Book Review: The Devil's Thief by Lisa Maxwell

I previously read this book when it first came out. With the third book in the series, The Serpent's Curse releasing this year, I knew I would need a refresher. The thing is: I completely forgot the plot of this novel.

If you've read my review of The Last Magician, you know that I have such a big spot in my heart for Harte and Esta. I have since the very first time they met. One thing I usually don't like is slow burn romances. I want the characters to get completely lost in one another, and Esta and Harte were no different.

The Devil's Thief picks up right where The Last Magician left off: Esta and Harte reaching into the unknown. From the start, the action of the story picks up. Faced with a familiar foe, Esta is forced with the decision of whether to eliminate the threat or let him live--and she has to live with the consequences.

In order to escape their foe, Esta pulls time around them and transports she and Harte into the future. Whereas she meant it to be a few days, she actually moved them two years into the future, with little chance of making it back because there's a darkness in Harte that wants Esta. And I mean she wants Esta bad.

While stuck in a different time, the pair go on an adventure to St. Louis, to locate one of the stones that Harte mistakenly sent away.

What I love most about this book is the new characters that we meet. Time travel is a tricky bugger, though, and it plays an even bigger role in this one and the next novel.

I didn't get nearly as much Esta & Harte time in The Devil's Thief, but I was super glad that I didn't have to wait to read the next installment in the series.

Thanks,

Abbie

Writerly Wednesday: Resources for Writers

Happy Wednesday friends! I am starting a new series of blogs where on Wednesdays, I give out tips that have helped me succeed as a writer. I'm still very new to the independent publishing business, but I have picked up a lot of knowledge that I hope you'll find helpful. That being said, let's get started!

There are many, many different resources that I could list here, but I want to start this series by specifically pointing out craft books. I struggled for a long time to figure out story structure, to develop my characters, and even to show rather than tell (I know, *eyeroll*, but it's so important!).

First things first, in order to write a story, the main thing you need is: story structure!

I used to be a pantser. I used to have no idea where I was going with a story. Do you want to know what happened? I never finished. I got stuck. I have so many half baked ideas that have barely seen any attention because I didn't have a road map to guide me through to the end.

Some authors may roll their eyes at this suggestion, but Save the Cat! Writes a Novel has been life changing for me.

Touted as "The Last Book on Novel Writing You'll Ever Need," Save the Cat breaks down story structure into three acts. It gives a clear road map of the plot points you should hit in your story. Even if you don't follow it 100% of the time, it gives plenty of structure for you to follow and be successful in building your story. It breaks down the different types of stories and gives tons of real life examples. For every novel that I outline, I start with this method to be sure I'm hitting the plot points.

The second suggestion I have is Sacha Black's Better Writer series.

I haven't been shy about sharing my love of Sacha's works. In the past, when I've read craft books, they're all pretty dry material. Sacha has a fun voice and gives a lot of examples in popular fiction (novels, television, and movies), to help you build a better voice in your writing, as well as for crafting your villans, heroes, and side characters. She is, quite frankly, a badass, and I can't wait to see what she writes next.

The next is the Emotion thesaurus series.

I absolutely adore these books. When you have a character experiencing a particular emotion, you can look it up in the thesaurus, and they give examples of internal sensations, external behaviors, and so so much more. They have come out with an entire line of books. I personally own The Positive Trait Thesaurus, The Negative Trait Thesaurus, and the Emotional Wound Thesaurus. All are amazing resources if you're struggling to round out your characters and really want to dive into showing what they feel.

The last suggestion is Self-Editing for Fiction Writers.

Yet again, I have tried to read a lot of craft books and I have really failed at it. A friend suggested this work, and I found that it was easy to read, it didn't feel like I was being talked down to, and it provides plenty of handy tips and resources. There are even checklists at the end of each chapter to provide you with a guide on how to self-edit your work. Whether you're going the traditional publishing route, or publishing yourself, this is a wonderful resource to get your work in shape.

That's all for this week! I hope you'll check out some of these books if you're looking for ways to improve your craft.

Thanks, Abbie

Book Review: A Heart of Blood and Ashes by Milla Vane

I was given a copy of this book through a giveaway on TikTok. I started it a while ago, but it seems like sometimes my TBR takes control and I have to put things down. By August, I knew that I needed to finish reading the books I'd started, so I vowed to get it done.

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A generation past, the western realms were embroiled in endless war. Then the Destroyer came. From the blood and ashes he left behind, a tenuous alliance rose between the barbarian riders of Parsathe and the walled kingdoms of the south. That alliance is all that stands against the return of an ancient evil--until the barbarian king and queen are slain in an act of bloody betrayal.

Though forbidden by the alliance council to kill the corrupt king responsible for his parents' murders, Maddek vows to avenge them, even if it costs him the Parsathean crown. But when he learns it was the king's daughter who lured his parents to their deaths, the barbarian warrior is determined to make her pay.

Yet the woman Maddek captures is not what he expected. Though the last in a line of legendary warrior-queens, Yvenne is small and weak, and the sharpest weapons she wields are her mind and her tongue. Even more surprising is the marriage she proposes to unite them in their goals and to claim their thrones--because her desire for vengeance against her father burns even hotter than his own...

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If I'm being honest, this isn't a book that I would have picked up on my own. I'm not big into primitive male stories. Even less so when they're verbally abusive toward the female love interest.

From the start, I didn't really feel like I could sympathize with the main character, Maddek. He'd lost his parents and went on a tear through his grief, which is completely understandable, but I didn't like his barbaric behavior. If I don't like a love interest or even feel an inkling of curiosity about a love interest, there's a good chance I probably won't enjoy the story.

Yvenne was a different story. She was strong and warm, despite the traumas that have ravaged her life. Like the men they traveled with (with the exception of Maddek), I really found myself respecting Yvenne.

For me, this one was a little too long for not enough action. It was definitely a romance, but not one that I would recommend to a lot of people unless they don't mind the main love interest being a bit of a jerk. I didn't find myself invested in the world or the political intrigue between kingdoms as I normally would.

Abbie