{Blog Tour} {Review in a GIFfy} Of Dreams and Rust by Sarah Fine & Giveaway

I have, like, the biggest author crush on Sarah Fine, and I was elated to be invited to the tour for her newest book. Of Dreams and Rust, which released on Tuesday, is the much-anticipated follow-up to her gorgeous Phantom of the Opera retelling, and I gotta tell ya, it is beyond amazing.

On my stop of the tour, I've got a Review in a GIFfy for you. It was actually the previous book in this duology that inspired this feature, so it only felt fitting to review this book in the same manner. Huge thanks to Gaby Salpeter of Bookish Broads for putting this amazing tour together. Make sure you check out the rest of the tour and enter below to win one of two sets of this duology!


Title: Of Dreams and Rust
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Of Metal and Wishes, book #2
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: August 4, 2015
Source: ARC provided by publisher for review
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | IndieBound

War erupts in this bittersweet sequel to Of Metal and Wishes, inspired by The Phantom of the Opera and called “relentlessly engrossing” by The Romantic Times.

In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

I am such a huge fan of Sarah's writing. I fall for her characters every. Single. Time. And this series is no different. And boy did she bring her A-game with Of Dreams and Rust. She also must be doing some serious sacrificing to the Cover Gods because HOLY WOW. My eyes will never recover for the beauty that is the full cover jacket.

But you care about what's under that, don't you? Well, fine.

I have a lot of them, obviously. Firstly, it's been a whole freaking year since the events of the first book?

How can this be? Oh, my poor lovelies. How awful this must have been for you.

And then to find out that Wen's worst fears have come to fruition.

War is on the horizon, and Wen must warn Melik before it's too late. So, while everyone else is hunkering down, our girl does the only thing she can.

On the double, Mr. Conductor! (Okay, not really.) But this is the point where everything goes to hell.

Don't say I didn't warn you. From here on out, it's pretty much:

.....

.....

Until finally, finally, we get what we've all been waiting for...

And, of course, this is when Iron Man decides to make an appearance. (No, I'm not joking.)

Things are a little tense, to say the least.

But the war is being brought to their doorstep. And it looks like this:

Everyone has to put their feelings aside and pretend that their differences don't matter. Because here comes the boom.

And then, of course, there's more of this:

If you haven't figured it out yet, this book is not a happy one. This is probably a more accurate descriptor.

Pick one. Or all of them. They are all relevant.

But that doesn't mean I didn't love this book. I did. With every fiber of my being. I want a book that can make me feel all the things, circle back, and feel them all over again. Sarah has the uncanny ability to make me want to open myself up to pain and grief, bring it out into the light and explore it further.

Her characters are beautiful and diverse and genuine. Their pain and joy and fears are real. I loved Of Metal and Wishes, but I think I loved Of Dreams and Rust even more because it pushed these characters to their limits. It tested them. It broke them. And it made me love them that much more.

I can't wait to see what Sarah Fine comes up with next!

GIF it to me straight:

About the author:

Sarah Fine is the author of several books for teens, including Of Metal and Wishes and its sequel, Of Dreams and Rust, and the Guards of the Shadowlands YA urban fantasy series. She is also the co-author (with Walter Jury) of two YA sci-fi thrillers: Scan and its sequel Burn. Sarah is also the author of the adult urban fantasy series, Servants of Fate, with the third book in the series, Fated, releasing September 2015. When Sarah’s not writing, she’s psychologizing. Sometimes she does both at the same time. The results are unpredictable.

Find Sarah:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr | Pinterest

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Be sure to follow the rest of the tour below:

August 4: My Friends Are Fiction
August 5: Reading Teen
August 6: Rainy Day Ramblings
August 7: The Starry-Eyed Revue

August 10: There Were Books Involved
August 11: Writer of Wrong
August 12: Love is Not a Triangle
August 13: The Quiet Concert
August 14: Nick's Book Blog


Thanks for stopping by & happy reading!

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Labels: beautiful covers, blog tour, diversity, favorite authors, favorites, giveaways, historical fiction, of metal and wishes, retellings, review in a giffy, sarah fine, simon schuster

Waiting on Wednesday: The Impostor Queen by Sarah Fine

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selection is...








's Pick:



Title: The Impostor Queen
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: stand-alone (?)
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: January 5, 2016

Sixteen-year-old Elli was a small child when the Elders of Kupari chose her to succeed the Valtia, the queen who wields infinitely powerful ice and fire magic. Since then, Elli has lived in the temple, surrounded by luxury and tutored by magical priests, as she prepares for the day when the Valtia perishes and the magic finds a new home in her. Elli is destined to be the most powerful Valtia to ever rule.

But when the queen dies defending the kingdom from invading warriors, the magic doesn’t enter Elli. It’s nowhere to be found.

Disgraced, Elli flees to the outlands, the home of banished criminals—some who would love to see the temple burn with all its priests inside. As she finds her footing in this new world, Elli uncovers devastating new information about the Kupari magic, those who wield it, and the prophecy that foretold her destiny. Torn between the love she has for her people and her growing loyalty to the banished, Elli struggles to understand the true role she was meant to play. But as war looms, she must align with the right side—before the kingdom and its magic are completely destroyed.

First of all, I will always, always read a new Sarah Fine book. Her stories are so inventive and evocative and just amazing, and her characters always face such hardships. And a story about a girl who is not the chosen one? Yesh! I cannot wait for this. I've been taking my sweet time with Of Dreams and Rust just because I don't have another Sarah Fine book in my possession yet...


What are you desperately waiting for this Wednesday? Let us know in the comments or share a link to your own WoW post!

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Labels: beautiful covers, fantasy, magic, sarah fine, simon schuster, the impostor queen, waiting on wednesday (wow)

Waiting on Wednesday: Confess & Of Dreams and Rust

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selections are...








's Pick:

Title: Confess
Author: Colleen Hoover
Series: n/a
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: March 10th, 2015

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover, a new novel about risking everything for love—and finding your heart somewhere between the truth and lies.

Auburn Reed has her entire life mapped out. Her goals are in sight and there’s no room for mistakes. But when she walks into a Dallas art studio in search of a job, she doesn’t expect to find a deep attraction to the enigmatic artist who works there, Owen Gentry.

For once, Auburn takes a risk and puts her heart in control, only to discover Owen is keeping major secrets from coming out. The magnitude of his past threatens to destroy everything important to Auburn, and the only way to get her life back on track is to cut Owen out of it.

The last thing Owen wants is to lose Auburn, but he can’t seem to convince her that truth is sometimes as subjective as art. All he would have to do to save their relationship is confess. But in this case, the confession could be much more destructive than the actual sin…

If it's a Colleen Hoover book, then I'm guaranteed to be waiting for it. Not just on Wednesdays. On every other day of the week too! And it's funny, because I'll read the descriptions and think, "meh", but then I pick up the book and it sucks me right in. I will for sure be grabbing this one as soon as it comes out. :)

And I just love this cover. I didn't notice it as first, but there is a girl in the lettering. So cool.





's Pick:





Title: Of Dreams and Rust
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Of Metal and Wishes, book #2
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: August 4, 2015

War erupts in this bittersweet sequel to Of Metal and Wishes, inspired by The Phantom of the Opera and called “relentlessly engrossing” by The Romantic Times.

In the year since the collapse of the slaughterhouse where Wen worked as her father’s medical assistant, she’s held all her secrets close. She works in the clinic at the weapons factory and sneaks away to nurse Bo, once the Ghost, now a boy determined to transform himself into a living machine. Their strange, fragile friendship soothes some of the ache of missing Melik, the strong-willed Noor who walked away from Wen all those months ago—but it can’t quell her fears for him.

The Noor are waging a rebellion in the west. When she overhears plans to crush Melik’s people with the powerful war machines created at the factory, Wen makes the painful decision to leave behind all she has known—including Bo—to warn them. But the farther she journeys into the warzone, the more confusing things become. A year of brutality seems to have changed Melik, and Wen has a decision to make about him and his people: How much is she willing to sacrifice to save them from complete annihilation?

I know, I know...I'm featuring a book with a release date almost a year away?!? But I got to help Sarah Fine reveal the cover for this sequel last week, and ever since I first saw it, I've been unable to stop thinking about it. I covet this book like no other! Of course, the cover is gorgeous and just as stunning -- if not more so -- than the first book in this duology, but it's what's between the covers that I'm particularly interested in. Especially after reading that summary! My heart hurts just thinking about it!

What are you desperately waiting for this Wednesday? Let us know in the comments or share a link to your own WoW post!

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Labels: alternate history, atria books, beautiful covers, colleen hoover, confess, fantasy, favorite authors, favorites, of metal and wishes, sarah fine, simon schuster, waiting on wednesday (wow)

Review: Chaos by Sarah Fine + Vigilante & Stories from the Shadowlands

Today is the release day for the final book in Sarah Fine's Guards of the Shadowlands series, and if you know anything about me at all, it should be that I'm a total fangirl for these books...or any of Sarah's books if we're being honest. But Sanctum was the first book of hers that I ever explored and I was captivated from the very start.

These books follow Lela as she heads to the Afterlife in hopes of saving her friend Nadia, who's just committed suicide. Because of the way in which she died, Nadia is sent to a not-so-nice place in the Afterlife, and Lela can't stand to see her suffer. Lela sneaks into this place where Nadia is sent, and things progress from there. Lela makes a lot of sacrifices over the course of this series, but so do many of the people she comes into contact with.

I'm celebrating the release of Chaos today -- even though the fact that the series is ending is rather bittersweet -- and in doing so, I'm reviewing the last three pieces of this story: Vigilante, Chaos, and Stories from the Shadowlands. Since it's the end, I can't really reveal any details without risk of spoilers, so I'm just going to provide you with feelings-based reviews...they should more than get the point across. ;-) I've come to love all of these characters so much, and I'm sad to say goodbye to them, though I'm glad to have discovered them in the first place. And Sarah's created so much bonus content in addition to her full-length books...it's clear that she loves her characters every bit as much as I do.

Title: Vigilante
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #2.5
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: July 25, 2014
Source: freebie for pre-ordering Chaos
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Ana has done her time as a Guard in the dark city and now that she’s finally been released into the Countryside, all she wants to do is find Takeshi, the love she lost to the Mazikin so many years ago. The only problem? He’s nowhere to be found. Now Ana faces a choice—remain alone in paradise or venture into the depths of the Wasteland in an attempt to rescue the man who still owns her heart.

I haven't read the other novella in this series entitled Captive, but I'm here to tell you that you absolutely should read Vigilante prior to starting Chaos. It's told from Ana's perspective and it gives you a ton of insight into her mindset going into Chaos. Otherwise, you might be a little...thrown by some of her actions at first, especially considering what you already know about her character from the previous books.

Also, you get to meet Takeshi. At least in Ana's flashbacks, anyway. And you'll get to see some seriously swoony parallels between their relationship and that of Malachi and Lela. Plus, you'll meet someone only vaguely referenced in a previous book, and things will all start making sense finally. Or at least as much sense as the will of the Judge can ever make to us mere mortals.

Vigilante is short and sweet and, in my opinion, totally necessary for full comprehension of these characters and what they mean to each other. It was free with your preorder of Chaos, but I'm not sure if that's a thing after the fact or how you can go about getting it now. :( I'll try to find out, if anyone's interested.

Title: Chaos
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #3
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: October 7, 2014
Source: from publisher via Netgalley, PB won from Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

With Juri in control and everything in absolute chaos, Lela plunges into the depths of hell to free Malachi from creatures that have waited decades to exact their revenge. But the Judge has her own way of doing things, and Lela must work with Ana, the new Captain, who has a very personal mission of her own. Together, they infiltrate the most horrifying realm either has yet encountered in the Shadowlands—the bitter landscape ruled by the Mazikin.

The stakes could not be higher, and Lela must accept the help—and love—of people she barely knows or trusts. As alliances and loyalties shift and she realizes the soul she came to save isn’t the only one in need of rescue, can Lela summon the strength to see the fight through to the very end?

I could not have asked for a better ending to one of my favorite series...seriously. Some things went the way I'd expected, but there were a lot of surprises, as well...and not all of them welcome. But I can honestly say that this final installment was everything I was hoping for, and then some.

Obviously, with the way Fractured ended, we knew Lela was going before the Judge again and that she wasn't going to let Malachi go without a fight. Lela's fierceness and her willingness to sacrifice herself for those she cares about are what I like best about her, and that hasn't changed. And now she's got Ana -- or rather, Ana's got her -- as they trek through the Mazakin realm to rescue both of their loves.

This novel is kind of split between the Mazakin city and the rescue attempt and then what happens after. This final book is fraught with emotional moments: tearful reunions -- and amorous ones! -- heartbreaking goodbyes, daring escapes and startling realizations. It wouldn't be any kind of finale, though, if it didn't make you feel the whole gamut of emotions. I've always felt that there was a good balance between the darkness and the light in this series, though, even if it didn't always feel like it at the time. And nowhere is this balance more evident than in the dark, chaotic atmosphere of the Shadowlands and the nearly palpable romantic tension between Malachi and Lela.

I love happy endings as much as the next girl, but I'm also okay with a realistic ending, one in which the hero doesn't get the girl or the world isn't saved. I honestly couldn't tell you which type of ending I prefer because it really depends on the story thus far. But I can tell you that it is much easier for me to let go, to say goodbye to characters if I see them on their merry way before doing so. With this series, though, I don't think either ending would have made saying goodbye any easier. (Make of that what you will.)

I will say that this conclusion to the Guards of the Shadowlands series was completely satisfying. And it made everything these characters have been through totally worth it. This series has been so intense and so emotionally draining at times, but it has also been completely lovely at times, too. I cannot fathom never having experienced this world or never having met these characters.

GIF it to me straight:

I don't want it to be over. :(

Title: Stories from the Shadowlands
Author: Sarah Fine
Series: Guards of the Shadowlands, book #3.1
Publisher: Skyscape
Publication Date: October 6, 2014
Source: gifted by author
Purchase: Amazon

Not ready to leave the Shadowlands yet? From Malachi’s earliest days in the dark city to some of the characters’ experiences after the final scenes of Chaos, this bonus volume gives readers an in-depth look at other realms within the Shadowlands and what it means to be a Guard, whether in the dark city, or the land of the living.

It includes:

--All of Malachi’s journal entries (more than 200) including 30 exclusive, never-before-published entries that reveal his perspective during the events of Fractured

--A 50-page novella from Jim’s perspective (Libertine)

--Three bonus scenes from Sanctum from Malachi and Ana’s perspective (She is the Mission, An End and a Beginning, and The Dark Tower)

--Two lengthy scenes that show some of the surviving characters post-Chaos

This collection is available in e-book format, only.

When Sarah sent this to me, there was a warning not to view the two post-Chaos scenes until I'd actually read the final book because they were very spoilerish. So, I'm warning you now. I waited and read this collection of journal entries and short stories last, and I think that's the best order, especially when it comes to the short stories themselves.

I'd read some of Malachi's journal entries here and there over the years, but never have I sat down and read them all back-to-back. It was insightful, to say the least. Also, there are entries that have never been shared before, from during the time period that Fractured covers, and those are well worth reading, especially if you know what transpires in that book. Very entertaining and very enlightening.

I knew there was so much more of Jim's story that we weren't getting in Fractured, and I'm glad that Sarah decided to write it and share it with all of us, especially since she fed us more of Henry's story in Chaos. As both were part of Lela's team of Guards in the Land of the Living, it's only fitting that both of their stories be told.

I am so thankful for this bonus content because after I finished Chaos, I was kind of a pile of goo and yet still wasn't ready for the final goodbye. It was nice to get even more from Malachi and Ana's perspectives, though I think my favorite part of this book was having all of Malachi's journal entries in one place finally. This collection is a must-have for any fan of the Guards of the Shadowlands series.

About the author:

Sarah Fine was born on the West Coast, raised in the Midwest, and is now firmly entrenched on the East Coast, where she lives with her husband and two children. When she’s not writing, she’s working as a child psychologist. She is the author of the young adult novels Sanctum, Fractured, Chaos, Of Metal and Wishes, and Scan. Her first adult fantasy novel, Marked, releases on January 1st, 2015, from 47North.

Find Sarah:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Tumblr

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Labels: afterlife, all the feels, all the swoons, amazon children's publishing, favorite authors, favorites, guards of the shadowlands, novellas, paranormal, reviews, sarah fine, souls