Mini-reviews: Rebirth + The Cursed Queen

Rebirth: A Fable of Love, Forgiveness, and Following Your Heart by Kamal Ravikant

pub 1/3/17 by Hachette Books
Adult - Fiction
Received ARC from pub

Rebirth was pitched to me as being for fans of The Alchemist and since that's one of my favorite books, I couldn't resist checking it out. I'm so glad I did because Rebirth was incredibly moving. It was my first read for 2017 and I honestly couldn't have chosen a better book to start off my year. It's about a young man named Amit who decides to go on a 550 mile pilgrimage of walking the legendary Camino de Santiago across Spain after the death of his estranged father. It begins as a whim. Just something he'll do for just a week and then be on his way back home. But from the moment he begins this path, it turns into so much more. It's about facing his demons and connecting with others as they go on the same pilgrimage. As readers, we get to learn his story, along with his companions, and the author does a beautiful job of exploring themes like love, life and forgiveness. I really enjoyed how the story was told and found myself surprisingly moved to tears more than once.

Do I recommend? Yes! It's definitely not one of my usual reads and that turned out to be a very good thing.

The Cursed Queen (The Impostor Queen #2) by Sarah Fine

pub 1/3/17 by Margaret K.
McElderry Books
YA - Fantasy
Received ARC from pub

I was such a huge fan of last year's Impostor Queen, so I couldn't wait to dive back into the impressive world Sarah Fine had created. In the Cursed Queen, Ansa is such a different protagonist from her predecessor. To be honest, I struggled to connect to her at first but in a good way, which probably doesn't make sense! But everything in Ansa's life has been a struggle. She watched invaders murder her parents and steal her away as a raid prize and every moment since then has been a fight to to prove herself. Whether it's as a warrior in the Krigere tribe she belongs to or as someone who should be standing next to Thyra, the daughter of Chieftan. Ansa is stubbornly prone to violence and acting out when insecure which made it hard to understand her. But then you see the vulnerability and the the formidable strength in her and it's impossible not to root for her. When she and her tribe crosses paths with the witch queen of Kupari (sound familiar?), Ansa is the first one to jump into the fray and protect the people she cares about. But when she's cursed by the queen with fire and ice, magical abilities emerge in Ansa that she can't control and that she's afraid to reveal. It sets her on a dangerous path involving deception, the blurry line between good and evil and self-discovery.

Do I recommend? I do! I enjoyed the book (although I love the first one more) and was very impressed by how Fine tied this companion novel to the story in the first. I will definitely be reading the final book!