Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White

Illusions of Fate by Kiersten White
Release Date: September 9, 2014
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 288
Series: n/a
Review Source: Edelweiss

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Downton Abbey meets Cassandra Clare in this lush, romantic fantasy from New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White.

“I did my best to keep you from crossing paths with this world. And I shall do my best to protect you now that you have.”

Jessamin has been an outcast since she moved from her island home of Melei to the dreary country of Albion. Everything changes when she meets Finn, a gorgeous, enigmatic young lord who introduces her to the secret world of Albion’s nobility, a world that has everything Jessamin doesn’t—power, money, status…and magic. But Finn has secrets of his own, dangerous secrets that the vicious Lord Downpike will do anything to possess. Unless Jessamin, armed only with her wits and her determination, can stop him.

Kiersten White captured readers’ hearts with her New York Times bestselling Paranormalcy trilogy and its effortless mix of magic and real-world teenage humor. She returns to that winning combination of wit, charm, and enchantment in Illusions of Fate, a sparkling and romantic new novel perfect for fans of Cassandra Clare, The Madman’s Daughter, and Libba Bray.

My Thoughts:
By now it’s pretty much a guarantee that I’ll enjoy a Kiersten White book, so I was looking forward to this one, especially when it seemed so lush and romantic. It definitely had that feel to it, and I loved the historical aspect of it too, with all the dresses and formal balls, etc. This book has such a depth to it, with a big theme being colonialism. I had no idea this would be a part of the book, and so pervasive, too. I love reading about these types of dialogues, not that I like the situation, but they’re so interesting with the dynamic of the oppressor and the oppressed. I really appreciated what Kiersten included about the oppressed people trying to hang on to their culture, and what happens with that generation of people who were born under a colonial type of rule. What is their identity when they have a cultural background but are raised under another society’s customs?

With all of this going on in the background you might expect a dark book, but it really isn’t. Despite everything bad going on there’s still a light cheerfulness that Kiersten manages to insert into all of her books. One of the bigger aspects of the book is MAGIC, which is a lot of fun. This is centred around Finn, a mysterious figure who turns out to be a handsome lord torn between two cultures himself. I don’t think it’s too much of a spoiler to say that Finn and Jessamin have a sweet romance with an instant kind of connection between them. Considering their relationship is based on a certain kind of fate, it could easily have become a “you’re made for me, it’s fated” type of thing, which I generally dislike, because it means the characters have no agency. I was incredibly pleased when this wasn’t the case. There was a truly sweet courtship and slow connection between Finn and Jessamin, despite the crazy circumstances.

Illusions of Fate is a great book full of magic, friendship, romance, cultural differences, action, and so many other awesome things. I definitely recommend it, and I’m excited to see what comes next from Kiersten White.

The Cover:
I adore it!! So completely gorgeous.

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

As Long As You Love Me by Ann Aguirre

As Long As You Love Me by Ann Aguirre
Release Date: September 30, 2014
Publisher: Harlequin HQN
Pages: 352
Series: 2B Trilogy #2
Review Source: Netgalley

Synopsis: (from Goodreads)

Most people dream about getting out of Sharon, Nebraska, but after three years away, Lauren Barrett is coming home. There are the justifications she gives to everyone else—missing her family, losing her college scholarship. And then there’s the reason Lauren can’t admit to anyone: Rob Conrad, her best friend’s older brother.

Football prowess and jaw-dropping good looks made Rob a star in high school. Out in the real world, his job and his relationships are going nowhere. He can’t pinpoint exactly what’s missing until Lauren comes back to town, bringing old feelings and new dreams with her. But he’s the guy that women love and leave—not the one who makes them think of forever.

Though she’s terrified of opening up, Lauren’s ready to take that chance. Because the only thing more important than figuring out where you truly belong is finding the person you were meant to be with.

My Thoughts:
I loved Ann Aguirre’s first New Adult romance, I Want It That Way, so I was very excited to read As Long As You Love Me. I also adore the “best friend’s older brother” type of romance, so that automatically made excited for this one. I have to say, the book really lived up to the total swoon I was expecting.

Lauren has loved Rob for forever, basically, and it’s easy to see why. He’s gorgeoussssss and muscular from working with his hands for a living, but -- most importantly -- he is incredibly sweet. I loved getting to know him, and I loved the rapport between him and Lauren. The beginning part of the book was actually my favourite because it’s so much about Lauren letting Rob see himself for who he truly is. It was pretty amazing to see the hero as the one with the vulnerabilities and insecurity, since it’s usually the heroine who’s like that. I loved how Lauren helped Rob’s self esteem, teaching him to ignore how people have treated him (pretty but dumb) and to embrace the smarts and talent that he has.

Before beginning this book I had read on Twitter that Ann tried to subvert the “evil ex” trope. When we first meet Avery I had a hard time believing that. You definitely hate that she’s with Rob and wonder why on earth he would put up with her, etc. But then there’s a turning point, and I don’t think it’s too spoilery to say that Avery becomes this cool character who changes a lot. You get to see her back story and why she’s acted the way she has. It doesn't make her actions right, but it explains them, and you get to know the real her who is pretty amazing.

Even if the general story line fits New Adult and Romance tropes, I like that Ann is telling different kinds of stories. Most NA books are about college away from home, about branching out and moving away. Lauren’s story, on the other hand, is about coming home and moving back with her mom in her small hometown. I really liked that difference, how Lauren wasn't afraid to claim her home and realize that it was where she wanted to be.

There’s another turning point in the book, a twist of sorts, that I think I can talk about in (somewhat) vague terms without spoiling too much. I’m really not a fan of the hero or heroine sacrificing themselves for the good of their partner, by which I mean they push the person away for “their own good”. I was really MEH on this part of the book, which is the only reason it’s not another five star read.

For the most part, though, As Long As You Love Me is just as swoony and lovely as the first book. As I’ve said, Ann is great at taking things and turning them upside down, taking the cliches or tropes of the genre and making them different. She’s amazingly talented at making her characters feel like real people. If you’re looking for an emotionally honest New Adult romance, I would definitely recommend Ann’s books to you.

The Cover:
Like!

Rating:
[4/5]

Purchase Links:
Kobo | Amazon.ca | Amazon.com | Chapters-Indigo | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

Outlander TV Review

I read Outlander by Diana Gabaldon in August 2013, a couple of months after it was announced the show had been picked up and around the time the actors were being cast. It was the talk on Twitter and on book blogs that got me interested in this book, and in watching the TV show, which is why I think it's pretty cool that Shaw Media reached out to me and other book bloggers to review the TV show.

If you haven't heard of the show or don't know the specifics, here's a little about it:

Outlander follows the story of Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who is mysteriously swept back in time to 1743 Scotland, where she is immediately thrown into an unknown world and her life is threatened. When she is forced to marry Jamie Fraser, a chivalrous and romantic young Scottish warrior, a passionate relationship is ignited that tears Claire’s heart between two vastly different men in two irreconcilable lives.

By now I've watched all the episodes that have aired in Canada, but to give you a taste of the show here are my thoughts on the first two episodes.

Episode 1: Sassenach

I thought this was a good introduction episode. It might be a bit slow at first if you haven't read the book and don't know what's coming, but it's hard to say. It needed those set up moments, and there's definitely a sense of "something's going to happen". I thought they did a good job of showing Frank and Claire, how there's true affection and desire between them, but also some distance in their marriage.

There were definitely a few parts of the episode that were very convenient and foreshadow-y, like of course she knows all about botany and the medicinal application of plants and of course she's an ultra-special "not your typical 1940s female", growing up with her archaeologist uncle, etc. These aren't the fault of the show, as I felt the same way while reading the book, I think they just jumped out a bit more when they were presented as voice over and asides within the limited show time.

Overall my impression was quite a positive one. The scenery is just GORGEOUS and they did a great job of showing it off. The casting seems spot-on: I liked what we've seen of the actors so far. Caitriona Balfe has the perfect spunk for Claire, and Sam Heughan is -- let's face it -- gorgeous, but more importantly, he seems just right for Jamie.

Sassenach is definitely an intro episode, giving us just a hint of what's to come, but that was exactly its job. Most importantly, the glimpse it provided was one I really liked. It's always interesting to see a book come to life, to see the vision of the producers and the director, and I enjoyed watching this first episode.

Episode 2: Castle Leoch

This second episode is a good continuation of the story. We see a bit of what Claire has to deal with and how she deals with it. This episode seemed to have a bit of a slower pace to it, which had me checking my watch a few times, but it never truly lost my interest. There were a couple stand out scenes for me, one being when Claire is at dinner weaving a fake story about her life, and another being when she takes dinner to Jamie at the stables. There's definitely huge chemistry between Claire and Jamie. I love that it's there in the background already; it shows me they're doing a great job at weaving things in to the show for the future.

I didn't count them, but it felt like there were a lot of flashbacks to things that happened in the first episode. I understand that Claire is having déjà vu to things that were only a few days ago for her and that actually happen hundreds of years in the future, but sometimes it felt like too much. Maybe it was because I watched Episodes 1 and 2 at the same time, but it was like "Yes, we know she went in that particular room. Get on with it already!".

What I thought this episode did well was showing the balance Claire has to maintain. On the one hand she has to try to deal with her surroundings and survive (i.e. don't give people any more reason to think she's a spy), but on the other hand she's very determined to return to Inverness and find a way back home to Frank.

This was a smaller scale episode, taking place at the castle, rather than the journey of the first episode, but I enjoyed seeing how the castle ran, who was in charge of what, etc.

Overall impressions:
The show has a quiet pace to it in some parts, but there are also great action scenes, so I think they balance each other out nicely. While the voiceover was a bit much in some parts it also provided key information that I really don't think could have been presented in any other way, and I liked hearing Claire's thoughts. The scenery is gorgeous, the costuming is amazing, and the actors are perfect for their roles. It felt like something true. What I mean is (and not that I'm an expert on the period or anything), it felt like it was accurate and you were really watching a scene from the past come alive. I truly enjoyed these first two episodes of Outlander, and I'm interested to see where they go with things from here.

Outlander airs at 10 pm Sunday on Showcase in Canada.