This is a meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where you answer three questions: What are you reading now? What did you just read? What will you be reading next?
This past week I haven’t been very productive at all when it comes to reading. My birthday is coming up, and my husband surprised me with a Goldendoodle puppy ♥️ Puppies are a handful, it’s like having a third child 😅
I can’t believe I got an ARC of Soul of the Sword by Julie Kagawa (the sequel to Shadow of the Fox). I love these characters and I can’t wait to see how the story ends.
I’m also listening to This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab during my work commute. This is one of my first Schwab books and I’m loving it. I had started reading Vicious, also by her, but I had to stop so I could read the Soul of the Sword ARC before release day.
I recently read The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater. It was a nice read. I gave it three stars. You can read my review here.
Picture taken by me
What I will read next:
I want to finish the Vicious e-book by V.E. Schwab, which I had found very interesting before I had to stop reading it. I also need to finish Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, which I had stopped reading as well.
There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”
Neeve
It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.
His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.
But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can’t entirely explain. He has it all—family money, good looks, devoted friends—but he’s looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys: Adam, the scholarship student who resents all the privilege around him; Ronan, the fierce soul who ranges from anger to despair; and Noah, the taciturn watcher of the four, who notices many things but says very little.
For as long as she can remember, Blue has been warned that she will cause her true love to die. She never thought this would be a problem. But now, as her life becomes caught up in the strange and sinister world of the Raven Boys, she’s not so sure anymore. (Synopsis from Goodreads)
I thought Stiefvater’s writing was spectacular. The story was hypnotic and entertaining. I admit to laughing out loud many times throughout it. She makes great use of similes and metaphors without overdoing it. I really liked the different POV’s, even the ones from the bad guy’s perspective, it really brought the whole story together.
She wasn’t interested in telling other people’s futures. She was interested in going out and finding her own.”
Blue
Blue was unique, from her name to her clothes to the way she decorated her room. I don’t blame her since she had a very strange upbringing, and grew up surrounded by fortune tellers. But this story was mainly about the boys. I really liked that they all had their own unique voices and distinct personalities. I still can’t decide which one was my favorite Aglionby boy, maybe Ronan, and I hope she wrote a book where we get to find out more about him. I still don’t know about Gansey, I can’t get past his obsession with this quest of his, and it seems like neither can he.
Gansey had once told Adam that he was afraid most people didn’t know how to handle Ronan. What he meant by this was that he was worried that one day someone would fall on Ronan and cut themselves”
adam
There was a great sense of adventure to this story, and the quests and discoveries were unique. I expected some of the twista, and there were some that caught me by surprise. Even though I understand this was part of a series, I still docked a few stars because I felt like the whole story was building up to something and then it fell flat at the end. Sometimes when authors do this, it makes me feel like they cut the story short just so they could write a second book, and it leaves me wanting.
When I was done with this book, I didn’t immediately feel like reading the next in the series. I did really like her writing style, and I am curious to learn more about all these characters, so I will definitely pick it up in the future. Hopefully, in the next book the ending is a bit better and I am left feeling more satisfied and less empty.
Have you guys read this? What did you think? Does the series get better plot-wise?
On Mondays I take the opportunity to clean up my TBR list. I ordered it in reverse chronological order from the date it was added. I looked at the oldest five books I’ve added on there and decided whether to keep them or delete them.
Picture from Goodreads
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
There are so many mixed reviews for this book. I feel like this is one of those you either love or you hate. I read a sample and decided I did not care for the writing style.
Delete 😦
Picture from Goodreads
Nevernight (The Nevernight Chronicle, #1) by Jay Kristoff
I read a sample of this book and I loved it. The main character is so snarky, she reminds me of Caelena from Throne of Glass. I can’t wait to read it. It also sounds like a good audio book so I might listen to it instead.
Keep 🙂
Picture from Goodreads
Crown of Feathers by Nick Pau Preto
I think I’m just tired of sister feuds. I recently got fed up with One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake. I re-read the synopsis for this one and it no longer sounds appealing. I did not even feel like reading a sample.
Delete 😦
Picture from Goodreads
I love dystopian novels. There’s something about seeing how different people react at the end of the world as they know it. I almost got lost in that sample. This book seems to be part of a series, and many on Goodreads are calling it a hidden gem. I will give it a try.
Keep:)
Picture from Goodreads
Descendant of the Crane by Joan He
This sure is a beautiful cover. It’s probably what made me add this book to my TBR in the first place. I might have grown a bit tired of Chinese mythology lately. But I’m sure I will be in the mood eventually.
Keep 🙂
Just like that I got rid of two out of five books on my TBR, and I feel so free. Do you guys ever re-assess your never ending TBR? Anything you would have kept or deleted from mine?
Last week I added: read Wuthering Heights, visit Paris, France, and own the Blood of Eden series to my list.
This week:
Go to BookCon
I was so sad I missed BookCon this year. It looked like a lot of fun and I have never been to one. It feels like something I would really enjoy. I need to gather a few of my bookworms friends and we need to plan a visit to one of these. Maybe next year.
Own the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series by Laini Taylor
I really loved all these books. I think her writing is close to hypnotic, but so realistic at the same time. Even though this world is full of magic, I felt like any day I could just encounter one of these doors and step into it myself.
Have dinner inside the Beauty and the Beast castle at Disney World
I have been to Disney World many times. It might sound cliché, but to me it is the happiest place on Earth. The scenery, the music, and the characters are all presented with great care and attention to detail. Even the employees are very well trained, and one of their main jobs is to make you smile. Even though I have been there many times, I have never dined inside the Beauty and the Beast castle, mostly because it’s so hard to get a reservation. Having just read A Curse do Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer made me a bit nostalgic for Beauty and the Beast. Now I want to go to the castle and “Be their Guest.”
Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year, Prince Rhen, the heir of Emberfall, thought he could be saved easily if a girl fell for him. But that was before he turned into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. Before he destroyed his castle, his family, and every last shred of hope.
Nothing has ever been easy for Harper. With her father long gone, her mother dying, and her brother constantly underestimating her because of her cerebral palsy, Harper learned to be tough enough to survive. When she tries to save a stranger on the streets of Washington, DC, she’s pulled into a magical world. (Synopsis from Goodreads)
Plot:
I found the plot to be fast paced and gripping, but without feeling too rushed. I’ve read a lot of fairy tale retellings, and this one was different enough to be entertaining yet it still kept many of the familiar concepts I associate with Beauty and the Beast. It included the beast (of course), a girl taken against her will, and an enchanted castle. I also thought the romance aspect of the story was very realistic, especially the fact that at a young age it’s hard to identify what love feels like.
The choices we face may not be the choices we want, but they are choices nonetheless.”
rhen
Characters:
Harper is the only character I have come across in the YA/Fantasy genre who suffers from cerebral palsy. She was strong and ferocious and did not let her disability hinder her in any way. She was also loyal, and so brave, albeit sometimes bordering on reckless.
Rhen, was a bit self-centered, but Harper helped him come out of his bubble of misery and made him understand that he was not the only one suffering. His people were suffering too, and he had the means to help them. I felt like Rhen’s character wasn’t as fully developed as Harper’s, and we were missing a lot of his background. I understand it was painful for him to talk about his past, but we needed a bit more to make him real.
Lastly, I want to talk about the villains. The enchantress, Lilith was scary, but not as scary as that queen from the other neighboring kingdom Karis Luran. I thought the fact that she was totally fine with burning innocent women and children alive was a lot more terrifying than the torture Lilith was willing to impart on our characters.
I’m always surprised to discover that when the world seems darkest, there exists the greatest opportunity for light.”
freya
The World building:
The world is called Emberfall, but apart from the castle, an Inn, and the surrounding woods we don’t get to see a whole lot of it. The castle is where the characters spend most of the their time and the author does a great job describing it in great detail. I just wish it had a giant Library 🙂
We also get a nice rendering of the bad neighbohood in Washington D.C where Harper is from, and her dingy apartment.
Overall:
This is a story about loyalty, bravery, and what it means to truly love someone. It was beautiful and enchanting. I would recommend it to all Fantasy readers and fairy tale lovers. I read it in two sittings because I could not put it down. I will definitely be reading the next book in the series “A Heart so Fierce and Broken” which will be out January 7, 2020.
This is a meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words where you answer three questions: What are you reading now? What did you just read? What will you be reading next?
My bookstagram
What I’m reading now
Lately, I’ve gotten in this habit of reading and listening to multiple books at a time. For now, it helps that they are all in different formats; I also read them in different places and times. Currently, I am reading the Shadow and Bone paperback by Leigh Bardugo, but I’ve only been reading it on my breaks at work. I’m listening to an audio book of The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiedvater, but only on my work commute and while doing shores around the house. Finally, I’m reading an e-book of Lifelike by Jay Kristoff on my down time at home while I watch the kids. Out of all these formats, real books are still my favorite.
I just read the hardback version of Daughter of the Pirate King by Levenseller, which was fun and entertaining but only a three star read for me. Also, I half read and half listened to One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake, the second book in the Three Dark Crowns series which was only a two star read for me. (read my mini reviews here).
I read the hardback version of A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer, which will definitely make my top ten reads this year (review coming soon). I also listened the Sky in the Deep audio book by Adrienne Young. This book was an amazing read with great world building and character development. You can read my full review here.
Picture from Goodreads
What I plan to read next
I really don’t know. My physical TBR has so many good potential reads on there that I don’t know what to pick. In the end I think it will come down to Iluminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff or Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi.
In Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young, we follow Eelyn’s journey, as she fights to uphold everything she has ever believed in amidst a changing reality. Eelyn is part of the Aska clan, who for generations has fought against the Riki clan, the feud said to have been started by the Gods themselves. Then, one day she sees her brother in the battle field, the brother she had thought to be dead, but instead he is fighting for the other side. This moment sparks a series of events which threaten to break the very fabric of their society, maybe for the better.
Adrienne Young paints a striking Viking-like world for us, a harsh place where only one thing is certain, you fight or you die. Her descriptions make everything come alive, especially the cold. I have never seen the snow, but Young makes it seem equal parts beautiful and terrifying. The mountain, the fjord, and the forest, are all described in great detail as well.
I was the ice on the river. The snow clinging onto the mountainside.”
sky in the deep
This story had great character development. The characters change gradually, and with good reason. I liked the romance aspect of it, mainly because it didn’t take over the whole plot, and it wasn’t “insta-love,” it developed slowly and realistically. I especially liked the father-daughter relationship between Eelyn and her dad. I’m glad I’m seeing more of these in my most recent YA/Fantasy reads. This story touched on all the things that make us family, and the fact that sometimes family is the people you choose and not the ones you are born to.
We find things, just as we lose things. If you’ve lost your honor, you’ll find it again.”
sky in the deep
The women in this book are strong, and many of them are leaders. The men worship their women, and fight to protect their people. I liked that both sexes are seen as warriors and providers. Unfortunately, even the children are encouraged to be strong in this harsh world which mostly leaves no place for innocence and growing up. It makes for some interesting children though, I especially liked Halvard, Fiske’s little brother. I heard her next book The Girl the Sea Gave Back is in part about him. I loved everything about this book, and I will definitely be reading anything else she writes.
As of today, my TBR is down to 63 books, because I automatically deleted the next one for the Three Dark Crowns series. I decided not to continue with the series after reading One Dark Crown and being highly disappointed. Once again, I ordered the books on my Goodreads TBR in reverse chronological order, and I took a look at the first five not counting the ones I’ve already decided to keep in other Mondays.
Picture from Goodreads
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
I bought this one on Mother’s day, and I cannot wait to read it. The sample I read was amazing, and it has great reviews on Goodreads. A lot of friends on my bookstagram recommended it as well.
Keep 🙂
Picture from Goodreads
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater
I’m so ashamed I still haven’t read this one. I’ve heard great things about it, and the sample I read was great. Now I just have to get to it.
Keep 🙂
Picture from Goodreads
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
“The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.” (Goodreads)
With a description beginning with that how can I not be intrigued?
Keep 🙂
Picture from Goodreads
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
The description of this book sounds a little like a fairy tale. The whole step-mother thing reminds me of Cinderella. I do love fairy tales, but this one doesn’t sound appealing.
Delete 😦
Picture from Goodreads
The Storm Crow by Kalyn Josephson
Let me start by saying that I hate this cover. It doesn’t have many reviews on Goodreads, which makes me think this was just another of those hyped up books. I also read the sample and it didn’t sound appealing.
Delete 😦
Have you read any of these? Would you keep or delete them?
When the cover for this book was announced I almost burst into tears. Let me tell you I am not usually a crier, but I had been waiting for this book for two years. Also, yellow is my favorite color, and look at how beautiful she looks. This book was the perfect ending to one of my favorite series. It gave each character and each sub-plot the closure they needed. It was amazing and I could not put it down.
Picture from Goodreads
Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi
All the covers for this series are gorgeous, but this one and the upcoming novella Reveal Me, are my favorites. I can’t wait to own all of these, so they can adorn my shelves. Currently, I only own Shatter Me, the first one in the series, which is one of my comfort books.
Picture from Goodreads
The Wicked King by Holly Black
This is one of those covers that you can’t fully appreciate until you read the book. I thought this book was absolutely amazing, and that ending! What a shocker. You can read my full review here. I can’t wait for the next book The Queen of Nothing, which is coming out November 19, 2019.
Picture from Goodreads
The Selection by Kiera Cass
I don’t usually like real people on book covers, but I made an exception for this one. The beautiful dresses on the covers make up for it. Reading these books was like watching the Bachelorette on television; fun and entertaining, but not life changing. It definitely does keep you guessing until the end.
Picture from Goodreads
The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon
This is one of my favorite stand alone books. The cover is unique and colorful, just like the story. I recently went to see the movie and I was very disappointed. I feel like the producers must not have read the book, and if they did, then they completely missed the message. For me this book was not only a love story, but a people story. A story depicting how we are all interconnected. How our actions, even the small ones, can shape and change the lives of others. Mostly, that we as individuals are not the center of the universe, and neither is the Sun.
What are some of your favorite book covers, and why?
Did I go a bit book-buying happy this month? Yes, I definitely did. I’m going to blame it in part to Mother’s day. Also, trying to complete some of my favorite series that I don’t own yet and finding a sale on Amazon. Finally, the fact that I subscribed to three different book subscription boxes so I can compare them might also have something to do with the amount of books sitting on my bookshelf right now. But mostly, books make me happy 😊
On Mother’s day I got:
📖 Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
📖 Illuminae by Amie Kaufman
📖 Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia
📖 Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
📖 To Best the Boys by Mary Weber
📖 A Curse so Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer (which I’m currently reading).
All of these I read samples of before I bought them, and they were all highly recommended by both my Bookstagram friends and my Goodreads friends.
I’m happy that I finally own all the Throne of Glass books by Sarah J. Maas, which was on my bookish bucket list. I also bought the first of the Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi, which is one of my comfort books, and the second one of the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series by Laini Taylor, which is another series I want to complete. All of these were on sale on Amazon for less than $8 and I could not resist.
I got We Hunt the Flame by Hafsah Faizal and Romanov by Nadine Brandes from my owlcrate and shelflovecrate boxes, along with some very nice book merchandize. I’m still waiting on my last box from faecrate so that I can do a comparison post for all three boxes.
I actually made a small dent on my physical TBR this month which I’m very proud of. I read a hardback of Daughter of the Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller, and half paperback/half audio of One Dark Throne by Kendare Blake (I did a mini review of these yesterday). Unfortunately, these were a three and a two star read respectively, which was sad since I’ve had such good luck lately with my books. It was bound to happen I guess.
When it comes to e-books and audio books, I read/heard:
Dee’s Reading Tree 