The Last Sun by K.D Edwards

 

    T This: Why did I read *This* book?

        This book was suggested by a friend and they had suggested it a few times. I bought it at their recommendation and after they recommended it for the 2nd or 3rd time, I decided to pick it up. We have a lot of similar thoughts on books so I trusted that it was a good recommendation. The love I have for this book and these characters makes me realize I need to read more books this friend suggested.

    A Atmosphere: How did it make me feel? What was the world like? This might include overall tone. 

        It made me feel so many things. Sadness for the characters, joy for the characters and worry for them.  I loved that there was a lot of banter because it made me laugh quite a few times.

    S Style: What was the writing style like? Simplistic or sophisticated? Clunky or beautiful?

    I think that the writing was quite good. I didn't notice any grammatical errors and I felt like K.D Edwards was able to write in a way that put me into the world. I was experiencing everything with the characters. Books where I feel like I am walking side by side with the authors tend to get high ratings from me and the minute I picked up the book and read the prologue, I was hooked.

    P Plot/Pace: Was it engaging? Were there holes? Did it feel too rushed or too long?

        I was engaged the entire time. I didn't feel like the book was too long or that it dragged in any places. The author kept up a steady pace of action with some information thrown in and a lot of character development and building.

    E Enjoyment: Was it a chore to finish or compelling enough that I picked it over other fun           activities?

        I absolutely loved it. I rated it 5 stars. I use CAWPILE to rate books and I gave it 10's across the board. It was phenomenal. The author made me fall in love with the characters in a very short time and that can be rare to find.

    C Characters: Were they believable, sympathetic, interesting?

        The characters were believable and engaging. I absolutely adored them and the relationships that were introduced. I want to see more of all the characters. 

Amari and The Night Brothers by B.B. Alston

 

        A Atmosphere: How did it make me feel? What was the world like? This might include overall tone. 

    This book was phenomenal. I was happy, sad and mad. I felt the emotions that Amari felt. The world was phenomenal as well. It was our world with fantasy elements thrown in. I love when books like this are written.  It was lighthearted while also tackling things like racism and discrimination and prejudice. It tackled poverty a bit as well.

    S Style: What was the writing style like? Simplistic or sophisticated? Clunky or beautiful?

    The writing style was more simplistic but I believe that is because it is middle grade. I still felt the world and the characters come to life and it was great. Every character seemed real and it takes a special book to have that effect. 

There were some minor editing issues that could have been fixed with another read through by an editor. This did not detract from the story.

    P Plot/Pace: Was it engaging? Were there holes? Did it feel too rushed or too long?

    I was engaged the entire time. I didn't want to put the book down and if I didn't have work I probably would have stayed up late into the night reading it. I didn't notice that many plot holes. It's possible the adults were a bit less mature or realistic than they would be in the real world but that was quite minor.

    E Enjoyment: Was it a chore to finish or compelling enough that I picked it over other fun           activities?

    I wish that the second and third book were out because this is a series I would love to Binge. I want to find out what happens to Amari, her brother and all the other characters that are introduced. I felt in love with them and want more, now!

    C Characters: Were they believable, sympathetic, interesting?

    The characters and the world were the best part of this book. I loved Amari and the love she had for her brother. The friendships that were developed and the side characters that wee introduced. I found myself rooting them all on.

    T This: Why did I read *This* book?

    I have read mostly Middle Grade so far in January and I had this book pre-ordered. I had been hearing great things, it had a black main character and was written by a black author. I want to read more books by POC and this book sounded really good so I figured I should read it while I was in the mood for Middle Grade.

 Overall, five stars and I am eagerly anticipating the second book.

 

Frostheart by Jaime Littler

 

 T This: Why did I read *This* book?

     I have been hearing a lot of good things about this series and so I wanted to give it a try. I do not read a lot of middle grade which is why it has taken so long for me to get to it. 

 C Characters: Were they believable, sympathetic, interesting? 

    The characters were so amazing. I absolutely loved all the characters. I felt connected to the side characters and the main characters and I love the way their friendships developed.

 P Plot/Pace: Was it engaging? Were there holes? Did it feel too rushed or too long? 

    I felt that this started out slow and  built from there. There was quite  a bit of action and amazing friendships.

   A Atmosphere: How did it make me feel? What was the world like? This might include overall tone. 

    The world was exciting and 'scary' and there was a lot of adventure. There were monsters and Ash was a song weaver who could talk to and control the monsters. The world seems unique and I absolutely loved it.

    S Style: What was the writing style like? Simplistic or sophisticated? Clunky or beautiful?

          This is a middle grade novel so it was more simplistic but I thought that the author was         able to make the characters come alive.

    E Enjoyment: Was it a chore to finish or compelling enough that I picked it over other fun           activities?

        It did take a while for me to get into this novel. I think it took till about page 80 but  once I     got into it, I was hooked and could not put the novel down.

This is a middle grade novel so I think that some people will not be interested in it but I rated it a 4 star. I thought it was wholesome and I loved the happy feelings it gave me. Sometimes you need books that make you happy and this was one of them. I have a full list of books to read this month but I think I'll try and get to the second book sometime soon