Young adult fiction (YA) is a category of fiction written for readers from 12 to 18 years of age. While the genre is targeted to teenagers, approximately half of YA readers are adults.
The subject matter and genres of YA correlate with the age and experience of the protagonist. The genres available in YA are expansive and include most of those found in adult fiction. Common themes related to YA include friendship, first love, relationships, and identity. Stories that focus on the specific challenges of youth are sometimes referred to as problem novels or coming-of-age novels.
Young adult fiction was developed to soften the transition between children’s novels and adult literature.
Now Moscow has been struck by disaster. Its people are searching for answers—and for someone to blame. Vasya finds herself alone, beset on all sides. The Grand Prince is in a rage, choosing allies that will lead him on a path to war and ruin. A wicked demon returns, stronger than ever and determined to spread chaos. Caught at the center of the conflict is Vasya, who finds the fate of two worlds resting on her shoulders. Her destiny uncertain, Vasya will uncover surprising truths about herself and her history as she desperately tries to save Russia, Morozko, and the magical world she treasures. But she may not be able to save them all.
About the book
Winter of the Witch, is the the third in the series. The plot follows the adventures of the protagonist Vasja, a witch who tries to save Moscow from the Bear and the plague. The story takes place in a magical world and includes magical creatures and a journey through Midnight.
Shocked by the disappearance of Hiinahime, Ichirô, a young samurai, has only one idea in mind, to find the assassin and avenge the death of his master. He also wishes to return the mysterious sword to a lord of Osaka and thus grant Hiinahime's last wish. For this, he joins the Sanada clan.
(Google translated from French)
About the book
Ichirou has fled Edo and with Shin stops in his old village. Here, it’s buried Marumasa’s sword, entrusted by Kama to his master (and Ichirou’s father figure) some time before. The two are followed by a ninja Seirei who wants to take them to Kyoto where Akemi can use them for her work. But with the sword comes a message to go to the temple and entrust the sword to a certain monk. So the three go to the temple, but the monk is not there. Here the three stop for the winter until they decide to leave, but suddenly the monk arrives, who is none other than Kama, who entrusts the sword to the monk who hosted the three, he has no time to think about the sword becasue he has to return to Osaka where his boss has just surrendered to shogun Ieyasu.
Maia Tamarin’s journey to sew the dresses of the sun, the moon and the stars has taken a grievous toll. She returns to a kingdom on the brink of war. The boy she loves is gone, and she is forced to don the dress of the sun and assume the place of the emperor’s bride-to-be to keep the peace.
But the war raging around Maia is nothing compared to the battle within. Ever since she was touched by the demon Bandur, she has been changing . . . glancing in the mirror to see her own eyes glowing red, losing control of her magic, her body, her mind. It’s only a matter of time before Maia loses herself completely, but she will stop at nothing to find Edan, protect her family, and bring lasting peace to her country.
YA fantasy readers will love the sizzling forbidden romance, mystery, and intrigue of Unravel the Dusk
About the book
Short review this time, too.
I liked this second book less than the first. I understood the ending way before the actual finale even if I didn’t have idea who would become the emperor.
I liked the story between Edan and Maia, I liked how Maia is described and what she does. Even if I liked the first book more, I recommend this series. I didn’t find anything that I disliked, I just find it a little bit slow in the beginning and the middle and too fast the ending.
Anyway, I liked the world built by the author and the characters, too.
And, here, too, I like the second cover more than the first, the one with the palace.
Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia poses as a boy and takes his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors vying for the job.
Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.
And nothing could have prepared her for the final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the laughter of the sun, the tears of the moon, and the blood of stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.
About the book
Short review this time.
I liked this book a lot. Maia is a well rounded character and even if the story may seem simple, it was a good read. I like how the magic is used and Maia’s backstory, her scissors and the legends behind this is well planned.
Cover is beautiful, especially the other one, the UK one? Anyway the one with the palace. I have both because the Italian editor used a double cover for this books (for the second, too). Yay, happy me!
Please read this book, and I hope the second book won’t be a disappointment but if you want a simple, well planned story and a bit of adventure this is the book for you.
Rescuing him was a mistake. Falling in love was unthinkable. Because to save her own life, she has to destroy his.
Rin is an immortal kitsune, or at least she was until a witch’s curse turned her human. To regain her youkai powers and avoid being turned into a fox, she must make the lord’s son fall in love with her before the next full moon. Her kind has been seducing humans for centuries, and it should be easy, as long as he doesn’t find out she’s a kitsune… except that the curse also took her voice.
Hikaru is betrothed to the daughter of a rival lord, and he will fulfil his duty, protecting his clan from others and from the youkai. But when he’s saved by a mysterious red-haired woman, he can’t forget her, try as he might. Then she turns up at his door… Only it can’t be his saviour, because this woman has ebony hair, but there’s something inexplicably bewitching about her. Yet his father’s treaty depends on his marriage to another, and even an innocent dalliance could ruin everything.
Falling in love is dangerous for them both. Not only are they from different worlds, but their time together can only end in heartache. Hikaru’s marriage means security for his clan, and Rin must destroy it or be turned into a fox. And truly loving Hikaru means revealing she’s one of the hated youkai and an immortal. Will they risk it all for love? Or will their two worlds rip them apart for good?
Fans of fairy tale retellings, anime, and manga love Kitsune: A Little Mermaid Retelling, an old tale retold from a fresh perspective.
About the book
I read this book because, first of all, it was free and second, I was drawn to the cover. Furthermore, the title talks about Kitsune and therefore the book is clearly of Japanese inspiration. I’ve always liked the Little Mermaid story even if it’s not my favorite fairy tale.
Rin is an immortal kitsune, a Youkai, a spirit who has the power to transform into both a woman and a fox. But an evil witch turns her into a woman and steals her voice. Her task is to make the prince fall in love with her in order to break the treaty that the prince himself managed to create between his family and that of a rival lord.
One evening, Hikaru, the prince, is in the forest with his men and risks being killed by a boar demon. Rin saves him but in doing so triggers a series of events that leads her to Hikaru’s court. Here, she must make the prince fall in love or she will be transformed in a fox forever.
The Winter of the Witch
