Spoiler-Free Review: From Ashes Into Light by Gudrun Mouw *I received a physical copy of this book from the author/publisher in trade for an honest review*Thank you!* Title - From Ashes Into Light Author - Gudrun Mouw Pages - 240 Pages Synopsis - From Ashes into Light is a transpersonal tale of epic tragedy, spirituality, family, and personal redemption. It is told through three distinct voices: the hauntingly tragic story of Ruth, a Jewish adolescent during Kristallnacht in Austria, Saqapaya, a stalwart Native American from coastal California during the time of the Spanish conquest, and Friede Mai. Friede is born during World War II to a Bavarian soldier and a East-Prussian mother. As those around her struggle with the inevitable chaos and paradox of war, Friede opens her heart to gruesome enemies, at times saving herself and family members from atrocities. With war behind them, the Mai family immigrates to the US, where Friede, her veteran father and ex-refugee mother, struggle with the reverberations of trauma. Friede is unable to find inner freedom until she meets her spiritual guide, a Rabbi, who helps her see that the voices from the past are teachers and the horrors of history are also beacons of light. The three electric characters weave a narrative of raw consciousness, a moving example of transforming the ripple of suffering through the incredible strength of vulnerability. Characters
Each character had problems to face and each problem is one that people in the time of the war would've experienced. You got to see how these characters faced these problems and you really got to see them grow as a person (and age wise as well.) I personally think Friede grew as a person the most and the change in her was such a good one - she learnt to see the good in every situation and she began to stand up for herself a lot more. Each character I really cared for apart from Saqapaya (I did still care for her, just not as much as the other two) and I think this may have been to how confusing her story was to me. The other two also started off as quite confusing but further in I was able to distinguish what was happening but I found I was never able to do this with Saqapaya. Each chapter is labelled with the character's name that chapter focuses on and every now and again this label will say The Phoenix. This 'Phoenix' is one of the things that ties this character together, it flies around and follows these characters. Writing Style The writing style was good and at times it had a hint of a poetic style which fit with the story quite well. I will insert some quotes if I remember below. At times the writing did slow down things and I had to try and push through and continue on but it is worth doing so. Plot The plot had a lot of depth and it isn't something that could easily be written well but Gudrun Mouw did an excellent job and managed to succeed in carrying out such a great storyline. Like I said above there was some confusion at parts, but most of it cleared up by the end. I really enjoyed the way that the author linked the different characters together using the Phoenix as it was a great idea and that way you could see from all the areas of the world where the characters would go and what was happening. There was some parts that were in German (I think it was German) and because I'm English and don't speak much German I don't really know whether it was accurate or not, but author handily put in a translation guide at the back so you could check certain words. Rate After finishing this book, I didn't know exactly what to rate it and I'm still not 100 %. I enjoyed the story overall and the characters but due to my confusion I would have to lower the rate. Overall, I think that the rating should be around a 4/5 ish. BYE!
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March Wrap-Up! Hey guys! This month has gone pretty quickly and here we are again for another probably late monthly wrap-up! Woohoo! Anyway, this month was a pretty good reading month, seeing as it went pretty quickly. I read a lot of great books but also some not so great books, but lets get into it! *I just wanted to quickly say that the order of my wrap-ups is in three different sections - finished reading (started in a previous month, finished in the current month), read (read the whole book this month) and started reading (started reading in the month but ran out of time, got bored etc.) and throughout these three sections, the books are ordered from lower ratings to higher ratings.* Finished Reading Dark Escape by Eileen Sheehan - Read 160 Pages *I was sent an ebook copy for review from the author - thank you Eileen! * Going into this book I sort of had medium expectations because I've previously read another book by Eileen (The Vampire, The Handler and Me) and found it to be just okay. I was hoping to like this one as it sounded like something I would like more. Luckily, I enjoyed this one a lot better and was able to connect to the characters, storyline and feel like I was properly invested in the story. I want to explain what the story is actually about but I know I will just end up making it sound really confusing, so I'll just attach the goodreads link below for you to check out yourself. To be honest, I don't think the synopsis even does it justice, it makes it sound more like a romance than it actually is. The book is full of adventure, weird beasts/creatures and magic. Really, you just need to try it for yourself! Rate - 4/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29349368-dark-escape?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - NOT AVALIABLE AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dark-Escape-1-Eileen-Sheehan/dp/0692629912/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459524544&sr=8-1&keywords=Dark+Escape+by+Eileen+Sheehan REVIEW - http://sprinkleofbooks.weebly.com/blog/spoiler-free-review-dark-escape-by-eileen-sheehan Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne - Read 384 Pages For months I've wanted to read this book and nearly bought it on countless trips to the bookstore, but have always put it down saying that I'll get it another day. This month I finally picked it up because I was going to Holly Bourne's and Eve Ainsworth's Manchester event and I'm so glad I did. I fell instantly in love with this book and ended up finishing it in like two days or something like that. I hadn't been that hooked in a book for a long time and I was so overjoyed that it was happening again. I loved everything about this book from the writing style to the storyline to the characters. I really cared for the main character (Evie) and couldn't help but cry nearer to the end when everything seemed to be going wrong for her and there was nothing she could do. What interested me in the first place about this book was that it deals with mental illnesses. Evie (the main character) is currently battling with her OCD disorder and trying to work towards completely coming off her meds and start being "normal". You really get to feel what Evie is going through and that's why I couldn't help but care for her so much. In this book Holly Bourne interprets many different problems/issues that teenage girls would/could be tackling: feminism, boy problems, drifting away from friends, making new friends and mental health. She uses all these things and connects them to each other. Personally, I think that Holly handled the mental health disorder very well and made it feel real for the reader and really made you think about how mental health can really affect someone and how they might feel. Rate - 5/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23592235-am-i-normal-yet?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Am-I-Normal-Yet-/9781409590309 REVIEW - COMING SOON! READ The Sleeper and the Spindle by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Chris Riddell - 3/5 - 69 Pages I've heard so many great things about this book, so when I saw it at my local library, I knew I had to pick it up. Before going into this, I didn't really know much apart from that there is a lot of illustrations and that it's like a fairytale sort of thing. I ended up being really disappointed by this. The illustrations were really great (Chris Riddell did such a great job), but I felt the story lacked. I was confused at points (despite it being very short) and I'm still confused about certain parts now. Also, I don't really know what to think of Neil Gaiman's writing style. I can certainly understand how many people love it as it is quite different and interesting, but I think it's also not for everyone. I think I'm one of those people who are just meh about it. Rate - 2.75(ish)/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23301545-the-sleeper-and-the-spindle?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Sleeper-and-the-Spindle/9781408859643 REVIEW - Tinder by Sally Gardner - 265 Pages When I went to my local library and picked up The Sleeper and The Spindle, I also picked up this as I'd also heard really great things about it. I enjoyed this one slightly more than The Sleeper and the Spindle, I did still find parts confusing in this but most of it came clear by the end. I did enjoy parts of this but after reading it, I just didn't feel any connection to the book whatsoever (apart from that was okay). I thought the ending was good as it did wrap a lot of things up and didn't really leave any loose ends. Rate - 3.25/5 GR- https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18113422-tinder?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Tinder/9781780621494 REVIEW - From Ashes Into Light by Gudrun Mouw - 240 Pages *I was sent a physical copy from the author in trade for an honest review.* When I received an email about this book, what caught my eye first was that it featured the war. I immediately got excited as I really love books about any of the wars. I'm just really into that part of History. Anyway, after reading more I found out that the book featured 3 different voices: Ruth, a Jewish teenager during Kristallnacht in World War II Austria, Saqapaya, a stalwart Native American from coastal California during the time of the Spanish conquest and Friede Mai, born during the war to a Bavarian Soldier (a prisoner of war) and an East-Prussian mother. Linking these three voices together is a Phoenix who flies between these characters, following them through the wars. I enjoyed the story and I found the way the author linked all three character together to be really interesting. However, I was really confused by Saqapaya's parts as I didn't really understand what was going on, I only had a vague idea. However with the other two characters, Ruth and Friede-Mai, I really cared for the two of them and understood their stories well. Rate - 3.75/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24264409-from-ashes-into-light?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/From-Ashes-Into-Light/9781941203071 REVIEW - Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell - 62 Pages When I found out that Rainbow Rowell was going to be releasing a WBD Book, I literally freaked out and instantly knew that I'd be getting a copy as soon as I can. As soon as I received my voucher (to get a free WBD Book) from my school, I flew (not literally) over to my local bookshop, which luckily had every WBD book in, and purchased it. I'm a big fan of Rowell's books though have only read two of her books (Eleanor & Park and Fangirl), though I do have Carry On on my TBR pile (well it's sort of a shelf but sshhhh no one needs to know that). This one is features around the latest Star Wars movie, but don't worry, you don't need to be a Star Wars to read or understand it. The main girl, Elena, is a huge Star Wars fan and decides to camp out for a week (I think it's a week) outside her local cinema. She's so excited and can't wait to be surrounded by people who love Star Wars just as much as her. She arrives and is person number 3 in the queue (lucky right?) out of three people (oh). It's just her and these two guys ahead of her for the whole time she's camping. Oh well, Elena's not going to let anything put her mood down, not even her mum who keeps driving past to keep an eye on her. Lots of things happen and it's just a great book and everyone needs to read it (especially Rowell fans). Rate - 5/5 GR- https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26365537-kindred-spirits?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kindred-Spirits-World-Book-2016/dp/1509820833/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1459616332&sr=1-1&keywords=kindred+spirits+rainbow+rowell Spot The Difference by Juno Dawson - 85 Pages This is another WBD book which I picked up at my local bookstore. I myself have never read a book by Juno, but have always wanted to and her books have always been on wishlist. Anyway, I was reading the synopsis of this WBD book and I knew I needed to pick it up. It sounded like something that might be quite relatable to lot of people. I'm not going to go into detail about what the book is about as I know for a fact that I'm not going to do any justice whatsoever. Anyway, this book is so freaking relatable it's ridiculous. I loved every single word of it and in my own year group at high school, I could definitely relate certain characters to people I know. This book I would total recommend, it's so relatable and honestly just an important book that everyone (especially people in high school+) should read. Rate - 5/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27268882-spot-the-difference AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spot-Difference-2016-World-Book/dp/1471405672/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0JCGZXHXJ1ANMCSW3XW2 The Potion Diaries by Amy Alward - 356 Pages Last summer (when this book came out I think), I was in my nearest Waterstones (which isn't exactly that near but oh well) with my mum and I was looking through the buy one get one half price offer tables Waterstones switch up every so often. These tables are literally the reason I love Waterstones (they have popular new releases as well as not so popular releases as well as older books), they have great offers and I always find what I'm looking for on these tables. Anyway, this book had just been released, but it was back when I was just getting back into reading again so I didn't really care for it. They had a whole display of the book and I remember my mum pointing it out to me saying that it sounded good. I wasn't really interested as I already had two books I wanted to get, Will Grayson,Will Grayson by John Green and David Levithan and Looking for Alaska by John Green (two books that are still on my TBR...). Anyway, a couple of months back I was browsing through either Waterstones' website or Goodreads and I saw this book again. I thought I'd just read the synopsis and see what I thought. I really wanted to get it. However, it's one of those books that I just keep putting further and further back on my list to buy and I'll probably never get round to it. I was talking to my friend the other day (she loves books and always has, but fell out of reading about a year ago or so and is just starting to get back into it) and she started talking about this book and that I needed to read it. Luckily she had a copy and she let me borrow it (and I let her borrow two of my books) and omg. I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH. As soon as I can, I will be getting my own copy! I thoroughly recommend this book to any person who loves just a fun, but different YA book. I also thought that it would be a great book to any teenager/child starting out in the YA genre or maybe someone who's new to reading as this book is so fun that you won't stop reading it. Seriously. I'm not joking. Rate - 5/5 GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23344222-the-potion-diaries?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Potion-Diaries/9781471143564 7 Days by Eve Ainsworth - 246 Pages I've wanted to read this book for so long, but never knew what it was about. I went to the Holly Bourne and Eve Ainsworth event in Manchester at the start of March and they had a signing at the end. I purchased both of Eve's books, 7 Days and Crush. The other day I really wanted to read a contemporary and I decided on this one. I didn't know what it was about until I finally decided to read the synopsis. It sounded like something I'd love so I started reading it. OH. MY. GOSH. THIS BOOK IS AMAZING. LITERALLY. There were guessable parts, like I'd worked out what was going to happen at the end quite early on but that didn't stop me loving the book less than I would probably do originally. Anyway, I thoroughly thoroughly recommend this book to EVERYONE. Rate - 5/5 Started Reading I read 1/2 of Dark Escape by Eileen Sheehan
and I also read about 50 more pages of M is for Magic by Neil Gaiman (A Collection of Short Stories) Overall, I'm pretty pleased with the amount I read this month and discovered a lot of new favourite books and authors that I want to read more of their works. BYE! WHAT WAS YOUR FAVOURITE BOOK YOU READ THIS MONTH? IF you've read any of the books I mentioned above, please feel free to share your thoughts below and I'll try and respond! March Book Haul! Well, March feels like it's flown by and we're back again for another book haul! Despite the fact that March went quickly, I still got a lot of books... But in my defence, most of them I won in giveaways so it's not fault that there was so many amazing giveaways running that I just couldn't resist entering! Is it? Anyway, I just wanted to quickly thank the publishers/authors that have kindly sent me books for review this last month and also to those people who hosted the giveaways I won. I'm looking forward to diving into all of these amazing books! As there is still quite a lot of books, I'm going to stick to what I did last time and just past in the synopsis' for you to read instead of me trying and failing to explain what the book is about. Let's get into it! Holly Bourne & Eve Ainsworth's Manchester Event At the start of the month (March 6th) I was lucky enough to get tickets to go to Holly and Eve's event in Manchester and listen to their talk on female friendships in books, film and TV. They also read a sampler from each of their latest books and at the end they fitted in a book signing! As there was about 20 (roughly) people there, it was pretty chilled and for basically my first book signing, a great experience. Obviously to get some books signed, I had to purchase their books from the place. I already owned three of Holly's books (Am I Normal Yet?, How Hard Can Love Be? and The Manifesto on How To Be Interesting.) and neither of Eve's. As the books were full price and I didn't have too much money on me, I was limited on how many books I could buy, but I ended up with two from each author. I will have a more detailed post up soon about the event and pictures from the day. Am I Normal Yet? by Holly Bourne I decided to repurchase this one as I read it a couple of days before the event and adored it, so I knew I needed a signed copy. Synopsis - All Evie wants is to be normal. She’s almost off her meds and at a new college where no one knows her as the girl-who-went-crazy. She’s even going to parties and making friends. There’s only one thing left to tick off her list… But relationships are messy – especially relationships with teenage guys. They can make any girl feel like they’re going mad. And if Evie can’t even tell her new friends Amber and Lottie the truth about herself, how will she cope when she falls in love? GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23592235-am-i-normal-yet?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Am-I-Normal-Yet-Holly-Bourne/9781409590309 Soulmates by Holly Bourne This was the only book of Holly's that I didn't own so I decided I'd pick it up. Synopsis - Every so often, two people are born who are the perfect matches for each other. Soulmates. But while the odds of this happening are about as likely as being struck by lightning, when these people do meet and fall in love…thunderstorms, lightning strikes and lashings of rain are only the beginning of their problems. Enter Poppy, the 17-year-old cynic with a serious addiction to banana milk, and Noah, the heart-throb guitarist; residents of mediocre Middletown, sometime students, and…soulmates. After a chance meeting at a local band night, Poppy and Noah find themselves swept up in a whirlwind romance unlike anything they’ve ever experienced before. But with a secret international agency preparing to separate them, a trail of destruction rumbling in their wake, (and a looming psychology coursework deadline), they are left with an impossible choice between the end of the world, or a life without love… GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16099393-soulmates?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Soulmates/9781409557500 7 Days by Eve Ainsworth Synopsis - This bold, compelling and topical story about bullying is told from the perspective of the bully and the bullied. You won't be able put it down until you've reached the conclusion. Jess's life is difficult enough without Kez picking on her – it’s turning school from a safe place into a nightmare. Kez has plenty of problems too but she finds comfort in knowing she is better off than Jess - or so she thinks. A hard-hitting and even-handed look at bullying and the issues facing teenagers today. GR -https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18679049-seven-days?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Seven-Days-Eve-Ainsworth/9781407146911 Crush by Eve Ainsworth Synopsis - Love hurts ... but should it hurt this much? Reeling from her mum's sudden departure, Anna finds the comfort she needs in her blossoming relationship with Will. He's handsome and loving, everything Anna has always dreamt of. He's also moody and unpredictable, pushing her away from her friends, her music. He wants her to be his and his alone. He wants her to be perfect. Anna's world is closing in. But threatening everything is a dark secret that not even Will can control... Eve Ainsworth's gripping second novel is a pitch-perfect exploration of love at its most powerful, addictive and destructive. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29325754-crush?from_search=true&search_version=service BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Crush-Eve-Ainsworth/9781407146904?ref=grid-view Local Book Shop Kindred Spirits by Rainbow Rowell Synopsis - 'Everybody likes everything these days. The whole world is a nerd.' 'Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?' 'Maybe.' If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does. What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels. Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26365537-kindred-spirits?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kindred-Spirits-World-Book-2016/dp/1509820833/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1459105539&sr=8-1&keywords=Kindred+Spirits+by+Rainbow+Rowell I've already read this, but you'll have to check out my review or my March Wrap-Up to hear more of my thoughts. Spot the Difference by Juno Dawson Synopsis - An exclusive World Book Day story from UK Queen of Teen Juno Dawson. Avery has always suffered at the hands of the bullies, so when she’s given a seemingly-miraculous opportunity to join the ‘A-list’ she grabs at it with both hands. But appearances can be deceiving, and soon Avery’s not so sure she likes this new version of herself. And it’s only by overcoming her fears that she can learn the true meaning of being comfortable in your own skin. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27268882-spot-the-difference AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spot-Difference-2016-World-Book/dp/1471405672/ref=pd_sim_14_1?ie=UTF8&dpID=51y9s4YmJcL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR100%2C160_&refRID=14MZM6937GPE8KHPCNKC I've already read this but to hear more of my thoughts, you'll have to check out my review or March Wrap-Up. Won in Giveaways Thank you to the people who hosted these giveaways, I'll try and credit you below! Enrule by Holly Sparks This giveaway was hosted by the author, Holly, through her instagram account @booksandskittles (which is really awesome and you should definitely go and check it out!). I was so surprised that I'd won the giveaway as I never expect to win anything whatsoever and I was beyond excited when the package turned up a few days later. Holly had included so many lovely things in the package along with a signed copy of her debut novel, Enrule and Toby the bear. Thank you Holly for hosting this giveaway and I'm so excited to read Enrule and review it afterwards. Synopsis - I remember waking to the scream. I remember calling my sister's name. I remember seeing the blood smeared along the staircase. I remember the creature's green eyes. They say there's a cure. They say there's a way to stop this madness, a way to stop the hunger. I think they're lying. My name is Ella, and this is my story. In this exhilarating debut, Holly Sparks presents a I remember waking to the scream. I remember calling my sister's name. I remember seeing the blood smeared along the staircase. I remember the creature's green eyes. They say there's a cure. They say there's a way to stop this madness, a way to stop the hunger. I think they're lying. My name is Ella, and this is my story. In this exhilarating debut, Holly Sparks presents a horrifying dystopian world, a remarkable heroine, and an unforgettable adventure. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28154979-enrule?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Enrule/9781519542946 Book of Lies by Teri Terry I won this in a Goodreads giveaway hosted by the author and I'm really excited to read it. I've never read a book by Teri Terry but have always wanted to and now I have one! Synopsis - They are trapped, frozen. Waiting. Straining against the wood that holds them. The unwary catch a glimpse now and then - feel their desperate hunger, see a glint of red eyes - and scurry out of the shadows of the wood, back to the light. She's coming; it will be soon. They will run free on the moors again. The Hunt will return. And the ground will run with blood. An ancient curse placed on a family of witches foretells that twins will be born - one good, one evil; and one will destroy the other. But who can be trusted when no one is as they seem? GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25370363-book-of-lies?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/Book-of-Lies/9781408334287 The Square Root of Summer by Harriet Reuter Hapgood (ARC) I won this in a flash giveaway on Twitter and I'm really excited to read and review it! I feel like I'm saying that for every book but I really am haha. Synopsis - This is what it means to love someone. This is what it means to grieve someone. It's a little bit like a black hole. It's a little bit like infinity. Gottie H. Oppenheimer is losing time. Literally. When the fabric of the universe around her seaside town begins to fray, she's hurtled through wormholes to her past: To last summer, when her grandfather Grey died. To the afternoon she fell in love with Jason, who wouldn't even hold her hand at the funeral. To the day her best friend Thomas moved away and left her behind with a scar on her hand and a black hole in her memory. Although Grey is still gone, Jason and Thomas are back, and Gottie's past, present, and future are about to collide—and someone's heart is about to be broken. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25028285-the-square-root-of-summer?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Square-Root-of-Summer-Harriet-Reuter-Hapgood/9781509808281?ref=grid-view Sent For Review Thank you to the authors/publishers that sent me the following books for review. From Ashes Into Light by Gudrun Mouw Synopsis - From Ashes into Light is a transpersonal tale of epic tragedy, spirituality, family, and personal redemption. It is told through three distinct voices: the hauntingly tragic story of Ruth, a Jewish adolescent during Kristallnacht in Austria, Saqapaya, a stalwart Native American from coastal California during the time of the Spanish conquest, and Friede Mai. Friede is born during World War II to a Bavarian soldier and a East-Prussian mother. As those around her struggle with the inevitable chaos and paradox of war, Friede opens her heart to gruesome enemies, at times saving herself and family members from atrocities. With war behind them, the Mai family immigrates to the US, where Friede, her veteran father and ex-refugee mother, struggle with the reverberations of trauma. Friede is unable to find inner freedom until she meets her spiritual guide, a Rabbi, who helps her see that the voices from the past are teachers and the horrors of history are also beacons of light. The three electric characters weave a narrative of raw consciousness, a moving example of transforming the ripple of suffering through the incredible strength of vulnerability. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24264409-from-ashes-into-light?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/From-Ashes-Into-Light/9781941203071 REVIEW - Dark Escape by Eileen Sheehan Synopsis - DARK ESCAPE begins the story of innocence, love, deceit, and wonder. When nineteen year old Tara O’Shea moves into a dilapidated country estate she inherited from her grandmother, two handsome men come into her life. While both are vying for her love, one is actually a demonic soldier who has an ulterior motive. He is stalking her in order to gain possession of a crystal key that, unbeknownst to her, is hidden somewhere in her house. This very special key has the power to lock or unlock the portal to the evil Shadow Land. Fearing he’s losing ground to her other suitor, the soldier forces the issue with the help of his demonic creatures. Escaping is no easy task! She’s grateful for the assistance of a magic woman, but will it be enough? GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29349368-dark-escape?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - NOT AVALIABLE REVIEW - http://sprinkleofbooks.weebly.com/blog/spoiler-free-review-dark-escape-by-eileen-sheehan The Search For The Crystal Key (A Continuation of Dark Escape) by Eileen Sheehan Synopsis - When Tara and Brandon travel through time back to the Civil War era to rescue her brother from the dark demons, she discovers her doppelganger, Lucy, is lying in a trance awaiting the return of her soul, which Tara is using. With the soul in close proximity to both doppelgangers, things get pretty sticky... but, not just for the soul! It turns out Brandon is a time traveler who is engaged to Lucy, but also loves Tara. So, not only does the soul have to choose between Lucy and Tara, so does Brandon! With any luck, through magic they’ll find a way for both Tara and Lucy to use the soul at the same time, but Brandon will still have to make a choice. Through it all, they race to find the crystal key that controls the portal to the dark side before the dark side finds it first. Adventure, danger, heartache, deceit, discovery, magical wars, and new found love await as they continue THE SEARCH FOR THE CRYSTAL KEY. THE SEARCH FOR THE CRYSTAL KEY is a continuation of Dark Escape. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29352056-the-search-for-the-crystal-key-a-continuation-of-dark-escape?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Search-for-the-Crystal-Key/9780692630037 Review - Morrisons The Manifesto On How To Be Interesting by Holly Bourne Synopsis - Apparently I'm boring. A nobody. But that's all about to change. Because I am starting a project. Here. Now. For myself. And if you want to come along for the ride then you're very welcome. Bree is a loser, a wannabe author who hides behind words. Most of the time she hates her life, her school, her never-there parents. So she writes. But when she’s told she needs to start living a life worth writing about, The Manifesto on How to Be Interesting is born. Six steps on how to be interesting. Six steps that will see her infiltrate the popular set, fall in love with someone forbidden and make the biggest mistake of her life. From the bestselling author of Soulmates comes a fearlessly frank take on school, cliques and crushes. GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22533460-the-manifesto-on-how-to-be-interesting?from_search=true&search_version=service BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Manifesto-on-How-to-be-Interesting/9781409562184 BYE! Spoiler-Free Review: The Search For The Crystal Key (A Dark Escape Continuation) by Eileen Sheehan4/8/2016 Spoiler-Free Review: The Search For The Crystal Key (A Dark Escape Continuation) by Eileen Sheehan When Tara and Brandon travel through time back to the Civil War era to rescue her brother from the dark demons, she discovers her doppelganger, Lucy, is lying in a trance awaiting the return of her soul, which Tara is using. With the soul in close proximity to both doppelgangers, things get pretty sticky... but, not just for the soul! It turns out Brandon is a time traveler who is engaged to Lucy, but also loves Tara. So, not only does the soul have to choose between Lucy and Tara, so does Brandon! With any luck, through magic they’ll find a way for both Tara and Lucy to use the soul at the same time, but Brandon will still have to make a choice. Through it all, they race to find the crystal key that controls the portal to the dark side before the dark side finds it first. Adventure, danger, heartache, deceit, discovery, magical wars, and new found love await as they continue THE SEARCH FOR THE CRYSTAL KEY. THE SEARCH FOR THE CRYSTAL KEY is a continuation of Dark Escape. *Thank you Eileen for sending me an ebook copy of this for review*All opinions are honest and my own* This is the second half of Dark Escape, which I've already read and reviewed (I will link my review below). I really loved Dark Escape and found myself really invested in the story and loved the characters. So, when Eileen emailed me wanting to know whether I'd like the continuation, I jumped. I was super excited to get back involved with these characters and just have more of Eileen's writing (If you haven't heard me say it the million other times, then I really love Eileen's writing. Like a lot.) I started reading this straight away, one because I was really excited but also because it seems to take me like an age to read ebooks. So yeah. Anyway, I started reading it and just fell in love all over again, it was great to be back with these characters and just jump back into the story. One thing that I really liked, was that at the start of The Search For The Crystal Key, Eileen wrote a little roundup of what happened in Dark Escape. Though there was barely anytime between me reading these two books, I had forgotten one of two teeny things, so it was great to just refresh my mind quickly before getting back into the story. I found it surprisingly easy to continue with this continuation after the events at the end of the last book (let's just say a lot went down. A lot.) and I was just so excited to find out what this book had in store. Though I said above that it takes me ages to read ebooks, I found myself surprisingly whizzing through the pages and enjoying every minute. I really enjoyed the beginning and was so grateful that it was so easy for me to continue with the story, but around the middle I stopped enjoying myself as much. I felt like the middle was quite slow and I found myself neglecting this book because I knew that it was really hard to get through. I managed to push through and I'm so glad I did. It was full of action and some new characters that were really exciting to learn about. The middle part of the book did drag on quite a bit though and I felt there wasn't much movement going on. It didn't feel like the story was going anywhere for quite a bit and that took away from my enjoyment of the story a bit, but it was definitely worth continuing on just for what was going to unravel in that last 100 (ish) pages. Also, in this book you learn so much more about this world and how different characters are connected when Brandon and Tara travel back in time. I found it so interesting to see the different characters from the present day as a different person in the past and the connection between the two. However, part of the reason why I found the middle so slow, was due to the amount of information was being thrown at you. You were given a couple of pages of solid information a few times throughout the book and I felt like that weighted me down. The information was interesting and definitely vital to the story but I felt I would've taken more of it in if it was mixed in with the story a bit better to keep things moving at the same time. I found I did take a lot of the info in but a few things just went straight over my head. Some things I felt were explained more than once but with them being explained again I got more confused about things that I previously understood. However, the info was vital to the story and did add to the story effectively. In this continuation, you really got a feel for the world and a glimpse at how complex it really is. All things connect together to create this complex world, but a complex world that is easy to understand through Eileen's great way of explaining the different topics in a way that relate back round to a further part of the story. I admire Eileen for how she can create a world like this, I would never be able to think of something so wonderful and original. This book combined many different elements, but Eileen combined them in a successful manner that really made it both easy and fun to read and understand. This book definitely added more to the simple (ish) world you experience at first in Dark Escape. I love all the characters again and loved the new additions and thought they all played a part in the story and were affective in building a more complex world and story. I found Tara to be slightly annoying at times in this book, but that quickly changed and I found myself loving her character once again. Overall, I loved this book and found it to be a great continuation of the first book, Dark Escape, however due to the slow middle, I will have to lower the rate slightly, but that was my only problem. Rate - 4.25/5 BYE!
Spoiler-Free Review: Dark Escape by Eileen Sheehan - http://sprinkleofbooks.weebly.com/blog/spoiler-free-review-dark-escape-by-eileen-sheehan Eileen Sheehan Q&A - http://sprinkleofbooks.weebly.com/blog/author-qa-with-eileen-sheehan Dark Escape LINKS GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29349368-dark-escape?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dark-Escape-1-Eileen-Sheehan/dp/0692629912/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1460127515&sr=8-1&keywords=Dark+Escape+by+Eileen+Sheehan BARNES & NOBLE - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dark-escape-eileen-sheehan/1123327568?ean=2940152596472 The Search For The Crystal Key LINKS GR - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29352056-the-search-for-the-crystal-key-a-continuation-of-dark-escape?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true BD - http://www.bookdepository.com/The-Search-for-the-Crystal-Key/9780692630037 AMAZON - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Search-Crystal-Key-Continuation-Escape/dp/0692630031/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1460127577&sr=1-3 BARNES & NOBLE - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-search-for-the-crystal-key-eileen-sheehan/1123518874?ean=9780692630037 |
AuthorHello and welcome to Books With Beth! I'm Beth and on this blog I share a mix of all my bookish thoughts through reviews, book tours and hauls. Have fun! Categories
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