Last Set of Clues!

October is going fast, which means only a couple of weeks left until I draw the winner for a FREE SIGNED BOOK by a mystery author. I don’t want to drag the mystery out too long, however, so this is the last set of clues I’m going to give you before revealing the book!

 

 

1. This author grew up in California then moved to China.
2. This is her first published book.
3. It’s published by Simon & Schuster.
4. This is a YA sci fi/dystopia.
5. This book was just released THIS WEEK!
6. It’s the first in a series.
7. It has a little fairy tale twist going on.
8. This author currently lives in Utah with her family.
9. The fairy tale twist is from Sleeping Beauty.
10. The main character is a girl accused of a crime.
11. There’s a strong Chinese influence in the book.

I hope that’s enough to get you thinking, maybe doing some research online. This book is for sale on Amazon, but it hasn’t hit bestseller status yet. It should! I’m really enjoying it. So suspenseful! I’m dying to see what happens next!

Make your guesses down below and check back on Friday, when I will do the cover reveal!

Review: Spindle Fire

Title: Spindle Fire #1

Author: Lexa Hillyer

Themes: sisters, sacrifice, jealousy, curses, love

Plot: “Half sisters Isabelle and Aurora are polar opposites: Isabelle is the king’s headstrong illegitimate daughter, whose sight was tithed by faeries; Aurora, beautiful and sheltered, was tithed her sense of touch and her voice on the same day. Despite their differences, the sisters have always been extremely close.

And then everything changes, with a single drop of Aurora’s blood—and a sleep so deep it cannot be broken.”

Isabelle leaves everything behind to find a cure for her sister and break the curse. Meanwhile, Aurora is trapped in a dream world, looking for a way to escape and return to her own home. But are the two sisters living their own lives, or are they doomed to repeat a legend?

Reaction: I always love stories about sisters, because I have a sister and I’ve fought many battles for her. And I love fairy tales, so this seemed like a real winner. Unfortunately I felt like something was missing.

I’ve gotten away from YA for the most part, but a good fairy tale is one thing that will suck me right back in. (That and steampunk.) Sleeping Beauty is not my favorite story, but I do like it, especially when the hero is the sister! But this one was nothing like say Two Princesses of Bamarre. There’s a LOVE TRIANGLE. 3 men, 2 women. I did like the characters. I wasn’t crazy about Aurora to start with, but she gets more interesting the longer she’s out of the palace.

I thought Isabelle’s blindness made a lot of her actions unbelievable. How does she get around so well in the forest and on a ship? It was never explained in a way that really made sense to me. And while I’m pointing out plot holes, how does Aurora learn to speak so quickly? It takes babies a long time, and she does it in a day.

I don’t know whether to recommend this one or not. I’m not going to continue the series, but I didn’t hate it. I liked the way Hillyer wove together the story of these sisters and the fae sisters. That was almost enough to make me read more. But in the end, the love story was just not working for me. 2.5 stars out of 5.

 

Book Review: Sleeping Beauty

Title: Sleeping Beauty, Timeless Fairy Tales #8

Author: K M Shea

Genre: clean Fairy Tale romance

Themes: Duty vs Desire, Nature Vs Nurture, True Love

I just can’t get enough of this series! In the latest one, featuring Briar Rose or Princess Rosalinda, we get a strong, clever, brave heroine who it’s easy to root for.

It starts pretty much like the traditional story. The royal family has a new baby girl but an unexpected guest decides to throw a death curse into the mix to liven up the party. But Shea likes to weave all these fairy tales together into the story of a land that has been cursed so that everything that can go wrong, does go wrong. This one was great because not only did we get a wonderful main character, but we got to learn more about Angelique, the “enchantress in training” who’s been on hand to save the day numerous times.

I’m hoping to cajole K M Shea into doing an interview or guest appearance on my blog, so if you haven’t checked out her books, do it now and if you get a chance tell her Speedy Reader sent you. Crossing my fingers!