Books | Read in July

It's only been a week but it feels strange blogging again. I self imposed a blogging hiatus as I became another victim of the cold, it was not a good time. I'm mostly over it a part from a persistent cough, oh joy. As a result I didn't feel like doing anything including reading, hence why there's only a couple of books.

Queen of Hearts - Colleen Oakes*

This is not a story of happily ever after. Princess Dinah will one day become the Queen of Hearts, she longs for her father's approval and a future with the boy she loves. But when a betrayal breaks her heart and threatens her throne she is put in danger and has to stay one step ahead of her enemies.

Alice in Wonderland is one of my favourite stories so I was really excited for this book which is a prequel, before Alice fell down the rabbit hole. Dinah is trying to manage the best she can especially when her father doesn't think much of her. She is pushed to the limits and I'm excited to see how she handles herself in the series. I really enjoyed this book, a different take on 'Wonderland' and seeing alternative versions of the well known characters from Lewis Carroll's original stories.   4 Stars

Night Shift - Charlaine Harris*

At Midnight's local pawnshop, weapons are flying off the shelves - only to be used in sudden and dramatic suicides right at the main crossroads in town. Who better to figure out why blood is being spilled than the vampire Lemuel who discovers what made Midnight the town it is and why witches, werewolves, killers and psychics have been drawn to this place.

I read this in ten days I think which is the quickest I've ever read a book. It's the third book in the series so once again I started out lost but I wasn't at a massive disadvantage. Midnight has such a unique variety of people so it was interesting following each perspective which made the story less stagnant. While I haven't read the Sookie Stackhouse series I've watch True Blood and the story felt somewhat familiar especially with it using some of the same terminology from the show. Overall I really enjoyed it.   4 Stars

Have you read any of these books? What did you think of them?

Ashley xx

*Review copies sent from Hachette NZ & HarperCollins NZ