Before I start my spring TBR (hint: romance, romance, romance!), I thought it would be nice to share the books I read during the winter season. I finished four books: three romantasies and one collection of poems.
In my recap, I will share my rating of each book, a spoil-free synopsis (my summary of the back of the book, essentially), and my honest thoughts and feelings!
#1 The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
Genre: Romantasy
Rating: 4/5
Synopsis:
The Cruel Prince is about Jude, a human girl, who at the age of seven, witnesses the murder of her own parents and is taken away by their killer to live in the High Court of Faerie. Despite the fact that the Fae hate her for being a human, especially Prince Cardan, the youngest and most wicked son of the king, she dreams of becoming a knight of the High Court and will do whatever it takes to get there.
Thoughts:
So, The Cruel Prince is definitely a series that has very mixed reviews. When I tell people my thoughts surrounding it, I always preface by saying that this was my first “romantasy” book. There are so many popular Romantasy series that I haven’t yet read (Fourth Wing, Powerless, Caraval, ACOTAR, etc.), so it’s entirely possible that I just really liked this story because I don’t have much to go off of. That being said, hi! I really liked this story!
It’s considered a romantasy by most, but it’s a little more fantasy than romance, particularly at the beginning (which I liked).
Another thing worth mentioning is that it’s one of the few books that satisfied me with an enemies-to-lovers situation because they were actually enemies! I think the transition into becoming lovers (which isn’t fully realized at the end of this book of course) is reasonable and enticing. I get butterflies just thinking about the first romantic moment with my main ship.
I agree that the plot can get a little confusing at times with the several minor characters that are only relevant for a while, but besides that, I think it’s a solid story. It got me out of my reading slump, and I remember counting down the days to winter break to pick up the next story, so that certainly says something!
#2 The Wicked King by Holly Black
Genre: Romantasy
Rating: 4.5/5
Synopsis:
The sequel to The Cruel Prince. It would be hard to write a synopsis without spoiling the first book.
Thoughts:
Holly Black, you better count your days! (JK queen.) But seriously, the plot twist in this book goes crazy! What I thought about the first book remains true for this one, but I’ll also add that the worldbuilding really improved in this one. It was good in the first book, but I loved having my knowledge of their land expand as we went on new adventures.
The romance in this one: yes! Yes! Yes! Again, she’s doing a really good job at slowly unwinding their romance in a way that is wonderfully tantalizing, yet still decently realistic (for a fantasy at least). Chapter 15??? Yeah, that’s all I’m going to say. I think this one definitely explores the romance between the main characters a lot more than the first book.
However, what made me rank this one higher than Cruel Prince is actually the ending. OMG, I have never been tricked like that by a story in my entire life. I was tricked and then tricked again and then again. It hits so fast that your head feels like it’s spinning reading it; it’s seriously so good!
I haven’t read Queen of Nothing yet because I seriously don’t want this series to end, but I’m sure it’s going to be just as amazing as the other two books!
#3 The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Genre: Romantasy
Rating: 4.75/5
Synopsis:
The circus, named Le Cirque des Reves, is a mystery for two reasons: it arrives in various towns without warning, and it’s only open at night. In the circus, there are two magicians, Celia and Marco, who are in competition with one another, a competition in which only one can remain standing. Despite the intense rivalry, they fall madly in love with one another, with little awareness of the dangerous consequences that lie ahead.
Thoughts:
So. Many. Thoughts.
First of all, this is such a unique story and approach to storytelling! I like the use of the third person a lot, and I also enjoy the blend between the main POVs and shorter POVs from less important characters. There are two stories really unfolding that come together at the end, and I’ve always loved this writing choice; it’s not an easy one to achieve. The atmosphere of this story was also insane. Every time I opened the book, I was immediately transported to this world, set in the 19th century, where everything is magical, but everything is so incredibly bizarre. It’s a romantasy, yes, but there were moments when I felt genuine fear as if I were reading a thriller! The writing is almost poetic. Long story short, I thought the writing choices made were brilliant.
I thought the romance between Marco and Celia was one of the best that I’ve experienced in a book. It was definitely a slooowww burn, but when it hits? It hits. There was so much (well-written) angst and yearning in each scene that the two main characters were in.
I will admit, I didn’t love the ending. I won’t spoil it here, but I didn’t find it to be very logical when following the rest of the story, so that’s why it wasn’t a 5-star book. Nevertheless, it’s still one that I would highly recommend and possibly read again!
#4 Bright Dead Things by Ada Limon
Genre: Poetry
Rating: 5/5
Synopsis:
A collection of poems by Ada Limon!
Thoughts:
Yeah, so I want to be Ada Limon when I grow up. If you don’t know Ada Limon, she is the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States and the first Latina to receive this honor. I read this collection of poems in my creative writing class and absolutely fell in love!
I like the use of narration in her poems. Instead of writing about concepts and abstracts, she tells very personal stories from her life that allow the reader to arrive at meaning on their own, meaning that oftentimes hits at the abstracts, and we’re used to poetry such as love, remorse, or growth. Common themes in the collection include traditional marital roles, death, nature, and divinity. Overall, the writing is stunning, and it’s perfect for those who want to see life from another perspective.