"Between Shades of Grey" by Ruta Sepetys (Review)

Exactly a year before, the Soviets have begun moving troops over the borders into the country. Then, in August, Lithuania was officially annexed into the Soviet Union. When I complained at the dinner table, Papa yelled at me and told me to never, ever say anything derogatory about the Soviets. He sent me to my room. I didn’t say anything out loud after that. But I thought about it a lot.

As someone who really never reads World War II fiction novels. I'm shockingly amazed and honestly glad I read this book. A book of horror and beauty combined into one? Honestly, this book shattered me into a million pieces. This is probably one of the saddest and emotionally tearing novels I've ever read. Hearts will break and shatter.

The novel started by introducing us right into the main plot. In 1941, Lina Vilkas is found in the middle of the night by soviet officers. Her family is Lithuanian and on Stalin's extermination or "hit" list. Given 20 minutes to pack and leave her childhood home, Lina is brought onto a tireless and really halting journey. This book is beautifully written but it talks about a side of history not many really know about or don't care to learn about. This book focuses on the psychological effects on not only the Jews but also the people the Soviet Union captured and put through a living hell.

I can't say there's anything that I could truly hate about this book. The writing showed to throw you into a new world. The world that existed n an uncharted land of our hearts and wasn't truly taught in schools. Reading historical fiction is a double-edged sword, it's either beautifully written and speaks to your soul or doesn't speak to you. When you can feel the emotions of the characters you love it much more. Lina, her mother, and her brother are all characters with a lot of depth. This is one of those few novels where the mother is the true protagonist of the novel. Her mother did all she could to survive and make sure her only children would survive. That itself made this novel worthwhile.

I'm looking forward to reading more from Ruta Sepetys. I no doubt will be recommending this novel, not only is it a form of a history lesson for those who're unaware of the tragedies that occurred during Stalin's reign but it also is a breathtakingly beautiful novel even if it's also a tragically spectacular novel. I'm giving this book a 4.5 out of 5 stars! Caio!

"The Roanoke Girls" by Amy Engel (Review)

-Where to start, oh where to start?- Well, I loved it!

-Questions life for a few seconds-

OK, let me start by saying that I absolutely adored this book. It shines a light on an important subject uniquely, though there's a large trigger warning in this. Or well, the topic of Suicide is addressed in this novel.

Onto the review! This novel takes place in Kansas where we meet two girls, Lane and Allegra. This family was very dysfunctional, even disturbing... The Roanoke's share dark secrets that had gone back generations. Although this, Allegra doesn't mind, in fact, can be seen as happy to retell the secrets of what happened to previous Roanoke girls to Lane. Like any reasonable person, Lane decided to leave and never go back to the family farm in Kansas. But like all happiness in novels, it didn't last. I didn't know how to feel about this twist.

Eleven years go by and Lane is forced to return when she receives a phone call from her grandfather stating Allegra had gone missing.

-GASP, oh no! How could things go wrong after eleven years you ask? Find out on the next episode of Dragon Ball Z!-

Allegra was the only Roanoke girl to not leave...

That's all the plot, for now, folks- I really enjoyed this book, it put a differing perspective onto how our world is today and how life can be for others. Amy used spectacular descriptive elements and as usual, I found that to be beautiful. Although I won't deny that the beginning of the book didn't really catch my attention that well, but once I was about I'd say 35 pages in I was hooked.

I really would recommend this book, it's a very emotionally involved book which made me love it that much more. The triggering issues were written in a way you could read the story and feel the characters emotions on a more personal level.

I'm giving this novel 4.3 out of 5 stars! Caio!

Also, thank you for Blogging for Books for sending me this copy to review! This in no way affected my opinion of the novel.

"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" by Ransom Riggs (Review)

I absolutely adored this novel not only for the enticing story line but also for the novel's intensely beautiful imagery. As a visual person, this book really pulled me in and it truly got me into thinking about how people can be different and it's not their fault.

This story is about Jacob who's grandfather was recently murdered. Jacob throughout the beginning of the story feels as if he's alone and at times, insane. So, like any other fiction novel, he decided to go to a mystical island to find his grandfather's old friends. This book follows the theme of morality the majority of the novel.

I really enjoyed this novel, the characters were really in depth and relatable, Ransom had a nice way of using pictures and descriptions to drag you into this fictional world.It was one of those feelings where you can feel the character's happiness, fear, etc. Something else that was beautifully used is the element of foreshadowing, although that element isn't used until the near end of the novel. One last thing that stuck out to me was just all around the storyline. There was something about the storyline that made it stand out from other novels and make it unique.

There was really nothing that bothered me about the novel, I mean at times it felt slow but that truly wasn't that big of a deal. So, yep, I think this book is a must read for really anyone. There's element all over the story that can pull almost anyone in.

I'm giving this book a 4.7 out of 5 stars. Caio!

"A Face Like Glass" by Frances Hardinge (Review)

"A Face Like Glass" follows the story of a girl who had went to Caverna. The story gave me the vibes that it was similar to Alice in Wonderland. The people in Caverna have faces like glass, nothing shown on them. In a way it reminises the soul, a blank canvas and I truly liked that aspect of the novel. Everyone's an artist in Caverna and so they create wines that remove memories, cheeses that can cause hallucinations and many more. Emotions must be learned from facesmiths. Neverfell chased a rabbit with the intent to bring it to her master, or at least, that is before she stumbled into Caverna.

I found this book to have a quite fascinating concept. Despite the fact that this is a Middle Grade Fantasy novel, I enjoyed it all the same to my surprise. I enjoyed how the novel focused on bringing Caverna to life with its great detail. The way Hardinge used descriptors to encase you and delve you into the novel was truly spectacular. Another thing I thought was fantastic was her use of language itself. The novel was written in a way that could make practically anyone continue it irregardless of age or gender. This novel gets you thinking about certain topics you wouldn't have otherwise. For the most part, I must say I loved this book.

What didn't I like? I didn't enjoy how the novel was set up personally, most of it flowed beautifully while some of the novel felt patchy and unfinished in the long run. Caverna is a world full of lies me this novel really delved into that topic immensely and while I truly enjoyed that part. I also found it uninteresting. At times it felt too repetitive. Although those two little flaws, everything in the novel felt as though it pieced together beautifully.

All in all, I recommend this book. I'm giving this book 4/5 stars. Caio!

"Influence" by David Bernstein (Review)

Influence is a dystopian novel that follows our protagonist, Kaylin who's on the run with her friend Amanda. She has the unique ability to "push" which makes her a target of The Magnus Order and Vernon Society.

Influence was a wonderful, intriguing novel. I like how the writing flowed all throughout the story making it more of a treat. Kaylin was a genuine protagonist, you could just feel her emotions and in a way understand her. Kaylin and Amanda, her friend, have a seemingly unbreakable bond which I personally appreciated. Influence is different from other dystopian books, the plot building made the book flow on by and keeps you wanting more of the bonds of friendship or the action in the adventure. For all those reason, I believe this reading is well written.

Now then, onto one of the more saddening parts, the problems I found. Personally I adored this book and read it fairly quickly yet it at times felt rushed for me. The beginning felt a tad bit slow and uneventful but that didn't really bother me at first. It wasn't until I was a little more than half way through the novel that I just wanted more action and excitement. In the end, there were some parts of the novel felt like it was rushed. Other than that minor issue, I found relatively no problems with the novel.

All in all, I genuinely would recommend this book to anyone and truly any dystopian fan. This novel does not disappoint. I'm intending to read the next addition in the series when it comes out.

I'm giving Influence a rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars. Hope you enjoyed! Caio-

"Maresi" by Maria Turtschaninoff (Review)

Maresi is a strongly feminist novel where abused women are sent to an island where men aren't allowed to travel. The men are not even allowed to walk upon the island. In this novel, there are essentially two main characters, Maresi and Jai. Maresi essentially tells us the story of her life on the island while teaching Jai, the newcomer, as well as the trouble that follows her. Be careful of getting too attached as this is a fairly short read of 208 pages.

Maresi is a dystopian novel and while that made it rather immersive. The novel gave a more in-depth look at a world where women are second class citizens. Essentially, men are the antagonists.

l sincerely enjoyed the descriptive element in how Maresi explained all the activities that the girls could do on the island. It was enjoyable that they explained how and why the girls were on the island. In all reality, some were there due to their families wanting them to have a better life. I, as well, enjoyed the serenity and in many cases, difficulty of how their lives played out. Unfortunately that trouble that followed wasn't very interesting, if at all. The girls have to face their destiny and well you get the idea. This in turn just made the novel feel annoying or bothersome at times.

What I must say I didn't enjoy was how some of the plot played out. Even though I had enjoyed the majority of the novel. At times it felt slow lacking key elements that all stories are meant to have. I would warn those who are sensitive to violence against women or even rape to be careful when reading this.

All in all, I would recommend this book but be careful of the trigger warnings. I do recommend this though to feminists or even anyone though women will most likely enjoy this novel more than men. 

I'm giving this book a 3.7 out of 5. Caio!

"What's a Soulmate?" by Lindsey Ouimet (Review)

"What's a Soulmate?" is a creative novel exploring the possibility of soulmates. Libby, our main character, lives in a world where from the day you're born until you meet your soulmate, the world only consist of black, white and gray. It's natural, right? Or it was until Libby met Andrew, her soulmate. Suddenly she was thrown into a world of color, her hair vividly red as her personality.

I personally found this book to be magical in it's own way. The characters were well rounded in their development and not a detail was left unscathed. I enjoyed the atmosphere and the way the words flowed together. I as well enjoyed the detailed wording, it gave the book more feeling to it. It made the words flow off the page. All I truly didn't enjoy is how Libby treats Beth within the novel. Beth is supposed to be Libby's best friend but Libby can be very self centered irregardless of how her life is going. One more thing is just how the ending was, it was cute but I feel there could've been more detail and plot at the end.

"Maybe that's why I'm here," I say, realizing in this very moment what I'm about to say is the absolute truth. "To find out if you're better than this." 

There was a variety of emotions that created a bond absentmindedly between Libby and Andrew. While there are slow part encased within this book, it's excellent in it's own right. This book gives a different reality from ours.The atmosphere crafts this novel into a work of art, it's detail oriented in a way. The world Libby lives in is similar and yet completely opposing to ours. This is a novel that will pull you in, I guarantee you that.

I very much so look forward to more from Lindsey Ouimet. I'm giving this a 4.4 out of 5 stars- I definitely recommend this to all those romantic people out there. You won't regret picking this book up! Caio!