Category: Book Beginnings

Book Beginnings and the Friday 56 | The Witch Collector

Posted December 22, 2023 by Haze in Book Beginnings, Friday 56, Weekly Book Memes / 6 Comments

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Gilion @ Rose City Reader for sharing the opening lines of the book you want to feature.

The Friday 56 was started and hosted by Freda @ Freda’s Voice and is currently being temporarily hosted by Anne @ My Head is Full of Books for sharing a couple of lines from page 56, or Chapter 56, or at 56%, or however you want to interpret the number 56, of your featured book.

Note: For Blogspot users, I am unfortunately not able to comment on your posts if you don’t have Name/URL enabled on the comments. I’m not being snobbish, I promise! I’d love to leave comments if you’d consider enabling it. Thank you!

My Featured Book

The Witch Collector by Charissa Weaks

Every harvest moon, the Witch Collector rides into our valley and leads one of us to the home of the immortal Frost King, to remain forever.

Today is that day—Collecting Day.

But he will not come for me. I, Raina Bloodgood, have lived in this village for twenty-four years, and for twenty-four years he has passed me by.

His mistake.

Raina Bloodgood has one desire: kill the Frost King and the Witch Collector who stole her sister. On Collecting Day, she means to exact murderous revenge, but a more sinister threat sets fire to her world. Rising from the ashes is the Collector, Alexus Thibault, the man she vowed to slay and the only person who can help save her sister.

Thrust into an age-old story of ice, fire, and ancient gods, Raina must abandon vengeance and aid the Witch Collector in saving the Frost King or let their empire—and her sister—fall into enemy hands. But the lines between good and evil blur, and Raina has more to lose than she imagined. What is she to do when the Witch Collector is no longer the villain who stole her sister, but the hero who’s stealing her heart?

My Book Beginnings:

It’s been eight long years since the Witch Collector took my sister.
Every harvest moon, he rides into our valley, black cloak whipping in the wind, and leads one of us to Winterhold, home of the immortal Frost King, to remain forever.

My Friday 56:

“I can’t, Raina.” She glances around with wary eyes. “I swore that if I wasn’t chosen for Winterhold this year that I would convince my father to take me to Malgros to enlist in the Watch. If something happened to him… If he doesn’t return…” She sets her mug aside and frames her face with her hands. “I can’t leave my mother and sisters.”

My Thoughts

I got to Chapter 19 of the book (about 40%) while listening on audio, but it started getting more difficult to hear the low voices the narrator made, and I found myself missing too much. I decided to wait until I got my hands on a print copy for this, so I’m waiting on the library and this book is stalled until a copy becomes available.

Up until 40% of the book, and even though I’m missing details from the low voices, I quite enjoyed the book and the concept. I find the Witch Collector and the Frost King very mysterious, and I want to know more about them. There’s still a lot we don’t know about the world itself too. It’s a series, so I guess we have time to learn more, but I hope we’ll get some basic answers in this book.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? What do you think of it?

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Book Beginnings & the Friday 56 | Children of Blood and Bone

Posted December 15, 2023 by Haze in Book Beginnings, Friday 56, Weekly Book Memes / 4 Comments

Book Beginnings on Fridays is hosted by Gilion @ Rose City Reader for sharing the opening lines of the book you want to feature.

The Friday 56 was started and hosted by Freda @ Freda’s Voice and is currently being temporarily hosted by Anne @ My Head is Full of Books for sharing a couple of lines from page 56, or Chapter 56, or at 56%, or however you want to interpret the number 56, of your featured book.

Note: For Blogspot users, I am unfortunately not able to comment on your posts if you don’t have Name/URL enabled on the comments. I’m not being snobbish, I promise! I’d love to leave comments if you’d consider enabling it. Thank you!

My Featured Book

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

They killed my mother.
They took our magic.
They tried to bury us.

Now we rise.

Zélie Adebola remembers when the soil of Orïsha hummed with magic. Burners ignited flames, Tiders beckoned waves, and Zélie’s Reaper mother summoned forth souls.

But everything changed the night magic disappeared. Under the orders of a ruthless king, maji were killed, leaving Zélie without a mother and her people without hope.

Now Zélie has one chance to bring back magic and strike against the monarchy. With the help of a rogue princess, Zélie must outwit and outrun the crown prince, who is hell-bent on eradicating magic for good.

Danger lurks in Orïsha, where snow leoponaires prowl and vengeful spirits wait in the waters. Yet the greatest danger may be Zélie herself as she struggles to control her powers and her growing feelings for an enemy.

My Book Beginnings:

Pick me.
It’s all I can do not to scream. I dig my nails into the marula oak of my staff and squeeze to keep from fidgeting. Beads of sweat drip down my back, but I can’t tell if it’s from dawn’s early heat or from my heart slamming against my chest. Moon after moon I’ve been passed over.
Today can’t be the same.

My Friday 56:

As we tear through the streets lined with pastel-colored buildings, two troops of royal guards fight to take us down. Their shouts grow loud. Their footsteps pound even louder. With swords drawn, they close in, only a few paces behind.

My Thoughts

I am currently at Chapter 24, about 40% into this book and I’m enjoying it very much. I thought the book beginning and the Friday 56 quotes were really strong quotes that keeps the reader engaged, and I realized that I feel that way about the whole book so far. It’s really exciting and fast-paced, and filled with constant tension, it never stops! I want to keep reading but I’ve got adult responsibilities (boo!) and gotta get them done before coming back to the book.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? What do you think of it?

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