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Showing posts with label Kiki Hamilton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kiki Hamilton. Show all posts

Thursday, 17 January 2013

A Review for The Torn Wing (The Faerie Ring #2) by Kiki Hamilton

The Torn Wing (The Faerie Ring, #2)
Posted by Donna
Release Date: October 2nd, 2012
Finished Date: January 11th, 2013
Publishers: Fair Wind Publishing
Source: Bought
Format: Kindle
Pages: 318
Buy: Amazon UK / Amazon US / The Book Depo

London 1872 - 

A bloody escape, a deadly threat, a shocking revelation...

As an orphan who stole the Queen's ring - only to find the ring was a reservoir that held a truce between the world of Faerie and the British Court - Tiki’s greatest fear suddenly becomes all too real: the fey have returned to London seeking revenge. As war escalates in the Otherworld, Queen Victoria’s youngest son, Prince Leopold, is attacked. In order to protect her family and those she loves, Tiki needs to know the meaning of an fáinne sí, the birthmark that winds around her wrist. But will she be brave enough to face the truth?

The Review: 4.5 Stars

"What's going to happen?" She whispered. "Everything will change," Rieker said softly, his smoky eyes intent upon hers, "but our love will remain the same."

I loved it - just loved it! I honestly don't know why I put off reading this  for so long. It was released back in October but I guess time just ran away with me but finally, I did and I'm so pleased I did because it was fantastic.

In The Torn Wing we see Tiki who is hoping to try and forget all about the faerie world and the danger it brings to London but of course, things aren't as simple as that. Larkin is still claiming that Tiki needs to find out her true heritage because Tiki's place in the war is more important than she knows. Can Tiki really have a more important role to play and more importantly, is she brave enough to uncover the truth?

Kiki Hamilton did it! The Torn Wing is just as enchanting and magical as The Faerie Ring and anyone who is already invested in this series will truly appreciate Kiki's beautiful writing and gift for capturing every little detail that makes this series so believable. It's so easy to imagine myself walking the streets of London in 1872. It's easy to imagine the hardships of being poor in those times and it's also easy to imagine having enough money to survive. What I love it that we see two sides to these time, the rich and poor and we also see the Queen of England in this time. Like I said before, it's a very believable world that Kiki has created and honestly, I don't think many authors could pull it off - but Kiki does it so well.

Tiki really goes through a self-discovery journey in this book, mainly because she has to find out who she really is and of course, we as readers want to know that too. I really enjoy Tiki as a female lead, but what I enjoyed the most of this time around was how quickly she managed to adjust her feelings. She really grows and comes into a new person but always manages to remain herself. It's a fantastic discovery to watch and I know great things will come from her in the next story.

What I also loved was the romance - it's a slow burning one that constantly keeps you guessing. I wasn't to sure what to expect this time around, but there's still a bit of uncertainty in the air to start with. I wasn't all hearts and flowers which makes it all the more real. I love Rieker and Tiki together - they bring out the best in each other and you can see how they have each came alive with the other in they're lives. I am hoping that there won't be a love triangle with Dain - however, that's all I'm going to say on that because I don't want to spoil it for you. But Rieker and Tiki together are just perfect, they're moment's together are just perfect.

Rieker threaded her hair behind her ears with his other hands, his fingers lingering against her cheek. "We're different Tiki," he said softly. "We're caught between two worlds and honestly, I don't know which one we belong in. But I do know this - I don't want to be either place without you." He looked deep into her eyes. "I believe we found each other because we're meant to be together."

Overall, The Torn Wing provided me with everything I wanted from this sequel - excitement, suspense, danger, love and most of all, hope. A fantastic sequel from a fantastic author and I can't wait for more in The Seven Year King. 

Sunday, 18 December 2011

UK Blog Tour for The Faerie Ring by Kiki Hamilton including UK/IRE/EU Swag Giveaway


How I Christmas
by Kiki Hamilton 

Hi there! Thanks so much for featuring me on your blog!

I LOVE Christmas! I love the lights and the decorations, the music , Santa and the feeling of magic in the air.  In my family we put the Christmas tree up the weekend after Thanksgiving. (As I’m writing this it’s the day after Thanksgiving and I put our outdoor lights up tonight and will start on the Christmas tree tomorrow-yay!)

On the first of December we have a wooden Advent calendar that I put up.  It’s about three feet tall and each day has a little door that you can open to find the treat inside.  It’s a fun way to count down the days to Christmas.

I live in Washington State, so sometimes we’ll get snow on Christmas day, which is perfect, but most years it’s just rainy and wet. Still, the blustery cold weather seems to fit the time of year.

On Christmas Eve we go to my Mom’s house and have dinner. The kids get to open one or two presents and then we do a white elephant gift exchange which is always quite funny.  Then, we play charades, which is hilarious!

Christmas day starts early as we are all up to see what Santa has brought.  In the past we’ve rotated houses with members of my family but this year it will be at my house, which I always love. The smell of turkey roasting in the oven makes the house smell so yummy and we always play lots of games:  Scrabble, Mah Johnng, cards or games on the Wii, so young and old can play. And of course, there’s football on TV.

It is a wonderful time of year to celebrate all the good things in our lives and I always look forward to the Christmas season. I hope yours is especially wonderful this year!

xo
Kiki
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Kiki HamiltonKiki Hamilton believes in faeries. And magic. Thought she has a BA in business administration from Washington State University and has run a business with her husband for many years, as well as worked in a variety of management positions for other companies, her first love is writing young-adult stories of fantasy and adventure. Kiki lives near Seattle, Washington where it only rains part of the time. She is a member of Class of 2k11 and The Elevensies, and also blogs at The Enchanted Inkpot. Visit Kiki's website at www.kikihmilton.com.
 For information about Tiki and the Faerie Ring, visit www.thefaeriering.com.
The Faerie Ring on Goodreads. 
Buy The Faerie Ring.


Swag Giveaway!
Kiki was kind enough to send us some awesome swag to giveaway on the blog to celebrate her UK tour. So have a look at this cool swag....
First Winner: Postcard, badge and two bookmarks (one signed)
Second Winner: Two bookmarks (one signed)
UK/IRE/EU only. 
Ends December 31st, 2011. Please fill out all the details on the form and please remember to leave a comment. If you do not leave a comment...your entry is void!
Good Luck!
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A huge thank you to Kiki for joining us today and don't forget to check out her book The Faerie Ring. If you missed my review for it here is it! 


Don't forget to check out Kiki's next stop on Reading Little Bit of Everything

Happy Reading and Happy Holidays!!! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Saturday, 17 December 2011

A Review for The Faerie Ring (The Faerie Ring #1) by Kiki Hamilton

Posted by Donna 
Published Date: September 27th, 2011
Finished Date:
Publishers: Tor Teen
Source: From Author for Review
Format: Hardcover
Pages: 352
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The Blurb from Goodreads: The year is 1871, and Tiki has been making a home for herself and her family of orphans in a deserted hideaway adjoining Charing Cross Station in central London. Their only means of survival is by picking pockets. One December night, Tiki steals a ring, and sets off a chain of events that could lead to all-out war with the Fey. For the ring belongs to Queen Victoria, and it binds the rulers of England and the realm of Faerie to peace. With the ring missing, a rebel group of faeries hopes to break the treaty with dark magic and blood—Tiki’s blood.
Unbeknownst to Tiki, she is being watched—and protected—by Rieker, a fellow thief who suspects she is involved in the disappearance of the ring. Rieker has secrets of his own, and Tiki is not all that she appears to be. Her very existence haunts Prince Leopold, the Queen’s son, who is driven to know more about the mysterious mark that encircles her wrist.
The Review: 4.5 out of 5: The Faerie Ring is an enchanting and heart-warming story that is beautifully written and will leave readers completely mesmerized by Kiki Hamilton’s debut novel.

This story follows a 16 year old girl named Tiki who lives in an abandoned shop with her four friends, who she considers her family because they are all orphans. Trying to survive is the key thing for them and the only way they can survive is by pick pocking from the rich people in the city of London. One night whilst looking for food to take home, Tiki comes across an opportunity to steal a beautiful ring. Does she steal it? Yes she does but she quickly realises that the ring actually belongs to the Queen of England. Tiki has no other choice but to return the ring but not before she can collect the reward to make a better life for her and family. As she goes on a journey to return the ring to it’s right full owner and trying to collect the reward, Tiki is thrown into a dangerous world that involves her and the Fae….opening up secrets that she never ever believed were real.

I have to admit I’m not a fan of historical fiction and I haven’t read many books that specialise in this genre because I’m not really interested in history, however when I heard about The Faerie Ring; A Fae story set in London, I knew I had to read it! And boy am I glad I read it because it was such a magical journey.

Kiki Hamilton did a fantastic job with this novel! It’s captivating and engrossing and once I got past the first 50 pages which I did find a little slow, I couldn’t put it down. It’s one of them novels that slowly creeps up on you and makes its way into your heart. I honestly wasn’t prepared to enjoy it as much as I did and now I’m dying to continue Tiki’s story with the next book.

Tiki is a great character. You instantly like her as you get to know her and feel bad for her situation. Here is a child trying to support and feed other children out of the kindness of her heart. There is nothing Tiki wouldn’t do to protect these children and she goes to the end of the earth to do it. I just loved how genuine, kind and strong she is. With all the madness of stealing the ring, Tiki doesn’t realise she has someone protecting her; Rieker. A fellow pick pocket who she believes wants to claim the ring for him self but Rieker is genuinely trying to help her.

You all know I’m a romance fan and any book without romance for me, isn’t good so even though this book only touches on romance, I still really enjoyed it. The way Tiki and Rieker’s relationship develops literally left me bundle of nerves because their scenes together were full of suspense. I really enjoyed watching them fall in love and it really touched my heart. Mainly because Rieker has secrets and these secrets were seriously SHOCKING! I loved the twist that Kiki put on him as a character because it was one I wasn’t expecting. It’s safe to say I totally feel for him! ;)

All the secondary characters were second to none. I loved how we got to see alterative views from Tiki and the Princes which made me enjoy the story that much more and of course, the Fae. The Fae were awesome and totally different from what I’ve previously read so I’m more than eager and curious to read more!

Overall, The Faerie Ring is a must read! Even if you not a fan of historical fiction like I was, I guarantee this novel will leave you dying to read more and I am already eagerly awaiting the release for The Torn Wing in 2012.

A huge thank you to Kiki Hamilton for providing me with a review copy of this book.
 
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