Mini Reviews #5: The Summer Edition

Hello Bookworms! I am back with another edition of short reviews. The books here are ones that I intended to write in-depth reviews for, but never quite got around to it. I want to clear out my drafts and start fresh, so I figured now is good a time as any to compile them into one mini review post. These are books I read over the summer. I hope you enjoy!

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My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Nevernight by Jay Kristoff

Review: I think grimdark fantasy is slowly becoming my thing because most of my summer reads were dark and violent. Nevernight follows Mia after she joins the Hogwarts School for Badassery and Assassins where she trains to become an assassin to seek vengeance against the people who destroyed her family. Honestly, one of the reasons I enjoyed this book so much is because of the revenge plot. I love a good vengeance story, especially when the character is driven to burn down a whole system of power. I tried to read the physical book, but I felt kind of overwhelmed with all the footnotes so I ended up listening to the audiobook. Best decision I could’ve made because the audiobook was outstanding and kind of addictive. I would love to listen to other audiobooks by this narrator because the performance was that amazing. I liked most of the characters, hated some, and was kind of upset about the way things turned out in the end. I have a copy of the sequel, but I’m going to wait until the last book comes out read it.

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My Rating: 4/5 stars

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Review: I can’t remember when I bought this book, but I know it had been on my shelf for a few weeks before I picked it up. I’m happy I picked it up when I did because it was exactly what I needed. The blurb on the book described the main character as “Lady Jack Sparrow” and it was right. This was an entertaining story with a cunning main character. The plot is predictable and tropey, but still enjoyable. I liked the banter between the characters and I didn’t have a problem with the insta-love romance in here. Such a fun read.

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Daughter of the Siren King by Tricia Levenseller

My Rating: 4/5 stars

Review: As soon as I finished Daughter of the Pirate King, I purchased this book on my Nook. I couldn’t wait for the bookstore to open because I enjoyed DOTPK more than I expected to. Daughter of the Siren Queen has a lot more angst than the first book, but I wasn’t even bothered by that. I enjoyed the characters, the plot and the pacing. The writing was kind of cheesy and predictable in some parts, but it didn’t affect my enjoyment. I enjoyed discovering another side to Alosa and learning a bit more about her crew and the Siren Queen.

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Dark Matter by Blake Crouch

My Rating: 4/5 stars

Review: I haven’t stopped thinking about the plot twist in this book since I finished it. I listened to the audiobook and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The story follows Jason after he’s kidnapped and wakes up in a world he doesn’t recognize. I don’t want to give anymore of the plot away because I want to avoid spoiling it for anyone who’s remotely interested in reading it. It’s unpredictable and compelling and really exciting. Definitely worth the read.

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Red Rising by Pierce Brown

My Rating: 3/5 stars

Review: I actually had to look up Goodreads summary for this book because I couldn’t remember the main character’s name. This story is kind of like The Hunger Games except it takes place on Mars. The class system in this world is divided by color. The main character-Darrow- is a red, which is the lowest class in this world. After his wife is killed, he becomes a gold and gets involved in this competition. I don’t go into books with the notion that I’m going to dislike it because it’s hyped. I’m cautious, but always looking forward to discover a new author or fictional world. This book was “meh.” It didn’t quite live up to the expectations that I had and I didn’t care much for Darrow. I may have liked this more if Darrow didn’t seem like a cardboard cut out and dry. A few people told me that it gets better so I picked up the sequel—Golden Son—from my used bookstore a few weeks ago. I plan to read it at some point this year.

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Have you read any of these books? If so, what were your thoughts? Let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading!