There is Only Darkness
by: Kimberly J Ward Book review by: Miranda Moses (Fraser) ISBN: 978-1527247642 Welcome back my ghouls and ghosties! Oh man, do I have a lot to say about this one. I'd like to start by saying that I could not find a genre listed for this novel. This book, it appears, can only be purchased on Amazon and neither Amazon nor Goodreads had a genre listed. (It is also very possible that I am just overlooking it because: baby brain.) HOWEVER, on the author's Goodreads page she is listed as writing paranomal, young adult, and fantasy. From that, I drew the conclusion, that this review could fit under Young Adult Fiction. I want to give Kimberly a huge round of applause. It's been a while since I felt a book just flowed from start to finish. Everything had a place and a reason for existing, there were no chapters that felt like the shouldn't have been added. I'd go to bed with the idea of reading a little before calling it quits and then realize I'd read over 10 chapters. Now, getting into the book review itself this was such a cool storyline. Our novel revolves around the main character, Alfie and her life on the run. This is the quote that got me to search for this book, "Death is meant to be the end. For Alfie, it was only the beginning." Four years prior to this book taking place Alfie was murdered but she woke in her coffin and clawed her way to surface. Upon rising from the dead she discovered that she had gifts she never asked for. Her 'rebirth', if you will, led her to see a world invisible to humans. Magical creatures, demons, warlocks, necromancers and more are now something Alfie can see but does her best not to. Her intent was to hide in plain sight, find the place with the biggest population and just lay low. No photos of her online, no jobs or way for the government to track her, don't get the attention of other supernatural beings, etc. Should have been easy, especially in New York, right? Well, not so much. While Alfie has done her best to lay low she has managed to make a few close friends. Her bestie, Felix, is the important character here. He is just a normal human content to also squat in abandoned buildings and lay low, helping Alfie despite how messed up her life is. I can say with certainty that Felix is a ride or die kind of bestie. Despite her best efforts Alfie is eventually discovered by a team of supernatural.. peacekeepers..? I think that'd be the best way to describe them. They are a neutral group who help keep the order between the Light and Dark realms- The Murkwatch. When the man who killed Alife also finds her hideout, it becomes apparent that The Murkwatch may be Alfie's best bet for shelter and aid before she takes off to a new part of the world. But she quickly discovers that Caleb, Jay, Basil, and Sills are just as important to her as Felix is. Unfortunately, a supernatural war is brewing and Alfie is right in the center of it. Can she keep her loved ones safe? Can she protect herself from being used for evil or worse killed for her powers? What exactly is Alfie and how does she fit into the supernatural world? Alfie must also discover what side she is aligned to- the Light or Dark. Nothing in the supernatural world is as balanced as it seems. And you never know just who you can trust. When betrayals hit an all time high we are left on a cliffhanger of not knowing if New York is safe! In a brilliant turn of play, Kimberly left the book on a perfect cliff hanger. The story in this book? Wrapped up as nicely as it can be. But left with all the questions and missing information that can only be given through another story. THANKFULLY, you won't have to wait long for this information. Her next book, "As Darkness Gathers" comes out December 17th 2021. And you can preorder it on Amazon. I truly hope you guys enjoy this book as much as I did and can send Kimberly some love! Especially if you can post some nice reviews on Amazon as it really makes a difference for the author. Read on my fellow book worms. May we one day have Belle's library! And as always, links to the author's pages can be found down below.
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Bones of Faerie
Book by: Janni Lee Simner Book Review by: Miranda Fraser (Moses) ISBN:9780375845635 What originally led me to this book for a Halloween story was this excerpt, "Liza's sister is born with faerie pale hair, clear as glass, and Liza's father leaves the baby on a hillside to die." Immediately giving 'Replacement'/'Tithe' vibes of faeries stealing human babies and replacing them with their own. That is not at all how this book goes, btw. But none-the-less the story is in a post-apocalyptic world with faerie magic and dangers around every bend. So, it stays in the Halloween reviews. To start with, I will say this was a very simple novel. The goal was clear from the start and it followed through to the end. But it is also the first book in a Trilogy and I can't help but feel like the next novel will be a little more complicated now that readers are familiar with the world/characters. The book was a very easy read that just flowed from chapter to chapter. Before I knew it, I had finished the book (took about 3 days thanks to an active toddler). But sometimes those easy read novels are the best. They just itch the right spot, you know? Now that I've covered that, essentially the only complaint I've seen about this book in other's reviews, lets move on to the storyline. The book takes place 20 years after a war between faeries and humans. We don't know what years these are because they only refer to them as the "Before" times. BUT we do know that human had advanced technology because they mention airplanes and it's heavily hinted that perhaps an atomic bomb was used. No one says exactly how the war ended but it is made clear that magic tainted the world afterwards. The survivors became fearful of all magic. Liza's father being one of the biggest opposers to magic, setting strict laws to kill anyone who shows signs of magic. After her sister's death Liza's mother runs away. Liza begins to show signs of magic herself and fears for her own life running away from her town. This ends up leading her on an adventure through the post-apocalyptic world where animals, shadows, and even plants cannot be trusted not to kill you. With the help of her cat and her hometown friend, Liza is determined to rescue her mother and learn to control her newly discovered magic. What she does not realize is just how powerful her magic is or how dangerous this mission will become. The truths she will uncover and the lessons she will come to understand. In conclusion, I really enjoyed this story and I am very anxious to read the last two books in the trilogy! I want to know more about the war, what happened to the faerie world and where the faeries went afterwards. Now, I am very hormonal but I will say if babies dying/child loss is a trigger for you there are parts of this book that may be too difficult to read. I cried a lot over the storyline of her baby sister. But again, I am pregnant and extra hormonal, lol. Look forward to future reviews where I will surely cover at least the second book in the trilogy to see if it holds up to the hype of the first one. Read on my fellow book worms. May we one day have Belle's library. And as always, links to the authors pages can be found down below. |
YA Fiction Reviews |