Hey lovelies! Today, we kick off the first week of the Read-along for The Winner's Crime! YAY! (If you have no idea what I'm talking about, check out this post for all the deets and a super epic giveaway, which is also posted at the bottom of this post too!) I'll be discussing the ONLY chapters 1-10 of The Winner's Crime, and my thoughts. If you haven't started reading with us yet, don't worry! There's still plenty of time to catch up, so pick up your copy of The Winner's Crime and start devouring the next installment of Kestrel and Arin's story!
Another WARNING because I don't want to spoil anything for anyone..... If you have NOT read THE WINNER'S CURSE, then read NO further!!
Favorite Quote from Chapters 1-10:
"But he said nothing after that, only her name, as if her name were not a name but a question. Or perhaps that wasn't how he had said it, and she was wrong, and she'd heard a question simply because the sound of him speaking her name made her wish that she were his answer"
My Thoughts on Chapters 1-10:
Oh, my sweet The Winner's Crime (part one),
The wait for you to release was one of the worst tortures I've ever been through. It was absolutely agonizing, as I'm sure it was for most. Full disclosure that this is my second time reading you, so my heart is still a mess, but I'm loving rereading and noticing things I didn't the first go around. Originally, I loved your first book, The Winner's Curse, about as much as I could possibly love a book, but after reading you? I figured out that it actually is possible for me to love a book WAY more.
In your first ten chapters, we pretty much pick up where we left off in book one. Kestrel is now engaged to the Emperor's son, the crowned prince of Valoria, Verex. Parties after parties after parties. That is Kestrel's life now, but every chance she gets, she is busy trying to figure out a way to keep the engagement secret from Arin (because it will break his heart....*cue the awes*) , but also how to get out of the mess she created without making an even bigger one. Arin isn't faring very well either in his new position as Herran's governor. Both of our beloved characters dwell on the other, even though they don't want to. They just can't help themselves despite how much they try to distract their minds. But the whole time I was begging for them to finally meet again. Luckily, I got my wish when after saying he wouldn't come to the ball, Arin makes a last minute decision and changes his mind, and then we are treated to one heck of a scene on a balcony and I'm just going to sit here for the rest of the night, sighing over that reunion......
Some other parts I really liked.... the sugar fork, (Is this a thing that exists in real life? Because if so, I want one asap!), Kestrel's visits with Jess, and trying to figure out just how much I should or shouldn't like Verex. Their games together were quite entertaining.
I shall try to keep my fingers from turning anymore pages of you until we get closer to next Tuesday!
Still dreamily *le sighing*,
Becca
ABOUT THE BOOKS
As a general's daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin's eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him'with unexpected consequences. It's not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.
Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner's Curse is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.
Book two of the dazzling Winner's Trilogy is a fight to the death as Kestrel risks betrayal of country for love.
The engagement of Lady Kestrel to Valoria’s crown prince means one celebration after another. But to Kestrel it means living in a cage of her own making. As the wedding approaches, she aches to tell Arin the truth about her engagement…if she could only trust him. Yet can she even trust herself? For—unknown to Arin—Kestrel is becoming a skilled practitioner of deceit: an anonymous spy passing information to Herran, and close to uncovering a shocking secret.
As Arin enlists dangerous allies in the struggle to keep his country’s freedom, he can’t fight the suspicion that Kestrel knows more than she shows. In the end, it might not be a dagger in the dark that cuts him open, but the truth. And when that happens, Kestrel and Arin learn just how much their crimes will cost them.
The Winner's Curse Read-Along
February 3rd - Chapters 1 - 10
February 10th - Chapters 11 - 20
February 17th - Chapters 21 - 30
February 24th - Chapters 31 - 42
The Winner's Crime Read-Along
March 10th - Chapters 1 - 10
March 17th - Chapters 11 - 20
March 24th - Chapters 21 - 34
March 31st - Chapters 34 - 46
Make sure to follow the HASHTAG #TheWinnersTrilogy on twitter!
Check out the other participating bloggers posts...
Eeek!! Your favorite quote is my favorite too. THAT SCENE!!!! *sigh* I need to go read it again now...
ReplyDeleteOmg, that buildup to the balcony scene was just so intense. And the actual scene itself?! DIES!! ARIN!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI loved the last two or three paragraphs of page 51 where Arin was thinking on his memories of Kestrel. *sighs* Marie is an amazing writer!
ReplyDelete