Lion Heart by A.C. Gaughen

Title: Lion Heart
Author: A.C. Gaughen
Series: Scarlet #3
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Release Date: May 19, 2015
Source: ARC provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review (thank you Bloomsbury!)

Summary from Goodreads:
Scarlet has captured the hearts of readers as well as the heart of Robin Hood, and after ceaseless obstacles and countless threats, readers will finally find out the fate of the Lady Thief.

Imprisoned by Prince John for months, Scarlet finds herself a long way from Nottinghamshire. After a daring escape from the Prince's clutches, she learns that King Richard’s life is in jeopardy, and Eleanor of Aquitaine demands a service Scarlet can’t refuse: spy for her and help bring Richard home safe. But fate—and her heart—won’t allow her to stay away from Nottinghamshire for long, and together, Scarlet and Rob must stop Prince John from going through with his dark plans for England. They can not rest until he’s stopped, but will their love be enough to save them once and for all?

Review

My takeaways from finishing the Scarlet series are the following: 1) A.C. Gaughen is an amazingly talented writer; 2.) it is incredibly bittersweet finishing a favorite series but oh so satisfying when it is well done; and 3) Rob and Scar are the best OTP EVER. Extra emphasis on this last point.

Lion Heart was a wonderful conclusion to the Scarlet series. True to form, it was high stakes, high action and high emotion. Prince John is staging a coup to take the throne for himself and it’s up to Rob and Scar to stop him. But Prince John is cunning and ruthless and won’t go down without an ugly fight. The ending was a bit abrupt but I loved how everything wrapped up. This series went out with a bang for sure!

I have been yearning for Rob and Scar’s Happily Ever After for three years now and it has been one hell of an emotional roller coaster to say the least. It took them forever to admit their feelings to each other and even longer for them to give in to them. And their relationship has been fraught with obstacles and pain. But they finally got everything that they deserved and it had me bursting with happiness. I loved the little moments they shared in this book.

Simply put, I love Lion Heart. I love this series. I love Rob and Scar. This conclusion was everything I had hoped it would be and everyone should read this series!!

Battle of the Books (1) - Battle of the Captains

Battle of the Books is a (new) periodic feature that will pit two books against each other based on some commonality (characters, settings, relationships, etc.). The competitors will battle each other by way of theme-related standards, and readers (you!) will vote on the winner! This is solely for fun.

This week's battle is....

Battle of the Captains!

My Pick?

It's a close call, but I'm going to have to go with...

STURMHOND!

He's a little bit more exciting and hilarious :)

Your Turn!

Who's your favorite captain?

Let me know who your favorite captain is in the comments!!
And what do you think of this new feature? Any suggestions for future battles? Thanks!

Thorne picture source

Sturmhond picture source

REVIEW: Lady Thief (Scarlet #2) by A. C. Gaughen

Title: Lady Thief
Series: Scarlet #2
Author: A. C. Gaughen
Publisher: Walker Childrens
Release Date: February 11, 2014
Pages: 304
Source: ARC obtained at ALAMW

Summary from Goodreads:
Scarlet’s true identity has been revealed, but her future is uncertain. Her forced marriage to Lord Gisbourne threatens Robin and Scarlet’s love, and as the royal court descends upon Nottingham for the appointment of a new Sheriff, the people of Nottingham hope that Prince John will appoint their beloved Robin Hood. But Prince John has different plans for Nottingham that revolve around a fateful secret from Scarlet’s past even she isn’t yet aware of. Forced to participate at court alongside her ruthless husband, Scarlet must bide her time and act the part of a noblewoman—a worthy sacrifice if it means helping Robin’s cause and a chance at a future with the man she loves. With a fresh line of intrigue and as much passion as ever, the next chapter in Scarlet’s tale will have readers talking once again.

"'A knife-wielding lady who cut off her own hair to fight a thief taker? There aren't many of you in the world, my lady.'"

This book. THIS book. I liked Scarlet well enough but I LOVED Lady Thief. It was so much MORE in every way that matters:

More LOVE
Between Rob and Scar
Within the Band
From the people of Nottingham

More HATE
Towards Gisbourne
and Prince John
Between the people to the nobility

More LOYALTY
Scar for Rob and Rob for Scar
To the people
From Gisbourne to Scar

More ALLIES
Winchester
Eleanor
Allan

More FOES
Prince John
de Clare
Isabel

More LOSS
In part
and in whole

More GAIN
In family
In triumph

More ACTION
Competitions
Riots
And of course, thievery ;)

I could go on and on. Lady Thief is MORE MORE MORE. So naturally I loved it MORE! :)

REVIEW: Scarlet (Scarlet #1) by A.C. Gaughen

Title: Scarlet
Series: Scarlet #1

Author: A.C. Gaughen

Publisher: Walker Childrens

Release Date: February 14, 2012

Pages: 292
Source: eBook

Summary from Goodreads:

Many readers know the tale of Robin Hood, but they will be swept away by this new version full of action, secrets, and romance.

Posing as one of Robin Hood’s thieves to avoid the wrath of the evil Thief Taker Lord Gisbourne, Scarlet has kept her identity secret from all of Nottinghamshire. Only the Hood and his band know the truth: the agile thief posing as a whip of a boy is actually a fearless young woman with a secret past. Helping the people of Nottingham outwit the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham could cost Scarlet her life as Gisbourne closes in.

It’s only her fierce loyalty to Robin—whose quick smiles and sharp temper have the rare power to unsettle her—that keeps Scarlet going and makes this fight worth dying for.

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• I loved that Scarlet was a retelling of the classic Robin Hood tale and it was so much more than that. Scarlet had history and passion and grief and cunning. There was a remarkable depth to this story that readers will appreciate.


• The world and characters felt so real, you couldn't help but sympathize with these townspeople and root for the success of Robin Hood and his gang. And there were some serious monsters to root against. So much death and violence. Your heart does not get to take it easy during this reading experience. 


• The band was so much fun. But Scarlet and Rob specifically were great, both individually and as a pair. Scarlet was a riot. She was sassy and stubborn and could hang with the best of them. The story is told from her POV, in a sort of lower-class broken English, which was perfect and really gave voice to her character.  Rob was a sweetheart but could be so dumb at times when it came to Scarlet. Men... *shakes head*


• Who doesn't love a book with thievery and law-breaking, good guys vs bad guys? This book was so much fun and one big adventure. And the ending was perfect. Conclusive but still open-ended enough for the sequel. 

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• I didn't care all that much for the love triangle between Rob, Scarlet and John, primarily because I didn't care all that much for John. Whatever affections John might have had for Scarlet, and vice versa, did not feel genuine and only served as a distraction from Rob and Scarlet, which was perfect and meant to be. Plus, there was too much back and forth on Scarlet's part.


• I didn't find the pacing to be all that fast. Most likely the love triangle focus slowed it down for me. Nevertheless, the book in its entirety was still immensely entertaining. 

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I can understand why there is so much hype surrounding this book. It's a retelling done extremely well - sans the love triangle. The characters are memorable - flawed but great. The setting is thorough and the story is full of emotion. There is plenty of action and adventure and a fair share of thievery and lawbreaking. Who can say no to that? It was a smooth, enticing read from start to finish and I am looking forward to reading Lady Thief! 

Stacking The Shelves (51) - Dec 21st

Stacking the Shelves - hosted by Tynga at Tynga's Reviews - features books that you bought, borrowed, rented from the library, received for review, etc.

This is what's on my shelf for upcoming reads:

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Rebel Spring (Falling Kingdoms #2) by Morgan Rhodes, Michelle Rowen

Roomies by Tara Altebrando
Emerald Green (The Ruby Red Trilogy #3) by Kerstin Gier
Scarlet (Scarlet #1) by A.C. Gaughen

What books are stacking your shelves??

Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

Title: Scarlet
Series: Lunar Chronicles #2
Author: Marissa Meyer
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release Date: February 5th 2013

Summary from Goodreads:
Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother went missing and Scarlet wants the woman who raised her, back home. Scarlet is furious when she is notified that the search for her grandmother has been stopped, but luckily Scarlet meets Wolf. AHH Wolf. Wolf is an intense, lone, tough fighter who seems to know some things about where her grandmother could be. Wolf and Scarlet leave for Paris to find out why her grandmother was kidnapped and to bring her home.

Meanwhile, we were last left with Cinder in jail in New Beijing. With Dr. Erland’s help she is able to use her new lunar gifts and new cyborg parts to escape. Cinder ends up escaping with Captain Thorn; the two commandeer his stolen ship and leave for Paris. Cinder believes if she can find Michelle Benoit then she can learn more about her lunar past and get answers to all her questions. This is all happening while Prince Kai is left facing the consequences of Cinder’s escape and Queen Levana’s wrath.

At first I was not super excited when I heard that Scarlet introduced another two main characters. OHH MAN… I LOVED Scarlet and Wolf almost more than Cinder and Prince Kai. Scarlet draws you in immediately. The plot is multi-dimensional and intertwined beautifully blending and tying in the pieces of Cinder’s story with Scarlet’s story. The plot is paced perfectly blending build up and suspense with character development and romance. Each character is so unique and well developed it is easy to connect with them and become invested in what is going to happen.

As for characters, I LOVE Wolf. While he is the stereotypical tough guy with feelings, it never feels cliché. I like the big bad wolf and little red riding hood underlying story behind the relationship between Scarlet and Wolf. Similar to Cinder, the fairy tale re-telling adds a fun element to the story, picking up the similarities between the classic stories. The only thing I wish was for more in the department of Prince Kai and Cinder’s rocky “relationship.” I want some more resolve in their relationship!!


Audio Book Review: 5 Stars! Absolutely amazing. I loved the audio book! The voices were perfectly done and the pacing was spot on. The audio just drew you into the story and you could listen to it unfold. Not once did I find the voice annoying/whiney or even dull like many audio books. I actually finished the book on my kindle but enjoyed the audio so much I still listened to the rest of the book on audio as well. 

Overall, Scarlet was easily a 5 star read. This sequel lived up to all the hype and was a solid second book. Scarlet had the perfect blend of the various storylines mixed with fairytales and a dystopian/post apocalyptic world. I cannot wait to read the next two in the series.

I'm Waiting On Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) by Marissa Meyer

“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine to shine a spotlight on upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating!

This week I chose...

Title: Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles, #2)
Author: Marissa Meyer
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Release Date: February 5, 2013
Pages: 464, Hardback

Summary from Goodreads:

Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother and the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own.

As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Cinder was one of my favorite reads of 2012. I thought it was imaginative and exciting and ever since I put it down I have been dying to get my hands on Scarlet. I have heard good things from those lucky enough to have read it already which just adds to my excitment. I really expect this to be another favorite. Fortunately, I only have to wait a couple more weeks!!

What are you waiting on? Leave a link and I'll check our your page!