City of Secrets by Aoife Marie Sheridan

Title: City of Secrets
Author: Aoife Marie Sheridan
Release date: December 5th, 2013
Rating: 4.5/5
Publisher: SynergEBooks
Book Summary:

A war awaits her arrival,
A warrant for her arrest.
She must rise as a princess,
And Darkness shall fall.
But will their love survive this battle?
For Tristan and Sarajane?.

Step back into Saskia. 

Review:

THERE MIGHT BE SPOILERS FROM BOOK 1

Once again we're thrown back into the world of Saskia, though the war has gotten fiercer and battles are being waged. 

In the previous book, we find that Sarajane is wanted by a fallen angel named Lucien. Lucien wants to destroy the world and to do so he needs to rise, which is killing the other three angels. Sarajane must defeat Lucien in order to save Saskia and the three angels.

The main characters make their lovely appearances as well as Jessica (Sarajane's sister), Suraga, Carew, and little Mei.

Tristan could be a little bit overbearing when it came to Sarajane. I understand that Sarajane can't fight well, but she's learning--especially when it comes to her magic.

I have to say, in this installment of the Saskia Trilogy I really fell in love with Carew. If you have read the first book (which I recommend) then you'll know just how surprised I was. Although he can be cruel and cold, Carew is actually a very nice and caring person. He loves his sister Mei and will do anything to protect her. He does the same with Sarajane, helping and fighting with her throughout the book. I just--I love him.

I was glad to meet Mirium's sister Verona. She was very strong, and didn't take anything from anyone. Haha. I really enjoyed her presence, and her power is one of the coolest I've seen in a while. It definitely differed from Mirirum's and that was awesome.

Overall, it was a great book and I'm excited to see how the next installment turns out! (Maybe I'll get to see more of Carew!)

Familiar Origins REVIEW

Title: Familiar Origins
Author: B. Pine
Release date:  January 19th, 2011
Rating:  5/5
Publisher: Silver Leaf Books
Book Summary: 

In a universe where dragons are supreme sentient beings, divination rituals and knowledge of human magical evolution has led to the belief that eight humans will be born with extraordinary supernatural abilities that will give them the power to challenge dragons. Divided into two factions-the Draca Debellos: conquerors of worlds to fuel their powerful magic, and the Draca Tueri: protectors of the worlds and their sentient beings-they tirelessly search for these gifted children to train and bond with to help in their eternal struggle and attempt to end their tenuous deadlock.Both sides are aware of how dangerously powerful they are due to their understanding and mastery of nature, magic, and science; following a rigid code of conduct. But they are also aware that their Creator has worked into the nature of the universe an anomaly-a balancing feature that can lead to the extinction of the entire dragon race. The key to overcoming the balance between Draca and the key to victory lies in the existence of these eight special humans. These humans have different combinations of powers based on the existing types of magic-psychic talents, spellcasting abilities, spiritual summoning, and elemental control. Beyond their magical abilities, what makes these eight particular humans so special is their unique ability to bond with dragons in a way that could provide both dragon and human with powers and benefits yet unknown by either race.Both Draca factions wish for nothing more than to bond with one of these special humans and tilt the balance of power in their favor. After centuries of searching and waiting, these eight predestined humans have now all been born-humans with the power to challenge the Draca and hold the fate of the world within their hearts and minds.Follow the adventures, struggles, and development of these humans who have their innocence shattered at a tender age while trying to learn to live under the influence of powerful beings wishing to use them for their own ends, and growing up in a world of tragedy and horror, betrayal and deception.

Review:

Imagine being a five- to ten-year-old kid and being burdened with a "war" that you don't even know about. Now, imagine that this "war" involves dragons. This book is just the beginning, following most of the eight kids' lives as they learn what their powers are and about the dragons. 

I absolutely love it. 

It takes the time to go through each child's lives as they grow up from children. It shows the events that shape them and make them who they are.

It's very daring. 

I haven't read a book that takes the time to lead you though each character's memories instead of just mentioning them; or, if the memory is extremely important, shown as a flash back. 

I congratulate B. Pine in taking such risks and presenting them beautifully with wonderful descriptions of places, thoughts, feelings, etc. I fell in love with the book from the first page when I found that it started off in a dragon's point of view. :D

I highly recommend this book to all of those adventurers, lovers of fantasy, and generally anyone that loves a good story plot! I can't wait for the next installment. I'm sure it will be just as magnificent.