(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I found this book a really intriguing read. Although it did switch between first and third person, that wasn’t quite as irritating as it can be and I found the storyline really easy to follow in both plots.

Although there are traces of similarities in the situations that Alice and Elizabeth were both in, I don’t think, personally, that it was as similar as the blurb on the book made out. That’s not to say I didn’t find Alice’s fascination with Elizabeth’s story intriguing… but I don’t think the blurb was entirely accurate.

I was able to empathise with Alice quite easily and I felt the author did a really good job of showing how difficult that kind of time was for a woman to have a child out of wedlock. I couldn’t easily relate to Alice’s parents – her mother didn’t seem a very nice person and her father came across as quite weak. Alternately, I found Elizabeth to be a much more remote character. Even her diary entries seemed removed somehow and I found myself more fascinated by Elizabeth’s interactions with the people around her, rather than by the character herself.

Parts of the book were very atmospheric and I felt that the author had put a lot of time and effort into crafting the decade/s the book was set in. I felt very sympathetic towards Isabel as a character. The final scene with her was quite disturbing and although I could understand Elizabeth, to an extent, I really didn’t like her much by the end of the book.

It was interesting to see how psychiatric illness was viewed by the doctors in that time. There was one thing in particular that I’d thought would go somewhere, but it only seemed included for the sake of it, rather than to further the storyline.

I did like Edith and Ruck as characters, although I had some mixed feelings about them for a while. And I did like Alice’s relationship with Tom. I also liked the play on the title.

I don’t think I’d read this book again, but I did find it really well-written and intriguing. I wouldn’t be averse to reading more books by this author in the future.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

Having seen the live broadcast of The Crucible at the cinema some weeks ago, I was immediately interested in reading this book when it was offered on one of the websites I’m a member of. The blurb of the book sounded really intriguing and I was pulled into the storyline really easily.

It was good to see the book stay in one first person POV and I felt Sarah was quite an interesting character. There were occasionally some comments that sounded a little too modern, but for the most part, I felt the author did a good job of making the setting and time feel real.

I did have a bit of confusion with what was going on, at least for some of the book. As the book progressed, I did have something of a better understanding, but there were certain things that didn’t make as much sense to me, such as the motivations of certain characters. I would have liked a bit more detail about that.

Reading parts of the diary of one of those responsible for the Salem witch trials was really unnerving, whether or not there was any truth in that potential theory.

Hecate was a really creepy, but I particularly liked Priest and Bishop as characters. I found it intriguing that Priest didn’t speak much. It added a lot to the mystery of him as a character.

There wasn’t much of the mob mentality shown in this book, but there were some very intense scenes nevertheless. I found myself pulled in and able to see a lot of the events happening in my mind.

I was still left with some questions by the end of the book. I would like to read the next book (I think this is a trilogy) and see what will happen with the characters next. I’d especially like to see how some of the relationships develop and have some of my questions from this book answered.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

I didn’t actually intend to finish this book tonight. It probably says a lot about the writing and the characters that I found myself staying up far later than I’d intended just so I could reach the resolution of the book.

There were a lot of twists and turns in this. I hit on maybe one thing that was provided as a clue, but most of it still had the capacity to surprise me. I did like Marnie as a character and I also really liked Noah, too, especially towards the end.

I wouldn’t say that this book dragged on too long, but there was an awful lot happening plot-wise. It wasn’t really that confusing with the plots, but there were times I got confused between the different characters.

I did think this book was a really tough one to read. There’s a lot about abuse in it and some scenes that are really quite disturbing. I managed to empathise with quite a lot of characters and one of the questions at the end of the book for the reading group really did strike a chord with me.

I liked seeing Marnie’s more personal relationships and it was good to see Noah and his boyfriend, though I would have liked to know a bit more about his history. I felt like I could really understand Marnie, but because less time was spent on Noah’s past, I didn’t understand him in quite the same way.

There were some parts that really concerned me about the book. Not so much Marnie’s sudden desire to do violence (because I think a lot of people have similar thoughts and would never act on them), but it took her a long time to realise one of the things that had happened and a very long time for her to actually act on it. Also, I think she shouldn’t have gone on her own towards the end of the book and that it should have been insisted on that she take someone with her.

Ayana’s plotline was really interesting and I would have liked to see more of her character and situation explored. The ending was more hopeful than it could have been, but there were certain things I did want to see.

I would definitely read a sequel to this book at some point in the future. It would be good to see the characters in action again – and I’d also really like to see more of some of the secondary characters, too.

(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).

(This review may contain spoilers).

This book was quite an intriguing one. The idea of a prince being exiled to a horrific place is an intriguing one, as is said prince’s escape and how that experience changes him.

Since I hadn’t met Andor before his time in the Gloaming, I only saw the effects the place had had on him. Although it was interesting to see the thought processes in his mind (and how his mindset worked after escaping the Gloaming).

It was really interesting to see the way Andor had to build up his allies and strength before he could challenge Tryst, but I felt the challenging past came across a bit rushed. I think it could have been extended a bit.

I quite liked Jon and Wren as characters, but I found myself questioning the decisions Andor made concerning them quite a lot, especially given how Tryst viewed Wren. I was expecting more subtle action and towards the end, it was less satisfactory than it should have been.

I think Tryst could have been an interesting character, if there had been many redeeming qualities to him. I glimpsed something at the end, but nothing that made me think redemption might be possible. Though it would be interesting to read the next book and see if that’s proved me wrong.

I did like Andor as a character, too. I did, however, find myself quite confused by his relationship with Tryst and Ravien. I liked Ravien as a character, but I would have liked to see more of her mindset. By the end of the book, I still wasn’t sure I really trusted or understood her motivations.

I didn’t really like the constant switching between first and third person through this book. If the POV had to be changed, I would have preferred it to be in third person all the way through.

I did find this book to be quite well-written. I would like to read the next book that comes after this at some point in the future. It would be good to see how everything turns out and what happens next with the characters.

(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).

(This review may contain spoilers).

Although these two stories were quite short, I did find them to be really quick and easy to read. The idea of werecreatures and paranormal romance isn’t unique, but I still quite enjoyed this book.

It was interesting to see the two different types of werecreatures, though I would have liked to know if there were more than just the wolves and the panthers. The rivalry between Sheila and Lorraine was quite amusing to see. I thought it was good that they still had the human parts to themselves as well as the werecreature aspects.

I did really like how both stories overlapped, though I felt that the first story didn’t really seem to end. The conflict was resolved, but I felt it was a bit too quick. I would have liked to see the story expanded a bit more.

The second story did seem to be expanded a bit more, but I felt the love came a bit too quickly. It was nice to see that there was compromise on both sides of the pairing, though. And it was interesting to see arranged marriages that did turn out well, as opposed to a lot of books where the arranged marriages are to really horrible people.

I did have quite a lot of questions about what had happened with Calla in particular. I would have liked to see more of her and Caleb together.

It was also good to get a sneak peek of one of the other books, though I preferred the style of the paranormal romance. I liked the aspects of experimentation, especially in the first story. And I felt there was a lot of chemistry between the different pairs of characters.

I probably would read more books set in this world in particular. I liked the glimpses into the society of the werepanthers, though it would have been nice to see a bit more of the werewolf society. And there were some really good minor characters in this book, too.

I did notice some errors in the writing, but they weren’t really enough to detract from my enjoyment of the book. There was some confusion with one particular line, though.