The Wicked King by Holly Black (The Folk of the Air book 2)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, The Cruel Prince, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

Check out Book Series Recaps for a refresher of the first book.

“You must be strong enough to strike and strike and strike again without tiring.

The first lesson is to make yourself strong.

After the jaw-dropping revelation that Oak is the heir to Faerie, Jude must keep her younger brother safe. To do so, she has bound the wicked king, Cardan, to her, and made herself the power behind the throne. Navigating the constantly shifting political alliances of Faerie would be difficult enough if Cardan were easy to control. But he does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her even as his fascination with her remains undiminished.

When it becomes all too clear that someone close to Jude means to betray her, threatening her own life and the lives of everyone she loves, Jude must uncover the traitor and fight her own complicated feelings for Cardan to maintain control as a mortal in a Faerie world.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Five months have passed since the surprising betrayal and upheaval that occurred at the end of The Cruel Prince, Our girl Jude has placed herself in a precarious situation where she can trust very few. When Carden begins to take his role seriously and someone close to Jude double-crosses her, control slips from her grasp.

Holly Black’s Folk of the Fair Air trilogy is definitely not lacking. In fact, after enjoying the first book tremendously, I can honestly say this book is even better. Readers, be prepared. The ending is killer!

The finale to Jude’s story, The Queen of Nothing, is expected in 2020. 

Visit Holly Black’s website.

The Mortal Instruments: The Graphic Novel, Vol. 2 by Cassandra Clare and Cassandra Jean

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Vol. 2, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“Having her best friend, Simon, kidnapped and being attacked by the vampires already seemed too much for Clary to handle. But when she realizes her hidden power and that leads her to what she has been searching for, the truth exposed might be something that she absolutely cannot accept…” - taken from Goodreads.com

The second volume in this series concludes the storyline of City of Bones. With no exact information available but the last pages of the book tease to a third volume. 

Visit Cassandra Clare’s website.

Visit Cassandra Jean’s website.

Bloodwitch by Susan Dennard (The Witchlands book 3)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first two books in this series, Truthwitch and Windwitch, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

"High in a snowy mountain range, a monastery that holds more than just faith clings to the side of a cliff. Below, thwarted by a lake, a bloodthirsty horde of raiders await the coming of winter and the frozen path to destroy the sanctuary and its secrets.

The Bloodwitch Aeduan has teamed up with the Threadwitch Iseult and the magical girl Owl to stop the destruction. But to do so, he must confront his own father, and his past.” - taken from Goodreads.com

Bloodwitch is Aeduan’s story and even brings forth more revelations from Sightwitch. Unfortunately for me, there are too many characters in this series and all were separated from one another for the first 90% of the book. The last 10% is where everyone begins to cross each other’s path and the action quickly picks up. With the choice that is made at the end, I am interested to see how things turn out for everyone.

The Witchlands series continues with book four expected in 2020. 

Visit Susan Dennard’s website.

Visit the Witchlands’ website.

Sightwitch by Susan Dennard (The Witchlands book 0.5)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first two books in this series, Truthwitch and Windwitch, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

“Sightwitch is an illustrated novella set in the Witchlands and told through Ryber’s journal entries and sketches.

Before Safi and Iseult battled a Bloodwitch...

Before Merik returned from the dead…

Ryber Fortiza was a Sightwitch Sister at a secluded convent, waiting to be called by her goddess into the depths of the mountain. There she would receive the gift of foretelling. But when that call never comes, Ryber finds herself the only Sister without the Sight.

Years pass and Ryber’s misfit pain becomes a dull ache, until one day, Sisters who already possess the Sight are summoned into the mountain, never to return. Soon enough, Ryber is the only Sister left. Now, it is up to her to save her Sisters, though she does not have the Sight—and though she does not know what might await her inside the mountain.

On her journey underground, she encounters a young captain named Kullen Ikray, who has no memory of who he is or how he got there. Together, the two journey ever deeper in search of answers, their road filled with horrors, and what they find at the end of that road will alter the fate of the Witchlands forever.

Set a year before Truthwitch, Sightwitch is a companion novella that also serves as a set up to Bloodwitch, as well as an expansion of the Witchlands world.” - taken from Goodreads.com

I literally devoured this book in one day. Learning the back story of Ryber and Kullen was neat but the information they learn on their journey leads to a shocking revelation that I uncovered once I started reading Bloodwitch. Definitely worth the read. 

The Witchlands series continues with Aeduan’s story, Bloodwitch. 

Visit Susan Dennard’s website.

Visit the Witchlands’ website.

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo (Nikolai duology book 2) (Grishaverse book 6)

“Nikolai Lantsov has always had a gift for the impossible. No one knows what he endured in his country’s bloody civil war—and he intends to keep it that way. Now, as enemies gather at his weakened borders, the young king must find a way to refill Ravka’s coffers, forge new alliances, and stop a rising threat to the once-great Grisha Army.

Yet with every day a dark magic within him grows stronger, threatening to destroy all he has built. With the help of a young monk and a legendary Grisha Squaller, Nikolai will journey to the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him. He will risk everything to save his country and himself. But some secrets aren’t meant to stay buried—and some wounds aren’t meant to heal.” - Taken from Goodreads.com

SPOILER ALERT! Even though this book is the start of a new duology, the main and several supporting characters are introduced in previous books set in the author's Grishaverse. In actuality, the story takes place after the events of Crooked Kingdom.

Told from the viewpoints of several different characters, three main POVs are characters from Bardugo’s previous books. Readers will find themselves sucked back into the perils of Ravka since the defeat of the Darkling. A bit slow at times for me, the action quickly picks up during the last third of the book. Knowing that there was likely going to be a major cliffhanger at the end, I never could have imaged the fireworks this first installment provided. 

Book two is due to be published in 2020.

Visit Leigh Bardugo’s website.

Visit the Grishaverse.

Archenemies by Marissa Meyer (Renegades book 2)

SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Renegades, Stop! I don’t want to ruin the story for you.

Check out Book Series Recaps for a refresher of the first book.

“Time is running out. 

Together, they can save the world. 

But they each other’s worst nightmare.

Nova’s double life is about to get a lot more complicated:

As Insomnia, she is a full-fledged member of the Renegades, a syndicate of powerful and beloved superheroes. She works with Adrian’s patrol unit to protect the weak and maintain order in Gatlon City.

As Nightmare, she is an Anarchist - a group of villains who are determined to destroy the Renegades. Nova wants vengeance against the so-called heroes who once failed her when she needed them most.

But as Nova, her feelings for Adrian are deepening, despite the fact that he is the son of her sworn enemies and, unbeknownst to Nova, he has some dangerous secrets of his own.

In this second installment of the Renegades trilogy, Nova, Adrian, and the rest of their crew – Ruby, Oscar, and Danna -- are faced with escalating crime in Gatlon City, while covert weapons and conflicting missions have Nova and Adrian questioning not only their beliefs about justice, but also the feelings they have for each other.

The line between good and evil has been blurred, but what's clear to them both is that too much power could mean the end of their city – and the world – as they know it.” - taken from barnesandnoble.com

If you thought the cliffhanger at the end of Renegades was murder, you don’t know what it’s like to hang on by your fingertips. Archenemies definitely doesn’t suffer from second book boredom. Readers/listeners get to delve deeper into the lives and backstories of Adrian and Nova as the two grow closer as she continues to set her plan in motion. With that brutal ending, the stakes will be even higher with the concluding book to the trilogy, Supernova, due out on November 5, 2019.

Visit Marissa Meyer’s website.

Only a Breath Apart by Katie McGarry

Jesse Lachlin is cursed. 

“So the town folklore says, but while Jesse’s had his fair share of tragedy, the only curse he believes is in his grandmother’s will: in order to inherit his family farm he must win the approval of his childhood best friend, the girl he froze out his freshman year, Scarlett Copeland.

Scarlett Copeland is psychic.

Glory Gardner tells Scarlett she has hidden psychic abilities, but Scarlett thinks Glory is delusional. What is real is Scarlett’s father’s irrational fears, controlling attitude, and the dark secrets at home. Scarlett may have a way to escape, but there’s a hitch: she’ll have to rely on the one person she used to trust, the same boy who broke her heart, Jesse Lachlin.

Each midnight meeting pushes Jesse and Scarlett to confront their secrets and their feelings for each other. But as love blooms, the curse rears its ugly head… “ - taken from Goodreads.com

Another great read from Katie McGarry about two star-crossed lovers who grew up together as children. Jesse Lachlin truly believes that his life is cursed. So much so that he devastates his best friend and the girl he loves, Scarlett Copeland, in order to keep her “safe”. When both of their lives reach the point of implosion, Jesse and Scarlett find themselves drawn to one another in their times of need.

A bit different from her previous books, I’m looking forward to the next installment in this series.

Visit Katie McGarry’s website.