Tag: anastasia

Giveaway + Review: The Winter Duke by Claire Eliza Bartlett – Court Intrigue + Amazing Queer Rep! (Blog Tour)

I’m really excited to talk about The Winter Duke today! As part of the blog tour, I’ll be doing my normal review, plus discussing my favorite quotes, and creating a dream cast!! There’s quite a bit to talk about, so let’s get started!

[ Related: Havenfall (Havenfall #1) by Sara Holland – Magic & Mystery (Blog Tour) (ARC Review) ]

// Content Warning: Violence, Death, Assault, War Themes, Murder, Illness //

Title: The Winter Duke
Author: Claire Eliza Bartlett
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: March 3rd 2020
Page Count: 432
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, LGBT, Queer, Magic, Retellings, Romance
Synopsis: 

An enchanted tale of intrigue where a duke’s daughter is the only survivor of a magical curse.

When Ekata’s brother is finally named heir, there will be nothing to keep her at home in Kylma Above with her murderous family. Not her books or science experiments, not her family’s icy castle atop a frozen lake, not even the tantalizingly close Kylma Below, a mesmerizing underwater kingdom that provides her family with magic. But just as escape is within reach, her parents and twelve siblings fall under a strange sleeping sickness.

In the space of a single night, Ekata inherits the title of duke, her brother’s warrior bride, and ever-encroaching challengers from without—and within—her own ministry. Nothing has prepared Ekata for diplomacy, for war, for love…or for a crown she has never wanted. If Kylma Above is to survive, Ekata must seize her family’s power. And if Ekata is to survive, she must quickly decide how she will wield it.

Part Sleeping Beauty, part Anastasia, with a thrilling political mystery, The Winter Duke is a spellbinding story about choosing what’s right in the face of danger.

Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | iTunes | Barnes & Noble | BookDepository | Kobo | Google Books | Indiebound

Read an excerpt from The Winter Duke here!

Quick Stats

Overall: 4.5/5 Stars
Characters: 5/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Plot and Themes: 4/5
Awesomeness Factor: 4/5
Review in a Nutshell: The Winter Duke surprised me in so many ways. This book is heavy with court intrigue and betrayal, and will leave you feeling chilled yet thrilled.

Read more for my full review, dream cast, and my favorite quotes!!

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October Favorites + My November TBR – Let’s See How This Goes

caitsbooks.com October Favorites + November TBR

If you’ve seen my Updates, Explanations, & Oversharing post, then you can probably guess that October wasn’t my best reading month. And you’d be write. You could probably also guess that November isn’t going so well for me. You’d be right again.

That said, despite some lows, I did read some good books in November, and I have hopes of getting to some more good books this month. So instead of focusing on what I couldn’t get to, or what goals I didn’t make, let’s focus on the things I did enjoy, and the things I’m hoping to enjoy in the future!

Read more to see my favorite books that I read in October, as well as some books I’m dying to read this month!

[ Related: Top 8 Book Releases of November 2019 ]

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Top 8 Book Releases of November 2019

Caitsbooks.com Top 8 November 2019 Book Releases

I’m honestly in shock that it’s already November. Seriously, where did the year go??? My mind is still in 20-gay-teen right now (tbh I’m actually still stuck in 2012) and any time someone mentions that 2020 exists, let alone that it’s only a couple of months away, I fall right into an existential panic.

That said, there is one benefit to how fast the year is going- we are so close to being able to read all of these amazing November releases!! You definitely need to pick up some of these books before the year is over!

Read more for my top 8 most anticipated book releases of November 2019!

[ Related: Updates, Explanations, and Oversharing – Why I Disappeared ]

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Preparing Rapunzel + Anastasia For New York Comic Con – Cosplay Check In

Cosplay Check In: NYCC 2019 - Rapunzel & Anastasia

New York Comic Con is swiftly approaching and I made a bad decision.

First, let’s back up. In case you don’t know, New York Comic Con is October 3rd – 6th at the Javit’s Center. It’s a huge convention, with countless panels, autographing sessions, and, of course, cosplayers.

I’ve been going every year since 2015, but usually I only get tickets for one day. Last year, I was lucky enough to sneak away for two. This year, I’m going for three.

Since I’m going more days than I usually can, I wanted to have a new cosplay.

This is where the bad decision comes in.

[ Related: BookCon & BookExpo Survival Guide ]

My original plan was to create – from scratch – Anastasia’s “Once Upon A December” dress and have that be my new cosplay this year. When did I come up with this plan? The 3am on September 2nd.

I realized that that probably isn’t the smartest idea, considering I’ve never made a ballgown from scratch, styled a wig, or tried to start and finish a cosplay in only a month, so I changed my mind.

Instead, I was going to do two new cosplays: Anastasia’s yellow and pink ballgown from the end of the movie, and Rapunzel in her classic dress and braided hair.

Why is this less of a bad decision? Because I’m not making the dresses, I ordered those online. All I have to do is make the accessories and style the wigs. Should be easy, right?

Wrong

Read more to see just how wrong I was!

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Soul of Stars (Heart of Iron #2) by Ashley Poston – One Of My Most Anticipated 2019 Releases (Review)

Caitsbooks Reviews Soul of Stars (Heart of Iron #2( by Ashley Poston - 4.5 Stars

Overall: 4.5/5 Stars
Characters: 4/5
Setting: 5/5
Writing: 5/5
Plot and Themes: 4/5
Awesomeness Factor: 4.5/5
Review in a Nutshell: Soul of Stars is an out-of-this-world sequel. And I’m not sorry for that pun.

[ Related: Heart of Iron (Heart of Iron #1) by Ashley Poston – Review ]

// Content Warning: Violence, Death //

“Love was stubborn, and love was impatient, and thoughtless and self-centered and vainglorius. It hid in the crevices of your soul when you thought it had run away, and it never left– like a scar: deep and ugly and enduring.”

Release Date: 7/23/2019
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Page Count: 400 pages
Premise:
Soul of Stars takes place several months after the heartbreaking events of Heart of Iron. Our main characters are still trying to deal with what happened (honestly, so am I), all while trying to save their friend and the kingdom. 

Read more for all of my thoughts on this book!

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