I was super excited to read this book as soon as I read the summary, sadly it didn't live up to the hype that surrounded it. I really wanted to love this one! I loved the idea and plot, but the character building just wasn't there.

I just could not get into this book. The characters felt flat, and while the plot was interesting it just wasn't enought to keep my attention.

I was originally attracted to this novel because the title intrigued me--it sounded like a badass girl would take on the world kicking ass and taking names. Nope. Maybe in the sequel. Also, where are the stilettos?

The premise sounded different than some of the other fantasies I've read lately so I gave it ago. We'll have to classify this under "guilty pleasure" type of read because that is only reason it was worth the time. It is filled with tropes including but not limited to a love triangle, insta love, and a prophecy girl. The side characters, while interesting, seem like they only exist to revolve around the main character, who of course is the "girl who keeps to herself but is also super popular and has a million friends." And of course, as soon as they meet the main character, suddenly they all find their "mates" themselves! Still, I kept reading and honestly was pretty successful at looking past all the tropes and cringy moments until the end when it got full on cringe and suddenly culminated in a rushed climax and ending that only barely made sense. Of COURSE the main character suddenly realizes that she is special and of course she has to save the world after believing but not really believing the entire novel. I do not care enough to pick up the sequel.

Disclaimer: I received this ARC from netgalley but obviously, this did not influence my opinion in any way.

I gave this book 2.5 stars. It was okay, not an amazing read, and I’ll probably forget what happens by tomorrow, but I don’t hate it.

I’m pretty underwhelmed by this book. It was full of tropes and there was nothing original about it.

The love triangle was annoying and sudden, the instalove made me want to stop reading, and the chosen one trope seemed like it was just thrown in for just for fun.

I didn’t hate the protagonist, but there also wasn’t anything I really loved about her, she was just sort of there, telling us what was happening.

I was drawn in my a pretty cover and a cool synopsis, but I really don’t think this book was really worth a read. I don’t have enough thoughts on this book to really have a long review for it.

Zoe and Kieran had stopped for a drink. Zoe wanted a cup of chai and Zoe was going to try out for a coed track team and if her time wasn’t fast enough she figured she had next year. Kieran was the nicest of guys, the kind who always helped those in need. He’d also taken care of Zoe for as long as she could remember. Back in kindergarten a classmate had tried to take Zoe’s new lunchbox but Kieran had stepped in and pushed her away every since then he’d been protective of Zoe. Then two men in black were ahead of Zoe and Kieran told Zoe to run. Kieran had left Zoe in an old warehouse and then one of the stalkers found Zoe. as the stalker brutalized her and had a gun on Zoe that he could not believe she was the Redeemer everyone was worried about. Then a dark clothed figure emerged out of Zoe’s captor’s sight and pressed his fingers to his lips and winked at her and slid back into the darkness. Then a black blur passed her and kicked “ Yellow Hair” as Zoe nicknamed him. Zoe was going to try to run away but nausea hit her and she dropped to the ground. Zoe felt dizzy and lightheaded The two that had been stalking Zoe were Blane and Devan. Then one said he had been looking for Zoe for a long time. Then one of the stalkers were killed and Keiran showed up. Zoe asked Keiran who he was that he wasn’t guy she knew. Then Kieran and the guy who had fought for her was Shay and he told Zoe she was floating and that had to come from her. The guys figured it was a self preservation thing. Then Keiran asked Zoe to trust him and healed her. Keiran and Shay decided it was time to tell Zoe what was going on. Keiran said he had known who Zoe was before he met her in kindergarten . Keiran had been assigned to watch over Zoe and keep her safe. Shay told Zoe he has half angel and half human. The stalkers had been demon knights that worked for the devil Samuel. They had been sent to kill Zoe. Then Keiran and Shay took Zoe to the void which was a parallel place that was between this world and another. The archangel Michael was Keiran’s mentor and he went to heaven to talk to michael for advice. Zoe would be eighteen in two months and she’ll get the Heaven’s Mark. Keiran felt Zoe should be told so she can prepare herself if she was in fact the chosen one as they thought she was and start to think of a plan to win when Armageddon started. Kieran was an angel. Keiran understood Zoe and would do anything for her but she wouldn’t want Keiran to shoulder her burden.Zoe would never allow others to suffer for her. Keiran was Zoe’s Guardian Angel but also loved Zoe. Zoe finds as she spends time with Shay she has a crush on him. She also finds out there are a lot of supernaturals around.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I really liked reading how Zoe reacted to finding out about the supernaturals around her. Also really liked the plot and unique story. This was a fun read. I loved the action. I really liked how it showed Zoe’s struggles to do what was right as well as come up with a plan to win when Armageddon happened. I loved the characters and the ins and outs and i recommend.

I really wanted to like this book, I tried and tried. It had many elements that I really enjoy in other series, but I found myself rolling my eyes at the heroine, the plot, the overabundance of mythologies and the instalove.

The plot has already been summarized by GoodReads and many reviewers, so I won't go over that again. Instead I'll talk about what didn't work for me. YA fantasy is a hot genre and generally it is one of my favorites. The Enlighten Series falls into that category, but it tries too hard to be too many things too quickly. Like The Mortal Instruments, there are a lot of mythological creatures, but here it doesn't quite work. Angles, demons, werewolves, fairies, Shakespearean Fairy Royalty...everything and anything seems to have been thrown into the plot. It makes Swords and Stilettos seem rushed and juvenile.

Swords and Stilettos also employs the stereotypical YA love triangle, which normally I really like, but this one is weak. Zoe is never even remotely interested in Kieran, her best friend, and he gives up any attempt at wooing her the second Shay shows up. Wham Bam 5 seconds after meeting the mysterious Shay Zoe is head over heels in love. I adore romance, but good romance needs a little tension, not instamatic love.

While I don't have to adore ever character in a book, I do generally need to be able to like or understand them. Once again, I just couldn't like Zoe. She was immature and naive, but also weirdly confident. Perhaps she'll grow beyond two-dimensional in the further books. I certainly hope she does.
(Disclaimer: I received a free ARC of Swords and Stilettos from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!)

‘Swords & Stilettos’ is the first book I read from Kristin VanRisseghem and I really enjoyed it. At the beginning of the book some parts reminded me of ‘Hush, Hush’ series by Becca Fitzpatrick and ‘Sweet’ series by Wendy Higgins. Even though I enjoyed those series, I started preparing myself for disappointment because if it goes the same way, it is not really hard to guess what will happen next but I kept reading to see what would happen and I am glad I did. This is the first book I ever read that has Angels, Nephilim, Fairies and Werewolves in it all together and I LOVED IT :)

So back to ‘Swords & Stilettos’, our heroine Zoe is a 17 years old high school student. Her life is pretty normal until the day she and her best friend Kieran got attacked by two guys. Everything changes for Zoe after the attack because she starts to realize that nothing is like it seems. After the attack Kieran comes clean and explain Zoe that she is destined to save the world and unite angels, fairies and werewolves for the upcoming war. Kieran also explains her that he and Shay, who helped Kieran to fight with attackers, were sent to protect her. Kieran is her Guardian Angel and Shay is Nephilim who was assigned to protect her from afar. With the frequent demon attacks coming her way she finds out more and more about her friends and her powers. With the war getting closer, their 3 people team starts to expand to 5 with the addition of Sidelle and later Vash. Sidelle is one of Zoe’s close friends who is also a fairy and Vash is a werewolf :) I am telling you story gets better and better towards the end. There is also a love triangle between Zoe-Shay-Kieran and I am totally team Kieran :) . First book ends with a big reveal that makes you want to start reading the 2nd book right away or at least that was me at 3 am and I was going to buy the second book right away but unfortunately it doesn’t have a kindle addition :(  

Overall, I really enjoyed ‘Swords & Stilettos’ and loved Kieran, Shay, Sidelle, and Vash. If you enjoyed Lauren Kate’s ‘Fallen’ series, Becca Fitzpatrick’s Hush, Hush’ series and/or Wendy Higgins’ ‘Sweet’ series, you will enjoy this book. If you are looking for an entertaining, easy and fast to read that is filled with almost all supernatural beings ‘Swords & Stilettos’ is just for you.

Would I recommend this book: Yes.
Would I re-read this book: Yes.
Would I read future books by this author: Yes.

I have really mixed feelings about this story - there were moments when I was very engaged and couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen next. Other times, I just found myself flicking a few pages ahead to see if something was actually going to happen that didn't involve Zoe feeling some kind of 'deep' emotion for a boy.

Zoe Jabril has just found out there is something very special about her. She has a very important role to play in saving the world - well, according to a prophecy. Her friend, Kieran, has actually been part of her life in order to protect her.; a friend, that she has just discovered is rather hot. Just as Zoe realises this, right at the start of the story, she is attacked and partly rescued by another good- looking guy, Shay who admits that he is Nephilim. Zoe suddenly finds her life is completely different to anything she knew - the 'real' world if filled with creatures she only thought existed in a fantasy place.

There was certainly a good sense of magic in this book and pieces of the story were built well. I just wanted sometimes for some of the teenage angst to move on and get to the action. This was an engaging story overall and if Zoe continues to grow (which she does as the book winds to a close) then I would imagine the next book in the series will be stronger than this one.

I found this story to be an interesting take on the typical YA. It was still another story about a high school girl who finds out that the fate of the world is in her hands, but instead of just finding people she doesn't know that are connected to this secret world, she also finds out that people she already knows are a part of it as well. I liked that aspect. It did seem that there was a love triangle element in it, but that seemed to fade more as the book went, or at least fade more into the background.

I will definitely be looking for other books in this series.

Cheesy trope-filled goodness

Sturgeon’s Law states that 90% of everything is crud. Too often, I’ve picked up a YA book with high hopes, only to find myself reading the same old tired tropes and bored out of my head. I was delighted to find Swords & Stilettos bucks the trend falls solidly into the good 10%. It’s full of tropes, chock-a-block with clichés – and it all works.

There’s a love triangle, mean girls, werewolves and fairies, angels and demons locked in a cosmic war, and one seemingly normal girl caught in the middle. In a different book, this could all be a mess of tortured tropes, but in this one, it’s a blast to read.

Apart from the mean girls (whose mean motivation is hinted at, but never fully revealed), there’s no sense of “not like other girls” that haunts too many YA novels. Zoe enjoys shopping and fashion and spending time with her girl friends. In fact, I would’ve liked to see her interacting with them some more, especially at the beginning, as their friendships seems a little more informed than realistic.

Otherwise, her relationships are sweet and believable, especially Kieran struggling with but accepting his love is unrequited. I’m sick of the love triangle taking over a story and am so glad it is used and then discarded. Zoe does dip into TSTL sometimes, but that’s more an offshoot of her protective streak than thoughtlessness.

My only disappointment is that title is Swords & Stilettos, but while the former played a significant part, the latter were rather lacking. I would personally have liked more ass kicking in high heels, but that’s probably just me.

If you want realistic, walk on by, but if you are looking for a solidly well-written story with likeable characters, pick this book up and enjoy. I’m certainly looking forward to the next one.

This is the first in the series and the book had an abrupt ending so it's not a HEA more of a to be continued but otherwise was very good, the pace is a little fast at times and the romance kind of forced a bit in the rush but it was still an enjoyable read and I look forward to the next in the series.