Kingdom of Ash (Throne of Glass #7) by Sarah J Maas

 

Synopsis :

Aelin Galathynius has vowed to save her people ― but at a tremendous cost. Locked within an iron coffin by the Queen of the Fae, Aelin must draw upon her fiery will as she endures months of torture. The knowledge that yielding to Maeve will doom those she loves keeps her from breaking, but her resolve is unraveling with each passing day…

With Aelin captured, friends and allies are scattered to different fates. Some bonds will grow even deeper, while others will be severed forever. As destinies weave together at last, all must fight if Erilea is to have any hope of salvation.

This is what I say :

Finally I reached the last book/title in the series.  A reading journey that took me almost 3 years starting with the first title Throne of Glass in November 2018 and ends with Kingdom of Ash in July 2021.

I didn't know what I was in for when I starting this series but I must say it's been an interesting reading journey, one which I really like.

Aelin started off as a thief and an assassin, going by the name Caleana Sardothien and by the series progress, she's Queen Aelin Galathynius.  There's more of her adventures in about six novellas about her time as a thief and assassin but I haven't read those yet.

It's not the perfect series. There are non and at times I really do not like some of the characters (even the good one and even the queen, there are moments which I think she's rather silly) but generally it was a good series.  I didn't like all the hype with the wyrdkeys but in the end, it's like misused in the hands of Aelin.

I didn't think much of Manon Blackbeak and the Thirteen at the earlier part of the series and kinda skip over them but surprisingly Manon became my favorite character towards the later part of the series and yes, the yielding of the thirteen was a very sad part in the book.

Lorcan and Elide became my favorite couple and Lysandra became my favorite hero together with King Dorian Havillaird.

Anyway, am glad I completed the series.

Goodbye Aelin and Rowan, Manon and Dorian, Lysandra and Aedion, Lorcan and Elide, Chaol and Yrene, Nesryn and Sartaq. 

The Year I Met You by Cecelia Ahern

Synopsis :

Jasmine know two things: one, she loves her vulnerable sister unconditionally, and will fight to the death to protect her from anyone who upsets her. Two, she's only ever been good at one thing – her job helping business start-ups.

So when she’s sacked and put on gardening leave, Jasmine realises that she has nothing else to fill her life. Insomnia keeps her staring out of her bedroom window, and she finds herself watching the antics of her neighbour, shock jock Matt, with more than a casual eye. Matt is also taking a forced leave of absence from work, after one of his controversial chat shows went too far…

Jasmine has every reason to dislike Matt, and the feeling appears to be mutual. But not everything is as it seems, and soon Jasmine and Matt are forced to think again… 

This is what I say :

Hello. I am back. Finally with a title that took me 1 month to read this.  I could have read in within a week but it took me 1 month as I wasn't as committed to reading as previously.  I am however, slowing picking up my pace.

The Year I Met You is a rather quaint title.  I quite expect that from Cecelia Ahern as she does write stories that are no the run of mill but in her own way.  If you are expecting this to be a love story between Jasmine and Matt, you will be quite disappointed.  However, there is a connection between Jasmine and Matt that's rather endearing and perhaps in another time and at another place and in the hands of another author, the story could have run differently.

The story span over four seasons starting with Winter and ends with Fall and the changes the Jasmine and Matt faces and encounter from being neighborhood strangers to rather neighborly friends.

If you are expecting plots, there's really none.  It's just a view of the lives of two rather lost individuals dealing with something they have never dealt with in their lives and learning about themselves and about each other along the way.

I didn't like it while reading it but only like it after I read it.