The Beast and the Bethany - Jack Meggitt-Phillips

Imagine if you could live forever, in a huge house as wide as 12 elephants. And you could eat whatever food you wanted and have all the expensive art and anything else you heart desired. All you have to do is feed the beast whatever he wants. Easy enough when you have limitless wealth. Even the Beast's latest request, a child, doesn't actually bother Ebenezer that much. He doesn't particularly like children and anyway, one little child isn't as important as himself, is it?

The Beast is a huge, smelly, slimy thing with two tongues, Ebenezer Tweezer is an evil little man who cares for absolutely no one but himself. But probably the worst monster of all is Bethany. The naughtiest, rudest, meanest of them all! Ebeneezer picks Bethany as the Beast's next meal but unfortunately for him, things don't go smoothly at all. It's hard to say much without being spoilery, but over time Ebenezer and Bethany start an uneasy relationship. Grudgingly, they both find that they don't want to be quite as horrible to each other any more. The problem is how can they both survive the Beast?

This was so much fun to read, with just a touch of the ridiculous in the way of Alice in Wonderland. Apparently you only get 10 worms for a backpack, a flip-flop, a ruler and a half eaten biscuit. Not that you have much choice when the frog market is only open on Wednesdays. The characters are all well thought out, even the side cast who only get a few paragraphs. The illustrations are wonderful, really adding to the story. I really loved my ARC copy too, which was unfortunately delivered with a few bites taken out of it. Luckily I don't think the Beast ate too much of it so I still got the gist of the story. Thanks anyway to Egmont Books and The Write Reads for letting me take part in the blog tour 😂

In case the Beast ever comes knocking on your door, it's best to have something new and tasty to give him. Try making a Bethany & the Beast cocktail. In a shaker with lots of ice, shake up 1.5 shots gin, 1 shot apple juice, 1 shot lime juice and 1/2 shot rosemary syrup. Strain into a glass and garnish with a sprig of rosemary. Make it a triple for the Beast and maybe he'll fall asleep before eating you!

The Wicked & The Dead - Melissa Marr

Genevieve is excellent at her job, removing the threat of the terrifying, newly reborn, again-walkers. But then again, maybe it's easier to hunt when you're a monster too. There's a reason she's so capable, one that she's been hiding for a long time, and one that she really doesn't want her friends to find out about.

Things are changing though, Gen is far busier than usual and the new Draugr she encounters are getting stronger and more aware than ever before. At the same time, her magic seems to be gong haywire and she needs to get it under control before she gets herself into trouble she can't get out of.

The main character was a little bit annoying at first. She came across quite arrogant at the start, but she definitely grew on me once we passed that. On the other hand, I really liked Eli and his bluntness immediately. This is the first time I've heard of Draugr and it was really interesting to learn about something new, but for those who like a bit of familiarity, the book also involves the fae which I love.

As always with Melissa Marr's books, the world is so elaborately built. It's been a while since I read such a rich world. There is a very different magic system and some unique traits, for example I loved how Gen could drink vodka for breakfast but fruit made her drunk! I really enjoyed the book and I'm very glad this is the start of a series. There's a reason Melissa is one of my favourite authors!

I was recently persuaded to make a margarita for a neighbour and thought it would be easier to just make big jug instead. Shake up 2 parts tequila, 1 part triple sec and 1 part lime juice with lots of ice. Strain into the jug. You might want to make a few at a time to avoid overfilling the shaker.

 Raybearer - Jordan Ifueko

The only thing more powerful than a wish is a purpose.

Tarisai has no idea who she really is or why her she has been brought up in this way. In a house and gardens with only the servants and her tutors for company. The servants are terrified to touch her because of her power to steal memories. Only her mother dares to hold her and she is very rarely there. But Tarisai was born for a purpose, and she will be forced to carry out her mother's magical wish unless she can find a way to fight back.

This book has a great opening line, but after that it was a bit of a slow starter for me. Around halfway it got a lot more exciting with some very interesting revelations that I really didn't see coming.  I liked that we got to see Tarisai as a young child at first but then through the book she grows up and matures.  She even finds positive uses for her memory power. There's a good ending, keeping me intrigued to know what happens next, but without leaving me on too much of a cliffhanger.

There's also a useful glossary which was at the back of the book and unfortunately I didn't see it till the end. I advise checking it as you read!

Here's how to make a Raybearer's Hard Lemonade! Muddle some mint in a shaker, add 2 shots of vodka, 1 shot lemon juice, 2 shots lime juice and a dash of sugar syrup. Shake with ice and strain into an ice filled glass. Top with soda and garnish with some more mint.