From the Archives — Review: Few Are Angels Kindle Edition by Inger Iversen

This post is part of my new From the Archives series, where I revisit older reviews. Some will be unchanged, others will have a bit more added perspective.
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Title: Few Are Angels
Author: Inger Iversen
Series: Few Are Angels #1
Publication: May 28, 2012 by Inger Iversen
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal Romance
Find it on: Amazon
Read in: May 2012
Rating: 5/5★

War is raging between the Immortals and the Dark Prince’s army of half-breed vampires — and gifted Ella finds herself at the center. Can renegade half-breed vampire Kale keep her safe as their forbidden love awakens? After a fatal hit and run accident, Ella Monroe fears that she’s lost more than her beloved parents. Horrifying visions of a past life and a disturbing voice in her head have psychiatric professionals convinced that she’s lost her sanity as well. But when Kale--a dark and handsome stranger with a mysterious past--reveals the true meaning of her visions and the tremendous power she wields through them, Ella must come to terms with the devastating truths of her own past, while eluding an ancient Dark Prince who seeks to control not only her future, but all of mankind’s, by means of abilities that Ella is only beginning to understand. This paranormal romance told from the heroine’s perspective builds in intensity and intrigue to a finale you won’t see coming. Heart pounding action mixed with heartwarming friendships and heartbreaking romance will leave you breathless and begging for more.

Few Are Angels by Inger Iversen is one of the best books I've read lately. I loved every page of it. The book caught my attention right from the prologue all the way to the epilogue. It was that good. Beautifully written, with interesting dialogue and equally interesting characters. Iversen created an impressive world in her book that I would love to know more about. I felt myself not being able to stop thinking about Few Are Angels after I finished it. 

The story is about nineteen-year-old Ella Monroe, who after the death of her parents starts hearing a voice in her head and starts having visions she doesn't understand. Everyone thinks the loss of her parents is to blame. But we learn the visions as well as the voice are very real. When she meets the dark and mysterious Kale her world is thrown upside down. Through Kale she finds out what exactly the visions are and who she is and how the Dark Prince, Laurent is after her and her powers to use for evil. Enter Jace, an immortal who wants to bring Ella to the council to protect her and a best friend who develops feelings for her and wants to know what Ella is hiding exactly.Throw in some memories of a past life and you got an amazing story full of mystery, danger, new friendships and romance.

Few Are Angels was really well written and I could clearly picture all the characters and their surroundings which I think is really important in a novel. I loved reading about Ella. I could relate to her and wonder with her about what was going in her world.  She just wants to live a normal life without the visions and the voice in her head. She's cares for the Carltons, the people who she lives with now. And she tried her best not to hurt them with everything that's going on. One of the side characters I really liked was Sarah. She and her husband Eric used to be best friends with Ella's parents. So when they died, of course they took Ella in, which I thought was really nice of them. They have two other children. The younger Lea and Alex, who is Ella's best friend, but he's away at college in the first part of the story until he comes home for Thanksgiving. Alex. I really really liked him. He just sounded so cute and very protective over Ella. Of course you can guess how he develops feelings for her, which she doesn't know about. Typical best friend, unrequited love trope. I can't wait to see where that'll go in the next book. 

And then we have Kale Grey. Mysterious and dark Kale, who seems to have a lot of secrets. I fell in love with him from the start. How could I not? He's amazing. He keeps fightng his feeling for Ella but we all know he can't. They are meant to be together. Him, being a vampire also gives him that dangerous edge we see a few times in the story. I also was quite interested in Jace Vesco. He's incredibly sexy in my mind. He's kind of more a side character but I feel there's so much more to him. The way Jace and Kale can't stand each other is sort of funny. And I loved how Jace and Mia kept flirting. I liked Mia too. She seems vain and not nice at first but I bet that there's also more to her. The book also had a few POV's with Laurent. I loved them. To read what he is thinking and doing to get closer to Ella. There wasn't as much about him in the book of course but I have a feeling that might change in the second one.

The end I had seen coming from miles away. I don't know why I knew it would end like that but I don't really minded the predictability. I was freaking out too much for that. This is one of the reason I couldn't stop thinking about it. I keep wondering what's going to happen now, with not only Ella but all the characters. Alex, Mia, Jace, Kale...

The romance between Ella and Kale seemed a little bit rushed in the beginning, because after maybe two days Ella had serious feelings for the guy, but thinking about how they share a past it kind of fits for them. The romance wasn't overdone in anyway and I loved seeing them together.

I can' t say anything negative about this book because it was so good, other than that it ended to soon. It made me want more. All in all the book was wonderful. I enjoyed reading it so much even that I went back to reread a few scenes. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves books about vampires, immortals and people who just love paranormal books with a good romance.

Book Blitz: Nocturne by Tricia D. Wagner + Amazon Gift Card Giveaway (INTL)

Welcome to the book blitz of Nocturne by Tricia D. Wagner, a YA fantasy novel. Check out the excerpt below and enter the giveaway to win a $25 Amazon gift card (INTL).
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Nocturne by Tricia D. Wagner
Publication date: April 14th 2026
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

In NOCTURNE, sixteen-year-old Livi learns the truth of who she is—a Siren, her people known only to legends. She must learn to master her powers of influence, strength, and destruction to stop a warmongering Admiral from drafting her best friends, capturing and killing her people, and decimating her homeland of Nocturne.

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EXCERPT:

Livi stood before the tavern’s bleak threshold, its heavy door cobbled of wrecked ships.

She peered through its ragged window, quieting the wiser part of her, an inner voice calling for her to turn back. And truly, she was stunned that she’d mustered the daring to try this.

There were dozens of men here—sailors all brooding over their flagons, many looking to be harboring grudges.

The tavern’s splintery walls were studded with trophies—toothy payaras, dry in their death throes, tacked beneath golden portraits of infamous Korps Mariner ships and their dread captains.

The men frequenting this sand-dusted, fish-pongy tavern—The Orphic, were the sun-beaten sailors and damaged soldiers of Merritaine, mercenaries and relieved fighters who’d reached the shore of old age still breathing.

No one dared step a toe in The Orphic unless he bore epic tales—bloody acts of acclaim on the baleful blue seas.

Many here had killed. Some for honorable causes in noble wars, yes. But they’d killed.

For all their savagery, though, they were brave.

Livi had heard enough stories to understand them as uniformly dauntless and skilled. If anyone could help her skip Merritaine’s coast and reach Nocturne, he’d be drinking here.

Through the brume of pipe smoke, she measured each face for hints of affability. Or at least for traces of good humor—signs that someone might consider her offer. If she could just single out one sailor more approachable than not, perhaps she could move to him unnoticed.

But that wouldn’t happen. Women scarcely set foot here, and sixteen-year-old girls certainly didn’t.

A few of the sailors came across as jovial—but even they harbored an undercurrent of trouble in their looks, their ease striking like a gusty southerly bathing the seaside, forecasting a typhoon’s assault.

The afternoon seemed all at once to grow late, a shaft of misted sunlight sluicing through the windows and casting the place in watery relief.

In fixing on that panorama of ocean, Livi could almost see Nocturne’s peaks in the deep west, its moonstone shores marbled with the shadowy ash given by its volcanic chain.

Those heights, she had to reach. For it was said that Nocturne’s high places were hived with sea caves—chambers shining with waters rumored to have healing properties.

Some believed those springs could stave off even death.

Livi eased from her jacket a small jar of pearls, each perfect, as plump as a blueberry—these a mere sampling of the trove she’d collected. They ought to be more than enough to buy passage to Nocturne from someone here bearing the skill, and the gall, and the ship, and the time to set sail for the Isles, along with some assurance that he could ferry her through storms, over waters where lurked sharks and killer whales and squids that tore up boats, and finally beyond the dread Maelstroms.

Livi had imagined this moment many times—making her bold approach in The Orphic, striking a deal. She’d imagined that arriving at this brink would feel like the onset of her escape.

But in finally standing here, readying to approach men alleged to be the most barbarous in Merritaine, the idea seemed beyond reckless.

Célian, her best friend—maybe more—would be sick at the thought of her here. And truly, in darkening this threshold, she felt she was skimming the rim of the Maelstroms, those great whirlpools unceasing in their churning, twisting what strayed near straight down in a tempest, claiming ships and seafarers alike as a part of themselves.

The bright Merrow Ocean glinting in, though, delivered some steadfastness. For at the sight of its rolling, Livi could gather a sense of what it might feel like, teaming with someone here, cruising on his scabrous ship to the treacherous west.

A man seated at the tavern’s back corner stood out a touch.

He looked a decade younger than the rest, and he had all his limbs, which was saying something. He seemed not resentful, or affable, or angry—just somber. His solemnity made it clear that he wanted to be left to himself.

But it also lent an impression of patience. Maybe he’d listen.

She edged open the tavern’s door and crept in. She eased behind a column in the entryway and held still.

She’d have to get to the somber man quick. If she drew too much attention, the barkeep—a tall man, his eyes sharp to check all the action, his manner busy and swift with his bottles—would cast her out before she could lay down one word of her offer.

Or worse—he’d let the men handle the disruption.

Livi stepped from the shade, into the amber light of the tavern.

Author Bio:

As a young reader, writers were like gods and goddesses to now author Tricia D. Wagner. She never could have imagined weaving tales like her favorite storytellers, until a fateful April dinner conversation with her husband about a lecture he attended got her mind whirling. By the end of that summer, she’d written 400,000 words: a speculative fiction trilogy. Wagner felt as if she’d emerged from a cocoon as some new sort of creature. She was hooked.

It was important to Tricia to sharpen her skills, and she immersed herself in workshops, guides, and writing communities, learning from editors how to hone her craft. She did this for years, and the result is her newly released novella The Strider and the Regulus, two independently published novelettes, four soon-to-be published novellas, and five as yet unpublished novels. She found writing to be a method for becoming the person she felt she was born to be. Wagner finds that writing inspires her to be a better person, truer to herself.

The ideas and substance of Tricia’s writing comes from a very deep place that is strongly stimulated by setting. Often, when she has completed a story, she feels as if she’s been to her story world, whether it’s on the map or not. She likes to believe all the places she writes about exist somewhere, somehow.

In writing her stories, Wagner was surprised and delighted to discover how real the characters become to an author; that for many writers, their characters end up as their most treasured friends. She loves to delve into them to mine their natures, secrets, and desires—to tell their stories with the legitimacy they deserve. In studying her characters, she finds she has the opportunity to shape herself, inching closer to the person she wants to become.

Wagner believes revision is magical in its power to make a good book great, and early drafts are only the beginning of a story’s journey. Any idea can wind up a good story, but with reflection and time and improvement, it can become art. Once Wagner completes a revision project, it feels miraculous how many fresh approaches have manifested and how much truer the story feels.

Wagner hopes her readers feel enchanted when they read her stories; that after completing one, it seems they’re drifting out from under a spell. This is exactly how she feels when she finishes writing a story. She hopes to that her writing might expand their minds, spirits, and worlds a bit, and she hope they fall in love with her characters and are moved by her artistry of language.

When she isn’t writing poignant works of literary fiction, Wagner is a Director of Adult Education – ESL Programs at a community college, a job and staff that she loves. In her spare time she enjoys refining her writing craft to discover new angles and landscapes that might enrich her writing palette. One such example is a recent course she took in learning to read ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, something that’s sure to end up in a story at some point. Wagner lives in Rockford, Illinois, with her husband and three darling cats.

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Nocturne Blitz

ARC Review: Furyborn by Claire Legrand

Title: Furyborn
Author: Claire Legrand
Series: Empirium #1
Publication: May 22nd 2018 by Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Play | Kobo
Rating: 5/5★

Follows two fiercely independent young women, centuries apart, who hold the power to save their world...or doom it.

When assassins ambush her best friend, the crown prince, Rielle Dardenne risks everything to save him, exposing her ability to perform all seven kinds of elemental magic. The only people who should possess this extraordinary power are a pair of prophesied queens: a queen of light and salvation and a queen of blood and destruction. To prove she is the Sun Queen, Rielle must endure seven trials to test her magic. If she fails, she will be executed...unless the trials kill her first.

A thousand years later, the legend of Queen Rielle is a mere fairy tale to bounty hunter Eliana Ferracora. When the Undying Empire conquered her kingdom, she embraced violence to keep her family alive. Now, she believes herself untouchable--until her mother vanishes without a trace, along with countless other women in their city. To find her, Eliana joins a rebel captain on a dangerous mission and discovers that the evil at the heart of the empire is more terrible than she ever imagined.

As Rielle and Eliana fight in a cosmic war that spans millennia, their stories intersect, and the shocking connections between them ultimately determine the fate of their world--and of each other.

I don't know if I'm going to be able to find the right words to express my love for Furyborn. Obviously it was amazing because otherwise I wouldn't have rated it with five stars. So yes it was amazing, well written, action-packed and full of twists. The perfect fantasy book, in my opinion. 

The book was basically two stories in one. First of all we have Rielle Dardenne who's been keeping her power over all seven elements secret for years until she has to safe her best friend who's also the crown prince of Celdaria. 
Second, we have Eliana Ferracora who lives a thousand years later where the tale of Rielle is nothing but a story. Eliana is an assassin for the Undying Empire until her mother disappears without a trace and she joins the rebels to find her.

I absolutely loved these two stories in one. We know from the start that Rielle's story doesn't have a happily ever after but with each chapter that revolves around her we get more and more of her story, which was truly epic. Eliana's story was equally riveting, I thought. I love reading books feauturing female assassins so I must say that my preference went out to Eliana in the end. But I really did enjoy reading about both of them. The story in itself was also really fascinating with how power like Rielle possessed it could go both ways, good or evil.

I also wanna say that the secondary characters in this book were fantastic as well. I have some favorites like Simon (I ship the hell out of him with a certain assassin...) and I also totally loved Zahra, who came a bit later into the story but that doesn't mean she wasn't amazing. The story definitely had a great cast of characters in general, even the villains like Corien who I thought was really fascinating. I'm sorry but the bad boys steal my heart. And another thing... angels. I don't want to give too much away but this book features angels. And everyone who knows me just a little bit knows I'm not a fan of books with angels but damn these angels. They're something else. I was simply hooked.

At the start of the book I hadn't expected Furyborn to end up in my top five of favorite books that I read in 2017. The book doesn't release until May 2018 so the wait for the sequel is going to be absolutely horrible but I'm sure it'll be worth the wait because I'm super excited to see how it will all continue.

{Another thing I want to mention but that has nothing to do with Furyborn is that in 2014 I read another book by Claire Legrand: Winterspell, a retelling of The Nutcracker story. And yes, it was as amazing as it sounds so I'd also highly recommend that book.}

Author bio:
Claire Legrand used to be a musician until she realized she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories in her head. Now she is a writer and librarian living in central New Jersey (although her heart will always live in her home state of Texas).

Her first novel is The Cavendish Home for Boys and Girls, one of the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2012. She is also the author of The Year of Shadows, a ghost story for middle grade readers; and Winterspell, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker. Some Kind of Happiness, her middle grade novel about mental illness, family secrets, and the power of storytelling, is a 2017 Edgar Award Nominee. Claire’s latest novel, Foxheart, is a classic fantasy-adventure and a 2016 Junior Library Guild selection. She is one of the four authors behind The Cabinet of Curiosities, an anthology of dark middle grade short fiction that was a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Book, and among the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2014.

Her work is represented by Victoria Marini of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency.
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Review: Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer

Title: Letters to the Lost
Author: Brigid Kemmerer
Publication: April 6th 2017 by Bloomsbury Children's 
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Google Play | Kobo
Rating: 5/5★

Juliet Young has always written letters to her mother, a world-traveling photojournalist. Even after her mother’s death, she leaves letters at her grave. It’s the only way Juliet can cope.

Declan Murphy isn’t the sort of guy you want to cross. In the midst of his court-ordered community service at the local cemetery, he’s trying to escape the demons of his past.

When Declan reads a haunting letter left beside a grave, he can't resist writing back. Soon, he’s opening up to a perfect stranger, and their connection is immediate. But neither of them knows that they're not actually strangers. When real life at school interferes with their secret life of letters, Juliet and Declan discover truths that might tear them apart. This emotional, compulsively-readable romance will sweep everyone off their feet.

Letters to the Lost ended up being my new favorite book by Brigid Kemmer. This is saying a lot because I don't read a lot of contemporary YA, it's just not a favorite genre of mine. And also before I read this amazing book her Elemental series was my favorite. So yeah, Letters to the Lost completely stole my heart!

Like I said I don't read a lot of contemporary YA but when I do it's most likely to be a pen pall romance, like this book. I don't know why but I love those type of romances most of all. But with this book I think it's extra special. 

I adored the main characters right away. I loved how Declan and Juliet first started writing each other letters and later on they switched to texting. I really had a soft spot for Declan because I could just feel how bad he felt inside with everything that happened to him. Don't get me wrong, I loved Juliet as well. Her story as well as Declan's was quite tragic but I don't know... there was just something about Declan that I connected with.

I was not surprised to see that there was also a really great cast of secondary characters because I'm used to that from a book by this author. But damn, I loved some of those characters so much. I'm probably not the only one who thought Rev was their favorite secondary character, right? I loved him so much and I can't wait to read his book, More Than We Can Tell. 

Letters to the Lost by Brigid Kemmerer is not just a romance. There's so much more to it. There's family, there's friendship. Grief. Loss. The story was sweet and heartbreaking all at once. It was quite a rollercoaster for me. But I loved it all.  

About Brigid
BRIGID KEMMERER is the author of LETTERS TO THE LOST (Bloomsbury; April 4, 2017), a dark, contemporary Young Adult romance; THICKER THAN WATER (Kensington, December 29, 2015), a New Adult paranormal mystery with elements of romance; and the YALSA-nominated Elemental series of five Young Adult novels and three e-novellas which Kirkus Reviews calls “refreshingly human paranormal romance” and School Library Journal describes as “a new take on the supernatural genre.” She lives in the Baltimore area with her husband and four sons.

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Review: Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

Title: Wonder Woman: Warbringer
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Series: DC Icons #1
Publication: August 31st 2017 by Penguin Books Ltd
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo | Book Depository
Rating: 3/5★

She will become a legend but first she is Diana, Princess of the Amazons. And her fight is just beginning...

Diana is desperate to prove herself to her warrior sisters. But when the opportunity comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law to save a mere mortal, Alia Keralis. With this single heroic act, Diana may have just doomed the world.

Alia is a Warbringer - a descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery. Diana and Alia will face an army of enemies, mortal and divine, determined to destroy or possess the Warbringer.

To save the world, they must stand side by side against the tide of war.

So... eh. I'm a bit disappointed with Wonder Woman: Warbringer. This book was so hyped and it's written by Leigh Bardugo (I love all her other books) so I had expected to totally love it but I obviously didn't. I feel like I missed something in it that everyone else did see. Did I like it? Yes, I did but I had expected more from the story and the characters. 

I actually really liked Diana. She was wonderful and I really enjoyed reading about her. I also liked all the mythology stuff, which is no surprise if you know me just a little bit. And the story in general was also pretty good, in my opinion. Honestly, I wish it had focused just a little bit more on Diana.

So with all of these possitive things why didn't I like this book more? Well, I actually couldn't give a damn about any of the other characters (aside from the Amazons). Alia, Nim, Theo, Jason... I just didn't care about them. Sure, they had their moments and I enjoyed their banter but other than that I was all "meh" about them. 

I do have to mention that the big plot twist was pretty good. I hadn't seen it coming at all and that's always a good thing for me. This character in particular took me by surprise in that way. I have to give some points for that. 

All in all, Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo was an okay read. Nothing spectacular and true, I was slightly disappointed but it had some good moments for sure and I adored Diana.  

About Leigh:
Leigh Bardugo is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of fantasy novels and the creator of the Grishaverse. With over one million copies sold, her Grishaverse spans the Shadow and Bone Trilogy, the Six of Crows Duology, and The Language of Thorns— with more to come. Her short stories can be found in multiple anthologies, including The Best of Tor.com and the Best American Science Fiction & Fantasy. Her other works include Wonder Woman: Warbringer, and the forthcoming Ninth House. Leigh was born in Jerusalem, grew up in Southern California, graduated from Yale University, and has worked in advertising, journalism, and even makeup and special effects. These days, she lives and writes in Los Angeles, where she can occasionally be heard singing with her band.

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Review: Iron Man: The Gauntlet by Eoin Colfer

Title: Iron Man: The Gauntlet
Author: Eoin Colfer
Publication: October 25th 2016 by Marvel Press
Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 4/5★

Tony Stark is known throughout the world as many things: billionaire, inventor, Avenger. But mainly for being the Invincible Iron Man.

Just when Tony is about to add his pizzazz to an international eco-summit in Ireland, someone close to him forces him to question his role in making the world a more dangerous place with his high-tech weaponry. But Stark doesn't have much time to reflect before an old enemy presents him with an even greater challenge: the assassination of all the eco-ministers, and Iron Man himself. Just how invincible Iron Man is when he is stripped of everything remains to be seen in this breathless adventure by the bestselling author of Artemis Fowl.

Honestly, I don't know how to review this book. First of all, since Eoin Colfer is my favorite author ever I should've read this book ages ago but other books kept coming in between. And then it took me ages to post this review. I know, shame on me! Second, it was so very awesome. Just like I had hoped. 

I don't want to get too much into the story because then I'd be giving too much away for sure but I can say that it's partly set on Little Saltee, which is obviously is very familiar (fans of his other books will totally get this!!!). I felt like a lot of Colfer's personality was definitely written into Tony Stark. So you can imagine the snark and wit was so very much on point. 

I don't knwo why but I felt like it also had a lot of Artemis Fowl vibes. Another reason why I enjoyed this story so much. It's classic Colfer! I can't tell you enough how many times I laughed out loud. It was really hilarious.

Overall, Iron Man: The Gauntlet was yet another great read by Eoin Colfer. Funny, with a lot of high-tech action as usual and unforgetable and witty characters, it's a must-read for young and old.

About Eoin:
Eoin Colfer (pronounced Owen) was born in Wexford on the South-East coast of Ireland in 1965, where he and his four brothers were brought up by his father (an elementary school teacher, historian and artist of note) and mother (a drama teacher). He first developed an interest in writing in primary (elementary) school with gripping Viking stories inspired by history he was learning in school at the time!

After leaving school he got his degree from Dublin university and qualified as a primary school teacher, returning to work in Wexford. He married in 1991 and he and his wife spent about 4 years between 1992 and 1996 working in Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Italy. His first book, Benny and Omar, was published in 1998, based on his experiences in Tunisia; it has since been translated into many languages. A sequel followed in 1999, followed by some other books (see below). Then in 2001 the first Artemis Fowl book was published and he was able to resign from teaching and concentrate fully on writing.

He says, “I will keep writing until people stop reading or I run out of ideas. Hopefully neither of these will happen anytime soon. He lives in Ireland with his wife and two children.

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Review: Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter

Title: Cleopatra's Moon
Author: Vicky Alvear Shecter
Publication: January 1st 2013 by Arthur A. Levine Books 
Genre: Historical Fiction ~ Young Adult
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 4/5

PRINCESS OF EGYPT
Cleopatra Selene is the only daughter of the brilliant Queen Cleopatra of Egypt and General Marcus Antonius of Rome. She's grown up with jewels on her arms, servants at her feet, and all the pleasures of a palace at her command, and she wants only to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a great and powerful queen.

PRISONER OF ROME
Then the Roman ruler Octavianus, who has always wanted Egypt's wealth, launches a war that destroys all Selene has ever known. Taken to live in Octavianus's palace in Rome, she vows to defeat him and reclaim her kingdom at all costs. Yet even as she gathers support for her return, Selene finds herself torn between two young men and two different paths to power. Will love distract her from her goal-or help her achieve her true destiny?

Epic in scope and ravishing in detail, this novel reveals the incredible life of a girl long hidden in history: the remarkable Cleopatra Selene.

Novels set in ancient Egypt and ancient Rome are some of my favorites to read about (any book set in ancient times is absolutely my thing) so I was pretty hooked by this story. Cleopatra Selene isn't a person in history that I've seen many books about so I'm really happy I finally read this one. It was such a great story and I was so glad it had a happy ending.

I do have to admit that the start was a little slow. It took my a couple of chapters to really get into the story. But it wasn't long before I fell in love with it. I loved how the author wrote Cleopatra Selene and how great her character developement was. 

I also felt so bad for all the things she and her brothers went through after her parents (Cleopatra VII and Marcus Antonius) died and when they were taken to Rome to live in Octavianus's palace. Things definitely weren't easy for them. Cleopatra Selene is definitely a character I won't forget anytime soon. 

Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter is a book I would highly recommend for fans of historical fiction, especially for readers that love books set in the ancient world as much as I do. The story is really great, the writing is excellent and I would also recommend to read the author's note on the historical facts. It's so interesting! 

Check out my reviews of Vicky Alvear Shecter's other books:

Curses and Smoke: A Novel of Pompeii — 5 stars

Anubis Speaks! A Guide to the Afterlife by the Egyptian God of the Dead — 5 stars

Hades Speaks! A Guide to the Underworld by the Greek God of the Dead — 5 stars

Thor Speaks! A Guide to the Realms by the Norse God of Thunder — 4 stars

A Day of Fire: A Novel of Pompeii — 5 stars (Part one: The Son)

A Year of Ravens: A Novel of Boudica's Rebellion — 5 stars (The Druid)

Vicky Alvear Shecter is the author of multiple books set in the ancient world, including the YA novels, CLEOPATRA'S MOON, based on the life of Cleopatra's only daughter, and CURSES AND SMOKE: A NOVEL OF POMPEII and the adult historical collaborations, A SONG OF WAR, A YEAR OF RAVENS, and A DAY OF FIRE. She has written a mid-grade series on mythology (ANUBIS SPEAKS, HADES SPEAKS, and THOR SPEAKS) as well as two award-winning biographies for kids. She a She is a docent at the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Antiquities at Emory University in Atlanta.
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Review: Now I Rise by Kiersten White

Title: Now I Rise
Author: Kiersten White
Series: The Conqueror's Sage #2
Publication: June 27th 2017 by Delacorte Press
Genre: Historical Fiction ~ Young Adult
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Rating: 5/5

Lada Dracul has no allies. No throne. All she has is what she’s always had: herself. After failing to secure the Wallachian throne, Lada is out to punish anyone who dares to cross her blood-strewn path. Filled with a white-hot rage, she storms the countryside with her men, accompanied by her childhood friend Bogdan, terrorizing the land. But brute force isn’t getting Lada what she wants. And thinking of Mehmed brings little comfort to her thorny heart. There’s no time to wonder whether he still thinks about her, even loves her. She left him before he could leave her.

What Lada needs is her younger brother Radu’s subtlety and skill. But Mehmed has sent him to Constantinople—and it’s no diplomatic mission. Mehmed wants control of the city, and Radu has earned an unwanted place as a double-crossing spy behind enemy lines Radu longs for his sister’s fierce confidence—but for the first time in his life, he rejects her unexpected plea for help. Torn between loyalties to faith, to the Ottomans, and to Mehmed, he knows he owes Lada nothing. If she dies, he could never forgive himself—but if he fails in Constantinople, will Mehmed ever forgive him?

As nations fall around them, the Dracul siblings must decide: what will they sacrifice to fulfill their destinies? Empires will topple, thrones will be won . . . and souls will be lost.

Now I Rise was more than a worthy sequel to And I Darken. Things were definitely way more intense in this one, I must say. But the story was just magnificent. I absolutely loved it!

There's something I want to say first before getting around to the rest of my review. I know a lot of people think these books are fantasy. It is definitely not. It does not have a single fantasy element. To remind everyone, it's about a gender-swapped Vlad the Impaler and it's (mostly) set in the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century with events happening that actually took place. 

So let's be honest, Lada is one of the most brilliant main characters out there right now. She is terrible and terrifying and I absolutely love her for that. In this book she was quite brutal in how she would do anything to secure the Wallachian throne, which is exactly what she did. A lot of the things she did were really questionable but I wouldn't expect any less from her. 

Radu was probably my favorite character this time around. I felt like he was in the spotlight a lot more in this book than his sister. His part mostly takes plays in Constanstinople where Mehmhed has send him to be a spy. His wife Nazira comes along with him, which I thought was a very good idea. Although their relationship is purely platonic, I love their dynamic. But it sure wasn't easy everything he went through in Constanstinople and playing a double agent. 

A lot of the secondary characters were really great to read about as well. I already mentioned Nazira but I also liked the new character of Cyprian who ended up being friends with Radu and ultimately they both broke my heart... With Lada I really liked that Bogdan remained so loyal to her. I actually really like all of Lada's men who follow her. Their loyalty was something Lada really needed. Mehmhed wasn't a lot around in this book because the most part took place away from him so I don't actually have a lot to say about him. 

Overall, Now I Rise was every bit as amazing as And I Darken Was. Maybe even a little bit more so. I have said it before and I will say it again, these books are Kiersten White's best work so far. I can't wait for the next book!

Kiersten White is the New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken, Now I Rise, the Paranormalcy trilogy, the Mind Games series, The Chaos of Stars, Illusions of Fate, In the Shadows with artist Jim Di Bartolo, and the upcoming Beanstalker and Other Hilarious Scarytales. Kiersten lives with her family in San Diego, California.
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