BLOG TOUR - LOVELESS BY ALICE OSEMAN - YOUNG ADULT FICTION [REVIEW + GIVEAWAY]

 

Book Information

Title: Loveless

Authors(s): Alice Oseman
Publication Date: March 1, 2022
Edition: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook; 432 pgs
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Source: Rockstar Book Tours
Purchase: Amazon - Kindle - Audible - B&N - BAM! - iBooks - Kobo - TBD - Bookshop.org
Disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher as part of a blog tour in exchange for an honest review.  My thoughts and opinions are my own.  Please note the purchase links above are affiliate links.

Tour Schedule

Week One

2/28/2022 - Nonbinary Knight Reads - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

2/28/2022 - BookHounds YA - Excerpt

2/28/2022 - Rajiv's Reviews - Review/IG Post

3/1/2022 - @badlandsbooks_ - Review

3/1/2022 - Nerdophiles - Review

3/1/2022 - @booksaremagictoo - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

3/1/2022 - Kait Plus Books - Excerpt

3/2/2022 - Dana's Book Garden - Review

3/2/2022 - Reading Wordsmith - Review/IG Post

3/2/2022 - @thebookishfoxwitch - Review

3/3/2022 - popthebutterfly - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

3/3/2022 - Emelie's Books - Review

3/3/2022 - patrickfromperks - TikTok Review or Spotlight

3/4/2022 - @emmreadsbooks - Review/IG Post

3/4/2022 - onemused - Review/IG Post

3/4/2022 - A Bookish Dream - Review/IG Post

Week Two

3/7/2022 - Midnightbooklover - Review

3/7/2022 - Eli to the nth - Review

3/7/2022 - The Bookwyrm's Den - Review

3/8/2022 - YABooksCentral - Excerpt

3/8/2022 - Utopia State of Mind - Review/IG Post

3/8/2022 - Two Points of Interest - Review

3/9/2022 - Not In Jersey - Review/IG Post

3/9/2022 - More Books Please blog - Review/IG Post

3/9/2022 - @drewsim12 - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

3/10/2022 - Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers  - Review/IG Post

3/10/2022 - Celia's Reads-blog - Review/IG Post

3/10/2022 - @coffeesipsandreads - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

3/11/2022 - Zainey Laney in all 3 - Review/IG Post/TikTok Post

3/11/2022 - My Fictional Oasis - Review

The Summary

For fans of Love, Simon and I Wish You All the Best, a funny, honest, messy, completely relatable story of a girl who realizes that love can be found in many ways that don't involve sex or romance.

From the marvelous author of Heartstopper comes an exceptional YA novel about discovering that it's okay if you don't have sexual or romantic feelings for anyone . . . since there are plenty of other ways to find love and connection.

This is the funny, honest, messy, completely relatable story of Georgia, who doesn't understand why she can't crush and kiss and make out like her friends do. She's surrounded by the narrative that dating + sex = love. It's not until she gets to college that she discovers the A range of the LGBTQIA+ spectrum -- coming to understand herself as asexual/aromantic. Disrupting the narrative that she's been told since birth isn't easy -- there are many mistakes along the way to inviting people into a newly found articulation of an always-known part of your identity. But Georgia's determined to get her life right, with the help of (and despite the major drama of) her friends.

(Goodreads)

My Review

Loveless by Alice Oseman, unlike what the title suggests, is a book all about love: self-love, platonic love, romantic love, and familial love.  At the forefront is a focus on queer love, and the multidimensional experience young adults, especially those who do not fit the societal "norm", move through as they grow into adulthood.

The main character, Georgia, is going away to university with her two best friends, Pip and Jason. With the impending move to university, Georgia is faced with the fact that she has never fallen in love, never kissed anyone, or even had a "real" crush on someone; something that is found odd by both her peers and society-at-large.  Even in Georgia's own mind, as someone who loves romcoms and fanfiction, her lack of experience and feelings are an oddity.  So university is where she is determined to change her status, and find someone to experience a relationship with.

Along the way, Georgia makes some poor decisions based on internalized expectations and societal expectations.  But she also finds herself, with this journey being hard but ultimately not surprising, in a way I think many queer people experience.  This is the part of the book that I loved the most.  Oseman shows the confusion and heartache and relief that comes from a personal discovery such as what Georgia goes through. Throughout Georgia's trials to start a relationship you always see a tiny hint that she knows this isn't for her; that sex/romance aren't what she wants.  And that hint, as Georgia keeps moving forward in her journey, only grows.  I felt that this was very truthful in it's complexity and messiness.  Georgia internalizes much of the stereotypical expectations for love and relationships, which I think is summarized in the book description very well: dating + sex = love.  In her mind, to love someone is to be "in love" with them, wanting sex and all that entails. But discovering that other people actually experience love without sex or romance wrapped up in it, finding the term aromantic asexual, opens Georgia's eyes to who she is and that her identity is valid.

There isn't enough mainstream depictions of aro/ace people that aren't the butt of some joke.  And while the experience Oseman writes about in Loveless is a particular experience and does not speak to all aro/ace people, I found myself relating to many of the thoughts and feelings Georgia experiences.  Reading this in my 30s, and never really seeing my own experiences reflected in media I consumed, made me revert back to being a teenager and how confusing (and still confusing) love can be.  I really appreciate that a book like this was published, even if it is not quite the experience that the individual reader has, because it highlights that love can exist in all forms, and sometimes the "love" that people think of as typical can be toxic depending on the situation.

As I said at the beginning, Loveless is about love in all its forms.  Not only Georgia's journey of self-love, but her journey of platonic love involving Pip, Jason, and her new roommate Rooney.  The realization and actualization that friends can be as important in someone's life as a romantic partner.  Friends can support you, friends can comfort you, friends can accept you.  Having a platonic relationship does not make that relationship less than simply because there is no sex or "romance" involved.  

I will say that some people may find some of the situations and thoughts expressed in the book triggering.  Life is messy, and the aro- and ace-phobia that is shown on page, not only internalized by Georgia, but by a white cis gay man side character, could be harmful for some.  But it is also realistic, as even in queer spaces there is bigotry and discrimination.  Also, some of the depictions of sex, characterized through Rooney, who is identified as a pansexual woman (not explicitly on page), can be triggering, with the notes of self-harm these  experiences invoke.  But overall, I found that Oseman wrote each character as realistically and with as much truth to them as possible.

Loveless by Alice Oseman is a heartfelt, realistic, much-needed portrayal of queer love and discovering who you are and the mess that can happen along the way.  I think everyone will see themselves in some capacity, even if you don't identify as queer, which makes this book perfect for all.  Pick it up at your local bookstore (both the U.S. edition, which was just published, and the U.K. edition are beautiful covers).

 

Final Rating

About the Author

Alice Oseman was born in 1994 in Kent, England. She graduated from Durham University and is the author of YA contemporaries Solitaire, Radio Silence, and I Was Born for This. Visit Alice online at aliceoseman.com or on Twitter @AliceOseman.

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

Giveaway

3 winners will receive a finished copy of LOVELESS, US Only.

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BLOG TOUR - YOLK BY MARY H. K. CHOI - YA FICTION [REVIEW + GIVEAWAY]

Title: Yolk

Authors(s): Mary H.K. Choi
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
Edition: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook; 400 pgs
Publisher: Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers
Source: Rockstar Book Tours
Buy: Amazon - Kindle - Audible - 

iBooks - Kobo - The Book Depository - 

Bookshop.org - Barnes & Noble

Disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Tour Schedule

Week One

3/1/2021 - Westveil Publishing - Excerpt

3/1/2021 - A Dream Within A Dream - Excerpt

3/2/2021 - BookHounds YA - Spotlight

3/2/2021 - Book-Keeping - Review

3/3/2021 - Lifestyle of Me - Review

3/3/2021 - What A Nerd Girl Says - Review

3/4/2021 - Momfluenster - Spotlight

3/4/2021 - Not In Jersey - Review

3/5/2021 - Kait Plus Books - Spotlight

3/5/2021 - Trapped Inside Stories - Spotlight

Week Two

3/8/2021 - My Fictional Oasis - Review

3/8/2021 - Eli to the nth - Review

3/9/2021 - The Scribe Owl - Review

3/9/2021 - Nay's Pink Bookshelf - Review

3/10/2021 - Lala’s Book Reviews - Review

3/10/2021 - The Mind of a Book Dragon - Review

3/11/2021 - Odd and Bookish - Review

3/11/2021 - Little Red Reads - Review

3/12/2021 - Amani's Reviews - Review

3/12/2021 - michellemengsbookblog - Review

The Summary

From New York Times bestselling author Mary H.K. Choi comes a funny and emotional story about two estranged sisters switching places and committing insurance fraud to save one of their lives.

Jayne Baek is barely getting by. She shuffles through fashion school, saddled with a deadbeat boyfriend, clout-chasing friends, and a wretched eating disorder that she’s not fully ready to confront. But that’s New York City, right? At least she isn’t in Texas anymore, and is finally living in a city that feels right for her.

On the other hand, her sister June is dazzlingly rich with a high-flying finance job and a massive apartment. Unlike Jayne, June has never struggled a day in her life. Until she’s diagnosed with uterine cancer.

Suddenly, these estranged sisters who have nothing in common are living together. Because sisterly obligations are kind of important when one of you is dying.

(Goodreads)

My Review

Trigger warnings: long-term eating disorder 

Yolk by Mary H. K. Choi is a both a punch to the gut and a quiet resonance exploring the layers upon layers that sisters and daughters have in relationship to each other and their families.

June and Jayne Baek grew up in San Antonio by way of Seoul, and have both landed in New York City as adults. But at this point in their lives they could be strangers.  Barely acknowledging the existence of each other until June, the eldest by 3 years, calls Jayne to her high-rise NYC apartment to rely that June is sick; really sick.  Has cancer sick.  What happens after is a journey of two sisters, who can easily hurt each other with the littlest thing, coming to together, hesitantly and with distrust, to find a love that they both so deeply want.

This books, as with all Choi books, is a character study, filled with narrative and introspection; very much what is expected, and welcomed, from one of her books.  But what I appreciated was the focus on family, specifically sisters, and how very complex that relationship is.  Told from Jayne's perspective, we see how a little sister, one who is from a Korean household with the added cultural expectations of the family dynamic, experiences life in the shadow of such a successful big sister.  But we also see how Jayne's own personal issues have translated that relationship to , perhaps, something it wasn't meant to be.  The relationship gets turned on it's head with June's announcement of her illness, and we do see Jayne taking up more of a mantel of the caregiver, but through those actions she reflects on the time June took care of her.

With a delicate hand, Choi peels the layers out to explore within the context of this tumultuous relationship.  The pacing mimics real life, with it's ebbs and flows--sometimes you meander down a quiet stream, and others you crash through harsh rapids.  But through it all is the center: June and Jayne and their love for one another.  Yolk by Mary H. K. Choi marks another homerun for the author.

Final Rating

Except

   

        Depending on where I focus and how much pressure I apply to the back of my throat, I can just about blot him out. Him being Jeremy. Him who never shuts up. Him being my ex. He whose arm is clamped around the back of the café chair that belongs to another girl. She’s startlingly pretty, this one. Translucent and thin. Achingly so. She has shimmering lavender hair and wide-set, vacant eyes. Her name is Rae and when she offers her cold, large hand, I instinctively search her face for any hint of cosmetic surgery. Her lids, her lips, the tip of her nose. Her boots are Ann Demeulemeester, the ones with hundreds of yards of lace, and her ragged men’s jacket, Comme.

        “I like your boots,” I tell her, needing her to know that I know, and immediately hating myself for it. I’m so intimidated I could choke. She smiles with such indulgent kindness I feel worse. She’s not at all threatened by me.

        “I got them here,” she tells me in faultless English. I don’t ask her where there might be.

        Jeremy says I’m obsessed with other women. He might be right. Then again, someone once described Jeremy’s energy to me as human cocaine, and they were definitely right.

        “Mortifying.” He shudders, blotting his slick mouth with a black cloth napkin. Jeremy’s the only one eating a full-on meal here at Léon. A lunch of coq au vin. I draw in a deep breath of caramelized onion. All earthy, singed sugar.

        “Can you imagine failing at New York so publicly that you have to ‘move home’?” He does twitchy little scare quotes around the last bit. He does this without acknowledging that for him, moving home would be a few stops upstate on Metro-North, to a town called Tuxedo. A fact he glosses over when he calls himself a native New Yorker.

        I watch Rae, with a small scowl nestled above her nose, purposely apply a filter on her Instagram Story. It’s her empty espresso cup at an angle. I lean back in my wicker café chair and resume lurking her profile, which I can do in plain sight because I have a privacy shield.

        It’s the typical, enigmatic hot-girl dross on her main feed, scones cut out onto a marble surface dusted with flour, her in a party dress in a field. A photo of her taking a photo in a mirror with a film camera.

        In an image farther down, Rae is wearing a white blouse and a black cap and gown. Grinning. It’s a whole different energy. When I arrive at the caption, I close my eyes. I need a moment. I somehow sense the words before they fully register. She graduated from Oxford. It’s crushing that most of the caption is in Korean. She’s like me but so much better.

        My will to live leeches out of my skin and disappears into the atmosphere. I should be in class. I once calculated it, and a Monday, Wednesday, Friday course costs forty-seven dollars, not counting rent.

        Counting rent in this city, it’s exactly one zillion.

        “Yeah, hi.” Jeremy flags down a passing server. A curvy woman with a tight Afro turns to us, arms laden with a full tray of food. “Yeah, can you get me a clean glass of water?” He holds his smeared glass to the light.

        “I can,” she says through her teeth, crinkling her eyes and nodding in a way that suggests she’s garroting him in her mind.

        “That’s not our server,” I whisper when she leaves. As a restaurant kid, albeit a pan-Asian strip-mall operation that charges a quarter for to-go boxes, I cringe with my whole body. Jeremy shrugs.

        I check myself out in the strip of antique mirror behind Rae’s and Jeremy’s heads. I swear my face is wider now than it was this morning. And the waistband of my mom jeans digs into my gut flesh, stanching circulation in my lower belly and thighs. I can feel my heartbeat in my camel-toe. It’s a dull pain. A solid distraction from this experience. I wonder if they were talking about me before I arrived.

        I eye the communal french fries. Saliva pools in the back of my gums. Ketchup is my kryptonite. Especially swirled with ranch dressing, which I’ve trained myself to give up. The Raes of the world would never. Or they would and it would be quirky and wholesome.

        Her leg is the circumference of my arm.

        I smile at the room in a way I imagine would appear breezy yet bored in a film about heartbreak. I love this place. You’d never guess that a dumpy French restaurant from the seventies would be the new hotspot, but that’s the other thing Jeremy’s good for: knowing the migratory practices of various clout monsters. That and ignoring the tourists as he sweet-talks Oni the hostess into ushering us past the busy bar and into the seats in the way, way back.

        Someday I’m going to eat a meal in a New York restaurant by myself without burning with shame.

About the Author

Mary H.K. Choi is a Korean-American author, editor, television and print journalist. She is the author of young adult novels Emergency Contact (2018) and Permanent Record (2019). She is the culture correspondent on Vice News Tonight on HBO and was previously a columnist at Wired and Allure magazines as well as a freelance writer. She attended a large public high school in a suburb of San Antonio, then college at the University of Texas at Austin, where she majored in Textile and Apparel.

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon

Giveaway

2 winners will win a finished copy of YOLK, US Only.

CLICK THE GRAPHIC

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My 2020 Reading Year

This year for me, as for the entire world, was crazy.  

Once quarantine happened, I thought I would read so much (I'm sure a lot of people thought that).  

But that is not what happened, instead I felt less motivated...at first. But then, things started, not becoming normal, because nothing about this year has been normal, but more familiar (which is a little sad, but reality). 

I got back into my groove.  

Reading has always comforted me, so I was very glad I could get my mind to focus on the one thing, besides my family, that always brings me joy.

With that said, I read 10 books beyond my goal this year!

I know a lot of people have put reading challenges to the wayside, but for me, I utilize it when I am in a slump.  This works for me, to look at my Goodreads page and see if I'm 1, 2, 3+ books behind.  

It forces me to pick a book up, maybe a comfort read, maybe a new release that sounds exciting, but whatever it is, once I start reading I can typically get over that hump.

So to not only have hit my goal (I make it a simple 50 books --- I am in awe of those who read 100+ in a year), but to have gone 10 books over it was quite an achievement for me.

Okay let's break down some stats.  I find it interesting watching/reading anyone's end of the year reading stats videos/blog posts.  Mine is never quite as extensive, but I think it is interesting to track my own reading in different ways.

This doesn't surprise me; Young Adult is my jam.  Any genre, any format, I will choose a YA book 95% of the time...well 50% of the time with 30 books read according to my list this last year.  Young Adult is my comfort zone, and my area of study, so I tend to lean into it more often than not.

Then 35% of my reading with 21 books  was Adult/New Adult, which, again, not super surprising.  I love to read romance as a genre, and all the most steamy are Adult/New Adult (I mean...as it should be).  Most of my Adult/New Adult reading is dominated by romance.  So that is one thing I'd like to try and change this coming year (not off to a great start, 2 of 3 books I've read have been romance...oops LOL).

Then coming in last is Middle Grade/Children at 15% and 9 books read.  Small, but mighty, I am getting more and more into Middle Grade/Children books.  Some have been excellent, and I think this is a category of book that is often overlook for nuance.

Again, not totally surprising as most YA books are 300ish pages, as are most romances (my other comfort genre).  For this, even though I have audiobooks on the list, I took what was the physical hardcover book page count to tally.   This is also a comfort number for me, as 300-350 is usually my sweet spot.  Of course, the one biggin that I read in 2020 was Middlegame by Seanan McGuire --- a perfect book.

Of course, looking at this you would think that the 0-100 books were all Middle Grade/Children, and none of them were: one was a YA short story, one was an art book (that contained words I promise), and one was a smutty novella. 

I love that I didn't use the "crutch" of reading shorter books to obtain my goal this year, either!  I actually hit my original goal of 50 books in October with One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake.  And after that I read a few good sized books.  Not that reading short books is a problem, I just didn't want to force myself to read them in order to reach a goal, if that makes sense?

I still read the most physical books: 19 total (between 6 Paperback and 13 Hardcover), but the fact eBooks are my second highest at 14 books, is surprising to me. But something I took into consideration for this year.  

I had read all of those eBooks on my phone, using the Kindle app; not ideal.  So I did research about eReaders, and purchased a Kindle Paperwhite as a birthday present.  I've already read 4 eBooks on it this month, and I am really loving it.  Always will be a physical book reader, but ebooks aren't horrible as I previously thought.  Also, if you include graphic novels, which were all physical copies, that total bumps up to 32 total physical.  So definitely my still my preferred format.

A lot less audiobooks, but that is not surprising.  I have moved back into the city where I work, and I am commuting only twice a week to the office.  So no more long car trips 5 days a week where I can get a good chunk listened to.  I am not a audiobook listener anywhere but my car, so that number will probably stay low in 2021.

Finally, let's talk Star Ratings.  I use to use this elaborate like 10 point system, then give an A+ - F score.  But that got exhausting, so a couple years back I just went to Stars.  I do use half Stars because sometimes a book is good, but not quite full step up good.  You need an in-between option.

So overall, I had the most 4 to 4.5 Star books this year.  Not surprising, since I tend to be generous with my ratings.  I do not typically read books I am not going to like.  But I have also come to the conclusion that a 3 or a 3.5 Star is pretty good still.  So for 2021, I am really going to consider if this is a book I would recommend to people (a 4/4.5) or if this is just an enjoyable book, but maybe not a high recommendation (3/3.5).

And then my 5 Stars are only going to be 100% percent, loved and would recommend to everyone reads.  Which for 2020, I tried to keep that in mind, and I had some very good books.

So out of the 60 books I read 20 of them received 5 Stars; about 33%.  Then I had 33 4/4.5 Star books; about 55%.  The 3.5 Star or lower was only 12% of my overall reading.  I think that will definitely be changing.

Now I did some analysis, but y'all probably want to see the books I read.  So here are just the covers of all 60 books I read in 2020 (thanks Goodreads for putting them together so nicely):

A plethora of excellent books, I really enjoyed my reading year in such a godawful time.  I had a lot of slumps, but was able to finish strong.  I hope that 2021 is the same or even better (January was excellent for me; February...isn't going as well).  

If you found some new books to read through this post, let me know in the comments, and happy reading!

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BLOG TOUR --- This Eternity of Masks and Shadows by Karsten Knight --- YOUNG ADULT/NEW ADULT FICTION [Review + Giveaway]

Title: This Eternity of Masks and Shadows
Author & Illustrator: Karsten Knight
Publication Date: June 2, 2020
Edition: Paperback, ebook; 356 pgs
Publisher: Karsten Knight
Source: Rockstar Book Tours
Buy: Amazon - Kindle - Barnes & Noble - The Book Depository
Audience: Young Adult/New Adult
Disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Tour Schedule

Week One 

5/25/2020 Lone Tree Reads Excerpt 

5/25/2020 BookHounds YA Excerpt 

5/26/2020 Book Briefs Review 

5/26/2020 Lisa Loves Literature Excerpt 

5/26/2020 JaimeRockstarBookTours Instagram Stop 

5/27/2020 Lifestyle of Me Review 

5/27/2020 Discover Elysian Review 

5/28/2020 Do You Dog-ear? Review 

5/28/2020 Books Beans & Botany Review 

5/29/2020 The Bookwyrm's Den Review 

5/29/2020 Oodles of Books Review 

Week Two

6/1/2020 @_ebl_inc_ Instagram Stop 

6/1/2020 Eli to the nth Review 

6/1/2020 Two Chicks on Books Excerpt 

6/2/2020 Nerdophiles Review 

6/2/2020 Books_andPoetrii Instagram Stop 

6/3/2020 Popthebutterfly Reads Review & Instagram Stop 

6/3/2020 Hurn Publications Excerpt 

6/4/2020 She Just Loves Books Review 

6/4/2020 A Dream Within A Dream Excerpt 

6/5/2020 Locks, Hooks and Books Review 

6/5/2020 Fazila Reads Instagram Stop 

The Summary

American Gods meets Watchmen in this mythology-inspired mystery from Karsten Knight, author of the Wildefire trilogy. 

In a city of gods and mortals, secrets never die. 

The gods walk among us. Some lurk in the shadows, masquerading as mortals; others embrace their celebrity status, launching careers from Hollywood to Capitol Hill. 

One of them just murdered Cairn Delacroix's mother. 

As Cairn sifts through the rubble, she uncovers a conspiracy two decades in the making: a cursed island, the fellowship of gods who journeyed there, and the unspeakable act that intertwined their fates. One by one, the members of that voyage are dying, and Cairn's investigations land her in the cross-hairs of the rogue goddess responsible. 

With the help of Nanook, a polar bear god turned detective, Cairn descends into Boston's underworld of supernatural crime and political aspiration. To avenge her mother and unmask her assassin, she’ll first have to reckon with a gut-wrenching secret that will rewrite the life she thought she knew.

(Goodreads)

My Review

This Eternity of Masks and Shadows by Karsten Knight is a non-stop, epic ride of a book.  Set in a world where the gods of old are real people who are reincarnated with that gods' powers, there is a growing divide between regular mortals and the gods; amid those groups are also the demigods born from mortal and god relationships.  The main character, Cairn, is the demigod daughter of Sedna, the Inuit goddess of the sea and marine animals.  When a horrible thing happens to Sedna, Cairn is set on a journey to figure out what forces are at work to destroy the peace of the world, and how was her mother involved.

Due to the massive inclusion of different gods, the world's mythology is diverse; honestly sometime it was hard to keep track of all the gods (thanks for the highlight option on my Kindle).  From Egyptian sun gods to Aztec jaguar gods, each has a role, and some walk the line of light and dark.  "For better or worse," Themis continued, "our abilities come with an enhanced sense of purpose---of importance..." is a quote I feel sums up the relationships that the gods forge with mortals.  Some gods and goddesses work for the betterment of all, and others for the betterment of themselves.  This is the conflict Cairn finds herself in the middle of, as she seeks out answers to what happened to her mother.

I don't want to go too much into the action, but believe me there are tons!  We see both Cairn's present-day investigation and Sedna's past actions leading to that present.  The mystery abounds, and the plot doesn't let up.  Some of it is a tad predictable, but it is such an enjoyable ride that it doesn't detract from the experience.  The plot is where this book shines, whereas character development is not as well rounded (hard to do when you have such a wide cast of characters).  While this is a stand-alone, the world itself would be such fun to visit again.

Overall, this was a solid book: fun plot, interesting characters, and a satisfying ending.  A few issues, but nothing that really detracted from my enjoyment.  Recommend for those readers looking for a YA fantasy that reads more like a New Adult book (at least to me). 

Please note: Karsten including so many different mythologies makes me cautious about the authenticity of the representation of some mythologies from non-western cultures.  I don't know much about Inuit mythology, Shinto gods, etc. so I can't confirm that the inclusion of these gods is accurately portrayed.  But it is very nice to have gods that aren't just from the Greek or Norse mythology included. 

Final Rating

Excerpt

The Anchor 

The box was growling.

Cairn could hear it over the flames crackling in the library fireplace and the thunderstorm battering the windows outside. Her mother, Ahna, smiled at her expectantly as Cairn cradled the gift in her lap.

To my fearless daughter on her 18th birthday, the tag read. Cairn traced her fingers over the pattern of air holes punctured through the foil wrapping paper.

“I’m going to guess this isn’t the Jeep I asked for,” Cairn said at last. The box quivered in response as if to say, “No, I am not.”

“Go on,” Ahna urged her. The firelight danced across her face.

As Cairn tugged the silver ribbon to undo the bow, the box abruptly went still. Cautiously, she lifted the lid an inch.

A pair of vibrantly ice blue eyes peered out, regarding her curiously. Cairn’s breath caught.

Nestled in a blanket inside was a kitten unlike any she’d ever seen. He had a spotted gray coat thick enough to withstand the fiercest Arctic chill and disproportionately broad paws built like fur-covered snowshoes. His tufted ears bristled as he backed his stubby tail into the corner of the box.

“Lower your hand in,” her mother instructed. “Let him meet you halfway when he’s ready.”

Cairn left her trembling fingers outstretched six inches from the creature’s muzzle. He cocked his head to the side, and after a moment’s hesitation, he extended one of his comically enormous paws and batted at Cairn’s fingertips. Apparently, she passed his test, because all at once he rushed forward, nuzzling the glands beneath his foxlike ears against the bony ridges of her knuckles.

When Cairn could finally form words again, she repeated, “This is not a Jeep.”

“No, but he’s great at off-roading.” Ahna was smirking now, her maternal X-ray vision penetrating Cairn’s nonchalance into the melting heart beneath. “He’s a Canadian lynx. When I visited your grandparents up in Labrador, I found him in their garden one morning, nibbling away at a crowberry bush. A predator had mauled the mother just beyond the fence. I couldn’t bear to leave him to fend for himself.”

The kitten awkwardly clambered out of the box, his plump white belly momentarily getting caught before he flopped out onto the shag carpet. Cairn watched him stagger across the room toward the bookcases that housed her father’s collection of rock and mineral specimens. His tail wiggled in anticipation right before he made a dramatic leap for one of the shelves—

—and failed spectacularly. He dropped back to the floor, rattled. A second attempt yielded the same result. On the third try, however, the lynx clung defiantly to the edge by two paws, and after some frantic scrabbling, he pulled himself up to the ledge. Cairn and Ahna applauded.

“Ahna …” Cairn’s father, Emile, appeared in the doorway, arms crossed, a pair of jeweler’s magnifying glasses perched atop his disheveled hair. He pointed at the tiny creature, which was using the craggy surface of an amethyst as a chin-scratching post. “How many times have we talked about smuggling exotic pets into the country?”

Cairn scooped the kitten off the shelf and held him inches from her father’s nose. “Come on, how could a face this cute possibly be illegal?” The fluff ball hung limply in her hand and blinked.

Emile’s wistful eyes landed on his wife. “In my experience, it’s always the cute ones that get you in the most trouble.”

Ahna blew him a kiss. “He’ll need a name,” she said.

The lynx crawled down into Cairn’s lap and curled into a ball. Within seconds, he was snoring softly, unfazed by the fierce winds raging outside the Delacroix’s seaside home.

Cairn gingerly ruffled the hair on his neck. “We’ll name him Squall.”

About the Author

Karsten Knight is the author of the historical mystery NIGHTINGALE, SING, the time-traveling thriller PATCHWORK, and the Polynesian volcano goddess trilogy WILDEFIRE (Simon & Schuster)--though some say his writing career peaked at the age of six, when he completed a picture book series about an adventurous worm. He is a graduate of College of the Holy Cross and earned an MFA in writing for children from Simmons College. Karsten resides in Boston, where he lives for fall weather, bowling, and football season. For more information on Karsten or his books, please visit www.karstenknightbooks.com.

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