Month: March 2019

Categories
weekly meme

Sunday Post: March 31

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted at the Caffeinated Reader. It’s a chance to share news, recap the past week on your blog, and showcase books and things you’ve received. The rules are here: The Sunday Post.

This week, I signed up for NetGalley and got my first three ARCs:

I read and reviewed the first two:

Red, White, & Royal Blue review

Murder at Morrington Hall review

I’m currently reading Tiger Queen, and I have to admit, it’s a bit of a struggle. I like the main character, but the world is hard for me to get into. I hope that will change, because I really like the concept of the book.

I also finished reading Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo and reviewed it here.

On Sunday, I went the library to return a book and wound up getting three more books:

I think I’m going to try Eliza and her Monsters first. It’s about an introverted girl who has an online life with a wildly popular webcomic. As someone who was heavily invested in fandom, I gravitate towards stories about people who are fannish in some way.

My posts this week:

Book review: Hexhunter by Jordan L. Hawk

My Top 5 Favorite Quotes about Books

Top Ten Tuesday which was about audio books

WWW Wednesday

Book review: Murder at Morrington Hall

Music Shuffle Book Tag

Book review: Red, White, and Royal Blue

Book review: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

I also went to WonderCon where I went a little crazy with the 50% off trade paperbacks.

Well, crazy for me, at any rate.

On Friday I dressed up in my Star Trek dress I found at Forever 21 a few years ago

And Saturday, I was Spot Conlon from Newsies.

Brooklyn!

The panels I went to on Saturday were:

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund: Legacy of Censorship, which was about the history of the comics code and really facinating

The 4:30 movie: Disney week, which was a podcast where each panelist chooses a movie based on a theme. My sister and I suggested Newsies for one of them, it didn’t make the cut.

30th Anniversary: Back to the Future Part II

Fanbase Press: Watchmen 10th Anniversary, where I seemed to be the only person in the room who actually liked the movie

And then I caught the tail end of the Honest Trailers Plus Movie Fights panel.

The panels I went to on Sunday were:

Comic Book Legal Defense Fund: Women’s Activism, which was all about the influence women have had in the comic’s industry. It was really interesting and made me realize that I need to start reading more women-created comics.

Gay Geeks and Where to Find Them, which took a panel of LGBT content creators and they discussed how being gay has influenced their work and how they use it to help create diversity in the industry. This was a really great panel.

I also bought some art pieces. I got a gorgeous print featuring the characters from Captain America: the Winter Soldier and a Cap postcard. I also got a postcard of Will Graham from the TV show Hannibal. And then, I found two really beautiful Phantom of the Opera pieces, so now I have to start a Broadway wall of art in my room at home.

My upcoming week:

Monday will be a wrap-up of the last half of March

Tuesday: Top Ten Things that make me pick up a book

Book Review: The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

Currently Reading:

That was my week. It felt long, but it also went by way too quickly. Isn’t it strange how that can happen? How was your week?

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Uncategorized

Book Review: Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo

After successfully completing a dangerous heist, Kaz Brekker and his crew should be living high off their reward. Instead, they’re right back where they started: broke, demoralized, and fighting for their lives. With enemies on every side, the crew must once again band together to save one of their own and get what they deserve.

I liked this book a lot better than I did Six of Crows. Not that Six of Crows wasn’t good, but it was a big struggle for me. I wasn’t used to the world, the writing style took me some time to get used to, and the characters were hard for me to warm up to.

Crooked Kingdom, however, was like visiting old friends. The characters I struggled with the first time around were suddenly full of life, unique, and welcoming. I grew to love them, especially Nina and Inej. I rooted for each and every character, mourned their failures and took joy in their triumphs.

I also liked the plot. Like the first, everything is twisted and convoluted. I love that Kaz is always running not one game, but two or three. I enjoyed trying to predict if something was part of his plan or something that had truly gone wrong. While slow in the beginning, the plot picks up around the middle and had me on the edge of my seat. The ride was amazing and the ending was satisfying. I’m glad I didn’t skip Crooked Kingdom; it was the perfect end to the duology and one that made all my struggles with the ‘verse completely worth it.

Four out of five stars.

Categories
netgalley

Book Review: Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Alex Clarmont-Diaz is the First Son of the United States and he knows one thing for sure: he hates the Henry, the Prince of England. However, after a disastrous accident at the Royal wedding, he and Henry have to fake a friendship for the sake of international relations. Close proximity and near constant texting leads Alex to come around to the fact that Henry isn’t all bad… until his entire world is turned upside down after Henry kisses him on New Year’s Eve.

Now, while his mother is busying campaigning to be reelected to the White House, Alex finds himself rushing headlong into the most important relationship of his life. He and Henry have a lot to juggle with, neither being in a position to come out and not able to keep the other a total secret. When things spiral out of control, they have to ask themselves the most important question of all: is this relationship worth everything?

I loved this book. Both the character were immensely likable. It was set up as enemies to lovers, with Alex absolutely despising Henry in the beginning, and I loved his realization that his obsession wasn’t hate but attraction. I liked how ambitious he was and how he worked hard on his mothers campaign and at school.

I also really liked Henry. There was something so tragic about him. He was lonely and isolated and clearly in love with Henry but trying to hide it. He wanted to do what was best for his country, but he wanted to be true to himself as well. He was in a terrible situation and dealt with his beautiful.

I have to say that this was probably one of the most romantic books I’ve ever read. Some of the events in this were so romantic, I melted into a pile of mush. And I’m not a romantic person. But there are certain things that are guaranteed to melt my heart, and one of those things was prominent in this novel. The way the boys talk and write to each other, the thought they give to their words, the softness… it wasn’t just sweet, it was romance in it’s finest form.

I got this book from NetGalley and I cannot wait for it to come out on May 14 so I can purchase it. The characters are a delight, the plot is strong, and it’s one of the most genuinely romantic romances I’ve read.

Five out of Five stars.

Categories
book tag

Music Shuffle Book Tag

Today I am here to bring you the Music Shuffle Book Tag. This tag was created by Becca Leighanne (original post is here). The rules are simple: using your preferred source for music (iTunes, Spotify, etc), put the songs on shuffle. For each song, list a character, ship, or book that the song reminds you of. Do this for 5-10 books. You owe zero explanation for any of the songs you pair up, but you can explain if you want. It’s up to you.

Here are my ten songs:

I Touch Myself by the Divinyls

Daisy from Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

I love myself, I want you to love me
When I feel down, I want you above me
I search myself, I want you to find me
I forget myself, I want you to remind me

It’s a recent read, but as soon as this popped up, I thought of Daisy and her desire to be loved.

Who Will Sing Me Lullabies by Kate Rusby

Enne from Ace of Shades by Amanda Foody.

Lay me down gently, lay me down low,
I fear I am broken and won’t mend, I know.
One thing I ask when the stars light the skies,
Who now will sing me lullabies,
Oh who now will sing me lullabies.

In this big world I’m lonely, for I am but small,
Oh angels in heaven, don’t you care for me at all?
You heard my heart breaking for it rang through the skies,
So why don’t you sing me lullabies,
Oh why don’t you sing me lullabies.

Maybe Enne’s mother never actually sang her lullabies, but I can see Enne longing for it.

We Are the Champions by Queen

Kady, Hanna, Ezra, and Nik from The Illuminae Files.

We are the champions, my friends
And we’ll keep on fighting ’til the end
We are the champions
We are the champions
No time for losers
‘Cause we are the champions of the world

Eye of the Tiger by Survivor

Velvet Templeton from Velvet by Ed Brubaker.

Risin’ up, back on the street
Did my time, took my chances
Went the distance, now I’m back on my feet
Just a man and his will to survive

So many times, it happens too fast
You trade your passion for glory
Don’t lose your grip on the dreams of the past
You must fight just to keep them alive

She may be a woman, but Velvet “did her time” in the secretarial pool after a mission gone wrong, only to the thrust back into action.

The Prettiest Thing by Nora Ephron

A from Every Day by David Leviathan.

So why does it seem
Like a picture
Hanging up on someone else’s wall
Lately I just haven’t been myself at all
It’s heavy on my mind

A person who has lived their whole life living other people’s lives might sometimes feel the haven’t been themself at all.

Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl) by Looking Glass

Una from Ahab’s Wife-or The Star Gazer by Sena Jeter Naslund.

He came on a summer’s day
Bringin’ gifts from far away
But he made it clear he couldn’t stay
No harbor was his home

Ahab came, wooed her, then went back to the sea.

Thick as a Brick by Jethro Tull

Kaz Brekker from Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.

And the love that I feel is so far away:
I’m a bad dream that I just had today
And you shake your head
And said it’s a shame

I think Kaz is his own worst nightmare.

Waterloo by ABBA

Lord Courtenay and Julian Medlock from The Ruin of the Rake by Cat Sebastian

Waterloo I was defeated, you won the war
Waterloo promise to love you for ever more
Waterloo couldn’t escape if I wanted to
Waterloo knowing my fate is to be with you
Waterloo finally facing my Waterloo

You’ve got a confirmed rake on one hand, and an uptight, moral man on the other. When the come together, bam! They both lose the war and fall in love.

Friend is a Four Letter Word by Cake

Ben and Rafe from Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg

To me, coming from you
Friend is a four letter word
End is the only part of the word
That I heard
Call me morbid or absurd
But to me, coming from you
Friend is a four letter word

Rafe loves Ben, and Ben doesn’t even know Rafe is gay. This is a relationship doomed from the star.

Jolene by Dolly Parton

Eponine from Les Miserables

Your beauty is beyond compare
With flaming locks of auburn hair
With ivory skin and eyes of emerald green
Your smile is like a breath of spring
Your voice is soft like summer rain
And I cannot compete with you
Jolene

Because Eponine might as well have written this about Cosette.

I tag:

Lori @lorisbookshelfreads

The Caffeinated Reader @theverycaffeinatedreader,

Yvonne @yvonnekinsreads

Kerry @wingedanomaly261826784

Molly @mollyslittlecorner

I also tag whoever wants to do this tag! Leave a link down below if you do. I’d love to see what you come up with!

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Uncategorized

Book Review: Murder at Morrington Hall by Clara McKenna

I love it when a good mystery comes together… and this was a good mystery!

Stella Kendrick is an American heiress on holiday with her father. They are to attend the wedding of Viscount Lyndhurst. To her dismay, upon arriving, Stella finds out the mysterious bride is none other than herself! She’s immediately put off by the arrogant Lyndhurst, but things take a turn for the worse when she and “Lyndy” find the vicar who was to marry them dead in the library.

Now, everyone is a suspect as Stella and Lyndy work together to find who murdered the vicar. It seems almost everyone has a motive of some kind, and when other thefts and attacks happen, the stakes are raised. Can they solve the mystery? And will Stella ever learn the rules of etiquette she must to become the perfect bride? Does she even want to?

This was such a delightful book. Stella was a joy. She’s bright and vivacious. She’s confident and knows exactly who she is. Everyone around her, save for Lyndy, is perfectly horrible. Her father is an abusive boor, Lyndy’s mother is rude and haughty, and the guests are downright cruel. But Stella and Lyndy somehow rise above all that.

The mystery is quite good, too. I have to admit, I was kept guessing up until the very last. I thought I’d solved it, and then there was another twist. I love it when books can surprise me.

This was a good start to what looks to be a series of mysteries starring Stella and Lyndy. I look forward to reading more of their adventures.

Four out of five stars

Source NetGalley

Expected Publication Date: May 28, 2019

Categories
weekly meme

WWW Wednesday, March 27

It’s Wednesday once again. I’ve been blogging now for three weeks! I’m really loving being here and sharing my thoughts with you all. Thanks for joining in!

So, this meme is hosted by Sam at Taking on a World of Words. Each week, you answer three questions:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

What are you currently reading? I am currently reading Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. This is the second book I’ve been approved for on NetGalley and I’m so excited to read it! It’s about the son of the President of the United States who falls in love with the Prince of Wales. What could be better? While, I do have to admit, I was a little burned out on YA contemporary romances, this one has a twist that I think will keep me hooked.

I’m also listening to Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. I’m enjoying it, but I cannot tell if it’s a fantasy world or a dystopian future world. It’s about a world where people are divided by blood–red and silver, with silver blooded people being the elite. Mare is a Red, but she finds herself involved in a conspiracy to pass herself off as a Silver after discovering that, despite her blood, she has Silver-like powers. I felt it was a little slow to start, and it does remind me a lot of The Hunger Games in some ways, but I’m enjoying it.

What did you recently finish reading? I just finished Murder at Morrington Hall by Clara McKenna. It’s the first in a mystery series where Stella is an American heiress on holiday with her father in England. While there, she discovers, to her horror, that it’s not just a vacation, she’s betrothed to Viscount Lyndhurst. She’s determined to back out of the wedding, but things take a dangerous turn when she and the Viscount—“Lyndy” discover the vicar dead in the library. Now, they must band together to solve the mystery. I really liked this book. Most of the characters were horrible people and I wanted to strangle them, but I liked Stella and Lyndy a lot. I like the mystery, too, but it would have been easier to follow had not almost every minor character have a name starting with an “H”. Review to come.

What do you think you’ll read next? I went to the library over the weekend and got three books: Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco, The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater, and Eliza and Her Monsters by Francesca Zappia. I’m not sure which I’ll pick up first.

That’s my WWW Wednesday. What are you reading?

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Top 10 Tuesday weekly meme

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader. Each week, she posts a topic and you can make a list that fits that topic.

This week is an audio freebie, meaning it can be on any kind of audio. I’ve opted to go with my top audio books. I’ve only been listening to audio books since last spring, and I haven’t listened to a whole lot. These are my favorites of those I have.

This is probably my favorite audio book of all time. Katherine Kellgren is hilarious. Her pacing and intonation are delightful. I listen to books while I drive, and I was cracking up while listening to this book. She did a masterful job.

This was the first book I ever listened to, and it was really good. It has duel narrators for Elle and Darien, and I really liked how it was done.

This was a fun listen. I enjoyed hearing how the author went from being a binge-buyer to a minimalist. It gave me a lot to think about.

This one took me awhile to get into, but once I got used to the narrator, I highly enjoyed the story. I am highly anticipating the next one.

I really liked the narrator, Michael Crouch, on this one. I thought he did a great job.

So, I just have five favorite audio books. The rest have mostly been self-help books, and while I enjoyed listening to them, they weren’t favorites like these. Here are a few books I want to listen to:

I loved the book, and I heard the audio is amazing. I can’t wait to listen to it.

Again, I’ve heard nothing but praise for this full cast audio book.

I’m assuming it’ll be just as fun as Geekerella.

So, that is my top 5 audio books plus three I’m looking forward to listening to! What are some of your favorite audio books?

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Top 5

My Top 5 Favorite Quotes about Books

Here are some of my favorite quotes about books and reading. Some I’ve gotten from books, some form quote books, and others online. I hope they are all attributed correctly.

“Where is human nature so weak as in a bookstore?” – Henry Ward Beecher

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.” – Cicero

“Just the knowledge that a good book is waiting one at the end of a long day makes that day happier.” – Kathleen Norris

“No book is really worth reading at the age of 10 which is not equally (and often more) worth reading at the age of 50 and beyond.” – C.S. Lewis

“Fiction reveals truths that reality obscures.” – Jessamyn West

Those are my top 5 favorite quotes about reading. What are some of yours? Drop a comment below and let me know!

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Uncategorized

Book review: Hexhunter by Jordan L. Hawk

Bill Quigley, police detective and liaison to the Metropolitan Witch Police, has been in love with Isaac since Bill helped rescue the familiar from captivity over two years ago. Isaac is in love with Bill, but is convinced that he’s too broken and ruined to ever be someone Bill could love.

When a nun is murdered, and potential familiar children are revealed to be missing, the two come together to solve the case. Proximity brings long buried feelings to the surface, and the two men have to decide if they can continue to ignore it or succumb to their passion.

I was looking forward to this book so much, and I wasn’t disappointed. I love pining. I love unresolved sexual tension, and I love self-worth issues. I felt so bad for Isaac. Rejected by his witch and then abused by another, he believes that there is something fundamentally wrong with him and his magic. He loves Bill, but doesn’t want to taint him with Isaac’s spoiled magic. I love how patient and loving Bill was toward Isaac, even before they got together. He wants what’s best for Isaac, even if it’s only friendship.

There were several things I liked that happened in this book. Bill and Isaac had a unique relationship in some ways compared to the other couples. But this book was very romantic and sexy. I love this world and I’m so glad that Jordan L. Hawk is still exploring it.

Four out of five stars

(Does anyone know where to get clipart of four stars? I can’t find any.)

Categories
weekly meme

Sunday Post

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted here @ Caffeinated Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news~ A post to recap the past week on your blog and showcase books and things we have received. Share news about what is coming up on our blog for the week ahead.  See rules here: Sunday Post Meme

This week completed my first full week of blogging. I started this blog on a whim after a weekend of intense reading – seven books in four days, which, considering I usually average eight books a month, seemed like a lot. I decided I wanted to share what I was reading with the world through book reviews, memes, tags, and whatever else I catches my fancy. I think I’ve done a good job at being regular (I’ve posted every day), and I think my reviews are slowly improving.

Books I finished this week:

The low point of my week was not, as I expected, getting a tooth pulled, but the intense migraine triggered by the pain medication I took for it. That’ll teach me to stay away from prescription pain pills! The high point of my week was hanging out with my dad, who came to take care of me while I was recovering from being sedated.

My Posts:

March Mid-Month Wrap-up

Book Review: Heretics Anonymous by Katie Henry

Beauty and the Beast tag

WWW Wednesday

Book Review: A Duke in Disguise by Cat Sebastian

World Poetry Day: My Favorite Poems!

Most Anticipated Releases of Spring 2019

Book Review: Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Book Review: A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

My Upcoming Week:

Book Review: Hexhunter by Jordan L. Hawk

My Top 5 Favorite Quotes about Books

Music Shuffle Book Tag

Currently Reading:

And that was my week. Productive and busy, just the way I like it. How was your week?