I was provided with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. 
The book focuses on the main character, Jet, who is entering his freshman year of college. In this world, every human has abilities that are better known as powers. Jet is different; he is the last pure Caster, someone who can use magic. Schools and colleges use the most advanced technology of this world, the AITS, to train the students, have sparring matches, and assign missions. Missions are a massive part of the curriculum, and the completion of these missions gives each student points that go toward their term grade. Colleges and universities use this technology and have the students enter the AITS virtual reality during their second semester. With time working differently in the virtual reality, the students do a full year during the second semester. With the AITS the students refer to the time in the virtual reality as the game, and when they enter the virtual reality, they are in there to fend for themselves.
On the campus of Welwerth University, sports teams and clubs are highly regarded and some clubs shine brighter within the virtual reality. For the students that are not part of a club or sports team, it is hard to get missions done within the virtual reality in order to secure a good grade at the end of the year. To level the playing field, Jet and friends decide to establish a new club, one that would welcome all and give the rest of the student body a place to come together. This new club is called the Sanctuary. But even as everything seems to fall into place, it will all unravel with secrets, underhand deals, backstabbing, and a threat that no one saw coming. To survive, everyone will have to rally together to defeat the adversity.
My Thoughts:
In this first book of Chronicles of a Spell Caster, the author chronicles the journey of the main character Jet as he navigates his way through Welwerth University, a place where humans with powers come to learn. Jet is unique in that he is the last pure Caster, someone who can use magic directly. This sets him apart from the rest and of course defines his friends and foes.
The concept of the university is interesting in that the students are divided into sports teams and or clubs. Virtual reality is used to help train them and this concept was something that I enjoyed reading about. The author gives us a lot of interesting detail and some history as the story progresses. Even though the story is told in first person, with Jet as the narrator, we come to know many things about the AITS and the University.
As the students go through the daily classes and experiences, we are introduced to various characters each with their own agenda, strengths and weaknesses. Some become reader favourites and some, well they exist in the story for a reason. It took me some time to get into the book as the writing was not easy to get into. I was not able to relate to Jet easily as he seemed to know everything and he seemed to always win. This was until a point where we are shown fractures in the perfect facades of the characters and then their struggles become more relatable.
Overall, I found the idea of the plot to be interesting and the use of virtual reality as a training tool was unique and well incorporated. The story is worth a read for those who are fans of magic and adventure.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from Xpresso Book Tours as a part of the Blog tour for this book. Unfortunately I was not able to read and review this book in time for the Blog tour. So read on to know my thoughts!
About the Book:
Barely seventeen and as pretty as can be: the summer is their playground. Cait and her best friends Steph and Allie take on San Francisco’s party scene with fake IDs and short dresses.
When Cait meets Adrien Cross, the charismatic lead singer of her favorite indie band, she’s introduced to a hedonistic world of liquor and lust that she never wants to leave.
But then that world spirals out of control and the harsh realities of reckless living take a toll on Cait and the ones she loves.
What will be left when the makeup masks wash off, the bottles are empty, and Cait begins to lose her grip on everything?
Katey Taylor’s heart-wrenching debut novel will have you strapped into the intense rollercoaster ride of Cait’s life and one chaotic summer that will change it all.
My Thoughts:
Review : 3 stars
Note: This story has many incidents that could act as triggers. So be careful while picking it up to read.
Inebriated follows the life of Cait and her best friends as they tackle their summer holidays with partying and romance. The story is a typical one with teenagers trying to have fun and enjoy themselves. It is predictable for the most part, but there are a few unexpected twists. I like the way the author has described and handled the friendship between the girls. It is quite beautiful. It also helped to understand their backgrounds and the reason behind the bonds they had. Their acceptance of each other and the way they looked at the world is well written. The characters are not wholly relatable. It was not easy to empathize with them completely nor to understand some of the reasons behind their actions.
Some parts of the story just seemed abrupt and the entire focus of the story was on partying and drugs. Cait is focused on trying to handle her relationship with Adrien Cross, lead singer of her favorite indie band. While their relationship is intense, it pulls her away from focusing on her friends and their lives. This leads to so many consequences as she tries to navigate a world of sudden and intense love, family ties and breaking bonds. When tragedy strikes, noone is even close to ready for it and the author handles the emotions in this part of the story very well.
An overall intensely emotional read, even though I did not fully enjoy the book, the parts that I did, prompt me to recommend it!
About the Book:
Emma’s father’s coldblooded beatings and the ultimate abuse to which he subjects her, lays the foundation of the person she becomes. As she matures into a resourceful teenager, she is unwilling and unable to stifle her desire for revenge. Reaching her breaking point she can no longer control the impulse to fight back and finally takes matters into her own hands.
Having learned the art of hatred from her father and the mastery of manipulation from her mother, young Emma now sets out to make a better life for herself, leaving the memory of the abused child she had once been behind her. Hardened by the heartless brutality she encounters and the dangerous situations she must overcome in the course of her journey, she faces every challenge that comes her way in her quest for a normal life for herself and for those she loves.
Finally a person emerges from within that guides her toward a better life until she learns of a secret that sets her on the path of ultimate redemption.
My Thoughts:
What would you do if your only option to survive is to do anything? Would you resort to killing the people who hurt you to protect the ones you love? What does it mean to be hated and hurt? How do you live in a family devoid of the basic emotion that connects them, love and trust? How does your upbringing shape who you ultimately become?
These are the kind of questions that this book raises and answers in some ways. There cannot be a right answer, it’s more of a perspective which the author brings out in a gentle manner. This is required when dealing with topics of abuse and hurt. Paige Dearth introduces us to Emma and her younger sister, who are subject to severe abuse from their father, with a mother who turns the other way through all this. To be frank, it is expected that the children will be traumatized, and that is putting it mildly. These experiences can change a person and the author portrays the same through the protagonist, Emma. She is strong-willed and resourceful while at the same time has a pleasing personality. It becomes difficult to dislike her or condemn her actions when she is after all doing her best to survive.
The people the sisters encounter along the way leave profound impacts on their lives. Some help them and end up becoming life long friends while the others end up somewhere in a ditch, and that’s putting it mildly. Everyone craves normalcy and a mundane life at times and the sisters are no different. However, tragedy seems to strike so many times, it’s a wonder that they still find reasons to smile. In the end, Emma has the last laugh, but it was worth it all.
The author’s writing is bold and to the point and she doesn’t hold back on her descriptions. There is no stone left unturned in the journey of the sisters and Emma finally learns that you move on – “When smiles fade”! The title is apt and the reader understands this eventually. The story has a lot of smaller plot lines, with each encounter giving us a different glimpse into the characters who support this story and take it forward. The characters are well developed and clearly defined, giving the reader a clear idea of their personalities and at the same time helping us understand how they fit in.
The final question of “Will she find redemption and be happy?” is answered and I really enjoyed the way the story ended. It proved that Emma is a survivor and this is an inspiring thought. There is a lot to learn and understand in this book and I strongly recommend the same to all.
SERENITY HARBOR FROM NEW YORK TIMES AND USA TODAY BESTSELLER RAEANNE THAYNE
ON SALE: July 2017