Review- Scent of Magic by Maria V. Snyder

Title: Scent of Magic
Series: Healer 
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Published: December 18th 2012
Book 2
(Sent by Harlequin Publishers) 
The Review for Touch of Power (Book One of the Healer Series) can be found here.
Avry is a Healer on a mission. Believed to be dead by friends and enemies alike, she must embark on a mission to stop King Tohon's evil deeds and repair the bond between her sister and herself. She and Kerrick must go their separate ways in order to save the Fifteen Realms. Avry intrudes on Queen Estrid's army in with a new name, look and title. She teaches the army forest skills, while at the same time, learns as much as she can about Tohon and his army of the undead. Close bonds are made between Avry and her fellow battle mates, war is brewing and betrayals are revealed, coming alive in the midst of trusted moments. 

I absolutely loved every single moment of this book. There was a new perspective introduced in the book which I thought only provided more depth to the characters and provided a new outlook on events taking place in the book. Avry seems more developed in this book than the first. She seems to be taking more risks, making her own decisions and doesn't back down from a fight easily. She has grown into and excellent character who allows the audience to relate to what she feels and does. The Death and Peace Lily's prove to have excellent use in this novel as it creates a MASSIVELY unexpected event to happen. It was excellently written and I have to commend the author on the many unexpected events, cliffhangers and developments made in this novel. 

The only thing more that I would've liked is to see more of the other types of magic in use rather than just seeing Avry's healing and Kerrick's forest magic. I also would've liked the first 50 or so pages to be a little bit more fast paced or to have a little more action included in them. Apart from that, the novel was a great read with an excellently written plot which the author allows the audience a personal link with each character. This book ended with the BIGGEST CLIFFHANGER EVER!!! All I can say is that the wait for the third book is going to be a hassle. Maria V. Snyder is an extremely talented author with an obvious passion for writing and I believe that this novel is one liked by many.

Overall, I cannot wait until the next book in the series as I am sure it will be just as great as its prequels. This book has a blend of everything you could wish for. Mystery, betrayal, war, magic, paranormal and much much more. I am sure most people loved it and are also eagerly awaiting the next book.

Rating 5/5

Review- Spellcaster by Cara Lynn Shultz

Title: Spellcaster
Series: Spellbound
Author: Cara Lynn Shultz
Published: April 1st 2012
Book 2
(Sent by Harlequin Publishers) 

After breaking a century-old curse, Emma Connor is glad to be with Brendan, safe and back to their normal lives-- for now. An old friend of Angelique's (Emma's best friend) called Megan is trying to break apart Brendan and Emma once again but this time for their blood. Megan used to also go to Vincent Academy and she is a witch just like Angelique. Megan left Vincent Academy and started travelling on a darker path. Megan has tried to break apart Brendan and Emma and even went to the extent of harming civilians  Will Emma and Brendan have trust in each other to continue? Will they beat Megan at her own game? And will Emma's newly found witch's powers prevail against Megan?

The first thing that I liked about this novel was that it was a lot more action packed compared to its prequel. In the prequel, there was a whole lot of romance and the action only began towards the end of the novel. In this novel Emma and Brendan face several obstacles that Megan has thrown into their paths to separate them forever. I also liked how we see a bit more magic in the book compared to the prequel. There are more spells performed, more characters introduced and more obstacles faced. The characters each have their opinions on everything and no two characters are alike. Randi (Angelique's cousin) is a beautiful blonde witch who helps Emma and Angelique in their path to defeating Megan, while Angelique is a character who has a darker nature (in terms of wearing black clothes and performing spells in her room with candles). Angelique also discovers a new and unique power that added extra interest in this book.

What I didn't really like about this book was how much romance it contained. Although it improved greatly from its prequel, this book still has a lot. Every couple of pages, Emma is enthralled with Brendan's beauty and Vice Versa. I also don't really like how slow-paced the book is. At times the book just drags on and nothing interesting really happens. Apart from these flaws however, the book would be a great read.

Overall, I believe that this book should be read by all who love the romance genre. Compared to the first book which I rated three stars, this book has improved in many ways and I expect that it will continue to improve.

Rating: 4/5

Review- Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder

Title: Touch of Power
Series: Healer 
Author: Maria V. Snyder
Published: December 20th 2011
Book 1 
(Sent by Harlequin Publishers) 
In the enthralling yet mystical tale of Avry, Healers were a hated race of people. They were believed to be the cause of the Plague that took the lives of a large part of the population in the world. They were hunted and treated like animals if they weren't already killed upon sight. Avry is a Healer, she has been running for several years, stopping from town to town and forest to forest. In one of the several towns she has visited, Avry offers to babysit a small child who is extremely sick. In the dead of night, Avry healed the child, absorbing the sickness into herself. Avry became weak with sickness and slept through until the remnants of the illness was out of her system. Her healing abilities allowed her to heal faster than any normal person and by morning, she was in perfect health. Instead of being grateful for the health of their daughter, the parents called soldiers upon Avry because they had a suspicion that she had healed their daughter. The soldiers rained upon Avry, capturing her and putting her in a prison cell while she awaited her execution. During the night of her capture, four men came and visited Avry, requesting her help to heal an important friend of theirs and in return, they would save her from her execution. Avry agreed and accompanied them on their journey to save the life of their friend. Throughout the journey, friendships were made, hardships were faced, battles were fought and betrayals were committed. 

I am going to begin by speaking about the characters. The protagonist, Avry, is extraordinarily created with the sheer talent, imagination and creativity of the author. Along with the protagonist, Maria V. Snyder has also created a talented group of characters that each are unique with different qualities. Aside from the characters, a number of exotic plants and animals have been newly introduced to the readers. Death and Peace Lilies play significant roles in parts of this novel as their properties are, on various occasions, used for different purposes. Towards the end of the novel, there are zombies introduced which gives this novel the extra genre of Paranormal and it makes it all the better. Maria V. Snyder has provided us all with another novel that we must add to our To be Read list.

The only minor thing that I didn't like was the fact that the novel was very slow-paced in various moments. Especially when the group was travelling, the plot of the story became repetitive at rare times but then it improved not long after. Despite these minor drawbacks, the novel was a complete success written by a talented author. 

Overall, I give this novel 5/5 outstanding stars as the plot of the novel was unlike any other that I have read and it was one of my favourites. Maria V. Snyder is an extremely talented author who is obviously passionate about her work and puts a lot of effort into producing an excellent novel.

Rating: 5/5

Review- The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

Title: The Girl in the Steel Corset
Series: Steampunk Chronicles 
Author: Kady Cross
Published: May 24th 2011
Book 1 
(Sent by Harlequin Publishers) 

In this binding world of Finley Jayne set out in 1897 England, she discovers that she has a darker side that likes to come out at the most inconvenient of times. At one stage, she was working for a famous young man in England who was the son of a Duke, and who was known to be a drunk that was extremely violent until Finley put a stop to that, the next she found herself crashing into the lives of an odd group that is trying to defeat the man that is trying to destroy the world; The Machinist. Griffin King, the Duke of Greythorne accepts Finley as one of "them" as he knows that there is something different about her, something that could either make or break his team/friends. Finley has the extraordinary power of strength and acute senses. She can throw a man across a room and even crush metal without putting in much effort. That is however, when her darker side takes over and she cannot control the squirming beast within her-- yet. This causes the team to drift apart even further than they already were and they will need to re-unite to save the world in time.

What I especially loved about this novel was the fact that there were several twists coming in from all directions and it caused me just to keep on reading. This was by far one of the most addicting novels I have ever read. The characters are described extremely well in each situation and the scene is also described perfectly which sent a clear image of what is being played out to me. The characters each have their own abilities, flaws and personalities but the one thing that they all have in common is the protective instinct for one another. This is the permanent theme of loyalty that stays between them no matter what the consequences.

I also absolutely loved the cover of this remarkable novel. It is vibrant and is inviting to readers. One of the reasons I wanted to read this was because of the cover. The cover captures the central image of the protagonist who is hiding half her face which indicates that she has a dark side as well as her normal side. I also loved the plot of this novel as it was extremely well planned and unique. I have not read a Steampunk/Historical Fiction novel as good as this in a very long time and it now sets the bar VERY high for others to follow. 

The one minor issue that I had with this novel is that there were small parts of it that dragged on and when the action parts arrived I felt relieved but also a little disappointed because the sections leading up to the action was not causing much excitement. 

Overall, I absolutely loved this novel, despite the minor faults. It really was a great pleasure to read and get to know the characters and their environment. This truly was a great beginning to what I am sure will be a much anticipated book series.

Rating 4/5