​House of Roots and Ruin
(Sisters of the Salt #2)
Erin A. Craig

Publisher:
    Delacorte Press/RHC

Pub Date: July 25th, 2023
​
Genre:
    YA Fantasy/Retelling
​

Synopsis:


Seeing as this indeed a sequel, we don't want to give any spoilers so below, we have the synopsis of Book 1!

In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.

Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls' lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.

Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn't sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?

When Annaleigh's involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it's a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.

Those of you who know me, also know I'm terribly prone to jumping into series midway through.. and that's absolutely the case here too.

'House of Roots and Ruin' is book two in the Sisters of the Salt series by Erin A. Craig. I never got around to reading the first, 'House of Salt and Sorrows,' though everything about the synopsis called to me. After this though, I'm definitely making time to go back and read it soon.

It's funny. I get accustomed to the more casual style of modern writers and sometimes forget how much more moving a real wordsmith actually is. Craig is a truly gifted author and I'm so happy to have finally experienced her work.

This story is so full to bursting.. full of emotions.. hope.. pain.. beauty.. love.. and loss. It's an elegant Gothic tale that's at times whimsical and at others devastating. The prose is lyrical, but not overdone. Foreshadowing is subtle, like something in your peripheral vision.. that you might only notice if you're paying proper attention.

In a case of what might normally be 'not everything is as it seems,' this is more akin to 'nothing is as it seems.' 

I absolutely love this story and the delicate manner every aspect is crafted. The characters are richly portrayed and multi-dimensional. They're so fleshed out that I feel as if I know them, rather than the mildly thin caricatures I often experience in other novels.

Craig does a beautiful job with the imagery, making the settings tangible. Managing all the while to help me really see everything without putting me to sleep through redundant, overly long descriptions.

If you're a fan of Gothic thrillers or Gothic fantasy like Ghost Wood Song or Mexican Gothic, you won't want to miss this one! I can't wait to dig into more of her work!

​King of Storms and Feathers
(Courts of the Star Fae Realms #1)
Juno Heart

Publisher:
    Self-Published

Pub Date: July 5th, 2023
​
Genre: Fantasy
​

Synopsis:


I wake in a cage at the gilt market with no memory of my name.

When the fae King of Storms and Feathers purchases me, I vow to escape his palace of dust and gold, reclaim my memories, and return to the home that haunts my visions—a city of ruins in the decaying forests of the human realm.

In the meantime, I’ll pretend to be what King Arrowyn wants—an obedient green-eyed bird, chained and powerless, his for the taunting and taking.

But when I escape and fall into viler clutches, Arrow hunts me down, determined to retrieve his disobedient, most valued possession.

King of Storms and Feathers is the first book in the sizzling adult fantasy romance series, Courts of the Star Fae Realms. Readers who enjoy angsty enemies-to-lovers tension, a strong human heroine, and a morally gray fae king who yearns to control her but, instead, falls helplessly under her spell will love this book!

** This series contains dark elements and is suitable for mature readers. For more information, please visit Juno Heart’s website.

​I was a bit slow making my way through this story, but largely that was because initially I was enjoying it so much and I really wanted to absorb every detail. 

While the synopsis claims "you're going to hate him until you don't".. for me, it was wrong. I never hated him. He was a bit of a jerk, yes.. but in all the hot ways I enjoy a book's romantic interest.. that don't work out so well in real life. 

From the moment Arrow acquires his "disobedient, most valued possession,' he's almost adorably obnoxious and broody. He easily squashes her escape attempts and literally tosses her about, yet all the while I'm over here making grabby hands at him. 

She's a brat too, but in mostly endearing ways. Her snarky responses are relatable and funny. For him, she's annoyingly strong-willed and exactly what peaks his interest. Minus the endearing nature and her penchant for throwing herself into trouble over and over, this is pretty much my dynamic in most relationships.. so I get her in ways I don't normally get MCs. 

That being said, a little over halfway into the novel I did get a bit tired of her getting herself into the same situations. At some point, you learn a little and at least adapt your approach to things. That's also where reading it really picked up for me because I was no longer as invested as I had been in each moment. 

The 'bones' of the tale are all very intriguing. I liked Arrow's backstory, as well as the result that had on his views and behavior. I enjoyed the dynamic between him and the MC.. the constant conflict of emotion.. and the swings between fighting each other and engaging in other more pleasurable past times. 

On a side note, when I first read Heart's work about three years ago, I felt like she had a lot of potential and just really needed to get some experience under her belt. She's absolutely done that and her writing has definitely evolved well. 

Honestly, though despite my impatience with repeating the damsel-in-distress angle too frequently for my taste, I am now eagerly awaiting book two. If you want a fun, steamy read and enjoy a morally grey love interest, definitely give this one a try. 

The Vinyl Underground
Rob Rufus

Publisher:
    Flux

Pub Date: March 20th, 2020
​
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
​

Synopsis:


Dig it.


During the tumultuous year of 1968, four teens are drawn together: Ronnie Bingham, who is grieving his brother’s death in Vietnam; Milo, Ronnie’s bookish best friend; “Ramrod,” a star athlete who is secretly avoiding the draft; and Hana, the new girl, a half-Japanese badass rock-n-roller whose presence doesn’t sit well with their segregated high school.


The four outcasts find sanctuary in “The Vinyl Underground,” a record club where they spin music, joke, debate, and escape the stifling norms of their small southern town. But Ronnie’s eighteenth birthday is looming. Together, they hatch a plan to keep Ronnie from being drafted. But when a horrific act of racial-charged violence rocks the gang to their core, they decide it’s time for an epic act of rebellion.


Content Warning:  Racial violence and harassment, grief, drug use, underage drinking

​About the Author:


Rob Rufus is a musician and writer living in Nashville. His band, Blacklist Royals, has released two full-length albums and played in sixteen countries over the past five years. His new project, The Bad Signs, released their first single in 2015. He is the author of Die Young with Me.