If We Were Villains - Review

Book Review:
Title: If We Were Villains
Author: M.L. Rio
Publisher: Titan Books

“But that is how a tragedy like ours or King Lear breaks your heart—by making you believe that the ending might still be happy, until the very last minute.”

Oliver Marks has just served ten years for the murder of one of his closest friends – a murder he may or may not have committed. On the day he’s released, he’s greeted by the detective who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but before he does, he wants to know what really happened ten years ago.

As a young actor studying Shakespeare at an elite arts conservatory, Oliver noticed that his talented classmates seem to play the same roles onstage and off – villain, hero, tyrant, temptress – though Oliver felt doomed to always be a secondary character in someone else’s story. But when the teachers change up the casting, a good-natured rivalry turns ugly, and the plays spill dangerously over into life.

When tragedy strikes, one of the seven friends is found dead. The rest face their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, and themselves, that they are blameless.

The Jasmine Throne - Review

Book Review:
Title: The Jasmine Throne
Author: Tasha Suri
Publisher: Orbit
I received an early copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

"She could make herself into something monstrous. She could be a creature born of poison and pyre, flame and blood."

One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne.
The other is a priestess searching for her family.
Together, they will change the fate of an empire.
   Imprisoned by her dictator brother, Malini spends her days in isolation in the Hirana: an ancient temple that was once the source of powerful magic – but is now little more than a decaying ruin.
   Priya is a maidservant, one of several who make the treacherous journey to the top of the Hirana every night to attend Malini’s chambers. She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, as long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides. But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled...

Falling Kingdoms Series - Review

Book Review:
Title: Falling Kingdoms Series
Author: Morgan Rhodes
Publisher: Penguin

“Because if you don't choose to fight against the wrong in the world, then you are the wrong in the world.”

In a land where magic has been forgotten and peace has reigned for centuries, unrest is simmering . Three kingdoms battle for power... 

A princess must journey into enemy territory in search of a magic long-thought extinct.
A rebel becomes the leader of a bloody revolution.
A Sorceress discovers the truth about the supernatural legacy she is destined to wield.
It's the eve of war. Each must choose a side.
KINGDOMS WILL FALL. 

People We Meet on Vacation - Review

 

Book Review:
Title: People We Meet on Vacation (US)/You and Me on Vacation (UK)
Author: Emily Henry
Publisher: Penguin

“It hurts to want it all, so many things that can't coexist within the same life.”

TWO FRIENDS
TEN SUMMER TRIPS
THEIR LAST CHANCE TO FALL IN LOVE
12 SUMMERS AGO: Poppy and Alex meet. They hate each other, and are pretty confident they'll never speak again.
11 SUMMERS AGO: They're forced to share a ride home from college and by the end of it a friendship is formed. And a pact: every year, one vacation together.
10 SUMMERS AGO: Alex discovers his fear of flying on the way to Vancouver. Poppy holds his hand the whole way.
7 SUMMERS AGO: They get far too drunk and narrowly avoid getting matching tattoos in New Orleans.
2 SUMMERS AGO: It all goes wrong.
THIS SUMMER: Poppy asks Alex to join her on one last trip. A trip that will determine the rest of their lives.