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Book Review: “Prince of Shadows” by Rachel Caine


Title: Prince of Shadows

Author: Rachel Caine
Genre: Young Adult – Historical Fiction 
Release Date: February 4th, 2014
Also by the Author: The Morganville Vampires, Weather Warden, Outcast Season, Revivalist, Red Letter Days 
Published by: Allison & Busby


With thanks to Allison & Bubsy for the review copy of this novel! As always, my reviews are non-bias and fair.




A thrilling retelling of the star-crossed tale of Romeo and Juliet, from the New York Times bestselling author of the Morganville Vampires series. 
In the Houses of Montague and Capulet, there is only one goal: power. The boys are born to fight and die for honor and—if they survive—marry for influence and money, not love. The girls are assets, to be spent wisely. Their wishes are of no import. Their fates are written on the day they are born.

Benvolio Montague, cousin to Romeo, knows all this. He expects to die for his cousin, for his house, but a spark of rebellion still lives inside him. At night, he is the Prince of Shadows, the greatest thief in Verona—and he risks all as he steals from House Capulet. In doing so, he sets eyes on convent-bound Rosaline, and a terrible curse begins that will claim the lives of many in Verona…

…And will rewrite all their fates, forever..

When I heard Rachel (aka; one of my favourite authors EVER) was coming out with a Historical Fiction novel and that it was a novel of Romeo and Juliet, I was immediately anticipating it’s release and thanks to Allison & Busby, I got to read it. This is my first Historical fiction novel, believe it or not, so I was excited to see whether I liked the genre or not! 

All I know is, Rachel Caine has never written anything that wasn’t amazing, and Prince of Shadows goes down on that list of phenomenal novels as of now. 
All that I kept thinking all the way through was how brilliantly classic and believable Rachel had written the book, and how it weaved perfectly into Romeo and Juliet’s tale. Prince of Shadows ticked several boxes for me; romance, history told with enthrallment and not leaning toward something I’ve heard before, mystery and grace. We all know that the story of Romeo and Juliet is a tragic one, but set in the POV of Romeo’s older cousin, Benvolio, we see things in a whole new light, that even sheds some light on a romance that hadn’t been as tragic at all, but yet, hard to hold on to. 

 Benvolio is of course, the Prince of Shadows himself, and while thieving from House Capulet, he meets none other than Rosaline, who would soon take the role alongside him as the hopeful romance that we root for, whilst Romeo and Juliet take a back seat in the novel. And whilst Rosaline and Benvolio’s romance isn’t the main feature, it is subtle and is incredible in that way that their connection isn’t forced upon the readers. While he loves Rosaline, he shouldn’t, and should above all remain loyal to his House. It’s hard to say much without giving a lot away, but all I can say is that possibly, all along we had thought Romeo and Juliet were the star-crossed lovers, but maybe they weren’t the only ones. And their story might just have been as heartbreaking and hopeful. 

I read Romeo and Juliet a very long time ago, but reading Prince of Shadows has brought back that love for Shakespeare and especially a modern twist on a tale already told. Rachel did a flawless work of art on turning what was always a tragic love into unveiling another side to the story. 
Mesmerizing, captivating and classic, Prince of Shadows was a novel beyond the boundaries of brilliance. I can’t say how much I adored this take on a classic story and how much I am looking forward to diving into some other Historical novels with my new-found love for them. Rachel deserves nothing short of five stars for another addition to her long list of five-star novels in my eyes. 






Have you read Prince of Shadows?

What did you think? 

Tell me in the comments or at @LittleMemoirs on twitter!

happy reading!
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Why I Love Twitter { I’m getting a Signed Rachel Caine book?!}

Twitter isn’t just for social networking with friends; it’s actually amazing for bloggers…especially when you get to talk to your favourite author…

So, yay! I just pre-ordered my signed Rachel Caine copy of “Fall of Night”, the penultimate book before *wait for it…* the end of the Morganville Series 🙁
Fall of Night sees Claire wondering if she’d ever leave Morganville; let alone get out alive. But going her own way has never been smooth as she finds out that leaving Morganville could be the last mistake she’ll ever make.
Sounds sooo exciting!! I can’t wait to read…and of course review the series that I love so much. Morganville has been with me for a few years now, each character growing on me until I knew this series would be my favourite YA of all time; even a good contender with some adult series out there.
But wait…you, yes, you…can read Fall of Night too! It’s out in stores TODAY, so go and get it! If you haven’t started the series, you will surely love getting to know the characters and the world of Morganville too.

happy reading & happy may!
 
xo Becca
 
 
Becca Jayne
 
 

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Book Review: “The Pledge” by Kimberly Derting (with thanks to Allison and Busby)

 


Set in the far future, in a land that is controlled by a ruthless Queen, Charlaina fights for her family..and herself.

The Pledge takes place in a fallen America, that is now reformed as Ludania, where Charlaina, also known as Charlie, is of the Vendor class, just like any other class that is ruled by a wicked Queen Sabara over a land that speaks a variety of languages. Charlie can understand all the languages the classes speak, a secret that she must keep to herself. Only Charlaina’s family know of this secret in the beginning; though as the story progresses, it is revealed that her parents are keeping a secret of their own.
Clinging to a Dystopian Fantasy genre although with specs of a dark Fairytale, The Pledge holds more than your regular plot. I enjoyed reading about the land of Ludania, because although it was reminiscent of other Dystopian plots, this world was full of feisty characters and a looming romance.
Charlaina and her friends; including the ditsy, fiery Brooklynn, and the protective, sweet Aron, regularly visit the illegal underground clubs night after night, clubs that are full of energetic and youthful people alike Charlie’s age. This is where Charlie meets Max, who seems striven on knowing everything about her. I found that her true personality comes out around him, and we get to know her better when she is around him. Max is mysterious and dark though romantic. There were many times when he would tell Charlie she was beautiful, and it echoed YA romance to a tee. The POV changes in this book were slightly confusing, but gave a glance into what was ahead, whilst being a surprising change on a YA book.
Charlie knows she must keep quiet, even though attacks are occurring across the capital and the countryside. But she knows the punishment is death, and chooses to keep herself and her family safe from this, including her sister; Angelina. I found their bond was especially a highlight of the story.
The book quickly progresses, throwing Charlie and Max’s relationship and her loyalties into perspective, whilst releasing Max’s true hero status.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel, and would write about it for hours if I could; but not too give too much away, I will just end with; The Pledge is a must for any dystopian, YA-loving reader, and will be a lovely addition to anyone’s bookshelf.

I would love to thank Allison & Busby for the opportunity to read The Pledge, and urge you all to read it too.

happy reading,

xo Becca

P.S. once you’ve read The Pledge, read about the next book here.

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