YA Review: Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay

Title: Princess of Thorns
Author: Stacey Jay
Series: n/a
Book #: 1
Pages: 400
Reading Level: YA
Book Rating: 
Goodreads Rating: 3.88
Published: Dec. 9th, 2014

Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales in this twisted, fast-paced romantic fantasy-adventure about Sleeping Beauty's daughter, a warrior princess who must fight to reclaim her throne.

Though she looks like a mere mortal, Princess Aurora is a fairy blessed with enhanced strength, bravery, and mercy yet cursed to destroy the free will of any male who kisses her. Disguised as a boy, she enlists the help of the handsome but also cursed Prince Niklaas to fight legions of evil and free her brother from the ogre queen who stole Aurora's throne ten years ago.

Will Aurora triumph over evil and reach her brother before it's too late? Can Aurora and Niklaas break the curses that will otherwise forever keep them from finding their one true love?

Taschima's POV:

A combination of Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales? Not very likely, but that doesn't mean it wasn't enjoyable. Princess of Thorns is not as dark as either of these tales, though it has its moments. It is a fantasy/adventure/romance that could be very well turned into a Disney movie by its own right (and while Disney movies can be dark they aren't incredibly so). Princess of Thorns tries really hard to break boundaries and convey a positive message for both girls and boys, which I am all for, though in doing so it creates its own little perfect piece of the world in which girls can just flaunt how awesome they are without being secretive about it and males will just go with it. It is a nice thought but not very realistic for the time it is set on. It is by all rights a modern Disney fairytale retelling.

I highly enjoyed the relationship between Aurora and Niklaas. Aurora is nothing like her mother, the Sleeping Beauty. Aurora is plain were the Sleeping Beauty was the fairest of them all. Aurora is fairy-blessed with strength, agility, and basically kick ass warrior capabilities. Aurora simply kicks ass, though she also has faults. Like for example she cannot kiss a boy without having him loose his will (I sort of cringe at this because isn't it cheesy? Like, couldn't her curse be something un-romantic like?). That kind of sucks, but if you are to be queen you kind of need the other abilities more. Anywhoo, Aurora spends most of the novel posing as her brother in order to her Niklass to help her save her "friend" from the grasp of the evil ogre queen. So they develop this relationship as friends that is fresh and endearing. They spend most of the novel taking jabs at each other and one-upping each other. Which is why it is hilarious the moment Niklaas realizes she is a girl and not the little scrawny guy he considered a little brother.

Niklaas is this kind of single-minded fellow at first. He wants to marry Aurora to save his ass from his evil curse and he kind of doesn't care if she likes him or not. Well, he figures she will because he is irresistible for women (aren't all princes'? *barfs*). But this highly into himself guy proves to be one of the good ones. He may not be completely evolved in the way he thinks about women (though you find out he will certainly have his world turned upside down) but he is honorable and good and funny. He treats women as they are "supposed" to be treated, but like I said this is a modern Disney retelling so soon enough he will learn that women deserve the same sort of respect as his fellow brothers in arms. He grows, painfully so (the boy is very confused) but at least he recognizes the error of his ways.

The bad guys of the tale, Ogres, had a good backstory. They were here long before the human race and so they have evolved in order to blend and put the little humans at ease (the better to eat your flesh if you think they are tame and just). Now they have learned how to hide their diets (they used to eat humans, now they just eat human souls). Although at the same time they aren't completely evil, nor are they all the same. Their race is as complicated as the human race can be. I liked that about them because it shows they aren't one-dimensional. The ogre queen in particular had a lot of doubts and fears. She questioned her path, and what she was doing because of her brother's prophesy. The ogres are incredibly religious, and they do things blindly based on hope that the mother of their race may rise once again. It is twisted. While the ogre queen's dialogue is annoying (she spends a lot of time talking as a "we"; like they are various people inside her) learning her side of the story only increased my enjoyment of the novel.

There is magic, evil ogres, curses, quests... pretty much everything you need for a good fantasy adventure. The romance got too mushy for me at times, specially by the very end. I love how these characters bickered a lot, but by the end I was just tired of all the "But I love you!"/"No you don't, how could you?" that went on. Give me more ass kicking I say. Also the ending kind of was too easy if you can believe it. Events transpired that made a key player change their minds regarding their actions and then the world was saved.

Princess of Thorns was a light quick read which has the airs of being a Disney fairytale but it isn't technically about the Sleeping Beauty. It tries, it succeeds, and then you move on. I liked its overall positive message and girl power but I can honestly say I wont think much about it after this review is over. It is a book for the moment.

TBR (To Be Released): Week of Jan. 13th-19th

Get ready for a visit to your closest book store because here is a list of books that shall be published this upcoming Tuesday:

Goodreads

"To fight her destiny as the missing heir to a powerful and dangerous secret society, sixteen-year-old Avery West must solve an ancient puzzle in a deadly race across Europe. Forbidden love and code-breaking, masked balls and explosions, destiny and dark secrets collide in this romantic thriller, in the vein of a YA DaVinci Code."

Deadly races, puzzles, powerful families and powerful foes. It seems like the entire novel is going to be a non stop race to solve the puzzle!

The hardcover price is the same on both retailers right now, so it all just depends if you want it delivered to your door, or if you want it right now.

Amazon price for Hardcover: $15.22

Barnes and Noble: $15.22

  

 Goodreads

"Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice. Children can kill a monster and feel quite proud of themselves. A girl can look at her brother and believe they’re destined to be a knight and a bard who battle evil. She can believe she’s found the thing she’s been made for."

This was SUCH a good book. You all have to read it. There are faeries, the bad kind, a girl who kicks ass with a sword (aspires to be a freaking KNIGHT) and breaks stereotypes. Also, two very cute romance stories.

Amazon price for Hardcover: $9.00

Barnes and Noble: $10.22

Not much of a difference, and then you have to consider shipping and handling (if you are not a Prime member).

 Goodreads

 Unmade is the sequel to Entangled. I did not read Entangled, though it seems I should since it has pretty good reviews and it is a sci fi.

Amazon price for Hardcover: $14.39

Barnes and Noble: $14.39

 I encourage you guys to also look to your local bookstores and see if they have them on stock (keep the locals afloat guys!). As for the e-reader prices you can also find those through the links. I personally prefer actual paper copies but I understand the necessity of the e-readers.

If I had to pick one of the three I would buy The Darkest Part of the Forest because I can honest to god recommend it. It is a great read, and by none other than Holly Black! Close second would be The Conspiracy of Us (which I shall be buying tomorrow) and then Unmade (only because it is a sequel and I haven't read the first book).

Now get shopping,

PS; If you know of any other releases (YA, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal genres) that are releasing this week feel free to comment and I will add to the list!

RELEASED LAST WEEK:

YA Review: A Beautiful Dark by Jocelyn Davies

Title: A Beautiful Dark
Author: Jocelyn Davies
Series: A Beautiful Dark
Book #: 1
Pages: 390
Reading Level: YA
Book Rating: 
Goodreads Rating: 3.89
Published: Sept. 27th, 2011.

On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites—like fire and ice—Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move—only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.

In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can’t help falling for, and Devin, who she can’t stay away from, the consequences of Skye’s choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.

Taschima's POV:

A Beautiful Dark is a mindless read. As in, you barely have to put any thought into the story line because it is like every other one out there. It isn't bad in the strictest sense it just has been so very done before. As my rating suggests, it was just okay.

Started out with the basic YA Paranormal Romance novel "plot". Normal girl (Skye) with some strange aspect who meets two strange boys (Asher and Devin) who inexplicably are new to her high school, and eventually become attracted to her. Because you know, High School is always the way to go when you are immortal. Along the way Skye gets to uncovered a dark secret from her family tree while debating the ultimate question, do I like Asher or Devin?

Sigh, you know what, I do like a good triangle as much as the next girl, but not when the love triangle overpowers the actual story line, no matter how overdone said story line is. I swear we spent the entire novel ogling Asher's good looks and devil may care attitude and the other half was spent scrutinizing Devin's calmness and his mood swings. Who gives a rat's ass! Asher is hot for sure but not hot enough to fully engage me for an almost 400 page novel. To be honest I've seen/read hotter.

The story "plot". It was just unoriginal, down to the very last strand. I've read some very well written Angel books (Sweet Evil anyone?) but this one just didn't make the cut. I think it didn't even make an effort. And Skye? She was nothing special really. Nothing from her character called to me or made me connect with her in any way. She spends the full first chunk of the novel avoiding the truth and the other half she is too focused on the boys in her life to actually sprout any wings of her own. Pun intended.

You might be asking yourself why exactly then did I continue to read till the very end? Does it have any redeeming qualities? Truth is, it was an easy read. It was like watching a movie who's plot you have watched millions of times before but instead of changing the channel you power through because well, you are already seated at your couch and the TV remote is far out of reach. Then again I could understand loving the book if you are a new reader because you would appreciate the plot without comparing it to everything else you have read in the past. But for me it was just blah. Who knows if the second book will have anything going for it, and I already have it so let's find out.