This is a hard book to describe in detail – it's sat with me for some time since I finished it, and I thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience. But to put my finger on what exactly made this so good, is difficult. The book has a quiet, complex atmosphere – it's a sophisticated novel of family ties, the plight of women and the scandalousness of witchcraft.
I think I need to officially take a break (give up on?) reading Kuang books. Everything sounds so promising, and yet everything is overcomplicated and underdone. I am disappointed.
This was super duper fabulous right up until the ending, and then things were a little too open-ended for my liking. Which is where the stars have been knocked off – we were full-steam ahead to the five-star rating up until that point.
I loved Lucy Adlington's writing in The Red Ribbon, and while this is non-fiction rather than historical fiction, I loved her writing in this just as much. This is a very poignant and well-researched novel on a group of women who survived Auschwitz in part thanks to their sewing abilities.
I really am a big fan of Brusatte at this point. Having read The Rise and Reign of the Mammals: A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us before this one, I knew I would be in for a good time and it didn't disappoint.
This is turning into a super interesting series, and I'm actually really excited to find out where it goes with book 3. I think I preferred book 2 to the first instalment, though they are really quite different to each other. I found the first book (Dogs of War) to be fascinating and unique, but the structure jumped forward in time rapidly and relentlessly. Whereas this book felt more stable and continuous.
This is clearly the book where everything gets real. Being part 2 of book 3, things went up a gear in terms of battles, character deaths and general plot progression. I lost count of the number of times I was shocked in this book!
Who’s ready to sift through all the new books coming out in April? I am! While the northern hemisphere is gearing up for summer months, us in the southern hemisphere are so ready for things to cool down and are eagerly anticipating the coming winter months. The perfect time to stock up on good reads to tuck into, no?
A new favourite for my list, to be sure. What's not to love in this adorable cosy fantasy? This lived up to the hype and beyond for me.
This series is the cutest darn thing ever, and I'm very glad that Baldree has written several books about these characters so that I don't have to part with them just yet.
Upside-Down Books 