That Night by Cyn Balog || Review

Some things are better left buried.

This book was sent to me in exchange for an honest review by the publisher, via Netgalley. My thanks to both Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire. 

Name: That Night 

Author: Cyn Balog

Rating: 4 Stars

Pages: 320

Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS Fire

Published: June 4th 2019

^Please note: This is a trigger warning for suicide

A year ago, Declan killed himself in his family's shed with a gun. And Hailey's life fell apart. Her love, her forever, gone. No explanation, no hint, no nothing. Declan was the light of her life, the happiest person she knew and then he was gone. After spending time in an institution and several reckless activities later, the one year anniversary of his death is coming up and something isn't right. When Hailey is given a box of Declan's things, including a mysterious photograph with "This ends now," written on it, the fog in Hailey's memory starts to clear. Growing suspicious about the circumstances of Declan's death, she turns to her best friend and Declan's stepbrother, Kane, who appears to know more than he's letting on. What is everyone hiding from her, and does she want to know? 

Deciding that she does, Hailey's fog starts to lift and she finds herself uncovering the truth about Declan, his death and even herself. 

MY DUDES. I love a good mystery book, a what happened, a whodunnit, I LOVE THEM. So when I read the blurb of this book on Netgalley, I was immediately like "I need to read this book." And I wasn't disappointed. Drawn in by the opening chapter, I found myself wanting to know more about Declan and why he did commit suicide. The character building in this book was a breath of fresh air. I have recently read a book with two dimensional characters and this book was quite literally the opposite. The characters in this book had so much depth and so much potential, and a lot of it was lived up too. I liked who I was supposed to like, I hated who I was supposed to hate, the lines got blurred, I loved everyone, I hated everyone. I loved it. 

The story is split into flashbacks before Declan kills himself and the memories that Tina has before this event, and then the days following the one year anniversary where the fog is starting to lift. Declan is presented as a saint, but I loved the whole "Some saints don't get their atonement" conversation with Nina. Nina was a character I wish we got more of in this book as I think she had a lot of potential. 

Reading this book, I found myself really buying what the author was selling for the most part. The only thing I didn't really like about this book was the lack of parental input. I would've wanted to see more of the relationships with the parents being developed further, whether that be Declan and Kane's parents or Hailey's own. I wanted to gather their input of the situation at hand and whether they suspected something further went into Declan's death than a simple, unexplained suicide. 

Overall I would really recommend this book for fans of mystery, YA and contemporary books as I think it's a good read, it has a good plot and it's easy to follow. 

As always hit me up on my socials: 

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Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake || Review

*This book was sent to me by the Publisher, Macmillan Children's Books in exchange for an honest review, major shout out to the team over there, for not only an ARC but also a finished copy!*

Title: Three Dark Crowns
Series: Untitled Series
Author: Kendare Blake
Pages: 405
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Publication Date: September 20th 2016
My Overall Rating: 4 stars 

Three sisters. 

One throne. 

A fight to the death. 

Fenbirn has a queen that rules every generation, it's been that way for centuries. Every past and present queen has been gifted with power from the goddess that allows them to govern along with the elite families that share those talents. 

It's tradition. It's political. It's deadly. 

Three daughters are born, but only one can assume the throne when she's 16. Separated at a young age, each princess must hone in on their individual power before being pitted against one another to the death. 

Arsinoe is a naturalist, she manipulates animals and plants...technically. Her powers haven't manifested yet and her fellow naturalists are beginning to panic. She wants to leave Fenbrin, but Fenbrin won't let her go. Desperate times are beginning to call for desperate measures...

Katharine is a poisoner, her powers are weak, her anxiety is high and the poisoner families are willing to do anything to keep a hold of their reign, but Katharine has to decide who she can trust, and who may have alternative agendas...

Mirabella is an elemental, she's the strongest of the triplets and she can manipulate the world around her. However, she's plagued with nightmares of the night she and her sisters were separated and feels affection towards them. 

There is no compromise. 

I've never read a Kendare Blake book before, I'll be honest. I've been very close to it, but other books have just taken precedence or been more convenient at the time, but when I read the blurb of this book I just knew...When you know, you know. I knew that this book and I were going to be a better OTP than Hazel and Augustus, Ron and Hermione and probably most of your favourite OTPs. 

The premise of this book was just so good. Like swear words good. So when I got an email from Pan Macmillan with the opportunity to read this book early, I nearly hit the roof. Yes girl, one million percent, yes. And to my shock, I actually got a copy. A beautiful proof copy with gold indent on the cover and a purple background. 

 However, when you get hit with a reading slump, one as momentous as mine has been this year, there is no telling what books you will be able to and won't be able to read, I think I've read half a book since August until I finally sat down and read this one. Yesterday. 

I've had this book on my shelf for months. Months. And I only read it yesterday.  

And I was blown out of the water. Over the hill. Far far away and all of that because this book is just so enchanting. There's something about a power play, especially between siblings, that I love and Kendare Blake writes it so well. It's enchanting. It's dark. It's kind of like Half Bad by Sally Green got punched in the face with A Song of Fire and Ice by George R R Martin (without all the other bits y'know what I mean.) 

However, my biggest surprise came as I snuggled up with this book, 6 cups of Lemsip and an episode of Doctor Who when my mum shouted up the stairs, "Are you expecting a book from that publishing company?" And my thoughts were immediately, "What?" THEY SENT ME A FINISHED ARSINOE THEMED BOOK PACK (see picture of book cover.) WHAT! They have themed covers for each sister and I got probably my favourite sister's cover. Although Katharine is anxious and Mirabella is hesitant to hurt her sisters, I liked Arsinoe the best. She was kind of against the system and I like the rebel behaviour. It speaks to the inner rebel in me! 

Overall, this is a brilliant book and I can't wait to see where Kendare Blake will take it. 

QOTD: If you had to pick between being a Naturalist, a Poisoner or an Elementalist, what would you choose and why? 

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You Know Me Well by Nina LaCour and David Levithan || Review

Title: You Know Me Well
Series: N/A, Stand-Alone
Author(s): Nina LaCour and David Levithan
Publisher: MacMillan Children's Books (Pan MacMillan)
Publication Date: June 2nd 2016
Pages: 256



I was sent a physical copy of this book, in exchange for a honest review, with thanks to the publisher, MacMillan Children's Books. 

Who knows you the best?

Your siblings?

Your parents?

Your best friends?

Does anybody really know us? 

On a wild night in the city with his best friend who he just so happens to be in love with, Mark runs into Kate who has just ran away from the opportunity to meet the girl she's admired from afar. They've sat beside each other everyday for a year in school, but they've never spoken to each other. 

These two teenagers have no idea how much they will grow to know each other in such a little time, and they realise that they know each other more than anyone else in their lives. More than their best friends, more than their family. 

This book follows these two characters as they face problems and challenges and we see this unlikely friendship blossom.

This was a really quick, fast paced contemporary. It was the type of contemporary that makes your heart warm and you really hope for the best for these characters. Sometimes, books with alternating views can be pretty hit or miss, but this book had a really great flow and it showed a great collaboration between Nina LaCour and David Levithan. 

This book, although it had it's hard hitting moments, was pretty lighthearted throughout. It had love, friendship and pride as the main themes. This night in the city acts as the catalyst for their friendship and it allows Mark to have the support of Kate when the best friend that he is love with, Ryan, meets a guy that he loves. Mark has to confront Ryan about these feelings between them and he has to decide if he's okay with just a platonic relationship, or if he needs more. 

Kate also uses Mark's support when she has to deal with college pressures, friend pressures and the chance to meet the girl she's loved from afar. Is she ready to deal with all of these things? 

My only issue with this book would be Kate's annoying best friend Lehna, let's just say I have no patience at times, and the body has 7 trillion nerves and she was getting on every single one.

I suppose this book could be deemed as coming of age as the characters have to learn to trust themselves, each other and their hearts and heads. This is a heart warming and poignant book that makes you follow each moment with expectancy and the best of wishes. 

This book is being released in June, and I deem it as a must-read for Summer 2016!

My final rating is 4 stars!

QOTD: Who knows you well? 

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Series Review: The Bonners Fairy Series

I received digital copies of this series in exchange for honest reviews, with thanks to the author, Elizabeth Patterson. 

The Bonner Fairy series follows twins, Haley and Henry, as they move to the town of Bonners Ferry and get more than they bargained for when they discover that the town has a rich history of magic. Through five adventures, we see the twins develop and grow in different ways, through magic, through love and through experience. 

Book One; Bonners Fairy 

 This book tells us about the history of the town that our two main characters are moving too, and how this town came to be, the tragedy that brought about the story behind those cries coming from the woods...When the town first founded, the founder's wife and children died, and he disappeared looking for them. Many think that the ghost of the founder, Zeb, is looking revenge for what happened to him and his family. 

Now, Haley and Henry have moved into Zeb's old house, and they have an itch for adventure. They soon discover that the wails are closer than they think, but so is the world of fairy's and this story is a lot more complex than they originally thought as they travel to the fairy world to reunite Zeb and his family, even though they got separated two centuries ago. 

I will be the first to admit that my knowledge of fae books is pretty limited. I haven't really got a lot of knowledge when it comes to them, but I do enjoy them a lot. I thought that the story of this book was so interesting, it was unique and the writing style was pretty much straight to the point. It was a good introductory book to this five part series. 

My overall rating of book one is four stars. 

Book Two; A New Kind of Battle

This book gets started a while after book one. Henry and Haley have been away from Roan for quite a while, but when Sersha gets hurt, they have to return to help Prince Valian who was also pretty hurt. Haley, who is completely in love with the prince, jumps at this opportunity but his nurse seems to be in the way quite a bit so she's all "He doesn't love me" Then he calls her bluff by proposing and even though it should be all happy it's not because the fae world is chaotic and they must all band together to face the issues being faced in the community. 

Sersha for me, was the shining star in this book, she showed so much character development and she really blossomed into a likable character. My main issue with this book was the proposal. I'm all for romance. Give me a cheesy romantic contemporary and I'm the happiest person in the world. However, I don't like when it's a character's main focus. And it became Haley's main focus which made her grate a little. 

My overall rating of book two is four stars. 

Book Three; Mischief and Mayhem

As much as I liked the first two book, this one is when we started to get answers, a lot of situations were left unanswered in the last two books and we finally get the sense of things coming together with this one. These answers helped me feel a lot more connected to the world of this book and I really enjoyed the characters a lot more in this one. 

With evil on the rampage, the twins again must help defend Roan. But I think that Henry may be my favourite twin, just because he was the one that we get to see the least. He wasn't really focused on in Book Two because of Haley and Valian, and I'm glad we got to know him more in this book. 

There was a lot more action in this book which I enjoyed a lot, it was so fast paced and it really helped to hold my attention. 

My overall rating of book three is four stars. 

Book Four; Sailing Toward Destiny

This one takes place partly on a ship, and I love ships, I love books based on boats, I love books at sea. I just love boats. So this one really captivated me as a sailor at heart. We follow the twins and the fairy crew as they head towards Medusa's Head in an attempt to find out what's happening in the world around them, and also finding out more about themselves. The twins are definitely older souls than their physical age of 17. 

But the whole age thing with Haley being engaged still bothers me slightly, I just struggle with the fact she's 17 and she's getting married to a supernatural being...I don't know, when I was 17, I was far too immature for all that. I still am if I'm honest. 

My overall rating of Book Four is four stars. 

Book Five; Secrets and Spies

I loved this book, it was definitely the best one for me. 

We see a lot of growth from Haley in this book, her and Valian get married, which I'm still not a fan of because of her age, but it led to them not being as lovey-dovey all the time, in a sickening way. It didn't take a higher priority than the storyline. 

The action in this book was ready-set-go. It was so fast paced that I was loving it immediately. The fairies and the twins were faced with an evil entity who wanted to essentially kill all the fae, and they had to deal with this as a team to protect their world. 

Another relationship posed as the only issue in this book...Henry and Sersha...I mean, come on. Introduce me to someone new. Not his sister in law. 

My overall rating of Book Five is four and a half stars. 

I would definitely recommend this series to younger teen readers, it's a really great gateway to fae books, and as someone pretty new to fae books, I really enjoyed this series!

QOTD: What fae books would you recommend? 

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Review: Cutter Boy

Please be aware that this book tackles the issue of self harm, if that is a trigger to you in anyway, it is the main theme of this book. Please stay safe. 

Title: Cutter Boy

Series: N/A, Stand alone (Possibly Sidestreets.)

Author: Cristy Watson

Genre: YA, Contemporary 

Publisher: Lorimer 

Publication Date: 12th February 2015

Pages: 176

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley, with thanks to Lorimer and Netgalley. 

Ignored at home. 

Bullied at school. 

Travis' only solace is found in a blade. 

It becomes his dependency to cope with how his parent's don't talk to him, how he has no friends, how his sister's live miles away. It takes away the emotional pain and replaces it with a physical pain that he can control. But every changes when he meets Chyvonne. She breaks the stereotypes of everything around her, she shines like a light, and Travis's parents seem to love her more than they love him. He even discovers a love for art that seems to relieve the urge to cut himself, and rather he cuts the paper.

But will his scars prevent something happening between them? 

Or can she help him? 

Books that tackle self harm are either a hit, or they are a miss. And in this situation, I think it was between the two. In some ways, it missed mainly in the fact it was quite short. However, the author answered a question saying that the publisher had a word count for these "Sidestreets" books at 25,000 words, so I think in the way she tackled this really tough issue in less than 200 pages in simply fantastic. 

I felt as if I was reading a full length novel. 

You immediately felt heartbroken for Travis, it's clear to why he feels so alone from the offset. His parents don't talk to him at all, they just talk to each other when he leaves the room and they seem to tiptoe around him just so they don't have to spend any time with him. His school bullies are also presented in a realistic, but incredibly brutal way. You almost can feel Travis's emotions as you're reading this book. You understand him. 

I just wanted the best for him throughout this book. 

The author arcs this book in such a way that you go up and down, you're sad, then you're happy. Then everything just seems so bleak, but then it gets happier again and towards the end, you can truly see a positive output for Travis. 

My favourite parts left me bittersweet, like when his dad lay in his bed and watched TV with him, or when Chyvonne found out about the self harm. 

My final rating is: 4 stars

If you're struggling with self harm, please don't be afraid to talk to someone about it. A teacher, a parent or a friend. There are anonymous forums and numbers you can ring to just vent about it. Please, stay safe, take care of yourself. 

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ARC Review: You Were Here

An ARC Review or a read to review book is one that was sent to me in exchange for an honest review, either from the author or publisher, but this in no way alters my review or thoughts on the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire. 

Title: You Were Here

Series: N/A, Standalone

Author: Cori McCarthy

Publisher: SOURCEBOOKS Fire

Publication Date: 1st March 2016

Pages: 400

My Rating: 4 stars

Jaycee wants to do what her older brother Jake couldn't do.

She wants to achieve the things he didn't by carrying on his daredevil legacy. 

On the anniversary of his death, herself and four equally messed up classmates break into an asylum, which was his favourite hiding place. And she discovers a map explaining all the dares and adventures he wanted to have before his untimely death. 

Jaycee vows to complete them all.

Even if it kills her too. 

She treats it as a way to get close to him, to feel his spirit with her as she goes through these dares with the help of the friends that she has pushed away over the years. Maybe just maybe, these dares will help her live...just as they helped Jake die.

I have mixed feelings about this book. 

Right, now hear me out. I loved it on one hand. Stories about dead siblings for some reason seem to appeal to me. I like the gritty recovery and the grief process. I love hearing about how people find their solace in what is ultimately, a terrible situation. 

So you would think I would be over the moon about this book. 

But I'm not. 

I liked it enough to give it four stars, and usually that means I'm borderline obsessed with it. But there just wasn't enough about the book for me to give it any lower. 

• The writing: Brilliant
• The plot: Brilliant
• The format: Brilliant

I loved the use of different mediums, first person, third person, graphic novel, graffiti. I loved it all. 

But the reason I didn't like this book to the moon and back? The characters. 

I hated them!

All of them!

Even Jaycee. She was reckless and idiotic. She planned to do the same thing that got her brother killed just because she missed him? Her parent's had already lost a child! She was still alive! Natalie was just self centred and really annoying in some places. Bishop, I hated the least. Mik, or Ryan, or whatever his name was, was simply just annoying. I didn't like him at all in the end. Zach was also pretty dumb. 

So good book, bad characters. 

QOTD: Do you like books about siblings who have died? (I've read a few and my favourite is probably The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson.)

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