Mini Book Reviews: October's Secret World

   So guess who reads a LOT of books and wishes to review them all? *raises hand*

   And guess who does NOT have time to do full-length reviews for a hundred and one books? Also me.

   Welcome to mini reviews, guys. You are welcome to expect weird mash-up titles for these posts xD.

   I've got three lovely books here for review today - and there's something for everyone! Contemporary, historical fiction, and fantasy. And I can gladly say that I enjoyed them all! I can't wait to tell you about them ... 

October 

by J. Grace Pennington

Wow ... okay, so I literally cannot wrap my head around this book. I've been trying ever since I read it, and my thoughts still won't come together in a orderly little patterns (though really, do they ever? xD). But I'll give this a try anyways ...

I've read Radialloy (from the Firmament series)  by Pennington, and remember enjoying that, so I was pretty excited to pick up October. But I had no idea how different this book would be from the Firmament series! October would have been a perfect summer read (wish I had waited to read it summer, actually - I think I would have loved reading it while laying in the trampoline!). I did NOT expect for it to end the way it did ... honestly, I can't say that much without spoilers, so I can't really explain why I docked a half star off of what would have probably been a four-star book. What I can say is that I don't think the ending was entirely right. I think it all could have been finished differently, and it felt just a tad rushed. But I have made it very known that I am the pickiest of the picky when it comes to endings, so it could be a 'me, not you' kind of thing ;). And because this book deals with a bit of a mature topic towards the end of the book, I would only recommend it to 15+. But otherwise, if you need a contemporary read this summer (or spring!), Pennington has a fresh voice and a beautiful story. Really loved this one <3.

* I received a free copy of this book but was not required to review it 

The Dressmaker's Secret 

by Kellyn Roth 

The author of this book reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in doing a review, and added that it was historical fiction, and she knew I'm not a huge fan of the genre. But I told her I'd give it a shot anyway and OH MY <3.

Gracious, I'm very glad that I didn't judge this pretty book by its genre! I was impressed by the story, and while it did feel a little like an indie-published book (not a bad thing, just worth mentioning), I still very much enjoyed it. The religion felt a little forced one or two times, but it flowed smoothly for most of the book, and the characters were lovely. I was captivated by the story, and - even though school was calling - I had such a hard time putting it down (let's just say that one or two responsibilities may have been shirked in the reading of this book xD)! And I'm told that this book is the first in a trilogy, so I'll definitely be checking out the rest. 

* I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review

The Tethered World

by Heather L.L. FitzGerald

Okay, gracious ... where do I start? I heard about this book when it first came out, but then it (sadly) disappeared off my radar - until the author herself graciously gifted me a copy after I beta read for her! And GRACIOUS, I should not have waited so long to read this thing.






First of all, let me just say that I've heard this book compared to Narnia, and I definitely think that's a good comparison. It reminded me just a bit of a really modern version of Narnia. It also kind of reminded me of an old (old) story that I wrote three or four years back for some friends of mine - except polished and beautiful and not embarrassing, haha ;D. But that was fun! I loved the characters so much, I really enjoyed being in Sadie's head. And I might have considered giving the book four stars, except I had a hard time getting into it, for some reason? But once the action started, I was in. And can we talk about the story's world for a moment? The Tethered World is one of the most creative fantasy worlds that I've seen in a long time, I LOVED how it was all underground (reminded me of Gregor The Overlander just a bit, and I adore that series), and yet not drab at all. And everything being said - I quite enjoyed this book, and I'm thrilled that it's a trilogy, because that means I get more! ;D I'm super stoked to start on The Flaming Sword.     

* I received a free copy of this book but was not required to review it 

 
  And there's that! I had such fun reading these three books - I hope that you guys check them out and enjoy them as much (or more!) than I did ;).

~ Savannah Grace

have you read any of these? what did you think?

which of them has you the most intrigued?