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Feature and Follow is hosted by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read. It allows us book bloggers to show off our blogs and gain new followers!

Q: What is a deal breaker for you in a book? For example, do you abhor love triangles? Or can’t deal with bad editing?

If I don’t like the opening sentences of a book then I find that I’m not able to enjoy as much as possible. I have no idea why this is but the opening sentences really show what the book is going to be about and whether it is worth reading.

For example:

Matched by Allie Condie- Now that I’ve found the way to fly, which direction should I go in to the night? My wings aren’t white or feathered; they’re green, made of green silk, which shudders in the wind and bends when I move- first in a circle, then in a line, finally in a shape of my own invention. The black behind me doesn’t worry me; neither do the stars ahead.

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver- They say that before you die your whole life flashes before your eyes, but that’s not how it happened for me.

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland- The carriage jolts and splashes along the rutted lanes flooded by the heavy November rains.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater- I remember lying in the snow, a small red spot of warm going cold, surrounded by wolves.

I’m going to be starting a ‘book’s in focus’ weekly post here on the blog and to start I’m going to be focusing on the Stonewylde series by Kit Berry, because they are my favourite book series of all time. 

Hidden in deep Dorset is a community like none other: Stonewylde. It’s self-sufficient and cut off from the Outside World. The community lives by the old ways, honouring the ancestors of past. 

But all is not as it seems at Stonewylde. There are two types of people: Hallfolk and Villagers.

The Hallfolk all live grandly at the Hall with modern gadgets and access to the Outside World.

The Villagers, however, live down in the Village, living lives like their medieval ancestors: no electricity for them!

We first meet the characters of Stonewylde in the first novel, Magus of Stonewylde.

In total there are five books in the series: Magus of Stonewylde, Moondance of Stonewylde, Solstice at Stonewylde, Shadows at Stonewylde and Shaman of Stonewylde. 

Throughout the month of November I will be reviewing all of the books in the series by Kit Berry, so please check back for them. 

I hope you enjoy!

Lucy

I was offered this book to review as part of a blog tour and having not heard of it before was a little sceptical. The blurb is also a little vague and I had no idea what I was about to pick up. But I started it straight away and had it finished within a few days! I really loved it! It’s the perfect mix of Twilight and The Immortal Rules and I completely devoured it!

It was a little slow starting but you immediately get set on the plot line and once you get in to it, it is clear that the book is going to be amazing! It offers a great new look at the Vampire world which can be a little predictable after Twilight which worried me a little: you never know what you are getting in to with Vampire books. But this was completely different! 

The main character, Angel Brown, is lovable and sweet, if not a little blood-thirsty! I loved reading about her transformation from human to vampire and watching her struggle to come to terms with her evergrowing thirst for human blood. 

And now I shall talk about Sawyer Creed. Isn’t that just an awesome name? I really loved him, right from the start! I was screaming at Angel to love him like I loved him! What made this romance believable was that Angel didn’t instantly like him: she actually hated him, even when she hadn’t met him! No insta-love in this book! 

I don’t know a lot about the music industry but this gave a lovely insight in to the music world and I felt very comfortable reading about it. 

I also really loved the idea of a ‘blood bank’ where the Vampires go to feed off humans. It’s not something that I’ve read about before and it was great to read about something new. 

The settings were believable and enjoyable to read. 

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am hoping that there will be a second book for me to devour! It was well-written and had a story line that I loved!

First let me try and describe to you just how excited I was to read this book. I told anyone who would listen and wanted to make at least 30 posts here on the blog. I’m actually feeling incredibly excited just writing this post and I’ve already read the book! I think I actually squealed when picking this book up in Waterstones (let’s hope nobody saw me!). I’d watched the book trailer and ABSOLUTELY FELL IN LOVE WITH IT!  Is it really possible to love a book before having read it?

I really loved the opening of the book as we met Eva and Addie. 

The first sentence is amazing: ‘Addie and I were born into the same body, our souls’ ghostly fingers entwined before we gasped our first breath.’

How amazing is that?! If I don’t like an opening sentence then I’m not likely to enjoy the book as much as possible. I have no idea why but it’s true!
I preferred Eva to Addie as I found Addie annoying at times and quite selfish. Eva was very admirable, having to put up with her sister controlling their body for two whole years. I think I would have gone crazy! Eva, as the recessive soul, has to watch everything through her sister’s eyes and the only way she can speak is through her sister. The way in which they communicated in the novel was completely unique and I loved it. They had such a great bond and relationship and, although I didn’t like Addie all the way through the novel, seeing how much Eva loved her helped me a little to like her a bit more. 

I think I actually enjoyed the beginning more than when there was action going on. I was happy to just stroll along with Eva and Addie and don’t think I actually enjoyed the scenes in the hospital as much as the scenes when they are at home and everything is fine. However, it was written beautifully and this really made me want to read more and more of the amazing words.

This novel is not, as some people may think, Dystopian. It is actually set in an alternate version of the 21st century. When I was reading the novel I was always wondering what would happen if this was actually true. Who would my other half be? My twin? What would they be like? Would we settle? Which one of us would be the dominant?
I love books that make me feel this way, make me feel the worry that the Hybrids face. They were put in such difficult circumstances and I felt so sympathetic towards them.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and it was written amazingly. The carefully crafted world makes you fall easily in to the body of Eva and Addie and really feel what they are feeling. Sometimes I felt a little detached from the writing which is why I haven’t rated it higher but I would really recommend this book to anyone: reader or non-reader.

RATING: 4.5/5

Today on the blog we have an interview Sophie from A Day Dreamers World 

I had seen this book in a bookshop a while ago but didn’t buy it as the blurb was very vague (not the one above, but the one on the actual book!) However, after taking out from my library I wish I had bought it in the first place! I really enjoy historical fiction and this book was informative and thrilling, giving just the right insight in to 19th century Manhattan. 

There were a lot of characters introduced at the start of the book and I was a little worried that it would get confusing and over-complicated. Whereas at the start this was the case I quickly felt that I was actually in Manhattan and knew the characters personally. 

Elizabeth Holland was a very interesting character and one that I admired. She seemed sweet and innocent from the outside, but she was actually tough and incredibly naughty! She was a very likeable character and I felt for her very deeply and found that I reached a great understanding of her character.

Elizabeth’s sister, Diana, was also a character that I loved. She added a new dimension to the book that would have been lost if she hadn’t have been added. I really liked her personality, which was so different to her sister’s!

Now to the love interests! I really loved Will, although we didn’t see much of him. I really wish we had seen more of him as it would have really captured me.

Henry Schoonmaker! What can I say? He was totally swoon-worthy and I really enjoyed reading about him! Okay, so maybe not one of my favourite love interests but he’s right up there on the list!

I absolutely love the cover! How amazing is it?! That dress is just divine! It’s really eye capturing and if I were to see it in a bookshop would instantly check it out! The title is big which gives it instant recognition and so is the author’s name. The picture above really doesn’t give it justice!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be reading the others in the series! I would highly recommend it to anyone who is a great lover of historical fiction- and those who would like to try it but haven’t yet! Just please, READ THIS BOOK! You won’t regret it!

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga’s Reviews where book bloggers can show other followers the books they bought/ received that week! 

Breathe by Sarah Crossan- This is another book that I’ve been excited about! The cover is even better in person!

City of Glass by Cassandra Clare- I’ve read City of Bones and City of Ashes and have been waiting for this to come in to my library- but it hasn’t! So I was glad when I saw it at my local bookshop!

Seeking Crystal by Joss Stirling- I’ve read both of the other books in this series and am looking forward to reading this one! It’s set in Venice and Colorado and the cover is really great!

 Crewel by Gennifer Albin- I love the cover on this book and I know a lot of people who have read this book. I’m looking forward to reading it!

Finale by Becca Fitzpatrick- I can’t believe this is the last book in the Hush Hush series! I devoured the first three books and bet I will do the same with this one! And it’s signed!

The Iron King by Julie Kagawa- This was the first book I downloaded on my brand new Kindle (post coming soon!) and I’ve already started reading it! I know of a lot of people who have really enjoyed it and can’t wait until I have finished it!

The Fallen Star by Jessica Sorensen- I got this book free on Kindle and don’t know much about it but am looking forward to trying it out!