives in is very complex and interesting. There are Gods and mages. Saran is a Time Mage but there are other types of mages as well, like fire mages and lightning mages. I liked how they could open a gate and teleport from one place to another. And then there are other worlds also or parallel worlds. Three to be exact which are called The First, The Second and The Third. I thought that was fascinating.

But the biggest problem I had with the book is I didn’t care about the story. I didn’t connect to the characters. I kept picking up the book and putting it off. I struggled through this one. Unfortunately, this one was not for me but I’m sure there are many fantasy lovers who would enjoy this fascinating world.

Book Review: Rule (Rule, #1)

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Author: Ellen Goodlett

Format: Hard cover

Pages: 376

Categories: Magic (**involving self-harm), Political Intrigue, Romance, Cliffhanger Ending

Book Blurb:

Three girls with three deadly secrets. Only one can wear the crown.

The king is dying, his heir has just been murdered, and rebellion brews in the east. But the kingdom of Kolonya and the outer Reaches has one last option before it descends into leaderless chaos.

Or rather, three unexpected options.

Zofi has spent her entire life trekking through the outer Reaches with her band of Travelers. She would do anything to protect the band, her family. But no one can ever find out how far she’s already gone.

Akeylah was raised in the Eastern Reach, surrounded by whispers of rebellion and abused by her father. Desperate to escape, she makes a decision that threatens the whole kingdom.

Ren grew up in Kolonya, serving as a lady’s maid and scheming her way out of the servants’ chambers. But one such plot could get her hung for treason if anyone ever discovers what she’s done.

When the king summons the girls, they arrive expecting arrest or even execution. Instead they learn the truth: they are his illegitimate daughters, and one must become his new heir. But someone in Kolonya knows their secrets, and that someone will stop at nothing to keep the sisters from their destiny… to rule.

Magic, mystery, and blackmail abound in this sensational and striking fantasy debut.

MY REVIEW

Three sisters vying for a throne? Sounds familiar. When I saw this book at the library, the cover caught my eye because it’s beautiful but I was wary. I’ve read so many books with crowns on the cover the past few months 😂 – honestly, I’m getting crown fatigue. But usually with fantasy books there is a map as well – where is the map for this book? 😔 I’ve been spoiled with maps in the fantasy books I’ve been reading. I love maps. But anyway, I borrowed this book and I’m glad I did.

The story is written from three different perspectives: Zofi, Ren, and Akeylah who are all bastard daughters of King Andros, king of Kolonya. Zofi is a traveler, she comes from a nomadic culture. Ren was raised at court as a lady’s maid and Akeylah comes from the Eastern reaches. All different sisters, one sister will rule.

Except every one of them has a fascinating secret they are hiding and there is someone out there who knows them all. They have to find out who is blackmailing them before it ruins each of their chances for the throne.

I enjoyed the mystery in this story a lot. I thought I had it figured it out but I was wrong. 😲 Also, there is enough action in this book to keep it moving as well, which I appreciated. I thought the author balanced the time between each characters’ perspective really well. The writing flows nicely and there is queer romance, straight romance, there are heartaches and distrust. Each girl has an interesting back story. The sisters were different enough that their voices stood out and so far my favorite is Zofi. I don’t know yet that I’d pick her to rule a kingdom, per se, but character wise, she’s my favorite. She’s a bit wild, tough and physical. Ren is the expert at court intrigue and Akeylah is the bookworm, always researching.

The magic system in this book is performed with self-harm so definite trigger warning there. That’s the only way their magic works which is through blood being shed. They call it the Blood Arts. But there is a counterpart to the magic, called the Vulgar Arts which is forbidden. It’s interesting for the most part what they can do with blood magic but every time they do it, I’m like OUCH. I would not be able to live in Kolonya or I wouldn’t be able to be a soldier in Kolonya since that’s who uses the blood arts most often.

The ending is a cliffhanger – like a serious cliffhanger where I was like, WHAT?! 😱 Now that I’m done with the book, I’m glad I only picked it up now because I only have to wait a few weeks for the sequel to be published. Yay for me! Overall I enjoyed this book. It’s a fun read if you like court intrigue, blackmail and a mystery. I’m looking forward to the sequel to see who will be chosen to rule.

What I’m Reading Next

What’s on my Kindle App library right now?

I still remember reading Tahereh Mafi’s first book, Shatter Me when it came out back in 2011! How far we’ve come with Juliette and Warner’s story. I love me some Warner. I’ll admit, I picked up the hard cover copy a few months ago from the library and I don’t know if it was because I let the characters go when I ended the series with Ignite Me – but I couldn’t get into it. But with Defy Me about to release soon, I’m going to try this again! So here’s to second chances and being in the mood to read this one.

I only started reading this Grisha Trilogy this year because I heard it’s coming to Netflix! I know, I know 🤦🏻‍♀️ I’m not sure why it took me so long – I tried reading the first book years ago and couldn’t get into it -I must’ve been in a dystopian mood back then – but I gave it another try this time around. It’s a fascinating world with some steampunk and Russian influences thrown in created by Leigh Bardugo. It has magic, a love story (stories?🤷🏻‍♀️), and we shall see how it ends.

All I saw about this book was “the Outsiders meet Mad Max” and I was intrigued! It’s a young adult dystopian novel with these girl gangs running the streets of Mega City. Nalah’s dream is to move off the streets and live in Mega Towers. I’m looking forward to reading this and see if Nalah gets to accomplish her goal.

I saw “Pride and Prejudice Remix” and had to add this to my TBR list. I love me a modern twist on Pride and Prejudice. Instead of Elizabeth Bennett we have Zuri Benitez who of course meets Darius Darcy – I can already see the sparks flying! Can’t wait to dive into this one.

Okay I chose to borrow this because I’m dying to read her newest book The Priory of the Orange Tree, but since I’m like 8th in line to borrow the book, I have some time to read her first book. I’m new to Samantha Shannon but have read amazing things so I’m excited to get to know her work.

So that’s what I have so far on my Kindle app but I feel like I need to have some romance novels lined up after I get through these! Any recommendations? Please leave me a comment below ⬇️ I’m craving a good historical, contemporary, new adult or even young adult romance book.

Overdrive and Kindle App

I love to read physical books and ebooks, it doesn’t matter as long as I can get my hands on a story! I still love the weight and smell of a physical book but when I’m reading at night (which is 90% of the time), I use my Kindle app on my iPad. I also have a Nook app and and an iBooks app. I have books on all of them but because my Hawaii State Library card is linked up to Overdrive and their online selection, I read those ebooks through my Kindle app. It’s so convenient! I haven’t quite gotten into Audiobooks though – someone reading to me always puts me to sleep. It’s too relaxing.

I also subscribe to Kindle Unlimited mostly because I’m impatient. I’ve cancelled a few times and keep coming back! 🤷🏻‍♀️ I put books on hold at the library, but sometimes it just takes awhile for me to get my hands on them. I’d love to buy more books but I have a budget (kids needs are priority!). At first I was wary about the books on Kindle Unlimited. I just wasn’t familiar with the authors and wondered why some novels were so short and some genres I stumbled into like Romance with a dash or lump of Reverse Harem in it. Ha! Much to my surprise! It’s been a learning experience and quite an adventure. I’m enjoying finding new authors! And it gives me a reprieve when I’m waiting on those much anticipated best seller novels that can take a year to be published. What’s a book addict to do? 😔

Anyway here’s a screenshot of my Kindle App listings as of today. I just finished The Hidden Witch and so I am going to either tackle The Queen’s Rising (I admit I tried a few months back and had to put it aside), or Archenemies (I feel like I need to read Book 1 again though) – so I guess my first review will be The Hidden Witch! Stay tuned…😊