Category: Young Adult

ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker
Book Review: The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker

I think you all know how obsessed I am with Japan and Japanese culture by now. Though a lot of that interest is pop-culture focused, I’m both a history geek and a myth & legend fanatic at heart, so there are other areas I’m interested in too. This interest and my love of YA books meant that The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker was a must-read for me, and I was lucky enough to get an ARC through Harper360’s newsletter. I’m super grateful for this one, even if I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I hoped.

This book follows Ren, a half-Shinigami half-Reaper girl who has been living in 1890’s London her whole life. She was bullied for being different, and the only person who really cares for her is her younger half-brother, Neven. One day she injures another Reaper with her shinigami powers and has to go on the run. She heads to Japan with only her brother for company, desperate to become a Shinigami.

Continue reading “Book Review: The Keeper of Night by Kylie Lee Baker” →
Adult, books, Reading, tbr, Young Adult

Books I Want To Read Before the End of 2021

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books7 Comments on Books I Want To Read Before the End of 2021
Books I Want To Read Before the End of 2021

We’re in the final month of the year. I can’t believe we’re so close to the end of 2021! I’ve not yet completed my GoodReads challenge, and I’m not sure I’m going to, but that’s okay. I’ll just read what I can and see if I can manage it.

Today I want to list a few of the books that I plan on reading before the end of the year. I have another ARC to read, and I plan on reading a few Christmas books too, but I won’t be listing those today. These are just a few books from my physical TBR that I want to get to.

I’m not going to be listing them in any particular order. All of these books are in series. In fact, two of them are sequels, so I won’t be going into too much detail. But if anyone would be interested in a buddy read, let me know.

Continue reading “Books I Want To Read Before the End of 2021” →
Adult, books, Young Adult

Fae Book Recs Part 2!

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Fae Book Recs Part 2!
Fae Book Recs Part 2!

I posted a post with a few fae book recs a few months ago. I love reading about the fae and folklore. But I’m not interested in the typical Shakespearian inspired fae we often see. Courts are fine, provided there’s some fae variety, but that’s rare. I’ve been wanting to talk more about fae books, yet I’ve not really read any that advertise that they’re fae books.

So instead, I’m recommending a few books that feature the fae. These creatures might not be labelled as fae, but they’re folkloric creatures that can class as types of fae. Isn’t that fascinating? I’ve read and adored all the books on this list, so I recommend you check them out too.

Continue reading “Fae Book Recs Part 2!” →
ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Fall of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: Fall of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell
Book Review: Fall of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell

I said I was reviewing the first in the duology in preparation for reviewing this one, and I’ve finally gotten around to it! I adored this book so much, and I’m so honoured that I was able to participate in the bookstagram tour for this one. You can find my post and mini-review here.

Set months after the first book, Ferius has been living with Durrall and Enna. She was learning the way of the Argosi, but after making a mistake, she ran away. Now she’s stumbled upon a mysterious curse known as the Red Scream. With the help of an Argosi her own age called Rosie, she tries to hunt down the person spreading it.

Continue reading “Book Review: Fall of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell” →
ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen
Book Review: Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen

This is honestly one of the most beautiful books out this year. The cover is stunning and is the main reason that I was interested in this book. The plot did interest me too, but this was total cover love.

Skin of the Sea follows Simidele, who is one of the Mami Wata. She’s a mermaid who harvests the souls of black people who die in the ocean thanks to slavers. One day she comes upon a boy who is still alive, so she rescues him. She didn’t know it was against the rules and had to go on a journey with him to make amends for her mistake.

Continue reading “Book Review: Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen” →
ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood
Book Review: Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood

I’ve never read Jane Eyre before, but the moment I stumbled across Within These Wicked Walls, I knew I had to read it. This is a YA historical fantasy retelling of the famous novel set in Ethiopia. It’s fascinating, atmospheric and everything that I could hope for. But even I noticed that aside from a name and a fire, there wasn’t very much of Jane Eyre in it.

Within These Wicked Walls follows Andromeda, a debtera – or exorcist – who creates amulets to rid people of the Evil Eye. Her mentor had kicked her out so now she’s on the look for a patron, and Magnus Rochester is the only one who’s offering. His house is cursed and more dangerous than she expected, but as they slowly fall in love, she knows she would do anything to free him.

Continue reading “Book Review: Within These Wicked Walls by Lauren Blackwood” →
books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: Way of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: Way of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell
Book Review: Way of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell

It’s rare for me to review a book on here that I bought for myself. But I have a reason for posting a review for this one…that being that I’m on an Instagram tour for the second book! I’m very excited to get my copy and give it a read, and so I finally got my ass into gear and read this one! It had been in a few TBR piles, but when I had to cut the pile down for various reasons…it kept being the book I removed.

So this is the first book in a prequel duology to De Castell’s Spellslinger series. It follows Ferius, the Argosi mentor from the original books as a child, as she finds her way. Her goal is to hunt down and kill the mages who killed her family, but on her journey, she meets an Argosi wanderer called Durrall, who tries to teach her their ways.

Continue reading “Book Review: Way of the Argosi by Sebastien De Castell” →
ARC, books, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: As If On Cue by Marisa Kanter

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: As If On Cue by Marisa Kanter
Book Review: As If On Cue by Marisa Kanter

Contemporary and romance are what I’m in the mood for right now. I’ve had this on my NetGalley shelf for a while. And I loved the first book I read by Marisa Kanter, so I’ve been looking forward to this one.

As If on Cue follows Natalie, who wrote a play with her best friend, Henry. With the arts budget depleted, they hoped that by putting on their own play, they would be allowed. But when the school says no at first, Natalie and her friends decide to do something about it. They want the money that has been given to the band, and her childhood rival Reid is part of that group. They’re forced to work together and turn her play into a musical, and that’s when things get chaotic.

Continue reading “Book Review: As If On Cue by Marisa Kanter” →
ARC, books, middlegrade, Review, Young Adult

Book Review: A Hunter’s Moon by Danny Weston

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger BooksLeave a Comment on Book Review: A Hunter’s Moon by Danny Weston
Book Review: A Hunter’s Moon by Danny Weston

Every now and then, I get offered a book that I just can’t say no to. When I was contacted about a dark and creepy book where the main character is hunting a fae creature? Yeah, I had to have it. Thanks very much to Graeme for getting in contact and getting a copy in my hands.

Callum is Apprentice to Fraser McCloud, a man who likes to boast about his shooting skills. When the pair are hired to hunt a wolf that the locals claim is a Cù Sith, he doesn’t know if it’s safe. He can’t leave, and things will get worse before they get better.

Continue reading “Book Review: A Hunter’s Moon by Danny Weston” →
ARC, blog tour, books, Review, Young Adult

Blog Tour: Wicked Little Deeds by Kat Ellis

by Rosina @ Lace and Dagger Books1 Comment on Blog Tour: Wicked Little Deeds by Kat Ellis
Blog Tour: Wicked Little Deeds by Kat Ellis

I read Harrow Lake last year after hearing so many good things about it. I’d hoped for something creepy and intriguing, and I got that. I knew I’d be reading Kat Ellis again after that. And I’m glad to have gotten the opportunity to read her latest, Wicked Little Deeds (or Burden Falls in the US), for a Write Reads Tour.

Ava Thorn lost her parents a year ago and has been plagued with nightmares since. Her family is supposedly cursed by Dead-Eyed Sadie, and when someone she knows from school is murdered, Ava is the prime suspect. She can’t help but wonder if Sadie is the killer or if there’s a human murderer on the loose, but she knows that she has to find out who it was.

Continue reading “Blog Tour: Wicked Little Deeds by Kat Ellis” →