Book Review: Star Cursed by Jessica Spotswood. (Born Wicked #2)

Star Cursed by Jessica Spotswood.

(Born Wicked #2)

Book Summary: With the Brotherhood persecuting witches like never before, a divided Sisterhood desperately needs Cate to come into her Prophesied powers. And after Cate's friend Sachi is arrested for using magic, a war-thirsty Sister offers to help her find answers—if Cate is willing to endanger everyone she loves.

Cate doesn't want to be a weapon, and she doesn't want to involve her friends and Finn in the Sisterhood's schemes. But when Maura and Tess join the Sisterhood, Maura makes it clear that she'll do whatever it takes to lead the witches to victory. Even if it means sacrifices. Even if it means overthrowing Cate. Even if it means all-out war.

In the highly anticipated sequel to Born Wicked, the Cahill Witch Chronicles continue Cate, Maura and Tess's quest to find love, protect family, and explore their magic against all odds in an alternate history of New England.

Liana's Summary: Cate is still guilty for leaving Finn, but she had to do what she had to do. With the whole who-will-become-the-witch-of-the-prophecy thing going on, Cate is as busy as ever. Cate cares about everyone that she loves, of course, and she'd do anything to herself to keep them safe. With everything being  a gigantic mess, it pulls Cate and her loved ones further apart-- whether she likes it or not.

Rate(1-10): 8.5

I received an ARC copy from Penguin Teen in return for an honest review. (This book comes out in 10 days!)

I was never a big fan of witches.

Even after reading Witches by Roald Dahl. Even after reading all of Alex Flinn's witchy books. Ermahgerd. I just can't.

BUT. Jessica Spotswood. Oh, my, God. She writes with real magic!

I think I only bothered to read Born Wicked because of Andrea Cremer. LOL. This one time, I went to her book signing, and up came the question of fictional hot guys. And then she started raving about Finn Belastra. Gardener, freckled, red headed, wears glasses, reads books. (That's hot. Sorta. LOL.)

After reading Born Wicked, to be honest, I wasn't really sure if I wanted to read Star Cursed much less finish the whole series. But, an opportunity to get an ARC came by, so I was just like, hey! Why not?!

That was a really good decision to get an ARC.

I fell head over heels in love with this book. I loved it. (This was the first book that I've ever bothered to annotate. (Annotating is fun. You guys should give it a try.)

Okay, so, a review is a review and I think I should talk about Cate. And Finn. And Maura. And Tess. And you know.

Cate was normal ol' Cate. Finn was normal ol' Finn. Maura was annoying ol' Maura and Tess was nice lil' Tess. One thing, out of everything, that annoyed me the most was the arguments that Cate and Maura had. I'll just say it, I dislike Maura with a burning passion. I mean, if she were in Cate's position as the narrator and main character, I would probably hate Cate (that rhymes) with a burning passion. Either way, I hate the arguments they have. But of course, I sympathize with Cate more since she's the main character. The thing is, they don't do well with each other mainly because Maura has a very rushy personality and Cate has a let's-slow-down-and-think-it-through personality. And plus, they're plenty jealous of each other.

This plot was completely ERMAHGERD. I can totes say that again. (ERMAHGERD.) That ending, though. I don't do well with books that make me angry..

I want the next book, now! That cliffhanger.. ugh..

Quotes

Note: This is an ARC copy. All quotes may not match those of the final print's.


"I hate the Sisterhood for separating us."


Well there's really no one to blame BUT THYSELF


"..forbids women from working outside the home."


WHAT?!


"..forbids that girls should be taught to read."


WHAT?!!!


"And the handwriting is Finn's."


And now the story starts


"Where we can look after each other,"


Awww.


"His lips work their way from my temple to my cheekbone."


This is too cute I can't


"Put your faith in me, and I'll see to it that we both get what we want."


I'm scared should I be scared


"He likes the pretty ones.."


Oh.. OH...


"I wonder what he looks like with nothing on at all."


Naked? Eheh.


"If I'd stayed in Chatham, refused the Sisters, would we be married by now and sharing a bed every night?"


YES DAMMIT


"Then the door slams open, and we spring apart."

WHAT A KILLJOY UGH


"It's not fair."


HELL YEAH IT IS


"..don't you know me at all?"


WELL DO YOU KNOW HER AT ALL


"I want to be your husband, Cate."


I can't omg omg


"I'm the strongest witch in this room, that's who."


That's right. You go, Cate!


"You just can't stand that I'm more popular than you!"


No. She just can't stand that you're so annoying. omg.


"I'm done playing nice."


That was playing nice?


"I believe in you, Cate Cahill, and in us together."


AWWW


"I love you, Cate Cahill. You are beautiful and brave and strong."


I'm crying LOL
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That's it. What do you think of this review?(:

Book Review: Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood.

 Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood.
(Cahill Witch Chronicles Book 1)
Book Summary: Everybody knows Cate Cahill and her sisters are eccentric. Too pretty, too reclusive, and far too educated for their own good. But the truth is even worse: they’re witches. And if their secret is discovered by the priests of the Brotherhood, it would mean an asylum, a prison ship—or an early grave.

Before her mother died, Cate promised to protect her sisters. But with only six months left to choose between marriage and the Sisterhood, she might not be able to keep her word... especially after she finds her mother’s diary, uncovering a secret that could spell her family’s destruction. Desperate to find alternatives to their fate, Cate starts scouring banned books and questioning rebellious new friends, all while juggling tea parties, shocking marriage proposals, and a forbidden romance with the completely unsuitable Finn Belastra.

If what her mother wrote is true, the Cahill girls aren’t safe. Not from the Brotherhood, the Sisterhood—not even from each other. 

Liana's Summary: Cate is left with the responsibility of taking care of her sisters. That's what her mother made her promise. The burden of taking care of her sisters is already overwhelming, and even worse? She has to make sure they're safe. Safe from the Brothers and safe for the rest of the society that hates them. They're witches. Cate is faced with difficult decisions that she has to make and there has to be sacrifices.

Rate(1-10): 9

This book was fabulous. I loved it. Honestly, the only reason I wanted to read this book was because I heard that the guy character was some sexy beast. LOL. Well, I wasn't disappointed. HE WAS SO FREAKIN' GORGEOUS HOLY SHIT. Well, he's not really my type of guy, but what I like about him is that he's so kind and caring and he's a MUSCLY GARDENER. How hot is that? He's hot in a realistic type of way.

Anyways, along with hot-guy-gardener Finn Belastra, I liked this whole entire plot as well. Usually, I don't like witches because judgmental guys are so sexist, back then. I think it's set in 1896. Well. Sexist men and burning witches. It's that time.. back then.

Anyways, character discussions.

Cate- Cate seems too old for her age. Especially since her mother has burdened her with so much, although intentionally. Reading this, you can't help but think, poor Cate. She gets frustrated easily and what annoys me about her is that she treats her younger sisters like babies and like they can't handle even the smallest detail. And she's also very indecisive. What I like about her are her abilities and powers and her maturity-- wait, I don't really like that she seems like an old boor. LOL.
Maura- Maura is just seriously so annoying. Her and Cate get into the most fights and Maura is like, I'M OLD ENOUGH NOW BLAH BLAH BLAH and she's so naive it just gets freaking annoying. But in the end, I hope she'll realize that Cate was right.
Tess- Tess, the youngest out of the three sisters, is too mature for her own age as well. She's quiet and polite and she'll never lose her temper. When Cate is distressed with Maura she can always go to Tess, because Tess is very understanding. I think out of the three sisters I like her the most.
Paul- When Paul first came in I'm just like.. wait. Is this the hot guy that everyone's been rambling about? Apparently not. He just seems so annoying. (Everyone seems annoying LOLOL) He flirts with Cate relentlessly as though he can't see her hesitance. And before he even proposed he acts like she's his fiance already..
Finn- Finn. The nerd with glasses that loves to read books. Finn, with cherry red lips and crazy messy hair and freckles that seem to cover every inch of his muscly body. The sexy gardener. Yep, that's him. He kinda sorta reminds me of Jem Carstairs from TID by Cassandra Clare, and most of you know that I'm crazy over Jem and infatuated with him to a crazy level. He's basically my fictional boyfriend. HA! Anyways, Finn reminds me of Jem because he's way too kind for his own good and he loves the girl truly and innocently. Their hearts are both pure and kind and omg I'll just stop now. I think y'all get the point that Finn is a true gentleman
Elena- I dislike her, period. At first I thought she would have been like the evil stepmother type, but even worse, she ended up being nice. And full of secrets.

Quotes.

"If I didn't have my novels, I'd throw myself right in the river."



That's my motto

"..I smack into someone."



I think it's time for the sexy guy character to come into the story


"I'm your new gardener."



Sexy.. muscly.. gardener boy!


"..the most insufferable know-it-all.."



Don't we all know at least one insufferable know-it-all?


"....his forearms are all lean, wiry muscle."




hehehe


"...he's gotten awfully handsome.."






"I wouldn't marry a member of the Brotherhood..."



This is foreshadowing I smell, I know it! EAT YER WORDS


"I had a mad crush on her."



Fictional crushes ftw

"I'm going to marry my cousin.."




"You'd make a very fetching mermaid."





"..one ankle crumpled beneath him."




"I wonder how many freckles he's got."




Ooooooooooooh she's wondering that


"..to my favorite girl."



He makes himself sound like such a playboy. 

"..it's not because of Belastra, is it?"



HAHA HOW DOES PAUL KNOW THIS STUFF


"She wants me to join the Brothers."





"...lingering on my bosom,"



Ew perv


".. I offer myself to the Sisterhood."

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Overall, I liked this book lots. Jeez, did the ending have to be such a cliffhanger? I'm eager for the next book!
What did you guys think of this review?(:

Book Review: The Burning of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel.

The Burning of Isobel Key by Jen McConnel.
Book Summary: Lou is in the middle of a quarter-life crisis. Ever since college, she’s lacked direction, working as a clerk in a local bookstore. But when she quits her job just before the winter holidays, Lou must do some serious soul searching to overcome her fears of straying from the mainstream. On a whim, she accompanies her best friend, Tammy, to Scotland for the winter holidays, but the vacation soon turns into an emotional roller coaster. When she becomes embroiled in a hunt for information about Isobel Key, a woman falsely accused of witchcraft in the seventeenth century, Lou opens up to her intuition and makes a startling discovery about her own heritage.

Liana's Summary: Lou doesn't know what to do next. She's done with college. But when her best friend, Tammy, comes and takes her to Scotland, they're set on a whole new adventure- eating Scottish food, traveling and learning about history, and maybe even finding the right guy for Lou. But, most importantly- learning about her ancestors.

Rate(1-10): 8.8

This was a great book! I really enjoyed it. It passed by pretty quickly for a 259 page book. Anyways, I got a PDF copy of this book, since I'm participating in the blog tour next month!

So, I'm going to jump right in on the romance discussion. There was slow romance. But I didn't really mind. In fact, I was so thankful for the slow romance because I wanted the characters to focus on what's more important- their research. But then they had to fall in love (which I totally thought was cute) and they brought it further and got on the freaking bed. But there was no specifics, which is good. I just got a bit annoyed that they put aside something so important for something like THAT.

So, Tammy is Lou's BFF. It seems that there's nothing that can break them apart. Like, nothing. Nothing nothing. Even if they have a little disagreement, they can't stay mad long. They just consider what the other would feel and they just continue being great friends. It's remarkable. Throughout this whole book, they had each other's backs. And it wasn't unnatural either. They had tiny disagreements, but, like I said, they didn't stay mad long.

Character Discussions! (;

Lou- That's the covergirl! She's persistent in her own beliefs and qualifies as a strong female protagonist.
Isobel- She was really likeable. I started disliking her a bit when she became all depressed. I felt so bad for her. I feel that I know Lou better than her, and I wish I would have gotten a better chance to know Isobel.
Tammy- Although a bit playful and annoying at times, I like her! She's a really good friend and she knows what to say and when to cheer people up.
Brian- He's nice. But like, I would have felt better if he didn't keep on trying to barge in on things.

Those, of course, are not all the characters. They're just the ones worth discussing. And NO. I will not discuss the characters that ruined everything. They're not quite antagonists, though. They're just troubled and they RUINED EVERYTHING.

The book summary gave everything away. Which is why my overall GENERAL expressions were..

Of course, those were not ALL. But it's mostly what I felt. Don't get me wrong, of course I was paying attention. It's just that I knew too much from reading the summary and the title that I didn't really know what to say. Which is why I have quite a FEW quotes today. It's the only thing that's keeping the rating from a 10! Oh well. Anyways, despite the spoilers included in the summary, I liked it!

Time for quotes! This is gonna pass by quickly.

"You were really wasting yourself at that bookstore!"








"No one could have guessed what would happen, and no one was prepared when it did."



"..while Alexander Nairn died."

HAAAAAAAAA! That's what he GETS.

"Now, what about this handsome man? Surely that can't be you?"

Ooou snap. Need some ice for that burn?

"..and they cracked their foreheads against each other with a sickening 'thwack.'"

Cutest way of a kiss attempt. LOL.

"Lou was aware of the minute hairs on his arms, and she was overwhelmed by his rick, masculine smell."

Thank goodness this is almost over before the erotica starts.

"Instead, they were tangled up in the sheets of the guest bed.."

Oh jeez. I spoke too soon.
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And that's it! What did you think of this review? (;