Literary Criticism
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Review: A Clash of Kings (A Song of Ice and Fire #2) by George R.R. Martin
War is coming. All over the Seven Kingdoms, chaos reigns! With King Robert dead and the Lannister family on the brink of scandal…the fate of the Iron Throne is in question–four different self professed ‘kings’ proclaim their imperial rule over the Seven Kingdoms threatening to divide the realm. Brother against brother–house against house–alliances made and broken–war changes everything. A Clash of Kings is the second in George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. I think this is the longest and most complex books I have ever read (1,009 pages). Though it is long, the story itself is rich and the prose lyrical–this series definitely reads like…
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Review: The Rose of Martinique: A Life of Napoleon’s Josephine by Andrea Stuart
Josephine Bonaparte was the Jacqueline Kennedy of her era. She was a fashion icon and patron of the arts, who was also renowned for her charm, beauty, and compassion. Josephine worked hard to constantly reinvent herself and her public image, even Madonna would be impressed by her efforts. Despite the veneer of glamour this woman had a rough life, but fought through it all dressed to kill and with a smile firmly in place. Andrea Stuart’s biography provides a fascinating account of Josephine’s chaotic life from her birth on the island of Martinique, to her unhappy first marriage, her imprisonment during the French revolution, and finally her tumultuous relationship with…
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New Contributor: The Lib Bitch
I am very pleased to announce that I am taking on an additional bitchin’ reviewer for my blog! Please welcome The Lib Bitch–also known as my ever so charming sister! The Lib Bitch (not to be confused with yours truly) will be adding flavor and variety to our blog. She picked the “Lib Bitch” since she is a Librarian. She has similar reading/literary interests as me but they are different enough to add a unique tone and content! I am very excited about this venture 🙂 I will be posting a more complete bio soon…be watching for her reviews! Here is a brief bio for The Lib Bitch: Occupation: Librarian…
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Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1) by Laini Taylor
What happens when the good becomes the evil? What if everything you know about heros and villains was wrong? In Laini Taylor’s debut YA fantasy novel, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, everything you know about traditional good vs. evil cliches are wrong. This is the story of Karou and Akiva. Karou is a demon–Akiva, is an angel. In this series, the angel is the devil in disguise. Karou is not like other girls. She speaks 20+ languages, natural peacock blue hair, and a body covered in tattoos including two mysterious eyes on her palms. She lives in Prague and attends an art institute by day, but when the sun goes down–her real…
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Review: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
How do you escape the reality of your mundane existence? Do you come home from work and sit mindlessly in front of the telly? Do you listen to music on your iPod? Watch the latest flick at the movie theater? Surf the internet for hours searching for the perfect picture of a white sandy beach (my personal fav!). Or do you get lost in the inky lines of your favorite book? Whatever your day dream is, it should be magical….a place where anything is possible….a place where dreams merge with reality….a place like The Night Circus. Erin Morgenstern’s novel, The Night Circus, is a mysterious anomaly–a story that is fragile and…
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Review: The Temptation of the Night Jasmine (Pink Carnation #5) by Lauren Willig
The exotic scent of night blooming jasmine fills the pages of Lauren Willig’s latest Pink Carnation series installment, The Temptation of the Night Jasmine. Robert, the entailed Duke of Dovedale, has returned to England after being abroad in India for 12 years. Though it’s not his nostalgia that draws him home….it’s revenge. There is one debutant that threatens to derail Robert’s revenge….his distant, twice removed ‘cousin’ Charlotte. Charlotte is the granddaughter of the Dowager Duchess of Dovedale–think Maggie Smith from Downton Abbey :). The Duchess rules her family and relations with an iron fist–a duchess to the core. She is strong, ruthless, and stubborn to a fault….Charlotte on the other…
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Author Interview: A Love by Any Measure by Killian McRae
I recently had the pleasure of reviewing A Love by Any Measure by the lovely Killian McRae! A Love by Any Measure (ALBAM) is a beautifully constructed love story about two childhood friends torn apart by class and wealth in the last 19th century Ireland. It was a fantastic love story and I am honored to be able to offer an E-copy for one lucky reader! If you are interested in the giveaway it run from 2/3/12 to 2/10/12 and details can be found here. Killian also agreed to do an interview with me as well, so without further ado please welcome Killian McRae to The Lit Bitch!
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Review: A Love by Any Measure by Killian McRae
True love knows no boundaries….true love doesn’t love based on wealth, class, title, or circumstance…..the heart simply wants what it wants: its other half. The only thing that can come between the heart and its desire, is the brain. In Killian McRae’s latest historical romance novel, A Love by Any Measure, the heart and the brain go head to head–will true love win out? August Grayson is an English lord–rich, powerful, titled, and handsome. But in Ireland 1865 he’s called the enemy. Maeve O’Connor is a tenet on Lord Grayson’s land struggling to keep a roof over her and her father’s head. Maeve has nothing but her good looks and good…
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Review: Mockingjay (The Hunger Games #3) by Suzanne Collins
The sparks of rebellion have turned into a raging inferno in Suzanne Collins’s final installment of The Hunger Games trilogy, Mockingjay. Katniss Everdeen, ‘the girl who was on fire’, is the catalyst for the movement and the symbol of the rebellion–their very own Mockingjay. After the first Hunger Games, whispers of uprising begin when Katniss and Peeta Mellark both emerge from the Games victorious….two winners not one–an open defiance of the Capitol. Then when Katniss, Peeta, and their allies destroy the Games for good in Catching Fire–the letters are on the wall, uprising is inevitable. With District 12 demolished, Katniss and her family are taken to rebel headquarters–District 13. During…
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Review: Catching Fire (The Hunger Games #2) by Suzanne Collins
Katniss Everdeen, the girl who was on fire in The Hunger Games is now sparking revolutions throughout the 12 Districts in Suzanne Collins’s second installment of The Hunger Games series, Catching Fire. Having emerged from the Hunger Games victorious, Katniss and her now ‘made for TV boyfriend’ Peeta Mellark return to District 12. Their final act of desperation in the Games makes them both symbols of rebellion and hope to the people of the 12 Districts….but targets for the Capitol. President Snow smells deception….he knows their love was just an act and feels that they rebellion in the Games will only incite more uprisings in other Districts….while on their victory…