Book Review: The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima

Title: The Warrior Heir (The Heir Chornicles #1)

Author: Cinda Williams Chima

Publisher:  Hyperion Paperbacks (April 1, 2007)

Format: Trade Paperback

Pages: 426

Synopsis from Goodreads:

An epic battle between good and evil…

Before he knew about the Roses, 16-year-old Jack lived an unremarkable life in the small Ohio town of Trinity. Only the medicine he has to take daily and the thick scar above his heart set him apart from the other high schoolers. Then one day Jack skips his medicine. Suddenly, he is stronger, fiercer, and more confident than ever before. And it feels great – until he loses control of his own strength and nearly kills another player during soccer team tryouts

Soon, Jack learns the startling truth about himself: he is Weirlind, part of an underground society of magical people who live among us. At their helm sits the feuding houses of the Red Rose and the White Rose, whose power is determined by playing The Game – a magical tournament in which each house sponsors a warrior to fight to the death. The winning house rules the Weir.

As if his bizarre heritage isn’t enough, Jack finds out that he’s not just another member of Weirlind – he’s one of the last of the warriors – at a time when both houses are scouting for a player.

 *Warning: Might contain some spoilers*

If I would ever have to pick a theme of a book that I could read on forever, that would be anything which can involve magic. Thank goodness I found a book that perfectly fit my cravings. Cravings which are namely, wizards, spells, fantastic powers, and adventures!

I’m so glad to have found a book that can fit my cravings in a novel. I think the very last time that I had such a great great time reading was when I got into the Heir of Fire by Sarah J. Maas. Now, stumbling into The Warrior Heir by Cinda Williams Chima felt like rain after months of drought. I am so in the mood for high fantasy books lately. I have to say that TWH exceeded my expectations as a reader.

As I dove into the story, my initial thought was that this story is going to be so slow. I was also thinking how typical it is to start a novel with a set of family being murdered (oops!). Then, the only survivor of that unfortunate event would seek revenge.

After prologue, we are introduced to Jackson Downey Swift’s world. When he was born, he had little chance of living due to his heart anomaly. His Aunt Linda, sought the help of Jessamine, a heart surgeon, to save his life. Ever since then, Jack pretty much had a normal life until the day that he forgot to take his medicine.

Well, that was the start that I have been looking for. From that, I was so intrigued what’s with Jack  previous heart surgery. So what if he forgot to take his medicine? Although I was really curious about the plot, I must admit that some parts of the book were predictable.

It took time for me to get used to the new terms in this particular magical world and how the system of this world works. Reading such stuff really gave me a fantastic time. I enjoyed everything. I really admired Jack’s friendship with Will and Fitch. They are indeed the most loyal friends. I didn’t really shipped Jack and Ellen together but whatever. There’s no other available girl for Jack. Just kidding 😉 Nick Snowbeard kind of reminded me of Dumbledore. Maybe because I was imagining him as an old aged man who’s got a long white beard and lots of wisdom.

Which characters do I ship then? That would would be Linda and Hastings. Gosh, I think they are really adorable. They got this like-hate thing going on. I mean they had a past. There must still be an old flame between them waiting to be rekindled. I’m really hoping they would end up. An enchantress and a warrior would really make a cool couple.

Overall, The Warrior Heir is such an epic way to start a series. I’ve read so many good things about the succeeding books in the series. I am looking forward to reading the next books. I know they will be like companion novels but I am really really curious as to what will happen next.

Book Review: Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins

Title: Rebel Belle (Rebel Belle #1)

Author: Rachel Hawkins

Publisher:  Putnam Juvenile (April 8. 2014)

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 345

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Harper Price, peerless Southern belle, was born ready for a Homecoming tiara. But after a strange run-in at the dance imbues her with incredible abilities, Harper’s destiny takes a turn for the seriously weird. She becomes a Paladin, one of an ancient line of guardians with agility, super strength and lethal fighting instincts.

Just when life can’t get any more disastrously crazy, Harper finds out who she’s charged to protect: David Stark, school reporter, subject of a mysterious prophecy and possibly Harper’s least favorite person. But things get complicated when Harper starts falling for him—and discovers that David’s own fate could very well be to destroy Earth.

With snappy banter, cotillion dresses, non-stop action and a touch of magic, this new young adult series from bestseller Rachel Hawkins is going to make y’all beg for more.

Hi Book Nerds! It’s been long since the last time I posted in my blog. I’ve been really busy and was trying to keep up with my reading schedule. Today, I come back with a review for Rebel Belle by Rachel Hawkins.

I’ve been seriously eyeing this gorgeous book ever since it was released last year. I mean, look at it. It’s so pretty that it begs to be placed on my shelf. So, when I finally got my copy. I read it right away.

The story revolves our main character, Harper Price, aka Miss Perfect. She’s the President of the student government, one of the people who’s at the top of the class, and future homecoming queen. At the night of her most awaited homecoming dance, something really strange happens to Harper. When she went to the comfort room to put some lip gloss (lol), their school janitor, wounded and bleeding to death, barges in and kisses her. After that strange kiss, he dies. Then, there comes her history teacher who tries to kill her. Harper thought that she was having a nightmare but what’s worse is that she isn’t. Later on, she finds herself involved with David Stark, her greatest nemesis in school.

With this hilarious and weird start to the story, Rachel Hawkins pretty much got my full attention. Harper seems like the kind of character who’s not fit at all to be  the hero in the book. With her kind of personality, you would think that she should rather be the damsel in distress. She’s so girly and self-centered. Initially, you will have an impression that all she cared about were pretty dresses, elegant shoes, and her popularity. All her life, she strove to be their school’s best role model. She maintains her reputation as the smart, responsible, and gorgeous one. I just find it funny how in this story, she’s sort of a warrior who is destined to fight enemies to protect a certain someone.

I enjoyed most parts of the book. I love how she can be princess-y but also a warrior. That’s just so cool. After she overcame her issues with regards to her destiny, she became bad-ass. It also helped that she’s a fighter and very determined.

The other characters in the book are all very interesting. They were fun to read. David Stark, her greatest enemy in school, develops friendship with her. My fave parts were when they were having their banters. I also really like that even though they hated each other, they reached the point when they had each other’s backs. Aunt Saylor was someone who I really hated since the beginning. I was also kind of hesitant to trust her. Later on, I realized that I was kind of wrong. Oh..and can I just tell how much I love Harper’s Aunts? They’re absolutely adorable!

I loved the plot twists!! Gosh, they were so entertaining and amusing. Ever since then, I didn’t think that I have laughed a lot while reading a paranormal book. The concept about the Paladins was something new. I have never encountered it before. So, I think that the whole book was really refreshing.

There was just some parts when I thought that the characters were annoying and silly. Although I guess, my love for them overrode my occasional irritation. Overall, I think I would really love to dive in more to Harper’s world. There will be a next book in the series, it’s called Miss Mayhem. It’s going to be released on April this year. I’m so stoked!!