outsidestar's reviews
82 reviews

I'm kinda disappointed with this one.

The first half of the book I would've loved had I read it 10 years ago, but now it just seems way too unrealistic. And the second half was just... worse.

This is about 16 year-old Amber who was physically and sexually abused by her father until age 13 when her brother Jake and his best friend Liam walked in on him trying to rape her and basically punched him out of their lives. Since she was 8 years-old, Liam (who also happens to live in the house next door) would sneak in her bedroom through the window to hug her as she cried and sleep with her. Real cute and adorable.

Now comes the unrealistic part:

Liam is of course the hottest guy at school and, even though every girl throws herself at him, practically kissing the ground he walks on, he's been in love with Amber since he was 6 years-old, and there's no other girl in the world for him. Then Amber, who isn't the hottest girl at school, manages to have guys hitting on her whenever she's left alone for more than 2 seconds. When Amber and Liam start to date, she's worried about sex because, with everything that's happened to her, she is in no way ready to go there (completely normal and understandable) and Liam says he'll wait because she's the love of her life (he's a walking cliché and the kind of guy every girl dreams of but will probably never exist). What happens next? They freaking have sex ONE WEEK into dating. WHAT. THE. HECK.

Then the second half of the book happens. I skimmed through most of it because I just couldn't do it, but here's what happens:

Amber's mom tells them that their father has come back to town with his new family and it's all really predictable from then on, like a really bad movie. Amber gets pregnant because she hasn't been taking the pill like she should (ugh, I just can't) and wants an abortion but Liam, being the walking cliché he is, convinces her to have it. Then of course she has a miscarriage when her dad hits her (in a totally avoidable situation). Liam beats the crap out of him and he presses charges against him. Amber then practically runs off from the hospital to go see her dad and get him to confess everything he's ever done and records it so that he will drop the charges against Liam

.

And, if that wasn't enough, 5 years later 

Liam is a super successful hockey player and makes lots of money but still would trade the world for Amber. Told you he would never exist.

After my rant I must say I think 15 year-old me would've actually liked this a lot. This is one of those few moments when I'm glad I grew up (even if it was just a little). 

There's nothing here that adds to the story. It's just the gang celebrating Winter Solstice. And that's fine because this is a novella, but it's over 200 pages so something could've happened. Other than Nesta shutting everyone down.

After reading this I have some wrap-up thoughts on this series. I'm assuming that this story is finished and the next books, if they end up happening, will follow Nesta and Cassian and whatever happens in the Ilyrian Mountains, (as well as eventually dealing with the mortal queens the new world). So everything else other than their relationship and whatever Nesta is going though that makes her even more Nesta-like than usual should be nicely tied and wrapped up with a red bow. Here I go then with my random thoughts:

- Tamlin. It pisses me off to no end that there is no closure with Tamlin other than Rhys weirdly making him food. I get that Feyre doesn't want to see him but I also think that after he saved both her life and her mate's during the war, she could at least talk to him and give him some sort of closure. He brought everything upon himself but I feel pitty for him. He doesn't even get closure with Lucien.

- Lucien. Why hasn't Feyre told him about his father yet?! If there's a bigger story there to tackle then fine, it can be done in the following books, but at least let him know. I just feel like Tamlin and Lucien's characters were tossed away after Feyre got back to the Night Court at the beginning of A Court of Wings and Ruin. It pisses me off.

- Lucien and Elain's mating bond. I really hope they completely disregard the mating bond. As Rhys explained once, a mating bond doesn't necessarily mean love. I'd like to see Elain and Az together, they're such a cute couple. And Lucien could very well end up with Vassa.

- Rhys. I just realized that, as shocking as it seems, Rhys has no character arc. During A Court of Thorns and Roses and especially A Court of Mist and Fury we change our perception of him from wickedly evil to a really good guy. I mean, I was already in love with him by the end of A Court of Thorns and Roses. But that's just the reader getting to know who Rhys is. He doesn't really change. His situation clearly does, but he doesn't. His big character flaw, which is putting everyone else before himself no matter what, remains by the end of the story. That flaw is what made him Amarantha's whore before A Court of Thorns and Roses and it's that same flaw that

gets him killed

at the end of A Court of Wings and Ruin. What does he learn during those 3 books? Nothing, it seems. That's why, as much as I love him, he surprisingly fell kinda flat for me during A Court of Wings and Ruin and I was much more interested in Cassian. 

I absolutely love this series as a whole, it's become one of my all time favorites, but this is the book I liked the least of the three. When I finished A Court of Mist and Fury it was so good that all I wanted to do was start reading it again, and that didn't happen here. As good as it was, I felt like it dragged at some points and I didn't really like what happened with Rhys at the end.

Obviously he was going to give everything he had because that's who he is, but the fact that he comes back in the same way Feyre did just felt unoriginal. It could have been done some other way that didn't feel like using the same old trick.

The characters, though. I love them (at least the ones that matter). I fell in love with Rhys in the first book and even more in the second. But in this one I was all about Cassian. Nesta I'm still torn between loving her and wanting to slap her for being so narrow-minded and pushing everyone away before they can even try to know her. But she's an interesting character and there could be a great story there if it's done right. Elain is the only one I don't really care for at all.

And then there's Tamlin. I felt meh about him for most part of the first book and ended up disliking him, then hated him even more during the second book and now I think I'm just back to meh again. I wish him and Feyre would've talked things out like adults, there needed to be some closure there. And Lucien needs to know about his father, I don't get why that's left out. 

This book was everything I wanted. And then some more. It has earned a place in the list of amazing second books that may very well be better than the first along with Catching Fire, Never Fade, Crooked Kingdom and... I can't think of any more. It's a short list. Because doing this is rare.

I'm so happy for a book that shows a change of heart rather than a freakin' love triangle. It took her some time, because I hated Tamlin since the moment he did nothing Under the Mountain (not to mention what happens in this book, it just makes me want to punch him).

Rhys was the only one fighting for her all along and it took her so long to see that. But it's real and believable and such a slow burn that I was grinning all the time. I couldn't be more in love with Rhys, by the way.

And the 4 other members of the Court of Dreams. They're such well rounded characters, with arcs and back stories and I just want to know more about them all.

That said, as awesome as this all was, the ending felt somehow rushed. Obviously something had to go wrong for the story to continue, and it was obvious that

Tamlin had to be a stupid fool and ally with the bad guys and that the mortal queens were evil. It was also obvious the moment Elain was turned?made? and Lucien rushed to her that there would be a bond, but there was no need to put it out there already.

I get why it was done but still... no. There was already enough going on for that to be shoved in there too.

I did very much like Nesta though, I find her to be a very compelling character and want to know what happens with her now (other than probably falling in love with Cassian) because she has to be different in some way. She has such an arc to go through I think it will be great to hear more from her. 

So this was a ride. Okay, so the first 60% of the book can only be described as a Beauty & the Beast retelling. It was good, but it was more like a 4 star read. And then the last third of the book happened and I literally couldn't put it down. There were riddles, quests and I ended up crying my eyes out. But most importantly, we got Rhys, who I might or might not be falling in love with.

It was crystal clear from Feyre's first task that Rhys was just playing bad guy and is actually the best, cutest and most adorable of them all. And knows how to banter. He kind of reminded me of a mix of Nikolai (Siege and Storm) and Kaz (Six of Crows), he's definitely got the wits and the looks. I liked him way more than I liked Tamlin, who was just kind of meh for me at the beginning and by the end I just wanted to shake him to get him to actually do something . I kind of despise him actually. It goes like this: Rhys > Lucien > Tamlin. I care for Lucien and we could be friends but Rhys is my baby, my little lost boy. I'm sure Feyre's week a month with him in A Court of Mist and Fury will be much better than her time with Tamlin. Can't we just get a whole book on Rhys? Maybe throw Nesta in too?

Note: Started reading it in Spanish and quickly realized it would be way better in English, so I switched. I can't stress this enough: always always always try to read books (and watch movies) in their original version if posible, most of the time you don't realize how much it changes the experience. 

Lo primero que tengo que decir es que tengo una habilidad especial para spoilearme a mi misma. Tengo la mala costumbre de leer por encima lo que va a pasar para ver más o menos a qué altura del libro se van a besar los protagonistas o cuando se van a empezar a poner las cosas interesantes. Y a veces no soy capaz de parar de cotillear hasta que me doy en las narices con un mega spoiler. Y esto es lo que ha pasado aquí. Me lo tengo merecido, lo sé. El caso es que sabía desde casi el principio una de las cosas más importantes:

básicamente el pasado de Nilak, no lo voy a poner tal cual por si acaso sois de los míos y le dais siempre a ver los spoilers aunque no os hayáis leído el libro todavía. De nada

. Es algo que habría acabado deduciendo yo sola igualmente pero aun así... era un mega spoiler.

Aunque lo de John al menos no lo vi venir.

Ahora hablemos del libro, que viene siendo lo importante. Me ha encantado y lo he leído súper rápido. Los capítulos impares siguen la historia de Heather, una chica de 22 años, que acaba en un pueblo de Alaska al intentar huir de su vida en San Francisco. Y los capítulos pares nos cuentan la historia de amor entre Annie y Kayden a través de entradas en el diario de Annie. Me ha parecido una forma muy interesante de contar la historia y dejar que el lector vaya descubriendo como se entrecruzan ambas.

Caos, John y Naaja son lo mejor de este libro. Sobre todo Caos. Es el perrito que siempre he querido tener y lo quiero tanto que me iría a Alaska ahora mismo si me prometieran que él estaría allí esperándome. Esa es otra de las cosas que más me han gustado: Alaska. Es un lugar al que no he ido pero siempre me ha llamado mucho la atención y me ha encantado descubrirlo con Heather.

También me ha gustado mucho ver como Heather y Nilak afrontan la vida aún estando rotos por todo lo que han tenido que afrontar en su pasado. Este es el primer libro de Alice Kellen que leo y seguro que no será el último.

Este libro no ha sido para nada lo que me esperaba. Mi lectura anterior había sido El día que dejó de nevar en Alaska de Alice Kellen, así que lo que me esperaba era algo similar pero sustituyendo Alaska por Islandia y con más roadtrip.

El concepto de roadtrip estaba. La historia sigue a Laura, una chica española con acromatopsia (esto me ha parecido súper interesante) que necesita alejarse de todo y decide plantarse en el aeropuerto y coger el primer vuelo que le llame la atención. Así acaba en Reykjavik, donde conoce a Orri y acaba dando la vuelta al país con él y su amigo. El libro transcurre en los 10 días que tardan en completar su recorrido.

Yo me enamoré de Islandia el verano de 2017 y el gran atractivo de este libro para mí era volver a recorrerla junto con los personajes. Sin embargo, la primera mitad del libro me ha parecido bastante meh, estaba bien, pero sin más. No me enganchaban los personajes ni había nada en la historia que me acabara de atrapar. No me esperaba para nada el tema de las auras y los lifsandi, de hecho al principio no entendía muy bien qué pintaban en la historia. Luego la cosa se puso más interesante con lo del fylgja (me encanta porque es imposible hacer spoiler si las palabras clave son en islandés) y, de hecho, he acabado el libro con alguna que otra lagrimilla, pero ya sabemos que yo lloro con casi todos los libros así que no es indicativo de mucho.

En fin, la historia está bien, tiene su toque diferente y Islandia siempre es un plus, pero no me he enganchado. Los personajes me caían bien, sobre todo Orri, pero no iba mas allá, se me han quedado como un poco planos. Además, siendo realistas, por mucho que pase todo lo que pasa, el libro transcurre en 10 días y no veo realista que Laura tenga las relaciones/sentimientos/reacciones que tiene con ellos en ese periodo de tiempo. 

Madre mía lo que me ha hecho llorar este libro.

Después de leer Trono de cristal, Corona de medianoche y The Assassin's Blade, he decidido tomarme un descanso de la saga de Sarah J. Maas y coger un libro cortito, de esos que se leen en un día. Y así es como he acabado leyéndome esto hoy.

De Albert Espinosa ya he leído Si tú me dices ven lo dejo todo... pero dime ven y Todo lo que podríamos haber sido tú y yo si no fuéramos tú y yo. El primero es uno de mis libros favoritos y del segundo lo único que recuerdo es que no me gustó nada. Así que no sabía muy bien qué esperarme de Brújulas que buscan sonrisas perdidas, pero me ha sorprendido muy gratamente y me ha hecho llorar a mares.

Nuestro protagonista vuelve a la casa de su infancia para cuidar de su padre, que padece cancer y alzheimer. Ni él ni sus hermanos se han llevado nunca demasiado bien con su padre, pero le prometió a su madre cuando ésta falleció que cuidaría de él. Además de la trama principal, vamos descubriendo el pasado del protagonista en forma de flashbacks a los momentos que más le han marcado a lo largo de su vida.

Es una historia preciosa sobe la vida, la muerte y cómo cada uno afronta la muerte de sus seres queridos. Y también sobre los traumas de la infancia porque, "al fin y al cabo, eso es lo que somos cada uno de nosotros, traumas de la infancia" 

The 5 novellas follow each other, so it’s more like a prequel book on who Adarlan’s Assassin was before Throne of Glass. We get a sneak peek into Celaena’s life at the Assassin’s Guild, her relationship with Sam and how she ended up in Endovier.

Before I get into each of the novellas, let me emphasize that the Celaena we get here is the assassin I was hoping to get in Throne of Glass. Her character is much more developed and well-rounded. In the first novellas she’s the portrait of danger, fearlessness and overall badassery. But we still see hints of something more. She’s got layers to her. She’s brave and reckless but also kind, and will stand up for what she believes is right. Then in the last novellas we see how relationships and betrayals shape her into the Celaena we know from the main story.


THE ASSASSIN AND THE PIRATE LORD ★★★☆☆
16 year-old Celaena and her fellow assassin Sam are sent by Arobynn Hamel to the Dead Islands in order to secure a deal with the Pirate Lord of Skull’s Bay. When Celaena discovers this deal has little to do with money and a lot to do with slave trading, she tries to stop it at all costs. Even if that means disobeying the King of the Assassins himself.

This was really really slow and boring until the last few chapters, where everything went to hell. I’m starting to see this pattern in all the books of this series, unfortunately.


THE ASSASSIN AND THE HEALER ★★☆☆☆
Celaena, now a week away from turning 17, is traveling to the Red Desert, where she is to train for a month with the Mute Master of Assassins as further punishment for the events that took place in The Assassin and the Pirate Lord. We find her in a filthy tavern in a filthy little town waiting until she can get on a ship to the Deserted Land. There she meets Yrene, former healer and currently a barmaid at the inn, who dreams of going to the Southern Continent to train as a healer.

Once again, this was slow for the most part but, since the novella itself was shorter, it didn’t feel like it dragged as much, though it was quite forgettable. And I’m sure we’ll see Yrene again at some point.


THE ASSASSIN AND THE DESERT ★★★★★
Two months after wreaking havoc in Skull’s Bay, Celaena finally arrives to the Red Desert and meets the legendary order of the Silent Assassins. She has one month to win the Mute Master’s respect and return home with his letter of approval.

I absolutely loved this novella, hands down my favorite. It didn’t drag (finally) and instead hooked me from the beginning with its twists and turns. We met new characters and I found myself caring for all of them.

I could have gone without Ilias crushing on Celaena, though. Why does everyone have to fall in love with her or want to kiss her? Friendships are fine and as strong probably stronger.

Anyway, I very much prefer the Silent Assassins and their ways to Arobynn’s and I bet Celaena does too. I even cried through this. Not just at the end, but that moment looking at the stars had my eyes watering with all the feels too:

This novella in particular felt like it was giving us a lot of hints of things to come to the main story too. Not just about the Ironteeth witches or the Asterion horses which show up in Crown of Midnight, but I do think we’ll see more of Ansel (she kinda gave me some serious Aria Stark vibes) and the Silent Assassins in the upcoming books of the series. Maybe even the stygian spiders that take years and dreams away from people.


THE ASSASSIN AND THE UNDERWORLD ★★☆☆☆
17 year-old Celaena is back in Rifthold and Arobynn Hamel has a special assignment for her which he claims will help fight slavery. Being back also means she will inevitably have to face Sam and the feelings that have been steering in her since Skull’s Bay.

This dragged and dragged and then dragged some more. Again. I thought we were over this dragging bullsh*t after The Assassin and the Desert pumped things up, but it seems like that was just a stroke of luck. Sam was the only reason I didn’t just skip to the next novella.

I didn’t really have a strong opinion regarding Arobynn before, but I hated the guts out of him from the very beginning of this. I can’t stand the guy and this was all very predictable. I wish Celaena would’ve had the common sense to get the hell out of there as soon as she got back, but then there wouldn’t be a 7 book story to tell, I guess.


THE ASSASSIN AND THE EMPIRE ★★★☆☆
Set a month after The Assassin and the Underworld, Celaena and Sam are now planning on leaving Rifthold for good. However, in order to leave the Assassin's Guild on good terms, they need Arobynn's approval. And money. But Sam finds someone that promises to pay a small fortune if they kill the biggest Crime Lord in Rifthold. No big deal.

It dragged. Again. <spoiler>And it was clearly a trap from the very beginning, but the two best assassins in Adarlan fail to see all the red flags and flashing lights right under their noses and fall for it. Again.</spoiler> If you've read even just the first chapter of Throne of Glass, you know how this is going to end. But I wasn't hooked at all, I just felt meh about the whole thing. That is until the very end, which made me cry a bit. The best thing about this novella is, hands down, the trip to Endovier and Celaena's final decision.


Seriously, if the 5 remaining books in the series keep up this pattern of dragging and boring me to death for the first half of the book before the good stuff happens, I don’t know if I’m going to be able to get through them. 

Wow. Way to change the pacing of a book. And just... everything really.

Let's start from the beginning.

Okay, so I was very disappointed with Throne of Glass. Instead of the fast-paced high-stakes story with a badass assassin as the main character that I expected, I was given an average story about a girl who also happened to be an assassin and how she's taken to the palace to drool over dresses, balls and whether she'd rather kiss the Crown Prince or The Captain of the Guard. And compete to become the King's Champion in her spare time. I didn't really care or connect with the characters. It was all very average and just meh.

That's how this book starts too. For the first 20 or so chapters (there's a total of 56) this whole thing just dragged and I had to actually make myself read it. We still have Celaena, who has known slavery and hunger but spends all her salary on shoes, dresses, hats, jewelry and other nonsense. All very assassin-like of her too (yes, that was sarcasm).

And of course we get the stupid love triangle part 2. I already got into this in my review for Throne of Glass but there was absolutely no need for a love triangle, it should have been a slow burn romance with Chaol since the beginning, which would have made everything that happens in this book (on a romantic level) way much better.

I mean, she did go from kissing one guy to having sex with the other and being hopelessly in love like she'd always known he was the one and always will be.

It just became too cheesy all of a sudden. I mean, broom closets? Really? I really wanted to love the romance in this book but couldn't. I found myself just rolling my eyes most of the time. And Dorian was just being all jealous and adding nothing to the plot.

So here I was, thinking about giving this a 2 or 3 star rating and not really caring about the story or the characters (Mort and Ress were probably my favorite characters at this point. And they don't really talk or show up that much).

But then

Chaol gets kidnapped and that other thing happens with Nehemia that I was not expecting at all

and everything goes to hell from then on and it's great. And that's where I got the story I was hoping to get from the beginning. We forget about the love triangle, the pacing changes, the stakes are raised and plot twists are thrown at every turn. I couldn't put it down. I started caring about the characters because there's actually some character development happening. I especially liked the turn Dorian's character took, finally becoming more for the story than just a pawn of the love triangle.

I do have to say that I saw the final plot twist coming from a million miles away, but that didn't make it any less awesome. And it leaves at a great place for Heir of Fire to pick up. I'm not giving this 5 stars because it took a third of the book for the good stuff to actually happen, but once it happened it was great.