Weekend Read - Genrenauts

This serialized story looks like a lot of fun so I decided to check it out. Fixing different genre stories just sounds really interesting. I mean with this tag line, "When Stories Break, You Send in the Genrenauts!" who wouldn't want to check it out.

Review - A List of Cages

A List of Cages by Robin Roe

* Read via NetGalley for review

2 out of 5 gnomes

This was not at all what I was expecting from the description. I thought there would be more depth to everything.

The story about Julian and Adam is okay but it feels lacking in a couple of areas. I think I wanted to know more about them. Plus they make some spectacularly bad decisions.

There is a lot of abuse in the story, so be warned it’s not exactly light reading.

The lack of communication bothered me the most, also the story seemed to be arbitrarily split into two parts for some reason.

The communication is definitely a problem because Adam seems to be really close to his mom but still can't figure out when he needs to talk to her ASAP. Plus with all the zero tolerance policies etc... around today you would like to think the school would have noticed something was wrong.

The ending was the best part of the book because it was super tense and really made you wonder what was going to happen.

Review - Poison's Kiss

Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields

* Read via NetGalley for review

4 out of 5 gnomes

A superb mix of Indian and other folklore/stories. This felt like a very shiny/new kind of read. The characters, setting, pretty much all of it draws you right in and will have you clamoring for more.

Marinda is one heck of an intriguing character. She’s been made into a poison maiden meaning anybody she kisses dies not long afterwards. Being an assassin is all she knows basically. All the family she has is her brother Mani which is complicated too because he’s sick.

She is really stuck between a rock and a hard place because she truly believes that she has no other choice than to do what her handler tells her to. If she doesn’t bad things happen.

The story is filled up with awesome characters and a story that is full of surprises. It takes a serpentine twist and just keeps going on.

Deception, Daggers, Death, Drama and plenty of Poison equal a story that you should read ASAP.

Sentence Sneak Peek - Poison's Kiss

Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields

The first sentence from each chapter of Poison’s Kiss, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Read via NetGalley for review

* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“I’m not a bad person.”

“The next morning I wake to Mani perched on the edge of my bed, giggling.”

“We slip outside and collide with a wall of heat and noise.”

“I wasn’t born lethal.”

“Gita shakes me awake the next morning before dawn.”

“All the heat drains from my face.”

“I wake up after nightfall and my first thought is of Mani.”

“When Mani and I get back to the flat, Iyla opens the door.”

“I drift off curled in a chair by Mani’s bedside, but my sleep is choppy, plagued with nightmares of huge snakes, dying boys and snapping whips.”

“Deven needs one more dose of poison, but I haven’t seen him in two days.”

“The next few days pass with excruciating slowness.”

“An hour ago I didn’t think it was possible to feel more betrayed, but I was wrong.”

“I stand outside Kadru’s tent the next morning with my heart in my throat.”

“I can’t stop staring at Japa.”

“I’m not sure where here is, since we’re surrounded by walls on three sides.”

“My head is heavy with new information, but none of it points toward where the Naga might have taken Mani.”

“Deven sweeps his foot under Gita and has her flat on her back in an instant.”

“My chin is quivering.”

“The word takes a moment to register.”

“Suddenly the room is in chaos.”

“I gasp.”

“The Naga are due to arrive at dusk.”

“A howl pierces through my mind so painfully that I stumble backward.”

“Iyla and I name our cottage the Blue House, even though every other house in the village is blue too.”

Weekend Read - Poison's Kiss

This book is crazy, in a good way so far. The characters and world are really intriguing. Can’t wait to see what happens next.

Review - Under Rose-Tainted Skies

Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

* Read via NetGalley for review

My Favorite Quotes/Lines:

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m deeply concerned about my carbon footprint, but I’ve watched enough horror movies to know that when I’m home alone, I’m 98 percent less likely to die if the lights are on.”

“Why do people keep telling me to be myself? Honestly. It’s like they’ve never even met me.”

4 out of 5 gnomes

This book shows how harsh a mental illness can be. I like that the story doesn’t pull any punches and shows the good and bad days.

It’s great that her mom is in the picture and that she is so understanding of everything. I think it would have been interesting to see things from her point of view too but what we do learn is still important.

Then there’s Luke who has the whole boy next door thing going on. The slow build between him and Norah is well done. It all just comes down to understanding.

The ending was unexpected but I think it was well done. I also really liked that love doesn't magically fix everything and that it will likely be an ongoing struggle. The story does leave you with hope for the characters too.

Sentence Sneak Peek - Under Rose-Tainted Skies

Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

The first sentence from each chapter of Under Rose-Tainted Skies, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.

* Read via NetGalley for review
* Spoilers are highlighted like so :)

“I’M GOING TO KILL the damn blackbird sitting on my windowsill, chirping and squeaking at the top of its lungs.”

“COAT ON, KEYS IN hand, my mom has a grin plastered across her face and I know my Internet connection lives to fight another day.”

“HOME SAFE AND SOUND, at last.”

“IT’S SUNDAY.”

“YOU MIGHT THINK THAT now that sustenance has been thrown into the mix, my debilitating agoraphobia will take a back seat to my survival instincts.”

“THE GROCERY-BAG DEBACLE AND an overabundance of human contact has straight up sucked out all my energy.”

“MOSS HAS STARTED TO cover my skin by the time this panic attack is spent.”

“IT’S FIVE O’CLOCK, AND I’m reaching into the fridge for a block of cheese when there’s a knock at the door.”

“I WAKE WITH A START, cold and drenched in blue light from the standby screen on the television.”

“IT’S WEDNESDAY.”

“I LIE AWAKE WORRYING ABOUT the party all night, like it’s some crazed serial killer terrorizing our small suburban neighborhood.”

“FRIDAY HAPENS, DESPITE MY spending all of Thursday wishing for a Sleeping Beauty-style reprieve, for the world to fall into unconsciousness and wake up on Monday with zero memory of Luke’s party or why it didn’t happen.”

“I HAVE A PLAN.”

“IT STARTS THE SECOND I begin the Green Mile trudge back to my bedroom; so many thoughts, wrapped around my body like iron chains.”

“I DON’T KNOW WHEN NIGHT turns into day.”

“DR. REEVES’S PEP TALK is pretty good as sustaining fuel.”

“I HATE YOU.”

“IT’S GONE DARK.”

“MY HAND IS SHAKING.”

“DEAR LUKE . . .”

“IT’S ONLY 7:10 WHEN my cruel mind forces my eyes open.”

“I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO say.”

“ANOTHER MONDAY MORNING ARRIVES, but, for the first time since June, it looks like it’s going to rain.”

“I SLINK BACK INSIDE THE house and close the door.”

“LUKE STEPS INSIDE, ARMS open, but he looks less like he’s trying to touch me and more like he’s trying to round up a flock of spooked sheep.”

“I SPEND TUESDAY WALKING AROUND on colorful clouds.”

“MAYBE WE SHOULD WRAP up early?”

“WHEN I GET BACK to my room, the stress balls, along with the happy-shiny pamphlets, get dumped in the bottom drawer of my dresser, where I’m almost certain they’ll stay until the day I die.”

“LUKE DROPS BY EVERY night after school for the next week.”

“WHEN LUKE SUGGESTED WE sit and count stars the following Friday, I was suspicious.”

“IT’S FRIDAY NIGHT, AND for the first time in forever Luke isn’t here.”

“Norah,

I’m so sorry.”

“NORAH, HONEY.”

“IT GETS TO FIVE and I’m watching a woman on television turn a pair of old net curtains into what she says will be a “traffic-stopping tunic.”

“IT STINGS WHEN I open my eyes.”

“GENTLE FINGERS STROKE MY cheek, and my eyes flicker open.”