The Crystal Princess, by Kimberley Norton

With the war between good and evil looming, Kelly must find the strength to harness her magical powers and summon The Crystal Princess inside her. 

Kelly lives the life of a typical teen in the suburbs of Southern California with her football star boyfriend and loyal best friend. It’s her senior year, and she’s looking forward to her eighteenth birthday. But her life totally changes when she’s abducted by her birth family, a family she didn’t even know existed. Meeting her mother and two sisters for the first time is almost too much for her to handle. Kelly learns she is a witch born from a coven of witches with special powers. She’s called back to help her family fight the evil, power-hungry witch, Victoria, and the Wizard Council, who want to destroy all that Kelly’s family holds dear before the Immortality Ceremony, a ceremony that will seal the girls’ fate and powers for all eternity. 

To make things even more complicated, Kelly falls in love with an Indian named Max White Bear. But because of a longstanding tradition, their relationship is a hard sell to the chief of the Indian tribe. 

With the war between good and evil looming, Kelly must find the strength to harness her magical powers and summon The Crystal Princess inside her.

It seems pretty covers are always lying these days.

On goodreads, the only other ratings are five stars. I gave it one.

I’m not sure why this is. Well, actually, and I don’t want to be mean or anything, I don’t understand how anyone thought it was worth five stars. I feel really bad saying that, because I got my copy from the author herself, and for free (all internet of course, I don’t know her personally).

Right, so, the blurb pulled me in a bit. I was really excited to read it. From page one, it was evident that this would not live up to my expectations. Complications arose from the structure and content of the writing.

a)      1. It was a young adult concept. There were teenage main characters, a teenage romance and supernatural powers is mainly young adult.

b)     2. It was written basic, flying between plot points without much explanation or description. Also, things happened incredibly fast and ridiculously cliché, which would only be acceptable for young kids, under ten years.

c)       3. The story was the length of a novella, but it was completely unsuitable. Novellas are for short stories that have a lot of points and characters to explain. Not for an idea that could have been a proper book.

Essentially, I loved the idea of the plot. However, it was completely ruined by the bad way in which it was written. I would have really liked to see this plot in a four-hundred-page book. In my opinion, expansion and extra writing skill would have been a huge improvement. There’s no need for specifics in this review; everything was underdeveloped.

I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone, personally, except possibly a ten year old girl.

My Rating: 1/5

P.S. If Kimberley Norton actually reads this, I don’t mean any offense, but this is my constructive opinion.

Giveaway coming soon! And...My Button :D

This be my button. :D
By the way, I shall soonish be hosting a giveaway of an unpublished "middle school" novella. It is called "The Spirit Archer", by Mike Evers and it is officially buyable on the 16th of March, which is tomorrow (or maybe the day after, depends on time zones). I have two ebooks to give away, a PDF and a MOBI file. Details at a later date, once I've posted my very own review...

Touch of Power

Laying hands upon the injured and dying, Avry of Kazan assumes their wounds and diseases into herself. But rather than being honored for her skills, she is hunted. Healers like Avry are accused of spreading the plague that has decimated the Territories, leaving the survivors in a state of chaos. 

Stressed and tired from hiding, Avry is abducted by a band of rogues who, shockingly, value her gift above the golden bounty offered for her capture. Their leader, an enigmatic captor-protector with powers of his own, is unequivocal in his demands: Avry must heal a plague-stricken prince—leader of a campaign against her people. As they traverse the daunting Nine Mountains, beset by mercenaries and magical dangers, Avry must decide who is worth healing and what is worth dying for. Because the price of peace may well be her life...

Touch of Power follows the fantasy adventure of a girl with a duty to humanity and a huge role in the political future of her world. It…

Ok, I’m lost. It’s so hard to review this book!

The important characters were developed beautifully, the context of the story was well thought-out and the dialogue was actually sort of believable! Isn’t that a rare find!

Reading this book, I feel like I’ve finally found the perfect female main character.

Note: Unlike this one…

Avry is smart and independent, with an instinct for escape and excellent powers of deductive reasoning, plus she can defend herself and has a romantic relationship based on way more than physical attraction.

One thing that stood out to me about this book was how not-boring it was. If you like action, this had sword fights, knife throwing and covert operations every chapter. Another thing was the thought that went into creating the villain, a psychopath with a back story that explains why he’s a psychopath. He also fits into the modern villain stereotype of having a likeable façade but something depraved about him that cancels it out, making him simultaneously attractive and repulsive.

Villain is kind of sexy. Romantic interest is too.

Anyway, if you like fantasy, LURRVE adventure and action and are looking for a read that delights your soul and practically turns its own pages (not to mention sexy villains and love interests), GET THIS BOOK IN YOUR HANDS.

I rate it 5/5!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Successful Friends, Absences and New Laptop (So It's Been Forever...)

Yeah, this isn't an actual post. However...THERE ARE POSTS TO COME!
I haven't really been bothered to review the books I've been reading since November last year, mostly because I didn't have a computer during the Australian Summer Holidays(!!!!!!!), due to the fact I had my laptop for school and had to give it back at the end of Year Nine. I was devastated, but thoughts of the new laptop I would be issued with in Year Ten (which, thanks to the good old Federal Government that I generally mistrust and dislike, came to me FREE OF CHARGE *ka-ching*) cheered me up.

After about a month of desperately trying to catch up on my Goodreads 2012 reading challenge (still six books behind) and attempting to plan a novel based off a script I already failed at writing, while also trying to learn what it is like to actually...like...DO things in REAL LIFE with my friends...like, on the WEEKEND...in PUBLIC...

Sorry. Getting off track.

Essentially, I have been inspired by the recent blogosphere success of my good real life friend Rosa, who has utilised blogging social networks and her amazing charm and talent to get, like, twenty, thirty new followers over the last week. She reviews books and hosts giveaways and cover reveals for publishers and alerts you to bargains on Kindle eBooks, all on her blog: www.far-past-midnight.blogspot.com

So, as I said, inspired by Rosa, I've decided to try and restart my blogging. I am currently reading three books:

1. Throne of Fire (Kane Chronicles #2), by Rick Riordan.
2. The Crystal Princess, by Kimberley Norton (I won this in a competition :D)
and
3. Touch of Power (Avry of Kazan #1), by Maria V. Snyder.

Needless to say, these books will be reviewed upon completion and the reviews posted here, on Goodreads and on my Tumblr.

Back soon with posts relevant to the title of my blog;
Ink-Winged.

ps

This is what I've been thinking about in my absence. Because I'm a weirdo like that. Holy Musical B@man will air on Youtube in April!!!! Starkid parody of Batman, it will be amazing!

Hades by Alexandra Adornetto

Jake Thorn and his demons have been banished and Xavier and Bethany settle down to resume a normal life. But on the night of Halloween, a childish prank goes terribly wrong and Jake is summoned back to the sleepy town of Venus Cove. Bethany is deceived and like the mythical Persephone she finds herself dragged into the nightmarish underworld of Hades.

While the angels call on higher powers to help rescue Bethany, Jake decides to play dirty and goes after the one thing she loves more than anything. But to spare Xavier's life, Bethany must make the ultimate sacrifice.

Will she make a deal with the Devil?
And what will happen to an angel in Hell?

What a disappointment.

My expectations for this book were at a fair height. The calm, small-town-by-the-seaside feel and orderly, sweet, though fairly uneventful plot of Halo were reasonably enjoyable, and at the time that I was reading it I was in love with it (later reflection has changed my opinion, but c'est la vie).

Hades was original, definitely. I really loved the whole deal with the seance, and the interpretation of Hell (or Hades) was refreshing and horrifying. I literally felt sick and panicky when I read about the tortures in the fiery pit and the demon orgies. Scary. Also, despite how overdone angels are in Young Adult fiction, it's rare to see a novel where the angels are actually a traditional, religious interpretation and on the God-side. It's not as sexy as FALLEN angels or whatever, but refreshing.

Character-wise, this had nothing going for it. Bethany is among the most annoying main characters I've ever read. She is silly and dependant. Her every thought is of Xavier and she always considers him when she makes a decision. She often says she can't live without him. She's an angel, not a human with wings. Yeah, I know the idea is that she is supposed to feel what humans feel and understands them, but she goes one step further than that- she's twice as oblivious as them.

I also hated the fact that she was always assuming that Xavier was thinking of her, like "I knew he was thinking about me...". She talked like she was omniscient, but she wasn't, and it really bugged me. Xavier himself was alright. He talks like a teenage boy. He acts like a teenage boy. But teenage boys usually aren't so deeply committed to their high school girlfriends (not being sexist, it works vice-versa too). I guess he's in too deep with Bethany to just be devastated but useless, like a normal teenage partner when the other goes missing. But still.

I don't understand how Molly could have a crush on Gabriel. He does not sound crush worthy. He sounds really "beautiful" and all, but also too distant to become attached to. I never saw the attraction. Ivy was more bitter this time, it wasn't consistent with the previous book.

Jake was the best character, because he has the most depth. He is unpredictable, selfish and cruel, but truly seems to care for Bethany.

As for the plot...well, it was original but completely ridiculous. It's the kind of plot where complications are solved too easily. There's not much more to say about it than that, not without giving too much away, except that stuff did happen in it. The storyline was never dull or idle, and that was enough to make the book "alright" instead of "not good". The "climax", however, was laughable. Literally, laughable.

Bethany's POV is irritating a lot of the time, because of her naivety and weak character. So, when she is still able to narrate what happens to Gabriel, Ivy, Xavier and Molly while she's in Hades and they're on Earth, you start to get fed up (also a product of "easy-problem-solving" mentioned above). If the book was split perspective, which I usually find annoying, it could have been improved.

All-in-all, I enjoyed the action in the plot, disliked the characters, liked Jake, thought the resolutions were too easy and thought that the whole thing was alright. I'll still read the third title in the series, "Heaven", because I like to finish things.

I would only reccommend this if you have already read Halo.
2/5

Two New Covers

These are also for inkpop projects: I was a Vixen is a poem I wrote and Chimes of Distress was something someone else wrote and I just made a cover. What do you think?

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

In general, Karou has managed to keep her two lives in balance. On the one hand, she's a seventeen-year-old art student in Prague; on the other, errand girl to a monstrous creature who is the closest thing she has to family. Raised half in our world, half in 'Elsewhere', she has never understood Brimstone's dark work- buying teeth from hunters and murderers- nor how she came into his keeping. She is a secret even to herself, plagued by the sensation that she isn't whole.

Now the doors to Elsewhere are closing and Karou must choose between the safety of her human life and the dangers of a war-ravaged world that may hold the answers she has always sought.

W-O-W

This book is totally different to anything I've ever read. I first heard about it when I watched a video recording of an editors' convention, where people from different publishing houses talked about books they were editing. Daughter of Smoke and Bone was one of these and I was absolutely ready to jump into it when the presentation had finished. Alas, I had to wait many months, but I have read it now and can tell you all about it.

Karou, the protagonist, is an amazing main character. She has a personality that definitely stands out from the Mary Sues and depressed girls that dominate the romantic young adult fiction scene. She's so independent and strong. She's good with knives and combat but isn't just a fighter girl. She's beautiful, but isn't incredibly shallow or vain. She wished for blue hair and the disappearance of skin afflictions, but we never really hear about her clothes. Her loyalty to Brimstone, the chimaera (more on that later) who raised her, is remarkable, though she still has the natural urge to disobey his orders so that she can satisfy her curiosity. Her background story is interesting and heart-breaking and makes perfect sense.

Akiva is not as good as Karou, character-wise. He's the typical guy-with-wings that you have to fall in love with because he's gorgeous and shows the ideal boyfriend material with his deep, brooding thoughts and amazing love for his girl. However, his story with Karou and his history with a girl called Madrigal are soulful and very non-boring.

Plot-wise, it was incredibly original. Apart from the fact that there were ANGELS, which we know are somewhat overused in young adult fiction these days, the mythology was basic but unique. Pretty much, there are the chimaeras- creatures that are a mixture of animal and sometimes human body parts- and the angels- who are simply winged people with great combat skill and some magic. These two races are at war in their world, Eretz. Humans aren't really essential to the story, except for the fact that Karou lives among them and Brimstone has portals leading from the human world to his magical shop of wishes. The wishes are the main part of the story, along with the fact that Brimstone buys teeth of all sorts from people in exchange for wishes. We don't find out a lot about the trades until the end. It follows Karou's search to discover who she is and to find her loved ones.

This story focuses on the idea that "magic" is dangerous and painful and that the real magic is in human will and hope. This theme is reiterated at regular intervals through the book, the power being demonstrated more and more as it occurs. It's incredible how characters can solve their problems through hope. Romance is explored, particularly the idea of love and fate being intertwined, but the good thing is that the plot doesn't focus on love entirely. It's sort of a secondary theme, in between the foreground and the background where it looks really quite nice. The lovers in the book have a beautiful chemistry and are pleasant to read.

This is an amazing read for teenagers and older. It hasn't got any flaws that I can conjure from the top of my head. There isn't really a lot that happens in this first book, except in some flashbacks, but you don't notice because of how engaged you are. If you like books with magic, romance and mythological creatures, this is a perfect addition to your "To Read" list. 


I rate it: 


5/5 


Laini Taylor is epic!