Blog Tour: Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine: Why in 5 (+Giveaway)

Being the HUGE Sarah Fine fangirl that I am, I am thrilled to be taking part in the Blog Tour for Of Dreams and Rust, the follow-up and conclusion to Of Metal and Wishes. I would recommend all of her books to anyone anytime but this duology is one of my all-time favorites. Since I already shared my 5-star review here, today I am sharing 5 reasons why you should read this book. And don't miss the opportunity to win copies of both books at the end of this post! Thanks for stopping by!

The Book

Title: Of Dreams and Rust
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Of Metal and Wishes #2
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Date: August 4, 2015

Summary:
War erupts in this bittersweet sequel to "Of Metal and Wishes", inspired by The Phantom of the Opera and called “relentlessly engrossing” by The Romantic Times.

In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

BUY LINKS: Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Book Depository | IndieBound

5 Reasons to Read Of Metal and Wishes/Of Dreams and Rust

1. Phantom of the Opera retelling set in a slaughterhouse
Is that not the best mash-up you've ever heard? It was the second thing to draw me to this series (the first being Sarah Fine's name of course). I personally LOVE Phantom of the Opera and Fine manages to take the best elements of that story and make it her own. The execution is quite brilliant and unlike anything I have EVER read. It's reason enough to read this duology!

2. Wen, Melik and Wen AND Melik.
Perhaps the THIRD thing I love most about this series is the romance. Sarah Fine writes some of the BEST romance. I know some of you are concerned about a love triangle but I personally don't think there is one. This duology, but especially book 2, was all about Wen and Melik and although their relationship was far from simple, it always had such a strong presence in both books. I think this can be largely contributed to the strong presence of each of these characters. The were both extremely brave, kind-hearted, and willful.

3. Non-stop action
Sarah Fine always manages to balance character and plot development perfectly. These books don't slow down for a minute but I never feel any of the action was at the expense of the characters. Of Dreams and Rust was an especially tense book with so many ups and downs. Fine does not go easy on our hearts but she makes sure to give us plenty of happy moments too. It's a real heart-wrencher. 

4. Important Themes
I always love when authors shed light on social issues. In this book we see sexism, classism, racism, and more but the important thing is that Wen and Melik battle and rise above all of it. We see  examples of hate and love, freedom and oppression, strength and weakness, and evil and kindness all around them. But they protect one another and unite their people and it's really quite relevant and beautiful.

5. Everything else
Basically, there are more than 5 reasons to read this book so I am cheating and saying that reason number 5 is everything else I haven't mentioned. Like the fact that the writing is brilliant and the characters are wonderfully complex (there is NO ONE like Bo and you all need to meet him). And that this is only a duology and let's be honest, there should be more of these. Also, Sarah Fine EXCELS at world-building. And these covers are GORGEOUS. And on and on....

SO READ THESE BOOKS.

The Author

Sarah Fine is the author of several books for teens, including Of Metal and Wishes and its sequel, Of Dreams and Rust, and the Guards of the Shadowlands YA urban fantasy series. She is also the co-author (with Walter Jury) of two YA sci-fi thrillers: Scan and its sequel Burn. Sarah is also the author of the adult urban fantasy series, Servants of Fate, with the third book in the series, Fated, releasing September 2015. When Sarah’s not writing, she’s psychologizing. Sometimes she does both at the same time. The results are unpredictable.


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Tour Schedule

August 4: My Friends Are Fiction 
August 5: Reading Teen 
August 6: Rainy Day Ramblings 
August 7: The Starry-Eyed Review 
August 10: There Were Books Involved 
August 11: Writer of Wrongs
August 12: Love is Not a Triangle 
August 13: The Quiet Concert (*waves*)
August 14: Nick's Book Blog

Giveaway

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Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine

Title: Of Dreams and Rust
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Of Metal and Wishes #2
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Date: August 4, 2015
Source: ARC obtained through trading

Summary from Goodreads:
War erupts in this bittersweet sequel to "Of Metal and Wishes", inspired by The Phantom of the Opera and called “relentlessly engrossing” by The Romantic Times.

In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

Review

It's been a year since Wen and Melik have parted at the end of Of Metal and Wishes but despite the time and distance between them, Wen's heart is still very much with Melik. After she hears of her people's plan for war, she decides to leave the relative safety of the Ring with the hope of finding and warning Melik before it is too late. This book is very action-packed as Wen reunites with Melik and together they try to save the people they love from the weapons of war bearing down on them. Naturally, war brings death and Sarah Fine does not go easy on our gentle hearts. But its those losses that make the wins that much more precious. My heart was all over the place with this one.

Wen and Melik's relationship arc was extremely well done. They've spent a year apart and that's enough time to change people. Wen is insecure when she reunites with Melik and doubts whether her feelings are still reciprocated. And when Melik first appears hard and unforgiving, Wen worries that war has hardened him beyond her recognition. I thought these were very honest questions given the circumstances of their relationship. But Melik proves that he's just as steady and loyal as ever. Together they face trials that that would challenge the  strongest of relationships and I loved watching their love persevere. They were wonderful together.

For those of you who are wondering, Bo is still very much present in this sequel and Wen and Bo's relationship is still a complicated one. But even though Wen cares for Bo deeply, I never felt that her feelings went beyond a sibling/friend type of love. He was also a very interesting character to explore as he oscillated between love and hate and immaturity and maturity in his actions and expressions. Yet, despite everything, I still wanted the best for him.

Of Dreams and Rust was such an AMAZING sequel and conclusion to Of Metal and Wishes. Sarah Fine continues to amaze me with her brilliant storytelling, and penchant for creating the best romances. I cannot recommend this duology or the rest of her work enough. I have never given a single book of hers less than 5 glowing stars.

Of Metal and Wishes by Sarah Fine

Title: Of Metal and Wishes
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Of Metal and Wishes #1
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Date: August 5, 2014
Pages: 320
Source: Purchased

Summary from Goodreads:
There are whispers of a ghost in the slaughterhouse where sixteen-year-old Wen assists her father in his medical clinic—a ghost who grants wishes to those who need them most. When one of the Noor, men hired as cheap factory labor, humiliates Wen, she makes an impulsive wish of her own, and the Ghost grants it. Brutally.

Guilt-ridden, Wen befriends the Noor, including their outspoken leader, a young man named Melik. At the same time, she is lured by the mystery of the Ghost and learns he has been watching her … for a very long time.

As deadly accidents fuel tensions within the factory, Wen must confront her growing feelings for Melik, who is enraged at the sadistic factory bosses and the prejudice faced by his people at the hand of Wen’s, and her need to appease the Ghost, who is determined to protect her against any threat—real or imagined. She must decide whom she can trust, because as her heart is torn, the factory is exploding around her … and she might go down with it.

Review

Phantom of the Opera is one of my favorite stories and to have one of my favorite authors retell it in such a magnificent and unique way is like a bookish dream come true. I am not sure I can find the right words to describe how dazzling this book was.

As the synopsis says, Of Metal and Wishes takes place in a slaughterhouse. A slaughterhouse that is haunted by the ghost of a boy long believed dead. A ghost that sometimes grants wishes, and happens to favor Wen. This is probably where the parallel to The Phantom of the Opera ends. Sarah Fine works her magic from here.

The Noor have just arrived to work at the factory and tensions rise between them and the Itanyai, who believe themselves to be superior. Accidents, illness, fights and riots befall Gochan One as the Itanyai blame the Noor for all of their problems. As the situation worsens, Wen finds herself torn between her people and the Noor whom she grows more and more fond of, especially their leader Melik. But what role does the Ghost play in all of this? For he will do anything to protect Wen...

Sarah Fine excels in all things storytelling–related. She once again proved her brilliance with this world that she created, which was both vivid and layered and felt like a genre all of its own with gothic, fantasy, steampunk elements and more. Her characters were as wonderful as always - diverse, likable, complex, selfless. I grew to care for Wen, her father, the Ghost and the Noor. And the romance. *sigh* Sarah Fine knows all the right strings to pull. The story itself was suspenseful, haunting, imaginative, and elaborate. I couldn't get read fast enough. And the ending was great. In typical Sarah Fine fashion it was a little brutal, a little hopeful, and a whole lot dramatic.

Sarah Fine is 3 for 3 in my book. Her Guards of the Shadowlands series is one of the best series to come into my life and I am just as in awe of and in love with Of Metal and Wishes. I am now convinced that I will love everything she writes. She is extremely talented and I will champion her work all day, every day.

Hell yes, I recommend this book. It was perfection.