#Review - Mirrorverse: Pure of Heart by Delilah S. Dawson #YA #Fantasy

Series: Unknown
Format: Hardcover, 304 pages
Release Date: July 4, 2023
Publisher: Disney Press
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Fantasy / Epic

Step into the Disney Mirrorverse, a brand-new realm full of endless adventure, where mirrored reflections of beloved Disney and Pixar characters are amplified and transformed, becoming battle-ready Guardians that must unite to defeat a powerful evil that threatens their home worlds and beyond.

Step into the Disney Mirrorverse, a brand-new realm full of endless adventure, where mirrored reflections of beloved Disney and Pixar characters are amplified and transformed, becoming battle-ready Guardians that must unite to defeat a powerful evil that threatens their home worlds and beyond.

Step into the Disney Mirrorverse, a brand-new realm full of endless adventure, where mirrored reflections of beloved Disney and Pixar characters are amplified and transformed, becoming battle-ready Guardians that must unite to defeat a powerful evil that threatens their home worlds and beyond. Set in a fantasy land that is familiar but slightly changed, the story begins as Snow White helps a young deer in the forest. This isn’t the Snow White that Disney fans know: she has been recently transformed by the creation of the Disney Mirrorverse and given magical powers that she does not yet know how to wield. 

Despite her new abilities and the strange things happening in her world, Snow White, or “Snow” as her friends often call her, has been carrying on as normal…until now. As she returns to her cottage, Snow spots her seven (Dwarves) friends with dark, angry expressions, and glowing white eyes. They attack her, claiming they need to capture “the heart of Snow White.” Snow desperately tries to reason with her friends, but they refuse to listen to her, and she ultimately has to use the strange magic she has recently acquired to fend them off. Snow is horrified when it seems that she has accidentally killed her friends in her attempt to protect herself. 

It is only when a strange talking creature, who she learns to be Sorcerer Mickey, the ruler of the Disney Mirrorverse, arrives and explains that the creatures she defeated were not her friends. They were a group of Fractured: evil copies created by Dark Magic. Snow believes that the evil Queen has taken her friends, and it is up to Snow to retrieve them and the Fractured Mirror, the source of the Mirrorverse’s power, before it can be used to destroy Snow’s home world forever. But Snow doesn’t need to face the Queen alone. Mickey assigns her a team of Guardians, powerful beings from many different worlds who have committed to thwarting the Fractured and protecting the Mirrorverse from evil. 

Snow meets Tiana (Princess and the Frog)—an expert potion-maker—Rapunzel (and Pascal)—a fighter who knows how to wield a frying pan—Lilo’s companion Stitch—a chaotic blue alien who can change forms— Sulley from Monsters, Inc— a monster with a big heart—and Hades—the lord of the underworld, who has offered to join the mission to see what this whole “Guardian gig” is about. This unlikely crew ventures into Snow’s world, where they find growing Fractured, a determined huntsman, and a newly poisoned dark forest. On the way to the palace, each character faces a challenge seemingly created just for them.

This story is a bit on the young side for my tastes. The intended audience is 7th to 12th graders. The way this story ends, it would not surprise me if Dawson or another author picks up the series from here. 

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#Tuesday Review - Strike by Delilah S. Dawson (Young Adult, Science Fiction)

Series: Hit # 2
Format: E-Galley, 480 pages
Release Date: April 12, 2016
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Source: Publisher
Genre: YA, Science Fiction

The hit list was just the beginning.

Time to strike back.

After faking her own death to escape her term as an indentured assassin for Valor Savings Bank, Patsy is on the run with her boyfriend, Wyatt. All she wants to do is go home, but that’s never going to happen—not as long as Valor’s out to get her and the people she loves.

Left with no good choices, Patsy’s only option is to meet with a mysterious group that calls itself the Citizens for Freedom.

Led by the charismatic Leon Crane, the CFF seem like just what Patsy has been looking for. Leon promises that if she joins, she’ll finally get revenge on Valor for everything they’ve done to her—and for everything they’ve made her do. 

But Patsy knows the CFF has a few secrets of their own. One thing is certain: they’ll do absolutely anything to complete their mission, no matter who’s standing in their way. Even if it’s Patsy herself.

Strike is the second installment in author Delilah S. Dawson's Hit series. Strike picks up right where Hit left off.  Having fulfilled her obligation by eliminating the TEN people on her kill list in Five days, and not knowing if her mother Karen is alive or dead,  17-year old Patsy Klein, her boyfriend Wyatt, and her  dog Matty, have chosen to go on the lam. 

Patsy has faked her own death to avoid continuing as one of Valor Savings Banks indentured assassins. Now, she and Wyatt seek a group of people calling themselves Citizens For Freedom. CFF promises that they are all in when it comes to fighting back against Valor, as well as it's rival Second Union which has sent its own agent provocateurs to kill Patsy and other Valor mercenaries. Valor's machinations have quickly spread across the country, and they are just waiting for the right moment to swoop in and completely take over the entire country and create more chaos. 

Right from the beginning of Strike, things are tense to the point where you haven't a clue what is going to happen next. Patsy and Wyatt meet soon to be friends/allies Chance, Gabriela, Kevin, Bea, and Rex. They find themselves going on dangerous missions to strike back against Valor. Missions that to the naked eye make absolutely no sense whatsoever. Patsy isn't the shy sort, so she naturally finds herself going toe to toe with Leon's decisions and missions. 

CFF wants Patsy's group to blow shit up and kill anyone who stands in their way. But, Patsy isn't necessarily a full blown non-feeling killer. She has emotions. She has nightmares. She has panic attacks. She's OK with shooting first and asking questions later when anyone tries to get in her way, or hurt her friends, or her dog. She is also OK with using spray paint to send a message to those who are unaware of what Valor is up to hoping that the tide will turn in their favor.

Can Patsy and Wyatt and their allies trust the leader of CFF Leon Crane? Or, is Leon just another bloviating malcontent who speaks out of both sides of his mouth while planning something that will end up costing Patsy and others their lives? Strike ups the ante to the extreme limits over Hit. Patsy, who thought she was done killing innocents, finds herself between a rock (CFF) and a hard place (Valor). 

Games are played. Secrets are revealed. Shocking facts are brought to the light of day, and Patsy ends up with a whole new outlook on Valor and her own family ties to the bank. She also has a new enemy just waiting over the horizon to show up in all his glory. I said after reading Hit that this book isn't that far fetched. Especially after what happened during the early 21st century with banks lending money like it was water, and then going belly up without consequences. 

Those with bad credit were given home loans, credit cards, and school loans they had no intention of ever paying back. The most frightening aspect of this series so far is the truth that most consumers have no idea what they are signing when they agree to a home loan, or credit card, or school loan. It is a fact that most people do not read the fine print. They are too busy with social networking, or texting, or whining about their feelings while demanding free shit. They have no clue what is really in their phone bills, or credit card statements, or even cable bills. If they did, there might be a consumer revolution that is desperately necessary.

Can you imagine a country that has lent the US trillions of dollars like China, showing up and demanding their money back? Utter and total chaos. Dawson sends a powerful message that all readers should take heed. Perhaps when and if they do read this book and her message, we can finally moved towards more consumer protections.

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#Monday Review - Wicked Ever After (Blud #4) by Delilah S. Dawson (Steampunk, Fantasy)

Series: Blud # 4
Format: Kindle, 177 pages
Release Date: October 5, 2015
Publisher: Pocket Star
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Genre: Steampunk, Fantasy

Delilah S. Dawson’s award-winning Blud series comes full circle as Tish and Criminy, stars of Wicked as They Come, embark on a sexy and harrowing final adventure in a world RT Book Reviews called “delightfully edgy with hidden charms.”

Ever since landing in the magical world of Sang and falling in love with dashing ringmaster Criminy Stain, Tish has been waiting for the axe to fall. Until her dying grandmother’s last breath on Earth, Tish can’t bring herself to give up her all-too human frailty and commit to life on Sang as a youthful, long-lived Bludman like her handsome husband. But when a peculiar twist of fate delivers Tish’s grandmother to Sang, an unexpected chain of events forces Tish and Criminy to embark on one last wild adventure. From old friends to new and into the lair of terrifying enemies, the couple’s love and longevity will be pushed to the brink by each harrowing encounter. Is blud thicker than blood, and can Tish and Crim find their wicked ever after? 

Wicked Ever After is the fourth and final installment in the Blud series by author Delilah S. Dawson. In the world of Sang, half the population is human (aka Pinkies), while the other half are Bludmen/women. A bludman/woman in Sang is like a vampire in our own world. Only, bludman aren’t dead, they don’t feel cold, and they are basically a different race that lives on blud (“blood”) instead of food. There are also some terrifying animals that roam Sang like bludbunnies (no laughing matter!) who feast on Pinkies blood. Wicked Ever After comes full circle as Criminy Stain and his wife Tish Everett-Stain make their return engagements. It is also the last chance, perhaps, to see your other favorite characters as they exit stage left.

Tish Everett-Stain, a hospice nurse in our world, has been going back and forth between Earth and Sang to ensure her grandmother gets the best care she needs before she passes on. Time moves differently on Earth. It has been only a few weeks on Earth, verses 6 years in Sang. Tish has always hesitated in being Bluded by Criminy for fear that she can never return home again once she's no longer human. But, what if the reason for Tish going back and forth between worlds makes her own choice to accept a second chance at life? What if being Bluded is no longer a choice to be made by Tish, but by someone else and deemed an imperative by Criminy so that she survives?  

Tish has made a name for herself as Letitia Stain in Sang, but she's also faced difficult odds. She's still dealing with the witch Hepzibah's curse on her that takes away decades of her life that makes her look 60, instead of 32. She's found herself with powers as a glancer, or I dare say, a seer. Tish can see into someone's past and future with just one touch. But, Tish has hung onto her humanity for six long years knowing that once it's gone, it's gone forever. On top of everything else she has to worry about, Tish's grandmother becomes an entirely different person named Ruby after coming to Sang and being turned into a bludwoman. The she completely goes off the reservation which gives Tish a whole lot of hurt feelings.

Even though she's seen her own future as being a bludwoman in previous installments, she's always hesitated because of her grandmother. So, let's just say it and get it over. I am damn glad that Tish was finally able to accept that being a bludwoman was her fated course of action. She is an entirely different character as a bludwoman, and that is fine with me. Except for the whole family angst and anger issues on Tish's part, this story is exactly what it needed to be. Dawson listened to her readers, and gave them one final novel featuring Criminy, the rake, the strangely creepy Bludman, who loves Tish with all his Blud. One last novel with all the character that readers of this series either love, or hate, or have come into our lives and left even quicker.

I have, in fact, read ever single book, and novella in this series. I am happy that Dawson was able to wrap up this series in a rather unique, surprising, and shocking way instead of letting readers guess as to what happens to Tish and Criminy. Yeah, you're not getting any spoilers from me!  Series wrapped up. The End. Good-bye. Fare thee well. Buona Notte! 

**I received this book for free from (Publisher) via (NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**

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