#andshewaits

The cardinal question is this: What is a fool? Are they madmen who mutilate their own flesh, those who see what isn’t there, those whose minds drift in a fog? Some of the crazed are indeed violent and must be restrained, placed where they can’t hurt others or themselves—but dungeons aren’t the solution. And those we call morons, imbeciles, half-wits, and simpletons don’t deserve what they get. Unfortunately, we ignore the distinction, lumping everyone together as property because anything unnatural is unnatural. As the Seasons say. “My opinion? A fool is a man who believes glory can be found at the tip of a sword instead of on the tip of his tongue. ’Tis a woman who judges with her eyes closed. ’Tis people who invent aberrations from speculation and rumors. ’Tis bred from ignorance. That is life’s cruel trick.”

read in 2020 📖 Kiss the Fae by Natalia Jaster

most anticipated books of 2020  ♔  Transcend by Natalia Jaster

I’m in the mood for a good fairy tale this weekend, and these outstanding examples are worth revisiting.

Reading the summary

the setting

Briar

Poet (he required more than one)

Nicu (AKA tiny precious one)

the love story

the over all plot

Gifset 1 of ? by @titaniasfics

I went down my review history to the very beginning, when I first started reading fanfic. These were the first fics I read, the ones that made such an impact on me as a writer and fangirl. I have others but these stood out to me because they are the ones that drew me into writing. 

I’ve read so many more. I will likely make other posts! (Fun fact - Madam Beth’s When the Red X is on the Door is the first fic I ever beta’d for :) ) 

Links featured below are for fanfiction.net.

Clockwise from top:

Not in Our Favor (twilightcakes) -  Katniss thinks she had found her happily ever after with Peeta, but when a hunting accident lands her in the hospital, she wakes up discovers she has no idea who he is. Her memories of life for the last two years are all blurry, but she does however remember Gale. Will the baker that seems to be her polar opposite be able to win her over twice?

Rating - M, Words - 225,532

Fae (HGRomance) -  When they were children, he stole her heart. But then he vanished and she never saw him again. Many years later, Katniss finds a portal into an enchanted and dangerous forest, guarded by a fae boy who seems vaguely familiar.

Rating - M, Words - 71,689

When the Red X is on the Door (Madam Beth) -  Post Mockingjay. Katniss and Peeta rebuild their relationship while trying to deal with the trauma of having been through the horrors of their lives since being reaped into the Hunger Games. They are there for each other when nightmares creep in the dark, but how does Katniss know when it is not safe for Peeta to be near her because of his hijacking? When the red X is on the door.

Rating - M, Words - 374,836

When the Moon Fell in Love with the Sun (Mejhiren) -  “It’s something out of an old tale: a golden young man in a white bearskin, striking strange bargains with desperate souls on the cruelest night of winter.” Peeta Mellark, winner of the 74th Hunger Games, returns from his Victory Tour to make the starving Everdeens an offer they can’t refuse. Canon divergent, based on the fairy tale “East of the Sun and West of the Moon.”

Title: Dare (Foolish Kingdoms #2) 

Author: Natalia Jaster

My Rating: 4 Stars

Goodreads. Amazon.

This book returns you to the world of the Foolish Kingdoms and is a great second instalment to the series. With dynamic characters new and old, this book pulls you in and shows you what love can do and be in a world that is severely divided.

*Slight spoilers ahead for Trick and Dare*

I received this ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis:

A Hotheaded Prisoner

They say she’s mad—made of madness, made of fire. In a cage by the sea, Flare dreams of escape. She yearns for the day when she’ll flee to a place only she knows, a hidden world of mystical waters and gilded sands.

The island is calling to her. And she she won’t let anyone keep her from it.

Especially not him.

A Coldhearted Prince

They say he’s cruel—crowned of cruelty, as cold as ice. A prince whose gaze cuts like the incisions he administers within his lab. Jeryn has sailed beyond his kingdom for the Trade, to bargain for those wild, imprisoned fools that make his skin crawl.

By law, they’re subjects meant for experimentation. And easy to despise.

One in particular. A girl seething at him from behind bars, with burning eyes and ready fists.

A Mythical Shipwreck

But on the cusp of transport, the tide rages. That uncharted island awaits, a dark tangle of foliage where creatures slither in the mist and poisons lurk in the flora.

Stranded, the prince and prisoner must fight to survive. In this mysterious rainforest, they must band together . . . if they don’t slay one another first. Or become something more to each other.

Something just as dangerous.

*Second book in a duology: same universe, different couple. Can be read as a standalone, though it’s recommended to read TRICK first.*

*Mature YA: sexual content and language. Intended for readers 17 and older.*

My Thoughts:

I was so thrilled to be asked to go on the ARC team for Natalia’s latest release. Having already preordered my copy, being able to read it even earlier was super exciting and I am excited to read it again in physical format. I absolutely adored Trick, the first book in the Foolish Kingdoms series and was super excited to jump back into the world Jaster had created.

This book follows two different characters, Flare and Jeryn which, due to a range of circumstances, end up getting shipwrecked together on a mythical island, away from everyone and everything they know. This story follows them over a span of years as they begin as enemies but become closer. Along the way you get to see the mystical aspects of the story, combined with the changing knowledge of what truly makes up a fool, and if something that’s natural is truly a bad thing. You are enveloped in Flare and Jeryn’s story and feel the emotionally charged moments that have such a deep impact.

In Dare, the two characters are complete opposites. You have the cold hearted Prince who is absolutely horrible and you have Flare, the mute fool who is not as foolish as you expect. They crash against each other and as you learn more of their backstory you begin to wonder how and why they are so different, when the reality is there is not so much separating them. I really loved seeing them draw closer to each other. This book spans over a series of years and the enemies to lovers trope is not unbelievable but rather a natural progression. This book is mature so there is some explicit content, but it will get you swooning.

There’s a suspension of disbelief in this book and I love it. The setting is gorgeous, you can really visualise the rainforest and island and there are things that do not completely make sense. The animals being sentient was a little odd but really added to the story and make it unique and original. There was a few ‘what the-‘ moments but all in all it flows really well. Seeing Briar and Poet from Trick was amazing and it really showed how much I miss them. Their chemistry on page is so amazing and honestly, I could read a whole book about the two of them just doing castle business.

This book took me a lot longer to get into than I thought it would. In Trick, Poet and Briar are so dynamic, powerful and deep that they hold your attention. In Dare, I didn’t connect to Jeryn until halfway through the book and I couldn’t really believe that Flare was a fool. It was great to see them examining their titles through out the story and coming to conclusions that they wouldn’t have if they hadn’t gone through this experience.

I absolutely love the lyrical writing of Natalia, however I felt very stilted with this book and the changing voices. Flare’s parts were told in first person and Jeryn’s in third with an intrusive narrator and I wish that the story had been one of them the whole way through. I prefer reading the same style, than switching between the two. It would have been awesome to read from Jeryn’s voice or observe Flare. I think this is what took me so long to get into the book so I was a bit disappointed by this because it makes such a big impact on the reading experience.

However, despite this, the words of Natalia are incredible. There are so many highlighted parts on my Kindle and picking out my favourite quotes was really hard. I like how thoughtful some of the phrases are. I love books that make me stop, rewind and read out loud the latest quote. I enjoyed the plot and loved seeing where it picked up after book one.

There is so much more that I could say but my biggest piece of advice it to go and get the books, both of them, because this is a world you truly do not want to miss out on.

Recommended for: Mature fantasy readers – only recommended for people 18 years and older. This book has mature content and is not suitable for those under the age of 18.

Quotes:

“The evil world expected me to curl up in the corner like a sea-shell -silent and small and breakable – forgetting that a seashell held the roar of an entire ocean inside of it. I didn’t need a voice, only my teeth and my dreams to save me.”

“Fools did not rescue princes.”

“Fear was a fearsome thing – a born leader. I leapt into fear, and he fought it.”

“In droplets and pieces and interludes, in a series of moments, bound and unbound, we discovered each other. And we became friends.”

“In the daylight, you’re bold. By the firelight, you’re brilliant. Under the nightlight, you’re enduring. Always, you’re lasting.”

“My presence is not nice.” A wicked grin. “Tis sublime.”

“Briar watched her brat of a lover with unbridled warmth, as if she knew him in a thousand ways, from a thousand angles. And worshipped each one.”

“We kissed our hate away. As we did, the sun rose.”

“Love was a danger to all. To the heart. To sanity. Yet all dared to have it. Because it gave life.”

Buy it here.

I definitely recommend checking out this series if you want something to make you swoon, keep you guessing and wanting more. Also, Natalia @andshewaits is self-published, so it is awesome to support her too!

Until next time,