The Saturday Review - 7 September 2019

This week I'm tackling the next few books I read over the summer... what have you read lately bookdragons?

The Witches of BlackBrook
by Tish Thawer

Publisher: Amber Leaf Publishing

Release Date: June 23, 2015

Genre: Paranormal, Witches, Fiction

Blurb

Through space and time, sisters entwined. Lost then found, souls remain bound.

Three sisters escape the Salem witch trials when the eldest casts a spell that hurtles their souls forward through time. After centuries separated, fate has finally reunited them in the present day.

One the healer, one the teacher, and one the deceiver.

Will their reunion return their full powers, or end their souls journey forever?

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I first saw this book on bookstagram so the cover was what first drew my interest enough to look it up on Amazon.

Summary/Tagline: n/a
Characters: 🌟🌟🌟.5 I liked the characters overall, but at times they felt a little flat. I would have liked more development into the side characters motivation and their personality. 

Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟 Again, there isn't as much fleshing out as I would like. It's a small town and you get that homey vibe but you don't really learn much about the town except for the few places the main character goes to: home, work, and another character's house then to her hometown in Massachusetts (which felt like the most developed setting of all).

Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 The plot wasn't bad. It was easy to follow, taking you between the main character's past and present and showing you hints into the other character's thoughts and feelings. It was a quick read. Not the best book I've ever read, but not the worst either. Will I read book two? Probably. I'll definitely give the series more time to woo me into falling in love.

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 3.63 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟 🌟🌟

3.63 of 5 Stars!

Wildcard

by Marie Lu

Published by: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers

On: September 18, 2018

Genre: Young Adult, Sci-Fi, Fantasy

Blurb:

Emika Chen barely made it out of the Warcross Championships alive. Now that she knows the truth behind Hideo's new NeuroLink algorithm, she can no longer trust the one person she's always looked up to, who she once thought was on her side.

Determined to put a stop to Hideo's grim plans, Emika and the Phoenix Riders band together, only to find a new threat lurking on the neon-lit streets of Tokyo. Someone's put a bounty on Emika's head, and her sole chance for survival lies with Zero and the Blackcoats, his ruthless crew. But Emika soon learns that Zero isn't all that he seems--and his protection comes at a price.

Caught in a web of betrayal, with the future of free will at risk, just how far will Emika go to take down the man she loves?

Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I love the dark cover of Wildcard in contrast with the white cover of Warcross. They compliment each other well on the shelf. 

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟 "It's time for a rematch." - This made me think the bulk of the plot would be Emika vs. Hideo so I was a bit surprised with the way the plot turned.

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I love how Emika and Hideo grow in this novel. We see Hideo go from the grieving brother who created Warcross to a monster who thinks he's saving the world, a lovestruck man who wonders if Emika is right to the cold exterior he shows the world and back again. Emika meanwhile struggles to learn how to accept help from others, to lean on and depend on them. Her teammates are back in this one and as awesome as they were in Warcross, but this time helping Emika out on a whole new front. And then there are the enigmatic Zero and his crew. Are they friend or foe? What do they really want?
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 From the inside of Warcross to the tech-savvy city of Tokyo and the dark underbelly of the Warcross blackmarket Lu has once again drawn readers into a mesmerizing world that they wish they could experience first hand while also cautioning that with every benefit of a tech-centered world, comes an even more costly downside.

Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟.5 I think I loved this one more than Warcross. It delves deeper into Sasuke's disappearance and what became of him which tugged at my heart. And for Emika, what started out as a job to find a hacker has thrown her into a more dangerous game of cat and mouse than she's ever endured before, uncovering secrets and making her wonder who she can trust and what people will do to have absolute control. 

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 4.3 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟🌟

4.3 of 5 Stars!

The Afterlife of Holly Chase 

by Cynthia Hand

Published by: HarperTeen

On: October 24, 2017

Genre: Young Adult, Holiday, Retelling, Fantasy, Paranormal

Blurb:

On Christmas Eve five years ago, Holly was visited by three ghosts who showed her how selfish and spoiled she'd become. They tried to convince her to mend her ways.

She didn't.

And then she died.

Now she's stuck working for the top-secret company Project Scrooge--as the latest Ghost of Christmas Past.

Every year, they save another miserly grouch. Every year, Holly stays frozen at seventeen while her family and friends go on living without her. So far, Holly's afterlife has been miserable.

But this year, everything is about to change. . . .

Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 The Afterlife of Holly Chase has a simple, elegant cover that I really loved. It's not so in your face paranormal or christmasy as you would expect from the blurb.

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟 “Every Scrooge Deserves a Second Chance"  - This promises the premise of almost every Christmas Carol retelling ever until you read the blurb.

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟 All hail the annoying mean girl who hasn't quite learned her lesson, add in an assistant that is annoyingly perky, a bunch of Christmas loving coworkers, and a bad boy who isn't bad at all and you have the characters in Holly Chase. As a protagonist, Holly is a bit of a self-pitying downer with an attitude problem.
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟 New York City, a secret organization, Christmas-time. 

Story: 🌟🌟🌟 This book wasn't too bad, but it was predictable and a bit annoying to read at times due to Holly's personality. 

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟 3.2 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟

3.2 of 5 Stars!

A Simple Favor

by Darcey Bell

Published by: Harper

On: March 21, 2017

Genre: Fiction, Thriller

Blurb:

She’s your best friend.
She knows all your secrets.
That’s why she’s so dangerous.
A single mother's life is turned upside down when her best friend vanishes in this chilling debut thriller in the vein of Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.

It starts with a simple favor—an ordinary kindness mothers do for one another. When her best friend, Emily, asks Stephanie to pick up her son Nicky after school, she happily says yes. Nicky and her son, Miles, are classmates and best friends, and the five-year-olds love being together—just like she and Emily. A widow and stay-at-home mommy blogger living in woodsy suburban Connecticut, Stephanie was lonely until she met Emily, a sophisticated PR executive whose job in Manhattan demands so much of her time.

But Emily doesn’t come back. She doesn’t answer calls or return texts. Stephanie knows something is terribly wrong—Emily would never leave Nicky, no matter what the police say. Terrified, she reaches out to her blog readers for help. She also reaches out to Emily’s husband, the handsome, reticent Sean, offering emotional support. It’s the least she can do for her best friend. Then, she and Sean receive shocking news. Emily is dead. The nightmare of her disappearance is over.

Or is it? Because soon, Stephanie will begin to see that nothing—not friendship, love, or even an ordinary favor—is as simple as it seems.

A Simple Favor is a remarkable tale of psychological suspense—a clever and twisting free-fall of a ride filled with betrayals and reversals, twists and turns, secrets and revelations, love and loyalty, murder and revenge. Darcey Bell masterfully ratchets up the tension in a taut, unsettling, and completely absorbing story that holds you in its grip until the final page.

Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I have the movie tie-in cover of this book (of course) and I love the retro 1950s vibe to it. 

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 "She’s your best friend. She knows all your secrets. That’s why she’s so dangerous." - Ooh, I love the sound of this!

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 The first rule going into this book... trust no one. Both Stephanie and Emily are mothers that on the outside have enviable lives - Steph is the perfect mother, Emily has it all - perfect husband, adorable son, fantastic job in the fashion industry - but both have dark secrets simmering under the surface. Let the games begin.
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 The worldbuilding is less about a setting or a location in this book, but the feeling. An idyllic Connecticut town perfect for raising a family yet close enough to commute into NYC, an old cabin in Michigan, a decaying manor hiding the secrets of the past. 
Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Step right up for unreliable narrators with twisted secrets, murder, lust, and fraud. This book will make you ask "WTF?" as you stay up late into the night binging to reach a crazy twist and an unbelievable end. 

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 4.4 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟🌟

4.4 of 5 Stars!

Imposters

by Scott Westerfeld

Published by: Scholastic Press

On: September 11, 2018

Genre: Young Adult, Sci-fi, Dystopian

Blurb:

The spellbinding, New York Times bestselling series-starter, now $4.99 for a limited time only.

Frey and Rafi are inseparable . . . two edges of the same knife. But Frey's very existence is a secret.

Frey is Rafi's twin sister-and her body double. Their powerful father has many enemies, and the world has grown dangerous as the old order falls apart. So while Rafi was raised to be the perfect daughter, Frey has been taught to kill. Her only purpose is to protect her sister, to sacrifice herself for Rafi if she must.

When her father sends Frey in Rafi's place as collateral in a precarious deal, she becomes the perfect impostor -- as poised and charming as her sister. But Col, the son of a rival leader, is getting close enough to spot the killer inside her. As the deal starts to crumble, Frey must decide if she can trust him with the truth . . . and if she can risk becoming her own person.

With Impostors, master storyteller Scott Westerfeld returns with a new series set in a world full of twists and turns, rebellion and intrigue, where any wrong step could be Frey's last.

Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 Luckily for me I held out on starting this series long enough to grab the paperback that will match the cover of Shatter City. Unfortunately the $4.99 sticker is not a sticker and cannot be removed. :(

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 "Everything She Tells You Is A Lie." - I do like the sound of that, it makes me want to find out more.

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟🌟.5 I loved Frey, she's such a bada$$. Then there's Rafi, who we don't see as much of but you can tell she's a little unhinged which is bound to have consequences down the line. Their father is a monster, there's no doubt about that and you wish someone, anyone would take him out. Then there's Col, who at times I loved and others found annoying. Insert the secondary characters to make the story awesome and viola!
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 This was my first book by Scott Westerfeld. I haven't read the series that this series is a spinoff of. But even so, it was easy to understand the world that Frey, Rafi, and Col live in, the differences in their cities and the rest of the cities in the world, from the vibrant, inviting Victoria to the cold technological city Frey and Rafi grew up in to the neutral city of Paz and the refuge of the caldera.  
Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I usually don't like dystopian novels but I devoured this book, intrigued by the story of twins who couldn't be more different and Frey's desire to embrace her own identity in a world on the verge of war.  

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 4.5 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

4.5 of 5 Stars!

House of Salt and Sorrows

by Erin A. Craig

Published by: Delacorte

On: August 6, 2019

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling

Blurb:

In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed.
Annaleigh lives a sheltered life at Highmoor, a manor by the sea, with her sisters, their father, and stepmother. Once they were twelve, but loneliness fills the grand halls now that four of the girls' lives have been cut short. Each death was more tragic than the last—the plague, a plummeting fall, a drowning, a slippery plunge—and there are whispers throughout the surrounding villages that the family is cursed by the gods.

Disturbed by a series of ghostly visions, Annaleigh becomes increasingly suspicious that the deaths were no accidents. Her sisters have been sneaking out every night to attend glittering balls, dancing until dawn in silk gowns and shimmering slippers, and Annaleigh isn't sure whether to try to stop them or to join their forbidden trysts. Because who—or what—are they really dancing with?

When Annaleigh's involvement with a mysterious stranger who has secrets of his own intensifies, it's a race to unravel the darkness that has fallen over her family—before it claims her next.

Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 This cover is so pretty! Definitely a cover buy for me!

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 "In a manor by the sea, twelve sisters are cursed." - Your first clue that this is a Twelve Dancing Princesses retelling

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 I loved Annaleigh and her sisters, though they are all so different. Their stepmother, Morella seems like this sweet thing that just wants their father wrapped around her finger but you can tell as you're reading that there is a dark undercurrent in their somewhere. And the girls' poor father - first losing his wife then four of his daughters in quick succession. Can't a man catch a break without being manipulated by his new wife?
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 The worldbuilding is fantastic in this book, dark and atmospheric. A manor by the sea that everyone believes is cursed, a unique set of gods that the characters believe in and the rituals that accompany them, the clothing, and everything is so well plotted the reader will feel transported. 
Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book but I was completely blown away. 

Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 4.6 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

4.6 of 5 Stars!

Top Ten Tuesday: (First Ten) Books I Reviewed

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme created by The Broke and The Bookish and currently hosted by Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl.

Top Ten Tuesday: The First Ten Books I Reviewed Online

This week's TTT is all about the first books we reviewed, whether it was on an online retailer, Goodreads, or our own blog. I personally started on Goodreads in 2012 but didn't start reviewing on my blog until July 2015.

1. Dating for Demons by Serena Robar (Reviewed February 13, 2013)

2. Strange Bedpersons by Jennifer Crusie (Reviewed February 2013)

3. Best Intentions by Jan Scarbrough (Reviewed April 2013) 

4. Lucky Streak by Carly Phillips (Reviewed in August 2013)

5.The Bride Collector by Ted Dekker (Reviewed November 2012)

6. A Novel Idea by Aimee Friedman (Reviewed January 2013)

7. The Haunting by Joan Lowery Nixon (Reviewed January 2013)

8. Love Undercover by Jo Edwards (Reviewed January 2013)

9. A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (Reviewed January 2013)

10. Dead on the Delta by Stacey Jay (Reviewed January 2013)

 What are some of the first books you reviewed?

Let me know in the comments or drop me a link to your TTT!
Want to read my reviews on these books and more? Follow and friend me on Goodreads!

Happy Reading Bookdragons!

The Saturday Review - 20 April 2019

The Saturday Review is a weekly meme hosted by me (Taylor Fenner's Bookish World) where fellow book bloggers and readers can share what books they've recently reviewed. 

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Blurb:

Everyone knows Daisy Jones & The Six, but nobody knows the reason behind their split at the absolute height of their popularity . . . until now.

Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing at the Whisky a Go Go. The sex and drugs are thrilling, but it’s the rock and roll she loves most. By the time she’s twenty, her voice is getting noticed, and she has the kind of heedless beauty that makes people do crazy things.

Also getting noticed is The Six, a band led by the brooding Billy Dunne. On the eve of their first tour, his girlfriend Camila finds out she’s pregnant, and with the pressure of impending fatherhood and fame, Billy goes a little wild on the road.

Daisy and Billy cross paths when a producer realizes that the key to supercharged success is to put the two together. What happens next will become the stuff of legend.

The making of that legend is chronicled in this riveting and unforgettable novel, written as an oral history of one of the biggest bands of the seventies. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer who takes her work to a new level with Daisy Jones & The Six, brilliantly capturing a place and time in an utterly distinctive voice.

My Review:

Cover: 🌟🌟🌟 (I like the US cover alright, but I prefer the UK cover because it's much more colorful and gives you an edgy vibe.)

Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟 (“Everyone knows Daisy Jones & The Six, but nobody knows the reason behind their split at the absolute height of their popularity . . . until now." - From the blurb. I thought this was a fictitious band - which it is - but this first line of the blurb makes you doubt that which can be confusing for a reader.)

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟   (It's hard for me to put a rating on the characterization for this book based on the way the story is told in interview format. The reader only knows what the person being interviewed says, which can be skewed. About all I know about Daisy is that she's a redhead, apparently gorgeous, and a major druggy. I can't tell you how Billy is described to look because it didn't leave an impression, and honestly I had to look up his name because I blanked on that too. In the most basic sense, this story is about a rock band that we only vaguely know the particulars about.)
Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟 (The author does a fantastic job describing the drug and debauchery of the 1970s. As a 90s baby I didn't live through this era and I'm grateful because if everyone in California was acting like the people in this book, they were not someone to look up to no matter how famous they were. As for a setting as a literal place or being on the road, again based on the way this book is formatted you don't get a real clear picture.)
Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (Despite everything I really loved this story about a spoiled brat junkie who goes from groupie to star and a band climbing its' own mountain to the top amidst inter-band jealousy, drug abuse, and a fling between two of the members of the band. The book reminded me of the movie Almost Famous if Kate Hudson's character had been a singer. On the other hand, I hated Billy's wife Camilla. I mean legit couldn't stand her. Oh she's so great, yada yada, Billy cheats on her then spends the rest of the book trying to prove he's a repentant husband. Gag me. I would have much preferred if Billy ditched the needy wife and hooked up with Daisy, but that ship didn't sail. Also, the songs. Uck. The author includes snippets of them in the story and then places the full versions at the end but to me, if they were actually songs, they wouldn't be to thrilling to hear.)
Overall: 🌟🌟🌟 3.2 of 5 Stars!

My Rating:

🌟🌟🌟 

3.2 of 5 Stars!

Repeat by Kylie Scott

Blurb:

When a vicious attack leaves 25-year-old Clementine Johns with no memory, she's forced to start over. Now she has to figure out who she was and why she made the choices she did - which includes leaving the supposed love of her life, tattoo artist Ed Larsen, only a month before. Ed can hardly believe it when his ex shows up at his tattoo parlor with no memory of their past, asking about the breakup that nearly destroyed him. The last thing he needs is more heartache, but he can't seem to let her go again. Should they walk away for good, or does their love deserve a repeat performance?

My Review:
Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 (MMMM can someone say sexy? And with the tattoos on top of that 😍)
Summary/Tagline: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (Should they walk away for good, or does their love deserve a repeat performance?" - from the blurb. This ties in the title, which I like but honestly the author had me at "tattoo artist." )

Characters: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 (Clem wakes up after being attacked not knowing who she is and she has to go on what other people tell her about her past and decide who she will be now when things don't feel right. She becomes this sassy, forthright woman and lets go of the frilly mouse she was before. Then there's Ed. Sexy, muscled tattoo artist who is trying to put the heartbreak of the love of his life walking out on him behind him... until the day she walks back into his life with no memory of their life together or why she left him. He's moody to mask his hurt, and he's sexually frustrated wanting Clem despite the way things imploded the last time. We also have Clem's sister who is a cop, Iris - the nice woman at the bookstore who becomes a motherly figure to Clem and gives her a job, Tessa and Nevin - Ed's co-worker and friends, and his sexy, inappropriate brother Leif to round out the story.)

Worldbuilding: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 (I liked the description of the neighborhood that housed Ed's shop, the condo, and Iris's bookstore. It sounds like a hip but quaint place to live and hang out and makes me want to step onto the page and make it my home.)
Story: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟(Besides being sexy and romantic, this book hit me emotionally and made me think about how I would handle life if I were in Clem's shoes. Who I would rely on to fill in the gaps in my memory. There's also a hint of threat and danger in Clem's life which makes you keep turning the page to see if her attack was a random thing, or if someone is out to kill her.)
Overall: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 4.8 of 5 Stars!
My Rating:
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
4.8 of 5 stars! 

June Wrap-Up

June was a fantastically busy month and in case you missed anything on my blog or social media last month, this is what I got up to: 

READING


Books I Reviewed In June:

Secrets of Skin and Stone by Wendy Laine - My new favorite gargoyle-themed book! 

Roar by Cora Carmack - Magical storms + a magicless Princess + swoon-worthy storm hunters = an awesome read!

Kiss Me, Kill You by Larissa C. Hardesty - A quick YA read about a teen succubus who just wants to fall in love.

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller - Strike two when it comes to me and pirate-themed books. 

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga - My first manga read and an interesting way to read an old favorite. 

Just An Illusion: EP by D. Kelly - An emotional end to a fantastic trilogy!

Books I Read In June: 

Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga

Caraval by Stephanie Garber (Took a break from reading, will finish listening to audiobook in July)

The Dazzling Heights by Katharine McGee

Just An Illusion: EP by D. Kelly

The Shining by Stephen King

Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco (Still reading... hoping to finish tonight!)

Books To-Be-Read in July:

Ever the Brave by Erin Summerill

Sublime by Christina Lauren

The Valiant by Lesley Livingston

WRITING
In June, I finished writing my seventh full-length novel and first New Adult novel, Headless. I wrote a total of 27,711 words this month, finishing the first draft at 76,211 words! This is the longest of all the novels I've written so far. 

BLOGGING
In June, I participated in 3 Cover Art Reveals, 4 Release Day Blitzes and/or Blog Tours, 1 Excerpt Reveal, and Three Book Tags. I also posted my Summer Reads to Check Out Blog which can be found here: "Stuff Your Beach Bag! 17 Books to Devour this Summer!"

PUBLISHING
This month, I published my fifth novel and the third book in my Eternals Trilogy, Through the Fog. Included with Through the Fog is a bonus novelette entitled, Eternal Fire which is in the perspective of one of my favorite secondary characters. You can read more about Through the Fog and Eternal Fire here: "{Release Day Blitz} Through the Fog by Taylor Fenner"

MISC. BOOK NEWS
Finally, this month I submitted my upcoming YA High Fantasy novel, CurseBreaker to a writing contest for fantasy novels. The deadline isn't until October 31, 2017, but I wanted to get it in early enough. I'll be starting to get CurseBreaker ready for it's January 2, 2018, release next month! Be on the look out for opportunities to read an ARC of CurseBreaker later this year! 

May Wrap-Up

In case you missed anything on my blog or social media last month, this is what I got up to:

READING

Books I Reviewed In May:

Like A Memory by Abbi Glines - I loved this book and the blending of her Sea Breeze and Rosemary Beach worlds!

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas - My most anticipated book of the year fell flat, not living up to my expectations. :(

Sexy Stranger by Kendall Ryan - My first read by this contemporary romance writer and it definitely will not be the last!

Divine by Leanne Rathbone - I loved the first book in this series, Grace, but Divine hit the sophomore slump for me.

When It's Real by Erin Watt - Another amazing book by one of my favorite writing duos!

Books I Read In May:

When It's Real by Erin Watt

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas

Sexy Stranger by Kendall Ryan

Secrets of Skin and Stone by Wendy Laine

Divine by Leanne Rathbone

Kiss Me, Kill You by Larissa Hardesty

After the Game by Abbi Glines

Trust by Kylie Scott

Books To-Be-Read in June:

Daughter of The Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller

Beautiful Creatures: The Manga

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

WRITING

Last month I continued writing my current work-in-progress, Headless, which is a New Adult Contemporary Reimagining of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. I devoted a lot of time, setting a goal of a minimum of 1k words per day and wrote just over 31,000 last month! 

BLOGGING

As always, I was busy in May with various cover reveals and blog (review) tours. I hope you had the chance to stop by and check some of them out!

I hope you had a great May and I hope your summer is fantastic!