Empire of Storms Blog Tour: Fan Cast + Giveaway

This is my favourite time of the year - the release of a new Sarah book, followed by a Maas Thirteen blog tour! We get to spread the love for Sarah and fangirl over another wonderful addition to Celaena and Aelin's journey. Of course I adored EoS beyond words, check out my review which is basically all flails.

I can't believe this is the THIRD year of the Maas Thirteen. Let's get right to it.

Synopsis: 

"The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those don't.

As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

Aelin's journey from assassin to queen has entranced millions across the globe, and this fifth installment will leave fans breathless. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down?"

Buy links: Amazon | Target | Barnes and Noble | IndieBound | Book Depository | WHSmith | Kobo | iBooks | Audible

About Sarah

Sarah J. Maas is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and A Court of Thorns and Roses series, as well as a USA Today and international bestselling author. Sarah wrote the first incarnation of the Throne of Glass series when she was just sixteen, and it has now sold in thirty-five languages. A New York native, Sarah currently lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and dog. Empire of Storms, the fifth Throne of Glass novel, will release on September 6th, 2016.

She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Hamilton College in 2008 with a degree in Creative Writing and a minor in Religious Studies.

Author Links: Website | Blog | Twitter | Pinterest | Tumblr | Instagram

Empire of Storms Fancast

You knew it was coming! I've been doing these every year since like Crown of Midnight haha. Obviously would be continuing the tradition for EOS :D

Check out my previous fan casts for Heir of Fire and Queen of Shadows  including Celaena, Chaol, Dorian, Rowan, Aedion, Manon, Nesryn, Asterin, Lorcan and Lysandra.

[Image CR: Emily Browing 1 | Emily Browning 2 | Evan Rachel Wood 1 | Evan Rachel Wood 2 | Liam Hemsworth 1 | Liam Hemsworth 2 | Theo James 1 | Theo James 2 ]

Emily Browning as Elide Lochan - I always imagined Elide to be slightly pixie looking with her small frame and delicate in appearance but really strong underneath. That's the impression I get with Emily Browning who can look sweet and innocent yet seductive. I could also imagine an Asian actress as Elide like Kim Yoo Jung but she's a bit young at 16.

Evan Rachel Wood as Ansel - described as having wine red hair and a cutting smile I could picture Evan Rachel Wood playing the assassin Ansel with her sultry eyes and mischievous smile. Evan Rachel definitely looks older than Ansel is meant to be but it is SO HARD to find young actresses that fit the bill. 

Liam Hemsworth as Gavriel - I had Alex Pettyfer as Aedion because I imagine Aedion as having a harder look about him with everything he's been through as the Wolf of the North. I can picture Liam (same age as Alex I believe) being a calmer but larger Aedion so it would be really interesting to see the two next to each other.

Theo James as Fenrys - supposedly so beautiful he's hard to look at with golden hair, tan skin and dark eyes. Theo is in my opinion one of the most gorgeous men on this planet lel so it works? Also, would like to see Liam and Theo as besties in a movie because they've each done huge YA post-apocalyptic roles.

The fan cast isn't perfect, they never are and I found Empire of Storms to be the hardest one yet. I really struggled with Ansel, Gavriel and especially Fenrys. A little bit of makeup and costume can go a long way though and it's all up to the actress/actor to embody the character!

Giveaway

Prize:

• One signed copy of Empire of Storms
• One Throne of Glass tote bag
• One set of lip balms (Dorian, Chaol, Rowan) & one Celaena soap (c/o Behind the Pages) 
• One set of Throne of Glass buttons (c/o ThroneofGlassPH) 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

OFFICIAL TOUR SCHEDULE

September 7 - Katie @ Polished Page-Turners
September 8 - Steph @ No BS Book Reviews
September 9 - Sarah @ What Sarah Read
September 12 - Kelly @ Belle of the Literati
September 13 - Louisse @ The Soul Sisters
September 14 - Gillian @ Writer of Wrongs
September 15 - Andi @ Andi’s ABCs
September 16 - Gina @ Behind the Pages
September 19 - Jaz @ Fiction in Fiction in Fiction
September 20 - Mel @ The Daily Prophecy
September 21 - Betty @ Book Rock Betty
September 22 - Rachel @ Hello Chelly
September 23 - Alexa @ Alexa Loves Books

Blog Tour: Words in Deep Blue Interview with Cath Crowley

If you're aren't already aware, Words in Deep Blue is one of my absolute favourite books I've read this year and overall! See my gushing review here.

Hence, I was mega excited when Pan Macmillan Australia asked me to be on the blog tour AND I got to interview Cath yeehaw!

 Synopsis:
"This is a love story.
It's the story of Howling Books, where readers write letters to strangers, to lovers, to poets.
It's the story of Henry Jones and Rachel Sweetie. They were best friends once, before Rachel moved to the sea.
Now, she's back, working at the bookstore, grieving for her brother Cal and looking for the future in the books people love, and the words they leave behind."

Date Published: 30th August 2016
Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia
Buy Links: Kinokuniya | Dymocks | Booktopia | A&R Bookworld 

Interview with Cath Crowley

1. Have you ever written a letter to a stranger and slipped it in a book? Or opened a book a found a message from a stranger? If so, what’s the most memorable one?

I have written a letter to a stranger and slipped it into a book. I left quite a few around Melbourne while I was writing Words in Deep Blue. I rented a post office box so I could safely leave my address. I didn’t get a single reply. But that doesn’t mean a stranger didn’t read them. Or maybe they haven’t been found yet.

The most memorable thing I’ve found in a book was a letter I wrote to my father when I was overseas. I sent it twenty years ago, and he’d kept it all this time. I found it in one of his books after he’d passed away. It made me incredibly happy and incredibly sad to find it there, tucked into a book he loved.

2. What are your thoughts on writing on the pages themselves? Are you the type of person who believes a book shouldn’t be marred by a pen?

If a book is mine, not a library book or a book that belongs to someone else, then I do write on the pages. I love seeing lines marked in book I’m reading. It’s as if someone has loved those exact words before me.

3. There’s something about handwriting a letter that adds sentimental value – do you still write letters to people?

I love receiving handwritten letters. I have a couple of close friends who still write to me that way. I can hear their voice on the page, in a way that I can’t hear in an email. I do still write letters to people, although not as much as I did. I have hundreds of letters in a box, mailed to me by friends and relatives when I was overseas. It was before email took off, and so my only contact with home was the written posted word.

4. Rachel grieves for her brother Cal and looks back on his death frequently. What advice can you provide on moving forwards, but at the same time preserving someone’s memory?

Grief is very personal, so I can’t give advice. I think it’s different for every person. After my father died, it took me a long time before I could even look at his books, because they reminded me of him. After a year, though, those things stopped being a source of new grief, and started to be a comfort. I’m not sure what changed in me, but now I love that I can hear his voice on the pages. He left himself behind in the things he loved – words, poetry and books.

5. If you could choose one thing you love most about second-hand bookstores, what would it be?

I love the history of them. Ruth Gamble, who works at Alice’s Bookshop in Rathdowne Street thinks ‘there’s an archaeology of soul in a bookshop’, and I think she’s exactly right.

About You

1. Sea or city?

Sea.

2. Your favourite second-hand bookstore?

I have two – The Known World Bookshop in Ballarat and Alice’s Bookshop in Rathdowne Street.

3. A song (or playlist) to go with Words in Deep Blue?

I have playlists for my other novels, but for Words in Deep Blue the backing track is a book list – T.S. Eliot, e.e.cummings, Charles Dickens, David Mitchell, Jennifer Egan, Junot Diaz – and all the books that were playing in my head while I wrote.

4. Coffee in bed or at a café?

In bed, definitely.

5. Short stories or novels?

I love them both, so it depends on mood. But if I have to choose, I choose novels.

Thanks for joining me on the blog Cath (:!

Thanks so much for having me, Jaz x

---

I hope you all enjoyed Cath's insightful, lovely and at times, bittersweet responses. I think the style is a reflection of Words in Deep Blue.

Haven't got your hands on it yet? GO.

Review: Empire of Storms (Throne of Glass #5) by Sarah J. Maas

Firstly, thanks to Bloosmbury Australia for this review copy <3



Date Read: August 30 - September 2 2016
Date Released: September 6 2016
Publisher: Bloomsbury Australia
Source: Review copy via publisher
Genre: Fantasy
My Rating: (not enough stars, Aelin rattled them all *sobs*)

Note: this review contains NO spoilers for Empire of Storms but may contain spoilers for earlier books in the series. If leaving a comment please DO NOT post any EoS spoilers, this ruins the experience for others and these comments will be deleted.

Synopsis:

"The long path to the throne has only just begun for Aelin Galathynius. Loyalties have been broken and bought, friends have been lost and gained, and those who possess magic find themselves at odds with those don't.
As the kingdoms of Erilea fracture around her, enemies must become allies if Aelin is to keep those she loves from falling to the dark forces poised to claim her world. With war looming on all horizons, the only chance for salvation lies in a desperate quest that may mark the end of everything Aelin holds dear.

Aelin's journey from assassin to queen has entranced millions across the globe, and this fifth installment will leave fans breathless. Will Aelin succeed in keeping her world from splintering, or will it all come crashing down?"

---

Never has a book broken me so much. Made me cry not just at one point, but made me sob incessantly at MANY parts throughout. Over the years and the amount of books I’ve read, my heart has definitely hardened so for Maas to continuously evoke such feelings and reactions from me is a feat unto itself. For Maas to continuously surprise me despite my many predictions coming to fruition? Well then.

I’m not going to waste your time telling you how much I love my Queen Aelin. Y’all have heard it a thousand and one times (and then some). BUT HOLY GODS what she did in EoS. She’s a queen in title only as we’ve seen in the past few books. She’s been an assassin most of her life, had no training to rule. And yet. AND YET. Her scheming, her planning, her sacrifices excuse me while I go cry at how she’s been forced into all of this way too young. This woman has been shoved into something she didn’t ask for, born into a bloodline and gift that isolated her, but she still manages to love so fiercely, to protect, to be loyal. How the hell can this world ask so much of her? And how does she keep giving and giving? I have no words. I just cried and cried.

This was a book about the ladies. Elide. Manon. Lysandra. So much girl power and strength. I loved all my girls so much. I AM SO PROUD OF THEM. Elide’s resolve, Manon’s loyalty, Lysandra’s willingness to do anything for her queen. Aasdlkjsfsljfsdfldshsdf *flails* each girl gets her moment in this book – many moments actually. There is this one bit where Lysandra did this thing that had me flailing all over the place and screaming and on the edge of my seat and *pants* I was just like damn you Sarah for writing such wonderful battle scenes. So the Thirteen. One particular member had me bawling my eyes out in QoS. YOU KNOW WHO. YOU KNOW WHICH SCENE. Welps it happened all over again. Yeh I’m just crying all over the shop here. All the ladies. All the love.

Okayyyy la romance. I’ll never ship it. Never can. For reasons. Buuuuuut doesn’t mean I didn’t like it. Doesn’t mean I didn’t appreciate it. I could definitely feel the love between Aelin and her significant other. Moving on because this series stopped being about the romance for me since like book 3. THERE ARE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS PEOPLE. Like a queen battling an age old evil.

The plot thickens. If you thought SJM couldn’t possibly drop anymore bombshells (I thought I was so smart because I’ve known the direction this series would head since book 1) well… I was like WTF throughout. I may have known where the general plot was heading but then all the little pieces fell into place after what felt like SJM backhanding me I was so shocked and in so much pain. THINGS are revealed in this book. Very important things. Game changers. Events and revelations that had me reeling and crying (wow no surprise there) and going nope NOPE NOPE I REFUSE MAKE IT STOP *sobs* of course I want more. I always want more. I’m a sadist when it comes to Sarah’s books.

More blood, more feels, more battle scenes. Damn does Maas know how to write a brilliant fantasy that has her readers engrossed. I’ve loved the battle scenes that Sarah’s written throughout the series. They’re always epic. Empire of Storms though – the naval battles, the armadas, the armies that are raised – blew me away with the detail and the way the action built up and went on for pages. Had me gasping and screaming at the characters. So good. So sooooooooo good. Hatchets, knives, daggers, swords, arrows, claws, Ironteeth, jaws, and magic. Lots and lots of wonderful magic dredged up and exhausted after they’ve laid ruins at their feet.

Then the ending happened and I didn’t think I could cry anymore but NOPE SJM pulled up my tears like she had Aelin pull up those flames and I. Didn’t. Stop. Crying. For ages.

Here’s a queen who would do anything for her people. For those she loves. For her kingdom. Here’s a real queen who thinks on her feet, who considers all the possibilities. Who, because she was born into it, has been preparing all her life even at the most unlikely times, making the most out of every single damn opportunity and situation she’s thrown into. Here’s the true Queen of Terrasen who ensures that her people and her kingdom will always be safe and live on regardless. Here’s Aelin Ashryver Galathynius, the heir of ash and fire, the queen of flame and shadows, the fire-breathing bitch queen, queen of the wildfire, Fireheart, who is a force to be reckoned with. Those who try to break her don’t know her true strength and what they’re dealing with. *Flails and cries and screams and hugs Aelin and everyone*