Spy Glass

NOTE THIS IS THE THIRD AND FINAL BOOK IN A COMPANION SERIES. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ THE OTHER TWO GLASS BOOKS, OR THE STUDY SERIES, I SUGGEST YOU DO NOT READ THIS REVIEW, SPOILERS HAVE BEEN KEPT FROM THE REVIEW, BUT THERE ARE A LOT IN THE BLURB ALONE THAT COULD SPOIL THE REST OF THE SERIES!

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Publishing Company: Mira Books

Blurb: An undercover mission leads to danger, adventure and an impossible choice…

After siphoning her own blood magic in the showdown at Hubal, student glass magician Opal Cowan has lost her powers. Immune to the effects of magic, Opal is now an outsider looking in, spying through the glass on those with the powers she once had. Powers that make a difference in the world.

Suddenly the beautiful pieces she makes begin to flash in the presence of magic and Opal learns that someone has stolen some of her blood. Finding it might let her regain her powers or discover that they’re lost forever…

The review:

So diving into this book I was so apprehensive and so worried that it would be awful and one of those books where it wasn’t needed to finish the series, I expected to be disappointed. I was extremely wrong. From the get go you could tell that it was going to be something so extremely different to Maria V. Snyder’s other books that it was interesting and unique. I think it was more that some of my favourite characters were in this a lot more as well, it was just something that you can get excited about. I mean, Valek was in it so much, wow, I was very happy with that.

Again I want to stress that this book is different. In the Study series and the rest of the Glass series we have a protagonist who has magic. In this book, we see the protagonist without magic and how she deals with it. So from the start you know that we have such a different view point and it’s interesting to see this standing and also how much the characters have developed, for better or for worse.

The plot was so richly dense you genuinely don’t know what to do about it. You have so much going on that you can’t help but get swept up and spouting out ideas of what could happen or where the plot could go. And what’s wonderful in this book is just as you think you’ve got it figured out, you’re swept in an entirely other direction. And I think to see Opal’s character growing, but growing in a different way, is amazing. You see her completely change and you see how she’s grown as a person, as a fighter, as everything really.

I understand I’m gushing, but I don’t actually know what to say about this. I think that it has to be said that I probably enjoyed this book more because I was so disappointed with the previous one, but that doesn’t bother me. This was such an amazing way to end a series. And the way that the plot went, the differences in the book, the way the characters went, the plot twists, the scary moments, the sad moments, the hilarious moments (I was laughing for the first couple hundred pages at some of the writing because it was so witty).

I think that this book is definitely worth it, though the second book wasn’t great, this definitely compensates for it.

My rating:

Setting: 5 out of 5

Characters: 4 out of 5

Plot: 4.5 out of 5

Writing: 4 out of 5

If you read the book, I hope you enjoy it, and I’ll talk to you guys later! Bye x

Ashers' Personal Three Month Challenge

Okay, if you've ever been on goodreads you'll know they have groups, and on these groups they can have some pretty awesome challenges. I took part in the Winter Challenge on goodreads and got 9 books read. Now I am going to do my very own challenge that I can create, edit, and talk about on this blog. Suggests are welcome.

Please note this is still in the first stages of creating, it's most likely going to change. But! Let's get on with it. And I shall show you the categories!

1. Bookclub frenzy- I am on four goodreads bookclubs, and each one has one or more books we read a month. So in each month I want to read at least TWO BOOKS that have been chosen for the monthly read.

2. Friend's request- Recommendations from friends, or borrowed from friends, I want to read at least THREE BOOKS recommended or borrowed from friends in the next three months.

3. TBR- I have the worst case of buying books I don't need (check out my IMMs if you don't believe me) so in the next three months I want to read TWO BOOKS that have been on my shelf for at least a year.

4. Creature Feature- This is a very broad category of any form of creature (examples: zombies, vampires, werewolves, trolls, fairies etc) I want to read FOUR BOOKS in the next three months to do with creatures.

5. Realistic- I'm not the biggest realism fan, and I want to change that. So, I am aiming to read TWO BOOKS without any form of paranormal or fantasy or horror in them.

6. Rereads- I'm a massive fan of rereading books, like a lot of the times I like rereading books over picking up a new book, because if I've enjoyed it enough to want to reread it, then I know it won't disappoint me when I pick it up. With this in mind I want to reread ONE SERIES in the next three months.

7. Golden Oldies- I'm not a big fan of classics, but I know that they're supposed to be appreciated. Which is why I want to read TWO BOOKS that are not contemporary.

8. Kindle Books- I have over a hundred books on my kindle, and most of them I've wanted to read for a while, therefore I want to read at least THREE BOOKS that are on my kindle.

9. New Releases- I love new books, but I often get them, put them on my shelf, and wait til they're old releases. I want to read at least ONE BOOK that has just been released in the next three months.

Those are the categories, and if you think about it, that's a bucket load of books I'm wanting to read, I mean, at least twenty books in three months. That's a lot. I'm not saying that I will get through them all, but I'm going to have a good try at it.

Rules:

No overlapping books: if you have one book representing one category, it cannot represent another one as well. You can change the category it's in, but you can't have it double worth.

No cheating: Read the books.

Reviews: This hopefully will give me incentive to review more. Each book I read will have a review of it up on the blog.

Monthly check in: I will come in at the end of the month and tell you how I am doing.

If you want to take part then please do so, help me along with it, if you don't that's fine, this is just a bit of fun for me to be honest. But yeah, this is hopefully going to get me more read this year and get me out of my reading slump!

Sea Glass

NOTE THIS IS THE SECOND BOOK IN A COMPANION SERIES. IF YOU HAVE NOT READ STORM GLASS OR THE STUDY SERIES I SUGGEST YOU DO NOT READ, SPOILERS HAVE BEEN KEPT FROM THE REVIEW, BUT THERE ARE A LOT IN THE BLURB THAT COULD SPOIL THE FIRST BOOK!

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Publishing Company: Mira Books

Blurb: Her abilities remained hidden- Until challenged by enemy forces.

Student glass magician Opal Cowan's newfound skills to steal a magician's strength make her too powerful.

Kept under house arrest, Opal dares defy her imprisonment to search for Ulrick, the man she thinks she loves. Thinks because she is sure another man- now her prisoner- has switched souls with Ulrick.

In hostile territory, without proof or allies, Opal isn't sure whom to trust. And now everyone is after Opal's special powers for their own deadly gain...

The review:

I only picked this book back up after remembering that I was supposed to lend it to a friend a while ago and I hadn’t actually read it. I hadn’t read the Study series for a while, and hadn’t read the first one since I bought it, I picked the book up rather nervously, I mean I hadn’t gotten far through it before I’d put it down last time so I was worried the plot wouldn’t entrap me.

Compared to the Study series, this one is no where near as good, I have to say it right off the bat, however I think most people realise that when jumping into a companion series. Usually (not always, but often) the original series is a lot better. Also seeing different characters in different lights because you’ve got a different character’s point of view, it’s very odd.

When I started reading this I was apprehensive. The thing with Maria V. Snyder’s writing is that you don’t ever know where her plot is going to go, and though most of the time that is a blessing because you’re continuously guessing, at the end of quite a few of these chapters I was thinking ‘JUST GIVE OPAL A BREAK!’ because Opal always seemed to be getting into worse and worse trouble, and everyone was out to get her. It was annoying. I did think some of the twists were cool, and some of the book was just funny and kept me reading on and on, but sometimes I was just thinking ‘can we just have some more of the nice cosy scenes or funny scenes’.

I will say that I loved how the end of this book all came together, it was dead interesting to see how everything would be resolved and how everything had happened. I’m pretty nervous for the next book though, because in my eyes Opal’s plot could just be left at the end of Sea Glass, and now I’m venturing onto Spy Glass, I’m worried about the turns this will take.

My rating:

Setting: 5 out of 5

Characters: 4 out of 5

Plot: 2.5 out of 5

Writing: 3 out of 5

If you read the book, I hope you enjoy it, and I'll talk to you guys later! Bye x