All Things Halloween Review - Nymph Totem

Nymph Totem

By: Brittni Chenelle

Expected Publication: March 26, 2024 by Brittni Chenelle

282 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Source: Personal Kindle Library

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--They should've known when they damned me... Hell makes monsters of us all.

Nova has lived all her life in The Garden, an island that floats above Earth, undetected. Her secret friendship with the Prince changed to something more and all that stands in the way of the life she’s been dreaming of is her Totem Ceremony–an age-old rite that assigns one of four elements she'll spend her life protecting.

When Nova's ceremony goes horribly wrong, she's placed in a fifth Totem located in the Underworld. Humiliated and cast out, her only hope is to convince her true love’s arrogant, moody brother that there’s been some kind of terrible mistake. But the longer she spends in the darkness battling the salacious urges brought on by the Underworld’s ruler, the closer she comes to unleashing her true nature and making the world that betrayed her burn.

Nova has had feelings for her friend, Lan, who is a prince of The Garden. Turns out that he likes her as well. They finally act on their feelings the night before Nova has to dance for her Totem. (I'll discuss the world more later.) When Lan gets home, his father tells him that he's ready to pass the crown to Lan and that Lan needs to choose a wife. Because he's just shown his feelings to Nova she is his obvious choice but marriage is a big jump from just friends a few days before. 

Lan's father seems willing to allow his chosen bride. But for some reason that was never explained, the Queen opposes Nova. I thought she might have some knowledge the others don't know. But that was never shared.

I should probably stop to introduce Prince Castor, Philando's brother. The same day that Lan is told he'll become the new King, Castor is assigned a new position as well. He will become the king of the underworld. The underworld had previously been left alone. But it's become chaotic and needs someone to take it in hand. Castor isn't thrilled with his new post, but he has always been a supportive brother. And he will do as he's told. 

Nova dances at the Totem ceremony and is assigned a totem no one has ever heard of. The Nymph Totem, which belongs to the Underworld. People freak out because the unknown weirds everyone out and even Nova's mother rejects her. Castor knows how it feels to be sentenced to the underworld so he takes Nova under his wing. Meanwhile, Lan is doing everything he can to get Nova's assignment changed. 

Perhaps here is a good place to discuss the world. Apparently, The Garden is an island above Earth. But the people who live there can travel to Earth. They have dragons--ride dragons. But yet the dragons are just accessories and don't serve any actual purpose to enhance the plot. They just exist. Missed opportunity if you ask me. There are totems (I can't remember how many) that are guardians or something. The ones most mentioned had to do with the water, the sky/stars, and the forest. Aside from the underworld of course. 

When Castor and Nova arrive in the Underworld they are greeted by a goblin essentially. He's basically the only creature around. And the entire underworld is dark because souls are needed to power everything and no one has been reaping souls. Nova is so excited about reaping souls which makes no sense. So much is undefined or illogical. Who are the souls? Are they good or evil? Or do all souls need to be reaped despite being good or bad? And is it a good thing that they're reaped and then used to power the Underworld? Why is no one asking these questions? And the reaping gone wrong that results in a sidekick of sorts. Makes no sense. 

The Totems almost seem like diety for the story. They are sentient of some sort and choose who to go to which Totem. Indication is present that the Totems choose based on who people really are inside. But yet Nova began to change after she was assigned the Nymph Totem. So was that who she really was inside all along or did the Totem change her once she was assigned a specific one? The story wasn't clear and an argument could be made for both sides.

Nymph Totem includes a love triangle. The description tells you about it and because I've discussed so few characters you can probably guess who between. I don't want to discuss this in too much detail. I don't mind triangles too much when the main character is transitioning from one person to someone who fits them better. But the back and forth of this triangle and how the characters handled things was not as enjoyable as one could hope. 

Nymph Totem gets 3 Stars which is a decent rating considering all the pieces of this book that weren't explored or explained. It felt like weak writing to not have even considered--and explained--some of the questions one might ask. I will say that the story felt like a guilty pleasure book to me. One where the substance isn't going to win any awards but you can't seem to stop reading it. Have you read Nymph Totem ? What did you think? Let me know! 

This review is part of my All Things Halloween event--a month of fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, mystery/thriller, etc reviews and books.

Can't Wait for Midnights With You

Can't-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings to spotlight and talk about the books we're excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they're books that have yet to be released as well. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine. Find out more here.

Midnights With You

By: Clare Osongco

Expected Publication: November 12, 2024 by Disney-Hyperion

368 pages

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--“Where were you thinking of going?”
“Nowhere.”
“Great,” he says lightly, putting the car in gear. “Then we’ll go there.”

Seventeen-year-old Deedee’s life is full of family ghosts and questions she can’t ask. She longs for an escape, but guilt holds her back—that, and the fact that her strict Filipino single mom won’t let her learn to drive. But one sleepless night leads Deedee down a road she never thought possible: secret driving lessons with the new boy next door, Jay, whose turbulent family life also keeps him up until sunrise.

As midnights stretch into days, Jay helps Deedee begin to unravel her past, and as shared secrets blossom into love, Deedee starts to imagine a life where happiness is possible. But the deeper she digs into the trauma that has shaped her, the more that trauma threatens to tear Deedee and Jay apart. Together, these two must decide if the pain they’ve both inherited has the power to choose their fate, or if they have the power to choose for themselves.

What are you guys waiting on this week? Let me know!

All Things Halloween - These Twisted Bonds

These Twisted Bonds (These Hollow Vows, # 2)

By: Lexi Ryan

Publication: July 19, 2022 by HarperTeen

481 pages

Genre: New Adult, Fantasy

Source: Personal Kindle Library - On sale this week!

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Brie finds herself caught between two princes and two destinies while the future of the fae realm hangs in the balance.

After Abriella's sister was sold to the fae, she thought life couldn't get any worse. But when she suddenly finds herself caught in a web of lies of her own making ­- loving two princes and trusting neither - things are not quite as clear as she once thought.

As civil war wages in the Court of Darkness, Brie finds herself unable to choose a side. How can she know where she stands when she doesn't even know herself anymore? In this darkly romantic thrill ride, the more Faerie is torn apart from the inside, the clearer it becomes that prophecies don't lie and Brie has a role to play in the fate of this magical realm - whether she likes it or not.

As I mentioned in my review of These Hollow Vows, I read the first book of the spinoff, Beneath These Cursed Stars. Reading out of order didn't seem to be such a big deal at first, but man it was frustrating to know how things end up but not know how they got from the ending of These Hollow Vows to the beginning of Beneath These Cursed Stars.

These Twisted Bonds starts almost immediately where These Hollow Vows ends. Abriella is escaping Sebastian and the Court of the Sun because he betrayed her by bonding with her while knowing that it would kill her and forcing her to drink the Potion of Life thereby turning fae. As she's escaping, she learns about a camp of children basically being used as slave labor by the Seelie Queen. She stops off to help them and makes a new friend in the process. 

I don't know how Sebastian could hope that Abriella would forgive such an utter betrayal simply because he claims to love her. And I do think he does in his own way. But she asks him later why he wouldn't have told her and given her the choice to make. His answer is that she wouldn't have chosen to do what he needed her to do. And so he removed the choice from her. I don't see how that can be love. She accuses Finn of betraying her as well. Finn, also, didn't give Abriella all the information that he could have for her to make an informed decision about her future. But his motives were purer than Sebastian's.

The Court of Shadows is now in chaos. Sebastian has the Crown, but he can't sit on the Throne because the power of the Throne didn't pass to him when he gave Abriella the Potion of Life. Finn has worked behind the scenes for the good of the court for 20 years. He worked to help the everyday commoner while his uncle Mordeus ruled with cruelty and horror. He has always planned to take the throne, but one thing after another comes up to distract him from that. So it's one brother pitted against another. Both are vying for the Kingship of the Court of Shadows. And both are vying for the girl, Abriella. 

Only the bond between Sebastian and Abriella kept Finn and Abriella from moving forward sooner than they did. I have to be honest and say that Abriella stayed bonded to Sebastian for much longer than I expected her to. And I wish more was available about Abriella and Finn being bonded together. That's an experience where the reader is really left wanting. Abriella and Finn do have a connection that draws the two together though. 

I found the world-building to be better in These Twisted Bonds than perhaps the other two books from this world. The story about the forming of the courts and the history behind them all was interesting and made a lot of motives and information make sense. Although, there was a lot of buildup to a coming war that didn't quite pan out. The resolution felt a little anticlimactic to me in this area. And some problems were so conveniently resolved that it felt too pretty. For example, These Twisted Bonds gives an idyllic impression that Jas is all honkey-dorey and sewing dresses and outfits left and right. She seems so perfectly fine. And this is completely at odds with the beginning of Beneath These Cursed Stars. I imagine this is because Lexi Ryan wasn't sure if she would publish another book when concluding this one she wanted things to feel wrapped up just in case. Or maybe she never intended to write another book. 

Favorite quotes:

-"None of us asks for the burdens we bear, but that doesn't make the way we handle them any less significant."

-But the vocal minority was behind him, and they had power and influence of their own. They supported Mordeus when he stole the throne from Oberon, because they knew Finn was dedicated to the commoners--his rule would've redistributed the power and privilege in their court.

Never underestimate the ones who don't want to give up their power, even if they're the minority, especially if they're the squeaky wheel.

-"I recognize a good soul when I meet one, and good souls are never alone for long."

-"I've had my fill of chasing emotionally unavailable females."

-"I don't think love is about what we deserve."

These Twisted Bonds was what I needed to fill in the gaps. I appreciated how Misha came into the story and his contribution. I was a little surprised that he reached "best friend" status over someone like Pretha who Abriella knew longer. There was no salvaging the wreckage that Sebastian wreaked on Abriella's life and their relationship. Finn and Abriella spend most of the book working towards salvaging the Court of Shadows and figuring out how they could be together. I thought some of the conflict resolution was too easy, but overall, I give These Twisted Bonds a solid 4 Stars. Have you read These Twisted Bonds? What did you think? Let me know!

This review is part of my All Things Halloween event--a month of fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, mystery/thriller, etc reviews and books.

Sunday Post - 10/13/24

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ The Caffeinated Book Reviewer ~this meme was inspired in part by ~ In My Mailbox~ It's a chance to share News. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

Monday we had a day off school. Our county public school district had fall break so we mimicked that a little. And goodness, I was glad to have a few days off school to settle in with our new puppy. Scout is doing great. We're getting into a groove, but it is a bit like having a new baby. Not quite a newborn since he does sleep through the night, but yet very busy. The boys had hair cuts Monday morning. Tuesday, I totally blanked on an eye doctor appointment. I was supposed to let them check my trail contact, but I totally missed it. We did visit my parents for a bit and also go groceries. The kiddos had ball games Monday and Tuesday nights this week. Thankfully, they were both off the rest of the week. Wednesday, I had to run some errands after dropping Little Boy off at school. When I picked him up we went back to my parents for a bit. My mom watched the kids while I went to get a haircut. Thursday was Husband's birthday. We opened presents and had breakfast muffins. Then we went to co-op. And finally Friday was a pretty normal day and the last day in our first quarter of our homeschool year. Saturday, we had family pictures. The boys were pulling faces constantly. I'm always amazed to see if April gets any good shots, but she always pulls it off. We are halfway through our very very busy month and I'm beginning to feel like I can relax a little. The kids have two ball games each this week and then fall ball is over. We mostly only have a few more birthday celebrations, a family vacation, and Halloween left for the month. I have not been able to read much this month, and it's driving me nuts. But it'll work itself out, I'm sure.

THE PAST WEEK

Monday: All Things Halloween Review of These Hollow Vows (These Hollow Vows, # 1) by Lexi Ryan (4 Stars)
Wednesday: Can't Wait for The Serpent and the Wolf by Rebecca Robison
Thursday: All Things Halloween Review of Serpent Sea (The Spice Road Trilogy, # 2) by Maiya Ibrahim (4 Stars)
Friday: All Things Halloween/Homeschool Friday - The Wild Robot (The Wild Robot, # 1) by Peter Brown (4 Stars)

UPCOMING THIS WEEK:

Monday: All Things Halloween Review of These Twisted Bonds (These Hollow Vows, # 2) by Lexi Ryan
Tuesday: Top Ten Tuesday?
Wednesday: Can't Wait for Wednesday?
Thursday: All Things Halloween Review of Nymph Totems by Brittni Chenelle
Friday: All Things Halloween Review of The Court that Bleeds Gold (The Gold Weaver, # 1) by Zara Storm

My annual "All Things Halloween" event is going on. This is my month-long event where I feature reviews from Halloween-y genres (fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, sci-fi, horror, mystery, thriller, and suspense). Over the last few years I've had mostly fantasy books as I just haven't been in the mood for much horror, but still...these are books that can get you in the mood for Halloween.

Don’t forget to link up for the 2024 Series Enders Reading Challenge! You have until December 15th, 2024 to sign up. Each month there will be a giveaway for those participating with an end of the year giveaway too! Click on the picture below or the link above to find out more!

NEW BOOKS:

No new books this week.

That's it for my shelves and recaps of my past and upcoming week. What did you add to your shelves this week? Any bookish news you want to talk about? Let me know!

All Things Halloween/Homeschool Friday - The Wild Robot

Homeschool Friday is a feature here at Somewhere Only We Know that showcases books my family reads during homeschool and provides a mini-review for each.

The Wild Robot (The Wild Robot, # 1)

By: Peter Brown

Publication: April 5, 2016

279 pages

Genre: Children's Fiction, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Science Fiction

Source: Personal Kindle Library (was on sale)

( Goodreads | Amazon )

*Note: The above link to Amazon is an affiliate links. Affiliate links support giveaways for Somewhere Only We Know readers.

Goodreads description--Can a robot survive in the wilderness?

When robot Roz opens her eyes for the first time, she discovers that she is all alone on a remote, wild island. She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is--but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a violent storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island's unwelcoming animal inhabitants.

As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home--until, one day, the robot's mysterious past comes back to haunt her.

From bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown comes a heartwarming and action-packed novel about what happens when nature and technology collide.

I got The Wild Robot a while back because I'm trying to increase the number of chapter books that I am reading aloud to my kids. My kids are currently 8, 6, and 3. We just finished Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire which is a massive book for the age of my kids. I wanted to take a break from the Harry Potter series before we started that one, but my daughter was determined to push forward. I am forcing a break before we move into book 5 though because the subject matter gets more mature and the plot gets more complex. But back to The Wild Robot. I might have an easier time convincing my kids to pick this one as our read-aloud option before bed if I were more familiar with it. So I get the audiobook from the e-library. 

Kate Atwater does a wonderful job with the narration. She is robotic when Roz speaks without being too over the top. And her voices for the other characters were just enough to distinguish them without making it feel like too much either. I think my kids would enjoy the audiobook version as well, since I have the Kindle version, I will probably just read this aloud to them when convenient. Kate did give me a great jumping-off point to guide my own inflection while reading aloud.

The book description tells you about all that I can when it comes to plot. Roz is a robot that wakes up on an island. Some robot pieces were scattered around where she wakes up, and she realizes that she's the only robot who survived. And survival is exactly what Roz needs. I love this concept. That's what most of us humans are doing as well. We're surviving. We have to survive in the basic sense of feeding and clothing ourselves. Of course, our society is more advanced in technology so we have many of our survival needs almost on autopilot. But there's still more we have to survive. We need other humans for survival. We need relationships. And so we have to manage, navigate, and sometimes survive our relationships. And how we survive becomes learned and ingrained. Roz does the same thing. She has to adapt to her environment to survive. She doesn't have basic needs as far as eating or sleeping. She can rest, but many of her instincts are about helping her not to die rather than needing xyz to survive. Either way, she sees that she needs to learn from the animals on the island if she's going to survive.

But life should go beyond mere survival. Of course, if we don't have our basic needs met, we can't look beyond that to relationships. But once we have the basics we can move from surviving to thriving. Roz shows us that the most satisfying "survival" we can have is to be helpful to others. We can create better relationships that allow us to both survive and thrive when we're living a life that helps and serves those around us. Roz goes from being viewed as a monster in the eyes of the animals on the island to being family. 

I'm always on the lookout for books with strong moral values--especially if those can be taught in a way that doesn't cram the message down the reader's throat. The Wild Robot succeeded in that area. When we get to the end of the book, the stakes are raised, and the adventure peaks. Some sensitive readers might find this to be too intense for them, but I think my kids would be just fine. They survived Cedric Diggory's murder as well as Charlotte's self-sacrifice from Charlotte's Web. So I think they will handle The Wild Robot without any issues. I'm not sure if we'll continue the series as I've heard less than stellar opinions about the subsequent books in this series. But for now, The Wild Robot gets 4 Stars. Have you read (or listened to) The Wild Robot? What did you think? Let me know!

This review is part of my All Things Halloween event--a month of fantasy, paranormal, supernatural, mystery/thriller, etc reviews and books.