The Bad Ones Review

Author: Stylo Fantome

Genre: Contemporary, Dark Romance, Thriller

Rating: 5 stars

This is a beautiful bloody masterpiece. 

The Bad Ones is not a novel for the weak hearted, or the strong hearted or basically anyone with a heart. There were moments where I couldn't physically finish this novel. But I did. And I am weirdly happy I did. In some ways, It was almost too easy to read... And that is what scared me. Usually, when beginning a novel, my mind is distracted and trails a bit. However, From the opening words "Ms. Travers", I found my new favourite novel of 2016. 

What a beautiful darkness we are. 

The Bad Ones is a story about Constantine Matthews and Dulcie Travers who find each other in the last years of high school. They both live in the small town of Fuller, but live opposite lives. Constantine is the mayors' son, the all star quarterback and most popular guy at school. On the other spectrum, Dulcie is a shy, withdrawn girl from the trailer park. She spends days drawing in her sketchbook and ignoring the short stick she drew in life. As simple as it sounds, both characters see the darkness within each other. This beautiful darkness is what threads their lives together. 

She wanted his darkness to swallow her whole. She wanted to be a part of it. She wanted to give her own darkness back to him. 

I was expecting dark N.A. or dark romance, but The Bad Ones is just DARK. It is a novel about the different shades of black. It is about finding your true, primal, raw self. I felt like I was walking through someones darkest thoughts. And even though there were moments where I was shocked, the story enthralled me. It captured my attention. I honestly don't know why I love dark novels so much, maybe its the fact that I believe its the closest thing we will get to the truth or reality. 

“All I've ever wanted was to be myself, all the time,” her voice was shaky. “And for you to love me.” 

The plot is out of this world. It felt like there were ten different mini stories occurring under the main one. From the cover photo, I can reveal that The Bad Ones is actually bloody, don't be fooled or naive going into this. (Small note about the cover art : in one picture, it captures what the story is about. Constantine. Dulcie. Blood.) I loved how the plot felt dynamic and flowing rather than static. The time line is spread out, which allows for character development and building up the tension all leading to the final BOOM. 

She wanted to go, wanted to corner him somewhere, wanted to kick and scratch and bite until he recognized her for what she really was – his reflection. 

Speaking of character development. For the first time in a long time, I was more interested in the heroine than the hero. Don't get me wrong Constantine is bad bad bad. He is a dark cloud that surrounds the town. He is more of an anti-hero. He has soo many faces; I don't I even think got to know the real him. It was disconcerting to have gone through the whole novel and still feel so blinded by a character...

I orchestrated it. Con is just the star of the show – I'm the producer.

...But he has nothing on Dulcie; she is such a kick ass raw character. Dulcie is a raw beating soul out in the open. She knew who she is, what she is meant to be in her world and is unashamedly herself. Her strength and intelligence inspired me. There were moments where I was actually rooting for her, which is fucked up when you think about the context ( but you actually have to read the novel to understand that). 

“Of course you aren't scared of me. I'm not the wolf. You are.” 

Stylo Fantome delivered a phenomenon piece of writing. I have never doubted her talents. Since reading The Kane Trilogy, I knew I would love anything she published. The Bad Ones attests to this. 

“Do not paint me out to be the monster in this story. Your claws are just as bloody as mine.”

Find this novel on Amazon and Goodreads.

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Candidate Review

Author:Rachel E. Carter

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Epic Fantasy

Rating: Should-be-10 Stars

“I told you not to trust a wolf. Because it would only ever want to break you… Haven’t you figured it out yet? I’m the wolf, Ryiah.”

Candidate by Rachel E. Carter was a whirlwind of a read. Because of this, I am staring at this white empty screen attempting to put my thoughts into words in order to adequately show the novels' worth. Candidate was by far the best novel in The Black Mage series and it pushed me to my limits. There is no holding back and because of that, my heart might be eternally bruised due to it. 

“And they told me to keep watch over a ‘lady.’” I couldn’t help but smirk. A lady. I lunged and defeated her guard. I was a war mage.

The first two novels in this series were tamer in the sense of brutality. What Candidate does is strip the smoke screen of deception and throw us into the realities of the Kingdom. No one is more shocked than Ryiah about the implications and consequences of these lies.   Ryiah fights  between doing what is right, with the chance of losing everything, or living in ignorance, and still, losing everything. 

“Remind me to never challenge you to a duel. You are a bloodthirsty savage.”

Ryiah is now a second rank Combat Mage and is betrothed to the non-heir Darren. Everything seems to be on track. However, Ryiah struggles with her impending title and court life and decides to go off to Ferren's Keep. There, she finds reprieve from court politics and focuses on just being Ryiah the combat Mage. She continues to prove herself and her dedication to the cause to those apprehensive about her. But Ryiah can not have the best of both worlds; being a solider and royalty at the same time. At the end of the day, she has to decide which one is more important to her. 

“That’s the thing about enemies. You never know who they could end up being.”

As the future war with Caltoth approaches, sides must be chosen. This decision opens the reader to the greyness of the kingdom and past actions that caused these chain of events.  Friends, families and relationships are tested; the question is whether they will hold up to the strain. It is almost impossible to distinguish between good and evil. Ultimately, who should Ryiah trust? 

“The truth is told in anger, not regret, love.”

Ryiah really grew through these novels; yes she still made mistakes, but she was more conscious of her actions. She transforms into an empowered, self-confident (most times), passionate individual. I wonder if she was always destined to be a princess; to implement change. Darren still remains swoon-worthy and charismatic. There is just something about him that attracts you in like a moth to a flame. Their chemistry is off the charts and I can't wait to see where their relationship takes them. The characters in Candidate were dark, gritty, but brutally honest and raw. They all evolved and played an instrumental part to the ending. 

“You smell like home.” I felt him crack a smile. “Would you believe me if I told you the same?”

The Plot.... I honestly don't know what to say. I am literally stumped. It takes a lot to surprise me, Candidate surprised the hell out of me. One thing is for certain, Rachel created this novel with such  sophistication and maturity. The plot was so meticulous and complex that you didn't really know what is going on until it happened. There were moments where I would could not believe what I was reading. I want to hug this novel but also want to strangle it. I want to comfort Candidate and I also want to it comfort me and tell me everything will be okay.

How many times can a person shatter? At least one more.

I am really proud of Rachel's work and passion in Candidate. I will be riding shot gun for the final novel, The Last Stand. I hope Ryiah is ready! If she wants to win, she has to stop being the sheep and become the wolf. 

Flames erupted in a tempest of red. Against the bright summer sun it seared. Red like blood. Red like rage. Red like revenge.

Find this novel on Amazon and Goodreads.

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Introduction

There is this vision, a vision of a small girl laying flat on the floor with a book in her arms. The name of the novel isn't apparent, but you can just tell that the girl is enamoured by it. Her eyes are dilated, moving back and forth, absorbing everything as if this moment wouldn't last. She knew when she shut the novel, she would have to say goodbye to a bunch of friends she had got to know in such a short time.  Anyone passing her in that moment would know she was happily lost to the world around her. Laying in that unremarkable room, her passion for stories shone. The little girl knew from then on, she would give a little piece of heart to every story she loved. Until one day she would grow up, walk into a library and she would see the books as not inanimate objects, but as her friends, her family, her future, her passion, her struggle, a reflection of herself.... 

This was my vision, my memory, of my first time falling in love with a book. It has become a recurring dream and nightmare. The memory compounds the moment where my life altered. As sappy and cliche as that sounds, its the truth. Because of novels and stories, I see and comprehend the world so differently; I am more open-minded, pensive, and worldly. Now sometimes, the dream shifts and I see myself and where I would be if it weren't for novels, and the picture isn't pretty. This might seem as a harsh judgement and can hear the jury shouting : Diana! Just because people don't enjoy reading doesn't mean they will turn out HORRIBLE. And they are right! Of course they are! However, from my point of view, my life wouldn't have been as unfulfilling thus far. I grew up in Kenya and even with the country thriving, education and learning are seen as a privilege. I have grown knowing the importance of knowledge and the gift I was given; being able to read and write. We all have our vices and novels, the romantic idea of escaping into a world completely different than my own, is mine. 

Despite this, I have always been so apprehensive about sharing my views and thoughts on novels, with the fear that I will be criticised back. There is always someone who knows more , does more, is better. That doesn't give you the excuse not to try. This is me trying. This is me broadcasting my thoughts, emotions, knowledge on issues that are important me. 

I am Diana, and if you want to be part of my journey, there is an abundance of space and acceptance. You have probably realised that I love books (If it hasn't clear thus far, either I am doing something wrong or its you ;) ). So many of them, I literally cant even count. It is one the hobbies that will never cease to lift my spirits, make me think, make me feel. My only hope is to spread my passion and aspirations so that the rest of the world can feel this BLISS that comes from them. 

With that said....

Thanks guys! Let this begin!