Author: Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books

My name is Rosina and I love talking about and reviewing books!
ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Castles In Their Bones by Laura Sebastian

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Book Review: Castles In Their Bones by Laura Sebastian

Getting an early copy of one of my most anticipated books of the year was such a joy. It was a book that I had to read as soon as I could get my hands on it and would have read in one sitting if I’d had the time. So I just read it in two instead. Considering that this book has 511 pages, that’s pretty impressive for me.

This is the first book in a new trilogy by Laura Sebastian. I loved her Ash Princess trilogy and also have a copy of Half Sick of Shadows to read at some point. I adore all her work and let me tell you, this book is definitely worth reading.

Castles In Their Bones follows three princesses: Daphne, Beatriz and Sophronia. They were raised by their mother to marry into specific countries, to lead them to war. Empress Margaraux wished on a star to have her daughters, and she trained them to bring down the other monarchies. Separated for the first time in their lives, the princesses all learn more about themselves and the very countries they’re supposed to bring down.

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Adult, book tag, books, Challenge, Reading, Young Adult

Top Ten Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2021

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books9 Comments on Top Ten Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2021
Top Ten Tuesday: New-to-Me Authors I Discovered in 2021

On my blog this year, I want to do more tags and challenges. They’re great fun and can be a way to be a little bit more social. This week I’m starting myself off with a meme, and that’s Top Ten Tuesday which is run by That Artsy Reader Girl. I couldn’t resist doing this week’s challenge as I want to talk about some authors.

So this list is a list of authors who already had books out when I finally picked them up. I’ll mostly be talking about the books I read by them, but some of them I’m definitely going to read more of.

I spent plenty of time going over my spreadsheet from last year to narrow this down. Many of the authors I hadn’t read before were debuts, and I didn’t want to include them. Something interesting I noticed was that a lot of these are contemporary or romance authors. That makes sense, as I did really get into reading those genres in 2021. I do kinda wish there had been a little more fantasy, so hopefully, that’ll change in 2022.

For now, though, let’s get on with the list.

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Making Bookish Friends

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books2 Comments on Making Bookish Friends
Making Bookish Friends

Ah, the internet! A wonderful place where we can talk about what we like and make new friends. Yeah, there can be nasty people and drama too. But if you’re awkward in real life, the internet can be your saviour.

The only problem is…how do you actually go about it?

It’s not like we generally go up to people and say let’s be friends anymore. That can be kinda weird. It takes time to make friends and with so many forms of social media, what actually counts? Following someone on Instagram or Twitter doesn’t make them your friend. Nor does commenting on their stuff regularly. You need to be talking to them a bit more than that.

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Reading

What Makes A Good Retelling?

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What Makes A Good Retelling?

First things first, this post is obviously subjective. But I’ve been reading a few retellings recently, and I’ve had some thoughts. We all love retellings but some tend to work better than others. Comparing the retellings I’ve liked and those I haven’t, there is definitely an aspect that they all share.

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Adult, ARC, books, Review

Book Review: The Wrong Suitcase by Laura Jane Williams

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books2 Comments on Book Review: The Wrong Suitcase by Laura Jane Williams
Book Review: The Wrong Suitcase by Laura Jane Williams

I’ve never read Laura Jane Williams before, but the plot of this novella sounded pretty cute. I thought this could be a great first book to read by her, and I think it was.

The Wrong Suitcase follows Izzy, who wants to let her hair down and really enjoy her university friend’s wedding, and Sam, who was dumped the morning he was due to travel to the very same event. At the hotel, their luggage gets mixed up, and they spend the afternoon trying to hunt the other down.

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ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Feather and Flame by Livia Blackburne

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books5 Comments on Book Review: Feather and Flame by Livia Blackburne
Book Review: Feather and Flame by Livia Blackburne

Like many people out there, I am a massive Disney fan. I adore many of the films with my entire being, and Mulan is one of them. The idea of this series is one that really appeals to me. Getting to see some of the Disney ‘princesses’ as Queens? Hell yeah! The first book – Rebel Rose – was a Beauty and the Beast sequel, and it just did not work for me. That did lead to me being a little concerned about how this book would read. Turns out I had no reason to be. I’d read Livia Blackburne before, so I knew this would at least be well-written, but it was perfect.

Set several years after the end of the first film, this book introduces us to a Mulan who has been training and leading a female militia in her home village. One day Shang stops by to ask her to come with him back to the Imperial City as the Emperor wishes to see her. As the series is the Queen’s Council, you can guess what the Emperor wishes from her and some of the struggles that are to come.

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Reviews & Tours – Things to Keep In Mind

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Reviews & Tours – Things to Keep In Mind

As I’m sure you’ve seen on here, I’m lucky to be someone who does get granted review copies and sometimes even gets to be part of book tours. It’s something that is still so exciting. Yet as I try to organise myself, I realise that I still make mistakes. I’m pretty sure that these are mistakes that we all make sometimes, so I wanted to write out a post sharing those things we should be keeping in mind.

Whether your review copies come from NetGalley, authors or tour companies, these are things you should keep in mind no matter where you’re getting your books from.

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Adult, Author Spotlight, books, spotlights

Lindsey Kelk: Queen of Chick-Lit

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Lindsey Kelk: Queen of Chick-Lit

If you’ve spoken to me about romance or chick-lit before, you’ll know I adore Lindsey Kelk. She’s one of my favourite authors ever, and I devour every book she puts out. It’s been a while since I wrote a post focused on one author. So today, I’m going to tell you a little about her books, tell you why she’s an excellent example of chick-lit and ask you to all check her books out if you haven’t already.

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ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review – These Deadly Games by Diana Urban

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Book Review – These Deadly Games by Diana Urban

Diana Urban is an author that I’ve read and enjoyed before, so I knew I had to check this one out. Her last book contained some twists that I did not expect, and plot-wise this one really intrigued me. I was lucky to get an e-arc of this book last year, and with it finally being out in February, it was time for me to get to it.

This book follows Crystal, a gamer who has hopes of entering a tournament this weekend and winning the money that would help her family. But after dropping her sister off at school, she receives a message on a mysterious app telling her that they have her sister and if she doesn’t play their game, they’re going to kill her. When the kidnapper’s games turn out to be deadly for her friends, Crystal tries to beat them at their own game and track down who it is.

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