Review: The Year of Living Danishly

The Year of Living Danishly: My Twelve Months Unearthing the Secrets of the World's Happiest Country by Helen Russell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"'Hvor hedder du?' A skinny woman with too-long hair barks at us.
'Oh, hi! Sorry, we're here for the beginner's Danish class?'
'Hvor hedder du?!' She's insistent now.
'Sorry, we haven't started learning Danish yet, I just wanted to check - are we in the right room?'
'HVOR HEDDER DU?!' the strange woman is now screaming at us.
'I'm sorry,' I bleat feebly, 'I don't know what that means ... is it ... Danish?' Well done, genius "

What a fun book! Truly! I had such a great time romping around the Danish countryside with Helen Russell, learning alongside her all the quirks and idiosyncrasies of the Danes, that I'm actually quite sad to say goodbye to "Sticksville-on-Sea," snegels, Lego Man, The Mr Beards and Friendly Neighbour, The Viking, and all the snuggly, hygge descriptions of wintertime in Denmark.

Written in my favourite hysterical, self-deprecating style of the British as part-travel memoir, part-cultural investigation, Russell and her husband, affectionately known as "Lego Man" trade rainy and smoggy London, England for the wild and majestic landscape of Denmark. Having acquired a job placement with none other than Lego (hence the name), Russell's husband, already a "Scando-phile" convinces her that a year abroad would not only be a welcome change of pace to their busy and hectic lives in London, but that it may even be fun! (Shock!). As an already established journalist/editor for publications like Marie Claire, Russell decides to use her year abroad to dive head-first into uncovering what exactly makes Denmark and its people the so-called "Happiest Country on Earth." Hilariousness ensues as Russell learns the in's and out's of uprooting one's entire life to a brand new country while committing numerous cultural faux pas' along the way.

Having myself recently returned from living abroad in Amsterdam this past year, this book could not have come at a better time in my life! (Well, it might have been more fun to read DURING my year abroad, so I wouldn't have felt so crazy and like SUCH a foreigner, but I digress). Surprisingly, or maybe not so surprisingly if you know a thing or two about Northern European cultures, I found that Russell's descriptions and anecdotes about the Danish to be near exact to how I perceived the Dutch, despite the fact that the Netherlands is not even technically Scandinavian. For example, until my Dutch was more proficient (and even then, let's be honest, I still sound like a two-year-old), I had on many occasions the exact conversation as Russell has above, complete with shouting (on the Dutch person's part) and bleating apologetically (on my part) for not speaking their language properly, be it in a bakery, a grocer, the bank, a government building, etc etc.

Of course I couldn't help but compare Denmark's near-Utopic society to ours back in Canada. Even though I am both fortunate and grateful to be a Canadian citizen, me oh my could we learn a few things from the Danish! I wouldn't say I was exactly a "Scando-phile" before reading this book, maybe more of an appreciator of their minimalist design and free society, but I'm a happy convert as of finishing it and I'm now plotting my next adventure across the Atlantic!

I'd recommend this fascinating, hilariously written memoir to anyone who has ever packed up their lives, said goodbye to loved ones, and moved abroad. Heck, I'd recommend it to anyone who is even thinking of doing so! Not only is this book informative and chalk-full of interesting interviews from Danes of all walks of life giving their own accounts of Danish living, but Russell's writing-style is incredibly relatable AND entertaining to boot. She is genuinely funny, (I'd love to meet her), and her experiences as she learns her way around Danish society are as cringe-worthy as they are heart-warming.

For lists-making sake, here are a few of the craziest, interesting, and/or surprising things I learned about Denmark:
1. They have rules as to when, why, which ones and how flags are to be flown in Denmark - the rules are long and convoluted but basically don't try to fly any flag other the the Danish, and if you do fly it, keep it between 7am and 10pm (8am on Sundays), how generous!
2. They regularly hold public autopsies of zoo animals if and when an animal has died. Children learn from a young age that death is a part of life, and by getting a chance to watch the zoologists do their thing, future scientists, biologists, zoologists and the like get to see the inner workings of animals.
3. Hygge is a completely Danish thing. It can be used as a verb, an adjective, even a noun if you feel like it. Basically it means the overall cozy, pleasant, and happy feeling one gets when surrounded by good people, in a comfortable setting, with all the right trimmings like candles and tea and soothing music and maybe even a roaring fire. There is no equivalent word in English, a fact of which Danes (and the Dutch as I found out!) are very proud.
4. New fathers are entitled to and must take paternity leave! GET OUT. That's so cool.
5. Denmark is not only known to be the happiest country in the world, but also the most trusting. They have the least corrupt government and are known for their short working-weeks (normally 32-34 hours), free medical, amazing social programs, plus FREE SCHOOL! (Yes also high taxes, but come on, look at the benefit! They're the happiest country on EARTH!).
6. It is custom to leave a wooden stork outside the house of a family with a newborn baby - one of the reasons is to apparently let the postperson and any other visitors know that there is a possibly sleeping baby inside!
7. Another baby-related fact: new mother and fathers regularly leave their newborns in their prams OUTSIDE of cafes and restaurants because they believe the cold is 'good for their lungs.' (I saw this in Iceland too). They're so trusting of each other that baby-stealing doesn't even cross their minds. And it never happens.

Now for some delicious snegels!

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Review: Why Not Me?

Why Not Me? by Mindy Kaling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"If my childhood, teens, and twenties were about wanting people to like me, now I want people to know me. So, this is a start."

Mindy! Oh sweet, hilarious Mindy.

I thoroughly enjoyed her second book. It takes off strong from the first page and definitely kept me laughing and highlighting passages of golden nuggets of wisdom for its entirety. She has this incredible gift for storytelling, which I know I've said before, but it's so true! Not only is she great at captivating her audience with her insane humour, but she continues to hold our attention because what she has to say about life is just so spot on.

"...I knew the truth, which is if someone really wants to see you, they always find a way. Always. That hurt my heart, but I realized, unlike in past relationships when I was younger, it didn't need to be dramatic."

Mindy published her first book 3 years ago, so she's had a few more years to reflect on her busy life in Hollywood and to feel more comfortable as an adult in the working world. In her last book, it's quite apparent that she was still going through some growth not only in her career but with herself as well. I read in a couple other reviews that between her two books, she seems much more at ease with herself in this one, more unapologetically "Mindy" than before. I have to agree. She is obviously at a good place in her life right now, comfortable in her career and finally ready to ask "why not me?" instead of worrying about what everyone else thinks of her and whether or not she's a capable comedic writer, which she clearly is. Her maturity and self confidence not only reflects in how she speaks about herself but in how she speaks about her relationships with people in her life. I feel like I related to her quite a bit in her first book, but I relate to her even more in this one. She's still Mindy, but better.
Mindy '2 point 0' (The Office, anyone?)

A few of my favourite chapters are:
"Things to Bring to My Dinner Party"
"Player"
"I Love Sex Scenes!"
"A Day in the Life of Mindy Kaling"
"One of the President's Men"
"Soup Snakes"
"A Perfect Courtship in My Alternate Life" [Can this be a real story please?!]
"Why Not Me?"

So, if those hilarious and mysterious chapter titles intrigue you at all, and you have a sense of humour, and you like Mindy Kaling (hey, even if you don't!)...read this book!

"'Soul mates' is what you aim for, but soup snakes is what you get sometimes."

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Review: The Nightingale

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Men tell stories," I say. It is the truest, simplest answer to his question. "Women get on with it. For us it was a shadow war. There were no parades for us when it was over, no medals or mentions in history books. We did what we had to during the war, and when it was over, we picked up the pieces and started our lives over."

If I could give this story 6 out of 5 stars I would. I am so overwhelmed with how deeply this story touched me - it haunted my dreams at night, I thought about it all day. It both sickened and saddened me, fascinated and terrified me. We've all heard the stories, we have listened to the real-life accounts of survivors, learned about the major battles in school and the horrifying statistics and figures that came out after WWII ended, and to this day, we still remember. Yet this isn't merely a story about the war as a whole, but rather it is about the war as endured, fought, and survived by the women. This is their story. This is their battle. And this is their victory.

I am not at all new to the subject-matter in this book, yet this story, written so beautifully, so delicately, brings everything I ever learned about the war to a whole new level. Kristin Hannah is a remarkable story-teller; she pens the most beautiful sentences that evoke such emotion and sensation within you. The detail is fantastic, her research is incredible - so much so that my own morbid curiosity was satiated time and again through her intricate weaving of fact and fiction.

A dark, emotional, and powerful story lies within these pages. I cried - I never cry while reading, honestly - but I did, big tears, because of how emotionally charged that ending is after feeling like I myself had gone through Hell and back with the Rossignol sisters. I know their stories in this are fictional, but the fact is that...these things really happened, there is truth in everything that the Rossignol sisters endured and achieved and lost during the war. I feel ignorant that I hadn't really known just how bad it became for the occupied countries, for France - I assumed it was terrible, but not anywhere near as terrible as what I just read. And that is always the mistake, assuming. To know that similar atrocities endure today, all around the world, is sickening.

I smile at them...Because of them, I know now what matters, and it is not what I have lost. It is my memories. Wounds heal. Love lasts. We remain.

I cannot do this story or these these characters the justice they deserve. I cannot say that, if I were ever in a similar situation, I would have had a similar strength to endure and to carry on. But they inspire me, the whole cast of them, those real and those fictional, and will continue to do so forever after.


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Review: Picnic in Provence: A Memoir with Recipes

Picnic in Provence: A Memoir with Recipes by Elizabeth Bard
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

"The plums gave way, exchanging their springiness for a comforting sag. The wine bubbled into a spiced burgundy syrup, thick and glossy. I served it with faisselle, a mild spoon-able cheese, though I sense that sour cream, Greek yogurt, or mascarpone wouldn't go amiss."

I read Elizabeth Bard's first book Lunch in Paris: A Love Story, with Recipes probably over a year ago now, but I remember absolutely falling in love with the way in which she paints a scene with her words; I felt like I was walking down the Paris streets with Bard, a New York native, tasting the crisp, buttery and chewy croissants, and discovering my own self as she discovers hers. The same worldly fears and anxieties that follow me as I grow closer to the 'big 30' seem to plague Bard as well in her similar age, and so not only did I connect with her in her first book on a foodie level, but on a personal one as well.

When we last saw Bard at the end of her previous book, she had finally settled in Paris with her French lover-turned-husband and was beginning to feel more comfortable in her expat skin. In this second memoir of hers, we are once again treated to an excellent collection of delicious French recipes that I cannot wait to try out (I've made a handful from her first book and let me just say, they are damn good!), as well as yet another intimate look into her personal journey as she now navigates her life not only as a new resident in a tiny village in Provence but as a new mother to their now toddler son.

Bard has a way of really bringing the reader into the scene, as if they themselves were right there in the room with her. She is funny, self-deprecating, and easily able to point out her own flaws, adding a healthy dose of humour to many of her stories. Yet there is also depth and a quiet sensitivity that she brings as well, especially when writing about her relationship with her son. At first, the so-called natural mother-child bond does not come easily to Bard, and once their son leaves babyhood and enters toddler-hood she finds that she no longer knows her 'place' within the family unit and has a very difficult time believing in herself and her capabilities as a mother, shrugging off such parental 'duties' like story-time and playtime to her more naturally-suited husband. This is definitely both a difficult and sensitive topic and one that many mothers would not easily admit to, though I'm sure many do feel inadequate at least one time or another during motherhood, as becoming a parent truly is a life-altering event in one's life.

This among many others is just one of the reasons why I so enjoyed reading these two books because Bard does not shy away from the 'hard stuff,' nor does she try to put a sunny spin on otherwise difficult moments for the sake of the reader or offending anyone. She is an open and heartfelt writer who obviously lives with her heart on her sleeve, and I appreciate her honesty about life's ups and downs all the more for it. Not to mention that I absolutely adored escaping into the French countryside and reading about all the funny idiosyncrasies about village life in Provence, from nosy yet aloof neighbours, to picking Saffron by the pound by hand and making your own cheese and milk (okay, obviously not everyone does that!), and of course imagining just exactly how amazing those lavender fields really smell like in real life!

"I stood across the street and watched the sun glinting off the giant bubbles as they wobbled into the air. Alexandre ran with his arms lifted to the sky, the sun shining through his blond hair. He won't remember this part of his childhood, but I will. His pants are too short; he's grown so much over the summer."

I had a hard time rating this book, going back and forth between 3.5 and 4 out of 5 stars, simply because I found that the last 5 or so chapters did drag on and I began to lose interest - the latter part of the book focuses mostly on how Bard and her husband open their own ice cream shop, called Scaramouche, in their village of Céreste, and for me it just wasn't that compelling. The book is also quite lengthy at just shy of 400 pages, and unfortunately I found I really had to push through to the end even though I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of it. Despite this, I do still recommend it and will definitely read anything else Bard writes.

If you enjoy decadent, French Cuisine-inspired recipes coupled with intelligent, humorous and thoughtful reflections on life as an expat (and life in general), then give this lovely memoir a go. Not only is it an easy, flowing kind of read that seems to mirror the romanticized, gently-paced life of the south of France, but it is also brimming with sensitive and touching moments that anchor the book in reality.

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Review: Ember

Ember by Bettie Sharpe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a fun, imaginative, and sexy retelling of Cinderella! Ember is a kick-ass lead and I thoroughly enjoyed her sass and quick-witted nature. The fact that this is an erotic retelling did not bother me, (I can handle coarse language and mature sexual content), but it didn't really matter anyway as I did not find that the sex scenes were too much or done in distaste. The writing is fresh and Ember is spunky and I had a blast reading it!

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Review: Hollywood Dirt

Hollywood Dirt by Alessandra Torre
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

"That was when you knew you were doing something wrong, when you couldn't look at yourself in the mirror to face it"

Yep. That's definitely when I knew this book was wrong for me. Actually I knew a lot sooner but that sentence sealed the deal.

This is the most disappointing book that I've read so far this year. No, I usually don't read Romance novels, yes I do realize that this is a Romance novel, and an erotic one at that, but you know I believe in giving every genre a chance and every once in a while I crave something in the love department.

I'm pretty disgusted with how Torre portrays women in this book. Despite the unbelievable amount of 4 and 5 star reviews, many reviewers often stated that they were disappointed with how Torre characterizes her Southern characters, especially the female characters, to be nothing more than uneducated, baby-making machines. Not to mention their (totally stereotypical) love for fried chicken and beer.

"Most of our social life revolved around cooking, growing, or eating food. But that was life, especially for a woman, in the South."

Really?! Did that just happen!?

Moving on.

A little backstory about this book: an incredibly hot, world-famous, hot, rich, and did I say hot male actor named Cole Masten descends upon small-town Quincy, Georgia, to make and star in a movie about a bunch of millionaires who made their family fortunes by investing in Coca Cola generations ago. He meets independent, spunky, out-spoken but still southernly-mannered Summer Jenkins, notices her sexy legs, and decides that he wants to bed her right then and there. Oh, I should also mention that both parties have been badly burned by cheating ex's, and that Summer committed some sort of terrible act of revenge upon her ex-fiance that is repeatedly hinted at throughout the entire book but when finally revealed fails to live up to the hype and secrecy.

Infatuated at first sight with Summer, Cole casts her in his movie opposite him as his leading lady so he can charm and woo her to his bed - because he's Cole Masten and he gets what he wants. Summer is not impressed with Cole as a human being, but because she needs the money and apparently wants out of small-town Quincy, she accepts.

Of course a Romance novel wouldn't be a Romance novel without a little sparring to generate some sexual tension, am I right? We've already established that Cole finds Summer attractive enough to employ her in the hopes of getting some action on the side, but her strong, 'southern woman' personality (a.k.a she stands up for herself) is more than he's used to handling back in Hollywood where women literally drool at his feet. Summer finds Cole instantaneously and irresistibly hot - so hot in fact that she can hardly look at him or form sentences, but (not surprisingly) completely loathes his personality so thoroughly that we really wonder if these two will ever end up in bed together (they do).

Now really, this love-hate-love story-line has been done before and is not entirely the reason why I dislike the book. What really set me off is the incredibly demeaning way that all the men treat Summer. Other than Summer, there is a decided lack of females in the story save for her mother, who doesn't play a significant role. I know part of the reason stems from Summer's aforementioned 'revenge plot' that renders her a social pariah in town, leaving Summer to deal with the group of Hollywood-misogynistic-creepy men by herself.

No one has her back when Cole, angry with Summer for shunning his advances after their first sexual encounter, decides to change the original script to include first a kissing scene, and then later on a sex scene between the two of them, complete with Summer needing to appear naked on camera - something she never agreed to and "fought tooth and nail" over, but to no avail.

Cole - "You have to do it. You signed a contract."
Summer - "The contract didn't say anything about me being naked on camera."
Cole - "Correction. The contract didn't say anything about you not being naked on camera."

Chapters 83 and 84 (which includes the above passage) really got to me. I'm not entirely sure where Torre is trying to go with this story at this point because these chapters, to me, read as though Cole is basically forcing Summer into doing soft-core porn, and other than the spineless director objecting a few times, no one else stands up to Cole or supports Summer in not wanting to film a sex scene. It is even mentioned that Cole's script changes make absolutely no sense to the continuity of the movie. Regardless, Cole tells Summer to "man up" and "be a professional about it" - two ridiculous statements because first of all she's a woman, not a man, and second of all she is not a professional actor but an amateur, someone Cole plucked out of nowhere.

I've had a hard time articulating why I'm uncomfortable with this part of the story because up until the last 20% of the book - when Cole coerces Summer into (fake) sex for money - it wasn't such a bad read, albeit a cheesy read.

Basically, it feels like Torre takes a serious subject, men using their masculinity and status to force women to do things they don't want to do for money or other rewards, and makes it seem like no big deal. I say this because despite the fact that Summer strategically maneuvers herself out of doing the sex scene, she doesn't retain any dignity in my eyes because she still wants Cole's smokin' hot bod anyway. Why did Torre write her like that? What is her motivation for making Summer so...hypocritical...in her actions?

Cole treats Summer and everyone else like the big jerk that he is, and yet she still falls in love with him and constantly stares at his 'package' and fantasizes about his naked body. It's as though, simply because he's a hot, famous actor, she forgets herself. And just because Cole's been cheated on in the past, he can treat everyone in his life terribly. To be fair I'll add here that Summer is not entirely blameless, as they are both pretty immature in how they handle their weird non-relationship, fighting and bickering and not communicating like the adults they are.

In the end neither one of them go through any kind of major growth or realization about themselves, they just 'get together' and have a baby and live happily ever after. I wanted to feel sympathy for Summer for what she went through with Cole, and vice versa, but really the two of them are so frustrating in their ignorance that they pretty much deserve each other.

Sorry but...I just don't buy it. I would never let a man treat me the way Cole treats Summer. He makes her cry repeatedly, feel inferior, ashamed for standing up for herself, and used. But she still goes for him in the end.

And yes I know it's just a story, a totally hypothetical, erotic story, but stories have the power to shape and reflect our realities, which is why I'm shocked that so many women gave this book such rave reviews. Is this how women want to be treated by men? Dominated and bullied? And is this how women act towards those men? Flippant and wishy-washy? How romantic.

I guess I should try to stay away from these kind of Romance novels, hey?


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Review: Ruin and Rising (The Grisha, #3)

Ruin and Rising by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So I didn't expect that I would be writing a review 2 WEEKS after finishing this book. I have been seriously avoiding writing this because I honestly couldn't get my thoughts together and I also felt overwhelmed by how much I loved the trilogy as a whole! It's been a while, a long sad while, since I read a YA Fantasy as well-written and thoroughly enjoyable as The Grisha Trilogy. I needed time to process!

I fell in love with this world immediately. Just as I wrote in my review of the first book, Shadow and Bone, the intricacies and details of the Grisha world took me by surprise and pulled me in from the first page. The third book is no different, and I found that I was able to jump right back into the world without any confusion even after having read a couple of different books in between. The world is that solid, what with all of the culture, folklore, songs, maps (love those maps!), historical wars and even recipes, I really felt like I could fully immerse myself into the story.

The writing is, again, amazing. What a roller-coaster. Bardugo stole my heart so many times with these characters and their struggles which are truly life-altering and complicated, right to the last chapter! Having already fell for each character through the previous two books, I really appreciate the fact that Bardugo continues to cultivate the relationships - friendships and romances - between the core group. We see all of these main characters developing and growing into their own, creating a wonderful, family-like dynamic with each other, solidified by the knowledge that any of them would die for the other. We still see the same undying loyalty in characters like Mal and the same free-spirited joie de vivre in characters like Nikolai, yet they become entangled with and scorned by the Darkling and they are never quite the same again.

Although I felt for all of the characters, I especially felt for Alina. We see some pretty amazing character development in her which is wonderful to witness. She is fighting for her life when we leave her in Siege and Storm - but boy does that woman ever have some fight in her! Alina is such a fierce, courageous character and I loved, loved, loved seeing her come into her own! She seriously takes charge and grows not only into her powers as a Grisha but also in her confidence in herself as a leader. Although she falters here and there as far as the Darkling goes (who wouldn't, me oh my), she is so much stronger as a person and as a fighter and makes some pretty interesting decisions that she wouldn't have otherwise made before!

One of the things I love about this trilogy as a whole is how skilled Bardugo is at keeping us on our toes. The suspense is real and I really struggled to get through some parts of this book because, damn, I couldn't handle the damage if things went wrong! I'd be reading along, happily compliant and on board with their plans to take down the Darkling or find that dang Firebird, and yet just when I thought I had it all figured out things changed, characters died, things blew up - what a mess they got themselves into! The fact that Bardugo doesn't keep certain characters alive just because the reader has come to love them is something I actually appreciate in an author. The deaths (and there are deaths!!) are realistic and although they hurt to read, it really gives the story that much more depth and validity.

The final few chapters broke my heart, but I won't say whether this was in a good or bad way. Let's just say that the trilogy ends as it should and leave it for you to see for yourself. I reread the final pages a few times, relishing in the beauty of the words, the scene, the finality of it all. I will truly miss these characters.

I guess you could say that I love this trilogy to death and of course I highly recommend it! I am still experiencing a book hangover from it and I know that this trilogy will stay with me for quite a while.

Happy Reading!
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Review: Shadow and Bone (The Grisha, #1)

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow. Just wow. I read this book within one sitting. ONE SITTING. I honestly cannot remember the last time I sat down and read an entire book in one night. Probably not since I finished The Infernal Devices over a year ago.

I was drawn into this world from the beginning with the chapter entitled Before, which is written fittingly 'before' chapter 1. Written in the third person, Before immediately draws in the reader with its mysterious ghosts, monsters and powerful people in flowing keftas. We meet two orphan children, Mal and Alina, (who in the following chapters we read about through Alina's adult eyes), and they are described in all of their childhood innocence and wonderment, their friendship solidified through a kindred bond of loneliness and a lack of family. This first look into the childhood of Alina and Mal is important for us as a reader - their bond runs deep and I'm glad that Bardugo chose to add these passages because when it finally comes for Alina and Mal to make difficult, life-altering decisions (and there are difficult decisions a-plenty throughout this series!!) we really understand how hard it is for either one to leave the other behind.

As I mentioned, the rest of the story is told through Alina's eyes, which I enjoyed because I love getting into the deep, internal struggles of main characters. It just adds a certain oomph to my own internal struggle as I watch them, inevitably, crash and burn and (hopefully) rise back up!

The world that Bardugo has created is amazing, stunning, enchanting, frightening, mysterious...need I go on? In the past I have read so many books that all share similar worlds and types of magic with each other, so much so that I have become a bit bored with the conventional 'girl discovers her power, has to learn her power, now has too much power, becomes changed by her power' cliché that unless it's done well ... I'm not going to stick around. Shadow and Bone is unlike all these other stories in that you really and truly become invested in and conflicted over who to root for and trust! The magic and the world-building is so intricate, so detailed. You can feel the history of this world through the folk-tales, imagery, mythology, and real-world parallels that tie the country of Ravka to what I believe is supposed to be imperial Russia. Bardugo incorporates aspects of Russia's history, specifically early 18th-19th century, into her own story, including the use of the Russian language. It all adds for a richly beautiful story that treads the line of believability.

The characters are as mysterious as the Grisha power that flows through them, especially the Darkling, our 'villain', and time and again I was catching myself thinking "maybe the Darkling is good, maybe he's bad, nope he's okay, nope wait, he's bad...or?....". Without giving away any spoilers, lets just say that by the time you get to Siege and Storm you should probably have the Darkling all figured out. I mean, he is called the Darkling. Not that he isn't totally swoon-worthy in all of his bad-assery....mmmm yes. He's typically complex, but don't let that fool you because he definitely has an agenda.

Other noteworthy characters include Genya, who is a beautiful ray of sunshine. I love her outlook on life - she may be a servant and she may have had to deal with a lot of disgusting favours for the royal court, but she doesn't let any of that break her spirit and becomes a true friend to Alina. Well, I say friend but again, because of spoilers, I can't really say what I want to say.... so yes she's a friend for all intents and purposes! She's definitely what Alina needs during her time of transition from a nobody to a somebody with immense power.

Now Mal. Mal is wonderful. Wonderful. I have to say that at first I really couldn't understand what Alina saw in him romantically and I guess that's partly because we don't really get to know Mal very well until the latter half of the book. He's just this great guy, handsome, witty, and apparently everyone loves him and he can light up a room with his smile. All great qualities in a man, yes. Yet as I said I found that he didn't really shine for me until the story took a turn and we are suddenly up close and personal with just him and Alina. (Again, spoilers..it's so hard to write about what I want to say without saying it!). Anyway just trust me when I say that he's a good guy, through and through.

I truly, whole-heartedly recommend this book to everyone and anyone who loves fantasy, intricate world-building, mystery and yes, swoony boys. This is an action-packed beginning to an awesome series!

Happy Reading!

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Review: Six of Crows

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ooooooooh my I should not have waited so long to put my thoughts down about this book! But I HAVE had more than enough time to go back through it, think it over, and really let both the story and the characters sink in...because that's how I feel this story demands to be read.

For me, the story started off slowly, with layer upon layer of mystery right from the very first chapter. I kept asking myself, "Who are these people? Where do they come from? What's their backstory?" - and although this bothered me at first (I like to know everything about everything, especially in terms of character motives), I grew to understand that, obviously, Leigh Bardugo was merely exercising her masterful story-telling skills, weaving truth and lie and motive with plot as veiled and smooth as Ketterdam's fog:

"...the Ketterdam weather was not cooperating. There'd been no breeze off the harbor that day, and a gray milk fog had wreathed the city's canals and crooked alleys in damp. Even here among the mansions of the Geldstraat, the air hung thick with the smell of fish and bilge water, and smoke from the refineries on the city's outer islands had smeared the night sky in a briny haze. The full moon looked less like a jewel than a yellowy blister in need of lancing."

Having myself just spent a year living and working in Amsterdam, I absolutely love the setting of this story! (Yes, I'm biased!). Although all of the places in the story are obviously fictional, just like in her previous works Bardugo has obviously done her research and knows her way around this famous city - the spelling of names and street names, The Barrel and West Stave (real life: Red Light District), the Harbour, the Exchange, the canals and the tall, crooked houses, even the way she describes the people and what they eat and the smells of the city, it all hit close to home for me and I enjoyed it immensely.

Obviously in saying all of that I cannot help but gush over Bardugo's absolutely beautiful descriptive prose. She nails it, every damn time, which I adored about her writing in The Grisha Trilogy and was thankful to see again here. I have to admit that I was definitely skeptical going into Six of Crows because I love, love, love her previous works, but lo and behold she knocks it right out of the park yet again.

The multiple POV's are the one thing that could have really messed up all these positive vibes but they honestly didn't even phase me. I felt that Bardugo kept an excellent hold on all of her character's motives and inner-thoughts, never jarring us from one mind to the next and always leaving off one character's chapter with some sort of mini-cliff-hanger to keep me reading onward.

"Brick by brick," he muttered to himself. They were the only words that kept his rage in check, that prevented him from striding through the Emerald's garish gold-and-green doors, demanding a private audience with Rollins, and slitting his throat."

I LOVE KAZ. He is a despicable, blood-thirsty thief with an incredibly tragic backstory, and yet despite his nastiness you bet your buns I love that guy. He's perfectly flawed, hopelessly in love, and probably a little coo coo for cocoa puffs, but he has an inner strength that is admirable and no one can deny this from him. There are multiple layers to Kaz, each one more complicated than the next to keep you on your toes.

"You're about to be rich, Kaz. What will you do when there's no more blood to shed or vengeance to take?"
"There's always more."
"More money, more mayhem, more scores to settle. Was there never another dream?"

My love for Inej grew steadily throughout the book and was solidified by the end. She is such a strong, amazing female character, from her Suli proverbs and 'spidery' ways of moving about the city, to her fierce love for her family and country from which she was taken. Inej and Kaz's relationship is complicated, and more often than not we see her act as almost a 'spider' within his ear, a whispering voice of reason and rationality, ever-questioning his motives and morale (to which he laughs and brushes off).

I could go on and on, trust me. Not only Kaz and Inej but the whole cast of main characters are as richly developed and complex in personality as one could ever hope. Nina is another incredibly fierce female character and I admire her resourcefulness and steady heart.

I haven't even mentioned the plot! Well all you need to know is that it is a slow-burning kind of plot. There is a lot of planning, and talking about said plans, as we're dealing with the most dangerous heist attempted into a famously impenetrable prison. Though once the action gets going, you better hold on. The heist is fascinating, the details are mind-boggling; how Bardugo could keep it all straight is beyond me, but my oh my it turned out brilliant and I loved it to the end!

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