Antius Ascending series review

The Antius Ascending series by E.R. Arroyo - Book 1, Sovereign & Book 2, The Offering

I first discovered Sovereign as a freebie a couple of years ago. I liked the sound of it - I'm big on anything dytsopian themed - so I downloaded it and added it to my large pile of To Reads. It sat there for a while before I finally got around to it, and I went in with an open mind.

I was quickly hooked. I loved the world that had been created, and that there was so much unknown to it. I loved the main character, Cori. She was a tough lil cookie who was never afraid to stand up for herself or challenge the rules, but at her heart she was just a scared little girl and I found that endearing. She had her great qualities, but she also had her flaws and that made her so much more likable to me.

Dylan, obviously, is one of my favorites. I love a good looking guy who's also super smart, and I like that E.R Arroyo created him at the love interest, because it's different and I appreciate different. Usually our heros in these dytsopian reads are the tough guys who can fight, but Dylan is just a sexy computer nerd at heart.

There are some real heart wrenching moments in this book. There was one scene in particular that had me sobbing like a little bitch. I think it's always the sign of a really good writer when they can get you to really feel something.

I'm about halfway through book no. 2, The Offering right now, and this one is definitely living up to its predecessor. Actually, to be honest, I might like this one even more. Whereas the first story focused mostly on the escape, in this one we get to learn so much more about the world outside of Antius. I'm only halfway through, so I'm anticipating a lot more awesomeness to come

Flawed characters. . .

Something that has always been a running theme throughout any of the books I write, is that my characters aren't perfect. Every single one of them has flaws. They do good things for right reasons and bad things for good reasons. They can be stubborn, impulsive, selfish, downright idiotic. They make decisions based on fear and insecurities. They make mistakes.

I've noticed this especially with the characters I'm writing about at the moment, Nathan and Ophelia from the Fortunate world.

But I think it's a character with flaws that tells a better story, that becomes more relatable to us when we're reading. But who of us out there isn't flawed? Who doesn't make crappy choices or stupid mistakes?

I think what it is is that when I'm writing, I put a lot of myself into my characters. And I'll be the first to admit that I'm flawed as hell.

And that's. . .pretty much it. My little musings on why my characters can act like complete dicks sometimes

My lil shmoo

My wee lil shmoo getting her absolute slide on. This little thing is my whole world. The absolute love of my life

Well then. . .

So apparently, melting down gummy bears and putting the big gloppy mess into cookie cutters is NOT the way to make bigger gummy bear candy. Our bad. . .

Yes, I've had to throw the glass bowl away. Gummy bears turn into little bitches when you melt them

Boxing

Today I had my first ever boxing training session, and I gotta tell you guys, it's literally the most enjoyable way I've ever worked out. It's pretty much an all body exercise and the best part about it was that I was focusing so hard on my (terrible) technique that I didn't even realize how hard I was working. Until after. When I wanted to collapse and never ever get up again.

I trained with a friend of mine, who's super into his boxing, and that guy did NOT go easy on me. Which is exactly what you want, really. You want someone who's going to push you past your limits. And best of all, absolutely BEST OF ALL. . .are these beautiful babies. . .

They're pink and they're beautiful and I hearts them. 

But seriously guys, if you're looking for a fun way to get fit that's going to challenge the crap out of you but work pretty much every inch of your body, then I'd highly give boxing a recommend. I'm even thinking about getting my wee sprog her own little boxing set