Hope is terminally ill. When she dies, she wants her friends, Kali- who cuts/self-mutilates & is also battling anorexia; Aiden-who suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder & severe anxiety; Erik- who has LHON disease which is causing him to go blind very rapidly; & Sam- who was born with a gender disorder and was also in a bombing so is permanently disabled & in a wheelchair; to do one last thing in her honor- complete a scavenger hunt. The hunt Hope designed though is more then just a fun adventure, she wants her friends to not only befriend each other, but to come to terms with their own individual issues, turn their lives around and use the time they have left to do something good with their lives. As the group sets out to honor Hope's dying wish, they learn that there is a lot more to life then they originally thought. 

 

Needless to say, this is a very heavy story! The author tackled a multitude of issues and she did it very well. The character development was also very complex but it was spot on and as realistic as you can get. I also think the cover is just gorgeous! The colors are so pretty.

 

The only thing I really didn't care for was the excessive back & forth bickering and name calling, especially at the beginning. I understand what the author was trying to do and a little bit of teenage drama would have been okay but I think it went so far overboard that it made the bickering feel forced and unnatural. Other than that though, it was a fantastic story and I think it brings awareness to some serious issues that aren't always talked about but need to be. 

 

*I received this ARC from NetGalley & Red Sparrow Press in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

 

 

Review to come.

This was amazing, heartbreaking, beautiful. <3 <3

This book is done from a Dual POV, which is just perfection. I don't think I would have liked Jace so much if I hadn't seen the story being told from his POV, or to see his past being told from his POV. But with the changing POV between Ali and Jace I could understand them both. I could see why Ali was so hesitant about stuff, I could see what happened to Jace (even though it took him quite a while to tell everything to Ali) and why he was such a dickhead for a lot of the book (because, sorry, while he is quite nice and his heart is in the right place, he was still quite rude/mean/grumpy).

Ali was just an amazing character, and I felt so sorry for her. Her life hasn't been easy since that brain tumor destroyed her hearing, and not only that, it threw her whole world into a mixer and the outcome wasn't a sweet strawberry milkshake, oh no, it was bitter, and harsh. With an abusive father who apparently could get away with a lot of things because he was a (retired) policeman.
I can imagine that she would want to run away when she was offered the chance. If I was in her shoes, I would have done the same thing. Take any chance, any chance at all to run away from all the pain, from all the fear.
Of course it isn't that easy to just run away from a father like that, and we see the consequences as the story unfolds. I won't say much more about what consequences, though I think people can guess what would happen if you have one father who is determined to get his daughter back.
I loved seeing Ali grow, to get out of her shell, see her laugh, and enjoy her life, see her find love, see her be happy, and also reconnect with that which she lost so many years ago (which totally made me cry, because I was just so darn happy for the girl).
I also loved how she was with Jace, and how, even though he wasn't the happiest, cuddliest guy in the world, she told him about herself, she helped him out, she was there for him. She was so sweet and kind, even when he wasn't all that, especially in the beginning.

Because yes, Jace is also changing. He starts out as a big prick (sorry, that was my first impression when Ali meets him), but then you see him from the inside. You see him hurting, you see him being angry at the world for what happened to him, you see him having another side, as he can understand what Ali is going through. He was so utterly sweet to this girl, he tried everything for her, he was there when she was crying, he was there when she needed someone. It was just so sweet.
His backstory was (just like Ali) heartbreaking, and I loved how he slowly opened his heart to Ali.

The tour and the band were just all so much fun. Of course Ali couldn't get out, but that didn't matter, it didn't matter to me that the book took mostly place in the RV. It was still very interesting, very fun, and I just loved how Ali connected with the guys of the band. At first at least 2 of them were a bit hesitant, but well, I won't spoil anything. :)

Ali and Jace together was just so lovely, and I just loved how they connected together. How they each could understand each other, because they both had a rough past, they both didn't have easy lives. It also felt completely natural with what happens to the both of them. It didn't feel rushed (as I sometimes have with books) instead it felt just perfect, and I was delighted. They both deserved it.

The ending was real exciting, I was just so scared for Ali, and then so happy when certain events happened. Yay!

I loved that we also got an extra chapter at the end to show us what happened after all this, after the events of the book. It just caused me to squeal and fangirl. :)

The only thing that confused me at first, was that Ali was switching between sign language and talking. Luckily the author clearly showed when it switched between those two. Making sign language words cursive, and the talking just as the rest of the book. And also after a while I didn't even notice it any more and just read on.

Well I think I have spoken about most of the book, and my thoughts on it. I really loved the characters, their bond, how they grew to be better and better, and the ending. The band, the tour, the music, also all love.

I would highly recommend this book to everyone. It is sweet, it is heartbreaking, it is beautiful, it is haunting. You should read this!

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

I received a copy from Netgalley.

Very mild plot spoilers. 

I'm not entirely sure how to review this one. It was only an okay book for me. I didn't outright dislike it. I particularly enjoyed the world building and the epic fantasy landscape that was created seemed quite interesting. My issue was really with the plot and the characters. 

On the one hand, the story was interesting enough that I read it in one day. I read the first 24% during my lunch hour at work and read the rest when I came home. I found I didn't really connect with any of the character. Princess Faye started off quite interesting, but there were a few things about her that got on my nerves. 

***possible spoiler****

She was clearly in love with her Guardian - the story focuses on her getting revenge against his killer - and he was an Angel. Angels in this book are a race looked down on, banished and mistrusted. And yet her twin brother the Prince destined to be the King is in love with a common girl and she frowns on that. If she can accept an Angel, a clear no no in their hierarchy, why is it so hard for her to accept her brother loves a common girl? This wasn't even a big plot point, something that came up in conversation between characters at the start of the book. Just something that seemed weird to me.

(spoiler show)

I found the plot dragged a bit in the middle, not a lot seemed to be happening, and during the last 20% or so the action really picks up, but even then...I don't know.

I did like for the world building though. I won't be continuing this series. 

Thank you to Netgalley for approving my request to view the book. I guess in the end this book was just not to my tastes.

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**I received this as an eARC through Netgalley from the publisher. In no way does that effect the thoughts and opinions voiced here. I did not receive compensation in any way for writing this review.**

REVIEW

I don't know what to say. Counting Shadows was okay, I mean I didn't NOT like it.

I think it was that I kept expecting Ashe to pop up. I always hold to the philosophy that if I haven't seen the body it didn't happen, meaning the character could come back at any point. It's a fantasy novel for goodness sakes if you can't bring back a dead person what good is the genre?! Also the way Faye is obsessed over Ashe doesn't really allow me to move on from him, I couldn't really connect emotionally with any of the other characters. We don't get to know Ashe due to his being dead already when the book starts but we can tell how connected Faye and Ashe were through Faye's thoughts and feelings. She is so terribly heartbroken and lost without him. All that's keeping her going is her plan for revenge on her murderer. So in my mind the only thing possible was that Ashe was going to come back. In a way though this whole issue is a nod to Rivers' character development, she was able to make me fall in love with a "dead" character I've never met.

If I look past the whole Ashe aspect, the book is reasonably well written. Though I was disappointed that we never really left Faye's chambers. We see the outside world only twice, the second occurring at the end. It would have been nice to have a little more world development, especially since there are all these amazingly interesting creatures; vampires, dragons, angels, and faery all make an appearance. The pacing is well done though, it seemed I had just started when I turned the page and found myself at the end. By that point I was so engrossed in the story that I was disappointed it had ended, I tried scouring the vast internet in search of a release date for the second book but alas could find nothing.

Even though there were things that bugged me Counting Shadows was still worth reading and I find myself highly anticipating the second installment. Who knows maybe the things I didn't like will be completely changed or developed on. I'm also holding to my hope that Ashe will resurface or maybe Faye can get past her grief and get to know and love Lor, I would be cool with that too ;-)