Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte

“One big lie. Two forbidden romances. Three days to catch a killer.”

“Seventeen-year-old Keralie Corrington may seem harmless, but in fact, she's one of Quadara's most skilled thieves and a liar. Varin, on the other hand, is an honest, upstanding citizen of Quadara's most enlightened region, Eonia. Varin runs afoul of Keralie when she steals a package from him, putting his life in danger. When Varin attempts to retrieve the package, he and Keralie find themselves entangled in a conspiracy that leaves all four of Quadara's queens dead.

With no other choices and on the run from Keralie's former employer, the two decide to join forces, endeavoring to discover who has killed the queens and save their own lives in the process. When their reluctant partnership blooms into a tenuous romance, they must overcome their own dark secrets in hopes of a future together that seemed impossible just days before. But first they have to stay alive and untangle the secrets behind the nation's four dead queens.” - taken from Goodreads.com 

This book has it all!! Royalty, lies, forbidden love with splashes of fantasy and science fiction into the mix. But what I enjoyed most about the story was the incredible mystery of who was assassinating the queens and why. I definitely didn’t see the plot twist coming and was completely shocked. This book an incredible read. 

Visit Astrid Scholte’s website.

Once and For All by Sarah Dessen

“Louna, daughter of famed wedding planner Natalie Barrett, has seen every sort of wedding: on the beach, at historic mansions, in fancy hotels and clubs. Perhaps that's why she's cynical about happily-ever-after endings, especially since her own first love ended tragically. When Louna meets charming, happy-go-lucky serial dater Ambrose, she holds him at arm's length. But Ambrose isn't about to be discouraged, now that he's met the one girl he really wants.” - taken from Goodreads.com

This was another super sweet rom-com from Sarah Dessen. Louna is still heartbroken over the tragic ending of her first love/relationship. It doesn’t help that she works for her wedding planner mother who has also disillusioned herself with the idea of happily ever after. When Ambrose joins Natalie Barrett weddings for the summer, Louna discovers that maybe she can open her heart up again. 

Visit Sarah Dessen’s website.

Children of Blood & Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Legacy of Orïsha book 1)

“They killed my mother.

They took our magic.

They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.” - taken from Goodreads.com

I had put off reading this book for a while but with book two coming out, I jumped right into the audio version. This was a fantastic listen and once again Bahni Turpin proves why she is one of my favorite audiobook narrators. Tomi Adeyemi weaves an incredible magical fantasy that finds the magic of Orisha diminished by the brutal slaying of the maji by the dominating King Saran. On an unlikely quest to restore the power of the Diviners, Zelie, her brother Tzain and the escaped princess Amari, journey through Orisha while being tracked by the Crown Prince Inan. There is never a dull moment in this action-packed story.

Book two, Children of Virtue & Vengeance is due out Dec. 3, 2019.

Visit Tomi Adeyemi's website.

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo (Alex Stern book 1)

WARNING! This is an adult title. Mature readers only.

"Galaxy “Alex” Stern is the most unlikely member of Yale’s freshman class. Raised in the Los Angeles hinterlands by a hippie mom, Alex dropped out of school early and into a world of shady drug dealer boyfriends, dead-end jobs, and much, much worse. By age twenty, in fact, she is the sole survivor of a horrific, unsolved multiple homicide. Some might say she’s thrown her life away. But at her hospital bed, Alex is offered a second chance: to attend one of the world’s most elite universities on a full ride. What’s the catch, and why her?

Still searching for answers to this herself, Alex arrives in New Haven tasked by her mysterious benefactors with monitoring the activities of Yale’s secret societies. These eight windowless “tombs” are well-known to be haunts of the future rich and powerful, from high-ranking politicos to Wall Street and Hollywood’s biggest players. But their occult activities are revealed to be more sinister and more extraordinary than any paranoid imagination might conceive.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Ninth House is Leigh Bardugo’s first foray into ADULT literature. This is a book with adult themes just like Stephen King. The first third of the book is a bit slow as Bardugo sets the storyline and setting and may turn some teen readers off. With that said, this was an incredible murder mystery that left me speechless at the end. I thoroughly enjoyed how the ending sets up the plotline for book two due out on June 1, 2021.

Visit Leigh Bardugo’s website.