I saw this meme on It’s All About Booksand thought, I like this!! So, I decided to do it once a month also. Many thanks to Yvonne for initially posting this!!
This post is what it says: Places I travel to in books each month. Books are lovely and take you to places you would never get to. That includes places of fantasy too!!
Bon Voyage!!
Please let me know if you have read these books or traveled to these areas.
Earth 2
Government, Settlement
United States
New York (Crescent Cove), Nevada (Las Vegas)
Maryland (Pikesville)
California (Los Angeles)
Washington (Seattle)
New York (Seneca Springs)
Colorado (Longmont)
Kansas (Liverly)
Indiana (English), California (San Fransisco), Virginia (Perryville), Arizona (Tombstone), New York (New York City)
North Carolina (Neapolis)
New York (Manhattan), California (Newport Beach, Balboa Island, Newport, Menlo Park, Santa Barbara, Montecito, Goleta)
Louisiana (Unknown city), Rhode Island (Emerald Bay)
Unknown State (Unknown City)
New York (New York City, New Rochelle)
Wyoming (Wallace), Iowa (Fort Madison)
West Virginia (Huntington), Ohio (Crown City)
Pennsylvania
California (Mojave Desert, Aspen Flats, Pasatiempo, Santa Cruz, Watsonville, Aptos, Pajaro Dunes)
2023 Monthly Themes (Continue a series or reread an author already read this year): Claim My Baby—Finished 3-31-23
Romanceopoly 2023! (Read a book where the main character works at or owns a bar)-About Love—Finished 4-1-23
Buzzword Reading Challenge 2023 (words in the title related to emotions, from happy to sad, smile to frown, pride to rage)—P.S. I Hate You—Finished 4-3-23
2023 Sami Parker Reads Title Challenge (a book with one of these words in the title: Sunny, Bright, Cloud or Rain): Brightest Shadow—Finished 4-6-2023
Cover Scavenger Hunt 2023 (a flower): A Spirited Manor—Finished 4-7-2023
The StoryGraph’s OnBoarding Reading Challenge 2023 (read one of the first 10 books you added to your to-read pile): The Night Swim—Finished 4-8-2023
The StoryGraph Reads the World 2023 (Italy): Find Me—Finished 4-10-2023
The StoryGraph’s Genre Challenge (a biography about someone you don’t know much about): Killing Kennedy: The End of Camelot—Finished 4-11-2023
Beat the Backlist 2023 (take place primarily in winter or a cold region): Tainted—Finished 4-19-2023
Scavenger Hunt TBR Book Challenge (go to the acknowledgments of the last book you read for this prompt. What name did you first see? Find a book written by an author with that name): Frost Burn—Finished 4-20-2023
Scavenger Hunt (Book I found that day): Delicate Ink—Finished 4-20-2023
Popsugar Reading Challenge 2023 (a book by a first time author): The Fifth Floor—Finished 4-21-23
2023 TBR Toppler (continue a series): Ten Thousand Lies—Finished 4-22-23
2023 Reading Challenge (book that has been on my TBR for the longest time): Purple Death—Finished 4-23-23
2023 ABC Challenge (D): Descendants—Carrying over to May
2023 TBR Prompts (A BookTok Favorite): The Song of Achilles—Carrying over to May
For fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer Armentrout comes a bold and captivating fantasy by bestselling author Piper J. Drake.
My wings unbound, I am the Thai bird princess The kinnaree And no matter the cost, I will be free.
Bennet Andrews represents a secret organization of supernatural beings dedicated to locating and acquiring mythical objects, tucking them safely away where they cannot harm the human race. When he meets Peeraphan Rahttana, it’s too late—she has already stepped into The Red Shoes, trapped by their curse to dance to her death.
But Bennet isn’t the only supernatural looking for deadly artifacts. And when the shoes don’t seem to harm Peeraphan, he realizes that he’ll have to save her from the likes of creatures she never knew existed. Bennett sweeps Peeraphan into a world of myth and power far beyond anything she ever imagined. There, she finds that magic exists in places she never dreamed—including deep within herself.
First Line:
Peeraphan Rahttana closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, letting her senses expand until she was aware of every dancer waiting in the wings, of every stage tech behind the backdrops.
Wings Once Cursed and Bound by Piper J. Drake
Bennet is hunting for a dangerous magical artifact called The Red Shoes. Any human who puts them on is trapped by a curse and forced to dance to their death. He traced the shoes to a community center where a group practiced a traditional Thai dance. He gets there in time to see Peeraphan, also known as Punch, slip the shoes on her feet. What Bennet wasn’t expecting was Punch to be immune to the curse. Bennett is surprised to find out that Punch is a kinnaree, a Thai bird princess. Aware of her heritage, Punch is surprised to discover a world she didn’t know existed. A world where vampires, dragons, sidhe, and werewolves live and protect (for the mostpart) humans from beings and artifacts that will hurt them. Punch and Bennet look for a way to release the curse while battling a rogue vampire and a human collector of magical artifacts. Will Punch be able to release the curse and remove the shoes? Will she fully accept who and what she is?
Wings Once Cursed and Bound is a fast-paced book in and around Seattle, Washington. There needed to be more exploring of the city or the islands where Bennet took Punch, and I would have loved more description of the city/islands. But that was a minor quibble because I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Wings Once Cursed and Bound main storyline centers around Punch, Bennet, The Red Shoes, and the search for how to release the curse. I wanted to know if the author would let Punch remove the curse on the shoes. I admit I knew nothing about Thai (or any Eastern Asian mythology), and the kinnaree legend fascinated me. I also liked that the author included several urban legends/myths from around the world.
Several side storylines fed into the main one. Fransisco’s evil, devious plan to sell Punch to the collector was a major sub-storyline. Fransisco was a nasty dude, and I wish Bennet had ended him in that significant fight scene. But if Fransisco continues to be a problem in the series, I see why the author let him live. I liked that Punch blossomed in this storyline. And when I mean blossom, I mean she came into her powers. It was beautiful to see.
The paranormal angle of this book was excellent. I read about lesser-known supernatural entities, such as the kinnaree, karin puksa, kraisorn rajasri, tsurubebi, and the will-o’-the-wisp. I liked that the author mixed lesser-known mythical figures with the regular ones (the werewolves, fairies, sidhe, and vampires). At the end of the book, she included a section called Field Notes on the Supernatural and the Paranormal. The author incorporated all the entities and artifacts (such as Bluebeards Bloody Key, the Noose of the Phayanak, and The Red Shoes)mentioned in the book in the field guide. I hope that she includes this in the other books in the series.
There is a romance angle to Wings Once Cursed and Bound. It starts as Instalust (Bennet was very attracted to Punch but held off because he thought she was at least half human) but soon morphed into Instalove. I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not, to be honest. It felt a little forced. I would have loved to see Punch and Bennet’s relationship blossom slowly instead of falling head over heels within a couple of days of meeting each other.
The end of Wings Once Cursed and Bound was interesting. I can’t get into what happened, but I will say that I liked that Punch and Bennet were able to help some of the paranormal entities they found at the mansion. They also found several supernatural artifacts. I was a little grumpy with how Fransisco’s storyline ended, but I am sure he will turn up in the upcoming books, so I wasn’t sweating it. I also liked the insights into the winged fairies, the sidhe, the brownie, the witch, and the werewolf living on the island with Bennet. I wonder if the author will feature one of them in the next book!!!
I recommend Wings Once Cursed and Bound to anyone over 21. There are language, violence, and sexual situations.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Casablanca, NetGalley, and Piper J. Drake for allowing me to read and review Wings Once Cursed and Bound. All opinions stated in this review are mine.
If you enjoyed reading this review of Wings Once Cursed and Bound, then you will enjoy reading these books:
WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words.
The Three Ws are:
What are you currently reading? What did you recently finish reading? What do you think you’ll read next?
What I Recently Finished Reading:
This is the second in the Prince of Typgar series, the much-anticipated sequel to Nujran and the Monks of Meirar. At the end of the first book, we left Nujran as a teenager who has learned much through his journeys alongside his teacher Amsibh. He experienced romance, conflict, friendship, betrayal, and loss. He grew up along the way. We begin the second book on the sprawling campus of the prestigious University of Western Foalinaarc, where a body has just been discovered. Who is this girl, and why is she dead? Could it be linked to the mysterious illness sweeping the campus and plaguing the teaching community? Why does Amsibh come to the school, and what does he need to protect Nujran from? Through what twist of fate is Nujran reunited with his old friends, the Monks of Meirar? And why does Nujran end up being a captive again? The stakes are higher than ever before, with fugitives on the run, turbulence on the university campus, a new romance, a bizarre kidnapping, a perilous escape from prison, and a rescue mission where things don’t quite go as planned. Corpse in the Quadrangle is another fast-paced adventure that will hold young readers spellbound!
What I am currently reading:
For fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer Armentrout comes a bold and captivating fantasy by bestselling author Piper J. Drake.
My wings unbound, I am the Thai bird princess The kinnaree And no matter the cost, I will be free.
Bennet Andrews represents a secret organization of supernatural beings dedicated to locating and acquiring mythical objects, tucking them safely away where they cannot harm the human race. When he meets Peeraphan Rahttana, it’s too late—she has already stepped into The Red Shoes, trapped by their curse to dance to her death.
But Bennet isn’t the only supernatural looking for deadly artifacts. And when the shoes don’t seem to harm Peeraphan, he realizes that he’ll have to save her from the likes of creatures she never knew existed. Bennett sweeps Peeraphan into a world of myth and power far beyond anything she ever imagined. There, she finds that magic exists in places she never dreamed—including deep within herself.
What books I think I’ll read next:
Journalist Lisa Jamison wants to blow off some steam after an argument with her boyfriend, so she heads to her friend Ricky’s kickboxing studio for an early morning workout. She expects to find Ricky alone, setting up for his first class of the day, but someone was there before Lisa, uninvited. Ricky is dead, shot only moments before she arrived, and now Lisa is a suspect in his murder. Lisa wants two things: to clear her name and seek justice for Ricky. But the deeper she digs, the more the danger mounts. Can she find Ricky’s killer before the killer eliminates the last obstacle, silencing Lisa for good?
Amber thought her life was perfect.
She was in love with her boyfriend Frankie, had a nice summer job at Taylor’s Book and was enrolled at Marshall University to become a teacher.
Everything was on track for the perfect life.
And then Bastian walked in. Not only was he the most handsome man Amber had ever seen, but she felt a pull that she’d never felt before.
From the very first moment she saw him he filled her every thought and made her body want things it had never had before.
After the death of his father, David Drigan wonders if he’s strong enough to lead his werewolf pack.
Then he meets Kelsey.
Blonde. Curvy. Attitude.
She makes David’s beast surface like never before. Even when she argues with him.
When Kelsey learns about David’s beast, she has to decide if she wants to live in his shadow.
Can they find the light, lost in the dark?
A grieving widow. A house with secrets. And an invitation to a seance…
When Clara O’Hare’s husband passed away, she felt her life was over. But when she moves into a new home to escape the memories, she discovers that the veil between life and death is very thin indeed.
Desperate to find answers, she attends a seance in a remote country home surrounded by a colorful cast of strangers. But something sinister has decided to make itself known. It will be up to her and the dashing young medium, Wesley Lowenherz, to find out what the spirits of the manor are dying to tell them.
Laced with gothic romance and paranormal mystery, A Spirited Manor is book one in the O’Hare House Mystery penny dreadful series.
