The Winner's Curse Book Talk

The Winner's Curse 
by Marie Rutkoski

Spoilers

Synopsis:

Winning what you want may cost you everything you love... 

As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. 

One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. 

But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined. 

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

My Thoughts:

I gave this book 5 stars because I loved it. I loved every minute of this, I picked it up on a whim, from the synopsis I thought it was going to be very instalovey but it wasn't and I'm happy. I read this in one day.

I have to rant about something. I ordered this book online and I was expecting to get that beautiful cover from above, but instead I got the ugly stepsister, look at it:

When you first look at it, it might not seem that bad, but after a while you can start to see all the issues. Like the fact that it has someone's face on it. That is like my number one cover pet peeve. I hate it when there is a full frontal view of someone's face on the front. I hate it. I want to picture them my way and I can't do that if it already has a face on it. Also, the sky is pink, and what the hell is she doing with the daggers? What magical ritual is she doing? I don't even understand. I just want to scream.

Okay rant over, I finished this book in the one day that I was reading it, it was fast paced and not at all instalovey and I was so happy by this. It was so easy to read and I cannot wait to get the next two books because I will be getting those two at the same time so that I can binge. There are my weekend plans.

I actually really liked the main character, I really did not think I was going to like her, once again because of the synopsis, telling me she was a whiny little rich girl. I feel like the synopsis was a very misleading thing because it also implied that Arin and Kestrel fell into instalove and that Kestrel bound Arin to herself in an unbreakable way. Maybe that was a good thing because it kept me on my toes, I didn't really know what to expect from it. 

I ship Arin and Kestrel so hard, seriously I need to read the other two books so I can make them an official OTP. Because I think that they could be it. I ship it.

I was so happy when Cheat died, at first I thought that maybe he would be able to be a good leader, he seemed like it at first, but then he met Kestrel and I realized he would definitely not be a good leader, I was very happy indeed. 

I'm not as anxious as I should be after the ending of the first book, Kestrel is not going to marry the emporer's son, she just isn't, she will find a way out of it, or Arin will get her out of it. Kestrel is really smart and she is very good with strategizing. Seriously, I'm not worried at all. I just really want the next book.

This book was not very heavy, it was actually a very light read, if you do end up reading this though, be ready to read the next book right away, it's a necessity. Be WARNED.

Quotes:

“Isn't that what stories do, make real things fake, and fake things real?”

“He knew the law of such things: people in brightly lit places cannot see into the dark.”  

“The truth can deceive as well as a lie.”  

“He lifted her up onto the table so that her face was level with his, and as they kissed it seemed that words were hiding in the air around them, that they were invisible creatures that feathered against her and Arin, then nudged, and buzzed, and tugged.Speak, they said.Speak, the kiss answered.”  

Top 5 Father Figures

Mild Spoilers

5. Kit from the Summoning

He wasn't really there for the first two books, he was just mentioned, but in the third he came in and took care of all these wayward teens and he did everything he could to keep them safe, even those that were not his own kids.

4. Belial from Sweet Evil

He is so protective of Anna it's actually really cute. He seemed to be a bad guy but then he reformed his ways for his daughter.

3. Poseidon from Percy Jackson

All the other Gods and Goddesses can't seem to care less about there children, even when they care they aren't exactly friendly with them. Poseidon, however, is so close to Percy, giving him all sorts of advice, paying him visits. Guys, Poseidon went to Percy's birthday party. Is this something that a God normally does? I don't think so.

2. Luke from The Mortal Instruments

Luke wasn't Clary's biological father, but he treated her as if she was his own. He protected her with his life, loved her like a father did a daughter.

1. James Potter from Harry Potter

I know he's dead and all, he wasn't around much because of that, but he was a huge part of the story. Let's talk about that first scene with him where he sacrifices his life for his family. He is without a wand, yet he provokes Voldemort so that Lily and Harry can escape. He died thinking he had given them a chance. Lily may have died, but Harry didn't.

The Martian Book Talk

The Maritan
by Andy Weir

Spoilers

Summary:

A mission to Mars.

A freak accident.

One man's struggle to survive.

Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. 

Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate the planet while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded on Mars' surface, completely alone, with no way to signal Earth that he’s alive. And even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone years before a rescue could arrive.

Chances are, though, Mark won't have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment or plain-old "human error" are much more likely to kill him first. 

But Mark's not ready to quit. Armed with nothing but his ingenuity and his engineering skills—and a gallows sense of humor that proves to be his greatest source of strength–he embarks on a dogged quest to stay alive, using his botany expertise to grow food and even hatching a mad plan to contact NASA back on Earth.

As he overcomes one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next, Mark begins to let himself believe he might make it off the planet alive.

But Mars has plenty of surprises in store for him yet.

Grounded in real, present-day science from the first page to the last, yet propelled by a brilliantly ingenious plot that surprises the reader again and again, The Martian is a truly remarkable thriller: an impossible-to-put-down suspense novel that manages to read like a real-life survival tale. 

My Thoughts:

I gave this book 4 stars. It was an amazing book and I really loved it. I took off a star because of all the science. Okay it's about space travel and of course there is going to be a lot of science, but oh my gods, there was a lot of it, at the beginning of the book I was having a hard time concentrating on it because so much science. It was like this science lesson that I didn't quite understand.

So I need to address that. One of my friends said she couldn't read the book because there was too much science. It is literally what the book is about, so if you're planning on reading it, but you don't like science, then I would suggest not, because the book is literally humour and science. That's what it's all about. 

Nonetheless, it was very well written and I felt I could relate to Mark Watney. Not because I'm also stuck in space, or the fact that I'm a super genius, but his personality. I don't know how to sum up Mark Watney. He basically has the skills of Tony Stark, but a more nerdy, less playboy personality. He is equally as funny though.

I new I was going to like this book from reading the first three lines:

"I'm pretty much fucked.  

That's my considered opinion.  

Fucked."

That is a good start. Humour is the doorway to my soul. If a book is funny, I can forgive pretty much anything that may be wrong with a book, if a book is funny, I will give it at least 3 stars. Nothing will go under that.

The entire premise of the story had me intrigued. I don't think I've ever read a book like this, I felt like if someone ever got stuck on Mars this would be pretty realistic. Mark handled things beautifully, he would have his moment of being upset and then he would get his shit together and then continue onto whatever he needed to do to survive.

I loved how it was going back and forth between the people on Earth and Mark and then the people on Ares 3, it really helped me get a better perspective of everything that was happening at once and not just Mark's point of view where we would get less information.

Reasons why Mark Watney is my spirit animal:

• That one time that the HAB got all ripped up and then Mark had a tantrum and it was probably my favourite scene in the entire book.
• "I awoke to the oxygen alarm in my suit. A steady, obnoxious beeping that eventually roused me from a deep and profound desire to just fucking die."

• 'He turned back to Venkat. "I wonder what he's thinking about right now."

Log Entry: Sol 161 

How come Aquaman can control whales? They're mammals! Makes no sense.'

I honestly cannot wait to watch the movie. I hope the movie lives up to the book.

Truthwitch Book Talk

Truthwitch
by Susan Dennard

Spoiler Alert

Summary:

In a continent on the edge of war, two witches hold its fate in their hands.

Young witches Safiya and Iseult have a habit of finding trouble. After clashing with a powerful Guildmaster and his ruthless Bloodwitch bodyguard, the friends are forced to flee their home.

Safi must avoid capture at all costs as she's a rare Truthwitch, able to discern truth from lies. Many would kill for her magic, so Safi must keep it hidden - lest she be used in the struggle between empires. And Iseult's true powers are hidden even from herself.

In a chance encounter at Court, Safi meets Prince Merik and makes him a reluctant ally. However, his help may not slow down the Bloodwitch now hot on the girls' heels. All Safi and Iseult want is their freedom, but danger lies ahead. With war coming, treaties breaking and a magical contagion sweeping the land, the friends will have to fight emperors and mercenaries alike. For some will stop at nothing to get their hands on a Truthwitch. 

My Thoughts:

I gave this book 4.5 stars. It was a very good book, it did not blow my mind or anything, but it did get me out of the after book slump that A Court of Mist and Fury left me in.

I was a bit worried going into this book that it was going to be very heavy and political and I wasn't going to easily follow along, but I had no such problems. I caught on quickly with plans and plots and subplots. It was actually a very light read, it may be because the book was smaller than most high fantasy books, or maybe it could be the writing style. Whatever it was, I enjoyed it.

I love Iseult and Safiya's friendship in this book. They are best friend goals. I always love the whole fire and ice pairing. Iseult is the cold distant person who is only really close to Safi. She doesn't really care about anyone else, or so it seems. She keeps everything bundled up so tight. I feel like this may be because of all the many threads she sees on a daily basis. It may just be too hard for her to come to terms with it all.

And then there is Safi. Fierce, vibrant Safi. Quick to fight, slow to forgive. Safi is how I see myself. Safi is the Gryffindor to Iseult's Slytherin. Though, her ability to tell when people are lying is a pretty cool skill, I don't think I would choose it above all other gifts. I actually really liked Iseult's. I mean, after a while the brights lights would probably get annoying, but for a while it would be cool. Her whole romance thing going on with Merik is so steamy, I can't wait for that to develop more in the next book. I really do love having romance in my novels, just not everything being about the couple. It was perfect.

I don't know exactly how old Aeduan is, but if he is young enough, I'm going to be developing a ship between him and Iseult, because chemistry. Something is going on, they just couldn't seem to kill each other and they have some fort of Nomatsis past going on. Something has to happen or else I am going to be a very unhappy camper in the next book. Actually, there was also a moment in the book where I shipped Aeduan with Leopold, they just seemed to have a spark. Plus, Aeduan is just so shippable.

Leopold. I was so mad at him in the beginning because he seemed to be on his uncles side about the whole "Engaged to Safiya" thing and I just thought he was a stuck up spoiled prince. He proved he wasn't when he turned out to be working with Eron to free Safi. He was a true friend and I appreciate him for that.

About their witch powers, in the prophesy thing about the Cahr Awen, I'm pretty sure they said something about there needing to be a void witch in the duo, and then earlier on the "Puppeteer" said something to Iseult about her being a Weavingwitch like her, I'm not quite sure, but I'm pretty sure this means that she is a void witch, so everything does add up correctly. Anyway, there is definitely something cool going on with Iseult.

So I have this theory. So Aeduan is apparently Nomatsis, guess who else is Nomatsis? That evil guy Corlant that we don't know much about. And what do we know of Aeduan"s father? He is a pretty twisted guy, or at least it is implied that he isn't the best guy. I bet Corlant is Aeduan's father and something is going to happen with all of that.

Oh my gods, while reading the part when Iseult went to see her mother and Alma, all I could think was that Iseult grew up in a cult. They never explicitly say this of course, but I swear, it's a cult that they are in. 

Quotes:

“I hate this. Both the storm and the plan. Why does it have to be ‘we’? Why not just me?"“Because ‘just me’ isn’t who we are,” Iseult hollered back. “I’ll always follow you, Safi, and you’ll always follow me. Threadsisters to the end.”  

“Where’s your hair?” she shouted. “And what happened to your arm?”“Cut my hair and got shot with an arrow!” “Gods below, Iseult! A few hours away and your whole life tumbles through the hell-gates!”“I might say the same to you,” Iseult shouted back—though it was getting hard to scream and ride. “Four opponents on your tail and a ruined dress!” 

“Allow me to serve you, Safiya. We have spent too many years apart.” “And I have spent too many hours between meals.” A glare. “Give it to me now, Polly, or I shall castrate you with a fork.” 

“Oh, the Bloodwitch named Aeduan was no longer bored. No longer bored at all. And now he had work to do.” 

Waiting on Wednesday

The Fate of the Tearling
by Erika Johansen

I need to know how this series ends. I need to know if she can defeat the Red Queen and I need to know if she will fall in love with Pen. I love Pen, he is in love with her, I really think she could feel the same about him. I need this book now.