Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Review & Giveaway: Steam by Stacey Rourke


Title: Steam
Author: Stacey Rourke
Series: The Legends Saga #3
Version Reviewed: ARC, eBook.
*I received this book for free for review*


Synopsis:
Time passes, sins forgotten.
The bodies of the victims long since rotten.
Trapped within the essence of the Headless Horseman by the guilt of slaughtering her best friend, Ireland Crane follows the father of science fiction, HG Wells, in search of freedom from the curse that binds her. Instead, she discovers even he has a hidden agenda. A dark, relentless passion to be reunited with the woman he loves has driven him to manipulate time and a murderous Horseman.
Yet heed my warning, as the Raven flies,
The Hessian will come … and you will die.
All that prevents Ireland from abandoning Wells’ twisted pursuit, or introducing him to her sword, are the undead witches haunting her. Begging for freedom from a vile succubus, the ghoulish coven leads Ireland and her crew on a journey through Salem’s sordid past. There, they learn there is more to Nathaniel Hawthorne’s history than a scarlet letter, and the secret they’ve uncovered seeks to destroy them all.

Review:
This series is simply amazing. I honestly cannot get enough of it. Stacey Rourke has created a world unlike anything I have ever read before. I knew before I even began reading Crane that the Legends Saga was going to be something special. I knew that I would never see the original stories the same way again.

Everything that happens in the first two books has lead to the events that take place in Steam. Somehow Rourke has a way of writing these books and incorporating some of my most favorite stories and passions. In Crane, it was Sleepy Hollow and the Headless Horseman. In Raven, it was Edgar Allan Poe and The Raven. In Steam, everything came to a head with the Salem Village Witch Trials and The Scarlet Letter.

In high school, when my fellow classmates and peers were growing bored with these books and stories, I was completely enthralled with each of their tales and lore.

Steam definitely was not a disappointment for me. The characters have all been perfectly crafted and intricated into each setting with amazing skill. It's mystifying how well Stacey Rourke twists and turns all of these people and places, legends, if you will, and makes them work for her.

Aside from Salem, witches, Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter and the characters we already know and love, we finally get to learn more about H.G. Wells, who was introduced in the previous book in the series, and find out more about the role his character plays in the grand scheme of things.  We get to learn more about his past and his motivation for setting all these events into motion. I think it's amazing how this entire story and the characters are tied to the lost village of Roanoke and how Ireland and her gang have to travel there (by using some nifty new gadgets!) to take care of the newest Big Baddie.

It was heartbreaking to see how quickly and deeply someone could be scarred and affected by their idea of betrayal and ow one moment can change the world so much. Pain and betrayal played a big part in this book and, though surrounded by action, it was really sad and tugged at your heartstrings. 

The Legends Saga is definitely one that I will return to in the future and I can't wait to see what Rourke has up her sleeve for us in the next installment!

Oh, and I freakin' LOVE the very last line in this book.  It was legendary.

Rating: 5 Stars.
Favorite Character: Honestly? I love every single freakin' character in this book. Although... I do find myself drawn more to Ridley. I'd love to see more of his character. ;)



About The Author:
RONE Award Winner for Best YA Paranormal Work of 2012 for Embrace, a Gryphon Series Novel
Young Adult and Teen Reader voted Author of the Year 2012
Turning Pages Magazine Winner for Best YA book of 2013 & Best Teen Book of 2013

Stacey Rourke is the author of the award winning YA Gryphon Series, the chillingly suspenseful Legends Saga, and the romantic comedy Adapted for Film. She lives in Michigan with her husband, two beautiful daughters, and two giant dogs. She loves to travel, has an unhealthy shoe addiction, and considers herself blessed to make a career out of talking to the imaginary people that live in her head.




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9 comments:

  1. Love the cover and the story line looks great, thanks for the chance :)

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  2. Sounds like a great book! Would love to read it!

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  3. Wonderful review, Darcus! This sounds like one series I really need to get into! I love it when the last book doesn't disappoint, too, which can happen a lot. Glad you liked it! :)

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  4. Sounds like an interesting book :)

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  5. This sounds like such a great book! I'm putting it on my TBR as I love re-tellings!

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