Six of Crows By: Leigh Bardugo Review

Six of Crows was a little slow starting for me, but then once it picked up it kept my interest throughout. Thank goodness because I was worried in the beginning. There's been so much hype for this one and while I REALLY enjoyed it, I didn't LOVE it like most. I sure am glad that I read the Grisha Trilogy before I read this one though or else I would have been lost. Six of Crows is set in the grishaverse, but it's a separate story from the Grisha Trilogy. Well to be honest, this kind of irritates me. What if I hadn't been told it's best to read the Grisha books first? Anyway, good thing I did or I wouldn't have finished this one.

#SlowStart

I loved all of the characters!! The characters are definitely what made the book great for me. I love books with a great group of characters. Kaz is my favorite character, but I also really liked Inez, Nina, and Matthias. Those that have been following my blog for a while may know that I am a sucker for characters like Kaz. So it's not a surprise that he's my favorite. Kaz has a really good backstory, even though it's incredibly sad.  His character's personality and motivations are really intriguing to me. I am very drawn to complex characters like Kaz. It's also pretty hilarious that he is always one step ahead of everyone. Just when you think he's screwed, he has a trick up his sleeve!

#KazRules

As for the story, it was very well written. However, like I mentioned I am glad I read the Grisha series first.  I thought because these were two separate series that it wouldn't matter, but it does. It would have been so much harder to get into this one had I not read the others first. I just hate that because if I hadn't known I would have started this one first and given up in the beginning since it starts off slow anyway. I struggled enough trying to figure out what's what. I can't imagine then also trying to figure out about the Grisha as well.  I won't say you HAVE to read the Grisha series first, but I HIGHLY recommend it. 

#GrishaverseProblems

Overall Six of Crows was enjoyable, but not perfect for me. Minus the slow start the book has all of the right ingredients for a great story. It has fantastic writing, a great cast of entertaining characters that you care for, a heist, lots of action, and a touch of romance. I can't wait for the next book. I feel like that one will be even better than this one was. I WANT MOREEEEE!! 

#AlmostPerfect

I recommend Six of Crows to those who have read and enjoyed the Grisha Trilogy.

#ReadTheGrishaTrilogyFirst 

Heist Society By: Ally Carter Review

I just adored Heist Society! It was such a cute and fun read. I was not sure what to expect going into this one since I am not usually interested in espionage novels, but this series just looked so good that I decided to try it. Plus I needed an espionage read for the Insane Genre Challenge. I am glad I gave it a try because it was the perfect YA espionage novel. 

This book is just what I was looking for when I picked it up. It has everything in it that I wanted it to have. There's espionage and traveling, but it's also super cute and fun. After reading Heist Society it really made me want to travel even more. Or pull a heist! Okay, maybe not REALLY pull a heist haha. :P 

The thing I liked best about Heist Society is that it's full of espionage, but it felt like espionage light to me. I don't have that much experience with espionage, but I know I don't like when it feels too heavy. If that makes any sense. So I am glad that this one ended up being a fun read and it didn't drag for me. 

Overall Heist Society was an entertaining and light read. It's a good one to add in between heavier books.  It's just such a fun and fluffy read! Also, it's a pretty clean novel so I can see it being suitable for young teens. I can't wait to read more of the series!

I recommend Heist Society for anyone just trying out the espionage genre and for anyone looking for an espionage novel that is light and full of adventure.  

Red Rising By: Pierce Brown Review

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I received this novel for free from the Goodreads giveaways program. Thank you to the author and publisher. 

I was really close to giving Red Rising 5 stars. I guess you could say this is really a 4.5 star book for me. Oh if only Goodreads allowed half stars then that would make things so much easier for me! But I had to go with 4 stars instead of 5 because a few parts were a little confusing for me. It wasn't a perfect book, but it was damn near close. 

Red Rising is about Darrow who is a Red and a miner on Mars. Pretty much the Golds control everything and the Reds are their slave laborers. The Golds have lied to them and told them they are preparing the planet to be fit for humanity to live there, but that is a lie. It's already inhabited by the Golds. Darrow ends up with a group of rebels that turn him into a Gold and he enrolls in the Golds Command school and tries to take it down from the inside.

The book was pretty much exactly like it sounds like from the description on Goodreads or my little one here. I got exactly what I expected and it was done really well. From the beginning of the book I knew I was going to love it. It starts off with some really great world building and some heartbreak. That's how you get my attention!! 

I found Red Rising to be a little bit Battle Royale/ Hunger Games and Ender's Game-esque, but on Mars. However, I don't want to get too stuck on comparing Red Rising to other books because it really is it's own thing. The writing is fabulous and I'm captivated by Darrow's character and character development. I really want to see what will happen with Darrow.

Like I mentioned before a few parts were a little confusing for me. Those parts were a couple of the political/strategic parts and that's not really my thing. So I think that was more me than the author's writing. Just here and there I probably could have used a little bit more dumbing down. 

Overall Red Rising is a top notch dystopian novel that is gripping, emotional, and intriguing from start to finish. I am really looking forward to reading the next books in the series! 

I recommend Red Rising for fans of dystopia, sci-fi, Ender's Game, Battle Royale, The Hunger Games, and anyone looking for a great read set on Mars.