urban fantasy – Paws & Paperbacks

I hope you all are having a great weekend! #SixforSunday is a weekly meme hosted by Steph @ A Little But a Lot. This week’s theme is books featuring witches in honor of Halloween. A love a good paranormal book so this list was super fun to put together!

1. A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES
This is one of my favorite adult paranormal series. It has a great mix of history, magic, witchcraft, vampires, demons, and all sorts of other fun elements. I really loved following the main character, Diana, as she is thrust into the supernatural world.

2. THE WITCH OF WILLOW HALL
This book was an enchanting gothic, historical novel that had me hooked from the beginning. The setting was very atmospheric and made it the perfect October read. The best way to describe this would be Jane Austen meets witchcraft and eerie paranormal activity. I definitely recommend this for anyone that wants a spooky period drama to read!

3. SERPENT & DOVE
I cannot gush about this book enough. First of all, the enemies-to-love fake marriage trope was amazing. I also really loved all the drama and enmity between the church and the witches. The author did an amazing job crafting and describing the society and the magical system in a way that was realistic and believable. The sequel is one of my most anticipated reads for next year!

4. THE WICKED DEEP
This is one of most atmospheric books I’ve ever read. It was a totally captivating story with a slightly creepy quality that made it both unique and thrilling. The plot was super intriguing and the end had a good twist that complicated a lot of things for the characters. While I absolutely hated one part of the book, the rest was so expertly crafted and had the spooky quality perfect for the Halloween season.

5. THE BONE WITCH
I haven’t actually read this series yet, but there on my TBR when I have more free time and I have heard such good things about them. Tea is a witch with a gift for necromancy, and after raising her brother from the dead, her gifts make her feared and ostracized amongst the other witches in her community.

6. LABYRINTH LOST
This is another book I haven’t read, but have heard a lot of great things about. The premise of this story is the main character, Alex, is a bruja who accidently performs a spell that causes her family to disappear, and so she must travel to the in-between world to bring them back.

Happy New Year! And a happy book birthday to Amanda Hocking! Today is the release of Between the Blade and the Heart and I’m thrilled to be part of the blog tour! Between the Blade and the Heart was one of my most anticipated releases for 2018 and I’m so excited that I was able to get an ARC of it!

Title: Between the Blade and the Heart (Valkyries #1)
Author: Amanda Hocking
Rating: ★★★

ARC received through NetGalley.

In a genre dominated by vampires and werewolves, I’m always looking to find Young Adult books that feature other paranormal creatures. One of the things that first interested me about the Between the Blade and Heart was that it contained both Valkyries and Norse mythology!

Between the Blade and the Heart was not exactly what I had been expecting when I first started reading. For some reason, I had expected a historical fantasy setting heavy with elements of Norse mythology. I think my assumption was based on the vagueness of the synopsis and the fact that I was unfamiliar with Amanda Hocking’s work. Instead, the book takes place in a near future setting with technological advances and was more similar to an urban fantasy novel. Not necessarily a bad thing, just not what I had been expecting at all! The story features many fantasy creatures from lots of different cultures and mythologies, in addition to the Norse mythology elements. I was really intrigued by the idea of modern day Valkyries and their roles in the world. I think the world-building in that aspect was really well done.

I thought Malin, our protagonist to be well-rounded and interesting, but I still couldn’t find myself connecting with her that much. I did have a slight issue, however, with the romance. The book does contain a love triangle – albeit a different sort of love triangle than what is usually featured – but a love triangle nonetheless. I found myself feeling like the relationships between the characters could have been developed a bit more. I also think that some of the side characters could have used more depth. The writing itself was really good and I found nothing to complain about the plot or pacing. The story is fast-faced, filled with action, and was definitely not a slow read. The ending sets up nicely for the sequel and I look forward to reading the next book in the series!

Amanda Hocking NEW--credit Mariah Paaverud with Chimera Photography Amanda Hocking is the author of over twenty young adult novels, including the New York Times bestselling Trylle Trilogy and Kanin Chronicles. Her love of pop culture and all things paranormal influence her writing. She spends her time in Minnesota, taking care of her menagerie of pets and working on her next book.